Skydiving

Skydiving was SO INTENSE!!! We got there and we were all nervous because you have to sign this waiver that lets you know SKYDIVING IS DANGEROUS and injuries include: blah blah blah. And this guy was strutting around without a shirt on, rolling up his parachute. I fixated on him and kept bitching to MSH and Dan & Jen (Dan jumped, Jen didn't) that he need to put a goddam shirt on. So then we took a short instructional course and they made us all jolly and they had us do a back-arching thing on a picnic table, to practice because you have to arch your back during freefall (just after you jump out the plane). THEN it was cloudy and they can't drop us through a cloud because you might hit a bird or a plane or Superman. SO we had to wait around for like 2 and a half hours and we tried to play hackeysack, and they had to reschedule two thirds of our class of tandem jumpers, and we all felt like we'd be pretty disappointed if we didn't get to jump.

But then! The clouds cleared a bit. They got us suited up. Guess who my tandem instructor was? The shirtless wonder. Yah-hoo. He was really nice, and he'd put a shirt on. They put you in a harness, and you get into an airplane that only has seats for the pilot and copilot. We all sat on a carpeted floor and the seatbelts hooked us to the floor for takeoff. All the jumpers face the back of the plane, and you have to sit between the legs of the person behind you (my instructor) and another instructor was sitting between my legs. So, we were all very cozy and packed in like sardines. (They try to get as many people up on each plane load, and believe me, the hardcore skydivers want to go up as many times as they can in a day, so they're lining up.)

We took off. I hadn't been in a small plane in years, so I thought that was pretty fun. Then we ascended at a very steep angle til we reached ten thousand feet. Then the solo jumpers jumped out. Good times. Two other tandem jumpers with their instructors went before me. I went before MSH and Dan. The whole way up in the plane, my instructor was reminding me of things, and tightening the straps holding me to him until we were QUITE cozy indeed. But this is good. I wanted to feel securely attached! (I was in front of him, like spooning.) So when it was our turn, we waddled to the door. I had my arms crossed in front of me, while he held onto the red bar above the door. I was just looking out at clouds--and let me tell you at this point my lower brain was pumping adrenaline that had been stored since 1998--"Ready, Set, ARCH!!" he yelled, and arch means "jump!" As soon as I'd left the plane, my goggles immediately slid up on my face. I was wearing glasses so I had to wear these funky goggles. I guess I was lucky I didn't lose my glasses! So at first I couldn't really see and my eyes were watering and the only thing I was really aware of was the ROARING in my ears and not being able to breathe! I was falling at 120 mph, so there was a bit of pressure on my chest. I then remembered to breathe through my teeth as the instructor had told me. This worked OK, and I moved my goggles down a bit. Then I could see the guy who had jumped out ahead of me with a video camera on his head. (We didn't pay for this, so I'm not sure why he wanted to film me. Probably because I was wearing my I Hate the Yankees T-shirt.) The freefall lasted 30 or 40 seconds, then my instructor pulled our chute. This was actually the scariest part because I could feel our mass or our weight lessening or something, and everything felt looser. But once again, I wasn't dead, so then I felt better, and started recovering from the rush of freefall. "Fuckin' *A*!!" I said. I could see Bellevue, Seattle, the Sound, Lake Washington, the Olympics...and it was like FLYING... I felt so free and peaceful. It was like flying in a plane except 400 times better. We could see the other tandem jumpers below us. Turning was the best part-- wheeeee! After about five minutes (this is what they say, I had no concept of time) the ground approached. I pulled my feet straight up like I'd been told, and we scooted to a complete stop on our hineys. I stood up, and INSTANTLY a little voice in my head said, "Wheee! AGAIN! Do it again!" I can see how it can become very addictive. MSH and Dan were already on the ground and I ran to give MSH a big hug and high five. He had been SOOOO nervous and reluctant to do it and he LOVED it! His tandem instructor even talked him into doing two forward flips out of the plane. He had a blast and loved every minute of it, and he's even more stoked than I am about doing it again someday.
Speaking of which, afterward we had lunch at the airport restaurant and MSH called his parents to let him know we were all still in one piece! I, of course, hadn't told my parents beforehand. I told MSH that if I ever told Mom, she'd freak out and then make me promise never to do it again. I called my sister and told her what I'd done. She was very surprised, and asked about it. She told me, "I am amazed, and I'm proud of you, and if you ever tell Mom, she'll make you swear never to do it again." We'll tell Dad sometime when Mom's not around.

It was scary, and one of the most intense experiences in my life, and SO WORTH IT!!! :)