Free fallin'

With wind in their hair, while quivering in their boots, students are lunging themselves from airplanes-with parachutes attached of course.

Whether it is breaking free from the monotony of studying or feeling a rush of adrenaline, students have all sorts of reasons for skydiving according to Andrew Scheur, a junior engineering major.

"I wanted to be spontaneous, someone asked me to go so I said yes," said Caitlyn Fitch, a graduate student in the School of Nursing. "It was the craziest experience I've ever had."

According to Lindsay Baron, manifest manager at Frontier Skydivers, the usual altitude for jumps, around 14,000 feet, is reached within a matter of minutes.

"Once the door opens you have a few seconds to get yourself in position to jump, so there's really no time to think," Fitch said. "It's so loud and you fall 100 mph for about 60 seconds and then once you open the shoot you can really see the view."

While many first-timers jump for the adrenaline rush, the bird's eye view in the area is equally worth the adventure, according to Fitch.

"When you first jump out, you can't even see the ground. You're above the clouds, and you tumble for a little while so you can't focus on anything," Fitch said. "When I was finally able to see the view, it was like a satellite picture: I could see everything from Niagara Falls to Grand Island to Toronto."

According to Scheur, the physical experience is almost weightless.

"You feel like you are floating: it's not like that feeling you get in your stomach when you are on a roller coaster," Scheur said. "The view was amazing."

Throwing oneself out of an airplane at 14,000 feet is sure to cause some safety concerns, but instructors accompany uncertified skydivers and are there to make the experience as safe as possible, according to Baron.

"I never felt unsafe. It felt so secure, especially because I had an [instructor] strapped to my back," Fitch said.

Baron has worked for Frontier Skydivers for five years and the only injuries she has encountered during that time are sprained ankles. Nonetheless, she does make sure that all jumpers are aware of the precautions and risks before jumping.

"The only time I was scared at all was my first time when my feet were outside of the plane and I said to myself 'I am jumping out of an airplane,' " Scheur said.

Interested parties can expect to pay a few hundred dollars per jump, according to Scheur. Scheur's first jump at Long Island Sky Diving was around $350. Single jumpers can expect to pay $250 at Frontier Skydiving, according to Baron.

In order to skydive solo, interested parties must go through multiple tandem jumps, training, and numerous Accelerated Free Fall certifications during which they must jump alongside, but not attached to, instructors, according to Baron.

The total cost to be certified for solo jumps, seeing that a skydiver passes all jumps the first time, is around $2,000. Jump costs decrease throughout training and once certified, jumpers can expect to pay around $20 per jump.

The closest location for skydiving is Frontier Skydivers, which is located in Newfane, N.Y., about a 30-minute drive from campus. Another location, Rochester Skydivers, is located in Rochester, N.Y.