Terminal Speed

One of the things I always enjoyed the most was jumping bundles. Being the extreme adrenaline junkie that I am…falling to my death at terminal speed wasn’t nearly enough.

Ask any operator about this, and you will see even amongst real men, this draws the line between the men and the boys. Most guys didn’t want to do this. Hell, most guys didn’t even want to jump their own equipment.

Many guys would freak out mid-air, cut the bundle away, or pull the parachute early. We called this “ending the nightmare.” We would tell them to sit in the classroom, “gather their emotions,” and get ready for the next jump.

I have never seen this as a nightmare. This is my gear, mission essential gear that will aid in killing as many savages as possible in the shortest amount of time. The way I always figured it “I AM THE FUCKING NIGHTMARE”. So anything that could happen mid-air was child’s play, and I’m not a child.

Jumping Bundles

The above photo was taken when I was an instructor candidate. When I wasn’t the Jumpmaster (a whole different story), I would push bundles for fun. It was one of my favorite things to do. I even had a weird exit sequence, and I did it religiously at every exit. The Jumpmaster would give me the Standby (standard procedure). This is about 15 seconds to go time, baby. I would push my bundle about halfway out the back of the plane or door (depending on the type of plane).

I would say a movie quote to myself and the same one every time. But before the quote, I would tell myself exactly this;

“This is absolutely not natural for a human being.”

Followed by Chevy Chase’s “This is crazy, This is crazy; This is crazy.” By the time I was done running my suck, the green light would come on, and the Jumpmaster would tell me, “Go.” Time to get to work, the break is over and boom bitches, I’m gone!

If one was cut away on a mission, it could jeopardize everything, especially if it got lost in bad guy land. So, for these reasons, I never found an excuse to cut one away. America is and always will be bigger than my emotions. There is a reason I am here, and this is filled with belt-fed love and overloaded with tiny lead seeds of Freedom.

Article courtesy of John McPhee of SOB Tactical