But not all the acts were daredevil. Verge Aero took to the skies to prove that to be Extreme doesn’t necessarily mean putting one’s life in jeopardy. Rather, they were Extreme in demonstrating the brain power it took to fly 160 drones choreographed into a light show that created shapes the size of 30-story skyscrapers. Verge Aero—consisting of engineers Chris, Tony, Anthony, and Nils—definitely proved that talent comes in many different forms—and they got kudos from the judges as validation. Nikki Bella said, “That was absolutely astonishing. I can’t even imagine the brainpower of you four that goes into that. It is something so beyond me. When it was done, I felt myself wanting so much more.” Travis Pastrana was also amazed, saying, “It was better than any fireworks show I’ve ever seen.” Then he joked, “If you guys could come to my Fourth of July party, it would be unbelievable.” And then there was Simon Cowell. “I think drones are some of the most annoying things on the planet…until now,” he told Verge Aero. “That was absolutely sensational. I even liked the bit where the little one, like a puppy, got lost at the end and tried to find his friends. There are so many ways to define the word Extreme and this, for me, comes under spectacular. That’s what we look for, certainly on this show.” And so saying, he hit the Golden Buzzer, putting Verge Aero directly into the finals, which is a good thing because as Nils explained, “We don’t have deep pockets. We are funded pretty much internally and that’s why we’re here. Winning would be incredible. It would give us the resources to go out and hire more engineers so we can be a worldwide phenomenon and do beautiful shows. ” Chris, Tony and Anthony met in the electrical engineering department at their university and what brought them together was their passion for drone technology. After they graduated from college, they needed to do something special and that’s when they hooked up with Nils, whose background is making different types of entertainment technology. In 2016, they founded Verge Aero. Over the course of the last 5 years, they’ve built the drone technology completely from scratch, creating a new kind of light show with a swarm of drones, like high-tech fireworks. The second Golden Buzzer of the night was awarded to 29-year-old Aaron Wheelz from Las Vegas, a wheelchair motocross athlete, having been born with spina bifida, who did put his life on the line. Aaron attempted a ramp drop into a 40-foot flip. The first time out, he made the flip, but he didn’t land correctly. Despite reassurances from Simon that he had seen enough, and as dangerous as it was, Aaron attempted it a second time and landed perfectly! Travis, who has known Aaron for several years, said, “It was so cool to see you back up there. After landing on your face, you got those guys to bring you back up and you drop in and land a perfect front flip in a wheelchair. That made my day. That was awesome.” The judges had decided to climb to the top of the staircase and watch Aaron from the top of the 40-foot ramp with Simon admitting he had a fear of heights. “We went out there and looking down from your perspective,” he said. “If you think it’s scary looking up, try looking down. It was hard enough getting down the staircase. And then, I thought it was amazing and you didn’t think it was good enough, and you came back up again and did it twice. You define why we made this show if you want my honest opinion. This is what we were looking for. I think you’re an amazing person. You have every chance of winning this.” Then Nikki weighed in, saying, “I agree with both Travis and Simon. Your life is so aspirational. You are the definition of never giving up. I think it’s absolutely incredible. When I think of an America’s Got Talent: Extreme champion, I think of someone who pushes their limit and I just can’t wait to see what you do next Wheelz, because you’re going to the finals.” And so saying, she pushed the Golden Buzzer, adding, “You make me feel emotional. You are going to touch the world and do a lot of great things. You already are. I am so honored to give you my Golden Buzzer.” Aaron, who has had 23 surgeries to date, shared that he began his motocross career after being inspired by action sports. Since he was born with spina bifida, he can’t ride a bike or skateboard, so he decided to use the set of wheels that were a part of his life. “Before I started using a wheelchair, I was using crutches,” he said. “Growing up with a disability, there’s always this push that you should walk. You should be using crutches as if using a wheelchair means you gave up. “The wheelchair for me was freedom. I would always go to the skatepark and watch the guys on their bikes. One day, I just thought I should drop in. I sat there terrified for a good 5 minutes. Once I finally took that push, I just fell on my face at the bottom. As I was getting up, I remember thinking, ‘Man, that was terrifying, but I did it. Even though I didn’t land it, I did it.’ That was the most unreal feeling in the whole world. From that moment, I knew exactly what I wanted to do. That was really when I felt my life began.” America’s Got Talent: Extreme airs Monday nights at 8 p.m. ET/PT on NBC. Next, Danger, Thrills and Excitement! Everything You Need to Know About America’s Got Talent: Extreme
