Afraid of heights??

[freeflir29 0]

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Fast roping and SPIE rigging

I rode a FRIES extraction once. I had borrowed this Survival vest from a friend and we had a couple T-10 harnesses with carabeeners to hook into the rope. I was all good and was in fact having fun trying to make it fly straight and not spin. Until we got about 300Ft up and my vest friction locks started slipping. Then I crossed my arms and vowed that whatever happened I WASN'T COMING OUT OF THAT VEST!!! Strange ride hanging 45Ft underneath a UH-60 though.

[mnischalke 0]

Holy shit! The vest started coming loose???? (damn man tits) Seriously, if memory serves me, you had saftety lines but those are attachted to the vest. If you come out of the harness, your are done.

mike

Girls only want boyfriends who have great skills--You know, like nunchuk skills, bow-hunting skills, computer-hacking skills.

[sunshine 2]

Add me to the list of jumpers that are scared of heights. I've given up trying to explain it to wuffos.

___________________________________________
meow

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

[goose491 0]

I did my first jump with three friends from highschool... One of which was absolutely PETRIFIED of heights but decided to come and jump with us to 'get over it'... I'm a pilot and what I've hear in general is that most people, clinicaly declared affraid of heights, are still able to fly in airplanes without discomfort... This friend of mine was no exception until they oppened the door... then he began to shake like a 'tickle-me Elmo' hahaha. He climbed out and froze on the strut (C182), the instructor actually let my other pal kick him out. It was a real riot. On the ground he said it was the best experience of his life, that he froze not from fear of height but ... well, you know... 'perfectly good airplane and all'.

He was, however, very nervous under canopy and since it was S/L, he HAD to stay there. To this day, he says he is cured of his fear of heights. I know a few regular skydivers that say they pull as low as they can to avoid being suspended 'to high' under canopy... crazy

My Karma ran over my Dogma!!!

[blewaway5 0]

Me personally, I'm one of those strange people who kind of likes heights, but anyway, the way I always heard it explained and the way I think is easiest to explain to people is this. Our eyes are set a certain average distance apart. While it does vary from person to person it's not enough to mess up some nice general figures. Humans have got binocular vision, so height is simply a matter a of depth perception telling our brain we are x feet away from a hard flat surface. Now the distace between our eyes comes into play the farther away we get from that surface. This more or less means that the closer we are the better it works while the further away we are the more it degrades. Once we pass about 1,500' depth perception is mostly non-existence, which is why we don't experience ground rush when we're still at 5,000' in freefall. The point of all this is that when we are more than apprx. 1500' away from any point of reference we aren't really capable of depth perception so the normal feeling of being up high is physically not possible.

Truman Sparks for President

[Scoby 0]

I used to be afraid of heights, but I got over it. I didn't get over it, though, until I lived downtown and it was a 100 foot drop out my bedroom window. I would still get a bit of vertigo walking around in the roof of the building, becaue there was no wall at the edge.

Now when I skydive, I'm nervous until we get up to an altitude where we could get out if there was an emergency. I don't think about the ground on the way down until about 5,000 feet. Heights don't bother me, but I'm afraid of the ground.

[freeflir29 0]

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if memory serves me, you had saftety lines but those are attachted to the vest

No safety lines that I remember. Just two carabeeners hooked on at the vest and through one white and one black rope on the end of the larger fast rope. The vest only had one leg strap as I remember. I really think you aren't supposed to use those except for "emergency" situations but....What the hell....I was young and indestructable....

[mnischalke 0]

So, wait, this wasn't even a SPIE line? just a bunch of ropes tied together and a makeshift harness? You were young and indestructable!!!!!!!

mike

Girls only want boyfriends who have great skills--You know, like nunchuk skills, bow-hunting skills, computer-hacking skills.

[freeflir29 0]

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So, wait, this wasn't even a SPIE line

No...it was a fast rope. On the bottom 5 Ft of a fast rope there are a bunch of smaller ropes that have sections of them sticking out. There's black ones and white ones. When you hook up you take one black and one white through the beener. It's the "extraction" part of the "FRIES" Fast Rope Infil Exfil System. Damn I'm a military geek...and I have been out for almost 2 years now. Actually last I remember they stopped using FRIES in favor of SPIES rigs.

[Stacy 0]

I to this day am scared of staircases without slats between teh stairs. i have NO idea why. if i can see through to the bottom, forget it. the hotel my conference was at last week had those and i would take the elevator if it was one floor, i could get up about 5 steps and nearly pass out. how strange.

[freeflir29 0]

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i could get up about 5 steps and nearly pass out. how strange.

Go home right now and give yourself some therapy.

[Stacy 0]

I am at home, but sadly i'll be doing work until midnight probably. is it the weekend yet?

[happythoughts 0]

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i could get up about 5 steps and nearly pass out. how strange.

Go home right now and give yourself some therapy.

Therapy helps, huh? I've had nights like that so I was going to say no more tequila shots.

[f1freak 0]

I am way affraid of hights. i think it is because i am not the most gracefull person on earth, my feet tend to have a mind of their own...
i thought skydiving would cure that, but NOPE....
I still cant stand being an a roof and things like that...

HAVE FUN...
...JUST DONT DIE

[reprobate 0]

I once was a Journeyman in the ironworkers union, was also a steeplejack and tower builder.

That bit about the edge "drawing" and looking at the feet and not below brought a lot back.

It has always amused me that people can walk along a 2x4 laying on the ground and can't if it is up in the air somewhere! As you said , fear of consequences.

I was caught up in two collaspses, a pre-fab one story warehouse that had some roof joists buckle while we were placing them and a tower built to the 160' level that folded up with 3 of us on it. No one suffering anything but minor injuries, by that I mean "treat and release".
I was nearly killed on one job. I was yanked off the back of a flat bed truck by a roll of 4x4 reinforcing wire when my glove fouled on it. 4 feet off the ground!

Stepping out the door of an airplane doesn't bother me, my stomach, that is. The thought of jumping off a tower does. I know the lack of forward speed at exit would give me elevator stomach.

One of the old timers told me the same thing about concentrating on outs and not results of a fall and he was right because I could ( and still can) make myself sick thinking about the consequences.

Carl

[Designer 0]

During my second year skydiving,I started a new job as a Pollution Control Technician.Phew,first few minutes up on the stack at !00 ft. was scary(No chute over my head!)Pretty much ended my fear of heights after being up there a full half hour!Never fear what you can control or get used to!

[Hallur 0]

One of my skydiving friends is the most afraid person of heights that I have ever met and he is also very afraid of flying in airplanes but thats mostly airliners. I feel hes in a way very heroic facing hes fear like that and skydive (has around 150 jumps) because hes so afraid.

When I stop skydiving is the day that I die!!! Hallur

[jraf 0]

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Ever since I started skydiving this summer, my rock climbing and mountaineering trips have been severly restricted. I guess I'm just having too much fun jumping, but you guys wouldn't know anything about that now would you?

Anyway, a couple of months ago I ran into one of the guys I've climbed mountains with and I told him that I had taken up skydiving. Well the dude just couldn't believe it thinking that I had a death wish. But I had to remind him that some of the exposed Class IV and low Class V we've climbed without ropes was just as if not more dangerous than skydiving.

I guess my point in all of this is that we get a different perspective of heights while we skydive and it's only when you get near the ground that your traditional fears of heights may kick in.

I do the samr thing. The point is the when on the rock, you are not supposed to let go, cause we know the consequences. I had to overcome that particular fear when I started bungee jumping. I used to have chronic height anxiety. Now I only respect the hieghts.

jraf

Me Jungleman! Me have large Babalui.
Muff #3275

[novacaine 0]

To this day, I'm still afraid of heights. I can't really explain it thoguh, because I have no problem leaving the airplane. I think I'm not really prone to the fear of heights while skydiving because I feel in comtrol. I know I've got a parachute that will open and no harm is going to come to me.

[bobsled92 0]

Jumping out of the plane when "That's the idea" and your not staring at a specific surface,spot or other point of impact makes your mind react differntly than,"hey I'm on the roof and WHOA!! my foot slipped, bango!..broken:leg,arm,face,skull, or neck=dead.
I love my job climbing poles evey day but, when my safety strap slips while I'm busy with both hands in a phone cable...WHOA!!!...followed by son-of-a-bitch!
When your NOT supposed to fall, I think your brain is still there to keep you primal survival & will of self presevation in tact eventhough we love to leap every weekend.
I'm still that way too.
"I not afraid of falling but, I hate hitting the ground"
-THE BADLEES

_______________________________
If I could be a Super Hero,
I chose to be: "GRANT-A-CLAUS". and work 365 days a Year.
http://www.hangout.no/speednews/

[happythoughts 0]

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Add me to the list of jumpers that are scared of heights. I've given up trying to explain it to wuffos.

I think I am afraid of widths.

[KATO33 0]

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Heights give me the heebiejeebies when I'm without some sort of fall prevention gear. However I've basically no fear when using appropriate safety gear.

Ditto!!!!

Blue Skies Black Death

[cgross 1]

"I think I am afraid of widths. '

You stole my quote. I need a new one anyway

[Jasmin 0]

was. a base-jump kinda cured me! LOL.

xj

"I wouldn't recommend picking a fight with the earth...but then I wouldn't recommend picking a fight with a car either, and that's having tried both."

[lurking 0]

There seems to be a pattern. A couple of days ago I had to go somewhere to pick up some scaffolding that was donated to us to be used in the renovation of our clubhouse. The club is a gliding club so we are all certified glider pilots routinely soaring up to 5000-6000ft and more in a skinny fiberglass glider. But when it came to standing on top of 50ft of scaffolding and taking it apart while standing on it, we all had our problems...

Thomas