KEY Milwaukee - Cover Story

Looking for something really different?

SKY KNIGHTS Sport Parachute Club in East Troy, Wisconsin, has been training first-jump skydivers for more than 40 years. First-jump divers usually opt for a tandem jump, tightly linked to an experienced staff member. Since both the publisher and editor of KEY Milwaukee are unlikely dive candidates, the publisher’s daughter gladly undertook the assignment and offered this first-person account:

By Rebecca Ewing

"I'm not nuts, am I?" I thought to myself as I ascended in a perfectly functioning small plane and prepared to jump out of it.

There was plenty of time to ask that question and more as I ascended in the East Troy Sky Knights plane to 12,500 feet for my first tandem skydive experience. Confidant veteran skydivers laughed and joked, which kept the mood light and allowed this novice to forget that in a few brief moments she would experience the closest sensation that a human can to flying. I reviewed the steps that I was supposed to follow in my head and glanced back at my tandem instructor as he tightened and quadruple-checked my harness. More banter, laughs and smiles surrounded me and I felt relaxed and ready to experience the ride of my life.

An instant later when the door opened, the solo divers maneuvered out of the plane and scattered. With a big smile and the adrenalin pumping we made our way to the airplane door and three seconds later were falling through the air.

It was like nothing I had ever felt before, a different rush than bungee jumping, a feeling of total freedom. The tandem instructor grabbed my right hand and pulled my arm into my body, and just like that we were doing a 360-degree rotation high above the ground. After what seemed like 10 minutes, but was actually only 40-50 seconds, I reached my hand back and pulled the ripcord to deploy the shoot. I thought that the ride was over.

But the next stage of the jump was only beginning. For the adventurous at heart, parachuting is a whole new rush and thrill. Spiraling, spinning and speedily making our way to the ground, it truly felt like I was on a roller coaster. As I looked below and could see the landing zone, I prepared to land¾and what a landing it was! We landed right on our feet, and after a few quick steps came to a stop. I had become a skydiver, and the only bad news was that I was back on the ground again.

Sky Knights offers tandem, static line and a popular “accelerated freefall program” year-round, as the weather permits. To reach Sky Knights, take I-43 south to East Troy (Hwy 20), turn left on 20 and take the next left.

(Hwy. L). Sky Knights is less than a mile, just past the East Troy airport. For additional details and maps, call 800-3823-4883 or visit www.SkyDiveMilwaukee.com.

KEY Milwaukee is distributed monthly in hotels, motels, visitor's centers, corporations and retail stores in Southeastern Wisconsin and on the Internet at www.keymilwaukee.com. It is a KEY Magazine, licensed by KEY Magazines, Inc.

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