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Published: October 21st 2009
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You have seen the opening picture so you know what I did. I jumped out of a plane at 12,000 feet and plummeted at speeds of 120 mph (200km/h) towards the earth. What possessed me to do such a thing is a question you may ask. And that is a good question. Let me try to explain how this all came to be.
Living and travelling in New Zealand has given me the opportunity to meet many people. Some adventurous, some less adventurous but many have taken the time to explain how they ended up sky diving and how much fun they had in the process. Secondly, this has been a challenge that I have set for myself. As everybody else can do it well why can't I?
Saturday we had camped on the beach in Karamea and this was when the idea had jumped into my head. The idea planted its roots deep into my brain. And after the next couple days, the idea still made sense. So on my birthday I booked myself a time slot to skydive in Fox Glacier. No better place to do it I thought. Mount Cook and friends, the Tasman Sea, Franz
Josef and Fox Glaciers were going to be the backdrop.
So on Tuesday after a breakfast and a drive out to Fox Glacier, I found myself practising the banana (a term used to arch your back when free falling with your arms spread out ) with a man named Rod pressed against my backside. So in my two tone jumpsuit I was put into a very little plane and in no time we were cruising down the runway. We took off and started climbing altitude. I was sitting on the floor beside the pilot so I had the view of all the gauges including the altitude and the timers that were counting down the seconds until the door would open.
First a little fifteen minute scenic flight as we climbed towards 12,000 feet. A little cruise above Fox and Franz Josef Glaciers then through the mountains to see Mt Cook and his neighbors. The sun was shining and the winds were blowing the snow atop the mountain peaks. At this point of the flight you are sitting on the floor gazing out the window enjoying the beautiful scenery. You almost forget that the door is gonna open soon
and you will be dangling out the door of the plane. We kept climbing, the ground got further away and we were out of the mountains. I can't really say that I was scared, but I was a bit nervous. I just tried to stay focused on my task at hand. I thought I was ready until the door opened and the screaming wind was blowing into the plane.
I was the first to jump so Rod was shouting something like "Let's do this Gifton". I stuck my first leg out only to have the wind swing it wildly. I steadied my leg and put my second out. I edged my body to the edge then dangled myself outside the plane. The deafening noise of the plane and winds, the distant green of the earth, Rod shouting at me. This is what I remember. The feelings of most of my brain screaming "Whoa whoa whoa. What is going on here?". While the other half of my brain is focusing on legs back, arms in and this is still a good idea. I gave the wing camera a nervous smile and a thumbs up and in the blink of an
eye I was somersaulting out of the plane
I remembered to keep my eyes open as we somersaulted into thin air. The wind hitting my face with so much force, the view of the plane flying above and away from me. Seeing the other guys jump out of the plane. I will admit I was in panic mode for the first 5 seconds. Sensory overload. My eyes rolled around my head. I needed to breathe. But after I assumed the banana position with my arms out and started looking around, I relaxed a bit. I was even smiling as I plummeted towards the earth at the speed of 120 mph with my lips and cheeks flapping in the wind. The freefall lasts about 45 seconds then the parachute is pulled. The parachute hits, the noise stops. Things are now peaceful. It feels like you came to a complete stop. We floated down and Rod pointed out some sights. I had to adjust my leg harness for landing and practice my landing position (pull legs up as far as you can). I had my camera inside my jumpsuit and pulled it out to take a few pictures of the descend.
After a few spins with the parachute we landed softly on our bums in a sheep field.
We landed and Rod has the camera in my face (I opted for the extra dvd). But I had nothing to say but "That was one good time man". In a few minutes you are put into the van and driven back to the hangar. I jumped into my van and went to get a coffee. All I could ask myself "What do I do now?". I will say I felt good after I landed but it took a couple hours before it all settled in and then I felt great. Wow the sensations that I had felt from the moment that door opened are amazing and unlike anything else have every experienced in my life. Nervousness, fear, anticipation, excitement, amazement, adrenaline were some of the many emotions I encountered during those moments. But more amazingly I was speechless!! Doesn't happen that often. What do I do next?
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