MotherGoose

I definitely want to come out to AZ for some skydiving . . . but I assure you it will be for a vacation . . . not to pack in that heat !!! I personally commend you for doing that on a regular basis, I only get about 2 really bad humid months a year, so I can't really complain. I would love to see you up here in February though . . . this year I jumped from 10,500 feet in -16F . . . Now there's a good way to separate the skydivers from the Sally's . . . and let me tell you . . . packing a chute when you can't feel your fingers . . . good times. You think you understand the situation, but what you don't understand, is that the situation just changed.

Good call . . . it's important to point out that student fatalities are probably the rarest of them all. A well trained student with well-maintained gear, is in my opinion, very safe on a jump. Based on hard facts. Fatalities are high in this sport because too many proficient jumpers push the envelope and exceed their abilities or the capabilities of their gear. You think you understand the situation, but what you don't understand, is that the situation just changed.

Not to start a "pissing" contest here or anything, but have you looked up extreme sport fatality stats lately ?? Hell, scuba diving is more dangerous . . . Taken from Dan Poynter's Parachuting: A Skydiver's Handbook 6th edition. In a recent year over 140 people died scuba diving, 856 bicycling, over 7,000 drowned, 1154 died of bee stings, and 80 by lightning. In 1982, 43,990 people were killed in highway accidents, 1,171 boating fatalities, 235 airline deaths, and 1,164 light aircraft general aviation fatalities. You think you understand the situation, but what you don't understand, is that the situation just changed.

you know . . . its only 5 or 6 hundred miles . . . I might just take you up on that offer . . . I have heard good things about Skydive Long Island. I'll bring the beer . . . but it's that strong Canadian stuff, none of that American "light" beer . . . You think you understand the situation, but what you don't understand, is that the situation just changed.

I understand that, I'm in no way implying that skydiving is flawlessly safe and everyone should do it with reckless abandonment. Bu when a student is hesitant and needs a little push, you do so with encouragement and positivity . . . not fatality reports and negativity !! YES . . . every time I get on a plane to skydive . . . there are a hundred ways that something could go wrong and I could die . . . good . . . glad we got that cleared up . . . now let's all go for a damn jump already !! You think you understand the situation, but what you don't understand, is that the situation just changed.

I guess you're right . . . it comes with experience. As for mal's, even with a perfect pack job, the gear itself could malfunction or the student could "malfunction". There's plenty to investigate with a mal. I'll keep slugging away for the time being and I suppose I'll get better and faster at my own pace. This weekend is supposed to be a balmy 105F with the Humidex and we're booked up for our busiest tandem schedule of the year so far . . . wish me luck ! (and you all thought we skydive with igloos and dogsleds up in Canada ??) You think you understand the situation, but what you don't understand, is that the situation just changed.

To PEEJ andc BEOWULF . . . this is a thread started by a 9 jump student trying to get some advice on how to get back into the saddle after a 1 year layoff. The guy has a few butterflies because his last couple jumps were not "textbook". While the rest of us try to encourage the guy and keep his mind on the task at hand, why do the two of you elude to the fatalities of the sport. Everyone here knows that people DIE in skydiving. Thanks for the update. People die every day in every way . . . its the only constant in life folks. This student does not need more fear-mongering, he's got enough inhibition. Let's try to keep the mood a little lighter here people, and help the students with our own experiences and how we dealt with the fear and the butterflies. After all, for most of us, it was not that long ago that we were there. You think you understand the situation, but what you don't understand, is that the situation just changed.

Yes . . . but what is it that makes a packer fast? I look forward to 10-12 minute tandem packs but not at the expense of safety. Any tips ?? You think you understand the situation, but what you don't understand, is that the situation just changed.

What is it that scares you ?? Dying ?? In that case, stay in your house like agoraphobics, because danger is lurking everywhere !! Skydiving is a safe sport, safer than most of the extreme sports out there. Have faith in your DZ, in your rigger, in your packer and most of all in yourself. In the end its nothing but controlled falling . . . just don't forget the controlled part. Take more time dirt diving and get on a crawler and practice that arch. You've done it before, it will all come back to you. Do not jump if you are doubting yourself and your abilities. Perhaps it would be a good idea to go to www.skydivingmovies.com and watch some uneventful skydives of students and novices. Then, I always find it therapeutic to go to the malfunctions section and watch a couple of vid's of what can go wrong. This usually brings you back to reality and reminds you that things can go wrong, but if you keep a level head, you can recover. This is just my opinion, I hope it helped. You think you understand the situation, but what you don't understand, is that the situation just changed.

Careful what you ask for . . . smart girl . . . didn't put your home DZ . . . can't stalk you now. You think you understand the situation, but what you don't understand, is that the situation just changed.

Not only are you a proficient skydiver and an excellent packer, but I couldn't help but notice that one of your interests is cooking ?? My interests include eating among other things, we should definitely join forces . . . You think you understand the situation, but what you don't understand, is that the situation just changed.

RW - Raging Whuffo's CRW - Crazy Raging Whuffo's . . . oops . . . my bad You think you understand the situation, but what you don't understand, is that the situation just changed.

Its really good to hear that from a jumper of your status. I have a better sense of the packing techniques now and I understand that when you pack all day, as I do every Saturday and Sunday, you want to get faster. But I will never, ever lose my safety consciousness no matter how pissed off anyone gets for the amount of time it takes me to pack the device that's going to prevent them from bouncing ! Thanks again. You think you understand the situation, but what you don't understand, is that the situation just changed.

I take packing very seriously, and it's tough to pack all day (10+ hours) and have the same enthusiasm on the last one that you had on the first one, especially on a very humid day. I want to know how to pack quickly yet consistently and safely at the same time. I much rather take a little longer to ensure safety even though some TM's are hanging over your shoulder and pressuring you to hurry because their load is waiting for your pack-job. I have no problems telling them to wait. If flat-packing is a good way to avoid mal's, then it gets my vote. You think you understand the situation, but what you don't understand, is that the situation just changed.

That's an interesting way to stagger the packing charges, tandem main and tandem drogue ?? Do you sometimes pack the main and not the drogue? You think you understand the situation, but what you don't understand, is that the situation just changed.

A lot of you Burnaby folks started out at S.T.I. ?? I don't really mind the flat packing, once you get good at it, its really only a couple minutes more work to get it to a cigar roll. Joe puts emphasis on safety at all times and I really like that about him. Since we only run a fleet of C-182's, there's no real need for a rush anyway, because there's longer wait times between loads compared to you twin otter jumpers. We had one of your packers at our DZ last weekend (remain anonymous), and let me tell you, this guy was fast !! I can tell things are a bit more hectic at Burnaby. You think you understand the situation, but what you don't understand, is that the situation just changed.

I flat pack Sigma Tandems. I have always been told that pro-packing these is NOT ALLOWED. I am not disputing this rule or questioning it in any way. After all, anything more than 240 sq.ft. is horrible to pro-pack, at my experience level anyhow. I guess I was just wondering why ?? Is it safer to flat pack these ?? You think you understand the situation, but what you don't understand, is that the situation just changed.

Ok . . . so I read throught the whole thread on packing, and there are a few questions left unanswered. Does everyone still "flat pack" student/tandem gear and "pro-pack" the experienced jumper gear? It seems that pro-packing tandems is taboo? I am a packer at my DZ and I would like to know what the going rates are at various DZ's for tandem gear and student freefall/static line gear. If it's not too much trouble to list your DZ and then the rates. I get the idea that the rates are not all the same. If you want, list the rate for pro-packing for exp. jumpers as well. The going rates at S.T.I. : $5 for student $10 for tandem $5 for exp. jumper (all CDN funds) You think you understand the situation, but what you don't understand, is that the situation just changed.

My apologies to everyone . . . but I was not giving advice, just an opinion, as I clearly stated. I would like to make it very clear that I am a Newbie myself and am not qualified to give skydiving advice, nor was I trying to. I'm sure any half-brained dumbass can tell who to take advice from by a person's skydiving profile and what proficiency they have achieved. I was merely submitting my personal experience, and I apologize once again if I came across as someone who pretended to know what they were talking about. You think you understand the situation, but what you don't understand, is that the situation just changed.

At 23 jumps . . . I don't see anything wrong with your progress. There is no set limit of jumps to have before knowing how to land properly, nor do I believe that its a male vs. female thing either. I didn't stand up a landing until around jump number 20 and even then I didn't start consistently stand up my landings until I got off of the student or rental gear from the DZ. I like the idea of video taping your landing and reviewing what you do from a different perspective, and practice will make perfect. But my best opinion is that the canopies you are flying are old and weathered. Most student canopies are 1000+ jump F111's with very little flare left in them. See if anyone at the DZ has a nice Sabre 170 or 190 with Zero Porosity fabric. Take one of those bad boys out for a jump and do everything you normally do. You may be pleasantly surprised that your landing will be flawless. That's just my opinion, I hope it helped. You think you understand the situation, but what you don't understand, is that the situation just changed.