Daredevilry is nothing new when it comes to Niagara Falls. However, one daredevil holds a particularly impressive record: going over the falls not once but twice - and surviving both times. Meet Steve Trotter, a barman and adventure enthusiast who catapulted himself into the record books.
Trotter, originally from Rhode Island, had always been known for his penchant for extreme stunts. His journey towards his daredevil dreams at Niagara Falls started in 1985. Steve, at just 22-years-old, became the youngest person ever to go over the falls. His vessel was a self-made contraption, comprising two pickle barrels reinforced with fiberglass and filled with truck tire tubes. This death-defying plunge, though initially attracting negative attention from the police, later garnered him widespread recognition and a spot in the Guinness Book of World Records.
But once wasn't enough for Trotter. Despite facing legal trouble after his first feat, Trotter was not deterred. His second successful attempt to challenge the ferocious falls came in 1995, when he and a companion, Lori Martin, went over the falls in a barrel again, marking him as the first person ever to survive the falls twice.
Trotter and Martin's second stunt was considerably more high-tech. They used a contraption they called The TANK - a reinforced water heater adorned with video cameras and oxygen tanks to capture the plummet from the falls' crest. The daring duo spent forty-five minutes tumbling through the icy water of the Niagara River before emerging unharmed but frostbitten.
Today, Steve Trotter is retired from the thrill of tempting fate, though he did make headlines again in 2002, for attempting to swing on a cable from the Rhode Island Bridge in Florida, a stunt that ended with him serving 180 days in prison for trespassing. Despite this, Trotter maintains a record that speaks for itself: the only person to successfully take on Niagara Falls twice and come out the other side alive.
His feats remain one of the main tourist attractions at Niagara Falls, serving as testament to human audacity, courage, and daredevilry. The Niagara Daredevil Exhibit in Niagara Falls, Ontario, houses the actual barrel Trotter used for his 1995 plunge, preserving a part of his unique history for the awe and curiosity of future generations.
Though his escapades might seem extreme to some, having survived Niagara Falls twice Steve Trotter's story stands as a thrilling piece daredevil history and reminds us of the immense power and awe-striking beauty of the falls, a true natural wonder that continues to draw in millions of visitors from around the world every year.