Jumping out of a perfectly good airplane...

We went tandem sky diving while we were in Maine last week. I wasn't nervous about it at all until we actually got to the door and I was looking at the earth 14,000 feet down! It was an amazing experience and we'll do it again - maybe in Moab, should be some incredible scenery.

But don't ever tell your tandem jump partner that he can do whatever tricks he wants. That's a very bad idea! Free fall tricks were fine, but corkscrewing once the chute has opened... I was miserable for 2 - 3 hours afterward, essentially sea sick, which never happened to me when we were sailing. Missed out on some good ice cream from one of the local places too. :(

Veronica

Why would you EVER jump out of a perfectly good plane??? :D

Glad you had fun, but better you than me! My feet do not jump.

SheFly

My family were all surprised that I wasn't nervous. But I figured it was less dangerous than mountain biking. :D

Veronica

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Originally Posted by Veronica

But I figured it was less dangerous than mountain biking. :D

Veronica

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I just spit water on my laptop... Give me an MTB and trails anyday!

SheFly

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Originally Posted by Veronica

My family were all surprised that I wasn't nervous. But I figured it was less dangerous than mountain biking. :D

Veronica

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Perhaps. But a mistake while mountain biking doesn't necessarily guarantee death. :p

You couldn't pay me to jump out of a plane. Or off a bridge. Or to go up in a hot air balloon unless I was allowed to hide in the basket with my eyes closed.

I agree with SheFly - better you than me!

It wasn't my first choice of activities. :) Thom's parents did it last year because his mom wanted to get over her fear of heights. They enjoyed it so he suggested to them that we do it with them. I was not really excited about it. Seriously, why jump out of a perfectly good plane? Plus it's not cheap! Since I fell off the cliff mountain biking Umpqua, I have been more than a little leery about "death" to either side when mountain biking. Jumping out of a plane wasn't going to do anything to assuage my fear, but comparing it to mountain biking made all my nerves go away. The tandem guy does all the work. He doesn't want to die and he certainly doesn't want his customer to die. Therefore, it must be safer than mountain biking! :D:D:D

It did turn out to be a pretty cool experience and we'll think about doing it when we travel some place with interesting geography.

Veronica

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Originally Posted by Veronica

He doesn't want to die and he certainly doesn't want his customer to die.

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Well when you put it like that.... ;)

Glad you had fun. Not something I'll ever do. Don't see any good reason to jump out of a good airplane, and well I hate flying to begin with. (This has nothing to do with 9/11, I've always hated flying, even when I've had to). I'd much rather have a surfboard, snowboard or any bicycle.

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Originally Posted by Veronica

It wasn't my first choice of activities. :) Thom's parents did it last year because his mom wanted to get over her fear of heights. They enjoyed it so he suggested to them that we do it with them.

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I've heard this before - skydiving to get over your fear of heights - but did it actually make a difference?

Someone else who did a skydiving trip said it's really not the same sensation as the "fear of heights" thing until you can see the ground approaching, and then it's over pretty quickly.

I am afraid of heights, so I have a bit of a morbid curiosity ;)

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Originally Posted by colby

I've heard this before - skydiving to get over your fear of heights - but did it actually make a difference?

Someone else who did a skydiving trip said it's really not the same sensation as the "fear of heights" thing until you can see the ground approaching, and then it's over pretty quickly.

I am afraid of heights, so I have a bit of a morbid curiosity ;)

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Yeah, I wonder that too. I also have a fear of heights, but of all the things I mentioned above, the airplane is the least scary to me when thinking about it just because the height is so severe. I think I'm much more terrified of ladders. :o

Oddly enough, mountain climbing doesn't bother me at all. Go figure.

His mom was asked that at breakfast Saturday. She didn't really know. His dad just always does the high stuff. :)

I really don't see it as the same thing either. Tandem skydiving is a controlled fall and controlled by someone else. My fear of heights - and it really only applies to mountain biking is about a lack of control. In free fall you are going so fast and it lasts so long. It doesn't feel like falling. And there's no impact. :D Once the chute gets pulled, it feels like just floating gently to the earth. Unless you're spun around like a corkscrew. And even then it feels like a Tilt A Whirl, not like falling.

Veronica

I also have a fear of heights and my fear of heights is actually intensified in an airplane because of the distance to the ground. On the other hand as long as I'm inside a building I can be on the top floor of a skyscraper and be fine or even on the roof of one as long as there is a wall at the edge that comes up above my waist. Go figure.

I *might* be persuaded to skydive, but then I'd have to take ativan and that would probably defeat the whole purpose! good for you for literally taking a leap of faith.

I used to be very afraid of heights, but what really helped me was to be on the chairlifts. When I started snowboarding 6 years ago after a 10 year hiatus from skiing, I nearly peed my pants when I first went up the lift. I pretty much had panic attacks whenever they stopped.

But as with anything, going on it over and over and over again almost got me immune to it, now I can look all the way down at the highest point and doesn't faze me. Though having said that, I did have a mini freak-out when the peak-2-peak gondola between Whistler and Blackcomb stopped shortly past the highest drop. I mean, how in the world do they rescue you dangling 300 feet in the air??

I don't want to go on a chairlift. I really would not be comfortable at all so high up with no glass/ walls around me.

But then I don't downhill ski nor snowboard that needs a chairlift.

I could probably be alright on a chair lift. Is it that different from a roller coaster? I love roller coasters.

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Originally Posted by GLC1968

Perhaps. But a mistake while mountain biking doesn't necessarily guarantee death. :p

You couldn't pay me to jump out of a plane. Or off a bridge. Or to go up in a hot air balloon unless I was allowed to hide in the basket with my eyes closed.

I agree with SheFly - better you than me!

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Heh, I'm scared to death of heights, too...but not chairlifts or rollercoasters, interestingly enough. That glass lookout thingie over the Grand Canyon sounds like a sort of Hell to me, though.

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Originally Posted by zoom-zoom

Heh, I'm scared to death of heights, too...but not chairlifts or rollercoasters, interestingly enough. That glass lookout thingie over the Grand Canyon sounds like a sort of Hell to me, though.

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I agree with you. I've been to the one at the Grand Canyon, but there is one at the House on the Rock in (don't remember if it's Minnesota or Wisconsin). I couldn't walk very far out into that room. I'd think the one at the Grand Canyon would be worse.

Wow, Veronica! I think I'd need to wear a diaper if I tried skydiving, so probably better for everyone if I don't.

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Originally Posted by Koronin

I agree with you. I've been to the one at the Grand Canyon, but there is one at the House on the Rock in (don't remember if it's Minnesota or Wisconsin). I couldn't walk very far out into that room. I'd think the one at the Grand Canyon would be worse.

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And there are pop-out look outs like that on the Sears/Willis tower....oh, hayul no!!! :eek:

Veronica, I think you did great! I am amazed at people who can do this without becoming a basket case - they would need to pry my fingers off of the person I came down with and probably give me drugs to calm me - I won't even climb on a ladder! Chairs are bad enough....Airplanes, oddly enough, don't bother me. Roller coasters, etc, nope. Can't pay me enough to ride one :o

Zoom-zoom, I agree completely!

I was a "bit" nervous when both of my children celebrated my son's 21st birthday by going skydiving.

When I asked him why they wanted to jump out of a perfectly good plane, he replied "the plane wasn't the good" he said he felt much better getting out of it! That was calming!

Never so happy to get a call from my kids when they were done!

How cool Veronica! This is something I've always wanted to do.

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Originally Posted by badger

I *might* be persuaded to skydive, but then I'd have to take ativan and that would probably defeat the whole purpose! good for you for literally taking a leap of faith.

I used to be very afraid of heights, but what really helped me was to be on the chairlifts. When I started snowboarding 6 years ago after a 10 year hiatus from skiing, I nearly peed my pants when I first went up the lift. I pretty much had panic attacks whenever they stopped.

But as with anything, going on it over and over and over again almost got me immune to it, now I can look all the way down at the highest point and doesn't faze me. Though having said that, I did have a mini freak-out when the peak-2-peak gondola between Whistler and Blackcomb stopped shortly past the highest drop. I mean, how in the world do they rescue you dangling 300 feet in the air??

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When I saw the peak-2-peak gondola, I said NOPE!!! ;) I rode a gondola at a resort once with a liftie that also did gondola rescues, if they can't fix it I am pretty sure they basically have to go along the gondola, pull you out of the cart, and get you to a pole where you can climb down. NOPE NOPE NOPE! It gives me vertigo just thinking about it! After riding the gondola with the gondola guy, I did have to seriously think about riding the gondola again. Sometimes knowledge is not power. ;)

I do snowboard and ride chair lifts and have taken other gondolas/trams. There's one chair lift in a ski area that crosses a big gap and goes along steep slopes that I won't ride, though. It's only a double. Perception of safety is definitely a factor. I ride in airplanes so often that I only feel the vertigo-y feeling when we are close to the ground (which jives with the skydiving thing I read). Quad/six-pack chair lifts don't bother me as much as doubles (but they also tend to serve less steep terrain).

Desensitization by daily snowboarding? Sounds good to me! Maybe I can find a doctor to sign off on that... ;)

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Originally Posted by zoom-zoom

Heh, I'm scared to death of heights, too...but not chairlifts or rollercoasters, interestingly enough. That glass lookout thingie over the Grand Canyon sounds like a sort of Hell to me, though.

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YES, totally! Just imagining that makes me dizzy!

I don't mind rollercoasters, though sometimes I have to close my eyes or grip my neighbor tightly on the climb. ;) Maybe the fear of heights adds to the rush, though.

Why not? Life's short. Glad you enjoyed it, V!

GLC, FWIW, I went on a hot air balloon ride once and the experience was NOT what I expected. You can't even tell you are rising, and then when you look down it's as if you are an ant on the surface of a dog, looking down at the patterns of hair--which are landscape and vegetation--and being totally disconnected with the fact that you are not where your brain thinks you are. Hard to explain. I'd never jump out of a plane, but the hot air balloon ride was amazing.