It’s a worldwide understanding that two is always way better than one.
And yeah it’s true, nobody likes a party of one… a minimum of two is way better. So there you have it, blog over, two is officially great – and besides, it takes two to tango but even more importantly, it also takes two to tandem.
It also takes two other things- a spirit of adventure and some massive sugar lumps. Once you’ve got those sorted, add in a dreadlocked adrenaline junkie called Ceri (with a Go-Pro strapped to his wrist and a tan that tells you he’s been living the dream way too long) and you’re about ready to jump out of a perfectly normal plane.
But wait – who would do this? Surely, people who jump out of planes must be slightly mental? Well, maybe. Besides my little road trip to Byron Bay isn’t the first time I’ve put my life in the hands of a harness [which by the way was very close to cutting off all circulation to my legs (and sugar lumps). In fact this is time number three.
Time number one involved some serious stress-sweating and over-indulgent profanities. Time number two was over the Swiss Alps and included a helicopter. Time number three over the sweet coastline of Byron would complete my hat trick of worldly skydives.
Byron Hinterland
It all begins with an alarm in the wee hours of a Saturday morning, the routine iced coffee and with the fiancé in the passenger seat in charge of tunes and directions. From Brisneyland, the Pacific Motorway cuts its way through the hills of the hinterland and will have you there in under three hours.
With caffeine and adrenaline pumping through my veins, I walk into the Skydive on the Beach office like the biggest man on campus. I’m not nervous in the slightest; I mean I’ve done this before, and I’m still standing – aren’t I? Perhaps the nervousness of my fellow tandem-ers is becoming infectious? Perhaps my sugar lumps were confusing this with jumping into an icy pool in the middle of winter? Joining me on this glorious day over the delicious Byron Bay is a middle aged mum, a twenty-something girl, an expat from England and me – the ponytailed-muppet doing it for the third time.
As I settle into my harness it appears a common thread is emerging among my fellow victims –everyone’s had this extreme activity bestowed upon them as a ‘gift’. In literal terms it would be hard to argue that throwing someone out of a plane a bazillion feet in the air could ever be classified as a gift – that said it is possibly one of the most rewarding and eye opening gifts one could ever receive; big hint to those who know my birthday is coming up! 😉
We assume the position in the back of our little aircraft, lining up on the Ballina tarmac right after the Jetstar departure. My gut tells me that’s the plane I should be on.
One of the most glorious things about skydiving is the joyride up. When you have such an amazing view, this is sometimes overshadowed by the jump itself. After winding our way up and having some of the local landmarks pointed out by Ceri (the man strapped to my back), all eyes are on the “traffic lights” next to the back door of the plane, now fully open. Cool air rushing in a million miles per second. Red… orange… green.
Here we go…
Nothing but cheek flapping
Throat dry from screaming and cheeks sore from being stretched to the max, the jolt of the parachute blooming above me means I get to take the driver’s seat… look out Ballina; cause I am steering this thing! Okay – so a few twists and spirals later, it’s probably best to let the professional take control again, which means more time for me to soak up the view.
Ask anyone about a skydive and even though it might be over in a matter of (land) minutes, it feels like a zillion hours up in the air. And you can’t ask for anything more; the best feeling in the world, the best view in the world and the best weather in the world.
I made it in one piece
So if you haven’t yet checked off Skydiving from your extreme adrenaline bucket list, it might be time to take a leap of faith… or maybe just bestow the gift onto somebody else, then you can sit back and watch them have the time of their life… even if it is with a strange adrenaline junkie.