The “King of the High Wire” – Nik Wallenda – will stage a Daredevil Rally Drive-in Thrill Show at Nathan Benderson Park the weekends of June 5-7 and June 11-14.
Presented by the Fran Haasch Law Group and Tri County Air, the shows will feature Wallenda and his wife, Erendira Wallenda, as well as internationally renowned daredevil performers to include FMX freestyle jumpers, BMX riders, motorcycles in a steel globe, a wheel of steel and a human cannonball.
Show times are as follows – Friday, June 5, 6:30 p.m.; Saturday, June 6, 2:30 p.m. and 6:30 p.m.; Sunday, June 7, 1 p.m. and 5 p.m.; Thursday, June 11, 6:30 p.m.; Friday, June 12, 6:30 p.m.; Saturday, June 13, 2:30 p.m. and 6:30 p.m.; and Sunday, June 14, 1 p.m. and 5 p.m.
Erendira Wallenda, a two-time Guinness World Record holder for aerial stunts, performed during her husband’s last TV special over the Masaya Volcano in Nicaragua.
David “The Bullet” Smith is heir to the throne of being the world’s most accomplished Human Cannonball. As a second-generation cannonball, he is carrying on a great family tradition of being the highest and farthest flying cannonball of all time. He is currently the Guinness World Record holder having six titles to his name.
The FMX freestyle jumpers, as seen on the X Games, Dew Tour and Nitro Circus, are some of the top action sports athletes in the world. They defy gravity and jump their dirt bikes over 75 feet through the air ramp to ramp.
“We wanted to provide quality family entertainment during what has been a tough time for our nation and the world,” said Wallenda, who is self-producing for the first time in his career. “After touring the globe, I’ve made friends with some of the greatest daredevils of our time. For this special performance, I’ve invited all of them to unite together in one place. I wanted my hometown of Sarasota to experience a show like nothing that’s ever been seen before.”
The viewing option will be similar to that of a drive-in movie – from the comfort of a vehicle. Tickets may be purchased at www.daredevilrally.com and a share of the proceeds generated will benefit All Faiths Food Bank. Attendees can get $1 off their ticket price for every can of non-perishable food brought to the event (a maximum of $5 off).
“Quite obviously, given what’s happening with the pandemic crisis, we also want this to be a safe event. To that end, we’ll even be applying social distancing as it relates to vehicle placement in the park,” added Wallenda.
With 11 Guinness World Records and a list of never before seen death defying feats, Wallenda has performed live in every state in the USA and all over the world. He has garnered the support from tens of millions of live viewers in network television specials on ABC, The Discovery Channel and others.
From crossing the Grand Canyon and Niagara Falls to walking blindfolded between two towers in Chicago, he personifies the Wallenda Family legacy of “Never Giving Up” and has time and time again proven that “Fear is a Liar.”
Wallenda was “performing” on a high wire before he was born; his mother, Delilah Wallenda, was still walking the high wire while six months pregnant with him. While he began walking the wire in 1981, he was not permitted to perform professionally on a high wire until age 13. In 2001, he set his first world record in Kurashiki, Japan for the four-layer, eight-person pyramid on a high wire.
In March, Wallenda walked 1,800 feet on a steel cable over the still active Masaya Volcano in Nicaragua live on ABC, which was his longest walk.
Nathan Benderson Park, located at 5851 Nathan Benderson Circle in Sarasota, is accessible from either direction on I-75:
From Tampa/St. Petersburg/Bradenton:
Take I-75 south to exit 213, University Parkway. Head west on University Parkway, turn left onto N. Cattlemen Road.
From Port Charlotte/Venice/Fort Myers:
Take I-75 north to exit 210 FL-780/Fruitville Road. Head west on Fruitville Road, then turn right onto N. Cattlemen Road.
About Suncoast Aquatic Nature Center Associates Inc.
Suncoast Aquatic Nature Center Associates Inc. (SANCA) is a not-for-profit 501c3 business created to manage Nathan Benderson Park (NBP), a community/public asset and world-class multi-use sports venue. Our mission is to improve the quality of life for our community and be an economic generator for our region. SANCA’s primary purpose is to develop and promote NBP as an event center, team training site and Sarasota County park, while providing outreach programs through recreation, safety training, education and volunteering as a service to our community. For more information, go to nathanbendersonpark.org/about-us/sanca-mission.
