CALHOUN COUNTY-- The man that became famous for walking a tightrope across Niagara Falls and crossing blindfolded between skyscrapers in Chicago took center stage, eight stories in the air for the grand opening of the new FireKeepers Hotel Casino.
Nik Wallenda, also known as “King of the High Wire” came to Battle Creek on Monday, Aug. 16, for the grand opening of FireKeepers newest expansion. The casino, operated by the Nottawaseppi Huron Band of the Potawatomi, opened the new eight-story tower. Construction for the 203-room hotel started in June 2019.
FireKeepers CEO, Kathy George, and others took the stage for speeches and a ribbon cutting ceremony. Around 5:45 p.m. it was showtime for Wallenda as thousands looked 200 feet in the air.
The daredevil stepped off the ledge from the original FireKeepers tower as he began the nearly 450 foot crossing to the new tower. With his balancing bar in hand, Wallenda answered questions from FireKeepers Vice President of Marketing, Jim Wise.
As Wallenda reached the 85% completion point, Wise asked “Has it been what you expected?”
“All that and more-- One of the things people don’t realize is this is my passion, this is truly what I was made for, it’s what I love doing. And I do it to inspire others that nothing is impossible,” Wallenda said to the crowd below.
Wallenda is a 7th-generation member of The Flying Wallendas family and holds 11 Guinness World Records. His last live television stunt was in March of 2020 when he crossed the Masaya Volcano in Nicaragua, marking his longest stunt in terms of time on the wire.
“I want to encourage you, don’t accept those negative thoughts, in your mind, but counter them with something positive... learn to control your inner dialogue. We are faced with this wild pandemic, there are so many unknowns. There are so many people struggling right now, but I encourage you to remain positive. Great things come from a positive mindset,” Wallenda said as he neared the second tower.
In total, the harness and net free crossing took about 10 minutes.
Afterward, the audience was given to take a chance to take a self-tour of the 39,000 square-foot main floor.
The new expansion was designed by JCJ Architecture, of Hartford, Conn., and constructed by Clark Construction Co. of Lansing.
You can watch Nik Wallenda’s walk across the tight rope on FireKeepers Facebook page (starting at 2 hour mark).
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August 17, 2021 at 10:03PM
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World famous tightrope walker crosses 450-foot wire to open new Michigan casino - mlive.com
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