Jeth

Congrats!

I graduated from SDC's AFP back in May. Back when I started reading the posts here and talking to other students I was surprised to find out how large of canopies they were using. My very first AFP jump was under a Sabre2 190, which put me at about .9:1. Many of my fellow students were downsized to 1:1 before they graduated. I was kept on a 190, and bought one after graduation. But after getting my license I heard from many people that my canopy was too big for me. I just bought a 170, and I feel like it is a good canopy for me. I demo'd a few different ones and I didn't feel like it was too fast for me. I stood up all my landings under them, and hit my target almost every time. When I was under the 190 around 40-50 jumps, it felt very slow and non-responsive for me. I was always the last one down, and with just a little wind I got zero penetration and had to land off. (It was a slightly used F-111) As a student under the 190, it felt slow enough. Only once I was scared of how fast I was coming in because I was downwind. I appreciate that SDC uses "real-world" canopies in their training. I couldn't imagine training under some huge 250+ canopy with a ripcord and then trying to downsize to a "normal" size after graduation. I'm glad I used the same equipment in training that I'd use as a licensed jumper. However, I do feel like they could've taught me more about canopy flight. I think Roger intended for this, but in my experience, they seemed to neglect it somewhat. There were canopy objectives listed in the syllabus, but none of my instructors ever prepped me for them, or asked about them in the de-brief. It was much more about the freefall skills. (Note: This is just my experience. I have heard others say they got more canopy instruction. ) As far as this chart -- with my new 170 I am over. But like I said, based on many recommendations and my own feeling with the demos I flew, I feel comfortable under the 170. (I actually got a few recommendations for a 150!) I plan to keep it for many years and 100's of jumps. I will also be taking Scott Miller's course in the spring, which I am really looking forward to. I know I still have a ton to learn. I think this sort of thing is too hard to regulate just based on some static chart. I have seen so many people of different abilities. Some of my fellow students rocked their training and were really good pilots. Others struggled and had many bad landings. (But then they eventually learned and got better.) I think it's a bad idea to make this chart a requirement -- too many variables play into it. Just my 2 cents.

I am a roller coaster JUNKIE!!

I think this poll was posted a few times before. Mine was at 17. He was 20. "At 13,000 feet nothing else matters." PFRX!!!!! Team Funnel #174, Sunshine kisspass #109 My Jump Site

Yep. I don't know shit, but I did have to use my reserve, and I second this. And just FYI, I was in a very unstable position with a mess over my head, and my reserve came out clean and fast, just like it's supposed to.

CONGRATS, Kathleen!!! Way to go!!!! I'm so happy for you that you made it!! Now the real fun begins! And the real learning! But it only gets better from here. I'm sure you'll find all the the stress/frustration/heartache of student training totally worth it. I know I did. Congrats!!

Wow, lots of fans of Canons. I personally don't like the Canons. The IS is nice, but I don't like their menu system or where they put the controls. I voted other and say U gotta go with OLYMPUS!! I have owned 4 different Olympus digicams over the years and they rock. The buttons and controls are very easy to use and there are some great shortcuts. The pictures are fantastic as well. Many pros use Olympus. If you want to compare and read some good reviews, I recommend the following sites: Steve's Digicams Cnet.com Photographyreview.com "At 13,000 feet nothing else matters." PFRX!!!!! Team Funnel #174, Sunshine kisspass #109 My Jump Site

Ditto. Love it. Didn't know about that IE plug-in, though. Might have to look into that. It always pisses me off when web sites have IE-only content. "At 13,000 feet nothing else matters." PFRX!!!!! Team Funnel #174, Sunshine kisspass #109 My Jump Site

I totally agree! But, unfortunately, I think many companies do handle it like people have said, they just stick to the hard skills/experience. Maybe cuz they have so many resumes to go through, they have to narrow them down somehow. I find it very frustrating, though. I often say things like "If they just got to know me, they would want to hire me!" But you don't even get in the door unless your skills match their filter software perfectly. I guess I just try to beef up my skills section with good keywords so that I get that call. Then I hope they will try to get to know me as a person in the interview. In my recent job search, I had a couple terrible interviews where all they did was grill me for hours. I didn't even get a chance to elaborate or offer anything else -- it was just if I had the exact answer or not. It WAS like they were looking for a damn robot! And it made me feel stupid. But then I finally had a great interview where they asked me questions about the bigger picture and my broader knowledge. They gave me time to explain what I had to offer, and also answered my questions about the company and themselves. They saw what I didn't know as potential to demonstrate my quick learning curve, not as a reason to not hire me. It was great. And I got that job.

Along those same lines.... A year ago today I thought "please let me NOT be working at this crappy place a year from now!" Even though I am still working here at this moment, I just signed an offer for a new job starting in a couple weeks, so I did meet my goal by the end of year!! "At 13,000 feet nothing else matters." PFRX!!!!! Team Funnel #174, Sunshine kisspass #109 My Jump Site

Hmmm.... seems to be that the people who are against it are very against it. (Which makes me think there would be some hiring manager out there looking at my resume who feels the same way! ) But then there are several people who have done it and would do it again. Interesting... Ya, I agree that I would only put it if I can somehow correlate it to the position I'm applying to. But considering I'm just a coding rat at the moment, I don't see how it could fit. Maybe when I get to the point of applying for a management position, then I can put my outside stuff on there as a sign of responsibility, diversity, handling pressure, etc. But that's okay, I just accepted an offer for a sweet job doing exactly what I wanted to, so life is good. BTW, Good luck to all you other IT peeps out there looking! Its tough out there with all these companies requiring exact skill sets and loads of experience. I was on the job hunt for over 2 years, pretty intensely this past year. I finally found something that I'm really excited about. I never thought it would happen, so I'm proof that if you just keep pounding the pavement, something WILL come up!

Thats pretty much what I figured. Are you a hiring manager? Good to know, thanks for the feedback.

Ya, I think I will continue to not have it on there. It can be fun to talk about if you have a good rapport with the interviewer, but it can also give the wrong impression to some people. If an interview is going well and we start chatting, I'm sure our common interests will come up.

Another post got me thinking about something. I am in the IT field. My resume is purely technical. Specific skills at the top, then education and experience. At the bottom I have professional memberships and certifications. I have never thought to put anything personal on there. When I was in college I had a bit of "fluff" just because I had no work experience. But since college, none of that. But I saw some other people say they do. So now I'm thinking -- maybe a section like this (at the bottom): "Interests and Hobbies: * World Travel * Photography * Licensed Skydiver * Member of American Coaster Enthusiasts * Vice President of South Loop Dog Park Action Cooperative" So should I? Any IT people have personal stuff on your resume? "At 13,000 feet nothing else matters." PFRX!!!!! Team Funnel #174, Sunshine kisspass #109 My Jump Site

Its funny you mentioned this -- I was just at an interview on Thursday and was pondering mentioning it. They seemed like cool guys, the interview was going well, and they seemed to like me. So I I felt comfortable mentioning it. (And besides, it might be that "cool" factor, and score some extra points ) But they never asked me my hobbies, so it never came up. But now that they've hired me, I don't have to worry about first impressions anymore so I'll definitely be telling them when it comes up. "At 13,000 feet nothing else matters." PFRX!!!!! Team Funnel #174, Sunshine kisspass #109 My Jump Site

LMAO! Dude, I love your sense of humor! "At 13,000 feet nothing else matters." PFRX!!!!! Team Funnel #174, Sunshine kisspass #109 My Jump Site

Harness "Higher Three RIG Attachment" Also, there was a post earlier that highlighted "it's" in an ad as wrong, but I think that was right cuz that is being used as a possessive, no? ("It's" meaning belonging to it.) Ok, I must have too much free time today! "At 13,000 feet nothing else matters." PFRX!!!!! Team Funnel #174, Sunshine kisspass #109 My Jump Site

Thanks! As a matter of fact, I am in negotiations on my new canopy right now!! (But thats only cuz I lost the one I chopped. ) But I'll definitely be using that extra dough for some jumps!! "At 13,000 feet nothing else matters." PFRX!!!!! Team Funnel #174, Sunshine kisspass #109 My Jump Site

You know it!! I've got a nice cold one right here! "At 13,000 feet nothing else matters." PFRX!!!!! Team Funnel #174, Sunshine kisspass #109 My Jump Site

YIPPEE!!! I'm finally outta that shithole I've called my office for the past 4+ years!!

Ok, here's mine... Yep, I think I did pretty good meeting my goals.

Kathleen, You go girl!!

I completely agree 100%. I was plenty aware (i.e. totally freaked) that I could die doing this on my 1st jump. Seeing that video would've just made me more upset, which wouldn't have made me any safer. (BTW, I didn't have to watch any crashes/see fatality pics in drivers ed.) "At 13,000 feet nothing else matters." PFRX!!!!! Team Funnel #174, Sunshine kisspass #109 My Jump Site

Software developer here. Love the field but hate my job. Currently active in trying to get a better one. But even though I hate it, it does pay for my very expensive hobby. I'm thankful that I don't have to live on ramen noodles to skydive.

Wow, that sounds exactly like my C-182 experience! Except in mine, I DID practice the exit, but STILL had trouble hanging on! I, too, gave up and just dove out. But in my defense, it was also raining out which made it 100x more unpleasant. I am planning on going back to that dz so I can try it again on a nice day. "At 13,000 feet nothing else matters." PFRX!!!!! Team Funnel #174, Sunshine kisspass #109 My Jump Site