Unit 70
Bungee -- Just for the Thrill
Would you pay lots of money to fall off a 120-foot high platform, held only by an elastic cord around your waist or ankles? It may sound crazy, but lots of people do it. Bungee Jumping, as it is called, is gaining as much popularity as it is gaining controversy and criticism.
Bungee has quite an old origin. The idea of this way of jumping comes from the ancient ritual "Gkol" performed in the Pentecost Island in the Pacific Archipelago of Vanuatu. The legend says that in the village Bunlap a man had a quarrel with his wife and she ran away and climbed a tree where she wrapped her ankles with vines. When he came up to her, the woman jumped from the tree and so did her husband not knowing what his wife had done. So he died but the woman survived. The men of Bunlap were very impressed by this performance and they began to practice such jumps in case they got in similar situation. This practice transformed into a ritual for rich yam harvest and also for proving manhood.
Bungee jumping as a sport started in New Zealand, probably in the 1970s. People attached thick elastic cords, called bungees, to their bodies. Then they jump off bridges or high buildings, falling fast through the air until the cord caught them, and then bounced back up and down a few times until coming to a stop.
Modern bungee jumping is usually done in a parking lot and people jump from a platform at the top of a crane. You can have bungees tied to your waist or ankles. There's a large air cushion at the bottom that is supposed to catch you if the bungees break or if something goes very wrong. People who bungee jump say the thrill is like no other thrill. "You have a feeling of accomplishment," says one. "It beats a roller coaster ride," says another. One happy customer says, "just for a second you feel like you're going to die. It's amazing."
But there are many customers who are less than satisfied. In fact, more than a dozen people have got killed in bungee jumping accidents last year in the U.S.A. and Canada and many non-fatal accidents have been reported. This has promoted many countries and U.S. states to pass bans on bungee jumping. Many U.S. states are also passing laws imposing strict safety requirements on bungee jumping business.
Despite the dangers of bungee jumping, people still line up and pay lots of money to experience the death-challenging thrill. One couple even ended their wedding night by bungee jumping together in Atlantic City. The groom said, "When I'm flying through the air holding my wife in my arms and knowing she trusts me 100 percent, that is what love is all about." |