Illusionist and daredevil David Blaine began a 60-hour stint on September 22 hanging upside down over New York's Central Park. Blaine, 35, was hoisted by his heels over the park's Wollmann ice rink, and will stay there, dangling from a wire, until late on September 24. Reports claim the magician looks at ease while dangling upside down, attached at the torso and at two steel clips linking his boots to the wire. The trick is inspired by Blaine's great hero Harry Houdini who amazed New York crowds by hanging upside down from skyscrapers and cranes. Blaine has set his goal at 60-hours, which professionals have expressed concerned about the effect of stress on Blaine’s internal organs and blood circulation. Hanging upside down for a long time increases blood pressure in the head, especially in the eyes, this could lead to blindness. He is not eating, but is taking liquid through a straw, and is able to urinate through a catheter. He regularly frees one leg, so that he is hanging only by the other, then uses that limb to help rebalance, briefly raising his head a little nearer to a horizontal position. “This is the most difficult for sure. The others, you could get into them soon after the start, but this one is tough from the get-go,” Blaine said after being lowered to head level for an interview.
