FEAR FACTOR

New Zealand one of my favourite places.

FEAR FACTOR

It is very enlightening to know that even FEAR can make money. A lot of money. Humans have evolved so much so that they eliminated or controlled all their natural enemies. Apart from his own species, nothing can threaten to kill human beings. They have developed skills and techniques to make a tiger dance like a cat and a lion roll like a joker (if any was lucky enough to escape the poachers). Why even the world’s largest animal, the whale also dives into the depths of the ocean with its tail in its mouth when they see us. Only natural disasters still remain as factors which make us fear now and then but these are also well predicted and taken care of most of the time. Hence humans had lost the sense of fear. But without fear there is no fun. So some great businessmen found the demand and designed various games and even entire theme parks to scare us to death. And we pay for it.

The super-fast roller coasters, high as a mountain, drop you vertically at hundred kilometers speed with twists and turns guaranteed to take the shit out of you, the sky drops, base jumping, sky diving, the haunted castles, the ghost stories, the horror movies, the Fear Factor, Lost TV series and then the BUNGEE JUMP. Yes, FEAR generates billions of dollars. The more fear the more fun and the more money.

I am not a Superman or an Indian film hero to smile at and fight the ultimate fear. When I went to the kid’s heaven, Disney World in Orlando, it was so much fun until I boarded a roller coaster called ‘Space Mountain’. I am not a very big fan of roller coasters though I love speed. But since it was called Space Mountain and showed posters of planets and stars, I thought they will slowly take us through the parade of the planets and tell us about stars. Astronomy is a large subject and takes a lot of time. So ate an extra-large burger and entered.

Inquisitive always and to be the first to explore, I took the first seat in the 5 seat roller coaster. It started slowly and entered a dark area. I was eagerly looking all around to see stars. I also gave a reassuring look to the young girl who was a bit tensed up. Then the coaster plunged vertically into total darkness at picking up extreme speed. Now I could see stars all over (I don’t know if they were really there or just in my mind). It twisted, dropped, turned sharply at a high speed. The girl who was sitting behind me started yelling spine chillingly. I wanted to shout to her “chup, arre mujhe mat daraana meri amma”. But my teeth were gripped too tight with fear all the time until the ride ended, to make any sound. As the ride ended, I pretended unshaken and smiled at the attendant. But jumped out quickly fearing they may send me for another round thinking I didn’t get my bout of fear. Are yaar riding bolo, racing bolo ya flying bolo subh  kuch  karsakta hun but I don’t want to buy fear again. I had to eat the same burger twice as it came out of my mouth as the ride ended.

Be confident or act like one, no one can tell the difference. Somehow I always managed to act confident and display a fearless look like the TERMINATOR on my face and I never feared trying something new and adventurous all the time. So when I came to New Zealand I found Taupo Bungee. Near the town of Taupo, it is one of the best places to bungee jump in New Zealand because of its direct drop of 50metres into the emerald green Waikato river. Very scary and very attractive too. 

I am a hero you see, so I went straight to the girl at the booking counter and asked her to book me for a jump. She said “Very nice, when you want to jump?” I was about to say ‘right now’ when I heard a death cry “Eeeeeekkkkkkkkkkooooooooooohhhhhhhaaaaaaaa”. I was confident that somebody slipped off the cliff and died. I was about to run outside when the girl asked me again coolly “when do you want to jump?” I told her that someone must have slipped off the cliff and fallen. She smiled “No, no, don’t worry, it’s the bungee jumper”. I was relieved and laughing “Why these timid girls come all the way and do these adventures when they are so scared?” She gave a cute smile but there was some other feeling behind that smile.  She asked me again “so when you wanna jump?” I was about to say “Right now” again when I heard another death cry, from a man this time “Ooooh Godddddddd” as if he had just seen God and went to heaven with him.

“Tomorrow”, I finally managed to say gathering all my guts and trying to act as confident as when I came in. “Today I am very busy” I really wanted to say I won’t jump but I couldn’t look frightened before that nice girl. Each jump costs $100 that in itself shows you how much fear you are buying. Then I went to the jumping platform see people jumping off and to get used to it and gather some courage. But as I saw each of them screaming at the top of their lungs, I was not very sure if I wanted to show up the next day.

Waikato river invitingly (not me)

Next day I came back. Not to jump but just to see more people jumping off and screaming. I need at least that much sadistic entertainment for the money I paid. But as yesterday’s girl saw me, she smiled and asked “Ok. Stand on the weighing machine please?” I involuntarily stood on the weighing machine but finally shamelessly told her that I am not going to jump. She smiled sympathetically and with a marker wrote 54kg on my arm. Then asked me for my belongings, nothing should be in the pockets. Like a school boy who doesn’t want to go to school but scared to say that to his mom knowing that he will be sent anyway, I emptied my pockets into an envelop and stood there with sad and frightened face unable to stop them from throwing me from that height.

Then she asked me to follow her to the jumping platform (or should I say she dragged me to the platform?) The platform itself is specially built extending 40 feet into the air from the vertical rock face. Another attendant reconfirmed my weight and started making arrangements. I was looking back and forth for a chance to run away but they closed the gate (I think they sensed my ideas). I was not even wearing shoes. I was just wearing my shorts and sandals thinking I am not going to jump. What if the rope slips off my feet :(

She attached the bungee cord to my ankles and seeing I was too tensed up, told me “Don’t be afraid. There is an easy way to jump. Instead of looking down and facing the depth, you just keep looking at my beautiful face and just fall back. You will be down in no time”. I was fighting my own fear and trying to win over it. So I  absent mindedly said “I would rather face my own fear and jump”. Bang! She was so angry and dumped the ropes there. She told the other attendant “John you look after this guy” and went away. I told you she was beautiful but I was really trying to face my own fear and win it. She really misunderstood me. Now I am more scared as she might have attached the rope to only one leg expecting to have great fun when I hang on one leg, screaming.

Ready for my first Bungee Jump

Then the guys came and checked everything and told me “Ok now you walk to the edge put your hands up and jump”. “Oh that’s all” with a Terminator face again. I took a deep breath as if that’s my last and slowly walked to the edge. Unlike a school boy, I always had the chance to quit but then some part of me is saying that I should do it. I waved at the camera and wanted to jump like the Superman but I jumped like Hanuman.

Then as my feet left the platform, the time stopped. I was descending only inch by inch in slow motion. It’s a free fall. It’s beyond ecstasy. The first time I came all the way down, I enjoyed it in silence. But the bungee pulls you up again a couple of times to almost half the height giving you the same feeling all the time. Then I started laughing like hell with fun. As soon as I was on the ground, I was running to take another jump :)

Jai Hanuman...

We should always have fear. We should respect fear. We should know our limits. And then try to win over our fears and go beyond the limits. People associate adventure with danger. Adventure is something done under complete safety. Of course accidents do happen. But if you compare the number of deaths in road accidents to the number of deaths of adventurers, you will know what I mean. More safety more adventure. When I started the world tour everybody was so fear struck and said why do you want to do such a dangerous thing? I always told them that I am going to be much safer than many millions of Indian riders. As I wear a helmet, gloves, shoes and safety gear all the time and ride according to rules and particularly not in a hurry to reach. Whereas they never care to wear even the helmet. Just a seat belt which lies on your side all the time can save your life if an accident occurs. And if you still don’t care to wear it, you are not only putting your life at danger but you don’t care for all those who depend on you and love you. Life is so precious and you only have one to lose because of a silly, avoidable mistake. So be safe, ride safe have a lot of adventure in your life.