Mercer Report premiers with wheelchair bungee jumping

No, this is not reality TV sinking to some new tasteless low.

25 years ago, Canadian wheelchair athlete Rick Hansen set out on what was called a Man in Motion World Tour.

Hansen’s two-year odyssey spanned the globe, changing perceptions and raising millions for spinal cord injury research.

Rick Mercer is a Hansen fan. Mercer hosts his own Canadian TV series, which combines sharp political satire with “I’ll try anything” road tours.

What happens when Mercer and Hansen get together? Why, bungee jumping in Whistler, of course!

Speaking on CBC Ottawa’s “All in a Day” Tuesday afternoon, Mercer said Hansen nixed the idea at first. Until he heard comments along the lines of “Of course you can’t do that, you’re in a wheelchair!”

Thanks to the irritation known as geo-fencing, those on the Canadian side of the border can see Hansen and Mercer take the plunge in beautiful B.C., on the Rick Mercer Report website.

On the U.S. side try this YouTube link (with thanks to Dale Hobson for finding it)

Oh, if you like that sort of thing, Rick’s Slap Chop TV-infomercial shows how no matter how you slice a Canadian election, what comes out is… another Conservative minority!

The Rick Mercer Report airs on most CBC channels Tuesdays at 8 pm, with an encore Fridays at 8:30.