GLIDEANGLE

It is an area at the DZ where those jumpers who owe a beer fine, but have not yet paid it, are kept until the fine is paid. During Texas summers, this holding area is outdoors in a place without shade or water. This results in the prompt payment of fines. The choices we make have consequences, for us & for others!

It makes a HUGE difference for me. As mentioned above, fogging/icing can be an issue. The choices we make have consequences, for us & for others!

Sometimes that actually works better! I remember a student who was distressed by relating to too many folks at once. One instructor had been working with this student extensively on the ground before her level 1 AFF jump. He came to me and said: "This student is easily distracted by too many different folks talking to her. Please meet us at the exit mock-up, limit your talking to safety issues, and jump on reserve side. Otherwise, please let me communicate with her." I did just that... showed up at the mock-up all geared up, participated in some exit drills, said almost nothing on the plane (although I was attentive when he worked with her in the plane), and made the jump. For this particular student...it was exactly what she needed. The jump was a success with her meeting all the goals, and having a good time. The choices we make have consequences, for us & for others!

Pack fast, Pull high. What could possibly go wrong? Seriously.... get your butt to the DZ! Make friends, buy , watch, ask, try, give , watch, ask, try, more . The choices we make have consequences, for us & for others!

Here is a reading list for you. http://www.dropzone.com/cgi-bin/forum/gforum.cgi?post=4052172#4052172 Have you paid your yet? The choices we make have consequences, for us & for others!

You make it sound like this is a problem.... The choices we make have consequences, for us & for others!

Burble hopping! Three can make a "weave" pattern. It is both fun and a useful skill for responding to a person slipping below a belly formation. The choices we make have consequences, for us & for others!

Add SIM 6.10 & 6.11 to your reading list. Take a canopy control course. The choices we make have consequences, for us & for others!

The emphasis should be on FIT & READY.... Not on supportive braces or tape. You need to be WAY MORE than just "ready". Your shoulder needs to be VERY stable. Your Physical Therapist needs to understand the demands that skydiving will place on your shoulder and be confident that your shoulder is truly ready. Consider this... Reaching for your BOC handle is NOT the most stressful thing that can happen to your shoulder in freefall. Bad exits can be MUCH worse. Bumping the doorframe in a diver exit can be MUCH worse. You were probably flying a big, slow canopy which was forgiving of your one-armed control. Next time you may be under a smaller, faster, more fickle canopy...which may be dangerous to land one-handed. The choices we make have consequences, for us & for others!

200 jump threshold does not apply here. I went from no booties to big booties (size 13 shoes). No problems at all. I am a klutz... If I can do it, you can do it. The choices we make have consequences, for us & for others!

Hang out with the skydivers after the jumping is finished for the day. You will learn a LOT and have fun. Bringing beer helps this process along! The choices we make have consequences, for us & for others!

I had an interesting instructional jump last weekend. It was an AFF Level 4 (Cat C). The gear-up and ride to altitude were unremarkable. His exit was fine and he did a practice pilot chute touch without any difficulty. His 90 degree turns started well but he was unable to stop the turns. I did two soft spin stops and gave corrective hand signals after each. The turns got a bit better (only about 180 degrees rather than a gentle spin). He was very altitude aware and was stable and quiet approaching pull altitude. At pull altitude he could not reach the BOC handle and suddenly started to “swim” vigorously. My assessment was that he was too distressed for me to attempt hand signals or an “assist” to help him reach the handle. I deployed his main pilot chute for him and he had an uneventful main canopy deployment. He landed safely at the far end of the airport. When our ground staff picked him up, he related that his shoulder had dislocated during his attempt to deploy his main! The student’s shoulder was readily reduced at the hospital and he was back at the DZ smiling a few hours later. I wonder what would have happened if I had tried to “assist” him to reach his pilot chute while his shoulder was dislocated. I am glad that I abandoned the “8-second dance” script and went with my gut assessment that deploying for him was the best first action. The student showed really good problem solving under canopy. He figured out that he could put both toggles in one hand to flare… and landed safely! That is remarkable given his inexperience and pain at that moment. I hope that his shoulder recovers enough to allow him to skydive safely in the future. The choices we make have consequences, for us & for others!

I voted NO! I think that the most interesting question is "Who is proposing this?" I don't know the answer, but I suspect that it is the tunnel owners, operators, &/or coaches who see this as a way to drum up more business. From their perspective, the effect on student instruction would be largely irrelevant (unless they own/operate a DZ too). The choices we make have consequences, for us & for others!

Another matter is that many/most skydivng instructors are NOT employees of the DZ. For legal reasons, many/most DZs engage their insturctors as independent contractors. This has implications for instructors who get hurt while jumping, as well as tax implications. The choices we make have consequences, for us & for others!

When planning... Bear in mind that not all DZs are open 7 days a week! The choices we make have consequences, for us & for others!

Some generic stuff here: http://www.uspa.org/GroupMembers/GroupMemberProgram/AircraftOperationsPilotTraining/tabid/544/Default.aspx The choices we make have consequences, for us & for others!

I have had AFF first jump students do great both with and without doing a tandem first. However, if you are a nervous, anxious, high stress sort of person I would highly reccommend a tandem first. Almost all serious AFF first jump student errors are related to nerves. If you are cool-headed do whatever you like! What is it like? ..... Nothing that I know of! The choices we make have consequences, for us & for others!

Here is a story of EXACTLY that happening: http://parachutistonline.com/columns/tales_bonfire/stuck-in-a-downplane The choices we make have consequences, for us & for others!

Reasons for me to keep a log book: -I can verify currency when traveling. -I can verify that I have sufficient # of instructional jumps in the last year to renew my ratings. -I can verify that I have sufficient # of specific kinds of jumps for new ratings. -It helps me answer the common question "How many jumps do you have?" -It can be fun to look back and see what I have done. I don't get ALL jumps signed. I typically get some signed immediately before I intend to travel to a different DZ. I also tend to get special jumps that I may need to prove in the future signed (such as for future ratings). The choices we make have consequences, for us & for others!

Our leaning harnesses have toggles attached to weights via pulleys. Our students practice steer-ability checks, turns, & flare stroke with these toggles which give a fairly reasonable simulation of the amount of resistance the toggles will offer. The choices we make have consequences, for us & for others!

I have taken a slightly different approach. I have a stamp with my name, license #, and rating. So I can sign a document, and then stamp with those details. I don't use it for all logbooks that I sign, but if I want to make it more likely that something will be accepted by another dropzone, I will use the stamp with my signature, as it makes it real clear who signed it and what kind of rating I hold. Examples of when I am likely to use it is when signing a rating proficiency card for a pre-requsite element, or a the logbook of a visiting student (who will take the logbook back to their home DZ to finish their license). The choices we make have consequences, for us & for others!

The important question is NOT what people's opinion is! The important question is if both have acceptable OUTCOMES. At my home DZ we use the leaning harness for 99% of initial and re-currency EP training. Our students and graduates effectively execute their EPs when necessary in the air without difficulty. Perhaps one reason for this success is that the leaning harnesses are so easy to use that our students drill EPs many, many, many times (almost every ground briefing in AFF, PLUS several times between AFF and A-License.) If doing several AFF jumps in one day, EPs are drilled once in the morning rather than before EVERY jump. What OUTCOME do you believe that the hanging harness adds to the training process? In other words.... what can the student trained in the hanging harness do that the student trained in a leaning harness cannot? The choices we make have consequences, for us & for others!

Below is the PM that I sent to the OP, which he found persuasive. Given the direction that this discussion has turned, I am putting it here too: ----------------- John: At your jump numbers (assuming your profile is correct) I would suggest that you will get FAR more out of time spent with a coach or instructor at the training harness than you will out of an intentional cutaway. Another useful activity is working with a rigger to pull handles on a rig which is about to have the reserve re-packed. Drawbacks to an intentional cutaway: -cost is typically significant (gear rental (possibly gear shipping) plus lift ticket). -you are likely to get only one or two jumps. -very real risk of things going badly with the intentional cutaway...(unlikely but not zero). -at your jump numbers it is unlikely that anyone will let you do this now. Advantages of practice in training harness -you can easily do MANY cycles of problem identification and EP. -zero risk -cheap.... it will probably only cost you . -You get to incorporate problem recognition as well as the EP "hand jive". -Many DZ's have a simulator which lets you feel the actual force necessary for cutaway on a rig. (It is not very much). Advantages of working with rigger to pull handles of REAL rig on the ground. -cheap.... it will probably only cost you . -zero risk -you can feel the actual pull forces for reserve activation. -it gives you time with a rigger...a great learning opportunity. -it gives you a chance to see a reserve up close and understand how it is constructed. Differences from mains such as free bag and perhaps hand tacked toggles. You can see how the RSL (and possibly MARD) work. If you simply want the intentional cutaway for the adventure... prepare to be dissapointed. A non-spinning low speed cutaway from a normal main is BORING. There is very little difference from pulling handles on the ground (except for a brief period of freefall after the cutaway.) Blue Skies, The choices we make have consequences, for us & for others!

If doing it in a week is REALLY important, I would strongly suggest that you use a DZ with a wind tunnel nearby or on-site. That way if you get "stuck" struggling to get past a level in freefall, you can use the tunnel to fix the problem quickly and get back on schedule. From a California perspective that certianly would put Perris Valley (on-site) and Elsinore (nearby) on your list. I suspect that other DZs would fall in the "nearby" class (depending on how far you consider "nearby" to be). The choices we make have consequences, for us & for others!

BREATHE! A big breath in with a conscious effort to relax during the exhalation phase. Repeat that slowly and with each breath focus on relaxing the muscles in a single area, moving to a new area of focus with each breath. VISUALIZATION! Do progressive relaxation (as described above), then close your eyes and see the jump occuring perfectly...including seeing youself happy and relaxed. Smile! The choices we make have consequences, for us & for others!