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baRRRpirate

Skydiving….Why keep doing it?

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I just like every aspect of it. I love airplanes, and the sky, and doing something that boggles my mind. Its a sport, and its challenging physically and mentally, and you can jump for 100 years and never stop learning. I enjoy people's reactions when they find out you skydive, and how were all part of something that only a small percentage of the world experiences. And I like the bonds created between you and other jumpers, even after only meeting them once.

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Not an adrenaline junkie either. I do it because it's so profoundly beautiful. Back in the day (1970's), skydiving weaned me away from LSD because it was every bit as exploratory and not half as scary.

Your humble servant.....Professor Gravity !

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I am fairly new to this sport, but I can tell you why I have continued to this point (25 jumps in 3 months). The exhileration and rush was what got me past jump 1, but all that mostly wears away as you become more comfortable and confident with your basic skills and the equipment. Now I keep going:
A) for the people! After about jump 7 everyone realized I was there to stay, and now they all treat me like family. There are bonds formed I have made that I have never experienced anywhere else in life.
B) For the challenge. Skydiving seems to be something that doesn't come naturally, takes major skill building, and you never learn everything there is to know. The fact that I am not perfect at it drives me to continue getting better.
C) It is quite scenic. From my DZ there are days when you can see the city of Atlanta, the big lake (700miles of shoreline) that I live a mile awayfrom that is 50miles from the DZ, and the N Georgia mountains. Also the clouds, gotta love that. And watching someone go into a spiral from the same altitude as you.
Bottom line is there are many aspects of skydiving that can not be replicated by doing anything else, and I love that.;)

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I started jumping back in 1962. I never thought much about making a career out of it....that just evolved, and I owned the whole sky. Few people were jumping and fewer made a living at it. I stayed playing the rules game until 1969, when I did my 1st chuteless jump. I threw the rule Book away, and lived by my own set of rules. I got notarized in the Press/Media , in a great amount through CSPA's attempts to stop me. The more they tried, the more I got to do. I jumped 6 and 7 miles, over Pearson Airport. No one else has ever been allowed as much freedom as I was from the Federal Transport Ministry, and no one will ever have it in the future. When I say I owned the sky....I really did. Everything was possible, and CSPA unwittingly helped me get the attention to keep going. I had a great time....I believe I had the greatest time in the entire sport, and I am still alive. My last jump was Aug 18th 2013, and I don't want to do any more. My health is such one would expect to find in a man who will be 82 yrs old this year....I am not as fast as before, I break bones much easier now, and they heal slower. I am not the least afraid of breaking anything, but I am sick of waiting for them to heal up. I dont get around like I used to. I never dreamed I would get too old for jumping...I was destined to be 40 yrs old forever. Well, that didnt work out like I had thought it would. I am through now ( I think ) and will be satisfied to watch my daughter make her jumps. I know she'll never have the sky imbedded in her heart like I did, but I put it there back in the 1960s. I hope this helpd you understand. Best wishes, Bill Cole D-41, aka Chuteless 2 and 3.




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dthames

I want to fly.



^^ This!

I got into skydiving last summer through my ex - I did a tandem and couldn't see what all the fuss was about so was persuaded into doing AFF.

Free fall is kind of cool but mostly cold and noisy (in the UK anyway, lol) but I love being under canopy. I'm still on a huge student canopy and I'm not exactly heavy so I just float about for ages before starting my landing pattern. I can't see me ever downsizing drastically, I don't understand people who want to get down as fast as possible :D

I've got my CH1 and CH2 stickers, am planning on getting more CH coaching from one of the instructors at my DZ when it reopens after the winter break and am doing a canopy handling course in the summer (registered as soon as the date was announced, ha ha). I want to wingsuit eventually, so I can fly in freefall AND under canopy B|.

FS1 can wait though I'll have to get it at some point so I can get my C licence. I'd rather spend the money on canopy handling skills first :)
A mind once stretched by a new idea never regains its original dimensions - Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr

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