I'm still relatively new to the sport, but I can honestly say that I made a mistake once that was really stupid. I know it wasn't on my last jump, I think it was the one before that. The thing is, it was a great day a the DZ and everything is ok, I even do my gear check. Get on the plane, climb to 10,000 ft, diving exit, cool all around jump. Opened my canopy at around 4,000 ft and everything was perfect. I remember overshooting a little bit where I wanted to land. I pick up my canopy to head to the packing area, give my rig to one of the packers and wait for him to pack. When I get my rig back I noticed that my Cypress was off. Yeah, I forgot to turn on my cypress :S. That has to be one of the weirdest feelings that I've ever had because I felt a little fear, but like I knew that nothing had happened to me. The thing is that I never told anyone about it cause I can honestly say that I felt kind of embarrassed of making such a stupid mistake. But that's not the end of it. On my last jump, I went with a friend of mine that was going to tandem. Like before, everything was great, I do my gear check, get ready to jump, get on the plane, and as we're on the runway getting ready to take off, I remember that I forgot to turn it on again :S. Incredibly enough as soon as the plane started to take off it stopped due to a weather hold. Got off the plane, took my rig off and turned on the cypress. Second time it happens to me, only I think that the second was worse because I knew that it was off yet I stayed quiet due to the embarrassment of the stupid mistake. To sum things up, I felt really stupid.
~give my rig to one of the packers and wait for him to pack.
In Reply To
Don't think I'll ever get use to it.
Yeah, I know what you mean. I can count the number of times I've jumped that I haven't packed on one hand. Hmmm, I may not even need my thumb. Do you think some of these people realize they can actually get back in the air faster if they pack it themselves?
It's not really stupid. But it is a mistake if you wanted it on. I'd be more concerned about what else your missing. You need to get into a routine for your personal gear inspection.
And there should be no reason to feel fear just because you didn't turn it on. Embarassment, shame, yes. But fear no.
As Terry has already said, get a routine, and stick to it. If you need it, write the routine down and use a check list while checking your gear and don’t worry about the embarrassment.
Further more, you may consider putting accessories first in your routine. What I mean by this is if you are checking another skydiver, or your complete kit, then check Shoes, Helmet, Altimeter, Gloves, and Goggles First. Then when checking your Rig, check the AAD and the RSL, First. Some accessories are not designed to save your life, and the others should not be needed to do so, so why would you check them first? Because they are the things most often missed and forgotten.
I do not follow the guide lines above, because I had a routine that worked for me long before I was educated on the accessories first thing, I still stick to my routine today. When I got my AFF ratting, Bram, my Course Director, insisted that all AFF candidates check SHAGG first. Well, maybe not insisted, as he realized that I had a solid routine that I had used on both myself and hundreds of coach students, so he did not try and change that.
Bottom line is, Get A Routine. Oh, and don't hide behind your embarrassment, tell everyone at the DZ every stupid thing you do, as soon as it happens. That will insure you never do that again, trust me.
Yes, it's a mistake to not turn on your AAD - but it's a small mistake. Jumping without an AAD is OK, if one so chooses. Jumping with it turned off is OK, if unadvisable. It's not Russian Roulette; it's skydiving.
At your experience level you need the AAD. Nonetheless, as skydivers we should rely on ourselves, our skills and out training. The Cypres is proven reliable - but it's only a back up device and shouldn't be relied upon.
So don't beat yourself up about not having your AAD turned on. Remember it in future. Work out a pre-jump routine and use it for every jump.
Get a pin check before you jump. Learn how to give a proper pin check and give one if asked. Look out for others and they will look out for you.
Frequently practice your EPs, visualize scenarios and keep yourself prepared to deal with issues, nuisance occurrences and malfuntions and you will almost certainly be OK.
The AAD is a good thing, something we hope to and expect will work if we are unable to pull our reserve. But the lifesaving device in skydiving is comprised of the awareness, thought processes, the training, the experience: The jumper.
~give my rig to one of the packers and wait for him to pack.
In Reply To
Don't think I'll ever get use to it.
Yeah, I know what you mean. I can count the number of times I've jumped that I haven't packed on one hand. Hmmm, I may not even need my thumb. Do you think some of these people realize they can actually get back in the air faster if they pack it themselves?
Not counting reserve rides, I've jumped TWICE on a parachute I hadn't packed...TWO TIMES!
The very 1st jump... and once back in the 90's at Elsinore when Terry the DZ bum/packer, was broke... ~I PAID for a fuckin' line-over!
Get real...how else are you going to actually know the exact condition of the LifeSaving devise on your back? And why on earth wouldn't you WANT that information??
Hell...I'd even bet if the O.P. would have put 5-10 minutes of hands on concentration into that rig he'd have noticed his 'robot was sleeping'.
I thought snappin' rubba-bands was a prerequisite to full enjoyment of the entire experience!!!
(This post was edited by airtwardo on Aug 19, 2008, 8:05 AM)
I know what you mean! This weekend, due to being very busy and short packers, there were people who jumped on the first load, and sat on the ground until 6 o clock!
Hell I even left the room to make more jumps than that
I have. twice now, been walking to the plane when I realized that I neglected to turn on my AAD. Both times, this was due to allowing myself to be distracted while doing my "beginning of the day" full gear check. My new rule is ALWAYS do the full gear check in one go. Never say "oh there is Bob, I needed to ask him a question about..." and run off before getting the whole way through my routine. That's a good way to forget to finish.
I also try and make it the first thing I do after getting to the DZ, aside from taking a wizzer.
Not counting reserve rides, I've jumped TWICE on a parachute I hadn't packed...TWO TIMES!
The very 1st jump... and once back in the 90's at Elsinore when Terry the DZ bum/packer, was broke... ~I PAID for a fuckin' line-over!
Get real...how else are you going to actually know the exact condition of the LifeSaving devise on your back? And why on earth wouldn't you WANT that information??
Hell...I'd even bet if the O.P. would have put 5-10 minutes of hands on concentration into that rig he'd have noticed his 'robot was sleeping'.
I thought snappin' rubba-bands was a prerequisite to full enjoyment of the entire experience!!!
Thats always beeen the bit that has got to me a little. The fact that I am relying on the DZ packer of that day to have done a decent pack job..
because I dont have my own gear yet (no point as Im still downsizing to a size worth investing in) and we are not allowed to pack rental gear...
So now I just make sure i buy the packers a drink when I see them and never p*ss them off
I could maybe understand the DZ wanting the final pack job (before it's put back up on the rack for someone else to rent) to be done by a DZ packer so there's some level of "quality control" on the pack job. But to require you to use DZ packers on rental gear during the time that you're renting it seems like a pretty stupid policy.
It's not really stupid. But it is a mistake if you wanted it on. I'd be more concerned about what else your missing. You need to get into a routine for your personal gear inspection.
And there should be no reason to feel fear just because you didn't turn it on. Embarassment, shame, yes. But fear no.
I really have to dissent from that. First of all, elcobi2004 has 17 jumps, he doesn't even have his A license and is still at a point in his progression that he's still getting a lot of nerves about jumping in general. By the book, he HAS TO have the AAD and it needs to be turned on.
Second, we recently lost a highly experienced (4000+ jumps) Instructor in So Cal who couldn't find his reserve handle after a cutaway above 1500 ft. An AAD would likely have saved his life. That plus an AAD saved no less than Al Kruger's life last year when he was too injured to pull. AADs are for real people and they save real people's lives.
Once you turn them on, AADs are good for 14 hours. They just need to be turned on in the first place.
The trick to setting an AAD is to make a hard and fast rule about turning it on before you have the chance of forgetting. I used to rent gear from one shop, where the person behind the counter would say, "Please turn on the Cypres now", as they'd hand me the rig - and they would WATCH me turn it on. Now that I own my own rig, my rule is that I do not lift the rig out of the car until the Cypres is set (I even watch the numbers count down and could tell you the exact battery voltage reading, but that's just me). And for the rest of the day, I forget it's there and behave accordingly.
I'm a little dismayed at a dropzone that doesn't make sure its students and newbies are turning on their AADs on the rental gear. I'd call that a shortcoming that really needs to be addressed - and it's such a no-brainer to correct.
(This post was edited by tbrown on Aug 19, 2008, 6:27 PM)
I could maybe understand the DZ wanting the final pack job (before it's put back up on the rack for someone else to rent) to be done by a DZ packer so there's some level of "quality control" on the pack job. But to require you to use DZ packers on rental gear during the time that you're renting it seems like a pretty stupid policy.
Some places rent by the jump rather than the day, and there may be someone waiting for it. But many that include the packing fee in the rental will give the option of packing save the last and dropping $5 if you ask.
I recall some of these places making a point of doing a gear check before boarding on any one with a rental to ensure they didn't forget something due to lack of familiarity.
If one misses the AAD part, the question becomes, was anything else missed?
So what? You think he should be AFRAID (feel fear) because he didn't turn on the AAD? He should be AFRAID of not turning it on again?
I never said he shouldn't turn it on. I never said he shouldn't use one. I didn't say one word about not using an AAD. I've always been a proponent of AAD's since the cypres was introduced. But he shouldn't be AFRAID.
He should fix the problem. Figure out the routine that will guarentee he turns it on.
But there is no reason to feel fear. There was a whole lot of skydiving without AAD's before 1993. And still is.
I made about 3,000 jumps without an AAD. When I purchased a new rig about 4 years ago I put a Cypres in it. I forgot to turn the damn thing on for about the first 20 jumps. And the silly thing was that I always check my three rings, main and reserve pins, slide the cutaway and reserve cable to make sure no debris is in the housings and look over the rig in general before the jumping begins. Never even thought about the AAD from never being in that HABIT for many, many leaps. So develop a good habit for your gear checks. Go over the gear with someone at the DZ with some experience, a rigger if possible. Have them show you the components and point out the priorities. You learned a good lesson. I see many WAY more experienced folks getting on planes with gear not ready to be jumped safely, like chest straps misrouted, cutaway handles hidden, etc. Don't be one of them.
At my home DZ students are obligated to pack their own chutes. Instructors ore some id..people who have volunteered for it, check the packjobs at certain stages to see the students don't mess it up.
When I was new(er) I used to think this was standard policy everywhere
I can count the number of times I've jumped that I haven't packed on one hand. Hmmm, I may not even need my thumb. Do you think some of these people realize they can actually get back in the air faster if they pack it themselves? 
