I am on my 3rd level of AFF, and I am having a lot of trouble maintaining proper body position without my instructors. They let me go, and for a few seconds I do just fine... then I start to wobble and lose control.
I passed my 2nd level of AFF this morning, and did pretty well. I have the exit and presentation down, and I can manage team turns just fine. My instructors keep me balanced, so there is no problem when they are holding on.
I attempted my 3rd level jump this afternoon, and it started out okay. I didn't pass though, because one of my jump masters thought I didn't have enough control to complete the jump on my own. (The other thought I was doing okay, but admitted that I have some kinks to work out.)
So I scheduled a wind tunnel training session through my DZ, and that is tomorrow. I have 10 minutes of coaching and a video that comes along with it.
Has anyone used a wind tunnel to correct problems with body position in free fall? (I have heard that it makes turning much easier!) I just want to know what to expect. If the wind tunnel is not reliable, what else can I do to perfect my position? I would really like to make this as easy on myself and my instructors as possible.
Re: [danica318] Trouble maintaing body position?
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i had the same problem and the tunnel helped me out a lot. it actually completely corrected whatever stabilization problems i had. so you will be fine after the tunnel.
Re: [GaryRay] Trouble maintaing body position?
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Wind tunnel helped me a lot. I got 15 minutes and then followed it by 3 pins in a 2-way. Previous to that i'd be lucky to make a single dock. Was nice to see the feedback of each body position adjustment.
Re: [danica318] Trouble maintaing body position?
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I am on my 3rd level of AFF, and I am having a lot of trouble maintaining proper body position without my instructors. They let me go, and for a few seconds I do just fine... then I start to wobble and lose control.
(standard warning about a poster with low jump numbers warning applies; talk to your instructors, they know more about your jumps than anybody here does).
I did my training through static line, and had a hard time getting through 10second delays. I wasn't spinning so much as "Dolphining", and my instructors didn't like it. I went somewhere with AFI, and they took me out on a L3 dive.
Things were great until the instructor let go of me, and then I started spinning. He stopped me, we got stable, and he let go again, and once again I was spinning or dolphing or ... just generally wasn't stable.
When we got down, my instructor wasn't pleased. He had me lay down and hold show him my arch. So I showed him, then relaxed, and he said, "No, hold it. Keep that arch." And he made me hold it, and my abs hurt (it's a lot harder to hold an arch without the wind). He made corrections whenever I'd let a knee drop a little and basically put me into position and made me keep it there.
I didn't like the instructor much when he made me do that. But next jump, I was stable and passed with flying colors, and pretty much cruised through the rest of the training. When we were tracking together in the air on L7, I couldn't thank him enough.
Perhaps you could ask an instructor to evaluate your arch on the ground and help you out? If you're spinning, you clearly have something uneven. I expect the wind tunnel will help (that wasn't an option in my training). You just need to learn the muscle memory to know what position you're supposed to be in and how to hold it.
Re: [danica318] Trouble maintaing body position?
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The tunnel was like magic for my body position. I did two 1 instructor cat c's ... failed them both because I wasn't arching. Took a trip to NC the following week and spent 30 minutes in the tunnel in Raeford with a coach ... jumped the next day and I was totally amazed. My instructor finally let go of me in free fall ... much to my surprise, I was able to remain stable and keep a heading.
Re: [danica318] Trouble maintaing body position?
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If I had my way, I'd have all new jumpers go through the tunnel before jumping out of an airplane...that's how much I think of the tunnel as an excellent training tool.
Yes...all you guys thinking it....access to a tunnel is not always feasible. Duh.
Re: [popsjumper] Trouble maintaing body position?
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I've probably got about 1:40 in the tunnel now. Most people say my RW is way better than my jump numbers suggest (43) which makes sense. If you add my free fall from my jumps to my tunnel time I theoretically have ~140 jumps. Obviously it doesn't really work out that way but the tunnel definitely helped me learn things in a more controlled environment. I mainly practiced mantis & leg turns with RW skills work (with a coach) on my last trip as well as a little back flying.
Re: [popsjumper] Trouble maintaing body position?
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My tunnel time was so helpful! 10 minutes of simulated free fall straightened out all of my problems and even put me ahead of the curve! I passed my next level earlier today and it was my best jump yet. Not only that, but my instructor is allowing me to do some more advanced moves on the next jump (360's rather than just 90 degree turns if time permits) since I can finally exhibit some control when it comes to body position and turns.
Thanks to everyone for the advice and reassurance! It was money well spent, and I am considering saving up my extra cash to spend more time in the tunnel when it comes to even more advanced tricks (like head down or sit flying.)
(This post was edited by danica318 on Aug 17, 2008, 4:10 PM)
It was money well spent, and I am considering saving up my extra cash to spend more time in the tunnel when it comes to even more advanced tricks (like head down or sit flying.)