Wow, would think it was mandatory in that service.
I did it due to a girl I'd met and something she suggested (to be fair none of my male friends had ever proposed such)....but learned only the night before she couldn't make it due work and I decided what the hell, may as well give it a try. That morning one of my soft contact lenses got a tear, so wore my glasses which were more for reading. I went thru the half-day "training" and went up with a couple other newbies....this was not tandem style and a round chute. I was first up and stepping out that door was pretty challenging, I don't like heights particularly, but they tell you up front that if you look like you're going to do something idiotic they may just shove you out of the way (to prevent you from releasing an opened parachute in the plane).
Well I got out there, and just thought to myself, what the hell and "jumped" and tried to do the body position suggested which I really didn't do that well but managed to open the chute okay (and not the spare, one of the things you concentrated on during the half-day training). The lines twisted pretty good, but they trained you on how to "kick" out of that (basically kicking with one leg trying to counter the twist) and they did eventually straighten out in a reasonable time (altho seemed like forever at the time). They tried to steer you on the ground as to which way to turn the chute with a giant arrow but due the glasses instead of contacts and the conditions they fogged up for a while and I couldn't really wipe them off....so by the time I could focus on the arrow I didn't realize I was reading it backwards due the "fog" on the lenses.....so I ended up in an area they didn't intend and in that process clipped the top of a rise and whacked my knees....they had followed my descent in a vehicle and were pretty close by the time I was able to stand fortunately, walking wasn't much of a consideration soon after.....and spent many days on the couch afterwards, unable to do much.
Pretty good experience overall, tho
