Basejumper.com - archive

ive recently gone to make my first base jump. on both occasions i have climbed to 450ft on a local antenna with my mentor ready to take the leap into the unknown. on both occasions i have been fine with the climb and the preparation but as soon as i get on the edge something changes. i am unsure as to what it is holding me back but something is not letting me take the 'step over the edge'. i dont know if its the darkness, the altitude or just me not having the bottle? has anyone else experienced this? how did you overcome this? cheers

You have to "let go" in a sense. I just wait for that moment when the little voice says its ok, this is how: There will be a pause when you think and feel nothing (a zen moment?). It is that moment when I let go and jump. This is true at least to me in my world and reality. The fact you climbed up says alot about you.

Just remember, once you let go and go over the edge, you will forever be changed and will not be able to reverse what you had just done.

Everyone has experienced that.

If it doesn't feel right, you definitely should not jump.

It's good that you have a mentor who understands that.

In all seriousness, why do you want to BASE jump? Maybe try doing some other things for a while, and see if BASE is still calling to you in 6 months or so. If it is, come back and see how it goes then. There's no rush, here, and BASE is not a contest.

Pfff, whatever...

So you actually hear a little voice in your head and you listen to it? I think I'm starting to understand you a bit.


and then you get an uncontrolable urge to post in any forum on any topic before that moment has passed?

m1keymike -
you're just not entirely ready for that jump yet

examine your motivation and if you still need a bit of peer pressure type encouragement, go to bridgeday and let the crowd spur you on - worked for someone who was having a hard time going in 2004...

Climbing down is the best thing a BASE jumper can do,its often harder to climb down than do the jump itself.
If that means you wont jump off an object i think you should be proud of that,if you have found your limit,then you already acompliched more than alot in this sport has done(whith no offence).

Do as Tom says think abouth somthing else for a while,you can still GC your mentor and learn a bunch anyway.If you still have the urge to get off an object,you might want to find another object to try jump off,perhaps you want more altitude,perhaps you want better lz or you might want daylight to feel better.

We all has felt the fear your feeling up there,some people just aint brave enough to climb down again,atleast you are.
Personaly i think thats more worth knowing that i person i want to jump whith can say "no,im not going",than they can do what ever silly tricks off a silly low altitude or what ever.Knowing that a person knows his/hers limits means more than what ever they have done in the past.

Keep up the good work,if your really into BASE you´ll get over that edge as soon as your ready and the time has come

If you really wanted to jump, you would ask him to push you.

has anyone else experienced this? how did you overcome this? cheers


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Honestly. . . . .think about your love of falling. That's why you want to do this right? To experience what it's like to fall relative to a fixed object. Then think about why you feel it's important that you do this. If its because you accept the fact that life is temporary and this is something that fulfills a life exerience, then focus on that thought the next time you arrive at the exit point.

But I'm with everyone else. . . .if it doesn't feel right, then it's not meant to be on that night. Go drink some beers and forget about it. After awhile if it's still calling you, try another go at it. The good news is that you've already accomplished something that countless other "dead" people couldn't, you had the balls to listen to your gut.

Let us know how it goes.

Cheers,

JP

ive decided that base is not for me. i climbed again and once again i couldnt jump, up untill that point i was fine then something once again said no! alot of people told me that base teaches you alot about yourself and it has. maybe in a few years things may be different, who knows?

Hooray. That's the best decision you've made in your BASE career so far. One day I hope to get to your level...

Great job!

No shame bro! BASE isn't for everyone. Get another couple hundred skydives and if it calls to you again, give it another go. Better to climb back down than do something your not comfortable with.

Coco

.... base is easy...

...just

...let

..go
.....

and everything else will just fall into place...

you went through all the effort of finding(and have the privelege of actually having) a mentor

why hold yourself from the most real experience of yor life?

In the words of my buddy josh. "Just jump! Fuck it, whats the worst that could happen."

Coco

In the words of my buddy "quadriplegia or death."

Its just a joke. Like when I did my gainer at bridge on my ninth jump. I was a little nervous but I did spend a shit load of time in a gym working on it so I was ready and able. Josh joked with me and was like "Fuck it dude, whats the worst that could happen."

IDK maybe we have sick humor.

Coco

nice work mike...perhaps now you will understand why i said to go to Spain and do the course with Ulli...anyway it takes a special kind of person to say that it isnt for them.well done..can i buy your rig?

Respect!

making the effort, trying it out, deciding its not you.... fucking cool

next time your hear at the DZ "I wanna / I will / I wanna" you can be smug in the fact you know about them "you have no idea and probably wont"...

Nice work, next time you get the calling, at least you will know...

Let me add to that:

Next time you get the calling, the experienced BASE jumpers in your area will know that you're not just some yahoo (that's roughly yank-speak for "wanker") out to kill himself. Which means that if BASE ever does come back to you, you'll have a much easier time finding help.

for sure....

Top decision Mike, BASE is not going anywhere. When you're ready you're ready and if you're never ready then at least you gave it a go.

Respect.

Gus

ps About that shiny new rig.....