If bleeding-edge BASE jumpers are brave today, then good luck finding a word to describe parachute testers in the 1930s.

This daredevil of yore might not jump from 20,000 feet or entrust in nylon between his arms to glide over the horizon, but he takes a real leap of fait here. Miles Daisher and Jeb Corliss, by comparison, have history on their side, not to mention science.

This jump, the “safer” method of testing a new parachute as the narrator says, seems more guess-and-jump than calculate and test. The parachutist pays the price, ricocheting off the cliff face like a rag doll before hitting the ground and crawling to his feet. We’re not convinced this dramatized account is exactly free of camera tricks. Hopefully, he’s alright.

It’s just another day in the life of a Depression Era parachute tester. If you’re jumping off cliffs or out of planes today, you now know who to thank.