Bungee jumping: A leap of faith, then the ultimate rush

There’s nothing quite like it, nothing that compares with bungee jumping. Well, maybe sky-diving… Free-falling with the ground rushing up at you has to be one of the ultimate adrenaline rushes ever. And to think that the Bloukrans bridge near the Tsitsikama Forest outside Plettenberg Bay is the biggest bungee jumping jump in the world!

Bungee jumping, bungy jumping – spell it as you like. Before I tried it, it was something that I wouldn’t have wished on anybody. Now that I’ve done it, I hope everybody gets to enjoy it. Awesome! Something you’ll never, ever forget. Especially your first leap.

One of the most lasting impressions after bungee jumping has to be what it was like to stand on the brink of the abyss for the first time, urging yourself to take that step into the unknown. At that moment, bungee jumping seems like madness, tantamount to suicide. Others are urging you on, others who’ve jumped before you, and yet you feel terrified at the prospect of letting go. At least, that’s how I remember it…

When I was standing at the jump station, ropes and things in place, all ready to go, I found myself thinking of being somewhere else, nothing to do with standing on bridges and bungee jumping, recalling memories of good times firmly rooted to the ground… I’m not usually afraid of heights but at that moment of truth, of being tested to the max, I didn’t want to look down, didn’t want to step into space.

And then I came to my senses, or lost my senses. The guys who’d strapped me up are bungee jumping experts – they’ve jumped plenty of times and have helped plenty of others to jump successfully, without a problem. There’s never been an accident on their watch. Their sheet is clean, their safety record intact. And heck, two of my friends had already gone over the edge and were egging me on – their mouths smiling widely, their eyes wide open with excitement. Then I was airborne, bungee jumping…

Weightlessness. Zero gravity is the sensation for a second or two. Then you see the ground coming up at you and a split-second later realise that in fact you’re rushing towards it! I don’t think I uttered a sound. I recall holding my breath and I’m sure my heart skipped a beat or two. And then that huge rubber band does its thing, that elastic rope saves your life. You’re bouncing up and down, hanging in space. And then it’s over…

Of course, it’s never over. Immediately afterwards, you and your fellow bungee jumping converts are alternating between being dumbstruck and talking about the thrill of what just went down. Some of you are up for a repeat performance. Others shout “never again!”

I began to think of where else I could do it, how many other bungee jumping bridges needed to be conquered, what else one could jump off. Flying rather than falling. The fear was gone.