Y.U. does not currently offer a course in rappelling. In every building of the uptown Manhattan campus, doors that provide roof access are alarmed, and the campus has numerous security cameras and a 24-7 security patrol.

Despite these factors, the six-student team of two rappellers, a videographer, and a three-man safety and support crew, planned, executed, and recorded the stunt for posterity.

During the nine-month process of planning and training, the team rappelled down the school’s smaller buildings, confining their rappels to late at night to avoid being seen. They also trained in stairwells, and in preparation for the final descent down the 22-story Belfer Hall, went skydiving.

"Lance," a student from the West Coast of the United States, was the team leader, having had prior experience in climbing and rappelling, says they did it to break the monotony of school.

"At Y.U., the hours are long and the courses are intense," Lance said. "People spend so much time working, they become boring. We wanted to show our fellow students that you should also take out some time to do something fun."

"Bruce," the second rappeller and one of three South Floridians on the team had never rappelled or gone skydiving before this year. But he says he was not scared when he descended the 250 feet of Belfer Hall, and that the rappel was "a bigger rush than skydiving."

Although they say they were not afraid the group recognized the danger of their stunt. In the YouTube video, just before they begin the Belfer descent, these words appear on screen: "You only die once, but you’re maimed forever. So if you’re going to fall, make it a big one."

Lance told the Florida Jewish News that the Belfer Hall rappel was done after nine months of extensive planning and training, and similar stunts should not be attempted by others.

In fact, according to Lance, a third rappeller was cut from the team because "he wasn’t up to par, safety-wise."

When the video appeared on YouTube last month, it spread quickly to Y.U.’s students, faculty, and administration, racking up thousands of hits in its first few days online.

Dr. Victor Schwartz, Dean of Students sent this e-mail to the entire student body last week:

"Many (if not most) of you are aware that a video was recently posted on YouTube that purported to show students rappelling down the sides of several of our buildings. We want to remind all of you in the most clear, simple and direct terms that any behavior or activity that can lead to anyone’s health or safety being jeopardized is absolutely unacceptable. As a matter of halacha (see Devarim 4:15), good citizenship and basic common sense, it is impermissible to put yourself or anyone else in a dangerous situation.

"As a matter of policy, anyone who participates or helps someone else participate in any kind of similar activity in the future will be subject to severe disciplinary sanctions.

"Please, let’s all be sensible, smart and safe."

Through the anonymous e-mail address used by the team to create their YouTube account (torah_u_mada@hotmail.com), Lance received an e-mail from Dr. Chaim Nissel, Director of Y.U.’s counseling center requesting that the video be removed from YouTube, for fear that others may endanger themselves attempting a similar stunt.

"We do not believe they meant harm," Nissel wrote, "but, if you appreciate that this may indeed endanger fellow students even to a small degree, they should demonstrate their concern by removing [the video] ASAP."

Lance complied with the request, and removed the video from YouTube. Shortly thereafter, he received a follow-up message from Nissel:

"We appreciate your responsiveness to our concern about the video’s potential to bring about harm to others.

"At this time, YU does not intend to pursue the issue further. We do not know who participated in creating the video or whether any current students were involved.

"Assuming that no one was injured and no property was damaged, and assuming that no similar misbehavior occurs and no negative consequences ensue, YU has no reason to take legal action."

In fact, no property was damaged; according to Lance, the alarms that were bypassed to gain access to the roof were subsequently reconnected. "We left them exactly as we found them," he said.

But a few days after the video was removed, it was reposted and remains on YouTube today. Lance denies any connection to the reposted video, saying it must have been posted by someone who had downloaded it using a video ripping program before Lance had removed it from YouTube.

The rappelling team’s next adventure, which is currently in the planning phase, is sailing to Australia on a sailboat in the 35 foot range. They plan to depart in September 2008 and to broadcast weekly videos by satellite internet to Jewish schools around the country.

In an e-mail to the Florida Jewish News, Lance writes, "The purpose of this expedition and the videos is to drive home the same point made with the rappelling videos, that being adventurous and being a [religious] Jew are not mutually exclusive. The videos will each include: a short lesson on Jewish thought or Jewish law relating to sailing, the location that we are in, or some event that has transpired; updates on the trip, where we are, what we’ve seen, etc.; and instruction on skills ranging from sailing to scuba diving to survival at sea."

To fund the trip, the group is seeking sponsors who support their goal of bringing life and passion back into Judaism. They are also compiling a list of schools interested in showing their weekly video broadcasts.

"In today’s caution-oriented world, children are never given any rope for fear that they might hang themselves," Lance said. "But without rope, they’ll never be able to climb any mountains either."

Lance and his team can be contacted via e-mail at torah_u_mada@hotmail.com.

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