New Zealand II - Ahhhhh

8th October - Ahhhhhh

When I decided I was going to New Zealand I also decided that I would do a skydive. I didn't tell anyone in Blighty just incase I bottled it. Throughout my time travelling I didn't change my mind. Once I arrived at the airfield I started to get a bit more nervous. However, I didn't feel like changing my mind. I signed my life away and wrote down my next of kin details. I then met my instructor and put on my jump suit. My instructor, Glyn, seemed like a nice enough guy but quiet. The problem is that these guys do around 15 jumps a day and get asked the same questions each time, so they either end up strong silent type or a comedian. Wendy (from Kiwi aswell) had a deadpan comedian, when she asked him how many jumps he had done he said 5 and he was still learning how to do tandems (in reality they have done about 10,000). I met my cameraman (if you want photos and film of you in freefall you pay for a cameraman to jump with you). Once you have got the kit on you then board the plane. It is only a small thing with two benches running down the middle. Each person sits with their legs around the person infront and you are crammed in. The flight up to 12,000 ft takes about 10 minutes. It gives you a stunning view of the Tonganika national park and Lake Taupo. I was pretty calm at this point. The plane then levels off and the instructors strap on. At this point Glyn gave me my only instructions, lean back, hold my head against his shoulder, and hold on to the harness until he taps me on the hands and I can let go. The door slides back and the pair sitting by the door disappear. I was at the end of one of the benches so 4 people went out the door before me. It is amazing to see people simply disappear out the door, they don't float they just drop. I shuffled to the door with Glyn attached he then told me to sit on the edge (the camerman was holding on to the side of the plane) before I knew it I was dangling and then I was falling. The fear then hit me. It feels so unnatural just to drop and we rolled over so I could see the plane as a reference point and see how fast we were going (you get up to 200 kph). I f'd and blinded my way through this while yelling Ahhhhh. He gave me the tap on the hands and I let go. The cameraman then came into view. Now what you see on most skydiving videos are people giving thumbs up or something along those lines. I didn't manage this. I managed to get a smile across. The camerman then poked me in the eyes on the visor and stole my nose (game you play with babies). This felt really surreal to me. I was falling through the air at 200kph and there is a guy opposite me and one strapped to my back (weird enough) plus the guy opposite me is playing around. The cameraman then appeared below me and suddenly the parachute opened. I had started to relax a bit during the freefall as I got used to it. The parachute opening scared the proverbial out of me. We then went into a corkscrew turn which set off the f'ing and blinding again. After this Glyn said "Don't worry mate you can relax", subtext - stop yelling. So I quitened the f'ing and blinding and enjoyed the view. This bit was quite enjoyable. It was great to see the parahutes of your friends around you and to drink in the view. The day we did it was perfect, clear blue skies. The landing was good and I didn't fall over. I was terrifed for most of it but not through fear of losing my life. I had faith in Glyn and didn't doubt the parachute would open. In truth I didn't have time to think until the parachute opened. Up until then I was in fear. I am glad I did it, but I am not sure I can say I enjoyed it. When we landed I did apologise to Glyn for the yelling, I am sure he has heard worse. At least I wasn't the girl from our place who landed and immediately threw-up. I am really glad I paid the extra for the video and the pictures. It was also really good to be doing it with everyone else from the Kiwi bus and to share the experience with them.