|
  | |  |
The Plunge
Entry 76 of 87 | show all | print this entry |
If your friends jumped off the Golden Gate Bridge, would you do it too? It's a question that mothers reputedly ask their children to help elicit independent thought. (I don't think my mom ever said it, though. A little too cliche for her parenting style). But it seems an interesting question in light of my time in Queesntown.
The Golden Gate Bridge's road surace, according to wikipedia, is 220 feet (67 meters) above the water. Buddy, Jon, and I came to Queesntown to jump off the Nevis Highwire Bungy which is exactly double that height (440ft/134m). So, would I jump off the Golden Gate Bridge? Seems like it might be relatively tame now. But then again, if Buddy and Jon were doing it...... (assuming bungy cords were attached, of course).
We found lodging in Queenstown at the Hippo Lodge. It was within walking distance of everything in town, had a perfect view of the city, and was empty enough that Jon, Buddy, and I had an 8 bed dorm all to ourselves for multiple nights. Our first day in town we explored the city to see what it had to offer. During that exploration, we stopped at AJ Hackett to book our Nevis jump. Once we'd paid, the reality of it grew stronger. Then Jon split off to go find a computer. Buddy was in search of a beanie (tuke, Aunt Sandy) and I was still looking for a visor to help control my unruly locks, so we went in search together. Soon enough he had his beanie, and I was convinced that someone uninvented the visor within the last few months. We decided to check out the local casino and a pub next door in case they had potential fun for that night. Then we hit up internet for an hour. Buddy received an e-mail from Hazel and Lawrence, the British couple he met and took wine-tasting in Australia. They were in Queenstown and wanted to meet up. Perfect, but we decided to wait until the next night so that we'd be in good shape for our bungee. After internet, Buddy and I reconnected with Jon. We ate at a little joint called Fergburger. Anyone who knows me will never question my loyalty to Phyllis' Giant Burger (the original Miracle Mile location, anyway), but Fergburger was euphoric beyond words. Maybe I've been away from good burgers too long. Who am I kidding, there's no maybe about it. Asia's take on western food is pure dreck, and Ferburger was my first taste of delicious ground beef in over 5 months. I don't remember all the specifics of the Fergburger I ate because after one bite I was drunk on my love for that grill-conceived angelic creation. I know it had a large patty, bacon, and I specifically asked for brie. Beyond that it's a haze of mouth-watering bliss. Then we hit up the bars for a couple pints and some pool. I tried my first real ginger beer. It never occurred to me that an alcoholic version of ginger beer would exist. I simply enjoyed the soft drink. A local brew house called Duck de Luxe (or some similar spelling) makes a brew called Ginger Pete. It's delicious, though words fail me after thinking so much about Ferburger.
The next morning I was roused by the butterflies in my stomach. It was jump day. I managed to force in some Rice Krispies, but for once food was the last thing on my mind. (Second to last, really. I never think about antiquing). We grabbed our gear for the day and walked into town. As soon as we get there, we happen to run into Hazel and Lawrence. It was an odd first meeting. My mind was still on the jump. I'd slated Hazel and Lawrence for that evening. Luckily for my unprepared brain, Hazel and Lawrence are extremely friendly and carried the conversation. We made plans of exactly where to meet them and then headed to AJ Hackett.
The wait at the office took forever. They waited for everyone to check in. Then they weighed everyone which took far too long. The bus ride up was longer. Time stretched on and on as Buddy and I would constantly inform each other that we weren't nervous at all.
We arrived at the Nevis in the early afternoon. After one last pit stop in the bathroom, we all climbed into our harnesses and were weighed a second time. They have the heaviest people jump first to stretch out the ropes. It's all about safety, people. There is a noticeable range between Jon, Buddy, and my weights. We hope they'll let us all be there at the same time because there was talk earlier of having only a few people in the gondola at a time. I should mention that we three are only a few among more than a dozen other people.
After everyone has suited up and been weighed, we all walk to the viewing platform and peer down. Holy Balls, that's a big drop!
They ferry us over to the gondola 5 at a time. The three of us go over with two Irishmen dressed up as Batman and Robin. As we arrive, the first people are already jumping. That's a big drop. Eventually they call Jon and strap up his ankles. I'd taped my camera to my hand to record the way down. At the last minute, Jon decided to do the same. He's hooked into the cables, totters over to the platform, and leaps off in perfect form. Like an Olympic diver; like a peregrine falcon; like he'd been waiting and practicing his whole life. Buddy and I watched him through the plexiglass floor of the gondola. Hey came back up a minute later, all smiles.
Soon it was my turn. I sat in the prep chair while they hooked me up to the cords. My camera was already on, taking video, but they were taking so long I turned it off. Finally the girl before me came back up. I turned the camera back on and waddles over to the tiny launch platform. It's about one square foot sticking precariously off the edge. Finally the reality of it all hits me. This is fucking crazy. That's a big drop! But as I'm finishing the thought, I've already jumped. I bent at the knees and put all my power into that leap forward. The freefall was so long I ran out of breath. The ground rushes towards me, getting way too close. I swear I can see ants crawling on the rocks at the bottom. Suddenly the cord catches and slows my descent. I wave to the ants as I'm shot back skyward. I think I see them wave back. Then down again; up again. On this second trip back up, I pull the red release handle near my left foot. The cord detaches from my ankles, so now I'm sitting upright, cradled by my body harness. I hit stop on my camera. But when I look at the screen it has just started recording. That can't be good. I review my previous video. I guess my hand was so tense when I jumped that I squeezed and turned off the video. I was bummed about that for the next few days. At least Jon decided to record his, and his video turned out great.
When I got back into the gondola, Buddy was already strapped in. One of the employees tried to shoo me into leaving. They were trying to offload people early to speed things up. Nuts to that. I wasn't going to let a lazy employee push me around. I stood my ground enough to hear Buddy yell "O'Doyle Rules!" and see him plummet off the edge.
Once the three of us were done, out of our harnesses, and enjoying adrenaline-induced muscle spasms, we looked at all of our pictures and video of each other. While I felt like I jumped off with a lot of power, it looks more like my legs buckled and I fell. Oh well. Buddy also managed a graceless jump, but none of it really mattered. We'd just done something major; something we'll be talking about for years. Hey, you remember that time we were bungy jumping in New Zealand.....
When the bus dropped us off back in town, the three of us looked at each other and unanimously decreed "Fergburger". I won't subject you to a second description.
That night we rendezvoused with Hazel and Lawrence who proved to be as amazing as Buddy led us to believe. Yes, the British are everywhere I travel, but it's good to know so many of them are worthwhile. (Unlike a certain country in Europe that rhymes with 'Dermany').
No that's not fair to Derman, I mean German, people. In fact the same German guy we'd bunked with in Te Anau ended up at the Hippo Lodge with us. I knew he looked familiar, so we started talking. Sure enough he was from Te Anau, but he looked more familiar than that. As we talked more, it hit me. He was on a bus with us in Vietnam, and he and Andreanne had hit it off. Small world.
The day after bungy we'd planned to go wine tasting on the way to Franz Josef. But since we had to drive one of us would have to forgo tasting. None if us were in the mood anyway, so I drove us straight to Franz Josef.
Latest Comments (3)
|
Tuke like Puke (reply)
Apr 15, 2007 10:43 EST by flandersfield
OK, I ignored it the first time, but I really need to educate you on this one if you're going to be spending time in cold climates. It's spelled 'toque'!!
|
|
|
mom's advice (reply)
Apr 11, 2007 17:58 EST by sarahlevine
K, first of all, YES mom used to say that about jumping off the Golden Gate Bridge. Although maybe by the time you were old enough to remember, I had shamed it out of her. Anyway, funny story, I totally fell on the sidewalk outside my apartment the other day, and on my way down, I saw some ants on the pavement and they WAVED TO ME right before I crushed them when I landed on my ass. I guess we hav... show all
|
|
|
whhheeeeeeee (reply)
Apr 10, 2007 23:10 EST by pnut83
man that all sounds sooo amazing. iv seen jon's video and wow...damn that's freaking awesome! so now i guess u guys r up to go skydiving with me?? :) but anyways, im really proud of u guys for doing the jump and i dunno y but this entry seemed to be more about the burger than the jump lol..awww its ok mikey, we will get u a damn good burger when u return :)
|
 Post a new comment |
|
If you like this entry, search for other entries from New Zealand or try a new search. |
| |
Back to Entry - Back to Home
|
5 votes 
