360° Wingwalker - Part 1 | National Geographic

[Music] [Music] For me, when walking is about the ultimate freedom. Once you've tasted that type of freedom, I mean, you just can't ever go back. It is absolutely liberating. But if you mess up even a little bit, it's all over. You'll have to be responsible for everything you do and everything you know. Extreme responsibility is also the only way that you get to freedom; they go together. There are two different sides to the same coin.

[Music] When I get ready to fly at an air show, I kind of go into this mode where I kind of do this Jekyll-Hyde thing. All of a sudden, I'm Carol, and then all of a sudden I'm Carol, but I'm closed. I don't become somebody else; I'm still the same me. I just become simplified. I stop thinking about everything else—my rental car, my taxes—it's ancient history. I just close down doors on my life. The only thing I am concerned about is what I have to do. It's time to go, and when it's go time, everything else needs to stay on the ground. It's something that most airshow performers have to do in order to survive what they're about to do.

I get nervous. I get a little frantic. I have a little too much energy; you start getting a little adrenaline going. [Music] You know, it's kind of like a pony in a gate getting ready to run. It knows it's gonna run, and it wants to run; it's just waiting for the gate to open. I think I actually psych myself into that state. [Music] The nervous energy comes with me right up onto the airplane, and I use it. I use it with a vengeance. You have to harness it, and it's what allows you to actually get through the routine. Make no mistake, it's physically harrowing out there, so it gets used up. [Music] [Music] You.