Our world is not the Marvel or DC Universe. Spiderman can’t come swooping down to save our universe. The Flash cannot save us all from metahumans. But, while our world may not be full of the superheroes, there are some humans that come pretty close to super. Here are seven people that might as well be Superman.
Surviving Freezing Temperatures
Wim Hof is a Dutch adventurer and Daredevil. His nickname is the “Ice Man”. Wondering why? He ran an Arctic Marathon at minus 20 Fahrenheit, and shirtless while doing so. He also holds the world record for being submerged in ice, for one hour and 44 minutes.
In 2007, this man was able to survive 72 minutes outdoors at the North Pole wearing nothing but shorts! He says that apparently, he can control his body temperature using the Tantric practice of Tummo. This is a practice that Yogi monks do in Tibet, and the practice involves focusing on the bodies energies and turning them into heat. Maybe the practice works, or maybe he’s just built up some crazy level of tolerance. Either way, the nickname “Ice Man” makes a lot more sense now. 📷
Balancing a Car
So, you’ve heard the stories of lifting SUVs,his guy puts these stories to shame. John Evans (who is 6’6 and 343 pounds British man) can balance a mini car (342 pounds) on top of his head! He can balance this mini car for 33 seconds without even using his hands!
Evans calls himself a professional head balancer and has already broken 25 Guinness World Record Categories. He’s previously balanced motorcycles, boats, washing machines, and people, but the car is by far the heaviest. Evans gives all the credit to his neck, which is an astonishing width of 24 inches! He gives his neck all the credit. 📷
Lifting a Car
We can’t all balance cars on our head, but Chris Hickman can lift them in a scene of an emergency. In 2008, he came to the scene of a car crash. He was a normal firefighter from Florida, and an older model of a Chevrolet Blazer had flipped onto its side, pinning its driver’s arm between the vehicle and the pavement. Hickman lifted the SUV about 12 inches off of the ground, while the other firefighters he was working with rescued the trapped driver. Below, you can see him receiving the award for saving this man’s life.📷
Twisting Metal
Sakinat Khanapiyeva is a Guinness World Record holder, and the strongest Grandma to ever exist. She is 76 years old, and from Dagestan, Russia. She can lift a 52-pound dumb-bell, break horseshoes, and twist 2-inch steel rods. She first discovered her strength back when she was only ten years old, when she was able to move a 661-pound container of grain. That’s equivalent to the weight of four grown men! She’s been strong ever since. 📷
50 Marathons in 50 Days
Los Angeles native Dean Karnazes called this event the 50/50/50. He ran 50 marathons in 50 days in 50 U.S. consecutive states. He began with the Lewis & Clark Marathon in St. Louis on September 17, 2006, and finished with the New York City Marathon on November 5.
He also ran 135 miles nonstop across Death Valley in the Mojave Desert, with temperatures reaching 120 degrees! He then ran a marathon in the South Pole at minus 40 degrees. He has claimed that it does hurt, but he always keeps going. 📷
Scaling Buildings
So, maybe we do have our version of Spider-Man… Alain Robert has climbed most of the tallest skyscrapers in the world without a rope, or any sort of climbing equipment. With only his hands and climbing shoes, he scales buildings such as the Eiffel Tower, Sydney Opera House, and the Sears Tower. More than once he has actually been arrested for wearing a Spider-Man suit while committing this climbs. He was actually arrested and expelled from China by doing so.
Many of his climbs last for over an hour, with no chance to rest until the top. He says that his training, physical conditioning, and technique allow him this chance to climb. 📷
Surviving a Lightning Strike
This one’s insane. Between the ages of 30 and 65, Roy Cleveland Sullivan was struck by lightning seven times and survived them all. During this time, Sullivan was struck by lightning once every five years. The average person’s odds are one in 750,000. He increased his chances by working at the Shenandoah National Park in Virginia, which averages 35 to 45 thunderstorm days per year.
He was nicknamed the “Human Lightning Rod” and the “Lightning Conductor”. He died in 1938 at 71, but not of lightning, but from a self-inflicted gunshot wound.📷
While we may not have the heroes we see on the big screen and read in the comic books, we do have our own version of people with superpowers. These were seven people with their own insane superpowers.
https://dutchreview.com/culture/dutchness/have-you-heard-of-the-iceman-wim-hof/
https://www.neatorama.com/2014/01/23/Watch-This-Man-Balance-a-Car-on-His-Head-for-33-Seconds/
https://www.ocala.com/article/LK/20080703/News/604238012/OS/
http://sputnikimages.com/story/list_53714/
http://www.ultramarathonman.com/web/about/bio.shtml
http://www.alainrobert.com
http://mentalfloss.com/article/66863/meet-man-struck-lightning-7-times