JohnnyMarko

My 20 second delay jumps for working on my turns this past weekend at the bigger DZ were $39 compared to $76...so yea its a huge difference in price.

So I'm torn between two DZ's to continue with my coach jumps and solo jumps before doing my A license check dive... My original DZ (dropzone 'x') where I've made my first 11 jumps this winter is a small little mom and pop DZ and I love the people there. They have a 182 and a 206 and I really like the student rig they have me using. The other, dropzone 'z', is a bigger operation with a 182, a 206, and a King Air. The people are awesome there too but since I've only made 3 jumps there I haven't really gotten to know them. Their student rig is a lil different than the other DZ and I'm not use to it yet. The big upside to this DZ is the price. The thing that really gets me is the money. I love my "home" dropzone but it costs me twice as much as dropzone 'z'. And since Im a broke college student, paying for skydiving is hard enough as it is. So the question is, do I stick with my original family and shell out the little extra money? Or go to the other place, save some green, jump from a King Air, and just deal with the people and gear for now?

Im still working on my A license and heres the gear I've bought so far Helmet - Skysystems Benny ~$65 Altimeter - L&B Viso II - $200 Goggles - Clear and Tinted - ~$20 ...thats all I got, hope that helps some

hahahahahahahaha...thank you for that

I'll go ahead and say what everyone else is saying...I'm still a student and have no desire to own my own rig before being A licensed...I have however bought my own goggles, alti, and helmet to get started...from one student to another, start small before being licensed

+1

forgot to mention that...I was wearing a basic jumpsuit because of the cold, isn't that tight (not custom made to my body) and I was just belly flying...Im an IAD student and just working on falling stable on my belly (I'm doin good I might add )

So I got a Viso II and I love it. After my last jump, I replayed the jump and it gave me a freefall speed of 133MPH (I have it set to SAS, not TAS). I'm 6', ~195 exit weight, belly flying...that seems really fast...could I have reached that speed or are some digital readings somewhat inaccurate? Thanks

I made 3 jumps this past Sunday with my new Viso II...My instructor jumped it for me the first, then I made 2 jumps after that with it...She jumped from 11K and it recorded her altitude, deployment, speed, time (51 seconds)...my jumps were only from 7K and I logged 16 second freefalls...in the logbook, it displayed her speed...on my jumps, it did not record a freefall speed...BUT, when I went back to the "Last Jump Playback Feature", it did give me a freefall speed, but only on the playback, so I'm not sure...I sent an e-mail to L&B to see what's up...

You got that in seven jumps? Hmmm, for most people it happens a bit further in. Usually in the first 10-20 jumps people are still thinking about crap like "where the fuck am I?" and "where the fuck is that handle?" and "God, please let me not fuck up." and the ever popular "which fucking way is up?" I've only got 11 jumps, 5 IAD, 6 solo freefalls ranging from 5-20 seconds...I love the feeling of freefall and try to take in the beauty of it, but I agree...my mind is not used to this idea of falling and is still racing in freefall...don't wanna toot my own horn, but my last couple freefalls have been very stable belly to earth flying, no turning, staying on heading..but i still find myself yelling "LOOK AT YOUR FUCKING ALTIMETER!" "HOLY SHIT, PLEASE LET MY CANOPY OPEN", "WHERE THE HELL IS MY HACKEY"...hopefully sometime soon my mind and body will be calm during freefall

0...im a 20 year old virgin and proud of it!!! no, im not gay...yes, im religious...

I like turtles

thanks for all the input...Im still new to rigging (just starting to pack) and I figured it was misconnecting the risers somehow, intentional or not...thanks guys

Came across this video today...yea, no doubt his freefall sucked but how the hell did he fly that canopy backwards?? The info on the video says he hooked it on backwards, but I doubt this person is rigging his own container...anyone have any insight to how the hell his canopy was flipped around? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NxBwM5rH7sc

not trying to sound like a hotshot (i'm not, i have 8 jumps) but im going through IAD and my 6th jump i did a clear and pull and got cleared for a 5 second delay on jump 7 and a 10 second delay on jump 8...my instructor said i did a good job at staying stable...could it be the instruction?

skydiving is dangerous, but you (the jumper) have control of most of the aspects...its unfortunate, but fucking with mother nature never ends well...

my parents saw it coming sooner or later...they took me bungee jumping when i was 9 and ive been hooked on action sports forever...my parents still think im crazy, and even though they are filthy rich they wont pay for my jumps

I'm a newbie with 8 jumps and all 8 have been at Fly Free Skydiving. I was really worried when I went to make my first jump that all the experienced people would look down on me. NOT AT ALL at Fly Free. Everyone was great to me and made me feel like Id been jumping there forever. The instructors were amazing and always made me feel safe and comfortable, always asking me if I had any questions and what not. I consider it a 'Mom and Pop' DZ cause of the size but I love that kind of "non-corporate" atmosphere. Whether your a first jump student or an experienced skydiver, you have to get to Fly Free to experience the people and beautiful scenery of the Mid West.

I get the idea now...don't get me wrong, I love checking out the forums and looking at freefly pictures and all that stuff, but I never take advice from the forums or think I can do cool stuff right now...I take advice from my instructor and my instructor only..any student who reads these forums for actual advice is dumber than a box of rocks

Ah, gotcha...thanks for being honest with me and actually giving me new insights

Im not the one asking about a team, you got me confused with the author of this thread...I know Im not on any sort of team, Im still a student and have so much to learn still its unbelievable...I just asked if students are hated cause anytime someone with less than 25 jumps posts a question, merely asking about information, someone with 2500 jumps feels the need to say "whoa, your still a student...your a moron for asking about swooping, your skill level is so far from even thinking about swooping blah, blah, blah"...everyone was a student at one time and I myself respect experience jumpers and am just trying to learn from you guys

Do experienced skydivers hate students or something?

Im kind of in the same situation. Im an 20 college student, got 8 jumps under my belt, and Im in no hurry to join a "team". The only people I jump with right now are my instructors. All of the experienced jumpers at the drop zone are very welcoming to me and love how young I am and tell me they wish they would've started jumping when they were my age. My best advice, try searching your school for clubs. My college has a skydiving club called the "Flying Cougars", although they've kinda lost members and quit grouping up. If no luck there, contact a DZ and get goin' as a student. Oh and if your in the STL area, hit me up, cause Id love another young jumper to jump with. P.S. get ready to empty your savings, this is a very rewarding, yet expensive hobby...

Thanks for all the advice guys! Im a young, naive student who needs to take it one step at a time...and I guess I need to read my SIM more

i didnt say IAD was safer...I just never liked the idea of a static line