calledisrael

i mentioned it yesterday in an interview. he offered me the job, and then asked me to take him skydiving. i pulled out the map and he helped me figure out directions to the nearest dz. which nicely enough would be 30 miles, compared to the 100+ i currently drive... life is either a daring adventure or nothing at all. (helen keller)

i have only jumped at three dzs (all in texas) and watched similar scenarios at two of them. in both cases, people were watching who landed, and noting it, and watching for off landings/mals. they both did a great job of knowing where everyone was and sending the truck after people. when i had an accident and off landing on aff, they noticed, paid attention, and sent the truck - and help was there within minutes, before myself and my instructor managed to get up and get too far out of the field where we landed. the DZO and S&TA were both involved very quickly. i had two friends doing tandems on the load, and they were also cared for in the midst of the staff trying to figure out what had happened to us. life is either a daring adventure or nothing at all. (helen keller)

for me, it really helped me to switch dzs in the middle of aff. i wish it wouldn't have had to happen - and i could see reasons why it could be a negative thing... but it can also be a great help, and as you have clearly prepared for it for good reasons, i wouldn't imagine you would have many problems. life is either a daring adventure or nothing at all. (helen keller)

wow, ed's post was good - very helpful. i know he is a thoughtful instructor. i am a spoiled otter/caravan baby, and wouldn't know. i sometimes don't end up down the hill in the right place, but i have never worried about hitting the plane... either way, i am proud of you for hanging in and getting it done. you're not that crazy, not any more than any of us. life is either a daring adventure or nothing at all. (helen keller)

i am one of the ones who has dislocated three times in freefall - and had 12 other jumps with no problems at all. hard to tell why it does or doesn't come out sometimes. my counsel, for what it's worth, is that i would get your shoulder fixed, and then wear a good brace. you might be fine, and i can land my reserve perfectly well now with one hand. but shoulders just get worse when more crap happens to them, not better- and i think it isn't worth it. and needing your arm at terminal velocity and not having it is NOT a good feeling. as for the tunnel, i had the same problem. they seemed to say that the big risk was how likely it was that you would smash into the wall at some point. that for me is a different risk issue than actual jumping. re-dislocating is one thing, doing it when i need to be pulling is another. but mine is my right shoulder. good luck and be careful. it can sure be done. eight more weeks till i can jump again... life is either a daring adventure or nothing at all. (helen keller)

don't know much about sciatica but i will echo everyone else about stretching/activity. and screaming, i did a lot of screaming. i am 9 weeks post-surgery on my shoulder, and sometimes get days where it hurts alot - and i, too, hate pills. (i am appalled at how many people try to just tell me to take more vicodin, like THAT will fix it) stretching with rubber bands (from PT) usually really helps. nothing too strenuous, just slow, repetitive, resisted motion. i also tend to ice it for pain - apparently heat makes you feel good, but makes everything swell, so i am not sure if that is a good thing for your condition or not. as for dealing with not being active, it pretty much sucks. i finally am to the point that i can walk/bike/do most normal physical activity, at least with my lower body. i watch skydiving video online and try to do my PT so i can jump again in the spring. hope you feel better. life is either a daring adventure or nothing at all. (helen keller)

i never used to wear a watch, until i got my suunto. it was too interesting to be able to read the altitude and the barometer all the time.

welcome home. you may not be from texas, but we want you any way. safe travel... the trek across west texas is quite a journey. life is either a daring adventure or nothing at all. (helen keller)

i dislocated my shoulder twice on AFF. it wasn't actually fear about getting injured that would have kept me from jumping again, but my own pride about whether or not i could do what was necessary under canopy. i loved it so much. when i had my first injury, my favorite instructor just said to me 'don't let it end like this.' i knew i had to go back one more time to get over it... and when i did, i knew i could never stop this. there were a few instructors who told me that yes, they had expected me to quit and never come back. ha. showed them. i finally had surgery to fix my shoulder so that i don't ever have this problem again... and look forward to knocking out my license in the spring. life is either a daring adventure or nothing at all. (helen keller)

yay melissa! i am so proud of you. congratulations! i need to come out and drink beer with ya'll to celebrate... life is either a daring adventure or nothing at all. (helen keller)

i would totally agree. when the time comes and you know what you need to do, it will come. i have been injured both times that i needed to pull my reserve handle, and it has never been a problem. not that i assume that it never could be... but i am encouraged by the little experience that i have. life is either a daring adventure or nothing at all. (helen keller)

My instructor should now piss off and give me my best change of survival. (Let’s face it if I got away from the AFFI for the last 3000ft (15sec) what gives him the idea that he can catch me in the next 1000ft (5sec) till Cypess fire.) exactly. i am (obviously) not an instructor, but i was chased by my AFFI until cypres fire. i am thankful for his heart in that. but *i am the one who screwed up.* and while i wish he could have pulled me at the appropriate time, it was my job to save my own life. the likelihood of him being able to do it that low when he couldn't do it before (for whatever reason) is pretty small. i appreciated his responsibility to me as his student, and (now) i appreciate the thorough thrashing he (and other AFFIs) later gave to me. i am now a much better and safer skydiver because of it. all you AFFIs out there - you are amazing, and you do a really difficult job. thanks for putting yourselves out there to make skydivers out of us. please don't be in a position where *we* could kill you. life is either a daring adventure or nothing at all. (helen keller)

hey Eule, just wanted to say... keep at it. i felt sort of like you when i "graduated" aff with 14 jumps but still couldn't do much. going to another dz really helped me - it was sure not my instructor's fault before, but getting a new perspective at a really student-oriented dz SO helped me. i saw that someone suggested sd dallas - i have visited there and was so impressed. good luck - you can do this. life is either a daring adventure or nothing at all. (helen keller)

i am interviewing for a job soon in nashville and am interested in the same answer. it seems that with tullahoma still closed, the best options are alabama and the west TN place near memphis. which is closer? what is the difference? going up next weekend, and i was hoping to check out dzs - life is either a daring adventure or nothing at all. (helen keller)

same story for me. loose joints, he was surprised it took me 12 jumps to dislocate in freefall. not any more, though. a little arthroscopic surgery tightened my shoulder right up... no more dislocations, no sirree. it was the only way for me to go, ligaments don't get better they only get worse. life is either a daring adventure or nothing at all. (helen keller)

skydive aggieland. welcome to texas. life is either a daring adventure or nothing at all. (helen keller)

we catch tandems at the dz all the time, especially when the winds are high or there is alot of traffic. it mostly just helps the tms get the canopies collapsed faster and not get blown all away. it's one thing for me to get blown over when i land in the wind, which has happened, but it would be way harder if i had a person strapped to my front. i am sure that you did great.

on gmail, i can also get it to send me any article or news story that appears with the word skydiving in it. it's called a google alert. they all appear in my inbox, and it has proven to be pretty thorough. life is either a daring adventure or nothing at all. (helen keller)

i wish i was able to jump! and i have been working too much lately to get down there. but i miss all you aggieland family guys SO much... and i think you and morgan are both the greatest. congratulations to you both ~ i am so excited for your life together. life is either a daring adventure or nothing at all. (helen keller)

yes, shari, i definitely want to drive to bryan with you. life is either a daring adventure or nothing at all. (helen keller)

i was going to echo this. i thought i would be terrified of floating, but i started it with an sdu coach (who happened to be a pretty large guy, and took the pressure off of me) and did middle float a few times - and i LOVED it. easing in like that may help. life is either a daring adventure or nothing at all. (helen keller)

i love it. i drive almost two hours, and three dzs are closer. but these guys love what they do, and they have created a whole family around it. life is either a daring adventure or nothing at all. (helen keller)

i have not done it - but i have investigated alot about skydive u, and heard great things about it. my aff instructor is an SDU coach, and his incorporation of those techniques was amazing. i can only think that their fullfledged deal (it's in deland wherer they do it, right?) would be great. life is either a daring adventure or nothing at all. (helen keller)

hey, for real... be encouraged. i had an instructor (i've had two actually) who were not that encouraging, although they were technically incredibly proficient and knowledgeable skydivers - and i felt just like you. i would relax and give it a couple of jumps. i would talk to some other jumpers (not in place of your instructor... but if you need encouragement, go out and find someone to give it to you.) i like to go and hang out and watch students just to cheer for them; it helped me when people did that for me. talk to your instructor, and be patient with yourself. ask questions, alot. and have a thick skin about it. PM me if you want to talk more specifically about circumstances. aff was really hard for me, and i knew i wasn't going to quit, even when i sometimes felt like my instructos really wanted me to. in my case, in the end i went to a new dz and got a new instructor, and it changed my whole outlook on jumping. i hope you don't end up doing that, because i imagine your instructor really does want to help you. but in skydiving, it is worth it to get what you need. you can do this. life is either a daring adventure or nothing at all. (helen keller)

i - much to my shame and embarrassment, and to my extreme inexperience - had a total on aff 6, tumbled and lost all awareness, and ended up with a cypres fire. it took me a couple of weeks of intense training, counseling, thinking, and practice, to get back up and do right and not brain lock. four jumps later i dislocated my shoulder in freefall and had to pull silver... and had no hesitation to do it. i learned my lesson hardcore. and practiced, practiced, practiced till i was sick of it. like you say, i was slightly encouraged just to know that i *could* do it when i had to. not like having to cutaway or anything - but i definitely knew that i could think about it calmly and not panic. now i am healing from shoulder surgery so that i never have that problem again. but honestly, i credit it to how thoroughly i processed the incident with my instructors and the thoroughness of the practice they put me through before i went up again. so take the time, lots of it, to process it with them. i am sure they will be able to give you insight. life is either a daring adventure or nothing at all. (helen keller)