mdrejhon

I'm a newbie and I've been slightly more aggressive than I expected to be (wingload 1.1) when I bought my Sabre 170 at jump 60. A rig unexpectedly became available for a test jump and I bit the bait after all the instructors and DZO approved it if I felt I was ready. The only problem was zero winders which I tended to want to slide in - but I nailed zero-wind standup landings under this canopy after another 10 jumps or so. Now to keep refining my technique... Yet it is forgiving enough for me to make minor mistakes and easily fix them before I hurt myself (reliable pillow-soft standup landings after minor early flares, minor flare turns). Not going to downsize for a long time, I'll probably still be jumping this canopy at my 300th and have learned at least basic front riser landing approaches around then (aka swooping, something I want to do eventually with canopy coaching). A Nitron is too scary to think about. I probably would hurt myself under one of those at this stage. I have seen scary landing approaches, and people getting hurt (minor injuries so far) who have thousands of jumps.

The altitude of 3K is also my usual pull altitude and I'm okay with that (4.5K breakoff). However, I tend to like to ask for a 5K pull half of the time because I love the canopy ride. Some say I should be going down to 2500 feet, but I haven't pulled at that altitude before. I think I will standardize on 3000 feet and stay there, but I'll go to 2500 feet if necessary (low altitude hop-n-pop or my first "bigway") or lower in order to bail out a doomed airplane. Does that make me a wimp?

Good idea. That'd what I do if I were in this position.

Hey Billy, Man, you've got a lot in your hands! Is DWR still on, or is it called off?

Damn that's too bad... But, hey, your life is more important than a $1500 cutaway! I had spinning linetwists once (escaped it just fine), although at a much lower altitude of 4000 feet pull, open at ~3000, and fixed by 2500. The first and only time I considered cutaway. (so far. Knock on wood)

WCRW? Oh, Wingsuit CRW. Very impressive Sam! CRW between a wingsuit and a canopy. Reminds me of the VX39 and wingsuit dock. I wonder if this is becoming more of a "regular" thing ... This may be the first time it has happened in Canada?

I found it's a common question and fear by many newbies. I get asked that. I wondered that too. You get over that fear rather quickly (you should, if you really want to skydive). And there's always the AAD to automatically deploy, if worse does come to worse. It's not failsafe but it does help many newbies get over the initial fears, whether the regulars like it or not....

A in one week? I've heard of it being done at places like Perris and elsewhere, if you have the money and time.

Invade Belgium! and Canada. Hey! Pick on somebody else other than me!

That's like telling a football star in hospital to turn off football, and the nurse saying "That's what got you in here silly!!". You just can't do that.

D'oh! I never thought of that! I was thinking of exit weight, not weight with main gone.

Damn! That's really too bad.... (This is a different "Mark from Canada", not me -- just so you know)

I'm not interested in learning freefly, but I am definitely looking to share a 1-hour block of tunnel time (savings over 30 minutes to myself). The off-peak rates are $575 so that'd be $287 for half an hour of tunnel each for two, or about $191 for 20 minutes each for three. I'd just be praticing various intermediate RW skills with most of my share of tunnel time. Looking for time sometime anytime the week of October 10th at SV Orlando.

Flying the canopy like a kite. Basically, you just walk around on the ground and the canopy still flies over your head. Best done on very windy days. Ouch! If you mean a full size water cooler water jug, the type used at our dropzone. (Hello Trevor!)

not bad at all (i think

So far, this year, in Canadian dollars, very approximately: $385 - Two tandems (Jump #3 and Jump #4) $1200 - Freefall Progression $115 - (Approx) Repeat one level $2000 - For jump tickets (including coach slots) $500 - Rentals and packing costs before I got my rig $3500 - Skydiving rig (used, 175 jumps) $300 - Other skydiving gear (altimeter, etc) This is all in the last 5 months alone. Gads, that's $8000 already. About $6500 USD average. This excluding the money I spent in my first two tandems (1997 and 2002 respectively). So all but 2 of my jumps were made this year. I'm essentially "A-license-in-pending" right now with some paperwork and technicalities to muddle through, and B isn't that far behind (mostly studying and paperwork at this stage, plus a lot of formation skydive praticing). Some people pull it off for only $5,000 for getting training and the gear. Sometimes even less ($3,000) with some cheapie program and cheapie rigs, but I wouldn't recommend it Even though I spent approximately $500 in rentals, I definitely recommend renting though at least until you're finished off the student downsizing onto the regular approx 1:1 wingloading canopies (give or take). For me, that was jump 60. It's the first year that often is the most expensive (though for some guys, that's not the case -- sometimes they go on to be pros, and spend a lot more in the future). Future years should be cheaper for me because I've paid off my rig and main training. I can do about 50+ jumps in a future Perris vacation for only about $1000 USD (airflight and hotel not included) if I decide to go there and buy their volume $1000 USD package. Or be a hop-n-pop rabbit and get 100 jumps for the same price at some places. Or just continue to do my 10-jump full altitude for $250 CAD at Skydive Gananoque, which isn't too bad in Canadian dropzone pricing (frequent faller discount). Major expenses are still coming up. I'm going to Florida this October and will do a trio (Scott Miller at Deland, windtunnel at SkyVenture, DWR at Florida Skydiving). Casa's and skyvan tailgate-exit, I can't wait! I wouldn't be surprised if I break the 5 figure barrier. Again, I'm not the best source of information (The usage adaga applies: Talk to your instructors!), but I hope you found my post interesting nontheless. Now it's as little as $15 CDN for a hop-and-pop, and I can just do it once a week if I want ... However, I'll likely be spending about $2000-$3000 per year from now on (at least until I decide to upgrade my rig)

The last time I broke a bone was my ankle was during playing soccer. (twice!) The only times I had to go to the hospital/doctor for broken bones. I *may* have had a nose bone fracture from white water rafting (paddle hit me!), but that was not checked or that the doctor told me it'd heal on its own. Something tells me I better watch myself when I skydive. It's been over 10 years since I last had any broken bones.

Kitchen floor - 3 second rule. (Lot of foot traffic) Living room floor - 30 second rule. Bathroom floor - never.

If I fly the 182, yes. But not on the 206. Then again, the 206 does not have the step that the 182 has, less opportunities to accidentally bang my head in a fumbled hop-and-pop. Not like I'd fumble. But I'll get the hell out of it in a diving, burning, doomed airplane at 1500 feet with no AAD, no problem.

Shame, shame, you got to spot yourself. ;) It's just those pesky GPS pilot-spotted turbines and their green light by the door. Okay, I'm guilty as charged. But I've been watching the spot out of the Cessna a little more carefully. "Can I make it back there?" Granted, I also often pull high, so I sometimes make it back while the dropzone staff lands out (between 3K and 5K announced, depending on type of jump. Usually 3K for RW, and 5K for solo's since I enjoy the canopy flight).

In a TRUE emergency situation.... After landing off-field a few times under big student and beginner rental canopies from bad spots, I'd do it at MY dropzone where I am now familiar. It's a rural location with lots of farmland, and I just stay away from straight lines (which could be roads, wiring, fences, etc) along with other general rules of thumbs about making sure there are several alternative landing areas in case I'm blown backwards, etc. Not a problem at a rural dropzone where there are tons of outs, second chances and third chance landings. In a city dropzone at my jump numbers, I'd be very nervous of the unfamiliar territory and having to land in those tiny backyards, I'm not ready to do a "unplanned demo landing" inside an urban area yet....at my jump numbers..... Although I'd try to see if there are big parks and fields with wide open areas scattered throughout the place (plenty of "outs") if I still had plenty of altitude.

I have no experience with Spectre but I love my Sabre 170. Fun to fly and land, and planes out very easy.

A carefully selected Bed & Breakfast can do wonders and just as romantic for less. It depends on which part of the country though.

If you just want to make one jump in your lifetime, it's pretty safe odds. Just try one jump, try it Odds are cumilative, it's us regular jumpers who have to worry. (I plan to jump at least 100 times per year for the forseeable future.)

Although my interest in skydiving peaked when I rode the "Extreme SkyFlyer" ride at the Canada's Wonderland amusement park in 1996, I did see all these movies, which probably did contribute some of my interest into trying this hobby, if only to keep the word "skydiving" in my vocabulary