STYLETHREAD -- LET'S TALK SHOP!

ladysi78250 · Dooney & Bourke

Need that extra push!

Collette · Chanel

I was airborne when I was in the Army and it is seriously one of the greatest things I've ever done in my life. It's the most amazing sense of freedom to just free fall for those few seconds and see the world from a totally different view. It's totally normal to be scared as hell. I'd think you were crazy if you weren't. Just make sure you're going to a reputable place and remember you won't be jumping alone. You'll be tandem, meaning you'll have a professional strapped to your back!!

Suasoria · Chanel

JEALOUS!! Do it, and tell us all about it.

gingembre1 · Kate Spade

I LOVED it. I did it in South America in a rickety old plane, and it was the most amazing experience. The parachute part made me incredibly sick to my stomach though. But the freefall part was totally worth it.

jah · Dooney & Bourke

Do it, do it, do it. It is the most incredible experience and you will love it. Just go with a reputable outfit and you will be fine. The free fall is amazing. The parachute part is cool (you can do tricks and stuff by pulling on the levers differently). The adrenaline high you will have after the jump is amazing. My aunt gave me skydiving for a present one year and I have loved it ever since - going again in a month!!

subwolley · Kate Spade

More power to you. I would never do it!

ladysi78250 · Dooney & Bourke

For those who have done it, do you get that rollercoaster feeling when you are jumping off the plane?

gingembre1 · Kate Spade

No, my stomach didn't drop until the parachute was deployed. The free fall just feels like flying.

jah · Dooney & Bourke

ladysi78250 wrote:

For those who have done it, do you get that rollercoaster feeling when you are jumping off the plane?

Your stomach doesn't drop in skydiving. You just feel like you are floating, but flying too. It isn't like the floating when the parachute opens, which is very peaceful. In the free fall you have a roar in your ears and use hand signals to communicate (it is like a freight train in your ears). Beyond that you are just moving through the air - you can actually manipulate your body to go different ways (you won't do this on your first jump). The only time that you have a concept that you are falling is right when you leave the plane because you have something to relate your body to and you can see the plane moving away, but the stomach doesn't drop. Keep in mind, you will drop fast. My first jump was from 13,000 feet. Pulled the chute at 5,000. It took around 45 seconds to drop the 8,000 feet in between. Usually first jumps are around the 10,000-11,000 mark, so you are looking at 30-40 seconds free fall and you will pull the chute around 5,000. From that point, it will take you 6-8 minutes to get to the ground (when you pull the chute, you will get yanked upright very quickly). Once you are upright, it will become SO quiet and still. You go from an incredible rush to a really peaceful experience.

As an FYI, it takes an incredible amount of strength to trap air in the chute for landing, so unless your upper body is really strong, I don't recommend trying a jump that is not tandem. The other thing is in static line jumps (the ones you can do by yourself if this is your first jump - only available in some states) you actually have to take hours of classes (in tandem you listen to your co-jumper for 30 minutes or so). Also, in static line you really only get 2-3 seconds of free fall. Since free fall IMO is the really amazing thing, it isn't worth it.

Do it! You will love it.