#Fighting Failure – Update #7

SKYDIVING – FEHRBELLIN 

Joel picked me up from Anna’s flat and took me to the drop zone.

Peggy introduced me to Joel… and no… I wasn’t just hanging out with Guy Secretan, from ‘Green Wing’, or Donkey from ‘Shrek’ (sorry Joel).

This is Joel Strickland, He’s a Journalist, Skydive Coach and all round legend!
Check out his work HERE.

We got to Take Off – Fehrbellin, about 60km North-West of Berlin, and I met the crew. I’d arrived just in time for the annual ‘Sky Parrrtyyyyyy!’. 

A freefly event… for FREEFLYERS.

For a ‘belly-flapping-flyer’ like me with 65 jumps… I found it a little bit intimidating at first! That feeling soon went away when I got my bearings around the drop zone and got to know a few people! The weather wasn’t great all day and I didn’t feel very confident about jumping. I waited till the early evening, when the wind dropped and the sun splashed through the clouds.

I got my kit together and prepared myself for a solo sunset jump. 

I have no evidence of this, because I’m still not allowed to jump with a camera. But you’ll have to take my word for it… it was ABSOLUTELY EUPHORIC.

I was very nervous. I’m always very nervous with every first jump at a new drop zone… but as soon as the plane door opened, I filled every millimetre of my lungs with fresh air, as a wave of tranquility flowed through my entire body. Maximum focus. Nothing else.

I watched the guy in front of me drop away from the plane, counted eight seconds and jumped…

I felt completely relaxed.

I did a barrel roll to the right, to the left and then a back flip. I stopped playing around at 9000 feet. I was falling between two blankets of cloud above and below me, with the orange glow of the sunset bursting through the middle. I fell belly first and gawped at my surroundings. Quick alti-check… and then back to the beaming orange light that bounced off mixed layers of cumulonimbus and stratus cloud. The vivid textures, soft glowing light and the feeling of the wind on my face, is an experience that will stay with me in my memories forever!

I was fixated on the incredible tunnel of colour, until it was time to pull.

The next day, I jumped with Joel.

We made a plan on the ground and had an awesome jump! Suddenly I realised my barrel rolls need a bit more practice… having someone else to jump with, as a reference to where you are in the sky, makes a big difference. My roll to the left made me speed towards Joel’s face and I ‘nearly’ smashed into his camera. Apart from that… all good!

Then it was PARTY TIME.

Mahle and the crew set up an evening of awesome food, awards and good vibes! I think German skydivers like techno?! Once the techno started, there was no stopping the techno. I mean, I like techno… and there was a lot of techno.

Boots – cats – boots – cats and ‘Bmm-Tss-Bmm-Tss-Bmm-Tss-Bmm-Tss-digadee-digadee-digadee-bwarrrp-bwarrp ALL NIGHT.

It was hilarious and great fun.

 

I want to say a huge THANK YOU to everyone at TAKE OFF – Fehrbellin for welcoming me, the sponsored kit rentals and all the good times!

So what did I learn this time?

Germans love techno! Haha!
Yeah, that’s a sweeping generalisation… but probably true 🙂