I'd agree. With an airbag, if you land clean, it's a pretty safe impact.

With a Deadman, you know that when you reach the end of the line, you're going to get yanked, haha. It's usually a good idea to have a visual marker so that when you reach your end point you can prepare. But yeah, there's no way around the fact that they aren't fun.

Hello, stuntman here.

The stunt being performed is called a deadman. And yes, they do suck. You have to commit to the run, and then get whiplashed to the ground when you reach the end point. If you're lucky, depending on what you need for the stunt, sometimes you can add a bit of recoil with a bungee system to take the edge off.

The guy with the stick is doing a good job popping the hit, and not following through as well.

As far as air bags go, they are surprisingly stiff when you first hit them. The moment of impact kicks out the air vents, and then the bag softens significantly. But you still need you land pretty clean, or it'll pack a punch.