King Of The Road...
[youtube=425,350]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z5pQGtzePUA[/youtube]
I was never afraid of heights until I took a ride in a helicopter.
NYC in the 1970's, 1/2 hour ride around the city in this cutie pie little 3 seat bubble front machine. The pilot was young, had flown the biggies in Nam, and a great tour guide.
I had grown up around Piper Cubs as my dad got his license before I was born. Had flown in the old Prop planes all over but a bubble baby was different, much different.
So I climbed aboard, all excited and looking around everywhere and felt my stomach drop as we did not go forward matter of fact seemed like we did not move, it was the earth that dropped out from under us.
Off we went and I kind of got freaked out when I saw we were flying below the tops of the buildings. The pilot told me he had height restrictions and some buildings were taller then he was allowed to fly. The 30 minute ride turned into an hour as there were no other customers waiting for a ride.
For all the world it appeared we were standing still with the earth moving about below us.
When we arrived back to the starting point I was discombobulated. It was the same feeling I got after a week on a sail boat, my sense of balance was off some how.
I realized I wanted to go up again, like riding a horse or driving a car the more one does it the more use to it they get.
About 6 months later I was at an airport waiting for my flight out and walked up to a floor to ceiling window looking out about 30 feet up from the run way and out of nowhere came the willy was in my legs and the sensation I needed to back up. Creepy, I never had problems with heights before, as a teen I climbed 40 foot trees with my friends, and had grown up riding in small planes with my Dad.
Only thing I can think of is that at all times up in the trees or in a plane or the bubble baby I had something to physically hold on to. Standing toe to toe with the window at the air port and nothing to hang on to was my undoing.
Heights years later came into my life at my job climbing down ladders 30 feet tall, no problem, something to hold on to. But to this day I still cannot go on a height with no hand hold, still get that most strange fear of falling.
