ChrisRomp

I started wearing mine when I started doing 4-way RW (jump 60-something). Sometimes I can't even see my altimeter because it's on my hand that's got a grip where I'm not looking (I still check it between points when possible). Granted, it's pretty obvious when three people turn and burn that I should probably do the same. :)

OT: It cracks me up that the Google ads on this thread have switched (for me) to "life coaching" ads.

Gotta start somewhere.

Ah, quite right. :)

OT: If anyone's interested in NorCal there's another one of these "camps" coming up but the deadline is fast approaching. If they had me doing 6-10 points at 70 jumps, imagine if you had a bit more experience? It's really good stuff. Facebook event page: http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=363622960829&index=1

Cool idea, but the GPS bit is better for snowboarding, hiking, etc., I think. As for skydiving I know where the DZ is so it's easy to geotag. Not a reason to upgrade my existing Contour but if I had to replace it I'd consider the upgrade. :P

Holding my nose and diving in. Yummy bait. That depends on the person, and the culture at the DZ. I've been to dropzones with no RW jumpers, and I know a kid who started to sit-fly on jump #26. He's got ~150 jumps now and has probably only been on his belly for less than 30. Should he be a coach? Probably not. This January I did my first AFF jump. I just got my coach rating last month. Between then and now I've been doing 95% RW jumps, and a lot of 4-way. I'm the guy Lisa mentioned as doing 10-points in a 4-way scramble on jump #70. It was not very long ago that I was a student. I remember making the exact same mistakes they do, and what worked to fix it is very fresh in my mind. I got a lot of advice from 10k+ jumpers that was very difficult to translate into something I could use as a 10-jump student. More jumps does not make someone a better teacher. I love to teach (was going to be a teacher at one point) and I see too many students having to do solo after boring solo. I'm happy to jump with them, and that's why I got my coach rating. Also, the coach rating course focused a lot on adult teaching methods (which I was very pleasantly surprised to see). I see a lot of advice (good and otherwise) being freely given by jumpers of all experience levels to jumpers of all experience levels, but this is not the same thing as teaching. So, do I have a lot to offer a new AFF-graduate in terms of teaching good and safe skydiving, even though I'm still sub-200 jumps? Absolutely. Will a non-current 5000+ jumper find much value in "coaching" from me? Not likely.

http://www.basejumper.com

That's not cranky. I totally agree! Why keep test driving the car if you're going to buy the damn thing? ;)

haha... kinda related, but a thought I've had a few times so I'll post it here on DZ: If I die outside of skydiving, I want my skydiving friends to have my gear. Throw my jumpsuit in with the demo/loaner suits. If I die skydiving, burn that shit. All of it.

+1. We're all going to the same destination, and while I'm certainly in no hurry to get there, I want to enjoy the ride along the way.

For my first few AFF jumps I would get serious nerves on the ride to altitude. I never thought about not jumping, but I'd look around at the other skydivers and think, "these people are crazy." :) Going over my dive flow in my head calmed me down. Or striking up a conversation with another jumper about another topic (job, kids, etc.) also works. Eight months later and I can practically take a nap on the ride up. :)

Do you already have the GoPro? I've seen the ExtremeVu mount for the ContourHD on a full-face Z1. The only thing I don't like is no option for a proper cutaway system on the Z1. http://www.xtremevu.com/

Everything on this forum is 100% true and accurate. Sorry, I couldn't resist. I hope you decide to do AFF (or similar method) and learn to jump solo. It's a great sport and has changed my life. Listen to your instructors. :)

I dunno. Video from an outside flyer is (IMO) better than a handicam. And I don't see the whuffos buying wrist mounts for cameraphones or picking up a GoPro just for their one tandem jump ($99 for better vid and stills is still cheaper than a GoPro... for now).

Don't spend too much time on here. ;)

Ooh great idea. I'm going to have to try that.

heh: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EsT2M-00DIs

Congrats! I still remember my first solo very well. It was the first jump where I actually noticed everything on the ground getting BIGGER. On all of my AFF jumps I was so focused on the task(s) at hand that I never took in the scenery. :)

How would stitching it shut change its shape?

Anyone else here use a Mirage with the split-bag design for the main bag? Pic: http://www.miragesys.com/products/?loc=detail&id=1&iid=1041 It's the only rig I've owned, and what I learned to pack on. Mirage claims the design reduces bag lock. Sometimes I think it makes packing more of a pain and it'll occasionally confuse a packer. I'm due for a reserve repack next month and a little bit tempted to have the rigger stitch it so it functions more like a "normal" bag. What are your thoughts?

The first few times I jumped with mine it was pretty easy to open unstable (typically turning), so I had a couple of line-twist openings. Maybe that was just me, but I put my feet on my ass when I open now, just in case.

Haven't needed it yet (knock on wood), but my Mirage G4 has a slightly different D-ring with a tapered top edge. Picture: http://www.miragesys.com/products/?loc=detail&id=1&iid=1048

For my first AFF landing, the field was muddy in the center from recent rains so I was wanting to land closer to the road (still about 20' away), which was to my left on final. The instructor was facing toward my approach from another field and calling out "left, left, left" over the radio. As soon as I touched down he said "I mean right." :P I knew what he meant, and common sense (and a strong desire to stay dry) told me not to go left. Common sense > radio. :)

Wow... just wow. You're nuts. I think my jaw was hanging open for most of the video. Next time you do this have someone get video from outside. That'd be really cool to see. And for some balance to the topic... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kL-ghG7qXro