California – Erin jumps out of a plane!

Posted on July 7, 2012 by leaf on the wind

SkydivingI always thought this was going to be something that I would talk about doing but never actually get around to doing.  Happily, I met Ashley B., partner to one of Matt’s co-workers, and she is a doer.

Ashley found a deal online for Skydive Sacramento and instead of just talking we bought our tickets and I made a reservation.  We were committed now and couldn’t back out!

We convinced the boys that they wanted to see us jump out of a plane so we all piled into the car on a Saturday morning, before the sun was up, and took off for a tiny airport outside of Sacramento.

Nervous? Hell yes!  We chatted excitedly to keep ourselves distracted and grilled folks who jumped before us.  Our jump-guides (the people we would be strapped to) introduced themselves and helped us into our harnesses.  I was feeling pretty good at this point – excited and nervous but still wanting to do it. 2012-07-07 10.34.44-1

We boarded the tiny plane, which wasn’t out of my comfort zone as I have been in and flown smaller planes.  I was fine as we circled higher and higher, even when they had the door open for the first few minutes (it was 100+ degrees!), and only a little queasy when they said we had reached our jump height and they re-opened the door.2012-07-07 10.55.06

My jump-guide, Marc, had kept me entertained with stories of his history jumping with noobs and bits of advice.  I remember him saying that it was ok to scream because if I was screaming than I was breathing.  It turned out that we were going to be the first team to jump after a few guys jumped solo.  My feet started to itch when the first guy jumped – itchy feet is my body’s signal that it is upset about the height – and my stomach was definitely flopping around when the second guy jumped.

This was it.  It was our turn. Holy crap! How did I get in this plane? Why was a strapped to this stranger? He’s going to fling us out of the plane – WHAT?!?

I tucked my arms in (they don’t want people clinging to the door frame).  My toes were on the edge.  I think Marc counted down from three…

3

…

2

…

1

!!!!

intheair

I screamed the f* bomb over and over and over during the free fall, which lasted no more than a few seconds.  By the time my brain caught up with the fact that my body was falling and it was actually totally AWESOME, Marc had pulled the chute.  And then it was the most beautiful, peaceful, breathtaking, and exhilarating minutes of my life.  After the noise of the plane, the rushing of air, and my screaming it was so very quiet.  I was as close to flying as humans get (excepting: base jumping, paragliding, etc.) and I never wanted it to end.

Sadly, gravity called us home and we landed too soon.  I will boast that we had an awesome landing that included me not knocking us on our asses.  Once free of my tether to Marc, all I could do was jump up and down, yelling about out f*ing amazing it was.  Ashley touched down right after me and we made our way over to the boys. ontheground

Ashley and I were high on adrenaline for hours, talking non-stop about the awesome-sauce that is skydiving.  Until we nodded off in the car on the way home; thankfully, Matt was driving.

Will I do it again? Hell yes!  I really want to go with Matt next time and anyone else I can drag with us.  I will never cross skydiving off my bucket list because I can’t imagine the thrill every fading.

 

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Epic Knee: A Tall Tale

Posted on June 9, 2012 by leaf on the wind

It all began on a bright, sunny afternoon when Matt, Jeremy, and Lindsay went mountain biking on Upper Trail that connects to Upper Upper Loop or Tony’s Trail.  Matt, Jeremy, and Lindsay were flying up the trail, kicking its’ arse, and hootin’ & hollerin’ because they loved to hear their echos bouncing off the nearby mountains.  As they sped around a switchback, their back tires kissing the edge of a 100 foot drop off, a massive brown bear leapt out from behind a not so massive boulder and mooned them. 

Matt, Lindsay, and Jeremy piled into each other as they gawked at the furry rump shaking in front of them. Matt was the first to recover and with the bear lumbering at an impressive speed, he took up chase.  Lindsay and Jeremy had dissolved into a heap of laughing limbs and bikes, eventually recovering and untangling enough to snap a few pictures.

 

 

 

 

 

The bear was leading Matt on a merry chase around trees, under bushes, up the hillside, and back down the other side, giggling and skipping the whole way.  Matt pursued the clownish bear — moving super fast, launching off of rocks and working his amazing turn-on-a-dime skills (the bear, not Matt) — when suddenly it all came to a violent and tragic end.  The bear swerved to miss something in the trail but it was too late for Matt!  He couldn’t avoid…

 

…the honey badger chewing on a snake.

Matt slammed on his brakes taking a header over the bike, over the bear, and over the honey badger who was chewing on a snake.  The bike spat Matt end over end into a nasty looking tree where he hung, upside down, partially wrapped around the tree.  Anyone who happened by might think he was just giving the tree a hug, an upside down hug but, nevertheless, a hug.  He generally loves nature and works to lessen his impact and teach others to leave no trace but he rarely expresses this by hugging trees.  Unfortunately, for Matt, this tree wasn’t a tree that enjoyed hugs, it was a big, ugly tree bitter from years of woodpecker abuse. The angry tree waved Matt around and for the honey badger it was like waving a red flag in front of a bull.  The honey badger bit Matt on the nose and then ambled off because the honey badger don’t care.

By this time Lindsay and Jeremy had arrived on the scene, timing it just right to watch the brown bear steal Matt’s mountain bike.

That is the tall tale of how Matt tore the meniscus in his knee.  The doctors all agree that they will have to lop of his leg because the honey badger’s don’t care attitude is affecting his ability to heal.

If you’ve ever been to the land of rocky mountains, snow in July, and buttes that have crested you’ll understand that they do things a little differently.  The hospital provides laughing cats as an alternative for traditional anesthesia and Matt, being the cat whisperer that he is, opted for this pain management system instead of drugs.

 

True Story

Matt had a minor crash because of a rock garden that caused him to gently bonk into a sapling.  While he hugged the sapling he tried to put a foot down to prevent a bigger crash.  The motion of kicking his foot out of the pedals (he was clipped in) is what caused the wrenching of his knee, tearing the meniscus.  The doctor thinks he might have already had a small tear from earlier in his life and this just made it bigger.  He will need surgery but we are hoping for a simple surgery and quick recovery so he can get back to playing!  You can watch his progress on the trail via his Garmin tracking gadget and at 17:22 you’ll notice a slight pause. 🙂

 

 

We’ll keep y’all updated with more Tall Tales!

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Sequoia National Forest, California

Posted on October 14, 2011 by leaf on the wind

This was a great camping trip!

It was off-season so the campground was empty and free.  It was also 80 degrees that weekend and absolutely gorgeous in the Sierra’s!

Big trees

Big trees

The one night we had company in the campground, Matt set off the car alarm – twice! – early in the morning.  I was in the tent laughing my arse off!  He’s so funny!

Laughing & eating & laughing!

Laughing & eating & laughing!

One of the days we were there we did a 10 mile loop and got to see many of the really big trees.  I was totally blown away by how big they were and we soaked up the sun.

We only saw a few people – so great in the off season! – on our hike.  This was my first introduction to California parks and I couldn’t get over the fact that there were fancy lodges and little towns scattered throughout the park.  This was nothing like the parks in Colorado or Utah where there might be pit toilets if one is lucky.

Matt took me on a driving tour to see some of the northern parts of the park on our final day and then we boogied back home.

This is definitely on my to-do list for another camping trip!

More pictures can be found here.

 

We found a waterfall!

We found a waterfall!

Matt & a big tree!

Matt & a big tree!

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