jump

life list: jump off of a cliff into water

On a trip to Aspen this past weekend, I jumped from that far ledge into the "Devil's Punchbowl" some 30ft below.

This turned out to be a poor life choice, as I had no idea what I was doing. I hit the water fine (no rocks), but went too deep, didn't breathe out correctly coming up, and messed up the pressure in my ears. I came to the surface dizzy and with a terrible headache that didn't let up for a day. Rest assured, I did finally get all the water out of my ear canals, and (fingers crossed), no infection.

What's life without some life lessons? Here's the correct way to jump off a cliff into water:

1. make sure you know where to jump from the ledge, and scout the water before jumping.
   
2. jump with your legs together, and plug your nose.
   
3. as soon as you hit the water, splay your limbs to prevent going too far down.
4. as you re-surface, breathe a steady stream of air out of your nose.

Now you know! Have fun!