Freaks of Nature

Freezing conditions and deadly disease have claimed the lives of men of various abilities. Wim Hoff, however, possesses a special talent. This man, through meditation and mental focus, has shown a remarkable gift for surviving cold and illness alike. Moreover, he believes in his ability to train others to possess similar powers. Hoff claims to have mastered a talent for “switching off” his body’s natural reaction to cold, and manipulating his own immune system. Through careful focus and meditation, Hoff believes that life-saving hormones can be secreted to keep an individual alive. Could this be possible? Alongside host Tyler Harcott, scientists put Hoff’s tremendous abilities to the test. By submerging him in an icebox at -19°C, and injecting him with a lethal disease, experimenters attempt to determine if Wim Hoff truly possesses superhuman gifts.

Diving in deep water is an intimidating challenge. Diving without gear is even more terrifying. William Trubridge, a “purist free-diver,” holds to that bold standard. He is known to swim to incredible depths completely unassisted. Host Tyler Harcott explores how pressure increases dramatically as a person dives deeper into the ocean. Using a submerged Styrofoam cup, Harcott is able to see how much power the ocean has to compress anything in its path. Recognizing this tremendous strength, Harcott accompanies Trubridge on a dive of a lifetime in the Bahamas. Trubridge attempts his most challenging dive, a 100-meter descent on a single breath of air. Will he be able to complete the dive? Can his body withstand the pressure?

Volcanos are known for their violent, frightening eruptions and ability to alter the entire landscape of our planet. Geoff Mackley knows them simply as thrilling adventures. "Unless you're doing something dangerous," he says, "you are not truly alive". Host Tyler Harcott explores the tremendous power and heat of volcanic eruptions, as Mackley prepares to climb a sweltering volcano. Wearing nothing more than a thin foil suit tested in Hawaii, Mackley attempts to get closer than any man before him to the lava at the volcano’s core. Few men have ever survived close encounters with these brutal wonders. Will Mackley make it out to tell the tale? Or will he fall in too deep?

Hypoxia, or altitude sickness, is a significant threat to any serious climber. Shyam Doss shares his story of encountering serious hypoxia while attempting to climb Mt. Whitney in a short period of time. He barely survived. However, while most people, like Doss, struggle to ascend to high altitudes, climber Don Bowie makes it look easy. He claims that he needs no supplemental oxygen to climb the world’s highest mountains due to a unique genetic predisposition. Bowie can survive under conditions of extremely low oxygen where few others can. Host Tyler Harcott meets Don on the summit of Mt Whitney. Is Bowie immune to the lethal effects of high altitude? Harcott takes him to an altitude chamber in Colorado to test his limits, and to find out whether or not such a power really exists.

The human body is designed to dispel massive amounts of heat. However, few men or women could manage to walk across a desert. Scott Jurek, on the other hand, could run across it. Jurek is an ultra-marathon runner who claims he can run for hours in the hottest places on earth. Host Tyler Harcott travels to the desert and puts his own body to the test in a running exercise. After learning how difficult this task is to complete, Harcott meets Jurek in Death Valley. Jurek demonstrates his extraordinary stamina by running in America's hottest location for 12 hours. Harcott takes Jurek to a human performance lab in order to push his abilities to the max. Harcott challenges Jurek to run for over an hour in 134 degree heat, the hottest temperature ever recorded on earth. Can he do it?

Lighting is one of the most recognizable forms of nature’s brutal might. Until recently, man could only hope to escape being hit by this terrifying natural phenomenon. However, Austin Richards, a mad scientist, has built a machine that can harness this power of the sky. Richards’ machine not only allows him to control the power of lightning, but to direct it at a specific target. Host Tyler Harcott explores the incredible strength of this lightning, and its effects should it connect with a human body. As an experiment, Richards volunteers to a wear the lightning resistant suit he designed. Tyler Harcott watches as the wrath of lightning faces off against the ingenuity of science.

Surfing is an activity most would consider a recreational sport. To famous surfer Laird Hamilton, it is a lifestyle. Hamilton truly believes that he was born with an inescapable love of riding waves. However, mere waves are not good enough for Hamilton. Using a self-designed board, Hamilton has ridden waves as large as 80 feet. The unique shape of his board allows him to “fly” over the waves while moving at incredible speeds. Hamilton turns the ocean, with all its power, into his very own playground. Host Tyler Harcott accompanies Hamilton to see how far his talents stretch. Can he surf a wave that matches the force and speed of a tsunami? Will he meet his match?

Heinz Zak goes toe to toe with fear and Mother Nature, performing deadly high-wire stunts in the most extreme locations imaginable. His ability to stay balanced even in the most extreme situations is a feat that is beyond reproach. Host Tyler Harcott discovers how Heinz is able to take on such a death defying challenge, by testing his limits in the most powerful wind tunnel on earth. Will Zak be able to best the challenge?

Justin Louchart is one of the few men who is 100% blind, but still manages to see. Using his mouth to make sounds that reflect off nearby objects, Louchart demonstrates the superhuman skill of echolocation. He can map the shapes, distance and texture of objects just by making sounds and receiving echoes. Louchart is so adept at his skill that he claims he would not trade his sight through sound for sight through vision. After host Tyler Harcott learns about how sound moves and behaves with professor and sound engineer Jeff Merkel, he challenges Louchart to demonstrate his abilities in a real world test. Can Louchart navigate his way through a dense forest with only echolocation? How much can Louchart truly see?

Michail Vasilyev can harness one of the planets most mysterious forces, magnetism. This amazing, one-of-a-kind talent allows Vasilyev to attach metal objects of various sizes to his body and watch as they miraculously stay in place. In awe that such a talent is possible, host Tyler Harcott tries and fails to attach a metal wrench to his chest. However, Vasilyev knows that his own powers run even deeper than Harcott could imagine. Harcott brings Vasilyev to the United States, where he prepares a tremendous challenge to test Vasilyev’s abilities. Can Vasilyev attach a piece of metal heavier than his own body to his chest? Can a human being truly control magnetic force?

G-force, or gravitational acceleration, can impact the human body by making it increasingly heavy or weightless. However, when too high, g-forces can be incredibly deadly. Sean Tucker has trained his body to withstand g-forces that would cause any normal person’s brain to shut down. With the aid of Professor Alan Hargens of UC San Diego, Host Tyler Harcott is subjected to various degrees of g-force in order to understand the remarkable influence of gravity on our bodies. Harcott watches in amazement as his body changes weight with even small changes in gravity. Sean, however, goes face to face with a huge amount of g force – greater than that experienced by a fighter pilot. While these pilots need special protection to keep them alive, Sean takes to the air completely unassisted. Is it possible for a man to be immune to g-force? Will Sean make it out in one piece?

Most swimming pools will order you not to dive in the shallow end. Darren Taylor, however, is safe to disobey. Taylor has a unique ability to survive remarkable leaps into horrifyingly shallow waters – and come out completely in one piece. In the past, Taylor completed a 35-foot high-dive into less than one foot of water. This dive would surely injure or kill most people foolish enough to try. In the blustery conditions of the Rocky Mountains, Taylor attempts to set a brand new record. In this epic trial, Taylor will jump from a height, which turns his weight at impact into four tons. Can a man survive such a tremendous fall? Host Tyler Harcott joins Taylor as he puts his talent, and body, to the test.