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latest comments are at the top. (our responses to comments follow.)
raven, Tampa, Hey,its me.,You know, I don't think I ever told
you that I actually entertained the idea of not jumping off the new span, but
driving off the old one before they took down the elevated pieces. It was one of
those "family has destroyed our relationship" things.,,I got incredibly
shitfaced, tattooed a small copy of his tattoo on my hand, drove to the bottom
of the old bridge and tried to slash my arm 3 times (damned dull knife). The
plan was to put the pedal to the metal and blast through the concrete barrier at
the top and just ride it down. Luckily the pain from the too shallow cuts
sobered me up enough to realize that with my luck, the damned car wouldn't go
through the barrier, but bounce back and leave me with a wrecked car...in the
nut house. ,,I ended up driving home and living with the pain of that failure on
top of the failed attempt at returning to my lost lover. I never had the courage
to go to the top of that new span and throw myself over. Could be the fear of
heights... could be the descriptions I saw here. Honestly, after reading this
site, jumping suddenly didn't seem like such a great idea.,,It took 18 years,
but I am about to be reunited with that long lost love in the beginning of
March. My damned family is still trying to interfere, but despite the odds,
we're finally going to reconnect. ,,All I can say to the would-be jumpers out
there is that if you just have patience and stick it out, things WILL get
better. I honestly never thought I'd see him again and it took a long damn time,
but here it is. Hang in there (it's no
surprise that a fan of the site also has a darkness within. many contacts have
addressed family issues since the beginning of the jumperpool. families are
fully capable to be the most destructible element to a family member's well
being. while a friend or stranger can harm you, they tend to be quicker about it
and usually easier to be done with. family harm is like a slow cooker. the harm
is long lasting and constant. if one intends harm, they just won't let it go and
being family, they are always there, lurking and harming. we are glad your plan
to take yourself out failed and allowed you this new opportunity to reconnect.
we highly recommend you disconnect from anyone, be they friend, family, or
stranger, that tries to cause you mental or physical harm. it is imperative we
do not allow ourselves to be inflicted upon by anyone, but to stay out of harm's
way. absolutely no one has the right to impinge on your life negatively. we wish
you nothing but the best in your new found reunion and may you truly live a
happy life, free of detractors. life is too short to deal with voluntary
harassment, which is what we allow our families to do to ourselves. take care of
you, first and foremost.) anon, I am in my mid 40's and have been battling depression
for 15 years now. I have made 3 suicide attempts, been hospitalized, been on
many many meds etc. I also have a fascination with death for some reason. I
can't begin to tell you how much time I have spent reading up on depression,
suicide etc etc and it was not until I came to this site that I was stopped cold
in my tracks. Your message about suicide "we feel suicidal people need to know
you bring pain and shame to yourself, your friends, and your family. it's not a
free pass to end your misery. it's simply a way to transfer your hurt and sorrow
to those that know and love you" is the strongest, most direct anti-suicide
message EVER. It sure made me open my eyes as to what my friends and family went
through with me. (thanks for the kind words. it is our
hope you live a long and happy life. it is possible.)
big ed e., sarasota fl., i wish this year had a february 29th.....leap..year
would be a perfect pick .....lol Harley J., Las Vegas, Great site, fascinating. After seeing it
happen twice (once at Hoover Dam and once inside a casino, he cannonballed the
registration desk)I never understood why someone would choose jumping over a gun
in the mouth or a pill overdose. This site helped me understand it a little
better...thanks. Doug, I just happened across your site today. I moved from the
area decades ago and had no idea the Skyway was such a popular jump site. I used
to fish now and then off the causeway leading to the old spans. I seem to recall
one fellow jumping and crashing through a boat down below.
Back in my high
school days we would ride our motorcycles down from Clearwater late at night and
get high at the small park located just south of the original spans. Then we
would race north and hit the top of the bridge making about 100 mph. You'd get a
few seconds of weightlessness over the peak. The old spans had a steel grating
roadway that made motorcycles twitch a bit. The faster you went, the smoother
the ride. What thrill. Closet I'll get to being an astronaut.
A few years
later one of the old spans was struck by a large ship and collapsed. I was
living in West Palm Beach at the time and was returning to Clearwater for a
court hearing the same morning as the collapse. We couldn't figure out why
traffic was so backed up and were astonished to see the damage to the northbound
span as we passed over the remaining bridge. A couple of years later I found
myself working for Trailways Bus Lines and met a Greyhound driver who claimed it
was his bus that fell into the bay. He for some reason got up that morning and
called in sick (something he never did) , then learned later in the day his bus
driven by a substitute driver had fallen off the damaged span killing all on
board. My boss at the bus station knew the driver well from his days with
Greyhound and said it was a true story. The driver still seemed shook up by the
event, even though a few years had passed.
I've passed over the new bridges
and they are not as much fun as the old spans. The old bridges had a much
steeper incline to them. My best friends brother took his highly modified 1970
GTO (455ci with Nitrous) over the old span at 130 mph and claimed he floated
over the top. I believe him. His GTO was once clocked at 144mph on radar by the
Clearwater police. He ended up going into the Marines to escape the legal issues
brought upon himself by his driving practices.
Sigh, I miss those good ole
days. It's a shame so many choose to end their lives on the Skyway bridge when
they could be having fun there instead. Hell, if you're depressed, go hike the
FL Trail or the Appalachian Trail. I've really found hiking long distances eases
depression. Once you jump it's all over for good, and that ain't no fun.
Joseph Lee J., NOKOMIS, FLORIDA, As a Florida boy, I have jumped from many a
bridge, but never in a state of depression. While I am sorry for the pain
suffered at the base of this mean 'ol bridge, I find mice elf drawn to the
macabre. They feed on the dead you know... ,If anyone is to blame aside from the
jumper, it's the people closest to them. They missed the signs. Not something we
as commuters have the option of doing, as the empty car sits emptily, as the
police and troopers sit at the summit of mount boom. A fitting name as there is
indeed a boom upon impact. ,Personally, I drop down into fourth gear when I hit
the incline. I love to drive up the bridge as fast as I can and imagine myself
launching all the way to my destination. Which, incidentally, is never the
water. ,Thanks for a sarcastic outlet to plug into.
Don, Largo, FL., Life
is a lot like a movie...if you leave your seat early...you will not get to see
how things work out Cali, I just found your site. I sit here and read a few
stories, crying. It truly is, sad these people take their lives. Well, any death
is sad. But what I really, wanted to comment about was the volume of hatred
directed at this site. Although some words and pictures are insensitive. I don't
understand, why people are bashing and wishing death apon the creator of this
site. Not once on this site has the author ever wished death apon anyone.
Wishing death for someone is worse than anything the author has said. These
people are mad because they feel their loved ones are being made fun of so they
curse, wish death, wish for someone to burn in hell?? If any of those people are
Christian they would know suicide is a unforgivable sin. The creator of this
site was not a factor in any of these suicides.. oh and by the way, in the good
ol u s of a we have a thing called, freedom of speach so GET OVER IT.
(thank you for your kind words. we are accustomed to our haters and find their
ranting commentary amusing. long before this site was in existence, we have been
sickened by all the "good" hypocritical christians and their "do as we say or
else" rhetoric. the willingness to kill in the name of their god is total
bullshit, regardless of what religion one practices. if there is a christ in
heaven, he too is just as sickened by them, but there's not.)
Smokey Mkpot, corpus christi, tx., i think if you wanna take
your life...more power too ya!!! Chuck, Seattle, Was driving to work under the
Aurora
bridge near the troll 900 34th> The jumper missed my car by 5 feet. I
stopped check for pulses nothing. Pretty much every bone is the guy body was
broken. Ive heard nothing since. Police took my number Ive not heard from them
or seen anything in the local news either. (your bridge is
a popular jumping spot for suicides. there are always more suicides than get
reported. chances are you will not hear about it on the media. it's hit or miss.
thanks for the story.)
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watch 'the
bridge', a documentary movie about 'golden
gate' bridge jumpers, now on this site.
watch the
preview
