Deadspin
It appears there is no more a dangerous threat at the ballpark than staircases or escalators. If 2001 was famously called the "Summer Of The Shark," after numerous Floridians smelling like chum or dressed in seal costumes were chomped, this 2008's TV news fear bait might be "Spring Of The Handrail."
Last night, another thrill-seeking fan at Turner Field trying to be all "Hey, look at me! I'm Mr. Cool Guy sliding down a handrail with no hands!" plummeted 150 feet to his death. The 25-year-old Georgia man also may have been drinking. Really.
Remember it was only about a month ago that 36-year-old Antonio Nararainsami also met the same fate after attempting to do a similar maneuver at Shea Stadium.
Yes, it's sad. But is this going to require all stadiums to post "No Handrail Sliding" signs with pictures of dismembered stick figures at the bottom of a stairwell in order to make this idiocy stop? Probably.
Comments
and somewhere Charles Darwin is smiling coyly..
There will be an autopsy to determine the exact cause of his death.
I'm no doctor, but I think the 150 foot fall may have had something to do with it.
The 25-year-old Georgia man also may have been drinking.
Re. Dun. Dant.
In order to show how cool you really are, I would suggest the safer alternative of banging on a jukebox cover to make it start and stop playing.
Shermans only mistake was stopping when he did.
Ballpark Accidents: Beware the psychological effects of watching the NY Mets
/Fixed
The Braves have so few fans coming to games as it is. They can't afford to lose one to idiocy.
@Master of Karate and Friendship: Nah, it was the landing that got him...
@Master of Karate and Friendship: It wasn't the fall so much as the landing.
The guy in the blue shirt and yellow tie is way too excited about this news.
So 26 people were pronounced dead at The Ted last night instead of 25.
We are six months away from the "parachutes mandatory" ordinance.
Signs? Screw that. This is natural selection at its finest.
I think he was just depressed about watching another Endy Chavez at-bat.
@Gus Johnson's Cardiologist: Bastard.
This man clearly forgot the trick to flying: To throw yourself at the ground and miss.
Being a Braves fan can't be that bad, can it?
/Mets fan in denial
@Pennington Noodlearm Enthusiast: That's the knack. ;)
/RIP, Douglas Adams
Does anyone know if Matt_T is okay?
@bteufel: I just drove cross-country, and Christian radio in Tennessee, Kansas and Nevada all told me that evolution is a great lie, perpetrated by the God-less heathens.
At least he wasn't tomahawk chopped to death.
I went to a Mets game in Philly right after the Shea incident, and they instituted a policy of one at a time on the escalators. Philly fans, while growing impatient, taunted Mets fans by yelling, "We wouldn't have to do this if fuckin' Mets fans knew how to operate the damn escalator."
It was rude at the time.
@UkraineNotWeak:
Let me re-phrase.
26 men show signs of no pulse as oppose to 25 as previously reported.
The Fulton County Medical Examiner's Office identifies the man as Justin Hayes of Cumming, Georgia. There will be an autopsy to determine the exact cause of his death.
Yup.
I like my deaths at stadiums to involve a lethal barrage of T-shirts, thank you very much.
Not pictured:
-Special "trash compactor" elevator
-Escalator to nowhere
The Braves organization believes that a "No Handrail Sliding" rule should be left up to the individual franchises without intereference from the tyrannical Selig.
/Calhouned/
Coors Field "Escalator of Doom" >> "Handrails de Morte"
and by ">>" I mean "inherently more funny because no one died"
I'm pretty sure the fine print of the ticket says "we are not responsible if you decide to be an idiot and fall 150 feet to your death."
If you are dumb enough to ride a handrail with the possibilty to fall 150 feet then you had it coming dumbass. That said I do feel bad for his family, but the world now has one less idiot.
I know this is sad and everything, but I must say the picture of that mustachioed gentleman on the KMPH 26 web site is amazing. Dan Dierdorf doppelganger?
The upside is that "sliding down an escalator handrail" was on his bucket list. Regrettably, "plunging to the earth and splattering his guts on the pavement" was not.
@GreatOdensRaven: were you at a baseball game or a 2nd grade field trip?
Nara...Narara...NOT GONNA LIVE HERE ANYMORE!
+ Watch video
Am I the only one that thinks would fit in perfectly with a Bud Light "Dude" commercial?
That's gold, Jerry! Gold!
wait...a guy from Georgia got hammered and did something really stupid? no guns were involved?
The legal department at the Croc shoe company wants everyone to know that they are not responsible.
Maybe he was trying to hurry home to catch the Spurs/Lakers game.
/NBA: Where Amazing Happens
It was a suicide. Guy didn't want to get stuck in traffic on the way home.
TOO SOON, AJ!
Oh, it was a Braves fan? Never mind.
I look forward to the MSNBC Special on "Handrails of Death" hosted by Ann Curry.
On the upside, if he had made it- he would have looked pretty cool.
@pr0FF3ss0r_j3rkwh3at: obviously he hasn't been taught to properly fear and respect that escalator.
@Jefferson Short Bus: From a Braves game?
@formerly Chief Wahoo: He marched to the sea, and then up to South Carolina...where do you propose he should have gone after?
/Historical Accuracied
@HockeyMountain: It was the Devil. The Devil always wins.
Nobody knows escalators like New York does.
This is why you don't ghostride the handrail.
@formerly Chief Wahoo: Incidentally, as you may know...Sherman was an Ohio native.
So - you have him to thank for the proud tradition of Ohioans setting things on fire. Cities, Rivers, couches, overturned cars in Columbus after a Buckeyes game, etc.
@The Gentleman Masher: He burned Atlanta, Savannah, & Columbia, but passed on taking down Charleston. So, he could have burnt the Low Country, at least.
The police are bringing in Pacman Jones for questioning. They do that for every suspicious death in Atlanta.
"Do you want to know my B.A.C. or do you want to see me slide down this handrail?"
If current trends continue, the Mets body count (2) will surpass their win count (22) by July.
@HockeyMountain: Mallrats ftw. +1
@pr0FF3ss0r_j3rkwh3at:
+ Watch video
/War of Northern Agression Threadjack/
I'm halfway through Team of Rivals and can't put it down.
/end threadjack/