Felix Baumgartner quotes:

As a little kid, I climbed a lot of trees because I always loved the bird's-eye view.

One of the most exciting moments was standing out on top of the world, 30 seconds before stepping off.

That spin became so violent, it was hard to know how to get out of it. I was able to get it under control and break the speed of sound...I could feel myself break the speed of sound. I could feel the air building up and then I hit it.

If the Wright brothers hadn't put their lives on the line, we would not be flying around the world these days. So we need pioneers.

I base jumped off the Jesus statue in Rio de Janeiro.

Let me tell you - when I was standing there on top of the world, you become so humble. You don't think about breaking records anymore, you don't think about gaining scientific data - the only thing that you want is to come back alive.

To jump and break the sound barrier will not be a mere record breaking experience or another extreme event that ends once the mission is accomplished.

Aviation - and space travel, in particular - have always been especially captivating.

This claustrophobia was the only weakness I had. It's not my fault. It's just in my mind.

When you stand up there on top of the world, you become so humble,

Of course my life has changed because now everybody knows who Felix Baumgartner is.

Extreme sport has only ever been about goals and the ways to achieve these goals. Adrenaline plays a part, but it's never in the foreground.

I was crossing the English Channel with a carbon-fiber wing on my back."

I was crossing the English Channel with a carbon-fiber wing on my back.

I once wanted to be a stuntman. I was constantly on the front pages when I was a base jumper. But if I were a stuntman, my name would only appear right at the end of the closing credits, even though I'd risked my life for others.

I started skydiving because I loved the idea of freedom.

Well, to me, my past accomplishments weren't crazy. They required a lot of skill and careful planning.

I don't like to rate myself; others can do that. I've spoken with a number of young people who weren't even born in 1969, when the first moon landing was made. They've witnessed the first person to fly at faster than speed of the sound without propulsion. These kids are happy to have had such a momentous event in their lifetime.

Heroes don't wear diapers. It's just not cool.

I always had the dream of flying, and the cheapest way is to become a skydiver.

I have a lot of fears that normal people have.

I'm retired from the daredevil business.

I started skydiving because I loved the idea of freedom

People are fascinated about the world above them because it seems so out-of-reach. My jump gave them an opportunity to come along for the ride. They could watch live on their screens how someone rises all the way up into the stratosphere.

I've done a lot of things in a business where you're lucky to stay alive, so when the time comes, I'll be happy to pass my knowledge along and help someone else.

I know the whole world is watching now. And I wish the world could see what I can see. Sometimes you have to get up really high to understand how small you really are. I'm going home now.

The stratosphere is a hostile place.

I base jumped off one of the highest buildings in the world.

Sometimes you have to go up really high to understand how small you really are.

I can't bear the thought of my mother having to push me around in a wheelchair. I'd rather die quickly.

At a certain R.P.M., there's only one way for blood to leave your body, and that's through your eyeballs. That means you're dead.

I'm 100 percent sure I'm becoming a really good helicopter pilot.

People should decide 'are you willing to spend all this money to go to Mars?' I think the average person on the ground would never spend that amount of money - they have to spend it on something that makes sense and this is definitely saving our planet.

People are fascinated about the world above them because it seems so out-of-reach.

Sometimes you have to go up really high to see how small you are.

Never accept your limitations - because there are NO limitations.

The only limit is the one you set yourself.

Everyone has limits. Not everyone accepts them.

If you want to do something extraordinary, there's always risk involved. I was always willing to take that risk.

Don't live life as a spectator.

If I do something, it's always 90% obvious and 10% unknown.

Normally, when I skydive, even in winter, I wear very thin gloves. I want to be flexible, with fast reactions.

Learn to love what you've been taught to fear.

It feels great to be on top of the world but the greatest feeling is when your feet are on the ground.

We want to push mankind's boundaries out a little further.

If something goes wrong, the only thing that might help you is God.

I want to inspire the next generation. I want to be in mission control with someone younger than me wanting to break my record.

When I was standing there on top of the world, you become so humble, you do not think about breaking records anymore, you do not think about gaining scientific data. The only thing you want is to come back alive

The only thing you want is to come back alive.

You have seen on TV how hard it is to go up 129,000 feet and how hard it is to come down.

Well, I jumped for the first time when I was 16. I just loved it and immediately realized that it was what I wanted to do.

Engage your life with enthusiasm; grasp your life aggressively and squeeze from it every drop of excitement, satisfaction, and joy.

I love a challenge, and trying to become the first person to break the speed of sound in freefall is a challenge like no other.

They call me Fearless Felix.

I always feel the danger because you might always be subject to an unexpected or emergency event.

I don't like to rate myself; others can do that.

I feel comfortable with what I do and I guess that my girlfriend feels the same.

I had to work with a psychiatrist.

I'm now a member of a pretty small club.

I'm more a competitive person.

I want to find a nice decent job as a helicopter pilot.

I like to challenge myself.

I have no privacy anymore.

I would've never dreamt that my skydive would trigger such gushing enthusiasm. I still don't really understand exactly what I've accomplished, although I always suspected it would be a truly spectacular moment.

I feel at home up in the air, just like sailors do at sea and climbers do in the mountains.

I'm not an adrenaline junkie. It's never been about thrills for me. I'm just someone who loves a challenge.