Frozen Air

I don't mind winter. I wouldn't say I was particularly optimistic, but the thing that awful weather makes me think of is the warmth I'll feel when I get in. Ice on the pavement is just an opportunity for a childish slide. The one issue I do have, however, is the cloud.

Five days, I took off last month to burn away holiday. Five days, and not a single jump. Every day my alarm would go off early, I'd look out the window and then roll over and go back to sleep. One day I went to the drop zone anyway, looking for some clear sky I knew wouldn't be there. It's extremely frustrating.

I had the same problem last year. I still managed to get a few jumps in, and I'm sure I will this year. And that's a good thing, because winter jumps are fantastic.

As you may know, air gets colder as you gain altitude. Depending on the conditions, at 12,000' it can be more than 20 degrees Celsius colder than on the ground. At Headcorn they have a board by the manifest that tells you the wind strength and direction at altitude, which is useful for working out how you'll drift as you fall, and the temperature, which is useful for scaring Tandems. The coldest I've ever stepped out into is -22 degrees C (-8F). You add wind chill of 120mph to that and it's cold.

You don't notice it at that height. You're cold on the plane, but when you get out the temperature is the last thing on your mind. There's always the rush of free fall, and usually work to do, but on the clearest winter days the view is phenomenal. On a crisp winter day in January you can easily trace the east coast. On one particularly spectacular jump I could see France, then turning 180 degrees, London. And all unobscured by airliner glass, or mountain mist.

An estimated field of view at altitude

Unfortunately it has to end. As you drop your field of view closes in, then you pull your parachute. I think I enjoy the canopy ride more than most jumpers, and the air is warmer when you're lower, but you definitely notice the cold. Even gloved fingers go numb, and you can't wait to get on the ground. But maybe that's just because you have to get on the ground before you can go back up for another view...