Michael Shermer Firewalking Across Hot Coals

bald guys a nutcase

It's useful for gain self-confidence, and it's not even potentially harmful. What to lose?

I put my balls on hot coals.

for serious?

when they start walking over hot metal plates, then i'll be a believer

@Myschly

Combine the two. Bungee jump with a burning rope! :-)

Hey, as long as its flame retardant, why the hell not? That'd be awesome!

Yes, that would be some sight to see. Coal is just a poor conductor of heat. If you were to walk on hot lava rocks, it would be a very painful and toasty walk. The mental preparation just builds confidence in an individual. The fact that people have done it before can build even more confidence. If it is mental power that protects people, why don't they ever use lava rock or use a hot sheet of steel instead of coal and/or burning amber?

The more nervous you are the more you sweat, less likely you are to burn.

Maybe some people were so confident that they weren't intimidated enough by the chanting to sweat enough to NOT get burned.