Purportedly one of the most qualified female parachutists in the world today, Cheryl has her sites set for October of 2001 for her record-setting jump. To prepare for Project StratoQuest Stearns plans to make about two dozen practice jumps ranging in altitude from 12,000 to 60,000 feet. She hopes to make the balloon ascent and landing in the center of the USA in some place like Kansas or western Texas. The scene at the landing site next year will have the feel of a festive Space Shuttle launch, complete with play-by-play direct from the plummeting Stearns.
Cheryl clearly thinks she's got something to prove! With almost 14,000 skydives to her record, she holds the world record for the most jumps made by a woman in a 24-hour period (352). She was also the first woman accepted onto the US Army's Golden Knights parachute team, and holds down a day job as a 737 captain for US Airways. |
 Photos courtesy of
Cheryl Stearns |
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