Kelley conquers human flight
By Kelly Laughlin
Of The Print
Human flight: mortals dream about it and
poets muse over it. The fearless attempt it.
One of the fearless, College student Larry
Kelley, has realized flight, or at least pseudo
flight.
Aided by a parachute and a generous sky,
Kelley has successfully “united with the sky”
550 times! He describes he feeling in one
word, “orgasmic.”
Kelley admits that some consider the act
crazy. Even after 30 times, the 29-year old
Portlander asked himself, “What the hell are
you doing?”
But imagine the feeling: You are safe in the
confines of a plane, from 2,500 to 12,000
feet above the ground. You prepare your
gear, go over the crucial emergency
procedures, then the doors to the plane
open. The wind is pounding against the side
of the plane. Everything below is very tiny.
You are suspended, but still safe as you
hold onto the struts of the njane. The jump
A 21-pound parachute pack, a strong
stomach, a large dose of courage and a day
or two of instruction are the novice jumper’s
only assets.
Still crazy, you think? Larry Kelley doesn’t
think so. He says after his first 100 jumps, the
fear was nearly gone. So Kelley decided to up
his altitude to 10,500 feet and take up
skydiving, where sustaining balance in the air
is even more critical, since the diver stays
suspended for minutes, instead of seconds,
before opening his chute.
The skydiver is confident in the air. He can
regulate his speed and balance with
movements of his bc>du Kp.lleu has been
tracked at speeds of 160 miles per hour,
falling at a rate of 1,000 feet every three and
a half seconds. Once Kelley jumped from a
height of 16,500 feet and spent 105 seconds
skydiving.
After logging five hours, 15 minutes and 31
L seconds of free fall time, Kelley is now deter
mined to compete in as many “boogies
People rarely question the courageous
Most of the time, we stand back in awe, ad
mire their efforts with a jealous eye and won
der if we could, someday, take a chance anc
make it work.
Kelley took his first jump in Molalla, three
years ago at the West Point Parachute Center
at a cost of $35. He paid $6 for the next 14
jumps, and was provided with equipment and
basic instruction.
Inflation has affected the daring sport. The
Molalla center now charges $60 for the first
jump, and $12.50 for the next 14 jumps. Af
ter the parachuter reaches student standing
he only pays for the altitude, which amount
to 50 cents for every 1,000 feet. Equipmen
ranges from $500 to $800 if the parachutf
student wants to purchase his own gear.
After the parachuter reaches a “D’
qualification, he is entitled to an expert licen
se and the opportunity to compete all ovei
the country. Kelley is an expert. He’s hac
over 200 free falls. He’s intentionally jumpec
into water, and even jumped at night, “ar
eerie experience,” he said.
One would think jumping by itself is hare
enough, but Kelley regularly jumps eight tc
ten times per week alone, and with othei
jumpers.
In a group, the skydiver is put to the
ultimate test, especially on a competitive
level. Two important factors have to be con
sidered: timing and speed. “If a diver enters a
formation too fast, he can ruin the whole
thing,” says Kelley. The ability to work
quickly, even though suspended thousands
of feet off the ground, is essential. In comJ
petition the divers have one minute to sue]
cessfully complete up to five different fori
mations. In a formation called a “four-man
round,” which is essentially a circle, the fout
divers form a sphere in mid-air, then make a
180 degree turn away from one another, with
their hands still joined. Then, each member
makes a complete turn after joining with a
partner, and returns to the original position.
This is only one of the routines the diver!
perform, before releasing each other’s grasp
and falling to a designated area. Spotting
techniques and equipment are now si
sophisticated that landing areas art
sometimes the size of a motel ash tray.
Canopies have been greatly modified sine
World War II when the parachute was inven!
ted, and are much lighter. In three years, th
parachute pack’s weight has been reduce]
about 12 pounds.
You are suspended. The jumpmaster cries
“Lift off!” Suddenly, there is a moment of fear
Pushing off from the plane backwards, “into
an empty sky.”
master cries, “Lift off!” Suddenly, there is
a moment of fear. Kelley said pushing off
from the plane backwards, “into an empty
sky,” was his greatest initial fear.
You are now traveling at a speed of about
120 miles per hour, falling 250 feet per
second. After the count of 10, you pull the
cord. You feel a tension in your shoulder. It is
the canopy opening, capturing the air that will
slow your descent and carry you to earth.
According to Kelley, nine out of 10 people
who go up and come down safely, never try
parachuting again.
“Fear is the biggest obstacle,” he says. Part
is fear of the unknown: total weightlessness at
a great altitude.
Page 6
(skydiving competitions) as possible.
Last December, Kelley and three
Colleagues from Oregon State and Portland
Community College took a second-place
finish at the National Collegiate Parachute
meet in Marana, Ariz.
The acquisition of a national and world
skydiving title is the aspiration of Kelley and
eight other local area sky divers. As a team,
they are seeking a sponsor and donations to
make this possible. They also want to show
people, through film and demonstration,
“what skydiving is all about. And, that we are
not crazy.’-’
DesDite the growing technology ana
sophistication of the sport, Kelley, like al
parachuters, is not immune to human erron
“I’ve fallen into trees a few times,” he says. '
Beyond that, Kelley is relatively unmarkei
by his somewhat precarious avocation
Through it all he lives by one adage: “He wh
hesitates, inherits the earth.”
Someone up there likes Larry Kelley.
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