WRAL’s Bill Leslie gives a thumbs up as he starts his 32-story descent.
Brandy Lail at the front desk probably said it best: “Watching you rappel down that building was both terrific and terrifying.” I wouldn’t call myself an adrenaline junkie but Over the Edge was right up there among the most exciting yet frightening things I’ve ever done.
After a clumsy start when my legs folded like an auditorium chair I was able to refocus and form the perfect “L” with my body and lean back into a hammock of air. I locked the speed control device in my left hand and waited for the show to begin.
The show was WRAL’s Noon News and the start of Elizabeth Gardner’s first weather segment. Elizabeth, who went Over the Edge in 2012, led the live questioning with Michelle Marsh and Lynda Loveland. My goal was simple: to project a calm and positive attitude to the ordeal that would take me 30 floors down the face of the Wells Fargo Building in Raleigh.
Other than a quick three-story practice rappel in September this was my first attempt at the sport. The advice that everyone gave me was “don’t look down.” And I didn’t. When I did get a little nervous I remembered how important this was. WRAL helped raise a record $200,000 for Special Olympics with 180 rappellers gliding down the glass and concrete over two days.
Our broadcast on Friday was truly a team effort. Tony Gupton led the engineering cause. Tony rarely makes a mistake. That’s because he thinks of everything that can go wrong and prepares for it. Tony had seen a similar network broadcast recently and noticed that the rappeller’s audio dropped out about half way down. Tony’s solution was for me to wear two microphones with one receiver at the top of the building and other at the bottom. It worked ! I also wore two different ear pieces – again, to duplicate my communication with the station.
The WRAL team included Keith Baker who rappelled down the building next to me. Keith sported a camera on his helmet to capture the thrill and occasional panic of a newsman out of his element. Up top Ed Wilson manned his camera and Tony Patterson provided engineering assistance. The street level camera was manned by Tom Normanly. Tony Gupton orchestrated Over the Edge in a truck on Fayetteville Street. We also used a tall camera position back at the station to show a tiny silhouette of Keith and me rappelling. Everything worked to perfection.
If there was a hitch it was my sense of timing. I actually rappelled too fast for broadcast purposes. We started the trip down with the first weather report in WRAL’s Noon News and the goal was the end in the weather during the second half hour. I was zipping down at a rate of about three floors per minute. Producer Miriam Melvin asked me to slow down. So I stopped for two five minute rests and waved at the people inside Wells Fargo Building.
The end was sweet. On the 12th floor I could hear the sweet sounds from Wide Open Bluegrass. By floor five I could smell some delicious food cooking on the street and then came the thunderous cheers of the crowd gathered at the bottom. My wife, Cindy, rushed to give me a passionate kiss when I hit the ground. I was escorted to a podium where Keith Baker and I accepted our medals for making the descent.
My immediate thought was I wouldn’t mind doing this again or something else like this. Two days later I received a call from the Golden Knights asking me if I’d like to jump out of an airplane with the US Army’s crack parachute team. I told them: “You bet I would!”
WRAL-TV Anchor Bill Leslie participated in the Over the Edge fundraiser for Special Olympics NC on Friday, October 3, 2014.
Thanks to WRAL-TV’s Bill Leslie for this capcom story and to Bob Ayers & Megan O’Donnell for these capcom photos.
A volunteer helps WRAL’s Bill Leslie get all his safety gear secured for his ‘Over the Edge’ rappel.
WRAL’s Keith Baker gets ready to do double duty rappelling and capturing Bill Leslie on camera.
WRAL’s Bill Leslie gets ready to go “Over the Edge.”
WRAL’s Bill Leslie gets ready to go “Over the Edge” as WRAL’s Ed Wilson captures him on camera.
WRAL’s Bill Leslie goes “Over the Edge” for NC Special Olympics.
WRAL’s Bill Leslie starts his 32-story descent.
WRAL’s Keith Baker gets ready to go “Over the Edge.”
WRAL’s Keith Baker goes over the edge.
WRAL’s Bill Leslie gets ready to go “Over the Edge.”
WRAL’s Keith Baker carries his camera on his helmet.
WRAL’s Bill Leslie gives a thumbs up as he starts his 32-story descent.
WRAL’s Bill Leslie literally going over the edge.
WRAL’S Bill Leslie (left) and WRAL’s Keith Baker rappel down the Wells Fargo building as WRAL’s Ed Wlison captures them from above.
WRAL’s Bill Leslie (right) makes his way down the Wells Fargo building as WRAL’s Keith Baker captures the action on camera.
WRAL’s Ed Wilson captures the action from the top of the Wells Fargo Building.
WRAL.com live-streamed Leslie’s “Over the Edge” experience while the WRAL Noon News showed live shots throughout the newscast.
WRAL’s Keith Baker (right) tries some acrobatics to get the right camera angle to capture WRAL’s Bill Leslie for the noon news.
WRAL’s Bill Leslie makes his way down the Wells Fargo building.
WRAL’s Bill Leslie is relieved to have made it safely to the ground.
WRAL’s Bill Leslie is happy as his feet hit solid ground.
WRAL’s Bill Leslie finishes his descent with a nod towards WRAL’s Tom Normanly who has been capturing the action from the ground.
WRAL’s Bill Leslie gets a big kiss from his wife, Cindy, after he makes it safely to the ground.
A happy Bill Leslie poses with two Special Olympians after his “Over the Edge” climb is done.
WRAL’s Bill Leslie is all smiles after he finishes his “Over the Edge” rappel.
WRAL’s Keith Baker poses with two Special Olympians after his “Over the Edge” descent.
WRAL’s Bill Leslie poses with two Special Olympians after his “Over the Edge” descent.
WRAL’s Keith Baker poses with two Special Olympians after his “Over the Edge” descent.
