Taking a Plunge at Sunway Lagoon`s 21-m High Bridge Platform

Words by Nazreen Tajul Arif, Photos by Ariel Chew

"What would life be if we had no courage to attempt anything?" - Vincent Van Gogh

A whole day out at Sunway Lagoon with the General Manager, superiors and colleagues might not scream fun to some - but for me, it was one of the good times I had in months. Not to mention that the last time I went to Sunway Lagoon Waterpark was ages ago, and suffered a major sun burnt afterwards.

Daredevil blood

A thrill seeker (or some might call me as trouble seeker), I already set my sight for the bungy jump and G-Force at the Extreme Park - some of the latest attractions Sunway Lagoon has to offer. Already taken the (bungy) plunge last year off the 233-m tall platform Macau Tower, I thought why not do it again?

Loke Kah Peng, Sunway Lagoon's Assistant Manager for Public Relations being the generous and attentive host, whisked us all off to the Extreme Park as soon as we finished our lunch at the Lighthouse. Unable to keep being still anymore, I practically ran all the way up to the purpose-built bungy jump platform on the whooping 428m-long World's Longest Pedestrian Suspension Bridge.

Getting ready

Up first was Web Designer Nurul Izatuleffa or Effa, who was keen on experiencing the thrilling 21-m jump. We were both reassured that with a reputation for world-class safety in mind, all the Bungy Jumps comply with an international ISO standard for Bungy Jumping - NZS/AS 5848:2000 registered by the founder of Bungy Jumping himself, AJ Hackett, plus every Bungy Cord is retired after every 400 jumps even though they can do over 1000.

After Effa was weighed in, Jump Master New Zealander Graham Whorskey set the cord according to her weight, giving her the option of a "water touch" or just missing the surface of the lake below.

"No no no, I don't want to get wet. I just want to jump," said Effa.

"Tell a man he is brave, and you help him to become so" - Thomas Carlyle. Though it was obvious that she was nervous, all of us kept cheerleading for her to take the plunge. Effa was so close to not jumping, as it was only the third time before she leapt, by which Graham said "Don't think, just jump!" "I was glad that I did it; now I feel like I could do just about anything!", she said afterwards.

Doing the elevator

When it came to my turn, Graham suggested that I do the "elevator"- a backflip leap off the platform, as I had done the jump before. "It'll just be like you are leaning against nothing, and then just fall off," he said. "You could even do some sommersaults before being lowered onto the raft."

Sure, why not? Equivalent to the height of an 8-9 storey building with a cord length of 5.5 metres capable of stretching out 4 times its own length, the 1 minute 30 seconds jump from the deck to the raft was over before I could shout "Geronimo!".

The sommersaults were fun, as I felt like being on a 360-degree swing above the water.

Gutsy ladies

At the end of the thrilling experience, both me and Effa were honoured for conquering our fears like true champions, and were given Jump Certificates - which we flaunted to the rest of the guys afterwards.

Fingers crossed I'd live long enough to brag about jumping off the tower and bridge to my great great grandchildren!

Did I mention that Effa and I are from Negeri Sembilan? I guess it's true what people say - Negeri Sembilan ladies got guts!