Thrill Seeker: 15 Remarkable Women in Extreme Sports
11 Roberta Mancino Fly Like a Superhero Roberta Mancino zipped the arms of her wingsuit closed the thrill of what she was about to do causing her heart to beat faster In just a few moments she would be jumping from the helicopter in the specially designed suit that would allow her to glide horizontally the closest a human being could get to flying like a bird With fabric wings stretched between her arms and legs the increased surface area would allow her to soar for miles before having to deploy the parachute strapped to her back She adjusted her goggles next necessary to pro tect her eyes from the force of the wind along with the sul fur-laced smoke infusing the air below her Roberta was about to fly directly over an active volcano Villarrica is a classic cone-shaped mountain towering 9,341 feet 2,847 m above sea level in Chile When Roberta gazed at 2
Roberta Mancino it from the open door of the helicopter she noted that it was dotted with snow though the top opened to a pit of glowing orange lava If she could have measured its temperature she would have found that this molten rock was over 1,000 degrees Fahrenheit 540 C Not only that since it was active the col orful magma could spew upward at any time When Roberta first arrived in the country the locals told her that Villarrica had another name They called the volcano Rucapillán a Mapuche word for devil’s house Today’s flight would be historic Never before had anyone attempted to fly a wingsuit over Villarrica Never before had a woman flown over any active volcano Roberta’s bright red wingsuit was equipped with cameras She had one on her helmet along with another attached to the torso of her suit Her team had cameras too they didn’t want to miss recording a second The stunt was dangerous but Roberta and her team had planned meticulously like they always did first securing per mission from their host country and then calculating the many logistical issues that could affect the flight such as wind speed and altitude It would be a long glide too Roberta needed to get off the mountain and its lava fields and fly to a secure land ing area in the rocky plain below She had no reserve parachute with her there was no point By the time it was safe to land it would be too late to deploy a second chute Don’t fly too close one of the locals had advised her ear lier Hold your breath for a few seconds when you go over the top It was a reminder that the volcano was active and that the 3
Maximum Sky mountain was constantly discharging noxious gases and heat But Roberta and her team had lucked out So far the volcano was calm that day The weather conditions were perfect too Roberta stepped outside the helicopter and balanced for a moment on a narrow platform built over the wheel It was time She dropped into the air spreading her arms and legs to engage the wings of her suit With wrists bent she gripped the sides of the arm wings to keep them as rigid as possible The heart of the volcano roiled red and orange below her and tur bulence from the terrific heat gave her extra lift She was flying Roberta Mancino has received worldwide recognition as a model skydiver wingsuit flyer and BASE jumper BASE jump ing is taking off from a stationary object on earth rather than jumping from an airplane or helicopter Born on August 3 1980 Roberta grew up in Anzio Italy about 30 miles 48 km south of Rome along the coast She had an active childhood starting with dance classes at the age of four Her training in clas sical ballet and Latin American salsa helped her later when she participated in freestyle skydiving a subgenre of the sport that involves acrobatic maneuvers during free fall When she was 15 Roberta had her first boyfriend a boxer who introduced her to his gym There she tried boxing and kickboxing for the first time It was just what her energetic body craved Practicing for hours every day she earned a black belt in mixed martial arts 4
Roberta Mancino Roberta was swimming one day when a scout approached her and asked if she wanted to try modeling She said yes and participated in her first modeling gig at the age of 16 It was fun but it wasn’t enough Roberta continued to try different adventure sports such as scuba diving and paragliding At her modeling sessions the director would frown over the inevita ble bumps and bruises on Roberta’s body As the team covered the marks with makeup he admonished her No sports for two weeks before the next shoot But Roberta yearned for action and she wanted to experi ence all life had to offer the faster the better She set her sights on skydiving when two friends showed her some online vid eos They teased Roberta You’re too little You’re too young You had to be 18 to try it And Roberta’s mother had a message for the boys You’re not taking her skydiving But of course the moment she turned 18 Roberta signed up to go skydiving Her first jump was in Italy just outside Rome When she showed up there were only men in the course mostly from the military The system they were using was called a static line She would jump solo but there was a line connected to the airplane that would automatically pull open her parachute as it grew taut Of course I was scared Roberta recalled But I had waited so long I didn’t have the attitude that I was going to do this just once I knew I wanted to be a skydiver Roberta jumped From that moment she confirmed what she’d suspected all along She had found her passion Flying 5
