Key West Skydiving: It Really is the Thrill of a Lifetime

Skydiving is the thrill of a lifetime – it’s a cliché that is probably as old as the sport itself. But many clichés are rooted in fundamental truths and that is the case with skydiving. There is scientific support for the idea that skydiving is one of the most exhilarating activities a person can participate in.

Until the first tandem skydive in the mid-1980s, skydiving was not very accessible. It was one of those exotic, colorful, and attractive sports displayed on the screens of Costco demo TVs along with scuba diving on tropical reefs, surfing big waves, riding steep, deep powder snow, hot air ballooning, and piloting aerobatic aircraft.

These sports offer intense exhilaration and incredible beauty, but they are only within reach of the few who are willing to dedicate considerable effort, lots of money, and most of their time – essentially their lives – to experience them. In the case of solo skydiving, even fully-certified, highly-experienced skydivers who already own all the necessary gear must continue to make substantial investments of time and money to stay active in the sport.

Chemical Reaction, Physical Attraction

So why do people do it? Why forgo other activities, push work and relationships into second place, and spend thousands of dollars for the occasional 6- or 7-minute rush?

It’s for the same reason a surfer chases a swell with flights from the U.S. to Indonesia or Tahiti and all the other expense and bother such travel entails for a 7-second ride on a massive blue wall of water. As with any addiction, there are many levels of cost involved. It seems ridiculous. But those who understand know there is simply nothing else like it, nothing better to do, in this life, on this planet.

When you huck yourself over the lip of a two-story high wave, air drop into a narrow, rocky chute full of chest-deep powder, or jump from the door of an airplane at 10,000 feet, adrenaline slams into your bloodstream and brain. You are purposely bringing on the natural fight-or-flight response, but in a situation where highly-developed mental and physical abilities allow you to maintain control.

A Shortcut to Nirvana

Adrenaline is a hormone and neurotransmitter with profound mental and physical effects. It dilates the air passages in the lungs to improve oxygen flow while doing the same to blood vessels and signaling the heart to pump harder. Thinking clears and speeds up so that time seems to slow. Strength and performance capabilities increase while fear and sensitivity to pain decrease. Endorphins and serotonin are also released, creating a feeling of euphoria.

And that bubble of slowed time and heightened perception sets us free to be fully in the moment, as one and at peace with everything that is in seemingly chaotic motion around us, the beauty of it all something that is experienced at the heart level rather than visually. It is completely captivating and it’s going to take a heck of a lot of freefall time or 30-foot waves before you can be distracted by jobs or electric bills in the space of that moment.

Don’t Miss It

Tandem skydiving is revolutionary because it is the only safe, easy way a typical person can tap into the elemental magic of extreme sports. The door is open to people who have not made the life-altering commitment needed to place themselves in those unique positions where the rush is all-consuming. And if you are an extreme sportsperson, Sky Dive Key West offers a new thrill and an intro to what might become another passion.

Don’t miss the chance to do a tandem skydive in South Florida. At Sky Dive Key West, the adrenaline starts pumping on the climb to altitude because the view of the Keys is that spectacular. Needless to say, the ride down is unmatched by any other U.S. drop zone. Start planning your Sky Dive Key West tandem skydive now!