Malev

Ah, was it made over here? BTW, who is the poor fellow in the background of that picture. In which case, theres not much point waiting anyway since I'm sure you would end up covering more in the time before the next progression week than in the week itself. I was probably doing my FJC training then with Sandy. If you are around this weekend, I might catch you - if not then I'm sure we'll bump into each other at some point in the near future.

Yea, I'm really looking forward (money excepted ) to getting my own rig, jumpsuit etc. Although thats a wee while off yet. I was wondering whether it was worthwhile doing something along those lines, but with the weather we have here you could end up with a week in which it would be almost impossible to jump every day. Plus my job makes it hard to take extended time off. I do like the idea of going to somewhere like Empuriabrava to do AFF, it might be a good option for others? Nice, its not a bad place is Glasgow. Although we could do with a closer DZ. I liek the jumpsuit - certainly must make you stand out from the crowd! Plus if the chicks dig it then it can't be a bad thing.

Just as an addition to this, I was told by my instructor that there is a minimum of 20 jumps for your A-license. So if you pass all 8 levels of your AFF first time, plus your 10 consolidation jumps you may still have to do a couple of extra jumps to get it up to 20. I'm also embarking on my AFF in the UK (would have done AFF1 last week if it were not for the weather) so good luck with yours!

So am I... I just hope it calms down a bit, although if the weather is a problem I'll just have to try and collar someone to start teaching me how to pack. I will have to remember to budget for that, this sport is draining my wallet far too quickly. AFF1. I would like to get for my A-license as soon as (safely and feasibly) possible, so decided to go down that route.

4.7Gb, so about 6.7 times more than an 80min CD (7.2 than a standard 74min one). You can pick them up from about £160 (~$224) these days, which is not too bad considering that used to be the starting price for CD-burners a few years ago. DVD media is also down near CD media prices now.

I promised to write how it went, so I shall. Unfortunately, it was weathered out for the weekend (too windy for student jumps) so I didn't get up. First lesson in skydiving is that you spend a lot of time hanging about. But, I got my basic training done, so I'll head back over to the DZ next weekend and hopefully we'll have better weather.

Yep thats right. Right, I'll pop out at lunchtime and get some tracky bottoms (I haven't worn any in years! ). I should be able to get by with the rest. Thats not so bad then, the plane ride was the part I was most worried about (in terms of being cold I mean). I'm taking the train over tonight (Friday), and I'll grab a taxi from Leuchars - so as long as they know where to go I should be ok. I'll hopefully see you around then, I'm Tom by the way.

Forecast is currently for 15*C (59*F) so its not too bad (comparatively speaking). But it does mean its going to be absolutely baltic up there. Stupidly obvious answer, which of course I didn't think about!

To be honest, the B&B is more about knowing I can have a good night's sleep before the basic training (I have no idea what the bink house atmosphere would be like). I'll sound out the DZ anyway, so I know what to do next time. Ok, so jeans, t-shirt, trainers (and gloves). Its pretty much guaranteed to be chilly (this is Scotland), so I don't know whether you can get away with wearing much else in terms of layers under the jumpsuit? I do wear contacts, so that is a very good point. I'll make sure to bring some spares. Sorry if I'm covering old ground here, I just want to make sure I'm on top of things! Cheers,

PMs seem to be disabled on your account - let me know if these are set up, or let me know your e-mail address and I'll drop you a message! Sterling's a nice place, although I've only been through it a couple of times. Notable mainly for its castle. I imagine the jumping will be chilly (and I have to admit, weather could be a problem), but there are some things you just can't control!

I will!

I definetly see where you are coming from on this point, and have been trying to make sure I don't get into too much detail on the precise techniques. I've really been looking at the more basic stuff such as the terminology and kit, stuff that everyone no doubt takes for granted but are compeltely new ("burble" had me confused for a while, I started off thinking it was a piece of kit! ). I normally wear smart casual i.e. shirt, trousers. I would imagine that jeans/t-shirt style would be better and more comfortable under the jump suit thought? That useful to know, and means it really is worth planning to stay for the whole weekend then rather than lookign at coming back on the Saturday night. Thanks! I'm a little less nervous than I was when I first signed up, but expect to be bricking it when it actually comes to jumoing out the plane (not that thats a bad thing!).

Hi, I'm now a week away from doing my first AFF jump (first jump ever as well) and have a couple of questions I hope someone might be able to answer! I've been reading through Mike Turoff/Dan Poynter's book The Skydiver's Handbook (which I would recommend to anyone else, its a bit US-centric but seems to be a good introduction to the basics, kit etc). Is there anything else that is an absolute must to read before the training though? What is the best thing to wear on the day (bearing in mind the Scottish weather )? Is it worth while planning to stay for both the Saturday and Sunday (i.e. is there a good chance of being able to do more of the course if the first part goes ok)? I am thinking of staying over in a B&B, because I will have to go up on the Friday, and although the DZ apparently has bunking arrangements I would like to have a good night's sleep before the hours of pretty critical training! I think thats all, unless anyone else has anything to point on on some of the frequent mistakes made by newbies that I might have missed.

Thanks for the kind words everyone. Its a great community I've stumbled upon here! I'll let you know how it goes after the first jump (10th May). Have just sent you one!

Thanks for the welcome! As long as I get out of the plane on the first jump I hope I should be ok, and if I bottle it they can always drop me off at the golf course for the more sedate sport. I could have done my first jump this weekend, but I'm moving flats . Hopefully the weather will hold out - knowing my luck, it'll probably start snowing in a couple of weeks! Where do people normally jump? Looking at the DZ websites I reckon Strathallan is probably closer to myself (I'm in Glasgow) once I get past student level, but they don't do AFF training hence the jumping at St Andrews.

Hi all, Thought it would be appropriate to post a brief "Hello" message in here. I've just signed myself up for my first AFF jump at St Andrews DZ, in 3 weeks time, and currently going through a range of emotions (anticipation, excitement, what the hell have I signed myself up for ). I'm currently reading as much background information as I can on the whole sport, and just hoping time won't pass too slowly!