In this episode, Cody has a conversation with professional stuntman Peter Wallack. Peter jokes that he just kinda fell into being a stuntman. After pursuing a number of different majors in college, he eventually decided to focus on technical theatre at the University of Alaska Anchorage. There, a mentor suggested that he become a stuntman. Not giving it too much thought, Peter went on with his life. It wasn’t until he was almost hit by a truck while biking to work did he really start to consider it. He realized that despite falling face-first into a curb, he innately knew how to fall in a way that protected his body. Today, working as a professional stuntman, Peter believes that you have to fully commit to an action. He says that you can’t do half a flip, you can only do a whole flip, or no flip at all.
Peter grew up in a family of explorers who pushed the limits of what it means to adventure. His mom Tandy founded Circumpolar Expeditions, a business that curates and leads personalized adventures in the Arctic. Peter’s first tour was at 8 years old. He walked a group of Russian dancers all over downtown Anchorage and set them up with a Russian translator. A more recent adventure that Peter points to happened in 2016 and involved reuniting a family that had been separated since the Cold War.
Thank you to Carrie Hambach and Whitney Branshaw for help with questions.