mdrejhon

Yep. It should be possible. The ATI All-In-Wonder have the necessary connector for Sorenson, assuming you use the adaptor that came with the ATI All-In-Wonder (the yellow cable adaptor). Some models of All-In-Wonder has the yellow jack directly on the card itself, but usually I've seen it on an adaptor. In the event you need audio, connect it to the line-in of your sound card, or wherever the ATI All-In-Wonder instructions tell you to input the sound. (You may need a RadioShack adaptor). But most deafies doing sign language don't care about the sound, so you do not need to bother with sound on Sorenson.

Just slap a cheapie $50 TV card into the computer, and connect your Sorenson VRS to your computer, and use your computer as a TV monitor! Works with all computer monitors.

Hi! I'm a deaf Canadian. My plans is to start PFF training on the weekend of April 30th, conditions permitting (the Canadian version of AFF). My other posts are at: http://www.dropzone.com/cgi-bin/foru/gforum.cgi?post=1555130 http://www.dropzone.com/cgi-bin/forum/gforum.cgi?post=1555350 As a result, I will need someone to help me understand speech during ground class. It is very hard for me to lipread a fast-speaking lecture, and there is no opportunity to ask the teacher to repeat. It's been over 10 years since I was in a classroom. Here are my options: Hire an interpretor? This is problematic because of 1.5 hour roundtrip drive, or a Friday-to-Sunday camping stay, and interpretors are expensive. Interpretors may not be familiar with skydive lingo. I could easily spend over $600-$1000 on interpretor service because of these problematic logistics. In my experience, interpretors would not be worth it in this case. Bribe some rigger or other dropzone guy who's a fast typist, to type the lectures on my laptop? Pay slightly extra for a dedicated tutoring session during the same day as the class? Take the ground class twice to compensate. To be doubly sure that I fill any information that I may have missed in first class. Fortunately, I am going to a small neighbourhood-like dropzone called Gananoque, which has relatively small class sizes, and a little bit of flexibility. Note: I do not do ASL, but I do Cued Speech. (I did recently learn fingerspell though). I am a fast typist, and a fast learner and plan to listen very well - it's a matter of life and death that I do ground class properly. But I do not want to spend $750 for a $75 ground class, if I can get the same or better education by spending just $150-$200 (repeating class, tutoring, volunteer typist, etc) I'm also reading "Parchuting: The Skydiver's Handbook", to help me prepare for my upcoming PFF training. Ideas? Experiences?

I have done three tandems (1997, 2002, 2005). I am about to start the Progressive Freefall training there (Canada's version of AFF) sometime in May. I went to Gananoque in 1997 because they were the one with the best website. It was still the early Internet days. The information on that site answered more of my questions than the others of the time. My first tandem was in 1997, and I had a great cameraman film my first jump there! The first TI was a real hoot, and did a real exciting jump - I have an edited version of my first jump at http://www.marky.com/misc/video/yes-i-did-it.mpeg (make sure you download to disk first before playing, or it cuts out before the actual jump) This is not a brand new hanger building -- it is an old World War II building, so it does show it age, but it keeps the airplanes perfectly dry. It's more a neighbourhood feeling, rather than feeling commercial and a "prepackaged, manufactured" of disneyland-like dropzones, the more cozy atmosphere can be very helpful if you are a beginner who's very shy around people (just make sure you drum up enough courage to say hello to others! I didn't until my third visit though, but I'm glad I introduced myself to a few!) The in-the-air experience shows the runways are a very unmistakable diamond-shape from the air, and you can see all the beautiful farmland, and still see Kingston from the distance, as well as the river that separates USA and Canada. Probably makes this a safer DZ for beginners who might land off-zone on a windy day. Several of the people running the place there have thousands of jumps, and I had plenty of chance to speak directly to them. There is a campsite, haven't camped there yet, but that will afford additional social opportunities during the evening to get to know the DZ people. I'm still only at 3 jumps going onto 100? in 2005 (hopefully!), can't wait to start my PFF course!

That would be cool. I am pretty curious if I would be setting any records, just simply by getting my first CSPA certification. (By the way, how many jumps does CSPA equivalent of USPA "A" require? 25 jumps? I'll go check the CSPA website... Also, where's CSPA chat?) Yeah, someday I'd like to try joining the other deafies in a deaf boogie. I am mainstreamed mainly with hearies, and do not have many deaf friends, but it would be interesting if I was a part of some future record attempt. This means serious money though, I think, in courses and practice jumps. I'm not sure if I can afford more than 100 jumps this year (I might end up only doing 50 but we'll see, it's just simply a money and carpool issue), unless I get a really great discount on a recent used inspector-approved rig, save the rental costs. (Yes, yes, I'll make sure it's no smaller than 1:1... Yes, yes, I'll post here before I buy it, *and* talk to at least 3 different experts at my DZ) We'll see... I really wanna get "more serious" this year on this sport. The only thing keeping me from PFF training now is the paycheque. May 1. Seems like most deaf guys are poor (i.e. deafness limits their progress). However, I'm somewhat of an anomaly thanks to my technical talent (www.marky.com/resume) and have enough salary to afford to throw a few grand TOTAL this year at this sport (including car rentals, training, gas for car, carpool bribes, food at DZ, camping gear for DZ campsite, etc). I live downtown, so don't need a car. I use a Canadian carsharing service similiar to the Zipcar found in USA, but that's only for a few hours of driving. Canada is fortunately more inexpensive than USA. Lucky that Gananoque has better prices than many USA dropzones ($200 spring discount tandems - It appears that in April, they charge the equivalent of only $160 USD for first jump and only $125 USD for second jump, $1200 CDN = $1000 USD for full AFF-type course, the Canadian PFF course including 8 IAF jumps). I'm lucky I'm just able to just about afford these. I'm still scared about the cost of a rig (canopy, reserve, container, and all!) and the equipment (jumpsuit, etc), but we'll see how the summer progresses! I don't mind that it's freezing (0) at 11,000ft in April... Fortunately, I am close to solving the carpool issue. Made several contacts at the DZ already! But need to solve other issues like fast typist volunteers for interpreting (typing the teacher speeches onto laptop during ground school class). Moneysaver tips welcome! ;) (Wish I could start PFF earlier than first weekend of May!)

My bad! I meant just fingerspelling, the standard sign language fingerspelling.

Unfortunately, I'm a Cued Speech trained guy....But I'm a very fast thumbboard typist (BlackBerry or Sidekick pager), typing 70 WPM on a thumb keyboard with just my thumbs. However, I am training myself in ASL fingerspell, and will learn the Freefall sign language too; before my training as well.

REALLY! That'd be such a honour! I definitely want to try to go for CSPA this year, if I can afford it. I'll see what I can do in PFF and beyond... safely. I know some deaf skydivers trained at the Alberta dropzone, but I don't know if they were Canadians, or if they got certified by CSPA. I'll have to find out. But if this is true... it'd be such a honour!

True : http://www.aarrgghh.com/no_way/noChute.htm Damn. Anyone have that mentioned 1988 video online anywhere?

I just went yesterday! My experience is posted HERE. Can't wait to start the PFF course this May!

Let me compliment my TI today, William McCarthy. He did a great job on me today! Today's Jump... My birthday was yesterday, April 9th. I went today April 10th (er, yesterday) and did one of the qualifying tandems before my PFF course. Today pre-PFF tandem instruction went well. The TI today went well beyond what I paid for and gave me essentially an hour total of direct instruction and questions-answers, and made sure I accomplished many objectives successfully. Was told I had great altitude awareness this time! Before I went into the plane, I wrote a quite a bit of notes, writing down everything I could remember from memory. After the jump, I made more notes to write down what I thought were minor errors I made (i.e. we synced our altimeters in the plane 1000M too early, for example, and knees a little low at some point) and I talked about what I can do better next time. But the important part was I learned a lot! And that an essential item, my altitude awareness, was great this time which was the main objective of today!! I correctly signalled my TI to pull. Even did two practice flares high up in the air, and aided the TI in the actual flare during landing. What I learned today will help me greatly when when I finally start my actual PFF and classroom stuff. I really want to make sure I soak up as much information as I can, so that my hearing impairment is less of a barrier during classroom training. Signalling Methods... In advance, we negotiated a signal of taps and shake-shake pulls. Leg-to-leg tap for knees up, shoulder tap to move my arms into boxman position, etc. You get the idea. I repeated these several times on the ground to make sure I memorized everything correctly. Upcoming Deaf Communication Needs... I will still need to bribe a fast typist to type the teacher's speech on my laptop during classroom training, so I can follow the speaking more easily. I also need to negotiate the canopy control communications once I'm under canopy solo, that Billy Vance suggested paddle/flag signalling from the landing area. I'm reading up as much as I can from "Parachuting: The Skydiving Handbook" as well, to minimize the chance I'll get lost in class. Altitude Awareness... Fortunately, he didn't even need to remind me to look at my altimeter during freefall. In advance, we negotiated I do a thumbsup signal at 9000ft, and then 7000ft. Then a wave at 5500ft followed by grab chest straps (this signals my TI to pull, as tandem students are not allowed to pull at this DZ) and look up to watch canopy open. I did all the signalling correctly. Now, I was almost too busy making sure I accomplished my assigned tasks to really enjoy the scenery much nor get scared, this time it was far less scary than many rollercoasters I have ridden on. I was concentrating on accomplishing a few tasks. Regardless of this success today, I know I cannot become too complacent even if I did that successfully today, it's life-or-death, I know... Eventually altitude awareness should become second nature and I'll have time to enjoy the scenery and have fun during the freefall! Canopy Opening... He told me that it's educational to watch the canopy open, even at this pre-PFF stage. I observed what was a single collapsed cell at a left corner of the canopy, and watched my TI reinflate it in 2 seconds from a gentle yank. After that, thumbsup then I take the toggles. The TI guides me where to turn, all the way to landing, including controllability check and two practice flares. Sensory Overload... I was warned of this, but it wasn't a major problem, as I managed myself during freefall very well on this jump. I had more sensory overload during canopy control than the freefall, so made a few minor mistakes here and there, mainly regarding my knees being too low at some points. (Most of the minor mistakes I made seemed to be right after successful canopy opening, giving me plenty of time to correct my actions) Landing... I observed my TI signal my toggles to manoever the canopy to stay upwind of the landing zone until around 1000ft. The TI told me to look at what 1000ft looked like, so I can judge ground distance on my next jump. We then headed downwind, past the landing, and then turned around back to face upwind for the landing-into-the-wind approach. The approach was similiar to approach diagrams I saw earlier. I helped with the flare too. Summary... I think I didn't do bad considering I didn't know what a "flare" meant only 2 weeks ago, and this is my first tandem jump this year (I never went solo before - only 2 tandem jumps in previous years), and I haven't started the PFF course yet! Have to do my fourth pre-qualifying tandem, that's paid for now, but it was suggested I hold off until the same weekend as the start of the PFF course, good idea... So that's how it went. Kudos to my TI, William! And the dropzone staff and visitors who chatted with me (even. I believe I also got my carpool problem solved too, making new friends already. As soon as my May 1 paycheck arrives, I'm finally starting PFF! (Otherwise, I'd start sooner!)

Hey there, thanks - I went today April 10th (er, yesterday) and did one of the qualifying tandems before my PFF course. Today pre-PFF tandem instruction went well. The TI today went well beyond what I paid for and gave me essentially an hour total of direct instruction and questions-answers, and made sure I accomplished many objectives successfully. Was told I had great altitude awareness this time! Wrote a quite a bit of notes and observed minor errors (i.e. we synced our altimeters in the plane 1000M too early, for example, and knees a little low at some point) and talked about what I can do better next time, but the important part was that my altitude awareness was great this time which was the main objective of today!! I correctly signalled my TI to pull. Even did two practice flares too and aided in the actual one. What I learned today will help me greatly when when I finally start my actual PFF and classroom stuff. I really want to make sure I soak up as much information as I can, so that my hearing impairment is less of a barrier during classroom training. (Will still need to bribe a fast typist to type the teacher's lecture on my laptop, so I can follow more easily. Also need to negotiate the canopy control communications once I'm under canopy solo, that Billy Vance suggested paddle/flag signalling from the landing area. I'm reading up as much as I can from "Parachuting: The Skydiving Handbook" as well, to minimize the chance I'll get lost in class.) I also met a group of very nice guys, as well as by email, several of which live in Ottawa and I'm starting to chat with them now. I'll see about the carpool. Normally, I'm shy since I'm just a "NeWBiE" and don't know how the pro's view me, but they were very nice! As soon as my May 1 paycheck arrives, I'm finally starting PFF!

Hey GanGirl, thanks for the response! I'd love to hear from you -- You can send email to my email address link that's found at the bottom of my website at www.marky.com or send me a private message. (Yes, that's my real personal website -- I'm an computer programmer/web guy). I'll send you a PM as well and inquire...

Thanks for the quick reply! Sorry to hear you don't have any better news for me. I guess I'll have to "make do" with an expensive AFF course and then do a whole bunch of jumps I'll definitely check out the windtunnels in other cities, next time I am travelling, though.

Let me vote for May 9th at 10:45pm. My birthday is April 9th, so that makes it exactly one month after ;)

I have determined that Ganonque is willing to give me a try, if I paid. They seem to have all the right intentions and can communicate with the appropriate guys for the proper training procedures for me. Now, the only thing stopping me from starting a training program, is the need for transportation to Ganonque. I have to figure out how to solve this. I live and make a living downtown, so I get by without owning a car. Renting a car *every* single weekend will definitely be a killer, since all the dropzones are located out of the city. See my post in Introductions and Greets Once I figure out how to solve this, I'm pretty much ready to plunk down the money for the training. (However, I might try a different dropzone if that's a better solution...it may be easier for me to just take a longer vacation at an open-all-week dropzone, rather than a weekends-only dropzone, and get myself certified for solo during this one vacation. Then for the rest of the summer, I can continue to learn/maintain myself by carpooling with other people who just want to do tandem jumps...I've got a bunch of friends and coworkers wanting to try tandem now, that I can take advantage of...but not long enough for me to do the initial training!)

Introducing myself: Total newbie, two jumps, both tandem, both at Skydive Ganonque (located between Ottawa and Toronto). Computer programmer by day, avid downhill skiier in winter, now I'm looking for something different to do this summer!! You know how those first jumps went, if you see my video ;-) I'm seriously considering forking up the necessary $1200 CDN for Skydive Ganonque's variant of AFF training... I want to jump freefall solo! And maybe eventually learn formation eventually, if I decide to go big-time on this sport. But it's almost a 2 hour drive away and the car rental costs will surely kill me. I live downtown Ottawa, so I don't own a car. I will probably have to camp over there at their little campsite during about three weekends to get my full training in. Does anybody here go to Ganonque on a regular basis I could carpool with? If not, does anyone go to Mile High Parachuting, which is closer by only 1 hour drive. I'd also consider other dropzones nearby, if the transportation issue is more easily solved. I'll consider a Toronto-area or Montreal-area DZ, or even an out-of-country dropzone -- I'm still dropzone shopping. Might even take a 7 day vacation and train at an open-all-week dropzone, need to trust the people though... The courses typically require me to do the training in a one-month time period, to qualify for solo. (Pssst, for the trouble of carpooling, how does free gas sound, a free meal on me, even free beer -- but only after driving back, unless the DZ afterhours campsite permits it.) While a carpool with an experienced jumper would make for interesting conversation during the ride, I'm still interested in newbies in the Toronto-Ottawa-Montreal corridor is looking for a partner to try to train with. I'm all ears for ideas. It would make training more fun even though we won't jump together initially (but rather with our instructors)... Would love to hear from others!

Hi, I looked for windtunnels in Canada, and came up almost empty (except for Niagara Falls). Are there any windtunnels in Canada? Even temporary setups? I'm pretty curious about if there's any located, even anywhere in the province of Ontario or Quebec. If not, then, I guess the nearest ones are elsewhere in Northeast USA (Vermont, New Hampshire, Massachussets, New York).

You now have the email in your PM -- just forwarded a copy of the email I sent to hotmail (which was listed on the deafskydivers.org website). No worries, would love to hear back from you.

Hey... (Hello Fuzzy... I recognize ya, nice to see you here too... I think you're in my video too) Yes, Will and I have been discussing what it would take. Ganonque is high on my list just because it's where I made my first jump. Still have plenty to think about, but if I do anything, I'd probably aim to do it in May or June, but I'm also evaluating other dropzones, including those that have already had experiences with the deaf, but this may be more expensive because of an airplane flight. It'll probably be one month before I make a final decision... However, if there is a good reputation for deaf training and the price somewhat compensates for the travelling... Well, I'll have finally decided within a month. The cost of the course itself isn't a problem itself, but I'm already warned it could cost far more than that to maintain myself, so that's something for me to think about... Will told me of a saying that is popular in these circles, "it'll cost you two hundred dollars for your first jump, and half your paycheque for the rest of your life". As for the book, USPA SIM and CSPA PIM. Hmmm. To CSPA or to USPA, that is the question.... I guess it must have to be CSPA PIM as I am Canadian? I guess, by consensus, there's two pre-study books I should pick up right away... the CSPA PIM and "Parachuting, the Skydiver's Handbook"

Hey Billy, Glad to hear from you! I did see the deaf skydivers website already, and it is one of my inspirations to pursue a certification. I just sent you an email from the website three days ago, with no response yet. Perhaps you should check the Junk Mail folder for anything coming from the "@marky.com" domain name. (Spam filter probably caught my email before you read it.) I'll send you a private message;

Interesting! One barrier is that I don't know the full ASL -- I do know "Cued Speech" and the "Finger Spell" ASL. Although I can learn a few of the essential signs, that will be done in the air and on the ground (flags, etc) One thing I could try getting is some kind of skydiving handbook to study before my FJC -- as a supplement to the FJC to fill in any gaps. Any recommendations especially suited for a deaf guy like me? I am curious -- Did it cost substantially more to train a deaf guy than a non-deaf guy? What was the typical price for solo freefall certification?

Thanks for the help That's me. I'm trying to figure out if I can pull this off. Thanks for the comments people have been posting. I wasn't sure if I should have posted here or in the Instructors area. In any case, I'm pretty anxious to try to get at least freefall solo certification this summer. Would especially love to hear from people who are familiar with Ganonque or Mile High, or any other nearby dropzones within 3 hours driving of Ottawa. (Montreal is just within this distance, too, although I cannot speak French.) I often travel to the U.S. (about 4 times a year), so if it is better for me to train at a U.S. drop zone, I would consider it on their reputation for training the deaf.

Thanks for the prompt reply! Yes, I often have increased situational awareness as a result of my lack of hearing. Same reasons why the statistics say that deaf drivers are often safer drivers than hearing drivers. (When governments first learned about this statistic, they legallized giving drivers licenses to the deaf a few decades ago... Well, at least the western governments, though.) I usually use a hand language called Cued Speech, but I also know the ASL fingerspell as my "second" hand language (PUN intended! ) ... I could learn AFF without trouble. I thought of an addendum to my previous message -- If I have to travel just to get to a deaf-friendly drop zone, can I get certified during just one vacation? (Strong preference would be a deaf-friendly dropzone in either Boston, Washington DC, Baltimore, Toronto, Montreal, Ottawa .... Since I have friends and relatives who could host me in those cities) If I cannot get certified during one vacation (i.e. 1 week vacation), will I at least be allowed to go freefall solo and/or even limited formation after that? Or is that all unnecessary, and I can convince a local dropzone to take me as a student instead?

Hi from Ottawa, Ontario, Canada I am writing to ask what it would take to get me certified, considering that I am hearing impaired (deaf). I have jumped twice tandem at Ganonque, including one that was videotaped (and I converted to web format) http://www.marky.com/misc/video/yes-i-did-it.mpeg This video was my first jump... edited down to 3 minutes to show only the relevant parts. Very funny video ;-) As you can see, I seem to learn fast -- I started myself off in a 360-degree spin and stopped to face the camera, using my own control (The instructor may have helped, but it felt like I was controlling my own 360-degree spin, you can see my hands trying to balance myself during the spin if you watch the video!) As a deaf guy, I would not be able to use radios. I was wondering what it would take to get me certified. I'd like to know what it would take for me to become licensed and be allowed to freefall solo and/or formation. I also am checking out http://www.deafskydivers.org/ to see how they trained themselves. I'm looking for the best way to train myself, preferably or primarily domestically, without breaking the bank way too much (i.e. having to travel internationally several times just to get certified, would be incredibly expensive). I love travelling, just need to be within my means. I am shopping around for the right training system for me that does not require me to travel to the USA to get the instruction I need.... Eventually I'd like to do solo freefalls. I have jumped tandem twice already so I know I am ready for it... Comments?