G = 9.8 m/sec sq. Okay, so we all know physics and everyone knows that when apple falls from a tree, it has to land. But what if we make the height of the tree a small matter of 10000 feet and instead of apple, let choose something else to fall...err...what about you? Thats precisely what happened when my friends and I decided to have an adventure of a lifetime.

Winters in Boston can be pretty dull and depressing. So, when summer comes, its time for everyone to pull their adventure boots on. Not content with activities like camping, hiking, trekking and white water rafting, we decided to take on Mr. Newton himself. Some of us did have sleepless nights a couple of days before the adventure but we dare not admit it in public. The day of the dive was one of the best of the entire summer. We reached the base camp in time for the instruction lesson. It was simple, you ride a small plane upto the height of 10000 ft and jump in tandem with a professional who is strapped on to you. We had decided to get videos of the jump. So there was another professional videographer who jumped along with us to capture our moment of glory...or whatever.

We wished each other luck and were taken two at a time for the jump. The plane had 6 people (2 of us + 2 tandem jumpers + 2 videographers) and a pilot. The moment the plane took off I realized that its not a controlled environment like that of a roller coaster. As we went higher, I saw the houses turning into tiny ones like those in Monopoly. Whats more, my instructor showed me that we were flying over a graveyard. Anyway, the next 20 minutes were full of anxiety so I decided to enjoy the view. We passed over the clouds and the wind became chilly (or was it just the chill in my spine?). As the altimeter hit 10 k feet, we knew it was time. I was the second person to jump so I had no choice but to see a human being fall off the plane right in front of my eyes. The moment that happened, I remember shouting "holy cow" (or something like that). The next thing I knew was: I am at the edge of the plane with my feet dangling in the air and I am off. I can never forget the next 2-3 seconds when we tumbled in the air. There are many things you might think at that time. Like, why am I doing this? For some, their entire life may falsh in front of their eyes in those 2-3 secs. For me, it was the mix of both. But thereafter, it was the best thing that has happened to me since a long time. The free fall lasted for about 40 seconds. They had told us that we can reach speeds upto 120 mph. But I did not care for speeding tickets here. My tandem diver told me to look ahead and there was the videographer who had jumped along. I was waving my hands and flapping them like wings making sure that the camera doesnt miss any action. The parachute opened (yes or else I wouldnt be writing this) after 40 seconds and from then on it was a joyride for the next 5 minutes. We flew around the whole place and took a couple of of mid-air spins. When I landed I did not have words to express my feelings (even for the camera). It was a mix of joy, ecstacy and achievement. Everyone who did this had used every possible superlative in the dictionary after landing to describe the experience. We couldnt stop talking about it for the next couple of days and thats what inspired me to share this wonderful (well I am out of superlatives now) experience.

Until we do something more crazy, keep the faith.

PS: I admit I have shamelessly used the caption which I saw long time ago on a Fosters' hoarding as my title. Cliche as it may sound now, I couldnt think of anything else which would aptly describe my experience.