In the age of social media, remote working and online banking, most of the challenges that come our way find us sitting down, and we’ve got used to dealing with them without taking our bums off our seats or our eyes off our screens. This isn’t how it used to be. When our ancestors had to solve problems and face threats, their fight or flight responses kicked in and they took physical action to overcome the situation. We have the same mental programming, and responding to danger by sending an email or writing a comment leaves us without the visceral release that we need. That’s why we have to go in search of our kicks elsewhere, and there’s no bigger challenge to be taken on, than that of throwing ourselves into thin air, only to be stopped by a bungee cord. The good news is that this most extreme of extreme sports is becoming more widespread around the UK and one of the best places to dare yourself to do it is here.

Where to do bungee jumping in Belfast?

Queen’s Quay is right in the heart of Belfast’s historic dockland. The area is known as the Titanic Quarter because the notorious ship was built here. The Titanic’s famous voyage ended in an even more famous disaster, but your bungee jump is guaranteed to be a story of success. You’ll start on a high platform, suspended by a crane, and drop like a stone towards the River Laggan. Unlike a stone, or the RMS Titanic, you’ll come back up again, bouncing on the end of the bungee cord and full of the adrenaline and endorphins that only a gravity defying stunt like this can produce. Different kinds of jumps are available to choose from, each one offering the thrills you’ve been looking for at a price you can’t refuse.

Options of jumps available

Every jump experience starts by ascending to the dizzying jump height of 160 feet, that’s 50 metres, above Queen’s Quay. On the way up, you’ll get 360 degree views of the area, the skyline of Belfast and across the Irish Sea as far as Scotland. But we’ll understand if you can’t focus entirely on the panorama, because your mind will probably be more occupied by thoughts of the challenges ahead of you.

• Individual Jump: Once the platform is in place, you’ll have to muster all your courage and face the drop below you. Alternatively, you can focus on the horizon or close your eyes completely, it doesn't matter, at the end of the day - or preferably sooner - you have to jump. Before being taken up in the crane, your jumpmaster will have kitted you out with a harness, and attached the bungee cord to your waist and ankles. Your aim when leaving the platform is to fall head first into the void, so that your head is below your feet when the cord reaches its full extension and springs you back up into the air. This gives you the smoothest experience possible, and gives you a feeling of swooping through the air like a bird in flight. After a couple of bounces, you’ll be lowered back onto the ground, and have to get used to using your legs again.

• Tandem Jump: Some people say that a problem shared is a problem halved, and when it comes to bungee jumping, this is partly true. You and your companion will be strapped together face to face, for safety and moral support, and can encourage each other to take the plunge. However, in a tandem jump, double the weight means double the fun! You’ll fall twice as fast as you would on your own, and then bounce up higher, and keep going for longer. This is as intense as it gets, but at least you’ll have someone to help you get back on your feet at the end - unless they’ve gone weak at the knees too!

• FAB Jump: The letter A is the most important one in this acronym, because it stands for “and” - that means that you’ll be doing more than one jump if you choose this option. The F is for “front”, which is a standard individual bungee jump, and the B is for “back”, which is something even more daring. If the first jump hasn’t scared you off you’ll return to the jump height but this time leave the platform backwards, facing the sky and maybe saying a little prayer, then free falling down in the same way as before. Completing a FAB jump is a true badge of honour, do you have what it takes?

Requirements to do this activity

This sport isn’t for everyone - you need to be brave or stupid enough to throw yourself into free fall from a crane - but there must be something about it that keeps people coming back for more. If you want to come to discover what exactly that is, you have to meet a couple of specifications, put in place to ensure the safety. First you have to be at least 14 years old. This is so that you can give your informed consent, that is, understand the details of what involves, and confirm that you want to do it. From 16 years old, you can do this on your own account, if you’re between 14 and 16 you need a parent or guardian’s signature

Your weight aso has to be taken into account in the planning of your adventure. This is because the heavier you are, the greater the force of gravity. If the cord is going to be effective, it has to be calibrated for each jumper individually. The weight limit for an individual jumper is 18.9 stone, that’s 120 kilograms, and the combined weight limit for a tandem jump duo is 34.2 stone, 217 kilograms.

Is it a safe experience?

Since hearing the news of their handiwork crashing into an iceberg and sinking in the North Sea, the people of this city have taken safety very seriously, and this extends to the team running your activity in Queen’s Quay. As well as making sure that every keen jumper meets the weight and age requirements, they use a system with built in redundancy, which means that the equipment can’t be compromised by the failure of a single piece of kit. They’ve also all been trained and instructed in safe and correct use of the equipment, and they have years of experience providing safe jumps, and completing a fair few of them themselves too.

So the only thing that could be stopping you from facing the ultimate challenge is your own nervousness. Let us know when you get over it, and we’ll organise your activity.