DZJ

I am forced to conclude that there is at least one very old man living in Knoxville, Iowa.

My last jump was a helicopter jump from 6500', from a Jet Ranger. It was fantastic fun! I climbed out, down onto the skid and dangled there for a few seconds, then simply released and dropped away.

I'm not a tandem instructor (only ever once been a tandem passenger, come to that), but was wondering what TI's tend to say (if anything) to their students after a cutaway and reserve ride. Some have posted (here and elsewhere) to say that students often simply don't realise that anything had gone wrong. Do TI's prefer to tell them or simply not mention it to avoid possibly freaking them out? Apologies if anyone feels this is an off-topic digression.

A tandem from 18,000'? Awesome! I tried describing my first tandem in an email to a friend. Rereading it now, it seems completely inadequate to describe the rush of freefall on the feeling of sitting in the sky under canopy.

I passed an 8-jump AFF course in 9 jumps (one level IV rejump), and qualified after 19 jumps in total.

I've jumped at Norfolk, but not for more than a year.

Before we get going, define 'worst'.

I open my 'chute, It blossoms to openness, My descent is slowed. My 'chute malfunctions It's a tangled ball of crap, So I chop and drop Reach for the silver, Pray that my reserve opens, Big and square, thank God! Back at the DZ, I claim my first cutaway, My mind turns to BEER!

I jump with the University College London Skydive Club, but I'm actually studying at King's.

Hi all, I'm familiar with AFF and RAPS, but was wondering what AFP and IAD stand for and how the training works. I've never encountered the last two in Britain, are they USPA systems?

RIP Chris Reeve - the original Superman, the original freeflyer.

To me, jumping is the feeling of perfect freedom. Getting out the door and having a minute of complete 3-dimensional freedom. It's confronting fear and defying it, facing certain death and saving my life, of sitting under canopy and watching a busy world rush around beneath me, of flying through cloud and appreciating the beauty of the earth and sky.

Cool stuff, congrats to her.

If you're doing a solo jump (static line or AFF Level I), then try finding yourself a quiet place, sit down, close your eyes and picture the jump in your mind. Run through it from the very beginning, make the mental image as bright and as positive as you can. Run through the whole jump from walking out to the plane to take off, the ride to altitude, moving towards the door, exiting, through freefall (if any) under canopy to landing and walking back with your parachute. Imagine everything going perfectly to plan and the feeling of pride and satisfaction in yourself afterwards. Also, physically rehearsing all your drills will make it easier when the time comes. If you're doing a tandem jump, then things are much simpler. Simply remember what you're told by your instructor at briefing, keep it in your mind and try and relax! Skydiving is an awesome rush that is tinged with the excitement of risk. Acknowledge the risk but don't let it freak you out, and remember that your tandem instructor is a highly experienced and qualified skydiver.

While I was doing AFF, I found that the ride to altitude never scared me as much as the few seconds between the first jumpers exiting and the last seconds shuffling towards the door. As soon as I started doing my hotel checks, though, I found I was fine - concentrating on my drill took the nerves away.

I did a tandem a year before starting AFF, without intending at the time to go on and get involved in the sport. I can't imagine it improved my technique much, but I think it was good to have experienced the noise and rush of freefall, opening shock and groundrush before doing AFF - gave me some idea of what to expect.

I managed 12 jumps in three days at Langar this summer. Something of a personal record, but that's not saying a lot at my experience.

In my limited experience, just mentioning that I skydive is enough to excite people's interest. The vast majority of people have never even met a skydiver, never mind chatted to one and discovered that we aren't suicidal, deathwish-crazed maniacs. There have been a couple of people that have been fascinated, and grilled me about every detail of a jump, almost to the point of going to second-by-second detail. And there are others, of course, who aren't interested. I don't seek to recruit, but I do encourage those that show an interest to pursue it.

Yeah, better. I expect you probably wanted to have the word 'SKYDIVE' visible on the underside of the wing, but I think having that in view made the subjects too small.

Cool poster, but I'd agree that a canopy pic would be good. Also, the exit pic in the top left is good, but I think it needs cropping a little tighter to put more emphasis on the faces of the student and instructor.

How many rigs was he using?

Not had one yet (hardly got any jumps, so I'm not too surprised), but I try and practice my cutaway and reserve drills as if I'm due for a mal on my next jump.

About Dresden, you should disregard any claims of casualties beyond 100,000 - there isn't any primary evidence to support such claims.

Can understand that. I suppose my 6,000 must seem stratospheric compared to that, but I know what you mean. Jumping from 6k felt like leaping off a roof after being used to going from 14k. Just go for it, and look forward to a nice soft opening.

I don't know what altitude you're doing your hop and pop from, but you really needn't worry. Just exit, arch stable and pull. My last jump for my A-licence was a 6000' hop and pop and it really isn't something to worry about.