So, 24 hours from the time I saw that ad, I called up those people, arranged for an appointment for the weekend. I had got my medical certificates ready in case any people object to it on medical grounds. It was as if I was on a mission.
After I met them up on the said appointment date, the people involved in skydiving said that its only the people in the army/those are physically very fit and fine having regular exercise, diet and stuff, who are eligible to do it and any other person would be risking his/her life. I said I’ll go ahead no matter what but then also told them that i wanted the entire act to be video taped. After many objections including a few from my own parents and several statements of guarantee from me stating that I was doing it on my own risk and willingness, my mother’s birthday 21st of june 2008 was fixed as the date for the act.
On that day, at 4 in the morning, me and a group of my friends here took a car and travelled about 150 miles to a place close to Chicago. An awesome journey that was ! Full of vibes, energy and fun. We played loud rock music to pump my adrenalin up and all through the journey were shouting our throats out with fun for what was about to happen.
We arrived in the field of play at 6 30 in the morning. The team that I was supposed to fly with was already there. The temperature was around 5 C in the open. But having experienced the winter of Madison which had temperatures of -10 C on average throughout the year, it was like summer afternoon.
So, me and my friends had high fives before I was dressed up for the act. An Indian flag was handed over to me by my friend for the occasion. The team that I was supposed to fly and jump with was also at its perfect best. They professionally checked, double checked, triple checked and cross checked every equipment that’d be involved in the act. The slightest error could prove fatal and I knew it too.
And at 9 in the morning, all was set. I was dressed up in blue and in a way that’d represent some astronaut. My friends accompanied me till the plane, pushing me in my wheelchair. I was lifted into it and made to squat. My legs, which serve no other purpose except making me photogenic, were tied together. I was asked to rethink my decision again and I refused to back out. So all was set.
At 10 00 a.m. precisely, the flight took off. And within minutes me and my team of professional skydivers and video recorders were up at about 15000 feet traveling at 500 miles per hour. The team asked if I was ready to take the plunge and asked me to have a look out of the window to see what I am up against. I saw the borders of three states beautifully lined, green fields and what my act would mean to those people who are laughed at for their dreams. I said “Let’s go !”. There were claps all around.
And in a few seconds, I was at the tip of the plane’s door with my friend. He asked me what I was feeling. I said “On top of the world !”. And he replied “You must be a psycho” :)
The plane was traveling at almost 600 mph now skywards. I was staring at three states for records and literally the whole world ! My heart was pumping blood with a pressure of some water flood and I could feel it. The winds were hitting me like a tornado would be hitting a house. And I was ready to be blown off. It was a strange sense of peace, love, happiness and thrill.
“We are ready to jump !” my teammate said and even as I could hear that completely, he jumped.
And there I was feeling like a bird. Shouting my heart, out of the excitement I was in. Shouting my mind, out of the anger which made me to do it. Shouting my love out to my mom, who was celebrating her birthday and had no clue as to how I was wishing her that day. Shouting my pain out at the way the world was indifferent to the sufferings of a fellow being. Shouting my frustration out at the way people kill a person’s dream with Gossip, back talking and a sardonic smile. Shouting at the injustice meted out since centuries to people like me.
The free fall continued for 9 minutes. The winds blowing at 500 MPH were tearing the skin out of my face. All this was being video recorded and photographed.
We were 2000 feet above the ground now. I could see the entire city of Chicago with just a glance. I saw Lake Michigan and it was as beautiful as Asin, my favourite heroine. :) I chuckled to myself at that thought even as we were fast hitting the ground and any malfunctioning in the next step would mean I would become history rather than creating one !
My team mate was in the heights of excitement. He asked me if I was ready to pull in the parachute as we were some 1500 feet above the air. I said yes. And he asked me to go ahead. I pulled the lever for it and it was as if I had put sudden brakes to a car that had traveled at some 100 mph. I was experiencing a tremendous pull of weight and me going up rather than falling down. The sudden pull hurt my back but I managed to hold my nerve as I handed over the lever to my friend.
And what happened from there on was, is and will remain one of the most romantic moments of my life. We were literally standing still at about 1000 feet and it felt God to be still, above the world, watching the toy cars, watching the rush people were in to go to their offices, watching my friends who were in anxiety about what’d happen to me, thinking of my mom who had no clue what I was doing and being myself in what I was doing.
And through all these, My friend maneuvered the parachute and we swirled our way to the ground. One metre of swirling would cover 10’s of kilometers of the windy city. And it certainly was windy today, I thought !
And at about 50 feet above the ground, when it wasn’t as exciting as the free fall and when I knew that all had gone tremendously well, I was waiting for us to reach the ground and celebrate it all.
As we moved down further, I could now see my friends waiting eagerly. We would be there in a few seconds. Me and my friends saluted the flags we were with and at the video camera.
And 12 minutes after I was at the tip of the plane, top of the world, heart racing with love, frustration, anxiety, anger, expectations and adventure, I was at the ground having fulfilled a promise I made myself an year back.
My friends congratulated me and we had high fives again. We started celebrating even as the video was being played on my laptop. We had group photographs taken and began our journey back home. And thus one of the most memorable days of my life ended.
After I met them up on the said appointment date, the people involved in skydiving said that its only the people in the army/those are physically very fit and fine having regular exercise, diet and stuff, who are eligible to do it and any other person would be risking his/her life. I said I’ll go ahead no matter what but then also told them that i wanted the entire act to be video taped. After many objections including a few from my own parents and several statements of guarantee from me stating that I was doing it on my own risk and willingness, my mother’s birthday 21st of june 2008 was fixed as the date for the act.
On that day, at 4 in the morning, me and a group of my friends here took a car and travelled about 150 miles to a place close to Chicago. An awesome journey that was ! Full of vibes, energy and fun. We played loud rock music to pump my adrenalin up and all through the journey were shouting our throats out with fun for what was about to happen.
We arrived in the field of play at 6 30 in the morning. The team that I was supposed to fly with was already there. The temperature was around 5 C in the open. But having experienced the winter of Madison which had temperatures of -10 C on average throughout the year, it was like summer afternoon.
So, me and my friends had high fives before I was dressed up for the act. An Indian flag was handed over to me by my friend for the occasion. The team that I was supposed to fly and jump with was also at its perfect best. They professionally checked, double checked, triple checked and cross checked every equipment that’d be involved in the act. The slightest error could prove fatal and I knew it too.
And at 9 in the morning, all was set. I was dressed up in blue and in a way that’d represent some astronaut. My friends accompanied me till the plane, pushing me in my wheelchair. I was lifted into it and made to squat. My legs, which serve no other purpose except making me photogenic, were tied together. I was asked to rethink my decision again and I refused to back out. So all was set.
At 10 00 a.m. precisely, the flight took off. And within minutes me and my team of professional skydivers and video recorders were up at about 15000 feet traveling at 500 miles per hour. The team asked if I was ready to take the plunge and asked me to have a look out of the window to see what I am up against. I saw the borders of three states beautifully lined, green fields and what my act would mean to those people who are laughed at for their dreams. I said “Let’s go !”. There were claps all around.
And in a few seconds, I was at the tip of the plane’s door with my friend. He asked me what I was feeling. I said “On top of the world !”. And he replied “You must be a psycho” :)
The plane was traveling at almost 600 mph now skywards. I was staring at three states for records and literally the whole world ! My heart was pumping blood with a pressure of some water flood and I could feel it. The winds were hitting me like a tornado would be hitting a house. And I was ready to be blown off. It was a strange sense of peace, love, happiness and thrill.
“We are ready to jump !” my teammate said and even as I could hear that completely, he jumped.
And there I was feeling like a bird. Shouting my heart, out of the excitement I was in. Shouting my mind, out of the anger which made me to do it. Shouting my love out to my mom, who was celebrating her birthday and had no clue as to how I was wishing her that day. Shouting my pain out at the way the world was indifferent to the sufferings of a fellow being. Shouting my frustration out at the way people kill a person’s dream with Gossip, back talking and a sardonic smile. Shouting at the injustice meted out since centuries to people like me.
The free fall continued for 9 minutes. The winds blowing at 500 MPH were tearing the skin out of my face. All this was being video recorded and photographed.
We were 2000 feet above the ground now. I could see the entire city of Chicago with just a glance. I saw Lake Michigan and it was as beautiful as Asin, my favourite heroine. :) I chuckled to myself at that thought even as we were fast hitting the ground and any malfunctioning in the next step would mean I would become history rather than creating one !
My team mate was in the heights of excitement. He asked me if I was ready to pull in the parachute as we were some 1500 feet above the air. I said yes. And he asked me to go ahead. I pulled the lever for it and it was as if I had put sudden brakes to a car that had traveled at some 100 mph. I was experiencing a tremendous pull of weight and me going up rather than falling down. The sudden pull hurt my back but I managed to hold my nerve as I handed over the lever to my friend.
And what happened from there on was, is and will remain one of the most romantic moments of my life. We were literally standing still at about 1000 feet and it felt God to be still, above the world, watching the toy cars, watching the rush people were in to go to their offices, watching my friends who were in anxiety about what’d happen to me, thinking of my mom who had no clue what I was doing and being myself in what I was doing.
And through all these, My friend maneuvered the parachute and we swirled our way to the ground. One metre of swirling would cover 10’s of kilometers of the windy city. And it certainly was windy today, I thought !
And at about 50 feet above the ground, when it wasn’t as exciting as the free fall and when I knew that all had gone tremendously well, I was waiting for us to reach the ground and celebrate it all.
As we moved down further, I could now see my friends waiting eagerly. We would be there in a few seconds. Me and my friends saluted the flags we were with and at the video camera.
And 12 minutes after I was at the tip of the plane, top of the world, heart racing with love, frustration, anxiety, anger, expectations and adventure, I was at the ground having fulfilled a promise I made myself an year back.
My friends congratulated me and we had high fives again. We started celebrating even as the video was being played on my laptop. We had group photographs taken and began our journey back home. And thus one of the most memorable days of my life ended.
I wished my Mom a happy birthday later that evening passing her the video over the internet and as i did that I thought of the old lady and the watchman who once asked me of my fate and abilities, wondering if I can share the fairy tale day with them.
Hereby providing the links to the photographs of the event as well as the video of it :)
Photographs
http://picasaweb.google.com/happy.blissfull/SkyDiving#
Videos
Video-1 : The Jump
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9bOOcDfocu4
Video-2 : The landing
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1eGIpJTc0-0&feature=related
Hereby providing the links to the photographs of the event as well as the video of it :)
Photographs
http://picasaweb.google.com/happy.blissfull/SkyDiving#
Videos
Video-1 : The Jump
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9bOOcDfocu4
Video-2 : The landing
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1eGIpJTc0-0&feature=related
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