So the student harness I used was very painful on my legs.. suggestiosn for when I get my own?

[grue 1]

I'm a big guy, 6'3", 225lbs, and 265lbs in the student gear,and when I did my jumps yesterday, the leg straps really bit into my legs once I was in the saddle.

I have a lot of student jumps left before I buy my own rig, but do you guys have any suggestions for making the jumps less painful in the meantime, and for a good comfy harness when the time comes?

cavete terrae.

[sundevil777 93]

Put on a couple pairs of heavy denim/jean shorts.

Padded bicycle shorts will not help, the padding is in the wrong place.

If you're good with a sewing machine you can make your own.

People are sick and tired of being told that ordinary and decent people are fed up in this country with being sick and tired. I’m certainly not, and I’m sick and tired of being told that I am

[Jeth 0]

I'm only speaking from my meager experience --

I had a couple painful leg straps on my first jump. The next time I tightened the straps really well and made sure they were high up on my thighs, like in the crease. And then that time, no pain. I think when I had them lower they shifted a bit in freefall and then sort of dragged, and really dug in when my chute opened.

Just my two cents...

Jeth

"At 13,000 feet nothing else matters."
PFRX!!!!!
Team Funnel #174, Sunshine kisspass #109
My Jump Site

[DontPanic 0]

I can hardly wait to see some results from this thread. I've been spending the last several weeks going through the static line course, and I've just finished my fifth free-fall jump. I've been having a blast learning how to skydive, but I'd love to find a way to make that harness alittle more comfortable when the canopy deploys.

I've also been scouring these forums and talking to people at my DZ for suggestions about making the harness less painful.

Maybe I can list the suggestions I've heard, and let people comment.

(1) Tighten up the leg straps.

This is a very common suggestion. Just make sure they aren't so tight you can't arch. Your instructor can be very helpful in showing you just how tight is practical.

(2) Watch you body position during deployment. If you're backsliding or tracking forward, or pitched, that can make it more painful.

It's hard to go too far wrong here while your still on static line, but it's worth listing.

(3) Wear some extra padding. I've tried wearing an extra pair of gym pants, but that didn't seem to help much for me.

(4) Stretch before jumping. This will loosen up your leg muscles, which are usually in a cramped position anyhow on the ride up.

(5) You may have just run across a hard pull. Sometimes the canopy just deploys harder than other times.

So far, the only thing that's worked consistently for me is to pace myself with only one or two jumps a weekend, and heal up during the next week. The one day I squeezed in three jumps taught me that lesson. It has certainly slowed down my progress, but I'm still having alot of fun, and I enjoy it much more than if I beat myself up with three or four jumps in the student gear in a day.

[hookitt 0]

Padding. Most likely, the rig isn't going to get any more comfortable with out padding.

Tighten it up like it's supposed to be but before you do that ....

Get some foam and cut a rectangle out. Cut a slot for your package and put it down your pants.

Looks funny but it's affective.

[Flyer2Diver 0]

The biggest suggestion for once you get your own is that almost anything that fits you properly will be far more comfortable than the one-size-fits-nobody student rigs. The difference for me, moving from a Telesis student container to a Mirage G3, was astonishing. Even jumping one of the rental G3s that was a bit too small for me was still not nearly as uncomfortable as the student gear.

But the other suggestions here are good regardless of the rig you jump.

Blues

_______________________________
30005KT 10SM SKC 23/05 A3006

[b1jercat 0]

Student gear is usually rigged to open fast, it will all go away when you get on your own gear. Suck it up and good luck.

blues

jerry

[sundevil777 93]

Rocky Kenoyer had a 'girdle' made for him when he did his 403 (I think) jumps in 1 day (below 2K so it is not in the record books). A really good idea for comfort on such an attempt. It had really firm padding.

People are sick and tired of being told that ordinary and decent people are fed up in this country with being sick and tired. I’m certainly not, and I’m sick and tired of being told that I am

[slotperfect 7]

Go to the sporting goods store and get some foam knee pads, like they make for volleyball players. Just route the legstraps through them with the padding to the inside and move them where they can do the most good. This is easiest, of course, with student rigs that have B-12 snaps as legstrap hardware. If your sutent rig has thread-thru hardware, make sure your instructor says it's OK to use and get him to help you put them on.

Arrive Safely

John

[hookitt 0]

That's a good Idea. I'd only worry about the pad slipping out of the way. It looks like it would be *effective if the pads would stay put.






* may also be used to replace the improperly used word "affective" in the my previous post.

My grammar sometimes resembles that of magnetic refrigerator poetry... Ghetto

[grue 1]

Quote

Student gear is usually rigged to open fast, it will all go away when you get on your own gear. Suck it up and good luck.

blues

jerry

Well, it wasn't really the openings that did it, it was when I was actually under fabric, and doing turns and stuff. I'll try some of the suggestions posted here. I've got some heavy pants that I used to use for paintball that might be good for this.

cavete terrae.

[bch7773 0]

Quote

Well, it wasn't really the openings that did it, it was when I was actually under fabric, and doing turns and stuff. I'll try some of the suggestions posted here. I've got some heavy pants that I used to use for paintball that might be good for this.

I had the same problem on student gear... during the canopy ride, the straps would dig into my legs painfully, and sometimes cut off circulation. someone showed me a good way to stop this... once you are under canopy, after you check your canopy, check for traffic, and face into the wind, you sit back in the harness, and pull the legstraps about a half inch or so farther down your legs, away from your crotch, one at a time. this puts you into more of a sitting position, which is less painful.

MB 3528, RB 1182

[Brumby 0]

I had a similar problem only it didnt just nip the inside of my leg, it actually cut it i found that one of the main problems was that i was fastening the leg straps too tight. The way i resolved it was put a few extra layers on around that particular area and dont fasten the legs straps as tight

[slotperfect 7]

I saw your pictures from your post in General. Your rig appeard to have B-12s, so the knee pads should work well for you. If they slip out of place when you use them the first time, on wrap of duct tape on the top end should hold them where you need them.

I noticed that the harness appears to be a bit small for you (laterals too short, maybe?) and that you have ZERO padding on your legstraps in the front. Your instructos should accomodate your request to add padding.

Also, if the knee pads are too bulky, elbow pads might work.

Arrive Safely

John

[riggerrob 558]

All the padding in the world will not help if the harness geometry is off.

Granted, it is tough to design a harness that will fit every student.
However, the underlying problem is that students have a bad habit of tightening leg straps AROUND their legs - several inches below their crotch. At opening time, leg straps slide up into their crotch. The farther the leg straps have to slide, the more bruises they cause.
The solution is to tighten leg straps HIGH in your crotch before boarding the plane.
People with boney butts - like me - can jump without padding PROVIDED THE LEG STRAPS ARE TIGHT up in their crotchs.
People with prominent posteriors usually request the opposite: double wide leg pads to distribute the load.

In conclusion, padding is useless if you do not adjust leg straps high in your crotch.

[slotperfect 7]

Quote

All the padding in the world will not help if the harness geometry is off.

The harness definitely does NOT fit . . . see a picture of him rigged up HERE

His legstrap hardware is waaay back on his hips.

Arrive Safely

John

[teason 0]

Does the gear you were jumping have main lift web adjusters?
Maybe an better question would be "was the chest strap in your throat?"

Our student gear often has two main lift web adjustments, one on each side. Many times this adjustment is erroneously stretched out on larger jumpers. The adjuster is for torso length and not overall size. If it is extended too much, the leg strap will be hanging too low. The strap then tightens horizontally around the leg but on opening it shifts to about a 45 degree angle and pinches the leg. The whole harness rides up and you'll notice the chest strap is quite high on your body.

If this sounds familiar, don't worry about new gear. It will be sized for your particular frame.

In the meantime, ask your DZ rigger how to adjust the MLW. I've seen some Instructors with years of experience without a clue.

I would rather be a superb meteor, every atom of me in magnificent glow, than a sleepy and permanent planet.

[grue 1]

Eep, forgot to check back in on this thread.

Anyway, the fit on the harness might have been a bit questionable.

This is the first rig I jumped in, which was more comfortable than the second, it seemed like:

http://spiceweasel.net/skydiving/ready.jpg

I ended up with some fun purple-and-yellow bruises on my thighs, but I'm gonna try adding some padding (heh, it rhymes!) for my jumps next weekend.

PRCP, here I come!

cavete terrae.

[sundevil777 93]

Quote

I'm gonna try adding some padding (heh, it rhymes!) for my jumps next weekend.

Don't bother with wimpy soft foam padding. It must be quite firm to be effective.

People are sick and tired of being told that ordinary and decent people are fed up in this country with being sick and tired. I’m certainly not, and I’m sick and tired of being told that I am

[grue 1]

Quote

Quote

I'm gonna try adding some padding (heh, it rhymes!) for my jumps next weekend.

Don't bother with wimpy soft foam padding. It must be quite firm to be effective.

Yeah, I've got a few ideas.

I play goalie in hockey, and I'm thinking maybe I can cut up one of my old chest protectors and make something that'll do the trick.

cavete terrae.

[riggerrob 558]

Judging from the photos, that student rig is too small for him. The 3-rings should ride lower on his shoulders, closer to his collar bones (clavicles). Those leg pads end right about where he needs the most padding.
The simple answer is to "tough it out" for another dozen jumps - on student gear - then buy a custom-fitted harness. All the major manufacturers have experience in fitting harnesses to big guys.
A shorter term solution would be to ask the local rigger to sew up supplemental leg pads. Tell him to start by staring at the floating leg pads on a Telesis 2 student rig.
I have sewn floating leg pads for a few of our tandem rigs by starting with blue foam camping mattresses and Cordura. The following year, Strong Enterprises made a fancier version of my design the production standard.
Hee!
Hee!

[teason 0]

Hard to tell but looking at your three rings and estimaing where you hip is, it looks like it could be a shade shorter on the MLW but not by that much (only an inch or so).
It doesn't look too bad, I saw much worse just today. Had to hold up an entire load of FJCs just to redo their MLW.
I don't think the MLW is the only problem. It's really not that far off the mark.The laterals look short as well. I don't think that gear is suited for you.
If you have other options on containers, I say take 'em!

I would rather be a superb meteor, every atom of me in magnificent glow, than a sleepy and permanent planet.

[skipro101 0]

use small rubber bands on the gromet stows. It cured my hard openings.

[hookitt 0]

Quote

use small rubber bands on the gromet stows. It cured my hard openings.

That has nothing to do with hard openings.

[MeMyselfandIan 0]

I did Le PAC (AFF) out in France a few weeks ago - I did 30 Jumps in 10 days so you can imagine my thighs were pretty raised and purple/green.

Some suggested to tighten the harness
Some said loosen it
A hard opening is going to cause brusing whether loose or tight.

The best tip for under canopy pain release I got was to slide the thigh straps towards your knees slightly so you are in a more "sitting" position - it relieved so much pain.

I havent had any troubles with landing in that position either because you can just slide foward out of the sitting position.