Cliff Diving In Jamaca

Cliff Diving In Jamaca

by Lincoln Price

Publication Date: July 1998

"JUMP!!!"

"C,mon! Jump!" You wish they would shut up. You can hear the voices cry up to you from some forty feet below as you look down onto them with a forced and meager smile. Even farther down is the water, only your mind has trouble measuring the exact distance. It looks to be about a mile away at first. The longer you look at it, the farther it seems to drop into the merciless abyss of cavern walls and blue ocean.

"Just do it! Jump!," they scream again. The more they yell, the more you hate the sound of their voices. 'JUMP' - the definition of the word seems simple enough to them, but they're not the ones hovering above the side of a cliff with a practically naked body blowing in the wind as it shakes from fear and anxiety. Yes, you wish they would just shut up and to leave you in peace as you stand there feeling the jagged coral rock dig into the soles of your feet. A million images go flashing through your head - ominous thoughts like, you suddenly slipping the wrong way and your body goes bouncing down the cavern wall until it splashes with a loud SMACK into the water below.

"Whohoo!" they cry out. They're starting to hoot and holler from all directions now. The longer you stand there, the larger the crowd seems to grow. It's like a pack of vultures ganging up on a poor and helpless creature, viciously picking at it until there is hardly anything left. However, you know that it is not entirely the case. You were the one who crawled out onto the ledge shining in your moment of courage and pride. Now that's all gone.

You've tried to jump three times already, but just before you commit to the leap your body seizes up in shock and panic. Your mind is not quite ready to give your ego the complete control that it needs. Now it's getting serious. You're going to have to choose between two directions - either you jump or you turn and crawl back off the ledge in a shadow of embarrassment and shame. The very thought gives you the motivation you need. It's now or never; the moment of truth. It's time to go, and if you don't there will be hell to pay. Pretty soon they will start chanting your name.

Before you even realize it, you're gone. It's all done in one single step. The decision has been made. You've found your wings... you're on your way. It's all fun and games now - Elvis has left the building. In less than a second, you've made the decision to try cliff diving for the first time.

"Uuuh...Uuhhh..." It's not a scream, but a wimper. The sound squeaks out of your voice like air filtering it's way through a balloon. The sound is not quite feminine, definitely not masculine, and altogether totally inhuman. You're soaring through the air with your stomach dragging about three feet behind you. The kind of feeling you get when you're on a roller coaster but only worse...there's no seatbelts on this baby! We're having the time of our lives! We're freefalling...yes...we're freefalling! Unfortunately, all good things must come to an end - especially those that require a landing.

"SMACK!" This is not a good sound. Most likely this means that your landing lacked skill and grace, resulting into what common terms is known as a "bellyflop." It's a sobering experience this thing called a bellyflop. Your stomach slams parallel with the water with such a force that your flesh feels as if it's instantly set on fire. The people above can actually hear you scream underwater. When you surface, you try to hold an expression of dignity, of poise and elegance. However, to everybody else you simply look constipated and confused.

This ladies and gentlemen is cliff diving. It can be found all over the world, from the rugged terrain of Australia to the jagged cliffs of Hawaii. Wherever there is a tall ledge overlooking a body of deep water, people will always feel the need to jump. No matter where it is, one thing is for sure, you will never find such a place in an amusement park. Nobody in their right mind would take such a responsibility of charging admission. The liability is just too scary. Many spots post signs warning you to dive at your own risk. The most recent place I tried cliff diving was in Negril, Jamaica. There was a huge sign posted that read: "Dive at your own risk. Severe and fatal accidents are possible and have happened in the past." If this doesn't get you excited to jump, I don't know what will.

The hardest part about cliff diving is simply breaking the ice and actually completing your first jump. After that, all the jumps get easier as the fear slowly turns into excitement. All but the water gets softer. Just make sure that you wear a tight bathing suit and a sold sense of adventure because without these two you can lose everything.

The best way to land is to keep your hands against your sides and point your toes when you hit the water. This allows you to create the least resistance possible between your body and the water, after your first bellyflop, you will want to learn this procedure right away. Most people find it easiest to jump as quickly as possible. The longer you stay up there, the harder it gets. You find yourself questioning your own ability and courage. Besides, the longer you stay up there, the louder they get screaming at you to "Go for it!" It doesn't matter who or how helpless you are, they always want you to "Go for it!" When you jump and surface back up through the water, it is almost always worth it. There is nothing quite like it - this feeling of flight and freefall.