Female skydivers from seven countries are descending into Arizona this weekend to prepare for the Women’s Skydiving Network‘s Project 19 World Record initiative honoring the historic anniversary of women’s right to vote. The two-day training camp will take place at Skydive Arizona from Saturday, March 7 to Sunday, March 8, coinciding with International Women’s Day.
Project 19 is the colossal mission of female skydivers to secure the first-ever all-female 100-way Women’s Vertical World Record, which would earn both a Guinness World Record and FAI World Record. The project was developed to honor the 100-year anniversary of the 19th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution guaranteeing women’s right to vote.
Beginning at 8 a.m. MST and running until sunset Saturday and Sunday, women will take to the air up to five times per day, loading into multiple aircraft carrying upwards of 20 women each to practice for the official world record attempt. The planes will climb to an altitude of 16,000 feet, which requires supplemental oxygen for the skydivers. After the women successfully jump from the plane, they will fly head-down in vertical formation to their pre-determined position and all link arms in a snowflake-like formation. This action must be achieved within 50 seconds of exiting the aircraft while traveling to the Earth at speeds of up to 180 mph. Then they will break away from one another in a starburst pattern in order to safely open their parachutes.
More than 60 women from across the U.S., as well as Russia, Brazil, Switzerland, Canada, Chile and Columbia will be present in hopes of securing a coveted spot on the Project 19 World Record team. The women selected from this training camp will participate in the official world record attempts this summer.
“It’s so empowering to watch women from every corner of the world rallying for a unified goal, particularly on International Women’s Day,” said Amy Chmelecki, professional skydiver and Project 19 co-founder. “This is intense World Record training, but it’s also a celebration of women’s achievements. We’re all here doing what we love because of bold women pushing for gender equality.”
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During the two days of camp, the skydivers will work closely with Project 19 leaders both on the ground and in-air to understand the choreographed positions and appropriate techniques necessary to secure the 100-way all-female Women’s Vertical World Record. So far, 55 women from 19 countries have been selected to participate in the historic 100-way World Record attempt set for July 4-11, 2020 at Skydive Chicago. More women will be added to the team following this weekend’s training camp.
Spectators are welcome and encouraged to attend. Skydive Arizona will maintain its regular business hours and traditional services including instructor-led tandem jumps and wind tunnel flights.