Current:Home > ContactChicago woman, 104, skydives from plane, aiming for record as the world’s oldest skydiver -AssetLink
Chicago woman, 104, skydives from plane, aiming for record as the world’s oldest skydiver
View
Date:2025-04-13 02:32:49
OTTAWA, Ill. (AP) — A 104-year-old Chicago woman is hoping to be certified as the oldest person to ever skydive after making a tandem jump Sunday and landing 13,500 feet (4,100 meters) later at a northern Illinois airport.
“Age is just a number,” Dorothy Hoffner told a cheering crowd moments after touching the ground Sunday at Skydive Chicago Airport in Ottawa, about 85 miles (140 kilometers) southwest of Chicago, the Chicago Tribune reported.
The Guinness World Record for oldest skydiver was set in May 2022 by 103-year-old Linnéa Ingegärd Larsson from Sweden. But Skydive Chicago is working to have Guinness World Records certify Hoffner’s jump as a record, WLS-TV reported.
Hoffner first skydived when she was 100. On Sunday, she left her walker behind just short of the Skyvan plane at the Ottawa airport and was helped up the steps to join the others waiting inside to skydive.
“Let’s go, let’s go, Geronimo!” Hoffner said after she was finally seated.
When she first skydived at 100 she had had to be pushed out of the aircraft. But on Sunday, tethered to a U.S. Parachute Association-certified instructor, Hoffner insisted on leading the jump.
She looked calm and confident when the plane was aloft and its aft door opened to reveal tan crop fields far below shortly before she shuffled toward the edge and leaped into the air.
The dive lasted seven minutes, and the plane beat Hoffner to the ground after her parachute opened for a slow descent. Finally, the wind pushed Hoffner’s white hair back as she clung to the harness draped over her narrow shoulders, picked up her legs as the ground neared and plopped onto a grassy area at the airport.
Friends rushed in to share congratulations, while someone brought over Hoffner’s red walker. She rose quickly and a reporter asked her how it felt to be back on the ground.
“Wonderful,” Hoffner said. “But it was wonderful up there. The whole thing was delightful, wonderful, couldn’t have been better.”
After her jump, Hoffner’s mind quickly turned to the future and other challenges. The lifelong Chicago woman, who’s set to turn 105 in December, said she might take a ride in a hot-air balloon next.
“I’ve never been in one of those,” she said.
veryGood! (18954)
Related
- Costco membership growth 'robust,' even amid fee increase: What to know about earnings release
- Hair Products That Work While You Sleep: Go From Bedhead to Bombshell With Minimal Effort
- RNC lays off dozens after Trump-backed leaders take the helm
- A Massachusetts town spent $600k on shore protection. A winter storm washed it away days later
- FBI: California woman brought sword, whip and other weapons into Capitol during Jan. 6 riot
- Trade: Pittsburgh Steelers sending WR Diontae Johnson to Carolina Panthers
- Gerrit Cole all but officially ruled out as the Yankees’ Opening Day starter
- Mega Millions jackpot rises to estimated $792 million after no one wins $735 million grand prize
- Kansas City Chiefs CEO's Daughter Ava Hunt Hospitalized After Falling Down a Mountain
- Bill Self's contract has him atop basketball coaches pay list. What to know about deal
Ranking
- Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear ready to campaign for Harris-Walz after losing out for spot on the ticket
- Police search for a University of Missouri student in Nashville
- Who was John Barnett? What to know about the Boeing employee and his safety concerns
- Jennifer Lopez cancels handful of shows on first tour in 5 years, fans demand explanation
- Kansas City Chiefs CEO's Daughter Ava Hunt Hospitalized After Falling Down a Mountain
- Python abuse alleged at supplier of snakeskins used for Gucci handbags
- Israel likely to face Hamas resistance for years to come, U.S. intelligence assessment says
- Landslide destroys Los Angeles home and threatens at least two others
Recommendation
Federal appeals court upholds $14.25 million fine against Exxon for pollution in Texas
Wisconsin Supreme Court will reconsider ruling limiting absentee ballot drop boxes
Nebraska governor approves regulations to allow gender-affirming care for minors
Mass kidnappings from Nigeria schools show the state does not have control, one expert says
Bet365 ordered to refund $519K to customers who it paid less than they were entitled on sports bets
Staff at a Virginia wildlife center pretend to be red foxes as they care for an orphaned kit
2024 Oscars ratings reveal biggest viewership in 4 years
'Station 19' Season 7: Cast, premiere date, how to watch and stream the final season