tigra

Personally, I think a little fear shows healthy respect for the dangerous nature of this sport. Its a good thing, just don't let it overpower you. I just made my first jump since October on a brand new canopy 2 weeks ago, and I had some jitters. I did a hop and pop- it was the perfect cure, but everyone else thought I was nuts! Any fear went away as soon as I stepped out of the plane. I landed with a stupid grin on my face that didn't go away until I was back at work 2 days later.

Alex- If you had a brake unstow on opening, you opened off heading in a turn, with a canopy you could not fully control. This is a potentially very dangerous situation. Please, talk to a rigger or packer about setting your brakes properly so they stay stowed until you want them and then unstow with little effort. There are a few different ways to do it. It sounds like your riser covers are catching on the excess line as your canopy opens, and that is not cool. Be safe! Edited by tigra on 3/13/01 03:47 PM.

Pin checks are pretty common in the airplane, for everyone. And, we all try and look out for each other, so if anyone sees something wrong with another person's rig, they would stop the person and fix it. Someone is always rushing to make a load, so s#$@ happens no matter how many jumps you have. I'll tuck in riser covers, adjust a hackey or pilot chute if it doesn't look right, that kind of thing. And others have done the same for me. Not exactly a formal gear check, but.....

Its a good idea to check your insurance policies, even without this new regulation. Some policies have a "dangerous sports" exclusion. Getting injured is not something any of us like to think about, but it can happen. And depending on the circumstances, lying about how the injury happened is not always an option. I figure my broken ankle set my HMO back about $30,000. 2 surgeries, 1 overnight hospital stay, doctors visits, physical therapy, Xrays etc. Without insurance, I don't know what I would have done.

Cutting away first could actually CAUSE a nasty main reserve entanglement. I have a friend recovering from 2 broken legs and a broken back as a result. Please be careful!

Depends on the dz, really. Call first, bring your log book, any videos, that kind of thing. Don't be surprised if they make you take a written test or strongly suggest (insist) you jump with a "coach" or JM. They are looking out for your safety, not just avoiding liabilty.

Most of our student goggles were beat up and crappy, so goggles were my first purchase, after AFP 3. And there is the YUK factor of wearing something on your face that someone else just took off. I don't think that's wierd at all, Carrie! Goggles are kind of a personal item, in my opinion.

Glad you found people to play with!

Has a doctor looked at it, and if so what does he(she) say? If it was serious enough to ground you, you should have it checked out by a good orthopedist or sports medicine specialist. Here's another test: Can you run? Can you jump off a table and land on your feet without pain? If not, I would say wait at least until you can. Why risk it? I know its hard to stay on the ground. I've been there myself. If you do decide you absolutely have to make a jump, look into a larger canopy maybe, and a good knee brace, and practice your butt slides! Be careful!

Just be careful when stowing your brakes. (The excess line that you can "S-fold" under the velcro.) This method doesn't work too well with the velcroless toggles and you could end up with a mal. Ask a rigger for the best method. There's a few different ways to do it. Matt- what did you think of the Wings container? I just bought one.

I don't know about your DZ, but where I jump there are plenty of interesting people who have real jobs and don't smuggle drugs to support their habit. They live day to day lives with families and everything. I think they could make a very interesting movie or tv series about the people at my dz, and the things that happen up in the air and on the ground, without resorting to cheezy plot lines. I thought Cutaway portrayed skydivers in a very negative stereotypical way, and I was disappointed. But, some of the skydiving scenes were cool, and after watching my fiance practice 10 way on a very competetive team 2 years in a row, I got a kick out of the team stuff too. I just think they could have done better. Just my .02 Blue ones!

I really did not want to jump into this, because I am a "chick" and I have had a hard time with my landings in the past. When I was a student, it took me much longer to get it than most of my male friends. When everything had finally started to click, I made a dumb mistake and broke my ankle. Since then, I am always very careful to the point of being chicken. When in doubt, I tend to pick up my feet and slide. I've got the butt slide down to a science, and I'm pretty good at the old PLF as well! But, yes, Lisa, we do kick ass in freefall, as a general rule. More relaxed, and better arches.

While you are going through AFF, you can (and should) use the dz's jumpsuits and helmet and altimeter. I would recommend your first purchase be a pair of goggles and gloves. Relatively inexpensive, and a good investment. You don't want to be stuck with goggles that don't fit properly or someone else's gnarly sweaty gloves which also may not fit. After you graduate, if you plan to do RW, you should get a jumpsuit with grippers, sized to fit you, with a cut and fabric to match up with your fall rate needs. If you fall faster, a looser suit, high drag fabric. If you are floaty, a tight suit, more slick material. You won't know what you need til you have a few jumps under your belt. If you are lucky, you may be able to find a used suit which will work for you. Make a decision on your helmet after you graduate and decide what kind of skydiving you want to spend most of your time doing. Blue skies!

Carrie, Unless they've changed the license requirements, you should be able to get your C license without doing any night jumps. The night jumps are required for a D license. At least that's how it used to be.... And Screamer, Carrie is right, there should be some experienced jumpers out there who would be willing to make some jumps with you without you having to pay for them. If you want coaching, paying someone is not a bad idea, but if you are just looking for fun rw 2 ways you should be able to find a buddy to jump with. Keep in mind that weekdays are slower around most dzs. Have fun and stay safe!

You're just trying to start trouble!

It depends on what kind of jumping I am doing. RW with relatively large groups (10-20ish) take a little longer to get organized, plus we are taking up most of the plane. Organize, dirt dive, manifest, gear up, dirt dive some more, jump, land, debrief, pack and start over. The whole process takes awhile! I notice the freeflyers at my dz can do a lot more jumps in one day because their groups are smaller and the dives aren't engineered quite as meticulously. They are more like, jump, pack, watch the video, jump, pack, watch the video........ Personally, I don't like doing much more than 5 in a day. I get tired from all that jumping, dirt diving and packing. And my bank account gets a little tired too! But I am fortunate to jump at a large dz which usually has a least two twin otters flying in the summer, sometimes 3 and a dc 3. Waiting for loads isn't usually an issue, so if I want to jump more, I can.

I also jump at a large dz, and yes, sometimes you do have to defer to the PILOT (not just GPS) to choose the spot. The pilot is doing more than just checking for traffic though- he'll get in lots of trouble if all the tandem masters land out and new tandems have to wait for them. Our pilots will take corrections, but they don't like to do go arounds or second passes. The idea is to drop the load, land and go up again. So if you are leaving late after more than one group, all on the same pass, plan on looking down and pulling high.

Twice ( a few years ago) I had a brake line which was hung up, sort of tangled and would not "unstow"- one I had packed, another someone else did. (velcroless toggles when they were "new", my packer and I were both stowing them with "s" folds, which works fine when you have the velcro) Put me in to a spiral, not radical but disorienting all the same, and the first time I would have chopped, but had a hard time getting hold of the pillow (because of the spiral) finally I pulled down on the other toggle which stopped the turn, big light bulb there!, which not only made me able to chop, but more importantly, made it easier to clear the tangle in my brake line, which is what I did. When the same thing happened a few weeks later, I knew what to do. Luckily, the first time I had enough altitude to work with it, it was a low speed mal, even with the spiral, and I had pulled a little high and reached for my toggles right away. The second time, I had a long spot and steered with my risers til about 1000'- too low to chop by the time I discovered my problem. If I couldn't clear it, I was thinking about how to I was going to land it, if I could flare with my rear risers and one brake unstowed, and planning on a rough one! But I also learned a new way to stow my brakes and have not had that problem since. Blue ones!

I jump a plain basic garden variety Dytter. There is only one setting, which you set yourself. Its smaller than the pro-tracks and pro-dytters. No digital display, no computer interface, nothing like that. But I like it just fine. It would make me sad to think they aren't sold anymore.

You are absolutely correct. The jumpers on load 1 are the wind drift indicaters! FYI- I've been one many times! Edited by tigra on 2/28/01 03:23 PM.

I'm with Skybytch. Personally, I really want to improve my spotting skills. I know the basics, and do look before I leap! I've been jumping for 5 years, and usually I don't have to spot- the pilot or the organizer of the first group out does it, but it is important to know how. Yes, it is becoming something of a lost art, but take the time and learn the basics. Try it, but be prepared to make some mistakes. (OK, don't try it over a gator infested swamp, or over the ocean- safety first, give yourself some outs!) I remember one jump, I was first out with a friend, just a 2 way and a plane full of students. Ground winds were light, but the uppers were honking which I hadn't realized. I thought the pilot was taking us way too far out, and left early. Big mistake! My friend landed in a bean field, had along hike back, and I ended up in a cow pasture, and had to turn a little low and plf to avoid a fence. It was not pretty! And the cows weren't too happy about it either! But, no injuries, aside from my ego- even my jump suit came clean! So chalk it up as a learning experience.

I'm with Andy, just to clarify my earlier post. The only times I have ever pulled below 2500' have been special circumstances, like big ways where it was more important to get clear of any traffic, and then it was 2000' for everyone's safety. (Larger dives have staged breakoffs and specific deployment altitudes, depending on where you are docking; if you are on the outside you turn and track first, and you track the furthest. The nice thing about it is very little traffic when you are landing.) Given the option, I like to be COMFORTABLY in the saddle by 2000' which generally means pulling between 3000' and 2500', but I've been jumping a Sabre which opens pretty quick. I just got a new Spectre and may need to adjust my deployment altitude accordingly. I'm expecting much nicer, slower openeings from it. Blue ones!

Are you licensed, and how many jumps do you have? And at what altitude did you pull when people told you you were low? Because all of that makes a difference. I have a C license, just under 500 jumps, and personally, I like to be comfortably in the saddle by 2000'. The only time I have pulled as low as 2000' has been when I've been on big skydives, 60 to 100 people, and I was on the outer ring. Breaking off at 5000' and tracking like hell to 2000'. Ordinarily, I like to pull between 2500' and 3000', which is pretty normal for my dz, although there are always a few who go lower. If you are planning to pull any higher, you should notify the other people on your load so the exit order can be adjusted. If I'm last out, I'll go a little higher because the spot might be kind of iffy at that point, plus sometimes a longer canopy ride is OK, as long as there is no one above me! I should clarify that I am used to jumping out of a twin otter, with a capacity for 23 skydivers, and sometimes several groups go on just one pass. So, deployment altitude makes a difference as far as exit order! I will tell you that if you are jumping a cypres, you need to pull by 2000', because if your canopy snivels at all, any lower will put you in firing range. And if you are jumping an FXC, keep it conservative and pull between 3000' and 3500'. I know someone who had his fire 3 times in as many weeks, but didn't connect it to the fact that he was dumping at 2500'!(the fxc has a larger margin for error, and tends to err on the side of firing too high, not the other way around- set it for 1000', it might just go at 2000' while your main is in the process of opening.) The SIM (USPA/BSRs) publishes guidelines for each license, I believe 3000' for an A, 2500 for a B? Correct me if I'm wrong, I haven't had it out in a while! Personally, I think anything below 2000' is pushing the envelope, no matter how experienced you are. Give yourself some time in case of a malfunction, and don't test your cypres! And especially if your are fairly new to the sport, you can expect more experienced jumpers to tell you if they feel you have done something unsafe. Hopefully, they will do it gently, tactfully and constructively, but I know that's not always how it goes. Try and take it in the spirit it was intended, safety for you and others being the main goal, and learn from it. If someone told you you were low, my guess is you probably were. And as far as pulling high, that's only an issue if there are people exiting behind you, or a boogie where there is more than one plane flying and dropping jumpers. Under those circumstances, if you are planning to pull above 3000- 3500', you need to let someone know, the pilot, or a jumpmaster in charge of the plane or manifest. But I think its a good idea to pull high if you are jumping new gear, borrowed gear, unfamiliar gear, or if you haven't jumped in a while. Hope that's helpful! Blue ones! t

right, the extra material still catches air and flies a little differently. Not quite the same as wings, but the same idea. Try rolling your shoulders in a little, and bring your arms in close to your sides, legs together, point your toes. You just have to make more of a concentrated effort than you would in an RW suit! But I know the freeflyers at my dz can really track. You just need to adjust to the suit! Blue ones!

Its not you, its the suit! All the extra material in the wing and legs is catching air, but I guess you knew that. RW suits are designed for tracking, especially if you have booties. Makes a big difference. I can barely track in my sit suit, but the sit jumps I've done have been small, so separation was not as critical an issue-not like being on the outer rim of a 60 way! Keep working at it, I'm sure you will make the adjustment.