Robin Meade skydives with GHW Bush

Now, I just gotta say this here-I've said it many times elsewhere-TANDEM SKYDIVING DOES NOT QUALIFY ONE TO SAY THEY'VE PARACHUTED! Granted, you do exit the plane, freefall, and land. But you are strapped to an experienced parachutist and are never in control of your dive.

As a veteran of 3 static-line dives, I think I know whereof I speak. In a static line deploy, while you do not pull your own ripcord or toss a pilot chute like experienced divers, you still have to get out of the plane, get stablized hanging onto the wing-strut, and then let go in a manner which will keep you level as the line goes taut and deploys your chute. After that, you are in complete control of your canopy and fall, completely responsible for your own navigation and landing. NOW THAT'S REAL SKYDIVING!

I suppose it still takes some nerve to exit a plane strapped to an instructor, but in my opinion it takes waaaayy more to get yourself in the door, on the step, all the way out, hang on the strut until you're cleared deploy, and GO. On my first dive, because of unpredictably shifting winds, my jump-mistress held me on the strut for about a minute-and-a-half; it seemed like days. My hands were perspiring freely and I was slowly getting blown off the plane! I was clinging by my fingertips when she finally gave me the thumbs-up. Letting go of that strut was one of the greatest sensations of my life...AT LAST!!

I would've kept skydiving but for the cost.

Anyway, good luck to Robin! GHWB, feh, whatever....