Cadet Scoutmasters jump with Sports Parachute Team
By Lt. Col. John Graham Scoutmasters Council Officer-in-charge
PHOTO BY COW NATE SHEEHAN
Fourteen members of the cadet Scoutmasters Council Club tried their hand at skydiving Nov. 8.
While it was a fun experience, the scouts viewed it as another leadership challenge, especially after reading some excerpts from Behavioral Science and Leadership Department head Col. Tom Kolditz's book "In Extremis Leadership" that gave insights about the tandem jump experience.
In the book, he talks about how skydiving and other dangerous activities help develop important leadership qualities with several stories that illustrate how leaders learn to focus outside themselves in dangerous environments and how that focus can be used to help one's self and others control their fear.
"Our common bond as a club is a desire to continue the challenges that Boy and Girl Scouts provided before we came to West Point," said Firstie Matt Devers, club trip organizer. "We learned that the Cadet Parachute Team often trains at the Ranch in Gardiner, N.Y., and now skydiving is one of those challenging things we can mark off our lives' 'to do' list."
From the time the club arrived in Gardiner until all 14 had completed their first jump, just 90 minutes had passed. "We did not have to go through hours of pre-training because we did a tandem-jump," said Yearling Matt Mitchell.
When making a tandem skydive, the student is actually attached to an experienced, highly trained, certified and qualified Tandem Jumpmaster. After a 20-minute airplane ride to get to 12,000 feet, the tandem jumpmaster and student exit the aircraft together, doing a freefall of 35-45 seconds, and then the student opens the chute. Together, the student and tandem instructor steer the parachute built for two down to a landing on the airstrip they started upon.
"I was definitely pumped up when I found myself looking down at the clouds as we jumped out," said Cow Nate Sheehan. "I felt kind of calm when we were free falling, but before I knew it, I had opened the chute and we were heading back to the runway."
The landing was done from a sitting position so the instructor and student don't get wrapped into each other. Everyone finished with high fives and a trip down the road for a late morning breakfast.
So what is the next challenge for the club?
"We plan on helping out with the rebuilding of New Orleans during spring break, and we run a huge national camporee in May," said Firstie Matt Schlesinger, club cadet-in-charge. "In the near term, we are thinking about a trip to learn (to play) polo and then a ski excursion to Colorado."