Whooo hooo!!! OMG, what an amazing experience! On Friday, September 26, 2008, I joined a few friends in Ottawa, IL to sky dive. Melissa, Chris, Cyndi (Happy Birthday girl) and I met in the morning at our work parking lot so we could ride together...it was so much more fun driving to work that morning knowing I didn't actually have to go in the building, but was meeting my good friends to do something fun and exciting that day! It was a perfect warm sunny day....mid-70's to low-80's. The drive was fun...we cranked up some loud tunes in the old pimp mobile (my mini-van) and sang and danced the whole way there! We were soooo PUMPED!! We arrived about an hour early (amazing b/c I'm never early for anything), so we chilled out a while and waited for the rest of our party to join us. Ryan, Mandi, Mary and Tyler showed up...we completed our paperwork (signed our lives away....pages and pages...Sky Dive Chicago has no liability for INJURY or DEATH) and paid our dues. Mandi was so kind to give us all an ear tack...she put it in a calming point to keep us focused and calm....ooooh, was that a good idea! Thanks Mandi!!! We then went downstairs to take our "class"....we first watched a video by a guy that looked like ZZ Top's grandpa...he had a huge long rectangular beard....he again reiterated that Sky Dive Chicago is NOT responsible for INJURY or DEATH...hmmmm, we were starting to wonder if we should actually go through with the jump!?! After the video, our instructor Sparky (yes, his name is Sparky) showed us what to do. He spent about 5-10 minutes showing us the drill....basically arch our back...look to the horizon, check our altimeter, then pull the chute at 5,500 feet "55 stay alive".....the good thing is that our Jump Masters went through the drill several more times before jumping out of the plane, but I pretty much forgot everything they taught us once I was flying through the sky!! Soooo, after "class" we went into the hangar. Ryan, Mandi, Mary and Tyler were in the first group. They couldn't fit us all in one group, so we split up into two...we watched them load the plane and then they came floating back to Earth...they started out looking soooo small and drifted back to the ground so peacefully....how cool!!! We suited up...my Jump Master's name was Chad...he had big wild dread locks, bandanna, ink and piercings everywhere! He was a GREAT guy...great instructor...got me all set up in my gear, then guided me to the plane...he had a hold of the straps on my back and totally controlled me! We were one of the first on the plane...this plane had NO seats....just a big open space! We go all the way to the back...had to sit in two rows...we were all lined up as if we were riding in a toboggan. Chad was behind me and my video guy, Steve, was in front of me...Chris and her two guys were to my left. Cyndi and Mel were in front of us and a few guys going solo were in front of them. There wasn't enough room on our side of the plane, so they had me ride up front with the pilot...how cool!!! I'm sooo glad because I would have had to ride backwards and with my issues with motion sickness, it was a good thing I was able to face forwards. I watched the altimeter on the plane and the one on my wrist and they DIDN'T match...they were off about 1,000 feet...I figured the plane's altimeter was more accurate, but was a bit concerned that they weren't the same...whatever, I figured Chad knew what he was doing so I didn't worry about it....it was soooo loud in the plane, could hardly hear anything...Chad again went through the drill...okay, arch back...arms out like a "W"...."horizon", "altimeter", "pull the cord"...easy, right?!?! Chris and I played rock, paper, scissors to determine who went last....I won...Chris was to go last....one by one, the jumpers were exiting the plane in front of us...I climbed out of the cockpit into the cargo area...Chad hooked me up to him....we get on our knees...then start scooching forward toward the opening....Steve, the camera guy gets out and is hanging on the side of the plane (crazy man!!) and Chad pushes me toward the door...I felt like I was going to fall out (I had one split second of fear)...he did his thing (not sure if he counted) and out we went!!! OMG, I lost my stomach for just a nano-second...we flipped over (somersault) and were falling soooo fast (120 mph)!!! It was soooo loud and hard to control anything. I was trying to act all crazy for the camera guy, but couldn't move too much...forgot everything the instructor and Chad taught me..."arms out like a W...ooops, forgot to do that"...."horizon....what horizon??"..."altimeter...attempted to look at it, but couldn't tell what altitude we were at"...."pull the cord...hand was on the ball, but for some reason, I hesitated and didn't pull"....we spun around and around and Steve grabbed my hand and we spun some more....YEAH!!! Now that's what I'm talking about!!! After Chad deployed the chute, there was a big jerk, then complete silence....WOW!! It didn't even seem like we were falling....we just floated gently down...ahhhh, very peaceful and calm...I took in all the surrounding sights. Chad maneuvered the chute to turn sharply to the right....OMG, my stomach did NOT like that!! I told him that was cool, but it made me sick...he said, "Ok, we don't need to do it again"...I said, "Ok, but let's do it one more time!!!" Soooo, he did it much gentler the second time and veered off to the left....still made my stomach do flip flops, but it was totally worth it!!! Chad had me stand on his feet as he unhooked the bottom two clips so we'd have some mobility during the landing. We briefly practiced the landing while in mid air...those instructions were much easier to follow....lift my feet and slide...I can totally handle that!!! The landing was smooth and went without a hitch! WOW...I made it!!! What an exhilarating, amazing experience!!! Mary and Tyler enjoyed the jump so much that they decided to go again!!! We hung around for a while...the girls drank a beer and I drank a smoothie...we watched other jumpers while waiting for our videos be be edited...when the videos were done, we took off to go to Cyndi's camper in Sublette, IL....it was hard to leave...if my stomach was not so upset, I would have considered another jump, but it will have to wait for another day!Soooo, I'm training for the Chicago Marathon and needed to get some miles in...I only managed to squeeze in a 3 mile run that morning and wanted to get in 8 miles...that meant I either had to run another 5 on Friday, or do it on Saturday...I knew I wouldn't be up for running on Saturday, so I opted to have the girls drop me off about 5 miles from town...we didn't eat lunch that day and we were all pretty hungry...the girls wanted to get some pizza, so they dropped me off and headed over to the bar...it was pretty freaking hot...about 82 degrees and I was on a high from the jump...I had to change into my running clothes and did so on the side of the road!!! I grabbed my iPod, Garmin and cell phone and started running down the road. Cyndi said it was a straight shot into town, so I didn't have to worry about getting lost. There was a huge windmill off in the distance that I kept my eye on...I held a pretty steady pace...just over 8 minute mile for 4.8 miles...then, just like Cyndi said, I saw my van on the right side of the road at the bar....I was a sweaty mess!! I grabbed a shirt, went in the bar and headed straight for the bathroom to dry off! Perfect timing too....pizza just arrived and there was a pitcher of beer on the table! Mmmmm, yummy...perfect combo...and I was starving!! We finished off the yummiest thin crust pizza ever...still had about 1/3 pitcher of beer left....Cyndi paid Mel $5 to chug it down and she doesn't even like beer!!?!? This was the start of a crazy night!! After the beer chugging, we drove over to Cyndi's camper...we immediately put in our videos and watched them over and over...we totally enjoyed reliving our sky diving experience and couldn't seem to get enough!! We also had a camp fire in the back...imagine 4 girls with no families to worry about...we had a GREAT time!! Cyndi's mom and dad stopped over at about midnight...we watched the videos AGAIN! Then off to bed we went! I woke to snoring and heaving breathing at about 6:30am...OMG, I did NOT feel well...too many margaritas and Michelob Ultras...finally got up, but went back to bed around 8am for about an hour...we all got around, packed up and headed out...on our way home, we stopped back over to Sky Dive Chicago b/c Cyndi needed to get another CD of her still photos since hers wouldn't open...we stayed to watch some jumpers and I actually paid for my next jump! I have one year to use it...I purchased it so I'd come back for my second jump...no excuses!!! The ride home on Saturday was a bit more subdued than the ride to Ottawa the day before....back to reality, but it was fun while it lasted!!! Thanks everyone for sharing such an amazing experience with me!!!! Remember my favorite part...."free falling"...'till next time girls...
