‘Spider Dan’ climbs SF tower using suction pads

A 54-year-old-man evaded police and firefighters on Monday to free-climb a San Francisco skyscraper, using nothing more than suction cups to help him cling onto the glass structure.

Dan Goodwin, who is also known as 'Spider Dan' for his previous skyscraper climbing exploits, needed just three hours to scale the 58-storey Millennium Tower.

Upon reaching the top he celebrated by unfurling an American flag, before handing himself in to waiting police officers who arrested him on charges of trespassing and public nuisance.

The list of towers "Spider Dan" has climbed before reads like an encyclopaedia of famous American towers. Starting off with the Sears Tower, Chicago in 1981, he has also conquered the World Trade Centre (North Tower) New York, the CN tower in Toronto and the Hancock Centre, also in Chicago.

Whether to publicise the plight of those with cystic fibrosis, or to call attention to inadequacies in high-rise firefighting, all of his climbs have purportedly been to spread a political message. This most recent exploit was a stunt to call attention to the threat posed to the country's skyscrapers by terrorists and to promote awareness of cancer.

Goodwin himself was diagnosed with cancer in 2001 and claims that his illness kept him from fulfilling a promise to train American soldiers to climb the World Trade Centre - something he believes could well have saved lives during the 9/11 terrorist attacks.

His website contains a mission statement of sorts, which is a quote from Spiderman creator Stan Lee: "If you are able to do something that will do good, that will help people, you damn well oughta do it." ·