last post

Really Dont have much to say at this point. We never did end up redemming our bottles, which was a little dissapointing, but at this stage in the semester not much can be done, nor is it worth the extra time and effort. All thats left to say is I'm totally going skydiving again next summer.

bottle collecting

Since our adventure, I'm really not sure what to say this blog. One we went skydiving, I legitimately felt like I could die happy. Skydiving is the one experience you have try at least one in your life time. I'm already organizing a trip to come again this following summer with some friends.

Other than that, Really not much to say. hopefully this weekend we will bring our bottles to redeem them in Maine and get some partial reimbursement. We may also have a bake/pizza sale to generate the rest of the funds we used for this adventure. Additionally we are hosting a very enthusiastic speaker from Skydive New England who will be distributing coupons and other parapanhalia. The date for this is to be determined, there was some confusion as to the original date, and the presenter could not make it for the actual day.

We went for real this time!

Wow, that is all I have to say. wow. Skydiving is by far the most extreme thing i have ever participated in, and hopefully Ill see if I can get some friends to go back next year. I can die happy now, knowing that I willingy swan dived out of a plane at 14,000 feet. So much fun, and whats even better was that our plan finally came to fruition. i was almost have expecting some last minute problem to come up, and this trip was so easy to plan, i wonder why we didnt just plan independently in the first place. it would have been so much easier, several times the outing club almost screwed us and we should have been the ones to go when is was initially scheduled. Either way today was incredible, the weather was nice it was a bit chilly, but totally worth every cent.

On a different note, this is a very good example of flow. According to Csíkszentmihályi, flow is an altered state of conciousness, or the state of being "in the zone" so to speak. I mean while in free fall, it was like nothing else mattered, time had come to a stand still, and just an awesome indescriable feeling of freedom. It is this feeling that i am trying to describe that i believe attracts people to adventure. Then again, when you falling at 120 mph in 10 degree air, its hard to think about anything else.

Lastly, we still need to raise money for reimbursement purposes. We are getting $15 back from the outing club each since we did not go with them, and that coupled with our bottles weve amounted so far and the pizza's donated from tim's dads resaurant, it think we should do alright.

Link to photos:

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=57123&id=530967099

source:

Mihaky, Csíkszentmihályi, (1997). Finding Flow. New York, NY: Basic Books.

Postponed

Dammit
We ended up not jumping today. I tell you hearing the words: "Sorry, but there is only room for these 7 people today" was like being a kid and Chrismas and hearing Santas not coming. So dissapointed. Either way, we have rescheduled for tuesday at 11. We had better go or else everything we had worked for will be for nothing, and I will nto stand for that. At this point We have decided to just stay with the outing club, for if we withdrew now and did this on our own, it would just take more time and money.

debate/ pre trip meeting

This ought to be a good chance to finalize our views on adventure. Our team has taken the side that adventerous activities should be required/highly recomenneded. Now, we have formed a variety of arguments in addition to our central position to the question at stake. I have decided to interview two people who have attended or are attending private schools that highly recommend or require an adventurous outing as part of the orientation process. One is a good friend of mine who attended the Community School, a school that teaches without the pressure of grades. The second is my brother, who is currently a sophmore at holderness academy. In addition, I will also research the statistics on death related incidents for adventure activities, with this data I hope to prove that more people are killed/injured via drugs, etc. than adventure activities.
On a different note, we went and met with outing club leaders for a pre skydiving meeting. Not much went on, tenativley we are meeting at the outing club office at 9.30 on sunday, and hopefully if the weather is not inclement, be jumping sometime during the afternoon. I can't wait, so excited.

sherpa John

Such an amazing presentation today. I was able to connect with what he had to say on so many levels. I am not much of a runner, but he brings the concept of running to a whole new level. We have all heard of some self-determination story about some runner finishing a marathon, but today as we heard, a marathon was just the beginning. Before I forget, I just want to record my thoughts on several of John's statments I found very enlightening. The first of which is the pain that you endure. Similar to how Im feeling at a 24 hr enduro bike race. The morning laps are the worst, it sucks, your cold and tired, and all you want is a hot shower and sleep. But then once you finish, all the suffering you went through just makes the sense of achievement you get when you finish better. I think half the time people to all the ridiculous adventures is to simply say the did it, just for the hell of it. It is for that reason that I have riden on numerous century rides. I get bored, and just feel like doing it for the hell of it.
I also want to comment on what he had to say about thought. First off, I can't stand running or riding with out music. My mind begins to become overactive and suddenly everything is a distraction. Aside from that, the places that you can take yourself or the things you can accomplish while in this state of mind are limitless, and thus this phenomenon ties into the "Human Potential"

risk

I am not sure what to make of these past two readings. By comparison didnt offer much insight on the risk aspect of adventure. The only connection I was able to make was that the authors main point was similar to that of Mark Twains "The Danger of lying in Bed." According to the article more children die from childhood obesity as a result of a lack of of physical exercise/ adventure.
On a different note, Geoff Coopers "Disconnected Children" reveals many problems with todays genration, that parents are overprotective. I cannot think of an instance personally where my parents have been over protective, however Some of my friends' parents have. One friend was not allowed to climb with us until he took a class. Rather than sit in a classroom and have an instructor bore me to death, I prefer to learn by trial and error, which I acknowledge is not the safest method, but risk is good for you. As Jessica Dulong Suggests: "Whether your piloting a single engine plane, careening through rapids, dangling from a cliff, successfully navigating risky situations teaches you about yourself, increases you self confidence, and helps you beter manage life's inevitable uncertainties." This statement reveals much about adventure, this theme of self-knowledge is also briefly discussed in William Quinn's "Essence of Adventure.

Source:
DuLong, Jessica. (2006). Swallow your fear., 1-4.