When Colin Weber arrived at the University as a freshman, he wanted to continue his newfound passion for skydiving through Oregon’s official club.
What he found, however, was an inactive club with no organization and leadership.
“The club had been defunct for about two or three years at that point, so I pretty much had to start from scratch,” said Weber, now a junior, who is the club coordinator. “It took us almost two terms just for everything to get straightened up.”
Weber’s co-organizer was Alastair Wolfe, a student from England who Weber met in the residence halls, and a fellow skydiving enthusiast. Weber, who has completed 70 skydives, has jumped for seven years and Wolfe, four. Wolfe is currently studying back in England.
Weber will have a chance to show the club’s activities at the upcoming Club Sports open house, held Sept. 27 at 6 p.m. in the EMU Fir Room. The club will also host its own informational meeting on Oct. 10 and 11 at the Lillis Business Complex.
A combination of cost and fear keep many potential jumpers away, however. Even as a member of the skydiving club, the cost averages about $80 per dive. According to Weber, club members can expect to pay around $150 per month for the first two to three months if members dive once a month. After three months, the costs decreases to around $100.
As for the fear, it all depends on how comfortable a person is when the airplane door opens at 10,000 feet.
“When I first started I didn’t think I could do it but I did,” said Stefanie Chow, who will complete her third jump this fall. “When that hatch opens that cool, crisp air goes rushing through your lungs. Literally, it’s breathtaking. You really are flying.”
Another source of frustration for Weber is that many students express interest, but seldom follow through.
“Everyone and their mother is like, ‘Oh I really want to do that,’ until it comes time to do it,” he said. “It gets a little frustrating.”
Club Sports Coordinator Sandy Vaughn has been pleased with the club’s activity, especially after its “on and off” past.
“It was inactive for a period of time but it was on and off for a long period of time,” said Vaughn. “But I know that their goals are still the same, which is to get experienced jumpers to form a team and be competitive.”
If the club were to get enough members for a competitive team, it would jump in the National Skydiving League, which contacts all the drop zones nationwide, looking to create regional competitions. The club usually jumps against other local clubs that rarely are made up of just students.
“College clubs are really hard to maintain,” Weber said.
Jumpers must first learn the basics before competition. For beginners, each jump is a tandem with an instructor. If members want to get continue toward an Accelerated Free Fall license, they can go up to 12,000 feet. Weber is AFF certified, and has gone as high as 13,500 feet.
Even after 70 jumps, the feeling doesn’t get old for Weber, who is a veteran skydiver.
“I think your body is smarter than your mind, because your body is telling you that opening a door at 10,000 feet isn’t a smart thing to do but your mind keeps telling you, ‘Yeah, yeah.’”
The club has convenient access to its drop zone in Creswell, only 10 minutes south of Eugene. At the airfield, the club jumps through Eugene Skydivers.
First-time jumpers arrive at the airfield early, fill out paperwork, and play the waiting game with the weather. When the weather is good, the club can have two planes leaving every 20 minutes flying divers up, Weber said. Once people are in the plane, nervousness can tend to set in.
“I’ve noticed where people get the most scared is when the door opens at altitude and they get the most scared because they realize they’re getting out at altitude and not landing again.”
Weber emphasized, however, that the journey is worth it.
“It’s just crystal clear up there. You can almost see Portland, I swear.”