The height of passion: When coming down is a beautiful thing indeed

LEAP OF FAITH: Erin Cyr doing what she loves during a recent jump. (Courtesy photo)

LEBANON, Maine - On Friday at Skydive New England, like any Friday, there were hundreds of people jumping out of a plane for fun.
Among them was Erin Cyr, 27, of Bristol, Conn., who began skydiving five years ago and continues in pursuit of her passion pretty much every weekend.
"I like to jump at least three times a weekend," she told The Rochester Voice as she relaxed at the Ripcord Cafe on Friday around noon.
Cyr said her first skydive adventure was in a tandem jump in 2017.
"Yes, I was scared," she said, "but I was ready, too. Now it's my passion."
She likened the sport to motorcycling, where there is a calculated risk, but people have a love of riding and accept the added danger.
"It's a little scary, but so exciting," she said.
Skydive New England's website describes the sensation when a first time skydiver exit the Super Twin Otter aircraft with their tandem instructor.
"Within seconds, you will reach terminal velocity (typically 120 mph) and you will start to feel a little more stable," according to their website. "The wind rushes past your body, tears flowing up the sides of your face. You feel weightless; like you're floating."
After a minute of freefall, the tandem instructor deploys the parachute followed by a quiet, serene five-minute canopy ride to a gentle landing.
On Friday The Rochester Voice watched as experienced parachutists flying solo reached the ground several minutes before their tandem counterparts.
While experienced skydivers often landed on their feet, tandems come in on their fannies, with the instructors positioned behind the novice deftly working their flight harness to slow down right before coming to a soft, gentle landing.
No wonder the late President George H.W. Bush was able to do a tandem jump on his 90th birthday!
Cyr said she's done some 100 jumps, and only one time did she have a scare.
She said she was about to land in trees and panicked.
"If that happens you're supposed to just let yourself hit the trees, but I panicked and did a low turn," she said. "I hit the ground really hard and fractured my left knee."
She said it was a couple of months before it healed, but admitted she went out and jumped before she was supposed to.
"I went out and jumped with a coach, who talked me through it," she said. "He told me just trust myself."
Cyr said despite her one brush with calamity her love for skydiving is unabated.
"The thing I like most about it now is the people you meet," she said. "It's the camaraderie. The people are so different, but you all love the same thing."

For more info about what that first jump is like, click here.