I can't bear the thought of my mother having to push me around in a wheelchair. I'd rather die quickly.

You have seen on TV how hard it is to go up 129,000 feet and how hard it is to come down.

Well, to me, my past accomplishments weren't crazy. They required a lot of skill and careful planning.

I started skydiving because I loved the idea of freedom.

I base jumped off the Jesus statue in Rio de Janeiro.

That spin became so violent, it was hard to know how to get out of it. I was able to get it under control and break the speed of sound...I could feel myself break the speed of sound. I could feel the air building up and then I hit it.

If you want to do something extraordinary, there's always risk involved. I was always willing to take that risk.