Free Fall

I like to plan trips going to “Destination Unknown” for the girls that travel with me occasionally, but on my birthday I got my own Destination Unknown. My husband planned a trip for me, and it was to be a surprise. With the little information I had, I was sure the surprise was one of two things – skydiving or hang gliding. The day before my birthday, I asked my husband what time we were leaving on Sunday and what I needed to wear. He said when our daughter arrived, she would tell me. I asked, “Did you take out a life insurance policy on me?” Our daughter arrived and the surprise was revealed. Skydiving. She was taking the plunge with me.

The next morning, we drove to Chattanooga Skydiving Company for our adventure. We watched some of the videos including the one that gave all the warnings of what could happen. It wasn’t long before we got suited up in our harnesses and made the short walk to the plane. We loaded in and got hooked up to our tandem guide. The plane took off. Up! Up! Up! 

The view of Sequatchie Valley was spectacular. The Tennessee River wound around like a huge snake through the gorge. Nickajack Lake sparkled in the sunshine, shooting little diamonds skyward. Soft billowy clouds danced across the blue sky. The clouds parted as the plane passed right through them as we went higher and higher. The world below got smaller, and it looked as if it began to curve. Fourteen thousand feet. 

The door of the plane opened. There were four divers jumping tandem along with photographers to capture the exit and free fall. We all slid forward as each team plummeted out the door. My daughter and her tandem guide were the second duo to dive. I was last with my tandem guide. I sat at the edge of the door, feet dangling in the air. Goggles on. Two deep breaths. We rocked twice, then once more and we were flipping through the air. My guide had said to breathe through my nose. If I tried to breathe through my mouth, I would gasp for air. To avoid that, I kept my mouth closed.

The roar of the wind was like crashing waves of the ocean, washing over my ears, the sound magnified by the speed of descent. My ears popped from the pressure. Free fall! For 70 seconds we flew through the sky at 120+ mph. The wind gave me a facelift. Photos that captured those moments showed ripples on my arms and cheeks as we flew into the wind. 

Everything moved so fast it was hard to take everything in: flying through the air at high speed, a bird’s eye view of the world below, the mountains rising from the valley, the winding river dividing the land, the lake teeming with boats, green patchwork fields, roads meandering  here and there, houses like polka dots scattered on the landscape.

With a jerk upward and a quick decrease in speed, I knew the chute had opened. All of my gear shifted upward. The leg harness didn’t quite go into place, and the chest harness slid up to my neck. I told my guide that the strap was cutting into my leg. He said to try to adjust it, so traveling at top speed descending through the sky, I tried to stand on his feet and adjust the strap. You know how that worked out! 

We glided for a bit, then did a 360 to get a view of the whole valley. As the chute turned so did my stomach but in the opposite direction. The sound was like the wings of a giant bird as the wind whipped at the chute. We made some 180 turns immediately followed by another 180 the other direction. My stomach didn’t make all of them! One of my rules – especially for travel – is to look behind you. Sometimes we miss the best views because we don’t look back, but I was about to request to forgo that rule. 

We made one final half turn and began the descent to the drop zone where I had seen the plane and other divers land. As we got closer, I could make out the faces of those waiting on the ground. I lifted my legs high as instructed and prepared for landing. His bottom hit the ground first as we touched down on the grass and glided to a stop. I was set free. It was an exhilarating experience. Now if my stomach would just stop churning….

Checklist for future reference: motion sickness patch for tilt-a-whirl turns; tight harness.

June 2019