See the first minute of the special below.
ET on ABC, he truly turns up the heat.
Wallenda will attempt to cross an 1,800-foot wire that is one-inch thick over the active Masaya Volcano in Nicaragua.
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ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY: I guess my first question is: What the hell are you thinking, man?
What appealed to you about walking over a volcano?
A lot of people would say volcano, but you said volcayes.
Its all about what can I do next that will impress my family.
If I can impress my family, then everybody else will sort of fall into line.
How do you train for something like this?
Nik Wallenda doesnt do anything half-assed.
Theres actually two lakes of 2,000-plus-degree magma constantly flowing.
Sounds like the roar of ocean if youre sitting on the beach.
And the gasses can be so thick that you cant see five feet in front of you.
You have a practice facility in Florida, where youve been intensely training for six months.
Do you have assistants aiming hairdryers at you and throwing buckets of boiling water and bird poop at you?
I think the birds have issues locating gas masks that will fit them.
What do you think will pose the biggest danger on this walk?
Will you be carrying the mask and goggles on you in case you need them?
How much of a disadvantage does that put you at?
Well, its all part of my training.
So, less oxygen, for sure, as well as limited vision.
The mask is in my peripheral vision, so therefore it gets in the way as Im walking.
Its just an added distraction certainly something that I dont plan on doing anytime after this.
Although I dont see myself walking over any more volcanoes anytime soon.
What conditions could creep up on Wednesday night that would prompt you to call off the event?
Say, for example,an eruption?
Well, eruption would certainly be one of those things.
Theres no walking a wire in full volcanic eruption.
Was there a danger you hadnt considered until a volcanologist pointed out to you?
The wire deterioration those acids are eating through the wire quicker than expected.
So you couldn’t set it up too much in advance of the walk.
We did, and weve had some issues with the stabilization cables failing.
ABC is making you wear a safety tether.
You didnt want to wear one on the Niagara Falls walk either, but you ultimately relented.
Can you help us resolve that inner conflict?
What I would tell you is the unique aspect of this volcano is the gasses are literally deadly.
And then I would most likely run out of oxygen.
So a tether in reality would prolong my life.
Thats a personal thing.
So it’s possible for you to never make everybody happy.
Ive just learned that ABC pays my bills and those naysayers dont, so it is what it is.
You crossed Niagara Falls in 26 minutes.
Whats your best guess on this one?
Yeah, I would guess between 20 and 30.
I mean, thats a long window.
Depends on how thick and how bad the environment is out there.
Thats not something that comes to my mind.
I dont even consider that an issue.
Your mom (Delilah Wallenda) makes the special shoes that you use on the wire.
Are these special shoes specialspecialshoes and they’re volcano-proofed, as much as something can be volcano-proofed?
Theres got to be something that youre afraid of that balances out your stunning lack of fear of heights.
(Erendira Wallenda will do an aerial performance over the volcano at the beginning of the show.)
Is there anything we should or should not do from our living rooms?
I want you to watch, because so many people dont watch my specials.
Who puts himself in more danger and is more likely to die you orAlex Honnold?
Look, the reality is, we have huge admiration [for each other].
I think hes amazing, and my palms sweat watching him.
And I will tell you, his palms sweat watching me walk across the Grand Canyon.
Whats the most random thought youve ever had on one of these death-defying walks?
“What the hell am I doing up here?”
How drunk could you be and still easily pass the walk-in-a-straight-line sobriety test?
Umm, I have not given that a lot of thought.
Maybe Flamin' Hot Cheetos.
Where do you go from here besides into therapy?
How do you top this?
To be honest, my career is not about topping myself.
Everything Ive done, the reality is, its just as risky.
So to me, its more about parallels, and I have a long, long bucket list.
I dont mean that literally.
I think were good, man.
