can't stop the spins

[climbon 0]

Had trouble in level 4 due to spins. Hitched a plan ride for some tunnel time and L5 was perfect but started spinning again in L6 after solo exit. Seems like body is arched to the sides to control the spin and ofcourse does not work. Need to keep my torso straight with legs behind them but easier said then done (for me at the moment) when the spinning starts.
I guess the answer is arch more and fight the spin?

[GaryRay 0]

jump more and relax is what i would say, if you still can't pass 5 in the air go back to the tunnel for 10more min until your comfortable, try it the day before or the day of your AFF jump.

JewBag.
www.jewbag.wordpress.com

[virgin-burner 1]

stop drinking so much!

“Some may never live, but the crazy never die.”
-Hunter S. Thompson
"No. Try not. Do... or do not. There is no try."
-Yoda

[jcd11235 0]

I had the same problem as a student. I stopped them by focusing on a point on the horizon.

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[MotoGP 0]

My wife was just having this issue, our coach looked at her video and saw that her hands were not loose. Next jump she focused on breathing and relaxing no more spins. Dude she was spinning so much before this that she got sick after we left the dz.

[climbon 0]

Oh.. and I thought I had to drink to relax in the air...But hey i can stop drinking afterwards too if that helps but i guess it won't.

[climbon 0]

@Gary - AFF L5 was perfect so that one is done (at-least officially). I guess the diference is that JM releases the student in a stable position and then I can do the rest. There is no tunnel in DZ so will have to again go to LA to get more tunnel time and/or combine with the jump. Last time it helped to clear 4 and 5 so I am sold that tunnel time helps.

Thanks for the support folks... will try to relax more and keep at it.

[FinallyTracking 0]

I had the same spinning problem when I was going through AFF. Any idea what's starting your spins, and what's preventing you from stopping them?

I had to repeat several levels of AFF, and a couple of them more than once... My DZ sent video up on two of the jumps for free and used it as a teaching tool. My big problems? Uneven legs, not exerting positive pressure on the relative wind, and not being relaxed.

Toe taps fixed my uneven legs. Once I started spinning, I would stop if I just arched as hard as I could and relaxed, BREATHED. Relaxing up there is hard when you're new! Well it was for me anyway, and it sounds like it is for you, too. My instructors told me to take an extra second when I looked at my altimeter, take a breath, arch, and relax. That helped a ton. What also helps is realizing you actually have a TON of time up there to work with. There's no need to get stressed and try to rush through! Just breathe and do it at a steady, even pace. Don't get overwhelmed :) If you mess something up, take a breath, fix your arch, and try again. Don't ever try anything if you're not stable, because you'll just be stressed and it won't turn out right. Take that extra second, breathe, stabilize, THEN try again. Taking that extra second will save you time in the long-run, because you won't be repeating manouvres.

Where's your home DZ? I see you talking about going to LA for a windtunnel, and I'm curious if we're jumping at the same place.

AFF 1: $320
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[cocheese 0]

try this: float in a pool on a slightly deflated air mattress. relax. feel the semetry of your body. practice a relaxed arch.

Think right ...look right... turn right.. stop turn.... go left..

[Tuna-Salad 0]

I guess the answer is arch more and fight the spin?

Fighting the air won't get you anywhere.. it's a losing battle and you won't win.

My $0.02

Millions of my potential children died on your daughters' face last night.

[mellow 0]

i had a pretty good case of the spins myself, and what helped me was to simply relax and arch. for me, once i let myself just surrender to the air, and really relax into the arch, my body symmetry balanced itself perfectly and the spins disappeared. something asymmetrical is causing the spin. i found that relaxing was key to keep symmetry.

good luck! you'll figure out what works for you.

Jennifer

don't ask yourself what the world needs, ask yourself what makes you come alive. and then go do that, because what the world needs is people that come alive.

[AFFI 0]

Do you have an instructor(s)?
Maybe talking to them would be a good place to start...

Mykel AFF-I10
Skydiving Priorities: 1) Open Canopy. 2) Land Safely. 3) Don’t hurt anyone. 4) Repeat…

[climbon 0]

@FinallyTracking: I appreciate the detailed reply. Yes it is hard to relax in air at the moment for me. In the last jump legs were everywhere once i started spinning and my torso was was curved to the side. Your DZ was nice to give you free videos to help you out. I am here in WA state and I preferred LA for the tunnel as I have relatives there.

@AFFI: I talked to the instructor and we went over the video. The instructor is really nice and trying to help me sort it out.

@Tuna-salad: What i meant by fight the spin was to not just let it happen but try to control and counter it.

The overall feedback is more towards relaxing and getting into the arch . Toe taps is a good suggestion I will try that next time.

I will let you fine folks know how i do this weekend. Looking forward to it!!

[climbon 0]

I did 6 dives over the weekend, two on one day and 4 on the other. The first dive did not go well as far as the controlling the turns/spins are concerned. It was like oh no here i go again. It was L6 jump. For the next jump my only goal was to control the flight, fall stable with everything else being bonus. On this jump I managed to get a 360 and a couple of flips as a bonus. The next two jumps also went fine with the tendency of uncontrolled spin decreasing considerably with each one and so I got through my AFF.

The next two dives were solo dives and this is truly where i felt the pressure being lifted off me, I actually started enjoying the jumps, did multiple tricks and maintained control throughout.

The main thing that worked for me was to relax and arch - as predicted. With each jump I was getting more comfortable with the concept of diving from the plane. This helped a lot.

The dropzone and all the wonderful instructors helped tremendously and so did the folks who responded to this thread.

Now I just hope I can carry the form to my next set of dives in the coming week or two.