It has been a lifelong dream to jump from a plane. The side of me that loves roller coasters and driving fast really wanted to jump. I intended to do it before I had kids; but life seemed to always get in the way. So when I was told on our trip to Arizona that we would be watching people jump from airplanes, I complained to Todd that the only way that would be fun was to jump. He didn’t hesitate in telling me to go for it. Todd’s parents also thought it sounded like a good idea. So I signed up and didn’t look back!
I mentioned that the start to our vacation was full of adventure. Airplanes that fail and getting lost could be taken as signs that jumping from an airplane is not a good idea. Funny thing is we also got lost on the way to the airfield which I could have also taken as a sign not to jump if I wasn't already so excited about it! The darn GPS told us to go the wrong way but in the end the iPhone saved the day (oh how I love my iPhone!) and we made it on time. With all the signs not to jump, thinking I would miss my turn was the only part of this adventure that made me nervous.
We arrived at Sky Dive Arizona just before 11 AM. I participated in a brief orientation in which I was told that in order to jump, I would have to sign away any rights to sue anyone who had anything to do with my jump…right down to the company that manufactured the airplane’s smallest parts. I was also warned that jumping from airplanes can never be 100% safe (just in case I was stupid enough to believe it might not have some danger to it). After that unpleasantness, I paid my hefty bill and waited 35 minutes for my turn. When it was my turn, Adam was introduced as my sky dive instructor. He convinced me not to wear a jump suit because they are smelly and old and are really only for warmth. It was supposed to be only 40 degrees colder at 13,000 feet, he said. Since it was about 90 degrees outside, I thought my Minnesota genes could handle that. It turns out it was A LOT colder than that…more like 20 to 25 degrees, so I froze for 30 seconds. He put the harness on me, which was so tight, I walked like I was wearing a diaper, a full diaper!
The harnessing was followed by a very brief orientation as to what to do…squat, jump, arch back and head up (that was it!)…and we were off to the airplane. As soon as we left the check-in area, we were back on the ground 20 minutes later!
I was not nervous at all. The plane took off and climbed to 13,000 feet in about 10 minutes.
About 2 minutes before we jumped we turned and were latched onto our instructors. The doors opened and everyone started falling out of the plane. First three professionals went to work on their stunts. Next the father I went through legal scare tactics with went and his photographer. Next it was me and Adam along with Eddie our photographer. All I remember was one, two and we were out on three.
It was SO cold that I could not breathe. I was flying so fast through the air and the earth seemed so far away.
Then I see Adam make some hand motions and Eddie flies away. One, two, three and the shoot is up. We literally twist and turn through the air like we are skiing on a very smooth mountain top. I can see all the mountains of Arizona and they were amazing. You don’t see them with colors like that while on the ground and for the second time, I seemed to lose my breath. I look down and see a very tiny green patch next to the airport and know that is where we are landing. Maybe five minutes total goes by from the moment we jumped until we are landing on the ground to cheers from my family. It was amazing!
This was one of those lifetime experiences that I will never forget. I hope I get to do it again. My children were so proud of their mom that day. I hope they remember that in the years to come. For I now know that if I can jump, I can really do anything. I hope they realize that too!
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