Can anyone who has never skydived truly "understand" it?

[Kramer 0]

I knew a helluva lot about freefall before I ever made my first extended freefall jump. I had read a lot of books, knew exactly what I had to do up there, understood how everything worked....then got up there for AFF 1 and failed the level 'cause I could never find my hackey.

It was like my instructor said to me that day: "Someone could teach you everything there is to know about hockey, you could know more about the sport of hockey than anyone else on the planet...but as soon as you put the skates on and step on the ice, you're going to fall flat on your ass"

Just my two cents...

-Kramer

The FAKE KRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAMER!!!!!!!!!

[kelel01 1]

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However, I like Kelly's better....Sex vs. reason anyday.

Lol! But I take offense to the fact that you think my argument lacks reason . . .

Kelly

[Lee03 0]

I fail to see how anyone, who has not jumped could possible understand. someone can watch a skydiver from the ground and think they understand, but there is no way that they could. The overloading surge of adreniline, the heightened senses, the feel and the rush of the wind, the absolute feeling of total freedom that one experiences floating through te air while freefalling is not something that a person has the vocabulary to express or the where with all to undrstand without actually doing it! There is just no way that a person that hasn't jumped can understand!

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To put your life in danger from time to time ... breeds a saneness in dealing with day-to-day trivialities.

--Nevil Shute, Slide Rule

[SouthernJumper 0]

well put, there iS NO way, its just total Freedom!

[airdweller 0]

Too be honest, I'm not really sure someone can really "understand" it until they have made a skydive without someone on there back doing all the work.

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"From the mightiest pharaoh to the lowliest peasant,
who doesn't enjoy a good sit?" C. Montgomery Burns

[SkydivingNurse 0]

I've only jumped six times, and I still don't understand it.

[ifics 0]

Some of my family looks at me like I am stupid when I try to explain how much I love it. They thought it was ridiculous of me to pay over 1k to go to the wind tunnel (maybe it was crazy to some, but not to me). I try to have them understand but they cant seem to grasp why just jumping out of a plane can mean so much to someone. I stopped giving a Shcite awhile ago...

[caress 0]

My own mother looks at the light in my eyes when I even speak of my jump, and I know that she is very intelligent, but I know in my heart, she does not even begin to phathom the depth of affect, nor the freedom that consumes your entire being.-Caress

I've learned.... That being kind is more important than being
right.

[Ron 10]

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My wife does. She hangs out at the DZ when we're done, sees all the pictures, watches all the video. She's done two tandems and did my first kiss pass on the second one.

See she has done two tandems....So she can understand it...without those tandems I doubt she would.

I have taken folks on tandems that "know" about skydiving from their buddies that jump. Eevryone of them says they really didn't get it before the jump when I asked.

"No free man shall ever be debarred the use of arms." -- Thomas Jefferson, Thomas Jefferson Papers, 334

[pack40 0]

I think an outsider can not understand.
Maybe somebody with experience in an
aeronautical sport like hang-gliding, hot-air balloning etc . might have better feel or understaning as in my opinion sports related to flying/flight have much in common not to mention being much more "noble" compared to other sports (let say soccer (I do not want to hurt any soccer fan))

OVER

[WrongWay 0]

I don't think they could. They could read about it all they wanted, and learn everything there is to know, but until you do it, there's no possible way to describe it.

Wrong Way
D #27371 Mal Manera Rodriguez Cajun Chicken Ø Hellfish #451
The wiser wolf prevails.

[QuickDraw 0]

Just to stray from the original question a little,
i was told by a friend today that skydiving had "gripped me like a religious cult".

Amen, you goddamn whuffo.

-- Hope you don't die. --

I'm fucking winning

[rehmwa 2]

"religious cult"

redundant

...
Driving is a one dimensional activity - a monkey can do it - being proud of your driving abilities is like being proud of being able to put on pants

[airdweller 0]

Just because you spend all your time and money with your "new" friends at your "new" home, and all you seem to talk about is skydiving doesn't mean you have been "gripped like a religious cult"

Well at least I don't think so, but then again I could have been brainwashed

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"From the mightiest pharaoh to the lowliest peasant,
who doesn't enjoy a good sit?" C. Montgomery Burns

[bobsled92 0]

I have yet to meet a person that has done a Tandem and gotten "THE FEELING". Body flight.
Drivng on Bobsled or a motorcycle VS. seat#2 is a completely different feeling.

_______________________________
If I could be a Super Hero,
I chose to be: "GRANT-A-CLAUS". and work 365 days a Year.
http://www.hangout.no/speednews/

[happythoughts 0]

Even being in a wind tunnel is different. You get the sensation of "flight", but not of the entire emotional impact of skydiving.

[QuickDraw 0]

Speaking of time and money i worked out today some figures for my spending on skydiving in the last 22 months (120 jumps).

£6000 ($10200) Thats without beer & food, but includes flights abroad and accomodation,
and my rig and stuff (whats left of it) only accounts for about £1040 of that.

-- Hope you don't die. --

I'm fucking winning

[turtlespeed 226]

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Even being in a wind tunnel is different. You get the sensation of "flight", but not of the entire emotional impact of skydiving.

Yeah, but when you do it the otherway around (SD first)- the tunnel gives you a quite different experiance - just as would skydiving, once you know how to fly and your awareness goes up.

I'm not usually into the whole 3-way thing, but you got me a little excited with that. - Skymama
BTR #1 / OTB^5 Official #2 / Hellfish #408 / VSCR #108/Tortuga/Orfun

[christelsabine 1]

Adrian,
this idea hopefully will not come to me: I spent so much money on skydiving! In fact, don't want to know and impossible to count all, even I kept all bills, tickets etc. And I do not regret one Cent, Penny, whatever it was.

How is Eloy?? (Or was Eloy?) Will be there in several weeks...and simply love looking forward to that! Birgit is over there presently..

Empuria boogie was great...

Christel

dudeist skydiver # 3105

[happythoughts 0]

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the tunnel gives you a quite different experiance

The tunnel is fun and a great learning tool, but no comparison.

In Orlando, there are non-skydivers who go to the wind tunnel every 2 weeks. They still don't know what skydiving is like. No more than a log-flume ride at Disney is like white water rafting on a river.

[Kramer 0]

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Just to stray from the original question a little,
i was told by a friend today that skydiving had "gripped me like a religious cult".

Sometimes I feel that way myself.

Just last night I was thinking, "My (whuffo) friends all probably think I'm in a fucking cult".

-Kramer

The FAKE KRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAMER!!!!!!!!!

[happythoughts 0]

There is a difference. Generally, a cult won't take ALL of your money.

[kelel01 1]

Yeah, my whuffo friends are slowly growing to hate me . . . eh, who needs 'em?

Kelly

[happythoughts 0]

This like an old Sci-Fi episode about the people who live in the clouds and their attitude towards the ground-dwellers.

[kelel01 1]

Stupid ground-dwellers. Screw 'em. I've had it with the lot of 'em, as well as anyone I don't already know, either here on the forums or in real life. People who live with both feet on the ground just can't be trusted. Period. Unless you're married to one of them, in which case, I mean no offense. Whatever. Never mind.

Kelly