alphawolf 0 #1 December 4, 2004 Hey all, Little over 3 weeks ago I did my tandem at Z-Hills in Florida. I live in NY now, but will be moving to Florida probably by March. It was a bit chaotic there on a Sunday afternoon. They got me in on a 4PM jump though. At first I was going to jump with TK and I'm 215lbs so Iw as told we'd fall fast. But then a more experienced jumper went with him and I jumped with- er...I forgot his name. But he was very calm and I felt confident with him. I'm 33 and had cancer when i was 22, so I know it's better to try things and maybe regret than not do and always wonder... So, I finally got around to it. None of the "thrill" rides really do much for me so i figured if jumpin' out of a plane at 13,500 feet didn't give me a WOW factor nothing would. I wasn't nervous much...just anxious to get on with it. We were last to leave the plane. What sucked the most was that I'm a bigger guy than the dude I was hooked up to. So, when we had to get on our knees from the back of the plane and get to the door I was sorta taking a lot of his weight. The XL Jumpsuit was pretty damn snug too- so that didn't help. I'm not fat, I go to the gym. I honestly could not wait to leave the plane as my knees were killing me. One thing I really wish they would have told us on the ground was the fact you really can't breath. When we went out I did the arch and hand were tucked in, and lots of sensory overload. LOL. My 1st impression was that I was surprised there wasn't much of a sensation of the ground coming up fast visually. We rolled a few times. I tried to take a breath and sorta tensed up when I couldn't get a good breath. I tried more shallow breather though the nose and finally I determined this was normal and I'd be fine. All the while I didn't realize the little dude was trying to get me to release my arms from my chest! He was pulling like a madman at my arms. OH. Yeah. Release my arms! So, I did. Weeeeeeeeeeeee!!!!!!! I felt bad I had tumbled to the earth rolling around while little dude tried with no success to get me to release my arms. Oh, well. After that it was smooth falling. I played with lowering my arms a bit and was surprised there wasn't as much force against them as I thought there'd be. The view was FANTASTIC! he day was a perfect Florida day, low wind, bright sun, etc... It went from violent free fall to perfect calm went he deployed the chute. WOW. It was so beautiful!!! And I was SO calm dangling from the sky like that. I apologized to him straight away for not releasing my arms. He lied and said I did a great job. Was surprised how easy it was to chit chat while the chute was deployed. He explained we'll be landing be lifting out legs and sliding our ass onto the grass. The landing was Smoooooooooth as silk. I didn't get any video or pics 'cos I knew I'd be back and would do it again. There was a girl next to us in the plane and she was getting a video done. She seemed very nervous on the plane and I was trying to make small talk to calm her down. When I landed I found her and asked how it was and she liked it, but complained about NOT BEING ABLE TO BREATH! Man, I was so glad it wasn't just me. We both agreed that SHOULD have been a very important point to make to 1st time jumpers. I was high from my jump for a good 2 hours...on another planet. I can't remeber specifics too much because it was too much to take in 1st time. I don't like tandem. I think for me doing my own jump would be 10x more satisfying. It's great Florida has a lot of good DZ's and I'll go through the courses as soon as I move there. I was planning to get my Private Pilots License, but I'd rather get into sky diving more 1st. I lok forward to getting into the sport more, and glad I found this place! Regards, AWRegards, AW Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
skymama 35 #2 December 4, 2004 Welcome to the forums! She is Da Man, and you better not mess with Da Man, because she will lay some keepdown on you faster than, well, really fast. ~Billvon Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
JeepDiver 0 #3 December 4, 2004 Quote"not being able to breathe" I didn't experience this but a friend of mine did on his first tandem jump. All I felt was the sense of weightlessness for that brief 1 second when you go out the door before getting stable. Welcome to the forums, it sounds like your hooked also. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
alphawolf 0 #4 December 4, 2004 skymama- It was during the freefall only. On the plane I was fine, once chute deployed I was fine. Are you saying one should be able to breath normally during freefall? I know it wasn't just me because the girl who was scared mentioned it on the gorund after the jump without me prompting her. She was petite and her suit fit her fine. Adreniline thing. Hmm. I dunno. Maybe. I just recall wanting to take a nice breath in and with the pressure of the wind that seemed hard/impossible. I am not a panic type person so I was just testing using my mouth then my nose...deep then shallow. Once I decided that was the way it was and I knew I was getting some air just figured that's the way it was. Could have been nerves, but I took it that there is some special techinique to breathing during freefall.Regards, AW Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
alphawolf 0 #5 December 4, 2004 JeepDiver, Yeah- it was cool. My fav part was tumbling around 'cos I kept my arms tucked in initially. I'd much prefer to be on my own and able to move as I'd like. Those wing suits look SUPERCOOL. I wanna fly like Batman too! LOL. I sorta like to control things in general...so for sure I must do it on my own.Regards, AW Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
fallinlady 0 #6 December 4, 2004 Glad you enjoyed your first jump and are wanting to continue. This is a GREAT sport. I, too, had trouble breathing during the freefall on my first jump (tandem) but I was told before we jumped that you can't breathe thru your mouth so relax and breathe thru your nose. Of course, I didn't at first which caused a little panic but, like you, once I figured it out, the ride was fantastic. Blue Skies! Shari**They say you don't pay for your raisin' till you raise your own - what DID my momma do to deserve this?** Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
skymama 35 #7 December 5, 2004 QuoteAre you saying one should be able to breath normally during freefall? Yes, I never even think about my breathing while I am jumping. It comes just as naturally as it does on the ground. Of course, if you believe in Old Wives Tales, we breathe through our skin. She is Da Man, and you better not mess with Da Man, because she will lay some keepdown on you faster than, well, really fast. ~Billvon Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
doddy 0 #8 December 6, 2004 Re: Not being able to breath. My Father and Husband (both got large chests and shoulders) both said the same thing when they both got back from their tandems. Im currently doing my AFF course and have also done a tandem and have never felt like i cant take a breath. Im not sure why this is so but common sense says maybee its because you have like my dad and husband, a large chest???? Any how dont let that put you off! Blue Skies Renee Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
popsjumper 2 #9 December 6, 2004 Quote....I just recall wanting to take a nice breath in and with the pressure of the wind that seemed hard/impossible. I am not a panic type person so I was just testing using my mouth then my nose...deep then shallow. Once I decided that was the way it was and I knew I was getting some air just figured that's the way it was. Geez! You have more self-control than I did on my tandem....I never even THOUGHT about breathing until my TI slapped on the head under canopy to make me breathe!....oh, yeah, I gotta breathe! Congrats!My reality and yours are quite different. I think we're all Bozos on this bus. Falcon5232, SCS8170, SCSA353, POPS9398, DS239 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
bigfall 0 #10 December 6, 2004 hey I'm glad that you enjoyed your first jump. But you are right the feeling that you get when you go out on your own is incredable. it's such a rush. I have not got to the free fall part of my training because I started to late in the season but as soon as the weather breaks I am back at it I even have bought my first rig and it should be here any day. stay with it you will absolutely crave your next jump. Good luck STEP OUT AND FEEL THE RUSH!!!!! LATERSTEP OUT AND FEEL THE RUSH!!!! LATER SKYBOMB Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
bizzylizzy 0 #11 December 6, 2004 To this day...my favorite jump is my very first one without instructors...I think thats the one that cemented the addiction an dI can still remember it vividly... About losing your breath, there is something to be said about things in life that take your breath away :)Eat, drink and be merry for tomorrow we die. -Dave Matthews Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
alphawolf 0 #12 December 7, 2004 Thanks for all the replies, folks. I really appreciate it. About the chest/wide shoulders thing- I have a 45 inch chest and broad shoulders. I dunno- I tend to think since I experienced it once I'll be fine next time. Yeah- I think the biggest rush will be my 1st solo jump. :) Have a good week, folks!Regards, AW Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
