calledisrael

'his parachuting class'?? brian germain's? can you give me a context for what you are saying about this? or are we talking about john derosalia? just curious. i loved the book _transcending fear_ and corresponded a bit with brian about it, was so impressed by him. if he taught a class like that, i would be very interested. life is either a daring adventure or nothing at all. (helen keller)

yep, ya'll do. and it goes on my list of why i love that dz so very much. and sadly, it is very very rare. thanks for being those who actually teach people how to skydive - even those of us who don't come by it so easily. to the original poster: find an instructor that will help you. i did. and it reminded me why i love skydiving so much. i also really liked brian germain's book on this topic, which is focused on retaining your mental focus and stability and learning not to panic. good luck. life is either a daring adventure or nothing at all. (helen keller)

lol - thanks girl, that makes me feel better. mine looked just like that and i couldn't figure out why. i hit my belly on the mesh some and my legs on the walls, but not very hard (i thought) - i couldn't figure out how my knees were bruised... life is either a daring adventure or nothing at all. (helen keller)

i just wanted to post to say thanks to you skyventure orlando peeps for being amazing. i am still a student, and didn't get to fly in the tunnel as long as i wanted. it was harder than i expected, and more different from the sky than i first thought it would be. but i got to play with it, and find what i needed to do with my body to make it move like i wanted, and how much input was too much (as the bruises on my knees will attest,) and that staying stable on your belly isn't that hard. (now, bodyflight is another story..) as i went back and watched the video, though, i watched myself really improve at some of it, and that was cool. it improved my freefall awareness and control for sure. it was SO worth it - even just for one session. my shoulders were too wrecked by the end to do more that day, although there is more in my future. paige - you might be one of the most cheerful, encouraging human beings i have ever met. you say yes to people and they believe they can do it. as i have looked back at all these photos, you have the biggest, most welcoming smile in every one. very happy birthday to you - and you made mine one of the most memorable ever.

from the other side, i thought i would add another point about this. recently when i had to do a recurrency class at a new dropzone, as we walked around and did different things, my instructor made a point of introducing me to different people. this is ___ and you can listen to him. sometimes it was on specific issues. this is ____ and he knows alot about canopy piloting, so watch him on that. it is helpful to me as a student to understand who i should listen to, and i think has developed a sort of cool culture at that (fairly large) dz where lots of people *think* they should be listened to... they still may come up and say stuff, but i know who he told me i can really listen to - and it will help me build good relationships. life is either a daring adventure or nothing at all. (helen keller)

i realized recently (stupid me) that this is why i do so much better at floating exits - i don't have to look at the ground. too much anticipation when i am trying to set up in the door and looking way down there. you would think my brain would take issue with the fact that i am hanging on to the OUTSIDE of a plane that is in flight, but that part has never really bothered me. stewart suggested i just keep my eyes closed when i am trying to diving exit, but i am not quite sure how to make that one happen.. life is either a daring adventure or nothing at all. (helen keller)

jason!!! those curls were so beautiful... sad times.. life is either a daring adventure or nothing at all. (helen keller)

congratulations, kathleen. i remember sitting in on your ground school class, you asking questions and wondering if your muscles were too sore to arch... it has been quite a trip, i know, but you are doing awesome. i am very proud of you!! now come over and jump with me!! life is either a daring adventure or nothing at all. (helen keller)

happy birthday, dave!!

not planning on jumping there - just to go watch 4way. there is a canopy course at our DZ and i am not sure i could jump on saturday, even if i went, so i might just go hang out at spaceland and watch. call me and let me know if you want to

laughing... wow. that's awesome. yep, planning to come on over and watch TSL this weekend. spaceland is not too far, and i need to meet some more local types. go 4fun and team america!! woo-hoo!! life is either a daring adventure or nothing at all. (helen keller)

when you check the weather fourteen times a day - even when you know you have to work and can't go jumping anyway. when you practice your exits standing on the side of the bathtub using the shower curtain bar to float off of. when you decide to drive over to watch the 4way meet at spaceland just because, well, if i can't jump (usually because the winds are high and i'm still a student) at least SOMEONE is jumping. life is either a daring adventure or nothing at all. (helen keller)

yeah, they are pretty good sports, i just don't usually wear my longhorn tshirts. they let me jump with them and drink with them... i just have to wear maroon. :-) life is either a daring adventure or nothing at all. (helen keller)

oh my gosh yes. i got recurrent this weekend after being out for seven months (injury.) it sucked. i was nervous, and my jump wasn't very good. (well, the JUMPING was great, but my 'performance' or whatever you would call it was way less than stellar...) i was desperately reminded of how important it is to be current. i was worried i wouldn't like it anymore, which was wrong - but i didn't review some things i should have beforehand, which i now am starkly reminded of. (of course, i am still just a student...) good reminder, guys.

here here. it's depressing. after seven months off for a shoulder injury... i am finally cleared to jump again. i have to work on sundays, and so can only jump on friday and saturday. and here we are... third weekend in a row i drove to the dz, only to be completely weathered out. the worst part was that it was finally perfect weather today, clear and sunny and only light wind... and here i am at work. life is either a daring adventure or nothing at all. (helen keller)

i found that using a yoga ball and pilates helped me with this. it is all about muscular control and good body position. and lots and lots of practice. life is either a daring adventure or nothing at all. (helen keller)

hey, i feel ya. after 7 months out for a shoulder injury, i went and sat all last weekend to get recurrent. and my (awesome) dropzone is 2+ hrs away! i got all ready, we planned the dive, winds looked good, i held my emotions together - and when we got to altitude the wind had jumped way too high. talk about depressing. it's why when this week there was one blue sky day, i hopped it over to the really nearby (7-day) dropzone, which i don't like as well... the calm wind blue sky days have been VERY few lately. i am scheduled for friday at 2... we'll see... good luck. i originally did FJC in january, and wished they had explained to us that january and february in texas are often too windy... life is either a daring adventure or nothing at all. (helen keller)

i'm sure it will be cool. i actually went a little crazy and "cheated" and did a jump away from home last week, and like you say, felt a little bad about it. but we're all in this to jump... and there's not a problem here or something bad, you are just looking to get a piece of the sky... (and i know this is true about my home dz) they are in this that you be a good, safe skydiver, and if this is part of you getting there, then i think they will be all for it. like you, i am SO loyal to my dropzone because they are SO good to students. these are the guys i want to skydive like, the ones i trust and want to emulate. that's not changing, though. they are as weather-frustrated as you are. go to eloy if you want to. and then come home and be that much more into it, and they'll be in it with you, i imagine. wow, i thought we were having crappy jumping weather here in texas... i can't imagine what wisconsin is like right now... life is either a daring adventure or nothing at all. (helen keller)

i was in afghanistan this summer, and went onto the base at camp kabul to buy some stuff at the PX. i met this really cool guy who was appointed to be our escort, and it turned out that he was a jumper. said that the big thing at camp kabul (since hey, there's not much nightlife) was to jump with the germans and you got special wings for it. offered to let me come and jump with them.

um, freebirds. i can't even stand chipotle comparatively... and i have never heard of qdoba. come to texas and try them.. life is either a daring adventure or nothing at all. (helen keller)

i was told this same thing by an AFFI this week... i just had my first jump post-my shoulder repair - and it was awesome!! i am really glad that i got it done, and now with all the rehab my right shoulder is well stronger than my left. i haven't switched to left-hand because i wanted to get it fixed and didn't want to retrain - although i am comforted by the fact that it could be an option for me if necessary. just wanted to throw in that being unable to use an arm in freefall (as you have seen) is a REALLY bad feeling. whether or not it requires repair, you want an orthopedist to look at your joints and see if there are reasons why you are predisposed to dislocate. life is either a daring adventure or nothing at all. (helen keller)

hey - i know exactly how you feel. i had an accident on aff 6, and the jump that followed it was excruciating. (actually, the jump was great - the anticipation of it and the plane to altitude were what sucked.) we trained and trained and trained for that jump, and the guy who jumped with me was so confident. (he yelled at me alot in the plane. 'are you a skydiver?' 'yes, i'm a skydiver!' i had to own it.) i was a slightly nervous student... and instruction was hard for me. i wanted more encouragement than i was actually getting. my original affi was incredibly technically competent and a really amazing flyer - he just wasn't that emotional about his jumping, and i needed a bit more of that, especially after my incident. i gave myself the space to need that and ended up finding an instructor who i trusted so much, he was very qualified but also a very good teacher and encourager, and he was as committed to me being a good skydiver as i was. i haven't jumped in six months because i had to get my shoulder repaired, and i have moved across the state in the interim. but i can tell you for sure that in three weeks and six days when i can jump again i am headed right back to that dz because i trust these guys and know they will help me get back in and be well-trained. i would do pretty much anything mark wanted me to, because i know he is with me. and that (for me at least) is the sort of environment i learn well in. so good luck to you. take space when you need it. if you don't feel good about jumping, don't do it. but train, visualize, stay current and familiar, and find an instructor who you really do feel completely safe with. life is either a daring adventure or nothing at all. (helen keller)

he's awesome. thoughtful, competent, talented, really good at teaching and committed to students, fun on the plane (he sings), gets everyone relaxed all the way around, looks out for people, doesn't talk negatively about people or dzs, is committed to the sport and having a good environment for everyone, packs a damn good reserve , and his hair always looks amazing on film. i am quite a fan. life is either a daring adventure or nothing at all. (helen keller)

i have a classics degree and was a high school latin teacher. pm me if you still need some translation.

when i had my shoulder repaired, jumping was the only thing the nurses wanted to ask me about. it was kind of weird to be in the hospital, and talking nonstop about skydiving... even my anesthesiologist while he put me under. guess he thought it made me relaxed. life is either a daring adventure or nothing at all. (helen keller)