Skydiving Video and Photos.......(Scott)

[Scott]

We went skydiving this week at Freefall Adventures skydiving school in Cross Keys, New Jersey. It's a great place with fun and professional staff. Your first jump will be a tandem jump with a professional skydiver. After signing waivers you head to the briefing room and watch a short film. Then they take you back in the hanger to strap you up, give you an altitude gauge for your wrist so you know when to pull the chord, give you goggles, and then teach you how to jump and land in tandem. We also opted for one video that featured my wife. They interviewed us before going up then the twin turbine aircraft arrived and they took us on board one at a time and we sat on the floor of the plane in front of our individual trainers. The video people are pretty entertaining with the questions as you climb to 13,500 feet (2.5 Miles) with the side door open looking down below. Everyone in the plane high fives each other as the plane starts to level out and the green light goes on. It's time to jump ! ! ! The first diver is a solo and goes right out the door and then a second one who is a first time solo jumper. Then my wife goes out the door with the video man right with them. Next it's my turn and I follow what they taught me on the ground after a quick look below. Knees bent and chin up stepping out to the side leaving the airplane. As soon as we are in the air I push my hips forward and bring my legs back for the free fall position. Within seconds we are falling at 120 miles an hour which is like being in a category 3 hurricane. After taking in the views for about 1 minute of freefall my trainer signals for me to check my altitude which is 5,000 feet which means it's time to pull the orange chord. Suddenly the you hear a bit of flapping and suddenly you feel like you going up in the air instead of down as the parachute opens. The sounds of the 120 mph air pressure stops and everything is silent. Sailing to the earth we approach an oncoming eagle soaring high and then the airfield just below. With feet together and knees slightly bent and hands on the harness about shoulder level we come in for a standing landing. Somehow we made it down before my wife and then my daughter who jumped after me landed to applause. Then we all gathered for some exhilating group photos.

This is everything you can image and more. Would like to thank everyone at Freefall Adventures for a great time.

[youtube=425,350]http://youtube.com/watch?v=ph5V9yUenjw

[Mr. DS]

I live in RI and theres a place up the road that does this and I may just partake in it.  Sounds like you had fun. 

[BlackAngel75]

When I was in the army, I was think of being in airborn.  Just jumping out of of airplanes and everything.  Now that I'm out, I don't know, maybe when I have a midlife crisis or

[Dennis]

One of the oddest sights I've ever seen was a group of sea gulls flying around about 1000 feet below my boots.
Skydiving is a unique sport.

[dean]

I'm a wanting to go skydiving, but just haven't had time.  It's something, though, that I've been hoping to do for the last two years or so, so hopefully sooner rather than later.

[Poogie]

Scott,  I'm sure glad you enjoyed your experience, it looks like fun. But all I can say is if I ever partake in this experience there had better not be anyone below me, because as Bill Cosby said, "first you say it and then you do it". 

[Scott]

Sounds like Dennis has been skydiving. It's an experience that stays with you all day on a number of levels. It really does penetrate your whole being. As they say after your first jump "Welcome to our world".

[CheezeFlixz]

Been there, done there, got these ...

[RCMerchant]

I took my kids on a trip to visit my Ma in NY a couple years back...by plane...my first time. My youngest Eddie puked in my lap,and I about did too! I was a nervous wreck...and drank little bottles of booze all the way there. By the time we got to LaGuardia,I was pretty tight. Me and airplanes don't mix!

[BlackAngel75]

Been there, done there, got these ...

You still in it, Cheeze?

[Scott]

Jumping at 13,500 feet and freefalling for 8,000 feet is pretty extreme. Remember when the military use to use a zip line parachute down? Now with this sporting edition you go to the surface at 120 miles mph for 60 seconds. Without a parachute at 13,500 feet you would hit the ground in less than 2 minutes. Most of the training guys are former military types.

The whole thing reminded me of sledriding on ice down rattlesnake hill as a kid.

[Jack]

Sounds really fun seeing seagulls underneath your feet and all that, something you'd never forget.   Not for me though, I nearly barf going down the barrel flume. 

[CheezeFlixz]

Been there, done there, got these ...

You still in it, Cheeze?

Nope been out ... hmmmm about 15 years now? Got a bother who's a LIFER going on 30 or over 30 ... hell I don't know, he's a command SgtMaj over on the the rock.

[Mofo Rising]

I went skydiving last Christmas with my brothers.  It was fun.

I wasn't really trepidacious, other than some minor hesitation while positioning myself at the door of the plane (there was a trained guy strapped to my back).  The free fall was a barrage of wind that barely left room for thought, while the parachute ride down was fairly peaceful.  I felt rather refreshed after the jump, although my little brother seemed shaken up for the rest of the day.

I'd do it again, no problem, but it's a bit pricey for me, even with the fairly cheap outfit we went with.

[Scott]

There is an element of real danger here, but no more than driving down the street. When something goes wrong its much more dramatic if it's an air-distaster of some kind.

There's nothing quite like going out the door of an aircraft that way.