Founder and directors of KBB supplier Hill’s Panel Products (HPP) described a sponsored skydive as one of the most “exhilarating” experiences of their lives.

Marketing and business development director Dan Mounsey

Joint founder and owner Martin Hill was joined by marketing and business development director Dan Mounsey and IT director Andy Evans, IT in sponsored tandem skydives for Maggie’s cancer centre in Oldham.

The centre in Oldham is part of a UK-wide and overseas network of cancer support hubs, giving cancer patients, their families and friends practical, emotional and social support.

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Taking place at Black Knights Skydiving Centre at Cockerham, south of Lancaster, which offers the highest skydive in the UK – 15,000ft, almost three miles.

Monies raised for the skydive currently total £2,215, 98% of the latest target of £2,250, and donations can still be made on their fundraising page.

It followed HPP’s fundraising for Maggie’s as part of World Cancer Day earlier this year, which raised £350.

IT director Andy Evans

Andy Evans commented on the skydive: “The guys on the ground really give you confidence and put you at ease but when you first leave the plane, you certainly have a moment.

“I think it was the expanse of the view in front of you and the fact there’s nothing between you and the ground – it’s really intense.

“I thought it would be like that all the way down, but the feeling soon disappears, and you start to enjoy the free fall.

“You don’t worry about it either, I think your brain isn’t capable of worry at that point – you’re tightly strapped to your instructor as well.

“And then as soon as the canopy opens it becomes a very serene experience.”

Founder Martin Hill

Qualified pilot Martin Hill added: “A love of aviation runs through our family, so doing a parachute jump seemed like a natural extension of that passion.

“From the first moment we heard about the charity parachute jump while we were visiting Maggie’s to hand over the cheque for World Cancer Day, I couldn’t wait to do it.”

Dan Mounsey described the skydive as the most ‘commercially available adrenaline rush’ you can do.

He said: “I’ve done a bungee jump before but that was over a lot quicker than this.

“It’s genuinely exhilarating for a lot longer as you free fall. Your senses are all over the place for the first five or 10 seconds, you’re falling at about 120 to 140 miles an hour, it was -10˚C, so your head is freezing.

“We all expected more of a jolt as the canopy opened but it was quite smooth, and as Andy says, it becomes very serene.”