As Tayrn and I headed towards Outlook Mountain Saturday morning, I didn't know if I was jittery with anticipation or fear. Since we'd been planning "the big jump", I'd heard too many people say things referring to the bravery and daring necessary for such an endeavor. It had me wigging out a little, but I still wanted to go through with it.

We planned to leave at 10:30, so of course we were on the road just before 11:15. After making a pit stop at the bank to make a deposit (ensuring that my check card wouldn't bounce), we chatted our way to Chattanooga. It took close to two hours to get there, but once we reached our final exit, the flight office wasn't hard to find. Gliders flew overhead as we reached the top of the mountain.

There were maybe a dozen people hanging out at the jump site. One guy sat on the edge fully equiped and strapped into his glider. Looking over the ledge, I didn't know if I could really step off, especially since this turned out to be "only" 1,300 feet high. In the office, we found out that we actually wouldn't be jumping off the cliff. That was for braver/more experienced fliers. Instead, we would be dragged behind a plane to 4000 feet, then let go. We got a snack (strawberry daiquiry flavored Sobes and off brand power bars) and drove back down the mountain to the take-off site.

When we got down there, we signed the papers saying we won't sue if one of us should die, be maimed, etc. Then we watched a short video and prepared to fly. I went up first. The trainers strapped in my arms, legs and chest, hooked me up under the glider, then the plane was hooked up to us from the front. Our feet didn't touch the ground at all because of the way we were strapped in. Wheels on each corner of the glider would be used for take-off and landing. Finally, we began our 4000 foot ascent being towed behind the bright yellow plane. (Eventually I'll get a picture or two of this on the site, but not till after I go to school. I don't want to deal with it at home.)

What happened when the plane let go was beyond words. Air wafted yummily through my tennis shoes. The straps on my legs and stomach felt totally secure, there was no fear. The trainer dude and I talked leisurely. He repeatedly asked how I felt. Turns out a lot of people "wig out" up there, as he put it. They get real nervous and scared, and can lose their lunch. He said I was remarkably calm for someone so high up for their first time. :-) What can I say, I'm good. I got to steer a bit, and found it very easy. You just shift your weight and push the bar the direction you wanted to go, like a bike handle. The air was cool and fresh high up, staying there forever would have been heaven. If you've ever had a dream of flying, that is exactly how it felt.

Birds flew in a thermal rise nearby, so we headed over that way with the glider. The instructor said that by using rising heat like that, and wind rising over mountain sides, gliders can be kept in the air a VERY long time. The world record is 30 hours. (Trainer person said that guys in gliders have no problem "relieving themselves", but that oftentimes girls who fly for extended periods have to resort to Depends. Hmmm, maybe that staying in the sky forever thing was a bad idea after all.)

Everything was so calm, the wind felt liberating, and the view was positively stunning. I felt like I was hovering over a picture postcard. It's one thing to stand on a mountain top and marvel at the scenery, it's quite another to view that mountain top from above, and then see beyond it. It was like a midget getting to see the top of an NBA star's head. Nature never intended it to happen, but when it does it's surreal. I can't imagine an event more thrillingly serene. Everyone should fly!

Halfway down I saw Taryn going up for her ride. We waved at each other. I wish I could have gotten a picture of it, but oh well. Coming down I started getting a little queezy. I think it was the Sobe. Sugar overdoses and surreal adventures don't mix well I suppose. That was the ONLY down side, though. Well, there was one more: I wish the trip had lasted longer. Nausea and all, it would have been worth it to stay in the sky. Before landing, I had him show me how to do a "stall." This is where you push the bar a little forwards so that you rise a little, then you let it back down again and do a dive. We just did a small one. Oh wait, I have one more complaint. After the flight was done, I was upset to find that the photographs they used were quality 100 film. That's friggin annoying. I had to pay twenty bucks for that thing. They could have sprung for 200 AT LEAST. Grrr, oh well, the pictures are clear and everything. I just think they were being too cheap. All else was good though :-).

*Sigh*, I want to fly again, and next time I plan to take my sisters with me. I'd take mom and dad too, but they'd probably be too chicken. :-) Laterz pplz.

I am SUCH a Goober.
Thursday, July 25, 2002

Ok, last night there was a new buser at the restaurant. He looked hispanic, and all the rest of the busers speak spanish, so I decided to introduce myself in spanish (I try to say hi to anybody that I notice is new). "Que es su nombre?" I asked. "Huh?" he grunted. "Como te llamos?" (Both phrases mean, essentially, "What is your name?") His response?: "Oh, I don't speak Spanish." ... I had to repress blush from flooding my face. I think I swallowed something ... probably my pride. I am SUCH a friggin idiot. Grrrr.