Skydiving!!
The gang BEFORE our jump - all harnessed up and ready to go!
"Jumping is fun! Skydiving is not just falling; it is flying—the closest we have been able to come to free, unencumbered, non-mechanical individual flight," says Mike Turoff in the book The Skydiver's Handbook.
I have to agree with him because skydiving provides the maximum liberty that one can ever experience. The jump was planned for a party of six but my friends Kelli and Megan weren’t able to come, so it was Michelle, Missy, Jeff and I who were the brave souls that ended up going up. There are countless pages of information about skydiving on the Internet… but I refused to put too much thought into it ahead of time. I knew I wanted to go, and so I did. As simple as that. We got to Skydive Space Center about 9am and within two hours we had all signed our lives away, releasing them of any wrongdoing. There was so much paperwork I can honestly tell you none of us read any of it. I know, I know.. please don’t even say anything. But you wouldn’t have either. We got paired up with our tandem instructors (which basically is someone who knows what they are doing – there wasn’t a whole lot of instructing going on). The four of us were in the first flight up (or load as they call it). Basically my instructor (Dean) told me “when we get to the door, bend your knees a bit, and I’ll push us out. Once out, try to kick me in the butt, arch your legs back and your body and hold on to your straps. When I tap you on the arm, you can put your arms out.” That was the extent of our training. Easy enough… Dean has done almost 19,000 jumps. I can’t imagine the health insurance plan is very good through this line of work… who insures them?! Haha
There were no jumpsuits or helmets like indoor skydiving provided.. just you and your own clothing. We got into our harnesses and the instructors took care of everything. Since we each opted for a video (seriously – everyone does… why not capture this experience on tape?!), we were each assigned our own personal videographer. Pat (mine) was someone I’d met before in Orlando at Skyventure. He was fun and did my initial interview near the plane. When asked WHY I was skydiving, I told him about the 365 Challenge and how this was #44. Fun – all captured on DVD!
Me just before boarding the plane... ready to go!
My jumpmaster Dean and I before it was our turn
There were a lot of people there by the time we went up.. very popular place. Everyone kept up nervous chatter around us.. but we all seemed pretty calm. Oddly, I don’t think any of us were the least bit nervous. We boarded the plan (15 of us total, then of course the pilot). It’s a seriously intimate situation in that plane. Dean cautioned me at the halfway point… watching his altimeter to see check the altitude number as it was changing. I have to say.. it was just a cool experience. No one was nervous.. it was just a very relaxed atmosphere on that plane as we rose into the sky. We were all just looking at the view below grow smaller and smaller. I should clarify – I am only speaking for myself and the assumptions made from being there and talking to everyone afterwards. But overall, we were joking around and just having a great time. You can tell the jumpmasters all get along really well and love what they do.
Everyone all crammed in the place - the door is open and we're ready to go!
Once in position, movement started to take place. From our group, Michelle was the first to jump… then Jeff… then Missy.. then me. Jordan was back on the ground watching it all take place from the comfort of the grass. 15,000 feet to freefall. When it was my turn, Dean scooted us to the open door and postioned me in front of it. I didn’t think about it.. I just planted my feet in place like he had told me, and then we jumped. I remember just feeling like “wow! This is cool!” Sorta like a really intense roller coaster ride where you are going backwards (we flipped backwards right out the get-go). It was a chilly morning and my hands were a little cold but other than that it was perfect. Pat had jumped first so he was able to capture some neat photos of me throughout the jump. The view is simply breathtaking.. the Kennedy Space Center, Cape Canaveral, the entire coast… it was just all so gorgeous. The sense of falling is hard to describe in this situation because falling usually results in landing.. and for those seconds you just keep falling and falling and falling.. it becomes very comfortable. Pat and Dean did some maneuvers where we spun around and floated. You hear the wind deep in your ears and you’re floating through it.
And we're out the door!
Freefalling was awesome!
When the ripcord was pulled – wow! That wasn’t the most comfortable part of skydiving. It hurt! The strap yanked up and about choked me. In the video there is a hilarious shot of me in that moment.. I look like I miserable. Hahaha.. Dean adjusted my harness so I could sit a little more comfortably as we floated the remainder of the way. The canopy flight, of course, was much slower than the free fall. Here I could see the beautiful environment from thousands of feet above at a really easy pace. When it was time, Dean calmly directed us to the drop zone and instructed that I lift my legs us. We smoothly landed on the ground where I was greeted by everyone else from my group. It was over! We picked up our stuff and I headed into the hanger to drop my harness off. Dean had another jump to do with another eagerly awaiting student so he was off after a quick hug from me. The four of us excitedly chatted about our experiences while waiting for our videos to be complete, then headed off to grab lunch and celebrate the adventure. I’m definitely hooked and plan to jump again. Who knows.. maybe I’ll jump solo one day. However, of course, my first jump will always be the most enjoyable and unforgettable one. If I were you, I would not waste any more time. I would sign up for a very first jump as soon as possible. I would like to give one more personal message: Skydiving is a must-do activity, and everyone must try it at least once in his or her life. I guarantee you that it will be an unforgettable experience for you, too!
Coming in for a landing - smooth and easy (who'd have thought?!)
The gang AFTER the jump - a little windblown but very excited.. ready to go again!
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