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An 86-year-old woman completed her 1,000th skydive in Florida on Nov. 6
Kim Knor was joined by her daughters and granddaughter for the feat, which earned her the United States Parachute Association (USPA)’s Gold Wings Award
“It was glorious,” Kim tells PEOPLE exclusively of the family skydive
A grandmother has marked her 1,000th skydive — with an assist from her loved ones.
Kim Knor completed the feat at Jump Florida Skydiving in Lake Wales on Nov. 6, when she was joined by her two daughters, Holly, 58, and Tara, 56, plus her granddaughter, 28, who flew in from Colorado.
“It was glorious,” Kim tells PEOPLE exclusively of the family skydive. “It was a joy to have them with me.”
“One of the things they said, which really hit me in the heart, is, ‘You gave up so much. You were in and out of the sport trying to get your thousand jumps, and you gave up so much to stop and raise us … and we’re just happy to be here to celebrate that,’ ” she continues.
Having them there for the milestone moment, Kim further explains, “was the top of the mountain, the icing on the cake.”
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Javier Ortiz
Kim Knor and others during her 1,000th skydive.
When she made her first skydive years ago at age 18, Kim forged her parents’ signatures to do so. In the years to follow, she became a member of the first U.S. Women’s Parachute Team, even winning gold at the World Championships in 1962.
Kim then took an almost four-decade-long pause from skydiving to raise her family, but she returned to her favorite pastime in her 60s, and she has since visited 90 drop zones across the United States.
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The grandmother has now earned the United States Parachute Association (USPA) Gold Wings Award, which is awarded to skydivers after they complete 1,000 jumps.
Kim was gifted the achievement during the 2025 International Skydiving Hall of Fame Celebration at Jump Florida Skydiving on Nov. 7
Bruno Brokken
Kim Knor during her 1,000th skydive.
Skydiving, Kim tells PEOPLE, has never been something off-putting to her. “I have never been anxious. I mean, I get eager to get up there in the sky, but it’s never caused me any stress or anxiety or that kind of thing,” she says.
“I like free fall. I enjoy free fall … because I like to ride the canopy around and look at the earth below and say, ‘Oh, you poor people. You don’t know what you’re missing,’ ” Kim continues.
Kim adds that the secret to her exciting life as an elderly woman is the “balance” she finds from skydiving.
She says: “When things get too stressful or whatever, I just go up and jump and get all this good positive energy that heals my body, and it balances out the chemistry. It keeps you healthy.”
And as for what’s next? Kim has a clear goal in mind, stating that she wants to “jump over the pyramids in Egypt, and then from there, work on the next 1,000 [skydives].”
Read the original article on People
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‘ Some details of this article were extracted from the following source uk.style.yahoo.com ’
