Being a big fan of speed and heart thumping sounds, I went to MCAS Miramar to watch the Blue Angels. No matter how many times you see, that’s something that’ll bring your hands together any day. Well, there were other good ones too, the alpha angle flight of FA-18(Hornet) and the low altitude flyby of the F-16, the minimum radius turn of the F-16, vertical landing and take off of some navy fighter jet (forgot the name) and acrobatics of one of the great show pilots, Sean Tucker, in his custom built challenger aircraft (This year his flight was called Oracle challenger ‘cos Oracle had sponsored that event). Trust me nothing beats the Blue Angels. The professionalism, the speed, the precision, it just beats them all. It was a cloudy day and it was going to be a low-show and here’s how the show was.
The DangerZone music from TopGun stars and the entire crowd is on the feet. The stalls get empty and the rails are packed. The smoke is on and all the extra long telescopic lenses in various hands start focusing. 5 angels go towards right and the last (#6) goes to the left. Four of them (1,2,3,4) form the classic diamond formation with 18 inch separation between them. The first sight of the Blue Diamond formation, all the heads make a quick turn from right to left in a second or two and all the hands go up and togehter enjoying the rumble with excitement.
After some amazing heroics from blue angels, loads of others perform but still that just stays in your mind…and it did stay in my mind until now. Now I have a blue engels deskpiece on my table for inspiration. (If you claim to be a slow pilot on fighter jets, you’ve to be a blue angel. Any less is one in a million)
If you think you can’t fly, try skydiving. It shows the limits of liberty one can get up in the sky. I had wanted to skydive for a year but somehow it didn’t happen until I heard a lady reminisce her first jump. I definitely needed that adrenaline rush and I registered for the very next day.
On my first jump day, my brother-in-law accompanied me. He also decided to take his first jump the same day. Both of us did the huge paperwork that had release of liability clauses in almost every single page and it required at least 25 signatures. Just the paperwork is enough to scare a person who’s ready for a first dive.
After registration comes the classroom session where a jump master (skydive instructor) describes postures and explains safety measures and stuff like that. Unfortunately, we had to wait a long time after the session and that is the worst part of all. I was scared to bones while waiting for our turn. After almost 2 hours, our names were called and we went inside to get ready for the jump.
First is the gear-up part. A jump master assits in getting geared and the harness fit is verified by another jump master. In a few minutes, we were all geared and everyone was assigned a dive-master and a cameraman. The twin engine double otter aircraft was approaching us. Donned in skydiving gear, I was standing worried and excited. Mixture of those two feelings is an exclusive experience you get only in your first jump:-). The aircraft was pretty big; it could seat at least 20 divers. All the members of the diving crew boarded. I was seated in between 2 professional skydivers and straight opposite to my cameraman.
The jump masters were asking me questions about my feelings. I could say nothing other than “I am pretty excited” with a big artificial smile. Actually, I was extremely worried too, but I didn’t say that (I could see fear inadvertently pouring through my eyes when I watched the video later). The aircraft was now at 12,000 feet and we were getting ready for the jump. I got hooked up with one jump master. Another jump master double checked the harness and the hook.
It was almost 15,000 feet and we started walking towards the door of the aircraft. At that point, I almost felt my heartbeat…Two more steps and I was at the edge. My cameraman jumped first and in the next 2-3 seconds, all I heard was 1…2….3 and we go….I was out of the aircraft and was flying like a bird at 15,000 feet. That AFF (accelerated free fall) is the most amazing experience I’ve ever had in any sport. I felt as though I am bird flying up in the sky. It feels as though I was in the air defying gravity. I could not even feel that I am approaching the ground at ~120mph. The air resistance gives the feeling of flight. In a few seconds, I was looking around and enjoying the lush green Oregon. I could see all the way from Mounthood to Portland. Oh! Boy, Oregon is really green and is extremely beautiful. (Not the east though, it is all desert. I happened to see those deserts while rafting in Deschutes river)
Before I could realize the altitude we had covered, we were at ~5000 ft and it was time to open the parachute. (It didn’t give any problems:-)).My jump master asked me if I enjoy rollercoaster rides. I said, I love’em and then the fun started. My jump master was maneuvering the parachute and we were going around the place for a few minutes. Finally it was time to land, but I didn’t feel like….
We landed nicely and the very moment I got unhooked from my jump master I was jumping in excitement……It was an incredible experience and I would say anybody who loves the feel of adrenaline rushing through the spine should try that once.
