cbuffalino

I'm approaching my A license and am excited about the prospect of doing all sorts of different types of jumps as I find my way in the sport. One of my local DZs is doing helicopter jumps this summer and I was wondering if there are any special requirements needed to perform that kind of jump? Similarly, are there any restrictions for balloon jumps? Never give up on something you can't go a day without thinking about.

Thanks all for the constructive input. I will definitely keep all of this in mind on my future jumps as well as gt down on that extra reading that was mentioned by hookit. Airtwardo also has some great madatory reading I saw earlier this week that was very insightful. And yes... That was this first time I closed the door. Quite embarrassing for sure. Never give up on something you can't go a day without thinking about.

So I was going back through my logbook recently and reminiscing about all the great and sometimes scary experiences I encountered while completing my AFF training. And thought I would share one in particular for any AFF students who haven't yet had their first malfunction. On my very first unsupervised solo jump, two weeks after completing my AFF training I was both nervous and excited- isn't that why we do it anyway? I was all geared up, inspected, manifested, weatherized (cold in NY in November) and on my very first load with fun jumpers of all levels as well as instructors who took me through the AFF process. As I was in the plane just as the plane was taking off an instructor called up to me "close the door!" That was the first mistake I made... lol The glass door on this plane was heavier than anticipated and it slammed down on the floor. I got a couple looks from the other experienced jumpers on the load and was told matter-of-factly to not let that happen again. Obviously to not break the door. Once at altitude I was the first jumper to leave the plane. I got some help spotting the exit point before hand and was told to prop up and wait for the light. Mistake two: WAIT FOR THE LIGHT! I exited the plane- as I was told- about 2 seconds before the light went. I thought I had heard a GO GO GO! From the front of the plane so I went. It was probably just my adrenaline kicking in and being over excited about what I was about to do. My exit was nice- a head first dive out gaining stability very quickly. I noticed quickly that I was orbiting around so I adjusted my leg position once I determined my upper body was looking good. This helped a lot because being comfortable with where your legs are makes a huge difference in the stability aspect of the dive, so I experimented with different things until I found something that felt right. Honestly it wasn't the prettiest dive, but definitely made me more comfortable knowing I could move around and not go completely out of whack. It was a standard belly down dive, no frills. I decided early on to pull at 5,500ft to allow myself time to get comfortable under canopy and practice riser turns, flares and braked turns at altitude. I locked on at 6,000 just like in AFF and pulled at my preplanned altitude. Immediately after pulling I looked up to check my canopy and said "of course this had to happen now." Three to four line twists not very far up the lines but enough to be an annoyance. I realized then that even though I was completely stable and followed rule number 1- pull at the correct altitude- I had made my third mistake which was not compensating with one arm while the other was operating the pilot chute so my body was spinning as the main was being extracted, causing a line twist. To remedy the situation I followed all protocol that was taught to me in ground school. I spread the risers apart with my hands, brakes still stowed and began to kick in the opposite direction of the twist. I noticed that it took too long for my personal comfort to get in the motion and my body kept creating some counter constructive motion as both legs were alternating (like scissors) during the kick. I checked altitude and then tried again. I quickly got out of the twists with plenty of time and altitude to permit me to get to my holding area, facing into the wind and fly my preplanned course to a mediocre landing. Later I recalled a tip that I have not heard widely used from another jumper which was to kick simultaneously with both legs in the same direction. This in theory should create more positive force and get you out quicker. Has anyone ever tried this? What I learned from that experience is this: Don't panic and waste valuable time, relax and recall everything you learned, listen to your instructors and absorb as much as possible from them, always be altitude aware, don't let the door slam on take off, and never exit before the GREEN light. Never give up on something you can't go a day without thinking about.

Thanks everyone for the info. After some deliberation I have decided to go to skydive Miami. I'll let you all know how it goes. I'll be doing a re-currencyQuote course there as well as as many jumps as possible to get me closer to my A and work on some skills after a two month layoff here in New York. Thanks again! Chris Never give up on something you can't go a day without thinking about.

I'm going to be in the Miami area in February and was wondering if anyone has ever been to this DZ? http://www.miamiskydivingcenter.com Website doesn't have much information on aircraft, or DZ about the DZ in general and it's not listed on DZ.com's list of places to jump. If anyone has ever been there let me know what you know please. Never give up on something you can't go a day without thinking about.

I would like to redact statements I made earlier this week about Skydive Long Island. Truth be told I was extremely frustrated with not being able to jump and made the rookie mistake of voicing an opinion when I didn't fully understand the nature of the beast. I was focusing in things that bothered me at the moment and not the good things that I experienced. To clear the main issue up first I would like to say that my instruction was thorough and the instructor made sure he/she felt comfortable with my skill and the conditions and that was proven through successful jumps and the correction of errors I made in each successive jump. Secondly, the response I received from SDLI about my opinions goes to show how much they do care about their students and although sometimes we leave frustrated, they care enough let us leave standing and in the condition we came. I got a great opportunity to speak with the owner who was concerned with my statements and he let me know that if there was EVER a valid issue that the card to hear about it and that they are open to criticism and opinion that will help them better their staff and the student experience. SDLI is and has been on my speed dial since I started coming here and I feel like a total d-bag for prematurely voicing an opinion contrary to my overall experience. Although, I may return to the Ranch at some point, SDLI is my base and I will continue my training here beyond just my AFP jumps. Finally, a thank you to the staff here who has been welcoming and responsive to everything thrown at them... Especially my poorly thought out statements. -Chris Never give up on something you can't go a day without thinking about.

I've jumped at both and currently doing my AFP levels at SDLI. PErsonally I think the Ranch is better in terms of organization, quality and knowledge of staff, the facility although much smaller than SDLI has showers, a cafe, indoor hangar, camp grounds and the number 1 plus is definitely the staff and if you're in the city I is about the same distance than to long island. On the contrary, SDLI is a much larger airport, very easy to spot and land on. There are some pretty cool instructors there but the company's disorganization is something that makes it a drag sometimes. Often times when I go there there is a large gap of time before they will assign me an instructor or have someone do pre jump training with me. Also the instructors are much less helpful and willing to give new skydivers knowledge and make them feel part of a family and comfortable. Inwent to SDLI before work this week and they had no updates on their website or one of nearly 10 (no joke) Facebook pages letting students or tandems know they would be closed for maintenance. When myself and a friend arrived there were two tandems there that had allegedly been schedules on a day when they were closed. Bottom line is I believe the Ranch is better with a better reputation and skill set between instructors and specialists. It is a harder spot but that should help to make you more accurate in the future. SDLI isn't all bad but it's disorganization after weeks of dealing with I could persuade one to transfer schools. Hope that helps. Never give up on something you can't go a day without thinking about.

Thanks for the advice! In know it's mostly a mental thing and getting used to the new environment. With any luck I'll be jumping tomorrow morning before work so I'll have to get my meditation on and overcome this little nervous hiccup. Thanks again guys and have a safe flight always! Never give up on something you can't go a day without thinking about.

Thanks! I'll definitely give that a shot. Thanks for the well wishes. Enjoy the rest of the season. Never give up on something you can't go a day without thinking about.

That was awesome! Thanks for sharing. Never give up on something you can't go a day without thinking about.

So I am a student skydiver currently on my Level 4 AFP jump. For some reason in my last two jumps I have it stuck in my head that I need to continually keep eye contact with my instructor for signals and confirmation that everything is going well. This is causing me to bend my spine in the direction of my instructor which causes us to orbit around each other lazily. It hasn't caused a problem with my jumps, and I know it is just a mental block as I'm looking for some positive reinforcement, but I was wondering if anyone has had this issue/fear during their training and how they overcame it. When I'm doing my jump it's as if I'm waiting for the instruction or hand signal to do the next maneuver instead of just doing the dive flow by myself. I get everything done but once I get back to the ground I always have the same conversation with the instructor: "dude just do the dive flow, i'm not even there!" Any advice would help. Never give up on something you can't go a day without thinking about.

Hey everybody, obviously new to the forum and just wanted to give everyone a shout! I'm a new skydiver still under student status. 6 jumps in on Level 4 of my jump course. I live in the NY Metro area so if there are any of you out there commuting to any of the DZs around here shoot me an email, I'd love to tag along and get some jumps in before the weather goes completely ridiculous for the winter. Anyway great to meet you all unofficially and have safe jumps always! Never give up on something you can't go a day without thinking about.