At long last! (VERY long)

[Griff69 0]

This is a very long newbie first-jump post. Feel free to skip or skim...

After taking the class for my AFF jump sometime late last year, Ohio conspired with mother nature to keep me grounded until yesterday. Saturday morning, I arrived at the dz armed with the raincheck from my class, freshly updated with a refresher course, and a glorious weather forecast. While waiting for the manifest to fill, I sat in with the new batch of AFF students starting their class until my instructor came to pull me. We reviewed, dirt dived, etc, and then suited up. I was psyched! I was finally going to get to make my first (non-tandem) jump. On the ride up, I ran through the dive mentally several times, visualizing everything. Finally, 15K and next to last out. I take position in the door, and start the dive flow. Good exit and practice touches go perfectly, so I'm done with everything by 9.5K. I find I keep pulling my legs in and try to focus on keeping them extended. Uh oh, 5.5K already, wave off, and pull. Well, try to pull. Despite the practice touches, when it's time, I try to throw my inside instructor's altimeter instead of the PC. He guides my hand to it, and I throw, count and check. Damn, that hurt! I think I just ripped holes in both thighs... Main looks good though, 360 left, 360 right, flare; all seems good. Now start turning, looking for the dz. I can't find anything remotely familiar, but then the friendly voice in my ear directs me home. A tendency to drift to the right, with no discernible cause, but eventually I get to the landing area. Then time and speed start doing strange things for the last 100' or so. It seems like I'm accelerating both vertically and horizontally as I come in. OUCH! A lovely high impact butt plant. I debrief with both instructors: legs out! I knew that one, but haven't managed to ingrain it yet. And the reason 5.5K came so fast was that I wasn't there yet. I'd apparently lost the ability to read numbers and tried to throw at 6.5K instead, as well as rushing the pull itself. We talk about keeping the legs out and practice that some more, and then they sign me off for 2! I asked about the pain from the leg straps and the consensus is either a) the student rig just wasn't designed for me, so it will be a little uncomfortable and/or b) my straps weren't tight.

I warned you this was long....

On to 2! Same dive flow, but with a controlled turn, and a brief track, to show that I can exert some control over my fall. Lots of walk throughs, physically and mentally, tighter leg straps, and we're at 14K and in the door. Legs are a little better this time, turns and stop go well, and the track went very well. Lock on at 6K this time, wave off at 5.5 and pull. Damn, that still hurts. Controlability check good, but the tendency to turn right is even more pronounced. Check end cells. Everything up there looks good. Must be me. A better approach for landing and this time I remember to PLF. Review: 1. still pulling my legs. I need to focus on keeping them extended. It was better this jump, at least until pull time, but still an issue. 2. I need to figure out the right turning canopy. The turn with the pain inside my thighs makes the instructors feel I wasn't strapped up tight. Cleared for 3! Since the outside instructor had filmed this jump, I start a video jump log, too.

Take a break and get some lunch, but I can't stay on the ground for long. I report to manifest for 3. This one gets a little different. Same exit, 3 practice touches, toe taps to ensure legs are even, but then the intructors are letting go! I'm gonna be flying on my own! I go back and forth between excited and frightened for a while, but eventually it's time to go. I tighten my leg straps as much as I can, and then cinch them up again when we head for the door. Exit good, more extend legs signals, three practice touches, toe taps, and then the rest of the jump is "Heading, Altitude, Legs, Relax." I realize I need to extend legs some more, but I don't do it smoothly. A little turn going. Stop the turn. Check altitude. Hey, look at that. Both instructors are out there in front of me. Oh yeah, legs! Then it sinks in. Those two jumpers out there are my instructors! I'm flying on my own! Stop the backslide. More turning. Stop that turn. Legs uneven. Fix that. There's a lot going on, but I keep running the mantra through my head, "Heading, Altitude, Legs, Relax." AFter what seems like fifteen minutes, 6K. Lock on to the altimeter. 5.5k, wave off, and pull smoothly. Much better opening. No pull to the right this time, but some rough air. Winds are pretty variable up here. I look down and actually have some vague idea of where I am this time. I am right over the holding area, so I play around down to pattern altitude. The landing doesn't have that time distortion thing going this time. Flare 1, 2, 3, hold it, hold it, and step down. Nice. Hey, I stood that up! Debrief and review. Watch the film. Those fifteen minutes I spent trying to fly stable was actually a hair under 15 seconds!

So, here's what I learned yesterday:
1. Make your leg straps tighter! Not only will it be much less painful, I think that was also behind the right turns.

2. Extend your legs and keep them level! Today I've watched my log four times so far, lying on the floor, arched, with my feet on the couch.

3. Three jumps is quite a lot for one day at this point! It's amazing how tiring it is to fall through the sky and hang under a canopy.

4. Relax! You'll live longer and have a better time doing it.

5. Skydiving is addictive and amazing!

Chris

"Democracy is two wolves and a sheep voting on what to have for dinner. Liberty is two wolves attempting to have a sheep for dinner and finding a well-informed, well-armed sheep."

[mnealtx 0]

Nice write-up, and congrats!!!

Mike
I love you, Shannon and Jim.
POPS 9708 , SCR 14706

[Avion 0]

Cheers Chris!

And thanks, that's a good story.

I just went though AFF myself. I've found legstraps can be too tight, that hurts too. They should be snug, and also important evenly snug. If they are uneven, they can cause a turn by transmitting your weight unevenly to the canopy.

Most of my openings with student gear hurt my inner thights a bit, once my my right thigh burned for a while. I think thats just my body and the nature of this sport. I just started jumping a Spectre, and the openings are noticably gentler, without any pain, but they take a comparatively long time. The first time I jumped it, I was going," Is it gonna open? Is it gonna open? Is it gonna open? My God, that took a long time!" almost a thousand feet.

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Oh yea, about your legs: If you try to feel the wind againt the frount of your shins on every jumps, you'll get use to it, and will automaticly stick you legs out till they 'catch some air'

Cheers again

[Griff69 0]

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I just started jumping a Spectre, and the openings are noticably gentler, without any pain, but they take a comparatively long time.

Oh yea, about your legs: If you try to feel the wind againt the frount of your shins on every jumps, you'll get use to it, and will automaticly stick you legs out till they 'catch some air'

Thanks, Avion. Both tips filed away for future use!

Chris

"Democracy is two wolves and a sheep voting on what to have for dinner. Liberty is two wolves attempting to have a sheep for dinner and finding a well-informed, well-armed sheep."

[rushmc 18]

THANKS, I realy enjoy these posts. I find myself grinning ear to ear.

Congrats and thanks again.

"America will never be destroyed from the outside,
if we falter and lose our freedoms,
it will be because we destroyed ourselves."
Abraham Lincoln

[ltdiver 3]

Congrats on your successful 3 AFF jumps!
On the leg strap issue....don't worry too much about that. My thighs were actually bruised (as were my shoulders) from the student harness. This uncomfortable, unnatural problem went away when I bought my first rig. it fit me (even though it was a used rig) SO much better than the student rigs did. The bruising stopped, then.

4 jumps? Wait for #5.
ltdiver

Don't tell me the sky's the limit when there are footprints on the moon

[tsampson 0]

My beer jump on a Spectre was the same thing. I got my hands up on the risers, and started counting, thinking "It's got until I get to five before I cut it away." After my student canopy, it sure felt like it took forever to open!

[Foggy 0]

Hey Chris

sleep well after all that? . Remember to pace yourself through the levels.
Nice job

Foggy

[Jeth 0]

Congrats on your AFF jumps!! Sounds like you are well on your way! I, too, have bad thigh pain under canopy. I had heard to try tightening them as well, but that didn't help at all. Our student rigs are well-used so the padding is pretty worn down on those. Last yr I was in such agony under canopy that by the 3rd jump I was actually crying out! But I found these seatbelt pads that I used this past weekend. They worked wonders! I did 4 jumps this weekend and only have minor bruises from the buckles and straps. I have also heard other people just cut out a piece of thick foam and wedge it in their pants. It ain't pretty, but keeps ya comfy under canopy, so who cares.

Good luck with your progression!

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

[Griff69 0]

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Remember to pace yourself through the levels.

I'm thinking maybe two a day will be enough, for a while anyway. Any thoughts from the general public? Is three AFF jumps a day too much?

Chris

"Democracy is two wolves and a sheep voting on what to have for dinner. Liberty is two wolves attempting to have a sheep for dinner and finding a well-informed, well-armed sheep."

[kelpdiver 2]

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I'm thinking maybe two a day will be enough, for a while anyway. Any thoughts from the general public? Is three AFF jumps a day too much?

Was for me. 2 was just fine, between the excitement and the hard opening canopies. But you'll have to find out what your limit is. Or just see how you feel after each one.

Course, where I was, the afternoon wind usually made the decision for me.

[Foggy 0]

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Is three AFF jumps a day too much?

Its not so much actual jump numbers, more of a combination of physical and mental stresses (add a little Ohio humidity in June/ July). IIRC the BPA used to limit students to 4 jumps a day but I have not found anything similar in the USPA BSRs. You will find that increased exposure will increase your tolerance.
The counter argument is that its a good idea to get your progression jumps in close together as you can build more on the success of the previous level. As in all things relating to your student progression, take any advice found on the web with a larger grain of salt and check it out with your instructors

Foggy

[monkycndo 0]

Is three AFF jumps a day too much?

[Mockingbird 0]

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Oh yea, about your legs: If you try to feel the wind againt the frount of your shins on every jumps, you'll get use to it, and will automaticly stick you legs out till they 'catch some air'

Cheers again

Avion, thanks for saying this. Now I know what MY instructor was talking about when he was demonstrating the resistance we're supposed to feel when we're doing it right. I was unclear; now I get it. Thanks. I hope to make *MY* first jump this weekend.

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Blue skies & happy jitters ~Mockingbird
"Why is there something rather than nothing?"

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[Crater 0]

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Is three AFF jumps a day too much?

I did levels 5, 6, 6-repeat and 7 all in the same day. I was planning a a consol jump too but the light didn't hold out. I took breaks between each jump (and even had time for a nap). I was lucky because the weather was good and I could afford a break but I doubt I'd have been able to do much more in a day.

I was always surprised how tired I was after an AFF level because it never seemed like that much work. I guess everything takes it's toll, from the nerves on the jump run to the concentration in freefall.

I think leaving time for the muscle memory to "sink in" is usually a good idea but see how you feel after each jump before doing the next one.




... it's fun, ain't it!

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"That's not flying ... That's falling with style!" - (Woody, Toy Story)