Bath resident celebrates 80th birthday with skydive

Published 12:25 pm Wednesday, August 12, 2015

KELLEY CRAIG | CONTRIBUTED LEAP OF FAITH: Phil Craig (second from left) stands alongside his grandson Bradley after skydiving at Skydive Little Washington at the Warren Field Airport. On the far left is instructor John Nelson and on the far right is instructor Jeff Plisko.

KELLEY CRAIG | CONTRIBUTED
LEAP OF FAITH: Phil Craig (second from left) stands alongside his grandson Bradley after skydiving at Skydive Little Washington at the Warren Field Airport. On the far left is instructor John Nelson and on the far right is instructor Jeff Plisko.

Phil Craig is living proof that age really is just a number.

Alongside his family, Craig, a Bath resident, ventured to the Washington-Warren Field Airport on Sunday to celebrate two August birthdays, his own and his grandson Bradley’s, by plunging out of an airplane traveling at 11,000 feet.

For Bradley, who turned 20 on Tuesday, skydiving had been an empty check on his bucket list for quite some time. For Craig, it was his first skydive in 25 years, but even at a youthful 80 years old, there were no reservations.

Following a 20-minute safety briefing from the Skydive Little Washington staff, Craig put on the tandem gear, boarded the Cessna 182 airplane and locked harnesses with his instructor, John Nelson. After a 15-minute climb to 11,000 feet, without any hesitation, Craig ejected himself from the aircraft, freefalling at 120 miles per hour for 45 seconds. Nelson activated the parachute and the pair coasted back down to Earth.

KELLEY CRAIG | CONTRIBUTED UNBEATABLE VIEW: Phil Craig and his instructor John Nelson float back down to Earth after their jump.

KELLEY CRAIG | CONTRIBUTED
UNBEATABLE VIEW: Phil Craig and his instructor John Nelson float back down to Earth after their jump.

“It’s a very exhilarating experience,” Craig said. “Fast, slow, smooth, it’s just a lot of things all at once. I think everyone should go up in a plane just to see how beautiful this area is from an aerial view.”

Eight decades young, Craig successfully completed what many people half his age refuse to take part in. The sensation was one thing, but Craig said it was the view that couldn’t be beat. And it was Skydive Little Washington’s professionalism that offset any uncertainties he had about making the jump at his age.

“We were pretty well coached on what to expect,” Craig said. “I didn’t see fear in anyone’s eyes going up. It’s like a big roller-coaster ride, but when you get off of it at the end your glad your experienced it.”

While this may seem like a daring feat, this isn’t Craig’s first gravity-defying venture. For his 59th birthday, he recalled bungee jumping in Queenstown, New Zealand from what was then the highest available jump in the eastern hemisphere.

When asked whether he’s planning another daredevil birthday undertaking, he said, “I think so, as long as I am able to. My bones are a little stiffer these days, not quite as flexible as I had been a few years back, but I like adventure.”