Trying to decide who would fly the gilder was tough. When it comes to flying, weight and speed are really important. Adam is stronger and can sprint a lot faster than I can, so it made sense for him to push the glider. Since I'm the smaller and lighter one, I was the lucky pilot for our craft.
Everything happened so fast during the flight (or maybe I was just nervous). I remember the music starting, the team doing our moonwalk dance, and then climbing up on the glider. From then on, time felt like warp speed. As the glider was pushed down the runway, my helmet shifted and covered one of my eyes. I ignored that and concentrated on two things: 1) shifting my body weight as far back as possible as soon as the plane tipped over the edge of the platform, and 2) hanging on and not letting go no matter what!
This is what I saw: runway, runway, runway, water (my stomach dropped like on a roller-coaster ride), water right in front of my face, then SMACK! I hit the water headfirst and held on until the last second when my feet flipped over my head. It all happened so fast. Good thing I didn't blink. I had an incredible adrenaline rush, partly from being nervous and partly from excitement.
So, what did it feel like to fly off a 38-foot platform, you ask? All two seconds of it was SENSATIONAL. Really.
