Has anyone here ever been skydiving?

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Annamarie3404
Annamarie3404 Posts: 319 Member
in Chit-Chat
I'm scheduled to jump out of a perfectly good airplane next month on my birthday. I've always wanted to skydive and am psyched about going. Has anyone here taken the plunge? This is my last summer of freedom, and I plan on making the most of it. :smile:

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  • stuart160
    stuart160 Posts: 1,628 Member
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    You will love it!!! Bet you do it again : )
  • Sha1911
    Sha1911 Posts: 221 Member
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    Let me know how it goes, I wanna try it this summer! :D
  • ninerbuff
    ninerbuff Posts: 48,584 Member
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    Have had my cousins and friends do it and it's on my bucketlist!!!

    A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
    IDEA Fitness member
    Kickboxing Certified Instructor
    Been in fitness industry for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
  • skyekeeper
    skyekeeper Posts: 286 Member
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    No, but I have wanted to since I was big! I will some day!! Have fun.
  • EddieHaskell97
    EddieHaskell97 Posts: 2,227 Member
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    416 jumps, and I instruct.

    You are going to have the time of your life! You'll take a much bigger risk simply driving to the drop zone (or anywhere) than you will by jumping. Are you going tandem, static line, or AFF for your first jump?
  • Annamarie3404
    Annamarie3404 Posts: 319 Member
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    I'll do a tandem dive. I really don't have the upper body strength or the guts to maneuver a chute on my own. I'm spending a little extra go have someone shoot pics and videos on the way down. I'm hoping to borrow someone's Gopro so I can strap it on and have a video from my pov. I've got a co-worker who will do her 3rd jump in a couple of weeks, she is hooked. :smile:
  • nickylee76
    nickylee76 Posts: 629 Member
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    Once many years ago, tandem and it was great!! Something about risking your life made dinner taste so good that night too!! Lol
  • Altruista75
    Altruista75 Posts: 409 Member
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    YES....it was exhilarating!!!
  • EddieHaskell97
    EddieHaskell97 Posts: 2,227 Member
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    Wonderful! Tandem is the best way overall for a first jump, you get to experience free fall, and don't have the expense of AFF. (Don't worry about upper body strength, when the time comes you'll find you already have it.)

    Good for you on getting the photo package, too. The memories of your first jump will absolutely last a lifetime, and you'll be glad to have the video/stills to go along with it!

    That's great about your coworker, and not at all surprising. You're going to have an incredible time. I'm excited for you!


    For once you have tasted flight you will walk the earth with your eyes turned skywards, for there you have been and there you will long to return. - Leonardo DiCap.... er, da Vinci
  • lookin4gains
    lookin4gains Posts: 1,762 Member
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    Been more than a few times. ;) Best advice I can give you is don't just look down. Look at the horizon and enjoy the beauty of God's creation. The silence up there is pure serenity. Nothing like it. :)
  • ndwildbill
    ndwildbill Posts: 74 Member
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    I did once when I was 21 year old (now 65!). It was wonderful. No tandem in those days, you just got hooked up on a static line and jumped then the jump master pushed you out of the airplane! I exited rather slowly (held on for dear life actually), and landed about a mile from the drop zone. It looked like I was going to land in a corn field, and that did not look pleasant at all. Fortunately, I was able to maneuver a bit, and landed in a cow pasture. No fancy chutes in those days, just the standard army issue round ones! Not following instructions for landing, I came down all on one leg and jammed my knee and hip. Being 21 and bullet proof, I limped around for a couple of weeks and joked about how that was probably going to hurt someday when I get old! Well, now I am getting older, and my knee in that leg is bone on bone, and the hip nearly so. Losing weight is making it easier to walk, but the goal is to replace both of them. Even with all that, I would never trade the thrill of that jump for anything. I have dreams of doing it again...maybe someday. If you have the opportunity, just do it, you will never regret your decision.
  • fr053n
    fr053n Posts: 2,793 Member
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    Wanted to, but it was too cold where I was at the time. Plus, I was afraid to spend the money and then chicken out last minute!
  • ProfessorOwl
    ProfessorOwl Posts: 312 Member
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    The freefall part was incredible. Once the chute deployed, the gentle drifting the rest of the way down kind of upset my stomach a bit. I'd do it again in a heartbeat though.
  • _DomiNate_
    _DomiNate_ Posts: 25
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    haven't yet but, would love to....and would also like to invite a few to jump with me, minus the parachutes. :laugh:
  • lookin4gains
    lookin4gains Posts: 1,762 Member
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    I did once when I was 21 year old (now 65!). It was wonderful. No tandem in those days, you just got hooked up on a static line and jumped then the jump master pushed you out of the airplane! I exited rather slowly (held on for dear life actually), and landed about a mile from the drop zone. It looked like I was going to land in a corn field, and that did not look pleasant at all. Fortunately, I was able to maneuver a bit, and landed in a cow pasture. No fancy chutes in those days, just the standard army issue round ones! Not following instructions for landing, I came down all on one leg and jammed my knee and hip. Being 21 and bullet proof, I limped around for a couple of weeks and joked about how that was probably going to hurt someday when I get old! Well, now I am getting older, and my knee in that leg is bone on bone, and the hip nearly so. Losing weight is making it easier to walk, but the goal is to replace both of them. Even with all that, I would never trade the thrill of that jump for anything. I have dreams of doing it again...maybe someday. If you have the opportunity, just do it, you will never regret your decision.

    Old school Airborne! You guys had those T-10's I think. Thank you for serving Bill! That's a whole different kinda jump than the civilian side. Lol. Airborne hits the ground like a freight train.
  • sukiwabi
    sukiwabi Posts: 221 Member
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    yes, and make sure when you are harnessed that you are done so as tight as you can manage. The guy I jumped with the first time was easy on me when he suited me up and was like ...is this too tight? lol, it was not tight enough and boy do I remember that initial jerk when the chute deployed.
    the free fall is amazing, and the sail down after the chute is deployed is just glorious. have a great time!!! :)
  • KameHameHaaa
    KameHameHaaa Posts: 244 Member
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    Skydiving has always been something I wanted to do, but I'm too large. Once I get down to a more appropriate weight, it will be my reward :D

    Have fun!!!
  • emdeesea
    emdeesea Posts: 1,823 Member
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    Yep, I did it when I finally graduated from college. Did a tandem skydive in Illinois. It was terrifying but I did it. But to be honest, I probably won't ever do it again. The decent to earth made me ill with all the spinning and turning. My vertigo just doesn't handle stuff like that well anymore.
  • Annamarie3404
    Annamarie3404 Posts: 319 Member
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    I really can't wait. And my fiancé is going to jump with the same day. He is not a big fan of heights, so it'll be even scarier for him. From the comments here, this will be an unforgettable event.
  • milmomto2
    milmomto2 Posts: 84
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    I did! On my 40th birthday. Tandem and had it videotaped. The most awesome thing ever! Enjoy.

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