When Time Slows Down

"john smith" wrote

Competition aerobatic pilots refer to it as "spatial dilation".
Usually associated with a botched maneuver.

I don't think you are talking about the same thing.

In article ,
"Morgans" wrote:

"john smith" wrote

Competition aerobatic pilots refer to it as "spatial dilation".
Usually associated with a botched maneuver.

I don't think you are talking about the same thing.

Your are correct. I used the wrong term, it should read temporal
dilation.

Serious answer this time.
I heard this discussed one night long ago at a dinner meeting with some race
car drivers at a show I was doing .
I remember them saying it was a well known phenom, usually brought on by
unusually high stress or extremely high performance levels. I have no idea
where or how to research it, but I personally believe I experienced it at
least once during a high school track meet where I was competing in the
hundred. It happened near the finish line as I was in a dead heat with the
guy in the left lane next to me. I was straining and reaching for the
stride. Suddenly, everything seemed to fit into place somehow. My mind was
suddenly as clear as a crystal bell. Everything slowed down and my running
become effortless.
Anyway, I won the heat, but lost the final :-)
It never happened to me during my tenure in aviation, and I spent most of
that in a high stress environment to say the least.
Dudley Henriques

"Kyle Boatright" wrote in message
...
Do you ever experience the sensation that time is slowing down for you?
E.G. Your brain and motor functions are moving at normal speed, but
everything around you has slowed down?

I've had this sensation more than a few times. A couple of times when I
was in auto accidents (not my fault) and could see the whole thing slowly
unfolding around me. Another situation where things seem to move in slow
motion is when I'm riding as passenger in a light airplane and we're in
the landing phase. Approach and touchdown seems to be in slow motion when
someone else is flying.

Occasionally, like this evening, I get the slow-mo feeling when I'm
landing the airplane. The white stripes are passing slowly, the airplane
is gently settling towards the runway, and I can pick whether to land on
the left main, right main, tailwheel, all three at once, or any two of the
three, with the third to follow whenever I want, and the airplane seems to
be at taxi speed as soon as I touch down.

What's up with that, and where do I sign up for more?

"Dudley Henriques" dhenriques@noware .net wrote

Serious answer this time.
I heard this discussed one night long ago at a dinner meeting with some
race
car drivers at a show I was doing .
I remember them saying it was a well known phenom, usually brought on by
unusually high stress or extremely high performance levels.

I have experienced it on many occasions. The latest was during a car wreck
where I went off the road, and a low shoulder and embankment conspired to
keep me from getting back on, again.

I was most surprised this time by how many thoughts, decisions and reactions
flashed through my mind. My theory is that it is an evolved state, that
helped our cavemen ancestors to survive the most threatening situations. By
allowing total concentration, and being able to make a multitude of extra
reactions than would normally be possible, it may have given them the edge
necessary to survive.
--
Jim in NC

I suspect that those who are good at sports where there is high speed
action have a brain that is better at processing things quicly. Someone
throws a ball to me and it seems so fast that I can't see how there
could possibly be time to make any decisions associated with catching
it.

And of course stress is almost entirely a product of letting time get
the best of us.
--
Gene Seibel
Gene & Sue's Flying Machine - http://pad39a.com/gene/
Because we fly, we envy no one.

"Dudley Henriques" dhenriques@noware .net wrote in message
link.net...
Serious answer this time.
I heard this discussed one night long ago at a dinner meeting with some race car drivers at a show I was doing .
I remember them saying it was a well known phenom, usually brought on by unusually high stress or extremely high
performance levels. I have no idea where or how to research it, but I personally believe I experienced it at least
once during a high school track meet where I was competing in the hundred. It happened near the finish line as I was
in a dead heat with the guy in the left lane next to me. I was straining and reaching for the stride. Suddenly,
everything seemed to fit into place somehow. My mind was suddenly as clear as a crystal bell. Everything slowed down
and my running become effortless.
Anyway, I won the heat, but lost the final :-)
It never happened to me during my tenure in aviation, and I spent most of that in a high stress environment to say the
least.
Dudley Henriques


I think some folks call it being 'in the zone'...

Going over a cliff in my dune buggy. It took forever to hit. I was thinking
this is going to hurt. Then I hit and I thought wow my 5 point harness
really did a good job. After getting out I thought wow I am ok, but a half
hour later I could hardly sit down my tail bone hurt like eck.
The whole front end of my buggy was squshed.

On Tue, 13 Sep 2005 20:51:04 -0400, "Kyle Boatright"
wrote in
::

Do you ever experience the sensation that time is slowing down for you?
E.G. Your brain and motor functions are moving at normal speed, but
everything around you has slowed down?

The only time I recall this phenomenon occurring was while I was
airborne shortly after impact during a 1967 motorcycle accident. While
on "very short final" to the asphalt, I recall thinking about how I
need to land and roll with the impact and protect my head (no helmet
law back then). It must be a response effected by adrenalin flooding.

John D. Macdonald used this temporal dilation phenomenon effectively
in The Girl, The Gold Watch, And Everything: Unusual, light-hearted
fantasy about a man who inherits a watch that can freeze time for
everyone except whoever has the watch.
http://tinyurl.com/bvj45
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0080792/usercomments
http://www.bookfinder.com/search/?ac... 7712_2:46:95

See also:
http://www.jeremybyoder.com/personal...kholeprofs.doc

I've had it happen in a car accident. Didn't notice it when I flipped
my airplane. Probably happened when I had a hold of 480 volts and
thought for what seemed like several seconds about what it was going to
be like to die, but I have no idea how long that really was.

I've often wondered what it would be like if we didn't have a 24 hour/1
year sun cycle and man hadn't put so much emphasis on measuring time.
Time is such an artificial thing that our minds have adapted to. It
fascinates me in the Bible where it mentions that in the future in
heaven, "there should be time no longer:"
--
Gene Seibel
Tales of Flight - http://pad39a.com/gene/tales.html
Because I fly, I envy no one.

Probably happened when I had a hold of 480 volts and
thought for what seemed like several seconds about what it was going to
be like to die, but I have no idea how long that really was.

Yep... been there. blowing out magnetic starters with an air hose... guess
there was a little water in the line.

Hmm... that feels funny.... what's going on? BANG!!!! wow, that was
loud... what the heck is that? funny how I can't see, but I can hear
everything....knocked off my feet... hmm, nothing hurts... flying through
the air... this is just weird.... landing on my ass... ouch... knew
something was going to hurt... took forever

On the other hand, I flew over the handle bars of a bike and broke my
shoulder and my collar bone, it happened in such a flash that I couldn't
figure out what happened.