Skydiving as something I’ve always wanted to do. It was one of the things on my bucket list. It had been a dream as long as I can remember.
I have some friends who had done it in the past. I hadn’t actually gone out and watched them do it, but I had heard their stories. Time went by; I saw a few things on YouTube and became interested. I finally decided to go out there and do it.
A couple of friends were supposed to go with me, but they couldn’t, so I went by myself. It was a really small place. Small, rural road. It looks like you are driving into nowhere. Peaceful. I got there at 10 o’clock on a Sunday morning — a beautiful day.
I filled out the paperwork. As soon as I got it filled out, they took my weight, and as they were doing that Matt comes running around the corner saying, ‘Okay! We’re ready for you!’
I had never been so excited to jump out of a plane in my life. But at the same time I was scared; nervous; giddy. There were so many emotions running through me. All I knew was: I was doing it. I was not backing out. I decided that I was going to jump first.
And so Matt got me into the harness; talked to me. We joked around.
I have been on hundreds of planes in my life, but I’d never jumped out of one. Even so, the plane ride didn’t bother me. I was just trying to take in the scenery and soak up the full experience…but I had one of those oh crap moments when I saw the ground and the door opened up.
Anyway, we rolled out. In freefall, as I was looking around at the scenery all around me, I was still scared, nervous and excited. It was intense. I really didn’t know what to feel. Then, there was Matt, pulling the chute. ‘Welcome to my office,’ he says.
I just had this huge sense of relief over me. I wasn’t scared that the parachute wasn’t going to open, but I was still happy when it did. I remember looking at down the ground wondering how fast it was coming; when we would eventually land. Matt started doing some twists and turns, and we just floated on down.
When I got to work the next day, all of my friends and coworkers were asking me about it. They asked me if I would do it again. I said I’d do it again right now. I’ve thought about getting my license. I would love to.
The scary fun part of it for me was just the adrenaline, chasing the adrenaline. My adrenaline was pumping the whole time. I literally shook for about an hour after I landed.
I explain it to people this way: I had faith the whole time that I was going to be okay. There was never a doubt in my mind. But you’re free falling at over 120 mph on a skydive, and you are not in control. So it still gave me that sense of relief when that parachute opened and I was sure that I was fine.
There are only a couple things I would change about my first skydive if I could. First, I sorta wish I had jumped second so I could see how you roll out of the plane. Second: If I could change one more thing about it, I’d would have made that first jump with friends. It would be a lot more fun with other people there, whether they jump or not. When I go again — as soon as I get the chance — I will. I’ve got several friends and coworkers wanting to come along.
Here’s what it boils down to: Skydiving has always been a dream of mine, and I did it. When you achieve a dream that you have wanted for so long, you tell people about it, you get them excited, and they want to make their dreams a reality, too. It inspires them. People start taking notice.
