Skydiving has always been on my bucket list. However, I have always battled with the thought of jumping out of a plane and possibly plunging to my death.
This past weekend my good friends Jay, Robert and Melissa celebrated their birthday in a beautiful home in Santa Ynez with 30 friends. One of the main activities was skydiving. We drove up on Thursday night and I already decided I was not ready to take that leap of faith.
My friends woke up early and the peer pressure began. “Come on Keir, Get out of bed. Let’s do this!” I quickly said “No way” and tried to go back to sleep. …but then something inside me said, Keir, this is your time. I quickly got out of bed still half asleep, put my clothes on and hopped in the van.
My heart was beating fast.. sweaty hands. Pretty much scared shitless.
I quickly felt my heart pumping faster and faster.
As we walked into Santa Barbara Sky Dive space, we saw skydivers packing their parachutes… ready to take us flying. After we signed our lives away and watched the safety video, we got harnessed up.
I looked at the man I was trusting my life with and told him that I was scared and felt like I was going to faint. Chilled and relaxed. He smiled and said, “No problem….. its gonna be amazing!”
Most of the guys working at Santa Barbara SkyDive have jumped over 1,000 times. No biggie for them. Just another day at the office.
After all, we harnessed we boarded the plane and took off. After 3,000 feet I started to get freaked out even more as I peered out of the plane. Climbing higher and higher… My heart beat faster and faster. I grabbed my friend Robert’s hand for dear life. I was second to jump out.
As soon as we got to an altitude of 13,000 feet the door was opened. It was cold and very windy. My face had a sheer look of terror. With the instructor strapped to my back, we began to shuffle to the edge. I looked back at my friends. They looked at me with the same terror face and then I look down to see my feet at the edge of the plane.. and we begin to rock back and forth. I held on to my harness. Closed my eyes and jumped.
60 seconds of free falling, 120 miles per hour!
I felt free! I was flying…. I felt alive. Adrenaline pumping.
As soon as the instructor pulled the parachute, I felt even better. I knew I was going to live.
As soon as we landed… I couldn’t stop smiling. Jumping up and down waving my hands in the air, I felt exhilarated.
It’s all about timing!
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