Advice

[ryanfitzpatrick 0]

Hello all. My friend Natalie and I have recently started our pff. Were both on level 2. We have done tandom and tunnel time. I feel like Natalie is getting discouraged from the sport. She is so worried about doing a good job and over analyzing things. I myself have wondered why Im doing this on the ride up. But I force myself out and then I forget about any worries. I love this sport. I know Im a new and have a lot to learn. Can someone please give me some tips for Natile. I want her to know that these are probably normal feelings.


Thanks for reading

[NWFlyer 2]

You can encourage her to keep coming out with you. You can point out that every jump she walks away from is an opportunity to go up and do it again, whether or not it was "perfect." There are many many stories (probably many at your own dropzone) of skydivers who had to push through a lot of early fear and performance anxiety and performance issues to keep going - hopefully someone more seasoned can share their experience with her.

But ultimately, it's got to be her call as to whether this is something she wants to continue with. It's not for everyone, and it's an expensive, risky sport - you really do need to be pretty into it to be willing to accept both of those things. She may or may not be.

"There is only one basic human right, the right to do as you damn well please. And with it comes the only basic human duty, the duty to take the consequences." -P.J. O'Rourke

[rogerpidactor 0]

I have just finished aff and have 2 self supervised jumps. The first 4 jumps I thought in the plane what the hell am I doing this for, I CAN ride this plane down. But the split second after I forced my self out and exited all that went away, much like you describe. On jump five I broke my arm on landing (super high flare and non plf). So that made the nerves and over analysis even worse. Then I had to sit and dwell on my mistake for 13 weeks healing up.
First jump back was the pinnacle of self questioning and nerves, and to be honest I just can't figure out what about being in free fall would make me want to go through all that, but there is a bit of peace and a large dose of accomplishment that I feel and whatever IT is I love it.
Now having soloed twice, I am SOOOO glad I overcame what was is inside. In short, from my perspective, your both having very normal thoughts, and just hang in there and the pride you feel will make you feel so good. It's not that there isn't going to be hiccups, hopefully not as painful as mine, but I can tell you first hand that I love this sport...and glad I didn't give up on ME.

[councilman24 36]

First this sport is NOT for everyone. No one can change that.

But, most newbies have doubts for a while. Some like me for a long time. It took me 39 jumps to get off student status, 20 more than it should have on static line. Couldn't stop spinning. Tunnel? The only tunnel was one at Wright Patterson Air Force Base for the military.

Even after that, until I had about a hundred jumps I used to ask myself why I was doing this on the drive to the DZ, gearing up, the ride on the airplane. But as soon as I made that first jump of the weekend I remembered why. The only 'good job' that counts is landing safely. Everything else is gravy.

Remember, this sport can't be too hard. After a hundred jumps, with freefalls of 30 to 60 sec, you've only practiced this sport an hour to an hour and a half. It's not like tennis where you can practice for 4 hours a day, several days a week. And after a hundred jumps you're moderately competent in at least one discipline. And competent in landing close to where you want. At least enough to have fun while still learning. Can't be too hard.

If she's skydiving to please someone else, that's a bad reason. I had to talk one girl friend out of continuing in the sports because her fear dominated everything and made it dangerous. And she was jumping to please me.

But if she's jumping truly because she likes it, it soon should become much of her life. Doubts, fears, etc are all a part of learning.

In the pre AAD days part of what drew me to the sport is the personal challenge. This was one place in life that if you did NOTHING you were going to die. If your driving down the highway and take your feet off the pedals and the hands of the wheel you might crash, you might get hurt, and you might die. But in skydiving (without an AAD) you WILL die if you do nothing. At that's the challenge. AAD's truly have changed the mind set of new and old skydivers. It's subtle and skydiving has lost a little something. But it is no longer sure death when you leave the door. Unless I jump with one of my three rigs without an AAD.

It is a personal challenge to overcome the instinctive fear of falling and learn the joy of flight. But its so much fun when your past that that I can never understand how experienced skydiver can stop for good. I've slowed down a lot do to circumstances but never jumping again? Can imagine it.

I'm old for my age.
Terry Urban
D-8631
FAA DPRE

[pchapman 261]

A series of cartoons on learning to skydive and overcoming fear, drawn by an artist who was a student skydiver a few years ago:

Skydiving duck

http://tailotherat.blogspot.ca/search/label/skydiving?updated-max=2011-09-30T09:07:00-07:00&max-results=20&start=22&by-date=false

(That's a link to only the skydiving tagged posts in her blog, starting at the oldest. So read from bottom of page to top, then go to the bottom and select "Newer Posts", continuing on the next page in the same manner until all the skydiving cartoons are done. Awkward but I don't know a better way to access them.)

Not sure if it will help but it does point out that fear and worries are normal things to deal with in learning to skydive.

[wolfriverjoe 1,340]

You beat me to the Duck!!!!!






Here is the first one (actually her second tandem) that begins her journey (Each installment will have a link to the next):

http://tailotherat.blogspot.com/2011/08/sky-diving-duck-ii-chicken-of-sky.html

As others have said, this sport isn't for everyone. Be sure she's doing it because she wants to, not just because you want her to.

But fears, anxiety, overthinking, over-self-criticism (if that's a word) are all very common.

"There are NO situations which do not call for a French Maid outfit." Lucky McSwervy

"~ya don't GET old by being weak & stupid!" - Airtwardo

[skyjumpenfool 2]

Here's my 2.5 cents.... If you really wanna do this sport, go for it! If you don't really wanna do it, why would you?

You each have to make that decision.

Birdshit & Fools Productions

"Son, only two things fall from the sky."