Gravity...it's the law (Vegas Part II)

           Day two began with great anticipation, due to a little deal I’d made with myself months before. This was my third trip to Las Vegas, and over the previous two vacations I had seen most of the casinos and resorts in town. Only a couple were left to cross off the list. The Stratosphere, the Palms, the Hard Rock and the new City Center complex were some of the places I’d yet to visit.

            The Stratosphere is the tallest structure in Las Vegas and one of the tallest in the United States. It’s not a traditional skyscraper but more like the Space Needle in Seattle (but taller) in that it’s all elevator until you get to the observation levels up top. Taking advantage of the height of the building, the Stratosphere people built several thrill rides and a roller coaster on the top. Those had been there for years and I’d been eyeing them, a chance to get up there just never materialized. In 2010 they put in a new attraction that really caught my eye.

           

            The SkyJump is pretty basic. They attach you to a steel cable and you jump off the building. It’s similar to bungee jumping, only from 855 feet and cost $99. I made a deal with myself. I’d do it, but I would only do it with Vegas’ money. In other words, if I were ever up $100 gambling on this trip, I’d take that $100, put it aside, and use it to do the Skyjump.

            As it turned out, the fates had it in for me. The day we landed in Vegas, Steve, Jennifer and I spent some time at the laid-back off-strip Orleans Casino. We were enjoying our first night in town and found a Wheel of Fortune slot machine game. I’m not a big fan of slot machines since there’s no decision-making involved (I know the house has the advantage either way, I just enjoy at least being able to decide whether I should stay or hit, or what numbers or teams to bet on). Still, the Wheel of Fortune game is kind of fun as the players sit around the huge iconic wheel from the gameshow and when the bonus prize is hit, the wheel spins to loud sound effects and lights. People cheer for the other players and it seems to give out the bonus spins fairly regularly to keep people interested, so when Steve and Jennifer decided to play, I sat down too.

            It took only a few turns to get my bonus spin. The first wasn’t very big, 250 credits, so $2.50 as it was a penny machine. Still, I was up on my $20 investment so I was feeling good. I stayed hovering around the $22 mark for a few more minutes when I hit the bonus again. Around and around the wheel went, the machine blaring that famous “spinning” noise from the game show as I waited to see what I’d won. A bright white slot with red numbers slowly crept toward me, and I smiled as I saw the 1,000 credits blinking in front of me.

            “All right, ten bucks!” I said, smiling.

            “No man, that’s 10,000 credits!” said Steve. I stood up and sure enough, there was another zero obscured by my screen. I’d hit for $100 on the spin, and suddenly, after only ten minutes of gambling, I was up $102.00 playing penny slots. I knew right then I was about to jump off the Stratosphere. I hit the “cash out” button, received my voucher and cashed it in at one of the automated machines scattered around the casino. Monday would the day I’d put my money where my mouth was.

            I decided to do the jump the next day, just to make sure I didn’t talk myself out of it, but I felt surprisingly calm the next morning driving down the strip to the Stratosphere.  I found the SkyJump booth in the casino’s shopping area and signed up. It was around 11:30 in the morning, but my jump time would be 1:15 p.m. They told me to report at 1:00 to get my gear and safety instructions. I also sprung another $15 to have a DVD made of the jump.

            As I sat at a table outside a hot dog joint, taking bites out of a Chicago-style dog, I waited for the butterflies to hit, but strangely none were coming. I had skydived before and perhaps my brain just figured nothing would be as scary as that again, so I was cool as a cucumber when I returned at 1:00 to sign in. First of course was the waiver, absolving the Stratosphere from any legal problems should I splatter. I told them if anything were to go wrong I’d go spread eagle and try to make one of those Wild E. Coyote “Steven-shaped” holes in the ground. I’d at least want to go out being entertaining.

            A woman waved me behind the counter to a small room where I’d be fitted for the jump. The contents of my pockets went into a small locker and I was given a skydiving style suit to slip on. The harness came next, and I was belted and buckled in. They took two of us back at a time, the other jumper being an attractive blonde woman  in her late 20’s named Brandy, who was absolutely buzzing with nerves in a good way as she could not get the smile off her face. Her enthusiasm was infectious and I was grinning too as the camera was strapped to my right wrist to record the adventure.

            When the time came, they walked us to the elevator that shot up the tower. We walked right through the shopping area in our gear led by the guides, which caused quite a stir as the shoppers took pictures of us and generally stared at us with looks that ranged from, “I wish I were doing that,” to “What a couple of idiots.”

            Our ears popped a few times as the elevator as it stopped first on the 106^th floor (the restaurant) and then up to the 108^th. Brandy’s eyes were darting around in all directions as we walked onto the observation floor. It was a bright, sunny day as usual and the sheer scale of the Stratosphere finally hit home. The tower isn’t just the tallest building in Las Vegas, it’s the tallest by a long way. Nothing else even comes close, so the hotels and resorts that look so huge from street level seemed like toy models from those huge windows. We could see the tops of every other building in the city, and off in the distance the snow-capped mountains.

            The guides led us to an area sectioned off by metal posts and rails painted yellow, which was next to a small glass enclosure. Inside that stood two more guides and the large spool that coiled the steel cable that would keep us from becoming a smear on the ground. Just past that was a plank that jutted out from the side of the 108^th floor. We’d be walking that plank in just a few minutes. As they got the coil set up, Brandy and I nervously chatted as observers gathered around, taking more pictures of the view of both the view and of us. Both of us spoke quicker and a little louder than normal as the adrenaline began to hit. I found out it was her birthday and her boyfriend had paid for her jump as part of her birthday present. She’d be catching a plane back home later that day so this was her last adventure in Vegas. We talked of attractions and restaurants while we tried not to think about what we were about to do.

            Brandy went first, and she stepped inside the glass enclosure with the spool and the plank. There were gasps as the guide held the rail on the plank and leaned out precariously over the abyss to grab the hook (he was actually attached by a line too but not everyone could see that). Then Brandy was hooked up. After a few seconds she slowly crept out on the ledge. I could see her eyes were closed as she stood right on the edge. I saw her say something to the guide, and after a second, he put his hand in the small of her back and shoved her off. She dropped like a rock down and out of sight as the crowd gasped and gave oooh’s and ahhh’s again.

            After a few minutes of setup time again it was my turn. I stepped into the glass and the guides checked my equipment again. I tightened the cord that would keep my glasses secured. While Brandy had closed her eyes and asked to be pushed, I wanted to be the one to step off, and I wanted to see everything on the way down. They turned my camera on and we recorded a few last words before told me to walk down the plank. I looked out over the entire city, holding the rails like they asked. Finally, the guide counted down from three…two…one. I put my foot forward and walked off the building.

            I fell quickly, but the steel cable uncoiled slowly enough that I never had the free-fall feeling. Instead it just felt like I was floating, and I moved my head from the ground approaching to looking out over the strip as I dropped, seeing the Wynn, Venetian and TI casinos go from small models far below me to large edifices again. Before I knew it, I was slowing down rapidly and floated easily down to the ground. My front teeth were dry from smiling down through all 855 feet. I said a few words about how much fun it was to the camera as the guide at the bottom unhooked me. I looked back up, heart still beating strongly, and saw the ledge that now looked like a small yellow square way up on the building.

            I’d done it. I walked off the side of a building. And I never closed my eyes.