Skydive

When I was 55, a young man I worked with in a computer department casually mentioned skydiving. I remarked that I had always wanted to skydive.

He said, "How about this Saturday?" I hesitated for only a moment, and then said, "Okay." My heart was thudding and my pulse was rapid and erratic. Tiny beads of sweat broke out across my forehead and my upper lip. My left knee wobbled and threatened to buckle. What had I done?

"How about if we meet (at a well-known spot in Austin) at about 10:00 am and drive together to San Marcos?" he smiled. My hands trembled and my knees began to give way. "(Gulp) Sure, okay." I tottered back to my office and sat at my desk holding my head in my hands.

I went home that night and told my husband that I would be skydiving on Saturday. I invited him to go along and observe, or participate if he was interested. He was furious. He was totally against it and would not budge.

Saturday morning arrived all too soon, and I prepared to meet my doom. I asked my husband one last time to go with me. He could stay on the ground and observe, go up in the plane and observe, or skydive. He said "No."

So, as if in a dream, I got in my car and drove alone into Austin and met my friend Dennis right on schedule. I got in his car and together we drove to San Marcos.

We watched a short video, signed a bunch of papers, watched our parachutes being folded (by young, hopefully competent employees), and got into our gear.

Our plane was a metal shell; noisy, no door, no seats, ten of us sat on the metal floor, five paying jumpers snuggled up against five instructors. It reminded me of old World War II movies where the paratroupers sat on the floor waiting to jump.

My instructor had an apparatus on his wrist that showed our altitude. He told me that we would jump at 10,000 feet. I sat beside him silently, watching with morbid fascination as the needle slowly crept up - - 6,000, 8,000, 9,500, 10,000 - my stomach was clenched and I was sick with fear and dread.

I looked across the open space at my friend Dennis and he gave me an angelic smile. I am pretty sure he was thinking ... "she'll back out; she won't jump. At the last minute she will back out." My will hardened and I thought, "No way will I back out now! No way!"

My instructor began yelling at me as if we were in a war movie, "Go, go, go, go!" and we rose up into a crouched position and crab-walked toward the open door.

We paused for an instant in the doorway, horrendously buffeted by the wind.

I was in front and he was spooned close behind me. "Jump!" he shouted in my ear. I closed my eyes and we jumped in unison.

The wind racheted in my ears like an old freight train passing an inch away from my head. Never have I been exposed to such a powerful rush of noise. We dropped like an iron weight.

The instructor pulled the cord and the most beautiful peace and tranquility washed over me. Utter and complete silence. I cannot emphasize the silence enough. Even when you live far out in the country, you will hear an occasional bird call, or dog bark, or the drone of a plane high in the sky. I heard nothing, absolutely nothing. We were slowly floating downward in a beautiful blue sky full of puffy white clouds, and I could see cars below like tiny little toys. I looked up in sheer gratitude at the colorful parachute filled with air above us.

All too soon, the ground rushed up toward us. As a point of pride, I did my utmost to land on my feet and stay upright; when my toes touched the ground I ran forward and we did not fall. I guess that's where the expression comes from, "Hit the ground running."

I strode toward the hangar with my instructor, and caught up with Dennis, and I felt as though we were coming back to base after a successful mission (smile).

(Disclaimer) If you are injured or killed while skydiving, your insurance doesn't cover it.

With that in mind, I HIGHLY recommend it! One of the highlights of my life! The one negative thing I have to say is that . . . it's over way too soon! I could float for hours among the clouds way up in that silent sky.

Here are some FAQs about skydiving:

http://www.skydivingmagazine.com/faq.htm

Thank you, Dennis Bass, wherever you are, for challenging me. What a wonderful experience.

http://www.skydivesanmarcos.com/pricing.html