List - Skydive


I signed up to my university skydiving society with my house mate Sandy Wilson. We both opted for the Advanced Free Fall (AFF) option where you learn how to fall in a stable position, pull your own parachute and control your canopy for a safe landing. He went before i did, completed the groundschool and a number of jumps and could not stop raving about it.

It took me a while to go down just for the ground school which took about 4 hours and unfortunately the weather was not right for me to jump afterwards. A long while afterwards, i found a day to go down (and it did a whole day, building in travel) for a refresh and to do my first jump. To say i was nervous is an understatement.

My greatest fear is of heights - i don't even like going up large open escalators! I was told that once i got on the plane i would have to jump. I felt numb. I got on the plane - it was worryingly bouncy. We ascended to around 6,000 ft, the jump height for the RAPS course, I would be going all the way up to 13,000! The door opened and air rushed in. Cue a shot of adrenaline. It was truly surreal seeing people jumping out of a plane - like seeing someone jump out of a moving car. I actually thought "What the hell are you doing!?" and then realised that I would be doing the same very soon. The door shut so that we could climb higher. I kept my eyes fixed on my altimeter, watching the needle tick upwards to 13,000ft. The door flew open again. More people jumped out. A sudden fear of falling out of the plane stuck me - ridiculous right? I've come here to jump out and I'm scared of falling out - I guess it is the choice that makes the difference. The rest is better explained by a video I was lucky to get from one of my instructors

SKYDIVE

Having completed AFF level 1 and level 2 now, I have set myself another goal of gaining the AFF A licence qualification.

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