FAAWHACCCKKK

[NtheSeaOrSky 0]

That is exactly the sound I heard as my canopy opened. Could I see it, why no, my head was forced down and I couldnt lift it up. My slider was forced past the toggles and halfway down the fabric webbing of the risers. I couldn't watch the opening, but man I feel it! So my question, am I asking for a painful canopy ride if I try to jump again today? I have welts and bruises at every point of harness contact. But the weather is beautiful, and I only need 5 more jumps for my A! I can endure a lot of pain, so I am looking to hear from personal experience. Thanks guys!

[SkydiveMonkey 0]

I say go for it !! No pian, no gain !!
When you participate in sporting events, its not whether you win or loose, its how drunk you get.

[airann 1]

Oh yeah...... the familiar Whaackkk.... You got slammed...
Been there dont remember much... I was knocked silly billy bergers...
I remember walking into the hangar and someone saying are you alright. (Hell no I aint never been right) But anyway, yeah.. hurt like hell... my eyelids and toenails were sore.
Usually its the pack job and that takes real time with your chute to get it right. Its different with every rig. Ordinarily.
I jump a Sabre 150 not even loaded. With my dog - not loaded. But as a student still a Sabre 150 or 170 maybe, KaWham! I thought a train hit me.
wait, ...what is this on my hand....... 15ZS? 21? ---Oh yeah, yesterday I was on load 15 with Zennie and Scott and 21......
Well, maybe that is what happend to my memory -The Whack.
oops just remembered - gotta go to dz #2 today. Spread the love.....
Ann ~ www.AirAnn.com
New sponsors for 2002!
(temp page for now)

[skymama 37]

I think it depends on how much pain you are in, and how affected your muscles are. I had it happen to me in January, and my entire left trapesius (sp?) muscle down my shoulder and back was very swollen. I put numerous ice packs on it, had a sports massage and finally had to get an ultrasound treatment done on it before I was back to normal. Since you're not in competition or anything, I would say take care of your body first and let it heal. There will always be another jumping weekend.
Andrea
I'm high as a kite
I just might
Stop and check you out.

[bbarnhouse 0]

I agree with da mama! On a scale of 1-10 if you are 7 or better there's always another day. Go to the DZ anyway and just watch! Lots to learn just from watching too!
Cheers!
It only takes a little pixie dust......

[nacmacfeegle 0]

I used to get "FAAWHACCCKKK ed" on most jumps, steenkin monarch, this is what would limit my lobs to say 10 a weekend. Then I discovered spectres If you get "FAAWHACCCKKK ed" and jump again, you will suffer for a couple of days after, it won't hurt till real bad till later, so take care. Repetitive whacking will eventually cause you some long term neck and back pain, and that's not so good. I know a few people who now have long term back problems and they don't jump as much nowadays.....Take some time out, and save your body for another time.....
And learn to slow up your openings or change canopies, life's too short to be full off pain.
Cya
D

[AggieDave 6]

Yeah, if you get faawhaccked on a Spectre, something was definately wrong. This is the only canopy I've jumped so far that opens like I like canopies to open with out rolling the snot out of the nose and tail.
Bow down to live
Your Life
Head down, hide that smile
Head high got to smile

[jumppilot01 0]

When I was jumping my Sabre, I used to let out a hearty 'F*CK!" after 9/10 of my openings.
Glad I have a Safire!
-Adam

[SkydiveMonkey 0]

I think that's why god invented tandem sliders and pocketed sliders
When you participate in sporting events, its not whether you win or loose, its how drunk you get.

[FallingMarc 0]

Quote

Repetitive whacking will eventually cause you some long term neck and back pain, and that's not so good.

Not to mention a strong right forearm and possible carpal tunnel.
M

[indyz 1]

Quote

Not to mention a strong right forearm and possible carpal tunnel.

Eh? http://cow.org/stuff/funny/pics/single.jpg
--
Brian

[NtheSeaOrSky 0]

Thanks guys. I headed to the dz to pick up my stuff and I felt EVERY bump in the road. I sat today out. I will jump when it is less painful, more stuff hurts as time goes on. How the heck can the backs of my knees hurt?!? Oh well. I have to admit it did twinge me a bit to see the other students jumping. Ah, but my time is coming, uh at least I think.

[skycat 0]

Quote

How the heck can the backs of my knees hurt?!?

Probably a slight hyperextension, I think I was on like jump 4 or 5 and the manta opened so fast my legs swung up over my head and I ended up having a hyper-extended knee. It was my bad knee so it was week to begin with, but with enough opening force the weight of your lower leg could definitely stress the backs of your knees.

[gale 0]

This post makes me want to ask this question:
is it normal to get bruises on your biceps and inner thighs each time you jump? I'm a student and thus jump a Manta. Someone suggested that maybe my leg straps are too tight. Could this be the problem? (For the legs anyway.)
Gale
Life's not worth living if you can't feel alive

[NtheSeaOrSky 0]

Some more experienced person might have a better answer, but I have always gotten some bruising, just because it is a tender area suspending (for me) a lot of weight. This time, I have welts, however, with lots of bruising - much worse than normal.

[skycat 0]

Kind of depends on how big you are and what gear you are jumping, but for me it was the norm to have bruises. I'm 5'1 100ish lbs, and was jumping a J7 (I think) with a manta 215. Even with everything as tight as it goes the rig was still loose and beat the shit out of me on opening, after I started tying my leg straps together with a pull-up cord the bruises on my legs went away but I still have bruises on my arms. Once I had my own gear, which actually fit me, I never had bruises again even after my 100ft sabre slam.
My theory on it was that since I was swimming in the harness quite literally for me to do a turn all I did was shift my rig around, and to stop it I shifted it back. I have one JM who still tells the story of watching me have this really slow turn do a full 360 then shift my rig to stop it, and after that, that was how I was starting and stopping turns. Anyway, what I think is happening for some of the bruises was the fact that I wasn’t actually being held by the harness but rather just kind of floating in it so the harness was decelerating before I was when the canopy opened. So I was kind of falling into the harness which was moving around where ever it wanted to. After adding the pull-up cord it at least forced the leg straps stay where they were suppose to and the opening force was being taken more by my pelvis than my legs. As for the bruises on my arms, they didn’t go away until I got my own rig which were caused by the yoke being so wide that the outside of the main lift webbing/shoulder part of the harness was barely sitting on my shoulders so on opening my arms were taking a lot of the force.

[Skyrose7 0]

I am pretty sure bruises on the arms and inside legs is normal with student gear. I just started jumping transition gear, and MAN, what a difference. Instead of feeling like I got punched in every part of my body (a bit of an exaggeration), I feel like a cloud picked me up and took me back to the dz--that is, until I landed--and FAAWHACCCKKK, oopps, flared to high, and landed on the runway. ouch.
The mind is like a parachute--it works better when it is open. JUMP.

[AggieDave 6]

Quote

flared to high, and landed on the runway.

You and Freaksis should get together and swap stories some time...
I was there when she did something similar to that once...
A human cannonball, I rise above it all
Up higher then a trapieze, I can fly

[Skyrose7 0]

It doesn't feel very good. It also didn't help that it was the first time my parents ever came out, and my mom ran out on to the runway after me. I was like, "mom! you can't be out here!" There were still jumpers coming in. Oh, she was freaked. Then, she didn't realize I had a bloody hand when she grabbed it. A few minutes later, she came running into the packing area frantic--"MARY, there is blood on my hand!!! WHERE ARE YOU BLEEDING FROM??!!" I then showed her the gravel embedded in my hand, and that made her feel even better.
The mind is like a parachute--it works better when it is open. JUMP.

[lummy 4]

Glad to read that you followed your gut and not your heart Wendy.... I whined a bit watching the tandems land when I knew I wanted to be jumping too, but glad i was wishing I was up there instead of the other way around :)
Conjunction Junction, what's your function?

[nacmacfeegle 0]

"I am pretty sure bruises on the arms and inside legs is normal with student gear"
In my experience, a lot of the bruising stuff is not necessarily down to hard openings on their own, but I suspect poorly fitting rigs are the root cause here. If your harness fits correctly, and doesn't slide down you shoulders, the legstrap comfort pads meet or overlap, then a lot opf this pain can be avoided. It doesn't stop you getting fwacked tho......and you will still get teh occasional bruise even on custom fitted gear.
Cya
D

[Rdutch 0]

Unless you live where theres bad weather most of the time jump another day. I filmed a team at the Deland FSL competition and one of the girls on the team broke her sternum on a hard opening and diddnt even know it until the next day. She did six more jumps with a broke sternum and diddnt know it, The doctor said she was lucky to be alive. The sharp edges of the broken bone cut into her more and more with each opening if she had another hard one it might have made severe damage. There is always another day to jump.

[steve1 5]

This won't help much, if you are slammed, but It might help a lot if your leg straps are hurting. My old Vector container wasn't very comfortable in the leg strap area. It was down right painful under canopy. I took some strips of very rigid foam and stuffed them under the leg strap covers. Now it's super comfy after opening. Steve