81 year old thrill seeker goes bungee jumping in Queenstown

While most of us were probably enjoying our first coffee of the day, eighty-one-year-old thrill seeker Duncan O’Brien was preparing to launch himself into a canyon with Shotover Canyon Swing in Queenstown on Friday morning.

Proving that age is no barrier, Mr O’Brien from Denver in Colorado made sure he wasn’t going to miss out on the best experience in New Zealand (as recently voted by 11,000 backpackers at the Golden Backpack awards) during his two week tour of the country.

The brave American’s jumpstyle of choice was the ‘Forwards Jump’ which entails standing on the edge of a very high platform and jumping or diving into the Shotover Canyon at speed.

"They're not kidding about needing a change of under-clothing - great stuff!” said Mr O’Brien shortly after his canyon rush.

Shotover Canyon Swing General Manager Matt Hollyer said it was a privilege hosting Mr O’Brien.

“He would have to be one of the oldest customers we’ve had and one of the tallest too – he was well over six foot three! The crew loved looking after him and were inspired by his zest for life and courage.”

For more information, log on to Canyonswing.co.nz.