Fear of Sky-Diving : Leaping to the Challenge, Her Terror Turns to Ecstasy

Julia Rogers had spent 10 years trying to overcome her fear of jumping out of an airplane, ever since she chickened out back home over South Carolina. When she moved to Los Angeles, she brought the old fear with her.

But recently, Rogers mustered the courage to visit the Perris Valley Skydiving Society in Riverside County. There, she teamed up with veteran sky-diving instructor Don Balch for a “tandem” jump from 9,500 feet.

Harnessed together with a single, oversize chute, the two did a “free fall” for about 20 seconds before Balch pulled the cord. Rogers says that, a few seconds into the jump, her fear was replaced by a feeling of sheer ecstasy. She plans to make a couple more tandem jumps before going for the big one, a solo leap.