Kate Penn

kpenn@ydr.com

Chuck Bigler's neck still aches from the time his car was rear-ended last year.

But of the nearly 1,400 times he's jumped out of an airplane over the last 16 years he's never had an accident or injury — never a main parachute malfunction.

"That's pretty good odds," said the 47-year-old skydiving instructor and custom leather aircraft upholstery worker.

Bigler, of Hellam Township, is one of about 50 members of the Maytown Sport Parachute Club based at Donegal Springs Airpark in East Donegal Township. On a Saturday in September the club buzzed with activity.

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As the tiny plane they'd squeezed into climbed from 8,000 to 9,000 feet, Marita Motter of Elizabethtown grinned nervously at Bigler. Motter had jumped once before — but that was ten years ago for her 30th birthday.

Bigler secured Motter to his chest and doled out a final round of high-fives. Wrist altimeters hit 10,000 feet and Bigler opened the door. With a whoosh, a wall of wind overtook the loud drone of the plane's engine.

"Cut. Thank you Alan," Bigler yelled in the pilot's ear. "Let's go skydive Marita!"

And with that, the pair took a step onto the wing and jumped.

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Some people come just once, for the thrill.

Then there are people like Tom Selway.

Selway, 64, has been skydiving for 43 years. In all that time, the Springfield Township man said it hasn't gotten any less exciting. But it does get more comfortable as confidence in your ability grows, he said.

Planes are typically packed with four jumpers and a pilot. If you jump by yourself, it feels like you're falling or just hanging there, Selway said. But it's different if you're jumping in a group.

"It feels like you're flying," Selway said.

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Selway sat with his brother, Jim Selway, and friend Ted Barnes, joking around in the shade as they waited for a free plane to take them up.

Jim Selway doesn't jump as much as when he was younger, maybe only two jumps in a day now instead of six. But he still gets a thrill out of taking that leap, pushing through the uncomfortable and doing what most other people can't, or don't want to do.

Once that door opens, Jim Selway said he wouldn't notice a nuclear explosion in York — that's how focused he is.

"You talk about living in the moment, how about it?" Selway said. "Everything disappears. Everything."

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One after another, four skydivers cut across the sky, their feet nearly grazing the corn field below. With grins plastered to their faces, they were recounting the jump as soon as their feet hit the ground. Whoops and laughter mixed, and a yeehaw punctuated the cheers like an exclamation point.

They spend a short amount of time in the air, maybe 60 seconds.

"You live a lot of life in a short amount of time," said John Miller of Manheim Township, one of the jumpers.

Miller jumps in tight formations with three other skydivers. They all wear GoPros and watch their jump from all angles after packing up their parachutes, cracking jokes about each other the whole time.

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"At first it starts out as a hobby," said Brandon Moore of Springettsbury Township, "but it's more of a lifestyle than a hobby."

Moore, who started skydiving in 2013, usually jumps four days a week.

"It's all I think about, all I ever want to do," Moore said.

It's the camaraderie, the adrenaline rush, the thrill that keeps them coming back.

"The sky is a different wilderness," Miller said.

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Ken Plankenhorn sat on the rail of the club porch, heckling jumpers as they passed through. After 29 years in the club, he's earned that right. But he's an equal opportunity heckler.

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"We don't do that cliquey thing here," Plankenhorn said. The club is a hodgpodge family, one that takes care of its own. Experienced skydivers are expected to help the unexperienced. Everyone passes along knowledge.

"If you don't help the young jumpers," Plankenhorn said, "there won't be anyone to jump with later."