Rappel, an exercise in confidence

My first encounter with rappelling, the technique of descending vertical walls using a rope system, was more than 20 years ago. At that time fear took hold of me and I couldn't have the experience.

A month ago my dear friend @mosa71 won a quota for the rappel activity that every month offers the hiking group @mochilasarribavenezuela, and it was at that moment, when the spark of curiosity and adventure ignited in me again.

Although I thought about it a lot, this weekend I finally decided, I paid the 8 dollars that the experience costs, I put my best disposition to enjoy that trust exercise. For a long time I have been doing trust exercises, both in others and especially in myself.

Have you by any chance had exercises where you drop backwards and another person holds you, or you drop forward and then backwards, while two people, one in front of you and one behind you, receive you. In these cases the worst that can happen is that you fall and give yourself a good blow, which has never happened while I have done the exercise.

In the case of rappelling, this exercise is extreme. You are going to rely on a rope system (which can fail), you are going to rely on two people (which can fail), one at the top end, who guides your descent, you are going to rely on the person at the bottom end of the rope, who stops the descent in case you lose control and above all you are going to rely on yourself, because you have control of the rope and you can control the descent.

The meeting was scheduled for 07:30 a.m. on Sunday at Plaza Altamira, Caracas, but that same day was the 42K marathon of the CAF (Development Bank of Latin America), so the arrival was a bit tortuous for the 11 people who said yes to the adventure.

From there we took public transportation to the Cota Mil at the foot of the Avila Mountain or Waraira Repano. The activity took place on one of the bridges of this avenue. By the way, this road is closed on Sundays, from 6:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m., so that mountain lovers and those who love to exercise can walk along its paths.

The first stop was in the distance. We saw the 18 meters drop and the rope. From there our guide gave us a safety explanation, how the descent would be and the return to the place of descent. At that moment my nerves got the better of me and I thought: Am I going to make it?

At the meeting point, we were given a safety talk about how the descent would be and we were fitted with the equipment: helmet, gloves and harness. I looked around me and realized that all those who would be doing the descent were young people under 30 years old and my great hero was an 8 year old boy! ... and me, a woman almost 51 years old. Again a fear entered me and my heart skipped a beat: Will I make it?

In order, I was number 8 in the descent. I saw with astonishment that some of them jumped with enthusiasm and in many others fear surfaced, making them hold on to the ropes with all their strength. However, there was joy in all of them. That part of the collective unconscious that told us to enjoy, energy that intoxicated us all.

Finally my turn. I started talking nervously without control and laughing. It's my fear catalyst. The attendant checked the ropes and then hooked me up to the line. He gave me instructions for the descent that I don't remember. However my unconscious obeyed every order to the letter. "Wind it up, take a step, now take another step, wind it up, more, more, more, more and now jump!"

That "now jump!", the void, 17 meters below awaited me on the asphalt. I thought about it, I didn't want to but I couldn't go back, the only way out of that rope was down. I took the FE jump and to my greatest joy I found myself suspended. My heart told me, relax and enjoy the descent. I couldn't take pictures of the descent as I obviously had both my hands full.

Little by little the eleven members of the group descended that first descent, the most tenacious, because we had to challenge ourselves, trust and handle fear. Then everything became easy, we assumed it as a game, a real fun.

The guide, surprised, said that our group seemed to be experts. They had estimated a maximum of 3 descents per person, but we did 4 descents each. A Sunday of success and adrenaline.