They were afraid of nothing, at least it seemed so outwardly. And in their own ways they made us feel brave ourselves just watching them. The action athlete and daredevil Erik Roner, who died in a skydiving accident this week, and the famous ‘Crocodile Hunter” Steve Irwin, who died in 2006, were cut from the same cloth. Both did what they wanted to do and both men taught and thrilled people in their all-too-brief but bountiful lives. Irwin’s story is well-known. He died at age 44 after a stingray pierced his chest during filming.
Erik Roner — the former star of MTV’s Nitro Circus — was just 39, a professional skier and BASE jumper. Roner was no stranger to accidents, but nothing could quench his thirst for thrills and action. Roner, like Irwin, leaves behind young children — in his case a five-year-old and an infant. Nitro Cicus released a statement mourning and praising Roner, who they called a “caring, generous and wonderful person.”
