A 96-year-old grandfather has celebrated his birthday with an adrenaline rush by riding the world's fastest zip line. William 'Bill' Anderson visited Zip World in Bethesda on Saturday, July 3 to mark his latest trip around the sun.
The trip made Bill the oldest person ever to ride 'Velocity 2' which travels over Penrhyn Slate Quarry in Snowdonia. The zip line is the fastest in the world reaching speeds of over 100mph and the longest in Europe.
The self-confessed daredevil from Worchester experienced the heights with his children Shirley and Tony and grandson Adam. They started out by testing the smaller zip line, before moving on to the main event.
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Speaking to BBC Wales Bill said: "I've been in a balloon, I've been in an airplane, stunting, and I'm a bit of a daredevil when I was a bit younger. I used to climb chimney stacks with no safety at all. Climbing up the outside to the very top. And I'd be sat there with my legs hanging over the side.
"That was when I was working and the boss bet me that I wouldn't go up there. And so I did. It cost him half a crown (12.5p) in those days."
The whole experience was captured on film by Zip World as riders wear head cameras to make the descent. In the lovely footage Bill shows no hesitation before taking on the 1.5km long thrill, with the head cam footage showing him seemingly enjoying the ride.
Velocity 2 sees visitors traveling across four parallel lines over 2 separate zip lines, meaning Bill was able to share the momentous occasion with his family.
Zip World shared the footage of Bill's trip on their Instagram account which has now been viewed thousands of times. The video was also shared on TikTok and has been viewed over 92,000 times. And it seems as though Bill has found himself with some fans. One person commented: "AMAZING. BE LIKE BILL", while another said: "I want to be Bill when I am 96!"
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