Sunday, Memorial Day weekend, 2015, was skydiving day and we went off to do the deed! The excitement ran high! The reason for the trip was Kailey, our granddaughter, turned 18 this month, the minimum age to skydive, and skydiving was on her wish list. Her dad promised to go skydiving with her as soon as she was eligible.
At 10 A.M. we were 1.5 hours north of Tucson in Eloy, AZ, waiting while Kailey and Stacy sign the required waivers before starting their one-hour tandem jump training from Skydive Arizona. As the saying goes, “I learned about skydiving from this!”
Places where recreational parachutists enjoy their passions are designated “drop zones” and they are identified worldwide. There are six drop zones in Arizona and Skydive Arizona is the largest. They have 13 aircraft, plus food, a bunkhouse, RV hookups, camping, showers, and pool on site. They also sell or rent gear, have certified trainers, tandem jumping, and parachute packing services.
This Memorial Sunday the Skydive Arizona campus was buzzing like a beehive. It was obvious the activities for the jumpers were well organized and that everyone was enjoying themselves. The jumpers ranged in age from twenty somethings to a few gray haired gentleman plus a few women scattered in the mix. The participants were all lean, athletic, clean cut, in jump suits, and no smoking or drinking was evident on campus. The divers moved from the ready area onto people-hauling trailers, out to the planes, into the air, and back on the ground smoothly without any detectable grumbling or complaints.
The campus had ample parking and was organized around the administrative offices. In the patio was a concrete apron and little platforms on swivel wheels where participants could lay prone and practice their aerial maneuvers before takeoff. Two green grass landing zones (each half the size of a football field) were adjacent to the offices where the divers could land and carry their chutes back to the packing area.
The jumpers were then assigned to jump groups. When the loud speaker made the announcement, each jump group lined up at the mobile trailer loading area and from there they were transported to their airplane waiting on the flight line. The plane takes 20-30 divers to 13,500 feet above the ground in 15 minutes. The jumpers exit at that altitude and freefall almost two miles in 60 seconds, exceeding 100 mph during the decent. At 3,500 feet above the ground they deploy their parachutes and enjoy the views or practice solo maneuvers during their five minute decent to the grassy landing zone. When 20-30 divers are landing at the same time it looks like it is raining skydivers.
When Kailey and Stacy we called we waved them goodbye and the people-hauling trailer transported them to their waiting plane. An instructor watched their departure and turned to ask if the girl in the shorts was our granddaughter. Then he comment, “She’s going to get cold.”, and she did.
Kailey and Stacy were each assigned an instructor for their tandem jump and 20 minutes later they were walking off the grassy landing area trying to describe their new experience, but we could tell that words could not convey the feeling of a 100 mph wind in ones face while hurtling toward earth and then transitioning from to 18 mph in six seconds when their chute opened.
An hour and a half after landing they had their personal skydiving certificates plus their decent video and we were on our way home.
Driving home my mind kept focusing on the parachutes the divers wore (and on their emergency chutes). Who did they trust to pack their parachute, that one item that separated life and death?
Mostly my mind kept asking, “Who packed my parachute?” The most important question on earth is did we choose eternal life or death. Just like the gravity that pulls skydivers back to earth at 100 mph, time is a conveyor belt moving us irresistibly into eternity. I’m glad to say that I’ve given my eternal-parachute to Jesus, trusting him to pack it for a safe landing!
Informative and conclusion nicely said. I especially like the line: “…time is a conveyor belt moving us irresistibly into eternity.” I hope others will be drawn to think about who is packing their parachute. Thanks, Ray. God bless!