Taking a leap of faith at 10,000 feet - no better way to end 2020!
When you first arrive to Skydive Key West (https://skydivekeywest.com/) you drive down a lush winding road, all the way to the end and come upon a small house to check in. In the yard you see the plane graveyard, and comically even parts of the plane in the backyard landscape. Luckily, the plane being piloted is fully-functioning, sparkling, shiny, gassed up and ready to go!
While you wait for the previous group to finish you can watch videos and see photo galleries from other jumps, which somehow excites and terrifies you all at once, knowing you'll be next. They harness you up, tell you what to expect when you get out there, and then you're off. Once you board you realize that this plane is truly only big enough for 4 people, and that's with you sitting in one's lap - your instructor ready to strap you onto him.
On my jump, the parachute-loader decided to join us for a solo jump, so at about 3500 ft he opens the side door, a huge gust of wind blowing in, and just...gone...there he goes - he casually jumps out while we head up another 6500 feet. I know the next time that door swings open, it's my turn.
The instructor prepares by attaching our 4 separate harness clips together, tells me that door will open, put my feet on the step, and then he's going to roll us out. So we do. We just roll right out...
Before your parachute, just right out of the plane, freefalling, you expect to have that rollercoaster stomach-drop feeling, but you don't. You're just...peaceful. It's unbelievable that you're just somehow suspended in air completely uninhibited. You don't feel like you're falling fast, it's like slow motion until whoosh - the parachute opens and you're all of a sudden shook back to awareness, slowly gliding down.
My instructor gave me the handles so I could navigate the chute - pulling hard left to swing around one way, then adjusting right, swaying back and forth. This part was actually scarier to me than the freefall. And no one warns you about the harness - these things can hurt if they pinch, so make sure yours is fitted on you just right.
The landing is daunting as you see the ground getting nearer and nearer, but going tandem with someone that had over 11k jumps under his belt made me feel confident in his timing. It was just right - we glided down smoothly, setting my feet down and standing up. Perfect. The initial adrenaline rush and then after affect of that just makes you feel so tired - ready for a nap! They golf cart you back to the little check-in house, AirDrop you your photos and videos, and then you leave with a memory for life, and a slightly more complete bucket list. (And if you're me, you also snag a souvenir coffee mug for your collection.)
So if you've thought about it, just do it. Do it before you tell yourself all the reasons not to. Remember, life is short - jump out of the plane.