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2 excess, Winter 2004/05 – website

January 2005

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Extreme Dreams

2excess magazine Winter, 2004/05

Blind and stupid is how Dean Dunbar (Deano) describes himself on his website Extreme Dreams. Amazing is how 2excess describes him! And no more stupid than the rest of us that embark upon some of the most dangerous sports in the world. Deano is an inspiration to us all that despite what life throws at us there is always fun to be had! Read on in disbelief?..
How did you get in to extreme sports? It all started with a tandem skydive. I was working at the local blind school and we needed a new camcorder. I had the idea of doing a tandem skydive and getting people to sponsor me. By the time I hit the ground I was hooked and I’d raised the money for the blind school.
What’s your greatest achievement? My biggest achievement, so far, is to be the person who introduced River Bugs (a cross between a white water raft and an armchair), to the Northern Hemisphere, from New Zealand. I brought 10 over, and sold 8 of these to Nae Limits, in Scotland, and kept 2 for Rhona and I to play with!!
Who’s the most inspiring person you’ve met? Eric Jones, the extreme sports pioneer! He’s amazing at 61+ base jumping off the angel falls! He inspires me and he’s a really nice guy.
Any sports you haven’t done? base jumping for obvious reasons, although I’d like to as well as street luge and kite surfing. When they invent a tandem base jump I’ll be first in the queue! Being registered blind, a lot of companies don’t want to take the risk with you
Does Rhona your wife have any fears for your safety? Yes she does. She also knows that she can’t say no as I’d do it anyway. She is very supportive of everything I do and she always accompanies me. Rhona is also a doctor, which makes me feel a lot more at ease in case anything did go wrong! Rhona and I do a lot of activities together particularly white water rafting and kayaking. Rhona’s also done a tandem skydive so she does understand my need for adrenaline buzzes.
Whats your favourite sport? I’d have to say mountain boarding, as it’s so versatile. All terrain, easy access and no need for that elusive snow!
Anything you wouldn’t do again? Helicopter Bungee. I was absolutely terrified, if it wasn’t for all the people on the ground I would have bottled it. Peer pressure! Never again!
What are your plans for the future? Hydro speeding, a bit of jungle trekking and the Heb Challenge in Scotland. 750km of swimming, running and mountain biking. Looking forward to that!
How did the website Extreme Dreams come about? It was basically to acknowledge and thank all the companies that let me embark on all these extreme sports. As mentioned earlier some companies don’t want to take the risk of having a blind man partaking in these sports and some companies after meeting me would let me have a go so it was a thank you to them. Over the years the website grown and grown with a complete history of pretty much everything I’ve done with some crazy pics to match!
With pretty much every extreme sport covered by this amazing man you have to wonder how much more is there left to do?, but with new adventures and challenges I’m sure there’ll be many more inspiring stories to tell, just watch this space?..

SPONSORS

These sponsors have been a tremendous help in supplying kit and support for my challenges.