Skydiving News

Towards the end of April, I began to work with another charity called AgeConcern – this time raising money for the elderly in need as I took up the opportunity of a lifetime and a lifetime goal – swimming in the clouds.

An early morning journey from Harrow to Chatteris took just over an hour and we arrived at the North London Parachute Centre right on schedule. I went to the registration trailer and signed up. Half an hour later, we had some training and watched a video that showed the experience. Noticing that I wasn’t the only “first timer” there washed away some nerves. It was a calm anticipation.

It was my turn. I put on the straps and looked like a real skydiver for the first time in my life, although I felt the pain of the straps tied so hard in the most awkward of places. As I met my photographer and instructor, we entered the plane and filed in. We sat toboggan style in two rows, facing the back of the plane. I was on the side of the door and a few people back from it. We all got in and the plane began its taxi along the runway. We lined up and took off. That was a powerful plane. I love taking off and I had never experienced one like this. I could see the ground going away and down through the open door. That was great. As we reached about 10,000 feet or so, the instructor began to hook up to me and run through the first of 3 safety checks. My mind was still on what was happening at the moment, no time to think about anything else. We finished with the prep work and went up on our knees.

As I put my legs under the plane and my head back, I was instructed to keep my hands crossed to my chest and to look at the engine of the plane. The photographer had left the plane and BOOM – we left the plane too. By the time I could understand where I was, I was trying to smile for the cameraman in front of me whilst flying into the ice. When we reached our jump height we descended from a sitting position. I was the first to go, but all the nerves had been wiped out, as the instructor was so friendly that you couldn’t possibly have any nerves. We jumped out into the clouds and instantly I was in a whole different world. There was a guy going solo, and another with a video camera attached to his helmet. As I watched they jumped out and within a second were swallowed by the clouds around them. It was a magnificent sight and I was in heaven. It was worth the whole thing just to witness that. Words cannot describe how exhilarating it was.

Many sensations hit me at once. All of them were beautiful. I will recount them as I remember them. The first thing I was aware of were the clouds and we were engulfed in them and that sensation of falling, (which felt more like floating in the wind) it was like diving into a lake, but instead of hitting the water, it was just wind and this moist white vapour. As my body stabilized I regained my equilibrium. I ran through my checks that I had been going over and over before the jump. And when I was done, the sky opened up and we were through the clouds. Houses were little dots. And I could see forever through the sporadic openings in the clouds. It was rather cloudy and so I could not see continuously but it didn’t matter. I had tunnel vision and I would look at one spot, then move my eyes to another.

I checked my altimeter, coming up on 4000 feet, which is the altitude at which the instructor pulled the cord. The parachute opened and it felt like I went from falling to being pulled upward. I melted into my harness and let out a sigh of bliss. I had never felt such wonderful sensations in my life. I didn’t have a tense muscle in my body. I must say I was surprised. I had expected it to be the adrenaline rush of all time, although that’s not what I was out for.

I was looking for the feeling of total release and complete peace. I found it over 10,000 feet in the air. I looked down on the world and it was beautiful. I was flying. No plane, no fake wings, no propulsion system, just gliding on the wind with no cares or worries. My instructor took us through a few turns, adjusting our coarse. I can compare this to a roller coaster. But a roller coaster is violent compared to this. It’s just gliding. I felt it in my stomach as it tickled a little. It was also a rush and very exhilarating. As we got closer to the ground my instructor taught me how to make a landing. We glided in. One minute we were fast approaching the ground and then we were gently sliding on our butts. It was very fun. It was like sitting, not falling, on a slide, and then sliding a couple of feet. It was a great flight and a great landing. When I left, I looked outside and up to the clouds. A big smile went across my face and even though I was looking up at the clouds I was seeing them below me again. And I felt that floating peaceful feeling all over again. I don’t think I’ll ever look at the sky quite the same way again… I’ve been there.

About the Author

Kavit Haria is a life and rhythm coach who runs InnerRhythm Coaching practice. He has appeared on many radio shows, newspapers and magazines and is a talented musician too. He runs a bimonthly coaching newsletter packed with tips, tools, and strategies to dramatically improve the quality of your life. Join now at http://www.coachkavit.com

Written By: Kavit M Haria

Having decided to jump from a perfectly good aircraft, my next question was, “Now what?”So I did the research and asked as many questions as I could think of about skydiving, and there were quite a few, considering the nature of the sport. Here is what I learned. The Basics First, you will need to find a skydiving school with a good reputation.This is a fairly easy thing to do.The internet, phone book, and local airports are full of them.Next, you will need to check your pocket book.Skydiving is one of the more expensive sports to learn.Then, you will need to decide how you want to learn.There are three methods of training: tandem, static line, and Accelerated Free Fall (AFF).All of these methods have their benefits and drawbacks, but we will touch more on those a little later. What’s First?

Health and Safety. First, you must consider health and safety.Know the risks involved before you get involved.Skydiving is not chess; you will not be sitting on an uncomfortable concrete bench moving your pieces around a game board.You are going to step out of an airplane and, in freefall, will reach speeds of up to 250 feet per second… that is 110 miles per hour!!If you have a bad ticker, unregulated high blood pressure, or any number of other health problems, speak to an instructor and discuss your options in detail.Also keep in mind, even the best of the best in this sport sometimes hit the ground a little harder then they intend to.So, bad knees may also be a consideration.DO NOT be afraid or embarrassed to discuss these things with your instructor before making that first jump. It is always preferable to hit the ground safely then to plant yourself in it.Truthfully though, with the proper preparations and instruction you would be more likely to develop cataracts from reading this article then suffer a serious injury from skydiving.Listen to your instructors, know your equipment, and never assume you know how to do something just because you saw it in a movie. Which Training Method To Use?

Training Methods As I researched information, I discovered that there are three approved methods of training to become a licensed skydiver, the Tandem jump, the Static jump, and the Accelerated Free Fall (AFF). Tandem The tandem jump is the easiest and quickest method to get into the air.With ground training typically lasting about 30 minutes, you will then jump out of an airplane while strapped to the chest of a professional Tandem Instructor. After three or four of these jumps and completion of the approved First Jump Course (ground school), a student may then move on to the next level. Tandem jumping, however, does provide an opportunity for the adventurous spirit who may not quite meet the physical or proficiency requirements for the static line or accelerated free fall jumps. By relying on tandem instructor’s skills, it may still be possible to experience the extreme thrill of skydiving. Static Line Static line skydiving was developed by the military as a safety measure for paratroopers.It is used for instant and reliable deployment of parachutes at a relatively low altitude, about 2000 – 3000 feet.Basically what happens is a specially designed cord is attached to the plane and to your parachute. As you step away from the plane, the cord immediately deploys your parachute for you. No fuss – no muss. After about two of these jumps the student begins demonstrating mock-pulls of a dummy ripcord.After about three of these jumps the student is then ready for their first free fall. Accelerated Free Fall This is the way to go for the adrenalin junky out there. Why?You get to free fall from jump one!!Of course this method is a little more expensive due to the fact that you will have two instructors jumping with you, and, although you will be in free fall, the instructors will maintain hands-on contact at all times during free fall.After a few jumps like this, you will begin doing it on your own with a single instructor giving more advice and training.This method will get you your class a license a little faster. Training Completed!!Really? After Class After you have completed 4 to 5 hours of ground school training and have made 25 jumps, you are qualified for a license and can keep going all the way to your D license, requiring 500 jumps.But once you have your license, are you really done?The answer to that question is no.As with any skill, you never learn everything.There is always going to be that next skill level to work towards.New equipment and techniques are being developed every day.So the only thing left to do now is to get started!Have fun and good jumping!

About the Author

John Ewing is the editor and webmaster of http://www.skydiving-parachuting-guide.com. John publishes articles on powered parachutes (http://www.skydiving-parachuting-guide.com/powered-parachutes.html). He also and helps people to find the best placesto skydive around the globe, for further information visit his website.

Written By: John Ewing