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Relax people, I don't think PiLfY is trying to be a wannabe-instructor. He's just sharing his experience, and like he said, he specifically told me to go over things with my instructor, which I did!

He is a she ;)

So, yeah, things are moving forward. Did 5 jumps today, managed to land on landing area every time. Didn't stand up any landings, almost made it once, but I did a lot of "baseball slides". Talked to my instructor, so I learned to turn the canopy with just using my harness and flaring got a bit easier when I wrapped the lines around my hand. I got a more feel for it now, found the sweet spot and everything! :) So, no hard landings at all, though I'm not happy about all the "ass swooping", I hope I'm able to land standing up soon! I was also told that the canopies I fly are almost impossible to stall, but I'm not supposed to know that ;)

Also, is it a good thing that I don't trust other skydivers in the air at all? Canopy collision is definitely my BIGGEST fear, and scares me more than landing. I saw a lot of people (mostly male students) flying REALLY close this weekend, and it makes me scared jumping with other students. They pissed the instructors off though, so maybe they'll be more careful on their next jumps.

I'm not going to say which DZ I'm at, anyway it's outside of the US and you probably wouldn't know where it is. I know, I saw people calling them cheap. I would agree, but it seems like they're trying to get better equipment (like the digital altimetres, audibles, etc), though no radio yet. I haven't asked yet why they don't have radios though, but I will tomorrow. Then we'll find out how cheap they are ;) Yes, I have another DZ I can go to, though this one is sort of connected to the one I go to at the moment. Not sure if they use radios though. It's not open for jumping yet though. Anyway, I've been told that they can film my landings, so I'm definitely asking them to do that on my next jump. I think my instructor is the best, he's been super and spending a lot of time on me, and I really have nothing bad to say about any of the instructors there, except for them not having radios. But I didn't post this thread for you guys to bash my DZ.

I haven't really thought about it, but yes, for the first few seconds I feel like I'm falling. It's a good feeling though

Well, not exactly the same situation, but sort of similar. 2 months passed before I continued jumping (I had 7 jumps before this), and I got back to the DZ. I could not get myself to jump, I felt sick just looking at the plane. I thought I was never going to jump again. What I found helpful was watching my AFF-video, and getting pep-talks from other jumpers. I got up in the plane the next day, and it was GREAT.

No, unfortunately not. I hope they reconsider this, because I am definitely one of those who would benefit from some radio help, and I bet I'm not the only one. They've gotten audibles now though, that will make a sound when on 900, 600 and 300 feet. I didn't use that though. I found it more helpful with a digital altimetre though, than the regular ones.

Hello! Okay, so flying a canopy and landing it is not what I'm best at. I am a beginner, got 1 tandem and 9 other jumps. I seem to be having a problem with flaring. I did two jumps this weekend, first jumps in two months. I know what I can change while actually flying the canopy, like flying to the holding area earlier, etc., but when it comes down to landing I'm terrible at timing the flare. I find this very hard. I PLFed both jumps (the reason for me not jumping for two months is because of a bad butt landing, I am NEVER doing that again unless I really have to), and walked away with no trouble. My arms and chest got pretty sore after the first jump, felt like I'd been working out. This might be because I practiced flaring up high though, or maybe I'm tense during free fall. I also have tense shoulder muscles, and my naprapath told me that I would get sore quicker than others (need to work out my back more, yeah), but it's nothing dangerous. Although it could make flaring heavier, though I don't feel any pain until a while after the skydive. Anyway, my point is, I feel like I can't finish the flare properly, and I tend to start flaring too soon. I know I did it too soon on the first jump this weekend, but it's like the lines are too long for me to finish? I'm jumping a 240 Navigator, sometimes 220, and I'm a pretty short girl with short arms. A friend told me that she had the same problem, but she made them shorter by taking them around her hands once or twice. If you know what I mean. I haven't tried this yet since I haven't talked to my instructor about it, but if you guys have any input on this, feel free to share. Also, I'm scared of hurting myself when landing, so I always prepare myself for a crash landing. I haven't tried running them out, and I haven't been able to get a full stop and a smooth landing. Haven't stood up once! Of course, I will talk to my instructors about all of this, but if any of you have tips on how to time my flare better and getting good landings, please share. Like I said earlier, I tried practicing up high, but I didn't really get when the "sweet spot" was. This is the main problem I have with skydiving, and I would like to get the hang of it soon, cause it's kinda stressful to be nervous about landings all the time. I love the free fall, and I'm actually pretty good at it, and I think I could love canopy flying more eventually. And yes, yes, yes. I know I shouldn't follow advice here blindly, it's just nice to see what other experience skydivers can share, but I will never, ever do anything that people tell me here without discussing it with an instructor.

I am not looking to depend on it, not at all. I thought it might be a good idea for helping me with the one thing I'm having most trouble with, just to help me get the feel of when I should flare. I've learned a lot by doing things myself, like the problems I had with landing pattern for instance. Yes, they taught us PLF, which came in handy on my first jump when I did a face-plant-landing downhill. BAD spotting by my instructors, I was not able to reach the LZ at all, and I had to dodge power lines. I think the PLF helped me out a lot then. Unfortunately I kind of forgot about this later, and did a few butt landings (my two or three first jumps were PLFs). I remembered the butt landing from the tandem jump I had, and kind of started to "depend" on this sort of landing, because it felt like the most safe thing to do. I've learned otherwise now. Just to let you know, everything people tip me about here I will most definitely talk over with my instructor first. Absolutely. Everything I pick up on here, or from other skydivers I meet, I talk over with my instructor. I'm not an idiot. Thanks for your reply.

Thanks for the tip! I haven't been good at looking in front of me or to the sides, which results in flaring too high. Also when I fell hard on my butt (there was a hole in the ground after me...) which hurt my back, I didn't finish the flare. So, I know what NOT to do next, but I know I will have problems timing the flare. Hope I get some good tips here, and I will definitely talk to my instructor!

Hey! I was just wondering why some DZs decides not to use radios? My DZ doesn't, and I understand that you can learn more by thinking on your own, but I have been having trouble with flaring before landing (also landing pattern, but I have gotten better at this), and also had a small injury in my back because of this. I think I would be one of the students that would benefit from a little radio help during landing. Do most DZ use radios, or is it common not to?

Ask your instructors. I was specifically told to wear gloves.

This is why I was told to let my ear drum heal before I jumped again, and I'm glad I did :) It was only two weeks, jeez.

My instructor always checks my gear, at least on the first jumps he checked thoroughly. If not, I definitely would've asked. You will have to seek a lot of information in this sport, it's not just handed over to you. People are usually glad to help out, just ask them. But, I think the instructor should check the gear on the first few jumps, and teach the student what to do, regardless if the student asked or not.

I don't feel the pressure change in free fall (this might be because of the adrenaline rush, might change later when I'm more experienced), but I really feel it under the canopy. I equalize before I take the toggles down. I would never go up if I couldn't clear my ears while on ground. I would consult with your doctor first though. Maybe you have problems with your sinuses? I went to my doc after my first tandem jump, where I perforated my ear drum. I was afraid of this happening again, especially since I've been having small sinus issues this year. My doctor had this thing that he could check the pressure in my ears, and they were normal. He told me to go for it, but use nose spray if I felt a bit stuffed up. I was really nervous when I started my AFF though, I was positive it would happen again. It didn't though, but I was using nose spray and decongestans (non-drowsy). Yes, there is a risk that they will rupture if you don't clear them fast enough. I didn't equalize fast enough on my first jump (I didn't even try the Valsalva maneuver, I'm positive my ear would be fine if I did), therefore - a perforated ear drum. Didn't hurt or anything, but I was told by my doctor to not jump until it was healed.

I know this post is a month old, but when I had crackling after my first jump, it was a perforated ear drum. I have sinus issues though (just started this year, before I started jumping), so that is why it happened. I was able to clear, but it was too late. Now my sinuses are better (I haven't jumped for a month though because of a bad back), but I've been using nose spray just in case. As long as I'm able to clear 'em, I'm fine :)

Wow, impressive that it still worked. I never bring my phone up though!

Thanks! I am taking your words to heart, I really am. I have decided to hear what my chiropractor has to say about it on Tuesday. If he feels it's okay, and my back is feeling okay by the time I'm thinking of jumping, I'm doing it. If not, I'll wait.

Thanks for your replies guys! I'll give it a week or two to see if it gets better (which it has since I hurt my back). I would be able to get off student status. I could do that in a few days if the weather is okay. I could also do it at another DZ that's open all year if the weather is okay. If my back is up to it, I can have my A-certificate by the end of August. The problem is that I need to do rejump AFF level 7 since it's been over a month. I have to go to another DZ to do this, and they close in the end of August.

Hey! About 5-6 weeks ago I had a pretty bad butt landing (lol, I know, don't land on your butt!) that was completely my fault. I flared too early, didn't complete the flare and had my legs up. Kinda embarassing really. Anyway, I got intense lower back pain and went to the hospital for an x-ray. Didn't show anything. The doctor mentioned that it could be a prolapse (stupid of him to mention that, I was REALLY stressed out over this until the MRI showed no prolapse). The intense pain stopped after a few minutes though, but it was still a little bit painful. Anyway, the day after I was feeling pretty okay, and drove a 5-6 hour drive home with only two short stops. When I got home my legs and lower back was soo painful, and my legs were numb. I had problems sitting for a few days. I've had this happen once more when I was at work standing up for 6 hours. Other than that it's not that bad, but I can still feel it. I get moderate pain when I stand up too long or if I walk around for example a mall for a long time. I've had an MRI, which basically showed nothing. There was a small buldging disc, but the radiologist said that it was so small it shouldn't cause any pain. It's barely visible. Went to a chiropractor, apparently (English is not my first language so I don't know how to precisely translate this) parts of my back were "locked". He cracked my back a little or whatever you call it, but my muscles are really stiff and somewhat painful. I have moderate pain in my lower back, legs and upper back (the upper back has been stiff for ages, never affected me skydiving though). Legs feel like growing pain sometimes, but this I've had before my accident, not as frequent though. Arching on the ground is not excruciatingly painful at all, but I can definitely feel it. The first chiropractor I had meant that I could go skydiving since the radiologist pointed out that the buldging disc wouldn't cause pain. I had to go to another chiropractor today for some reason, and he's going to give me some exercises, but he seemed more "negative" towards me going skydiving in a little over a week. He didn't really say anything, so I might've mistunderstood is "negativity", haha. My pain is a mix between muscle pain and pain from the spine (I guess?). I don't know. I guess it's hard for them to say a lot when they don't know a lot about skydiving. SO, what do I do? It's very typical that I get really stressed out over stuff like this. I tend to overthink, overanalyze. I really, really want to jump again, and I have to do it soon (I'm a student, and the season at the DZ is ending soon), but I'm scared I'll hurt my back more. I feel like a whimp! I read other threads on this forum with people with way worse injuries than I have that still go jumping, and they're fine with it! What worries me the most is the landing part and the deployment. The deployment really shouldn't be an issue, should it? The student canopies are huge and well packed. Remember, I'm a newbie, so correct me if I'm wrong. I think part of the reason why I'm so nervous is because it's been over a month since I jumped now. I have the classic "student who probably won't continue jumping-syndrome", and I don't want that. I want to continue jumping, it's so much fun! I just need more landing instructions, more coaching. Already talked to my coach, and he's ready to help me out. I also will never know how the skydive will feel if I don't try. It could be a bit painful, or I won't notice it. I feel like I should just try, at least one jump! So, what do you guys think? Am I just being a wuss? Let me just point out - I am a girl, I tend to overthink things Also, if you have any good back excercises to strengthen the core/back, etc. please go ahead and share! Long post, I know. Sorry Oh and P.S., I haven't used pain kilers for the pain or about 4 weeks.

Source: http://content.usatoday.com/communities/ondeadline/post/2011/07/glenn-beck-compares-norwegian-victims-to-hitler-youth/1 Stay classy, Beck. Excuse my language, but that is fucking disgusting.

Hi guys! So, I passed all 7 AFF-levels a little over a month ago. I haven't been able to jump because of an injury that happened on my last landing which has prevented me from jumping the past 5 weeks. I think I might be able to get back up again within the next couple of weeks, but then it's going to be 6-8 weeks since my last jump. I remember most of what I've learned, I will definitely make sure I can go through some things again with an instructor, especially regarding landing. I was just wondering if you think it would be a good idea for me to maybe repeat my last level? Because my confidence is not really on top right now, and I'm a little nervous about jumping again. I don't have to repeat any levels, but maybe it would be a wise thing to do? Share your opinions please!

Yes, quite a few Norwegians feel that way, but they would NEVER act on it like Breivik did on Friday. With that said, MOST Norwegians do not feel that way. At least not the ones I know. Breivik is a moderate Christian, he says so himself in his manifest. Everything's in there, you should take a look. It's a political manner, and the people he shot were the Labour Party's youth group at their annual summer camp on an island called Utøya. Breivik disagrees with the Labour Party's immigrant politics, and this was his "first step towards changing Norway". He killed everyone he saw, everyone was a target. For 1 1/2 hrs he walked around shooting everyone, even children. One child got away, an 11 year old, he said to Breivik "You killed my dad. I'm too young to die. Stop shooting". He let the kid go. 86 people were shot and killed, the bomb killed 7 people. 66 people were hurt at Utøya, several might not make it. 30 was hurt by the bomb, and there are still people missing at both Utøya and in Oslo.

Really? I thought it was pretty obvious. Hopefully his trial will be held in camera and rob him of the chance to speak standing on the bodies of the innocent. His trial will most likely not be filmed. I have yet to see a single trial being filmed here in Norway. There are laws restricting it anyhow. Anyway, the police wants his hearing tomorrow to be closed. Personally I would like to see the asshole speak, look at his face, see if there is any form of remorse. Which there probably isn't, and it wouldn't matter anyway. He did say that what he did was "gruesome, but had to be done". No, nothing had to be done. I read his "Templar log" in his manifest yesterday, and I was absolutely appalled. I am so angry with this person, for what he did to all those innocent people and to our country. I am blessed that no one I know (at least that I know of) was harmed by this awful man. My thoughts are with the victims, survivors and their loved ones.