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By Johanna M. Sampan, Reporter
Someone somewhere said that
skydiving is an insane sport. It seems he has a point. Indeed,why
would someone jump out of a perfectly working airplane?
But those who have done it attest
that the sensory blast was unequaled. I’ve discovered it myself
via the sky dive challenge sponsored by Downy. (The event obviously
was a takeoff from their TV ad featuring a parachuting Issa Litton.)
The experience was very
significant for me because I am scared of heights. After mustering
enough courage, I met with other broadsheet writers for our
scheduled jump only to be met by a disappointing advisory that our
activity was cancelled due to strong winds. We endured six months of
waiting before we received the notice that the jump would proceed.
The night before the jump, I set
my mind that I would do it. It’s now or never. No chickening out.
I kept the thought for the whole night and prayed hard for a good
weather for the next day.
I was surprised to learn that
Litton was joining the jump. She revealed that her commercial was
just shot in a studio and she wanted to experience real skydiving.
My prayers were answered. Upon
arriving at the Tropical Asia Parachute Center at the Omni Aviation
complex in Clark Special Economic Zone Angeles City, Pampanga, the
sun was shining brightly.
Our instructor Martin Imatong
tediously explained both the technical and safety aspects of
skydiving. He kidded that should something bad happen during the
fall we should just hope for angels to rescue us. A lot of what-ifs
entered my mind during his lecture, “What if my parachute
wouldn’t open?” “What if I sustained an injury that would
leave
me paralyzed for the rest of my life?”
Finally the time has come for us
to don the 30-pound parachutes each equipped with walkie talkies for
instructions in midair. Excitement and nervousness rushed through me
as I wore my helmet, goggle and altimeter.
It may seem funny, but before the
plane took off, I sent a text message to my whole family telling how
I love them and to pray for me.
Though fear and courage battle
within me, I was determined to make the jump. No backing out no
matter what.
We boarded the Cessna 185 with
our instructor Imatong and our pilot Capt. William Wright. Learning
that I was the third to jump, I whispered a prayer for each of us.
The time has come. I crawled
towards the doorway while Imatong was giving me instruction to have
a partial view of my drop zone. I took a gaze while half of my body
was buffeted by the strong wind.
Honestly, at that point, I was
tempted to back out. Seeing my anxiety, Wright tapped me on my
shoulder and made a gesture, asking me to smile.
Imatong finally said, “20
seconds Anya, and you’re going to jump. I trust that you can do
it.” Saying my prayers, I jumped out of the plane. The next five
seconds of my free fall were the longest five seconds of my life. I
was mesmerized by the experience and forgot Imatong’s instructions
until my parachute was released and opened.
Finally, I was hovering thousands
of feet above the ground. The view from above was very calming. The
landscape below seems like a big monopoly board game. Everything is
in miniature—the houses, the cars, the trees—A voice from my
walkie talkie jolted me out of my reverie: “Anya, welcome to the
world of skydiving.” I knew I was safe from that point on.
Enjoying the view below for the
next four minutes was awesome until I realized that I have to land.
Few meters from the ground, I pulled the break. My feet touched the
ground first and then my knees. I allowed my whole body to collapse
for fear that my wind-blown parachute would drag me up the air
again.
I landed far, far from the drop
zone. Litton landed a few meters away from me. We had to walk our
way to the drop zone; good thing a farmer helped us carry our heavy
parachutes.
I had a heartening approval from
Imatong after the jump. “I was expecting less from you but then I
was impressed when you made the jump Anya,” he says smiling. He
shared that he knew I was very nervous. “But you had a perfect
jump,” he commended.
The experience was indeed a
blast. I conquered the skies. I conquered my fear.
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