Why would a skydiver not pack his own rig?

[bob.dino 0]

Ditto .

[mouth 0]

i haven't packed in forever so the one I packed the other day I had a mal on. Screw that I'm taking it to a professional packer.

--
Hot Mama
At least you know where you stand even if it is in a pile of shit.

[1naFLYhi 0]

Curious who is "the best"?

[dzkid39 0]

im one of two packers at out dz and the two reasons i get pack jobs is either i pack faster or better than the jumper or its way too hot. most jumpers i know dont like packing when its 100+.

Nick

[Cloudi 0]

...because when you work alot, you often have more $ than time or patience.

I injured my knee (playing beach volleyball of all things!) right after I took the packing class. 3 weeks and a knee brace later, I was able to jump again but kneeling down to pack was simply out of the question. It's amazing what a little knee injury can do for your canopy skills though. I may not pack for myself, but I have very nice landings!

Insert new job which has dominated those weekdays I would have spent jumping and packing and you have someone who has over 200 jumps and has only packed for herself twice.

We have excellent packers at our DZ who I trust with my life every time. I have wonderful openings every time because our packers rock! I'm sure it doesn't hurt that I tip them well, either. They deserve every dollar they get and then some.

Oh, and I'm lazy.

I'm not proud of the fact that I depend so heavily on the skills of others to enjoy skydiving, but for now, it will have to do. I do know my gear very well and I rely on no one else to make sure it is in good shape (well, except for those pesky re-packs). One of these days I will brush up on my packing skills, but for now, I prefer to make the 3 jumps I'm able to squeeze into my busy week.

Kim
Watch as I attempt, with no slight of hand, to apply logic and reason.

[TheMonkey 0]

Packing Sucks!

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Never argue with an idiot, they will drag you down to their level and beat you with experience!

[Merkur 1]

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Why would someone not pack their own rig?

Normally there are three main reasons:
1) time - if you are doing several loads in a row (ex: camera guys) you sometimes don't have the time
2) lazyness - kind of selxeplaining
3) injuries/age - sometimes you just don't want to crawl on the floor

Well and then there are the good hearted people, who want to keep the packers alive.

Normally - if you choose a packer you do what is said in several of the other answers. Watch them packing, ask the people they packed for. I let my rig been packed from every packer at my new dropzone, watching them and comparing their speed and my openings. So now - if I'm in a hurry or to lazy, I know whom I will trust.

vSCR No.94
Don't dream your life - live your dream!

[sunshine 2]

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Curious who is "the best"?

That would be me. But i didn't teach adam to pack...

___________________________________________
meow

I get a Mike hug! I get a Mike hug!

[adamjenner 0]

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Curious who is "the best"?

the guy who showed me to pack!
that and the internet helped a tiny bit with pictures a such. and the tiatholon packing video

[1naFLYhi 0]

Who is "the guy"who showed you?

Skydiving: Gravity-powered flight

[captain1 0]

Because it is hot and I am lazy.
Because it might help me make back to back.
Because I can afford it.
Because he/she packs better than me.
Because it helps a newcomer.
Because it helps a newcomer to afford to jump.
Because I don't give a shit.
Because I do give a shit.
Because, Because, Because.........

[BGill 0]

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Why would someone not pack their own rig?

Because at the dz down here in Australia, they know that paying me to pack is the only thing that's keeping me in this country financially

...oh yeah, and they're afraid I'll show them up with my amazing flying skills, so they prefer to keep me on the ground packing haha, I WISH!

[BlindBrick 0]

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Why would someone not pack their own rig?

I've made a living as a packer and rigger, so I have nothing to prove to myself or anyone else. Given that, and the fact that I occasionally just don't feel like packing, I have no problems letting someone else pack my rig.

-Blind

"If you end up in an alligator's jaws, naked, you probably did something to deserve it."

[wingnut 0]

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Why would a skydiver not pack his own rig

well after 600 some pack jobs it sort of gets old........ not like the jumpitelsf wichnever does... just the packing.. sometimes i really don't feel like it..... as for the packer just shovingit in the bag.. wel they probly packit better than i do..... as long as i don't get a line over and the slider is al the way up to begin with i;m happy.....

______________________________________
"i have no reader's digest version"

[bch7773 0]

I have never paid someone to pack for me once i got off student status. I guess the benefit of being at a cessna dz is that their aren't many people who are designated packers, and so you learn to pack your chute or you don't jump.

MB 3528, RB 1182

[gordy 0]

I do pack my own, but I won't let packing interfere with my jumping....so if I want to go and get lunch or get debriefed etc then I will and use a packer.

[Viking 0]

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i haven't packed in forever so the one I packed the other day I had a mal on. Screw that I'm taking it to a professional packer.

hehehe i bet they heard you on the ground too...... "FUCK THIS SHIT!!!" "what the hell was that?" "Huh? oh thats Lisa trying to learn to pack."

Love ya

I swear you must have footprints on the back of your helmet - chicagoskydiver
My God has a bigger dick than your god -George Carlin

[MikeJD 0]

No problem at all with people getting pack jobs, and I've definitely had my share.

But I think it's a good thing if every skydiver CAN pack his or her own rig. I've seen people having to stop after one jump, and bitching about the lack of packers, because they literally cannot pack to save their lives. If you run away from packing (like I did ) as a student then you're initiating a vicious circle - all your contemporaries will learn to pack faster than you and you'll be forever locked into paying for pack jobs just to keep up.

I have joked in the past that I live to pack and jumping is just a fun way to get the canopy out of the bag so I could do it again. But seriously, I found that the more I packed the less I hated doing it. I've got it down to a serious disliking now.

Now, if I can just learn to fix my own car, rewire my own house...

[Ron 7]

One word...Lazy.

Many people don't know how to pack, and never bother to learn.

How these people got an license I will never know. IMO you should have to pack, spot, perform a series of manuvers, and land in an appropriate sized area for any license test.

Not knowing how to pack is just a sign of being lazy.

I know packers that WILL NOT PACK for someone that does not know how, and I respect them for it.

Learn to pack. You become very familiar with your gear, and notice problems early.

I will use a packer for team training, or when I am working with students...In both cases my time is better spent doing other things.

Learn to pack folks, it is not hard.

"No free man shall ever be debarred the use of arms." -- Thomas Jefferson, Thomas Jefferson Papers, 334

[mouth 0]

LMFAO ...actually I did pitch a fit because I had to yank the pack job out once I got on the ground since it was a container lock. It as a beautiful pack job even.

--
Hot Mama
At least you know where you stand even if it is in a pile of shit.

[Dumpster 0]

Most of the time I pack for myself. I enlisted the skill of my daughter Sarah while she was saving up for tunnel time before she learned to skydive herself. I still do most of my own packing unless I'm pressed for time, and even then I'll check and see how backed up the packers are. I will confess that I find it hard to pack after the last load and the beer light is on. I hired packers often when I was competing in the NSL last year and there usually wasn't time between loads to pack then dirt-dive the next round.

It does appall me when I see folks standing around missing loads when the packers are backed up and they can't pack for themselves. Seems they packed and jumped that one time for thier license, then quit packing. Only one thing will make you better at packing - PRACTICE! You will pick up your own tricks for getting that sucker in the bag, and someday you may get to share what you've learned with some one else.

I often pack for others for jump money. Mostly sport rigs or I'll help keep the clubs' student rigs packed up.

Live Bravely

[Icon134 0]

I pack my own rig... well, I'm not very good at it yet (i've managed to get it in the bag 5 or so times myself.) but I still try to get it in several times before I give up and ask for help.

I'm definitely not lazy... and I don't get too frustrated (until the 3-4 failed attempt.)

I know jumpers that have multiple rigs and pay packers because 1. they want to be able to get on back to back loads and 2. the only malfunctions they've had was when they packed for themselves.

Scott
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Livin' on the Edge... sleeping with my rigger's wife...

[lowie 0]

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I know jumpers that have multiple rigs and pay packers because 1. they want to be able to get on back to back loads and 2. the only malfunctions they've had was when they packed for themselves.

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[Darius11 12]

I pack for my self 95 % of the time. The reason I pack for my self is to learn how and get faster.

The first few time it took about an hour now I can do it in 10min that’s not bad for a Nav 260. But I have no problem having any of the people we have pack for me. I totally trust them, and I also learned from them.

I'd rather be hated for who I am, than loved for who I am not." - Kurt Cobain

[kingbunky 3]

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But for now i AM the packer for those that can afford one.

...and a darn busy one too! i was going ot treat myself to a packer for the first time ever while visiting sdc, but every time i came in you had 4 rigs lined up already.. i was hoping ot watch someone who knew what they were doing to see if i could learn anything.

"Hang on a sec, the young'uns are throwin' beer cans at a golf cart."
MB4252 TDS699
killing threads since 2001