peregrinerose

A LOT of people feel sick/nauseous after a tandem due to the way the harness fits, forgetting to breathe, etc., so blaming the dissection on the tandem at all might be a bit of a stretch. It may not be related at all. The kind of trauma that would cause a carotid dissection is pretty high... like car accident kind of caliber. I can't imagine what would happen during a tandem that would be that severe, other than an extremely hard opening which the instructor would have been feeling as well. Carotid dissections can just happen sporatically, without any kind of trauma at all. I'm not sure how the doctor would tell the difference between a sporatic and a traumatic dissection.... maybe there's a dz.com cardiologist that can jump in on that one. Do or do not, there is no try -Yoda

Don't you think you should have asked about this PRIOR to surgery???? Yeesh. Your flap will never heal down to 100%. The research shows that even 18 years after surgery, if you needed an enhancement (second procedure) done, they do not re-slice the cornea, they peel back the original flap and have at it. Dislocated flaps do happen, not a lot, but they happen. Skydiving is a very contact-rich sport. This is why I recommend that my skydivers get PRK and not LASIK. No flap, long term better safety profile, and a lot of the refractive surgeons are switching back to PRK over LASIK. I also suggest, for those who do opt for LASIK instead, to wait 2 months minimum. You want a good solid adhesion before taking a blow to the eye in freefall. Do or do not, there is no try -Yoda

I was definitely closer than 20 feet, but being that close made me even more hell bent on engaging in this insanity even more... this shit is fun!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

It is your responsibility as a health care consumer to know what your plan does or does not cover. I'd strongly suggest getting a copy of your policy and reading it cover to cover. Without knowing what is in there, how can you advocate for yourself? Do or do not, there is no try -Yoda

I had no issue at all getting life insurance as a skydiver. However when I was forced to get a 3 month temp health insurance plan while my husband switched jobs/benefits, the plan very clearly stated that they would not cover skydiving related injuries. Apparently somewhere in the big health care database in the sky, it's there that we jump. We didn't volunteer the information. As a result, the exclusion was very clear in the policy. Do or do not, there is no try -Yoda

So you don't let them pretend to drive cars or play shooting things either? Pretending should always be encouraged in kids. You're really overthinking this. Bring 'em to the dropzone occasionally, let them be around the sport. Just like everything else in life, they'll learn eventually that people can be hurt. Let them figure it out in their own time... kids are smart. The know a lot more than parents think they do. Even at very young ages. Do or do not, there is no try -Yoda

Ah, this was last year, but there is another one this year... Oct 8-9 I believe. Do or do not, there is no try -Yoda

I've only dealt with them once and it was very nice. They had a canopy waiting for me to demo at The Farm when I visited this summer. Since I jumped it there and I didn't park it in the trees or anything, they didn't charge me for the demo. I fell in love with the canopy, so when my old one sold a week later, they had the demo that I fell in love with shipped to me within 3 days of ordering/buying it from them. Do or do not, there is no try -Yoda

I am so sorry Do or do not, there is no try -Yoda

Thank you for that, and it's true. Fezzik is my first dog, and probably the only dog that will ever be truly mine, as he was mine as a single girl, and now I have a husband and son, so the other critters are family dogs. There will never be another 'my dog' in the same way. So he can't ever be replaced. Like you, I will definitely rescue again, and definitely another adult, likely a great dane next time as I just learned about a local rescue not long ago. All of my pets chose me, one way or another. I know that Fezzik would never steer me wrong. I spent over two hours lying on our deck reading a book, with Fezzik lying in the sun beside me. It was a good two hours. Do or do not, there is no try -Yoda

Damn dog. I come home from work and he trots over to say hi. Guess the prednisone took a while to work. So I canceled the euthanasia appt. for now, it will probably be next week. Lymph nodes are huge, he is having trouble walking, but still wants attention and to be with me. At least putting it off a little bit will make it more likely that or son can be there too. Do or do not, there is no try -Yoda

Thank you all for your thoughts. He is worse this am. When the vet's office opens, I'm going to get him scheduled for euthanization tonight. He's definitely saying 'it's time'. Do or do not, there is no try -Yoda

The one constant in my life, my rottie mix Fezzik, for the past 9 years, by far the pivotal point in my life, was diagnosed with terminal lymphosarcoma. He has at worst a few days, at best a few weeks. As soon as I bought a house, the first thing I did was march to the humane league and adopt the biggest dog I could find. He had on his kennel 'Hi, my name is Bob, and I'm a good boy. I just need someone to give me a chance.' I'll never forget those words or the look on his face when I crouched to pet him. It was love at first sight. When my ex met him, his first words were 'there is no way that dog is ever going to be in our house'. It was the first time I ever overruled him. My dog came home. When my ex would get aggressive with me, Fezzik would shove him away. I threw the ex out the day he kicked Fezzik because I made him angry for asking him to do laundry. Hitting me... fine. Hitting the dog... that's a game ender. Fezzik hated the guys I met online... with one exception. The man I married. I even used the dog as an excuse to sit closer to Chad on our first date. Fezzik was never allowed on the couch. Except that night. It gave me a good reason to nuzzle a bit closer to this man that really captivated my attention from the second our eyes met at the front door step. Fezzik has been there through a divorce, a bad relationship, a good relationship that hit horrible times, a double fatality that messed with my head, the drama with Tyson... everything. He is my constant. He loves me no matter what. His head, with the exception of the last two days, is always on my lap. His head always in my hand. His eyes follow me everywhere, and I'm the only person he listens to. My heart is breaking, because he's in pain and I can't help him. He's on prednisone and an antibiotic to help keep him comfortable, but according to the vet, within days to a couple of weeks, it will be time to let him go. He was the most amazing companion a girl could ask for. He is my first dog. The only dog that's ever been totally mine. It's a Goldschlagger night, as that's what I drink when in a horrible state. The last time I drank the stuff was after seeing a skydiving double fatality. Why can't Fezzik be immortal?? Do or do not, there is no try -Yoda

Personally.... I was on the very next load I could get on (first load the following morning), I drank a lot, got a little counseling, and will never forget the lessons that I learned that day (it was a double fatality at a boogie, the jumpers landed about 50 ft from where I was standing after helping tandems land in winds high enough that I opted not to jump, I saw the entire incident) Do or do not, there is no try -Yoda

I love it when you post pics of your collection, it makes me happy to see that my first container, which still has sentimental value to me, has a good home with lots of friends

I was in this situation... or very close to it. Unemployment wasn't nearly enough to keep the bills paid. So I sold my backup rig. Would have sold more gear too if necessary, but Chad got a job soon enough that it wasn't needed. Do or do not, there is no try -Yoda

We just made our first jumps at WTS and have nothing but praise for Mike, the staff, and the fun jumpers there. We had no problem finding other people to jump with. The plane is fucking sweet beyond all words. The only thing I didn't like about our trip there was that I didn't have more time to stick around and make more jumps, due to 'relative work' obligations. Do or do not, there is no try -Yoda

Just wanted to thank everyone for the comments on here. I never did get to make a jump on a 135, but while at The Farm, was able to make a couple of demo jumps on a 120 Nitro and fell in love. I think it's going to be my next canopy. Do or do not, there is no try -Yoda

I live in a renovated barn, so have a parachute hanger upstairs, on a pulley system attached to a barn beam adjacent to the barn loft (which is also my rigging loft). Mine is made using two wooden painting poles, the kind that you can screw into paint rollers for longer reach. The screwy ends were put into a piece of pvc and duct taped at the joints. Eye loops were drilled into the wood, and the clamps are hooked on with wire. It cost me almost nothing to make since it was done with parts I already had. Do or do not, there is no try -Yoda

I was up to my ears in student loan debt when I started jumping, so spent 3 years working every weekend as a packer. I made extremely good money that way, more than enough to finance skydiving. I only quit working as a packer when I got my AFF rating, so skydiving pays for itself now. Do or do not, there is no try -Yoda

Relax, grasshopper... and spend a LOT more time at your home DZ than asking questions on the internet. You'll find that you'll end up far more confused as a student with all the questions here. At this point in your skydiving career, you need to put a lot more faith in the instructors that know you and are working with you than a bunch of random strangers online. As an instructor, I've found that early on (pre-license) the students that read the most on here have a much harder time keeping things straight on their AFF/coaching dives as they have too many viewpoints and suggestions rattling in their brains, too much overload. Later (post-license), this is a great place to read to get bits of information or open doors to possibilities that you then question your former instructors about, it will foster learning. For now, relax! This, by the way, will also solve your kicking issue. One notorious swimmer student I had several years ago kept swimming for his first 50 or so jumps. He's now working his way toward an AFF I rating himself. All of us started where you are now, don't be so hard on yourself, spend lots of time at the DZ watching and learning, even if you are grounded from jumping for a while. You'll learn more on the ground at the DZ watching other students get trained, sitting in on first jump courses, maybe learn how to pack in your down time. There are many things you can be doing. Surfing the internet for answers right now.. it's not really the best time for that yet.

You're not the first student to face plant a step, and you won't be the last. The students that I've seen eat step tended to have their heads down on exit rather than back and looking at the prop, or they tried to get belly to earth really fast by bringing their head down rather than ride the hill and let gravity take it's course. Keep your head back... your body follows your head. Head back will help with a great arch, stability, your swimming back to the plane habit, awareness, heading, and a lot of other things. Plus it's really hard to eat step that way. Hope you get the dental work fast! Do or do not, there is no try -Yoda

Is Sky's the Limit open July 5 for jumping? If so, are you going to be there that day? I was thinking about heading up there that Monday anyhow. Do or do not, there is no try -Yoda

I don't know that I want to commit to buying one without having jumped one first, that's my problem. Do or do not, there is no try -Yoda

Ok, I've contacted Chutingstar, as well as 4 other sources for Nitro/Nitrons. Everyone has 120s. No 135s. Any other ideas? Mike is going to have a demo 120 for me when I'm at the Farm anyhow in July, but I'd really like a jump or two on a 135 before that if possible. Do or do not, there is no try -Yoda