medic001918

Welcome. Sounds like you've already invested quite a bit in your tandem jumps. Those jumps will count towards your 25 jump minimum to get your A-license...so that'll save a few bucks possibly...unless you need more than 25 to complete your license which does happen. You'll maintain a faster learning curve with more frequent jumps, but that being said...there's nothing wrong with two times a month. We all have life that interferes with jumping. Just remember that after a small break, you have to readapt to the learning curve. And always review your emergeny procedures before every jump...a few times. It's just good practice. The cost of jumps once you're at your A-license depends on your dropzone. My dropzone charges $25 per jump for fun jumpers. Sometimes they'll do a special. As far as rentals go, each jump w/rental gear is $40 plus a repack at the end of the day when you're done with the gear. If you can swing it, try to stash away some cash for a used rig. You'll find jumping a bit more enjoyable when you're jumping you're own gear and get really comfortable with it. Good luck & welcome. Shane

Welcome and enjoy!!! Some good people around here! Shane

Smooth is best to me. But at the very least, be well trimmed!

You're kidding right? I only have an associates degree, and my career isn't even in what I went to school for. Yet I have a great career as a firefighter/paramedic that is stable, pays my bills well and offers me plenty of time off to do the things that I want to do. I guess my career choice doesn't qualify as "stable" to you. I should have made sure I got that bachelor's degree to be able to have security, stability and time off...That way I'd be more "marketable" to the ladies. Hmm...must be where I went wrong. With all respect, you're view of reality is skewed greatly from your posts... Shane

I'm assuming that you're alreay a paramedic if you're considering taking a course that's open to paramedics and higher. But before going into a "remote area" or a wilderness setting, you want to make sure you're proficient in all of your protocols. This means all the way through them, not just your first and second line treatment modalities, but every bit of them. In a remote environment, you'll be with your patient long enough to get into longer term care, med drips (since you can't use the excuse of being 'down the street' for why you didn't get to it. You need to not only deal with the patients problems, but also the ramifications (side effects and general effects) of your treatments. Many times in a short transport system people forget that when they give meds, they do cause an effect that might need to be changed. Before going to an extreme environment like Everest, I'd try to find somewhere to work as a paramedic where you have long transport times (there are servies with transports well over an hour...or more). This will give you a good idea of what you'll be facing in longer term care before you tackle trying to manage a patient for more than an day. Otherwise, you'll want to be proficient in the environment you're working in. For Everest, you should be good at mountaineering and be able to be self sufficient before you add someone incapacitated to your dilema. I don't know how long you've been a medic, but make sure you're comfortable with you local medicine before going to a hostile environment with longer term care. Shane

That's difficult to answer because nobody knows your entire financial situation other than you. Things like if you have other credit card debt or other debt come into play. I have a credit card I use all the time for everything so that I get the cash back rewards on it, but I pay it in full every month so it never has a balance on it and I'm not paying interest. I have a different card that I used if I'm going to make a large purchase (or jumping) that I get rewards on as well, but I always have a plan for how it will be paid off quickly. Just sit down and make a plan and see if it fits into your overall financial plan...then make your decision. Shane

I have one of these that I use and it works awesome. I'd recommend one to anybody. It holds everything I could dream of fitting in there pretty much and keeps things separated. http://ogio.com/rig-9800 Shane

The initatives come from some down time, and also the fact that when someone has a problem and they don't know who to call or send...they send the fire department to figure out what to do. It is a good thing, and with the fact that there's better fire protection systems in place, our roles have expanded to other areas such as education and medical. Some of the initatives come out to meet eligibilities for grant funding and such as well. It's just part of keeping up with the dynamic society and keeps the job exciting. I'm lucky enough that I don't have to go to work, instead I get to go to work. Shane

If you listen to some politicians lately, we don't work hard at all. Shane

I have alot of respect for you guys, especially in the medical field. Thank you. It's nice to hear that from time to time. It's a unique job to say the least and I don't think I could ever imagine myself doing anything different. Shane

The best thing I have done in my life was to choose a career as a firefighter/paramedic. I get to work with an awesome group of people in the comminuty that I live in and have a ton of fun while I'm there. It's nice to see a program for kids to gain some exposure to what we really do. Shane

Very well and powerfully put. Something we could all do well to read and remember. It's a little closer to home since I'm also a scuba diver...having ready many fatality reports from diving I can certainly understand her feelings. Let's all be safe out there. Shane

Congrats. It is a great feeling. Enjoy your new self supervising status!!! You're a step closer to having your license. Shane

Depends on what you're looking for really. You can get out of it pretty cheaply, or you can spend quite a bit. I wanted something newer, freefly friendly and that had an AAD in it. I ended up spending $3200 for it, but it's a rig that only had 127 jumps on it, so I can use it for a while before I decide to get another one. And did you really compare riding to skydiving and that being a reason to not have the desire to do something skydiving? I grew up riding and racing motorcycles, and own one of the fastest production bikes made...and still wouldn't say it's a reason why I'd never want to swoop. At this point in my jump career, i have zero desire to swoop...but riding isn't really a reason for why. Poke around the classifieds. Keep your eyes open and check often. Once a good deal comes up, it usually goes quickly. Good luck, Shane

Having just gotten my A-license myself, there's still a lot to be learned by jumping solo. Can you side slide already? Can you adjust your fall rate adequately enough to stay in a group? Can you do a diving exit without tumbling every time (that way when you dive after a group, you can do it without tumbling into them)? Can you keep your heading while tracking? I know sometimes solos can be boring, but there's always skills to be accomplished and let's not forget...you get to jump instead of watching everyone. Keep your head up. Find people at your DZ that are willing to include new jumpers in the RW jumps. I know we have a few at my DZ that kind of "specialize" in planning their RW's around newer jumpers and everyone jumping knows what may happen. And sometimes a simple two way is a great jump to really work on skills. I did a couple of "around the world" jumps today. Certainly a challenge that sounds easier than it is for a new jumper. It might have been a busy day. It sounds like it was. That probably has a lot to do with why it was harder to find someone to jump with. Keep at it... Shane

Thank you for your service, Sir. As someone who's a jump away from an A-license (plane broke when I was in it for the 25th jump last weekend)...having good AFF-I's makes a world of difference. It's been a fun transformation going from being unsure to being able to skydive. I'm sure you've had a lot of good memories transforming people into skydivers and watching them progress. Thank you again. And enjoy your fun jumps!! Shane

Don't get discouraged. I did the same thing. Got out and did two jumps the weekend of my FJC. Then I had three weeks of bad weather and scheduling conflicts. Last weekend I went out and knocked out nine jumps over the weekend. I would have had more but the weather got in the way. I'm off of the AFF jumps and onto solo's and coach jumps. Had a blast doing my first solo. Hang in there, it'll be worth it. Shane

Regardless of what route you go, your tandem can be counted towards one of your 25 jumps for your A-license. So it's not a complete waste, and makes it easier to focus on your skills since you know what freefall feels like when you start your AFF. Having just started my process, that's my experience with it. When I did my AFF level 1 jump I knew what the feeling would be like. Shane

I start AFF this weekend and ended up buying a set of gear already even though I can't use it at the recommendation of one of my friends who's an instructor. I wasn't looking to buy so soon, but know I'm commited to this and couldn't pass up a good deal. Even the rigger said I got a good deal on my gear. So I guess the time is different for everyone. I bought when I found the right deal...or what felt like the right deal to me. I listened to those that know me and know the sport. And the DZ I'll be using will have no problem with me using my rig once I'm off student status...which will hopefully be soon since I paid for all the jumps up front. Just have to have my schedule and the weather cooperate. Shane

I still have my skis, but haven't skied in a few years. That's another very expensive hobby. Lift tickets now midweek for a decent mountain are about $80. Not to mention the two hour ride to get to a good mountain so it's a couple of hundred dollars to go skiing for the day. Maybe I'll get back into that this winter...or I'll just go to the tunnel and practice flying? Seems about the same cost in the end. As for jumping, I can't wait to start jumping all the time. I'm looking forward to it. I kept my eyes open and with the help of a friend of mine found a rig so I'll have that all set once I'm off student status. Guess that makes me completely commited at this point after making that purchase.

Lucky for me my full time career offers me a lot of time off since I work 24 hours on and 72 hours off. This allows me time to work a part time job for extra money to pay for all of this. But it will also let me jump since I pick my own part time schedule. So I'll still manage to find time for both. Not to mention that all of my diving gear is already bought and paid for!!!

I doubt I'll sell my dive gear. I still plan on diving, plus there's people in my life would would kill me if I sold it. Not to mention that I still really enjoy scuba diving. I might not dive as much, but I will dive. I just can't wait to start jumping on a regular basis. Thanks for the welcome. Shane

So a couple of weeks ago I made my first tandem jump. Now I'm signed up for my first jump course and will start jumping regularly. I can't wait. Skydiving is at the top of my list of cool things I've been able to do...and I've pretty fortunate in some of my experiences. I can't wait to jump again. Keeping my eyes open for deals on gear so that once I get my A-license I can jump every weekend. This is going to get addicting...just have to remember to make time to scuba dive still and ride my motorcycle!!! Anyway, just wanted to introduce myself. I'm Shane. I'll probably have quite a few questions along the way. Shane