Skydiving has been on my “bucket list” for about as long as I can remember. In fact, I committed it to writing on my 30 by 30 post. As I mentioned here, I finally actually did it. It’s taken me two freakin’ years to share the pictures with you guys – sorry! Since our big move, I’ve been trying to go through pictures and files and get organized, and what do you know?! I found these guys!
Ready for the story? It was about a month before my birthday, and Andrei woke me up and told me we were going somewhere. No details. Just. Somewhere. Way to bury the lead…
After driving for about an hour and a half, we round a corner, and I see a big blue warehouse with a big skydiving sign. In that moment, I went from excited about the surprise to horrified that he was doing this to me. As much as I’d always said I wanted to go (and he sure listened!), it instantly dawned on me that I wanted to have gone skydiving, not to actually be skydiving. Anywho… I put on a brave face and acted excited while we watched a 20-minute video all about why you shouldn’t skydive and then signed our lives away.
Then we got on the plane (second and third pics below) strapped to the chest of a man I’d just met like some sort of awkward marsupial, and I totally lost it. I cried my eyes out (albeit quietly) all the way to 12,500 feet. Poor, poor Andrei just stared at me helplessly mouthing his apologies and trying to make me laugh.
And then we jumped. And it was incredible. The second I was out of the plane, I was somehow completely unafraid. I think it’s the fact that at that point, it is what it is, right? It was incredible, and my tandem marsupial friend was pointing out various landmarks the whole way down. We had a smooth landing, and I couldn’t stop smiling the rest of the day.
In summation, I’d do it again in half a heartbeat. Let me know if you have questions about skydiving, and I’ll be happy to answer (what I can) in the comments. Plus, when you go back to work on Monday, and everybody asks what you did this weekend, you suddenly look like a total badass.
Appreciating the experience now that it’s over… 😉
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Hey! It looks like you went the same place we did. Start Skydiving?
Hey Jim! Yeah – I think that is the place. Did you guys like it? Our instructors were great.
Yep, i did. We did the 8 hr course and jumped next to instructors instead of strapped to them. Terrifying, but glad I did it
Yep, i did. We did the 8 hr course and jumped next to instructors instead of strapped to them. Terrifying, but glad I did it