An old man in a suit attempting a parkour jumping stunt across New York City rooftops is something you would normally would see in the movies, but that’s exactly what happened this week in Lower Manhattan.
Erik Ljung, an award-winning film director, just happened to be in the area for work and noticed the roof-leaping daredevil while he was adjusting lighting.
Ljung quickly turned his camera towards the action and captured the now viral Instagram video of the older man atop pf a Financial District building 22 stories above Lower Manhattan in New York City.
Stunned And Amazed
Concerned witnesses weren’t sure if they should be stunned, amazed, or both.
“He was wearing dress shoes, which don’t have great grip and it was raining all morning, so for us, yo what is going on here,” Ljung told reporters.
“To me it didn’t look like he was in distress at any time,” Ljung continued. “He looked fairly comfortable out there.” Otherwise, Ljung said that he would have stopped filming and called for help.
Why Was This Man Jumping Across New York City Rooftops?
Witnesses speculated on why a man in a suit would be jumping from rooftops. Was he locked out? Was he practicing his parkour jumping skills? Was he part of a secret rooftopping NYC club? Everyone online was speculating and creating theories.
Besides why, everyone wanted to know, who. Who was this old man brave enough to jump along Manhattan rooftops while dressed in a suit?!
Who Was This Older Man Badly Parkour Jumping Across Manhattan Rooftops?
The identity of the man jumping across New York City rooftops didn’t stay a mystery for long. He saw Ljung’s Instagram post online and write a comment.
“My name is Joe Smizaski and I’m director of operations and I go out of roofs like this all the time,” he said.
The 60-year-old said that he was in the waterproofing business and was testing the roof before meeting an inspector.
Smizaski told WNBC reporter Gilma Avalos, “I know what I’m doing because I’ve been doing this for 42-years.”
Apparently, he’s jumped around on this same building “100 times” as a part of his job. “It’s all in a day’s work,” Smizaski added.
There you have it. Why would a man in the suit and dress shoes jump around the rooftop 23 stories above Lower Manhattan? Because he’s in the waterproofing business!?
Frank Wilson is a retired teacher with over 30 years of combined experience in the education, small business technology, and real estate business. He now blogs as a hobby and spends most days tinkering with old computers. Wilson is passionate about tech, enjoys fishing, and loves drinking beer.
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This guy is nuts!!!