MASHANTUCKET - Bringing the term "mall walker" to new heights, Nik Wallenda walked a tightrope to celebrate the opening of the new Tanger Outlets mall at Foxwoods Friday.
Wallenda, a member of the famous family of aerialists, walked a 711-foot high-wire tightrope from the fifth level of Foxwoods’ Rainmaker Garage to the rooftop of the outlets at 1 p.m.
"This is what I love doing, and my grandfather said it best when he said 'life is on the wire,'" Nik told Fox CT. "That's where I feel alive, and I hope that by what I do I inspire people to do greater things."
Halfway through the walk, he stopped to cut a ribbon to mark the opening of the new outlets. He also did a few tricks along the way.
When asked how he made it look so easy, Nik told Fox CT, "It is a walk in the park, I have to make it look like that because if I make it look dangerous -- well it is dangerous -- but if it looked a lot worse then people always say you make it look easy. It's all about the training and the preparation that goes behind what I do."
For every foot Wallenda walked, Foxwoods will donate $7.11 worth of clothes from the outlets to the United Way of Southeastern Connecticut.
Wallenda holds numerous Guinness World Records and has walked over Niagara Falls and Grand Canyon.
The outlets opened Thursday. Stores include American Eagle Outfitters, Ann Taylor, Banana Republic, Brooks Brothers, Calvin Klein, Coach, Fossil, Gap, H&M, J.Crew, LOFT, Michael Kors, Nike, Skechers, Steve Madden, Talbots, Tommy Hilfiger among others.