The way from La Mure to the bridge is all the way downhill. It is always fun to cycle downhill but at the same time, it was not what I had expected. I thought it was uphill so that when coming back time, we could just chill and enjoy the downhill slope. I really worried about the way back because we needed to hurry back to the bus stop from the bridge in order to catch the last bus back to Grenoble. Our jump is at 16h00 and it was said that the jump plus the climbing back up the bridge was going to take 30mins. Plus a margin of another 15mins, and the bus was at 17h28 exactly, so we had to make it within 45mins.
We arrived really early. In fact, 2 hours earlier than we supposed to be. Standing on the arch bridge behind the bar of protection, the height of the bridge did look imposing and scary at first sight. But the longer you stand up there, the longer you look at the river down the valley, the fear of the height wore off significantly. I felt safe and start to enjoy the surrounding view. There really was nothing much. The scenery was nice and all but it was not long before we got bored. So we watched other people jump and laughed at their reaction. Yes, we laughed at other people!
 |
| Everybody checking out the drop before the jump. |
 |
| Bridge of Ponsonnas |
 |
| The valley seen from the bridge, and Drac river down there. |
 |
| "Hahaha, somebody just fell off!" |
15h30, we were given a DVD with our names and weight and standing in the waiting line for the jump. The DVD was for recording our jump. Then a worker there weighed each of us and put on harnesses on us, one sit harness and another one around the both ankles which the main rope would be attached to. Then just waiting. For now, I still thought it would be an easy task - just a simple leap forward.
Yogesh jumped first. His jump was a bit weird. After the instructor said OK to go, he just leaned forward and lost from sight in a long silence. His jump was technically not even a jump. From my point of view, his legs were just weakened and the gravity did its work. Everybody up the bridge was also silent, probably expecting him to shout, or burst out laughing or whatever, expecting some sign of him still alive. But nothing from him and the long silence was a bit worrying.
The instructor looked down the valley, showed no expression. Then I knew he was OK and reached the bottom safely. Now my turn. Rope attached, safety equipment checked and rechecked, and I was ready to go. Surprisingly, I managed to stand on the ledge and still relax, even managed to look forward and look down. But when I thought I was ready to go, my body seemed subconsciously holding myself back. Now only I realized that it was not easy at all. To jump, you needs to fight against your survival instinct. "Laughing at other people just now?! Now the joke is on me!" I thought. I waited and waited, but in the end I took a deep breathe and leaped.
I am still struggling to find the right words to describe the sensation of the jump. It was really really really scary. Everything passed in merely a few seconds, but the few seconds had been hard burned in my memory. It is nothing like roller coaster ride or drop tower because this is THE real free fall!
As I leaped out of the ledge, my body accelerated. Everything around me seemed magnified. Trees and rocks growing in size fast and the river was approaching me even faster. My mind was a total blank, emptied by absolute fear. Every muscle in my body was tensed up, I could not scream. My arms were tensed up too and aligned towards the ever-magnifying river in front of me, almost as if trying to push against the inevitable. I really felt like I could almost touch the river before the rope pulled me back again. At the lowest point of the drop, the river seemed really near even though there was still probably a few dozen meters from the ground. All these happened in just a few seconds. Throughout this period of time, I knew I was going to be safe but still the fear, the adrenalin rush was just too much.
 |
| The red landing spot. |
Then the rope did its work. Only now I was able to clear my throat and burst out laughing, not sure what was I laughing at. What I felt afterwards was just dizziness. The rope bounced me around, I was spinning and swinging, the feeling was not great at all. After a few bounces, slowly I came to stop and the instructor up at the bridge slowly lowered me down to the river bed. There was another worker down there guiding me to land onto a mattress. Undoing both harnesses and he wrote me a certificate certifying the jump. Yogesh was already waiting for me not far away, to go back up together. Getting up from the mattress, my legs felt like jello for a brief moment, unable to walk properly. I went to Yogesh and rested for a while. I really needed to recuperate, to catch my breathe, and to feel my legs again because my nerve was still unsettled.
Back to the reception, the receptionist showed us our jumps. Looking back at your own reaction was very funny. Yogesh bought the DVD but not me because it was slightly over-priced in my opinion. Then we rushed back as fast as we could back to La Mure. The bus departed earlier than schedule, luckily we still managed to arrive in time for that bus.
 |
| The certificate. |
The sensation of the jump was so intense that it actually haunted both of us for quite awhile. That night, that few seconds of free falling was still vivid in our mind, even recalling the experience could make my whole body jerk backward. Until now at this moment, that sensation is still fresh in my mind, as if I just made the jump yesterday. If ever I would do another bungee jump, I doubt that I am able to cope and feel differently.
Now that bungee jump is done and I wonder what kind of courage is needed to jump off a building, to commit suicide. Those who did it probably had long died of intense horror of the sheer acceleration before they even hit the ground.
No comments:
Post a Comment