PiLFy

This is better than a lot of stupid skydiving shirts on the market. Find out how to sell this idea w/o getting ripped off, Skinnay. I'll buy a few from you.

Hi Pokerface, Bad idea, friend. I've been riding for almost thirty years, now. Something many riders seem to forget about: What if you end up hitting the ground? That would be an expensive slide across the pavement. Plus, the large hump of the rig might help cause a serious neck injury during a tumble. I don't ride my bike to the DZ for convenience' sake. Don't they have lockers you can rent on-site? 24hr on-site security person? Unless the DZ was very close to home, over low traffic volume back roads. I wouldn't do it.

I'm moved to "Skydivers w/disabilities"??? Jeeze, I'm getting older by the minute... Sorry, I don't see how to do a group reply for this post. Thank You for all of the informative replies, everyone. I'm relieved to see that injuries & conditions far worse than mine apparently won't keep me on the ground. I'm hoping to enjoy many years in the sport. I did the MRI, & should get the results tomorrow. I hope to be back to jumping again within a few weeks. Thanks again, everyone.

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Evening All, I've a question for the more experienced, please. I almost have an A-license finished. It took a lot of overcoming fear, along w/some hard landings to get here. I'm now @the threshold of a great sport I'm looking forward to enjoying for many years. One problem. After last weekend. My forearms & hands went partially numb... Dx: mild Cervical Arthritis. I go for an MRI tomorrow after work. The numbness has all but resolved. I'm 45, & in pretty good shape. I know of one guy @my DZ who has two herniated discs in his neck from several years ago. He jumps almost every day. Sometimes, he jumps w/an older twin camera set up that weighs A LOT. Is this a sport that people w/normal age-related disc degeneration can safely do? Instructors @my DZ have several thousand jumps, each. Two of them have about twelve thousand jumps a piece. I know I'll probably never accumulate nearly as many jumps. I'd hate to have to give the sport up after just finding it, though. Are there many others here jumping in their Forties & Fifties? How have you made out? I'm afraid to admit to my Doctors that I skydive. I met another student who had his medical bills denied because it was a skydiving injury. I'm thinking that dacron lines, maybe a larger slider, & larger chutes will take a fair amount of force out of the opening shock. What do you guys think?

Hi Josh, Does it ever go away? I know it's already been said a few times, but +1. I hope not. That would be dangerous. Complacency can get you hurt badly. I'd say I had a LOT of fear when I started jumping. You can desensitize yourself to any phobia w/repeated exposures. My fear of heights was pretty extreme, though. It was a true leap-of-faith that the principle would hold true for skydiving, as well. If you're lucky enough to be able to jump 4-5 times a day @your DZ. It will subside much quicker for you. I'm lucky to get more than two jumps a week @my DZ. So, it took a bit longer. I went from loads of fear, to some butterflies in the plane. Once I'm @the door? It's all good... Prep for it better? If I may? Rather than trying to amp yourself up for a jump. Try to face your fears calmly. I've seen a number of guys trying to psych themselves up before a jump. I feel it's the wrong approach. Much has been written about fear. Briefly then, what works for me: I take a few minutes during the second half of the climb. I go over my new-found abilities. All the learning objectives I've accomplished. Mistakes I've managed to save myself from. The serene beauty of parts of the dive cycle, etc... In short, I remind myself that A) I've proven to myself that I can do this safely. & B) That I really enjoy it. It's only sane to be afraid of pitching yourself out of a plane @14K'. It's insane to completely lose your fear of jumping. That will turn you into a statistic pretty quickly. Those first fledgling AFF jumps are a hurdle for almost everyone. You'll get past them quickly, & be glad you stuck it out. Enjoy your jumps, Josh.

My DZ's Protek helmets are tired. After one broke in my hands while boarding. I decided to buy something. My helmet understanding spans almost 30yrs. of motorcycling. Realistically, a $300 skydiving helmet is pure bling (unless you fly cameras). It's not how hard the shell is. It's how well the helmet will decelerate your brain in an impact. @terminal? You're dead. Hit a tree @80MPH? Same ending. I want a helmet to protect my noggin moving around in the plane. In free fall w/other helmets close by. As well as a surprise hard landing. My size large helmet offers a lot of well-fitting padding (replacement set $20), a hard shell, & a shape that actually fits my head (unlike Proteks). All that, plus a no-paint exterior I can flop on the plane's floor w/o worrying about scratching. All that for $65? Sold. I'll spend some of the money I saved on an Audible. Thanks, Sky Systems.