As the year draws to a close, we’re not going to pretend that 2017 is going to be fondly remembered by everyone around the country. But instead of taking the easy route and simply pretending that 2017 never happened, let’s instead focus on the fact that lots of awesome people did some really amazing things this year.
Over on Sploid we strive to feature humanity’s most awe-inspiring achievements; be it soaring through the air in a wingsuit, slowing down time with a high-speed camera, or simply super-sizing a popular kid’s toy. The world still needs fixing—we’re not going to pretend it doesn’t—but you should really spend a few moments to focus on the good out there, for the sake of your own mental health.
Using just a parachute and guts to fly like an eagle? Awesome.
https://gizmodo.com/this-guy-is-living-my-fantasy-of-flying-like-a-bird-1820610444
Skipping 225 times in 60 seconds to set a new Guinness World Record? Awesome.
https://gizmodo.com/watch-these-impossibly-precise-japanese-school-kids-set-1796255208
Letting eight kids experience what it’s like to float in zero gravity? Awesome.
https://gizmodo.com/therell-be-something-in-your-eye-as-you-watch-these-kid-1819396075
Climbing a 29-story hotel using nothing but your bare hands? Awesome.
https://gizmodo.com/breathe-into-a-paper-bag-while-this-real-life-spider-ma-1796176451
Getting hit and thrown by a bus and then simply walking away from the ordeal? Awesome.
https://gizmodo.com/british-badass-gets-thrown-20-feet-by-a-runaway-bus-br-1796479501
Building the world’s largest Super Soaker water gun? Awesome.
https://gizmodo.com/the-worlds-biggest-super-soaker-is-powerful-enough-to-s-1796820585
Using your jet boat to put out a fire on land and save the day? Awesome.
https://gizmodo.com/watch-this-heroic-captain-use-his-boats-powerful-jet-st-1797391927
Keeping your wits about you and surviving a bear attack by just screaming at it? Awesome.
https://gizmodo.com/what-it-looks-like-to-get-attacked-by-a-bear-1795665011
Diving head first into 1,000 mouse traps just so you can capture the ensuring carnage in extreme slow-motion? Awesome.
https://gizmodo.com/diving-into-1-000-mouse-traps-on-a-trampoline-looks-eve-1795089896
Turning a classic Lego set into an RC toy that actually flies? Awesome.
https://gizmodo.com/an-aerospace-engineer-turned-a-classic-lego-set-into-an-1795019611
Kayaking through an abandoned shipwreck? Awesome.
https://gizmodo.com/kayaking-through-an-abandoned-shipwreck-is-like-discove-1797648229
Perfectly steering a 200-foot long tractor trailer around a sharp 90-degree right turn? Awesome.
https://gizmodo.com/badass-trucker-nails-the-gnarliest-right-hand-turn-you-1819223815
Making your own camera lens from scratch? Awesome.
https://gizmodo.com/watching-someone-make-a-camera-lens-from-scratch-explai-1794718826
Building the most epic Rube Goldberg machine we’ve ever seen? Awesome.
https://gizmodo.com/it-took-297-agonizing-tries-for-this-complex-rube-goldb-1814080408
Hand-carving an incredibly intricate design onto a Lincoln penny? Awesome.
https://gizmodo.com/watch-this-talented-carver-turn-a-lincoln-penny-into-a-1794525616
Building and flying an RC plane that can hit 450 MPH without crashing it? Awesome.
https://gizmodo.com/how-do-you-even-pilot-a-450-mph-rc-plane-1819443126
Painting your self-portrait backwards while looking at a mirror? Awesome.
https://gizmodo.com/watch-this-incredibly-talented-artist-create-a-self-por-1820329876
Creating Vegas-caliber magical illusions using just your smartphone’s camera? Awesome.
https://gizmodo.com/this-guys-simple-looking-camera-tricks-are-actually-pre-1809074820
Building a chainsaw-powered tricycle? Awesome.
https://gizmodo.com/rule-the-playground-with-a-chainsaw-powered-tricycle-1794416483
Autotuning animals to sing the Duck Tales theme song? Awesome.
https://gizmodo.com/autotuned-singing-animals-absolutely-nailed-the-duck-ta-1794038595
Parkour running while wearing an inflatable T-rex costume? Awesome.
https://gizmodo.com/parkour-in-a-t-rex-costume-is-the-jurassic-park-sequel-1793987366
Making arrows change direction mid-flight with your amazing archery skills? Awesome.
https://gizmodo.com/this-mind-bending-archer-fires-arrows-that-change-direc-1820604807
Mountain biking down an abandoned mine shaft? Awesome.
https://gizmodo.com/mountain-biking-down-an-abandoned-mine-shaft-is-a-dimly-1793518341
Using your rocket science skills to build a dartboard that always guarantees a bullseye? Awesome.
https://gizmodo.com/brilliant-motion-tracking-dart-board-guarantees-a-bulls-1793481286
Electrocuting a watermelon using 20,000 volts? Awesome.
https://gizmodo.com/pumping-20-000-volts-into-a-watermelon-ends-as-spectacu-1793211092
Kayaking down a flooded mountainside ditch? Awesome.
https://gizmodo.com/riding-a-kayak-down-a-mountain-in-a-ditch-is-scarier-th-1793126896
Turning a logging machine into a bucking rodeo bull? Awesome.
https://gizmodo.com/riding-a-logging-machine-like-a-rodeo-bull-is-the-new-d-1792782024
Building a working jetpack? Awesome.
https://gizmodo.com/gorgeous-aerial-footage-makes-me-want-to-spend-all-my-m-1792669775
Performing beautiful ballet-like maneuvers inside a wind tunnel? Awesome.
https://gizmodo.com/we-should-definitely-replace-the-olympics-with-these-ba-1792080988
Building a self-driving potato that ends up being the perfect house pet? Awesome.
https://gizmodo.com/guy-builds-a-self-powered-driving-potato-that-turns-out-1796328830
Jumping off a mountain wearing a wingsuit and then landing in an airborne plane? Awesome.
https://gizmodo.com/watch-these-daredevil-wingsuit-flyers-land-in-a-flying-1820815059
Designing a cheap pair of self-lacing sneakers using Lego? Awesome.
https://gizmodo.com/save-700-and-build-your-own-pair-of-self-lacing-sneake-1791963235
Letting those of us stuck on Earth experience what it’s like to take a space walk? Awesome.
https://gizmodo.com/incredible-first-person-footage-of-a-real-spacewalk-wil-1795253272
Building a never-ending Slip ‘N Slide? Awesome.
https://gizmodo.com/try-not-to-lose-your-lunch-on-this-bonkers-never-ending-1791772336
Double back-flipping a snowmobile? Awesome.
https://gizmodo.com/watch-the-worlds-first-double-backflip-on-a-snowmobile-1791589627
Capturing the northern lights at 35,000 feet? Awesome.
https://gizmodo.com/seeing-the-northern-lights-at-35-000-feet-is-the-best-r-1791423034
Building a flying RC plane with KFC buckets as wings? Awesome.
https://gizmodo.com/this-plane-with-kfc-buckets-for-wings-flies-remarkably-1794028930
Planning and perfectly executing the world’s greatest billiards shot? Awesome.
https://gizmodo.com/the-worlds-greatest-billiards-shot-spanned-two-floors-a-1791255171
This trucker’s one-of-a-kind tattoo? Awesome.
https://gizmodo.com/worlds-greatest-trucker-tattoo-makes-this-guy-look-like-1797889984
Surviving a terrifying avalanche? Awesome.
https://gizmodo.com/what-its-like-to-get-caught-in-an-avalanche-1791141466
Flinging yo-yos at the world championships like you’ve been playing with them for a hundred years? Awesome.
https://gizmodo.com/i-refuse-to-believe-this-world-champion-wasnt-born-with-1797934792
Using your mastery of carpentry to carve intricate joints that fit together flawlessly? Awesome.
https://gizmodo.com/watching-these-precisely-crafted-wooden-joints-fit-toge-1793567509
Covering your entire office in slot car racing tracks? Awesome.
https://gizmodo.com/every-office-should-have-slot-cars-racing-across-all-th-1795022534
Skimming a lake in a WWII-era fighter plane? Awesome.
https://gizmodo.com/watching-a-daredevil-pilot-fly-this-low-is-absolutely-t-1796055670
Slicing an olive in mid-air with a playing card? Awesome.
https://gizmodo.com/watch-a-master-magician-slice-an-olive-by-throwing-a-pl-1797015353
