skylord 1 #1 December 28, 2003 With my cold cleared up and the stars in alignment, it was time to head up to Elsinore once again for the next part of my little adventure. It had been 28 days since my last jump, so I was rusty and anxious. I knew the weather was going to be cold, so I checked it before leaving the house. At 7 am, it was 37 degrees. That translates into a zero or below temperature at altitude. Factor in the wind chill at 120 mph, and I decided to wait it out a bit. I didn't want the unprotected parts of my face falling off after the jump. An hour later, the temperature had DROPPED to 34 degrees. I concluded that the next Ice Age was upon us, and no one could blame me if I didn't jump with this apocalypse on our heads. I could be discovered thousands of years from now with my logbook in my frozen and then thawed out hand that would tell future archaeologists I had jumped. They, of course, would conclude I sucked since I repeated Level 2 and stopped. So in the joke section of human history, we'd have the Piltdown Man and Bob the Boob. I could not let the human race down like that. I shrewdly calculated that the longer the sun was up, the higher the temperature would get. You can't teach that shit, it comes from pure intuitive talent, people. So I jumped into my fossil fuel burning automobile, figuring the emissions could only contribute to global warming (a good thing at the DZ today) and drove up to Elsinore. Body raged against this decision, and tried to make my palms so sweaty I couldn't steer the Global Warmer. I arrived, watched a few loads go up, met up with Shark, hung around, and went over to sign up for a jump. Shark was already busy, so I got hooked up with Lou and Jonathan. They thoroughly reviewed everything with me as to emergency procedures, and we got on the manifest. We went through the exit drills, the dirt dive, and got ready to go. I felt as ready as my first jumps, thanks to them. We geared up, and here came our ride. The anxiety built, but for me it is the baby step program. Get on, you can ride down. We got on first, got strapped in, did the three point safety check, and here we go. The worst part of the dive for me is the opening of the door. I don't know why. I hate hearing the rush of air, and the cold, cold blast of an unfeeling environment. I tried to acclimate myself on the drive out by rolling my window down and sticking my left arm and head out into a California enforced 70 mph slipstream. Ooops, almost lost the sunglasses. We had a hop 'n pop on board, and it appeared there was some difficulty getting the door open. Hey, no shame in that, let's go land and go out the pilot window! Nope, that wasn't to happen. They were just waiting for the right time, and up goes the door. Out goes the jumper, and down goes the door. Good. The body didn't say anything. At 12,500 AGL, I look towards the back of the airplane. We exchange the secret skydive handshake with the closest jumpers, including a solo student only a few stages along further than me. I see the Maw of Hell open. Why is everyone so happy? I can feel in the pit of my being I need to tell my instructors I have to ride back down. But I also feel a bit of a challenge, and I nurture it. Just me alone. I've done this three times, and I can do it again. Lou's assurances, and relaxation techniques, serve me well. I relax, step toward the door, and then my reserve JM looks down and we stay in the airplane for another run. Shit! I've got to ramp up again. It was a great call, but I just want to get it over with. We come back around, Jonathan grabs my leg strap, Lou grabs my leg and shoulder straps, and off we go to Hell's Door. It feels like a death sentence. Except for a couple crucial items. One, Lou looked me straight in the eye for an extra second or two when I checked in. That (for all you AFF-Is reading this) was worth 20 times the cost of the jump. I looked out to Jonathan, and got the ready sign. I also felt like I wanted to do this, deep inside. Ready, (these are my friends, they won't let me get hurt) (don't soil the jumpsuit, it's not yours). Set, (do this right, they count on you, too!) Arch. This was not the best exit of all time, but I did watch the airplane for about 3 seconds as I fell away from it. I got the shake sign, and immediately relaxed. I hit the arch from the beginning, after the first hips down sign from my main side. It helps with hips down if your knees are close enough together. Anyway, downward we fly. I was shocked at how calm I felt. I worked through the COA, PRCTs, COA all above 10,000 ft. Wow!! Let's do some turns..... I LOVED it!! I turned 90 right, rolled out. Check altitude. Look left, turn left, and off we go. WHOOOHOOO!!!! Plenty of altitude, look right, turn right. Roll out, great!! My main JM gave me the COA sign at about 6,500. No problem. I watched the altimeter, and pulled. 1-2-3-4, check canopy, looks good! Controllability is good. Look down, oh-oh, where am I? The winds at altitude were high, while fairly calm on the ground. I locate the DZ, which is somewhat distant. After about 10 seconds, I realize I'm going to make my first offsite landing. I'm right over a housing tract, and into the wind I am not moving. Shit, I'm going to land in a street! I looked around, saw some potential landing areas, and watched Lou land in one. I decided to follow him. I turned a long crosswind leg in order to make some progress along the ground. No points this time for the "classic" pattern, it was all "get there, get there, get there". I spotted power lines, and performed a de-Lutz maneuver (in other words I piloted the chute well over them). I overflew Lou, aimed long in the field he came down in, and he talked me down to my third stand up landing. Lessons learned, while I was stable initially, at pull time I became a bit unstable. I need to work on that. Always be ready to land off. This was an invaluable experience for me. While I was anxious about going out the door, it was MUCH less than my previous jump. My instructors de-briefed me, gave me some exercises to help with arching correctly, and I just hung around until beer time. I will get there. So on to level three. BobBob Marks "-when you leave the airplane its all wrong til it goes right, its a whole different mindset, this is why you have system redundancy." Mattaman Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
skyyhi 0 #2 December 28, 2003 Hey Bob, it was good to meet you yesterday and regale you with my AFF stories. . . Good luck today on 3 and 4. . .thanks for sharing a beer or two. . .at this pace you will outjump me. . . Remember to relax and smile. . .________________________________________ Take risks not to escape life… but to prevent life from escaping. ~ A bumper sticker at the DZ FGF #6 Darcy Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
newsstand 0 #3 December 28, 2003 Congratulations on telling your body who's boss. "Truth is tough. It will not break, like a bubble, at a touch; nay, you may kick it about all day like a football, and it will be round and full at evening." -- Oliver Wendell Holmes Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
skylord 1 #4 December 28, 2003 QuoteCongratulations on telling your body who's boss. Yep, I kicked my ass! Thanks! BobBob Marks "-when you leave the airplane its all wrong til it goes right, its a whole different mindset, this is why you have system redundancy." Mattaman Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
skylord 1 #5 December 28, 2003 Darcy, Great to meet you too! That was fun, wasn't it? But they should have started that fire sooner. Brrrr. BobBob Marks "-when you leave the airplane its all wrong til it goes right, its a whole different mindset, this is why you have system redundancy." Mattaman Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Phillbo 11 #6 December 28, 2003 Congrats Bob... Try doing a couple leves on the same day ... It makes it a lot easier. I did 1-3 on the first day and was wooped real good after that. Then I started doing 2 a day until I was solo. I found the nerves are a lot better on the second jump of the day and I could focus on the dive flow more than the fear of messing up the flightsuit Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
mailin 0 #7 December 28, 2003 hahaha I am still laughing at that! You have quite a way with words! Sounds like a great experience. Can't wait.... JenniferArianna Frances Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jimoke 0 #8 December 28, 2003 congats on a safe off- field landing. skydiving at your level can be intimidating to say the least. after reading your post I noticed you have a discriptive way leaning towards negative thoughts. try to focus your full attention to positive thoughts, how wonderful it is when the door opens,how successful you will be on your dive! here it is again, relax #1. I'm quite positve you've heard this many times from your AFF-Is. also QuoteWe come back around, Jonathan grabs my leg strap, Lou grabs my leg and shoulder straps, and off we go to Hell's Door. It feels like a death sentence. Except for a couple crucial items. One, Lou looked me straight in the eye for an extra second or two when I checked in. That (for all you AFF-Is reading this) was worth 20 times the cost of the jump. I looked out to Jonathan, and got the ready sign. I also felt like I wanted to do this, deep inside. Ready, (these are my friends, they won't let me get hurt) (don't soil the jumpsuit, it's not yours). Set, (do this right, they count on you, too!) Arch. you are ultimately responsible for your own safety. Just because they are your friends doesn't mean you can't get hurt. Trust your training. Elsinore has the finest Instructors around. Skydiving is fun but very serious. stay safe bro, jimokeThe ground always, remembers where you are! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Jessica 0 #9 December 28, 2003 Very, VERY nicely written. Thanks for sharing. You'll kick the rest of your progression's ass.Skydiving is for cool people only Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
skylord 1 #10 December 29, 2003 Jimoke, Thanks for the reply. I try to write a stream of conciousness kind of post that shows what I'm actually thinking. It is typically negative, as you pointed out. That is my gut, visceral, real life reaction. There is something to that, since one is doing something that is so deeply hard wired against. The friends comment came from a quote both JMs made about the AFF-2 jump. I realize that simply because they're friends doesn't mean I can't get hurt. Friends don't let friends land off site on their 4th jump either, but shit does happen, through no one's fault. The point they were making was relax and look at us in freefall. So we smiled, laughed, (I screamed ) on the jump. You absolutely hit the big nail on the head, this is a positive experience, it really truly is. Every jump I've made I've loved. The relaxation techniques I talked about that Lou gave me helped greatly on the ride up, but he did point out I was tensed up in the door and didn't take my time to relax prior to the exit count. I plan on jumping tomorrow, twice, and I'll take your advice to heart. My training is second to none, Elsinore has the greatest instructors on earth (see Talk Back please) and I look forward not to falling but flying. I promise I'll always stay safe! BobBob Marks "-when you leave the airplane its all wrong til it goes right, its a whole different mindset, this is why you have system redundancy." Mattaman Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
skylord 1 #11 December 29, 2003 Phillbo, Thanks, I'm going to try and do just that tomorrow. I appreciate the info, and I'm sure you're right. I'll let you know how it goes! BobBob Marks "-when you leave the airplane its all wrong til it goes right, its a whole different mindset, this is why you have system redundancy." Mattaman Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
skylord 1 #12 December 29, 2003 It is a great experience, glad I made you laugh, too! Thanks for the kudos, and look for more later on. Make the jump is the best advice I can give! BobBob Marks "-when you leave the airplane its all wrong til it goes right, its a whole different mindset, this is why you have system redundancy." Mattaman Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
skylord 1 #13 December 29, 2003 QuoteVery, VERY nicely written. Thanks for sharing. You'll kick the rest of your progression's ass. Thanks for the comments Jessica. And yes, I will! I love writing real time stuff like this. The real sensation is like being tossed into water for the first time in your life. It is a different environment, you just have to get used to it. And I am. BobBob Marks "-when you leave the airplane its all wrong til it goes right, its a whole different mindset, this is why you have system redundancy." Mattaman Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Kramer 0 #14 December 29, 2003 Nice job with the out landing man. And might I say: Smart move watching what your instructor did, and mimicking him. Not that you should just blindly follow others or anything...but it takes a cool head to be smart enough to make a move like that. -Kramer The FAKE KRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAMER!!!!!!!!! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jimoke 0 #15 December 30, 2003 when I have the opportunity with a cat 4 or higher student on a light load, I will sit with them in the back of the otter and give them the chance to look around with the door both open and closed. once an AFF student is comfortable in the door they will often do better on exit. I enjoyed your style of writing BTW. JimokeThe ground always, remembers where you are! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
