Advice please - I'm desperate!

[Ruskin 0]

Can anyone give me some advice to try and clear my head.
I started my skydive training on RAPS and did 27 static line jumps but never got any further than dummy pulls. I started off confident but got less and less confident on each jump. I then went to Spain to start AFF. I did levels 1 - 3 perfectly but level 4 was a complete disaster. I was with one instructor and supposed to be doing turns left and right. My instructor let go of me and I felt wobberly so instinctively put my leg down and guess what, I began to tumble out of control. This continued down to 4,000 feet when my instructor caught up with me and pulled my main for me. I have done two more jumps since but as confidence building jumps only where I told my instructor not to let me go. The last time I was at a dropzone I waited all day to jump and then it was my turn I could not do it. I have completely and utterly scared myself beyond belief. I did go to the windtunnel in Paris after my bad jump but it was a few weeks before I was able to jump after so I lost any benefit from that. I want to skydive so much but have let my fears get totally out of proportion and just cannot get over it. I think about nothing else. How can I progress if I daren't let my instructor let go of me incase I go unstable again. Any advice or similar stories will be much appreciated.

[Lindsey 0]

I haven't had this same experience, but I do understand feeling overwhelmed and fearful that I will fail in other areas of my life. For me, I have to get rid of the thoughts of "I'm scared," "I'm gonna screw up," "I can't do this," and replace them with thoughts of "Maybe I'm a little scared, but I CAN do this," and more positive thoughts like that. In my experience, confidence comes from the noggin'.... I don't know how other people work those things out, though.

Peace~
lindsey

--
A conservative is just a liberal who's been mugged. A liberal is just a conservative who's been to jail

[bisqit999 0]

Try a ridicilously huge smile. Worked for me after pretty much the same situation. I mean really smile big!! Now I got this huge grin on my face evey jump. It helped me relax. It's worth a try. I even made my instructor laugh in freefall because of the look on my face. Smile relax and arch!! 'Nuff said.

[apixel 0]

This one is tough. I'm trying to put myself in your shoes, but one can only get so far as a mental exercise. As you can see, I have very few jumps. I've done up to IAF level 6. I haven't had a bad incident yet, but I have turned a new corner in fear. I seem to have lost the external/primal fear in which all you had to do was push through it and jump. Now I have more of an intellectual fear, in which my mind calmly tells me that what I am doing doesn't make sense. This was a bit harder to overcome when it appeared on my last jump. These are the things that work for me:

1. I remind myself that I am actually doing this because I like it. At this point it is a worthwhile question to ask. There is no point in doing this if you don't enjoy it.

2. I try to find trust. I trust the fact that I have at least two parachutes. I trust my instructor. In my case, I've jumped with him 4 times and he has always been there close to me in case something went wrong. I also know he is watching because his debriefings are very detailed. In your case you should realize that even in your really bad tumble, he/she came over and pulled your parachute. This should help you calm down greatly.

3. Once you've convinced yourself with the things above, it's time for a little kick in the brain where you just focus on the task ahead. I have a drill sergeant in my brain when it's time to go for the door.
CMON! ... RIGHT FOOT HERE ... LEFT THERE ... CHECK IN ... PROP ... UP ... DOWN ... ARCH
By keeping my brain focused at exit time, fear seems to take a back seat.

4. Don't do anything that doesn't feel right. Maybe you should just keep doing jumps with whatever feels comfortable. How about having your instructor let go only for a few seconds and then grabbing you again. Just knowing that this will happen might ease your nerves. At least until you regain your confidence, make your jumps have the least bit of pressure possible. Again, even though there are levels to be passed ... it is your hobby. You can go as slow as you want and it's okay. ( I'm pretending money is not an issue. ) For me, free fall only made "sense" once I relaxed into it.

That is all I've got. I hope at least something I said helps you a bit.

[masterrig 1]

Worked for me too! When I was first starting-out as a student, I was having problems, also. One of my jumpmasters, a drop-dead gorgeous girl with a tremendous personality, told me before jumpmastering me for the first time, as I was crawling out on the strut; "Look at me and smile real big!" That, did a lot to relax me. It's hard to relax, when you're about to do something that is 'un-natural', like skydiving. The big smile works!

Chuck

[brits17 0]

Disclaimer:
I'm not an instructor, but this is what worked for me.

I almost let skydiving kick my ass as a student. I failed my Level 3 twice due to toplike spinning. I was frustrated beyond, I wasn't used to failing. I was terribly fearful this was something I couldn't do. I barely had enough money in the bank to pay for jumps, and I said if I screwed the dive up one more time, I'm giving up. I was so focused on technique that I lost sight of one of the most important elements in freefall (besides saving your life). Relax.

My JM's couldn't pinpoint a body part that was out of place that induced a turn. I went to a new dz (due to relocating) with new instructors. I felt I had a fresh start and was enthused. For some reason or another, I felt relieved, and with the new atmosphere I lightened up. I have to give major props to those instructors who were so encouraging and wanted to see me succeed. My next level 3 was nailed. And I'll let you conclude the rest of the story.

If you find yourself losing it in the plane, or on jump run, stop and concentrate on breathing. 5 counts in, 5 counts out. It helped me. I was a silent nervous wreck at times as a student at times... cool on the outside but terrified on the inside. Breathe, relax, smile. Be focused and know you can overcome this.

_______________________
aerialkinetics.com

[BIGUN 1,061]

Quote

felt wobberly so instinctively put my leg down and guess what

No real big surprise here. Most students have difficulty with AFF/4. In fact, I feel confident in saying that most of the students who walk away do so at level 4. A lot of it has to do with dropping your legs and de-arching during the turn.

Here's a little homework you can do at home before your next Cat D dive. Lay on the floor in an arch with your feet resting on the wall. Press slightly on the wall with yor toes so you feel the equal pressure.

Then just drop you right arm to turn right and you left to turn left. EMPHASIZE the arch while you're doing it. 90% of the students with your problem, de-arch to make the turn, drop a leg and the "wobbly" starts. There's nothing that says the turns have to be done in two seconds.

Just arch, keep your feet even and and drop one arm ever so slightly and look in that direction (where you point your nose is the direction you will turn).

Relax, know that you're not the only one, don't overamp the day of your jump and just relax and do it smooth and slow.

Don't give up. Sidebar: in the Army helicopter flight school course, students eventually have to learn to hover. The Instructor always tells them to try to remember everything they're doing until the day they hot the "hover button." Once they hit the "Hover button" they'll never be able to do the same stunts they did while trying to find the "hover button."

Same thing in skydiving. Once you find the turn button, you'll wonder why it was so difficult.

Nobody has time to listen; because they're desperately chasing the need of being heard.

[crzjp20 0]

im not going to ginve skydiving advice cause i am not qualified, but i have been in somce scary situations in my life non skydiving that is...

anyways... my idea of life is that just cause you are scared doesnt mean you quit. I mean i run harder after it. i am terified of heights and the first time i got put on a repell tower i was scared to death and didnt want to let go, but i did and now i love to rock climb andlove to repell. if you dont conquer your fears they get the best of you. and well.. look at my quote on the bottom.. well its not my quote its John McCain's.

Just relax take a deap breath and go after what you want. Take on the fear and beat it!

have fun be safe and enjoy!

--------------------------------------------------
Fear is not a confession of weakness, it is an oportunity for courage.

[CieloDiosa 0]

oh boy can i help you!

just made my 18th jump today and im only on level 8 (mostly b/c i kept gettig uncurrent)
anyway, ive had several of the same expeiences!
on one of my first solos after i got let go of i was stable then started to spin out of control, couldnt fix it so i pulled. then i on last solo when i was just about to graduate aff, i jumped out got stable then flipped on my back started spinning, started spinning on my side, flipped back on my back freaked myself out and pulled the cord while being unstable. bad bad bad idea- the canopy came up thru my legs, risers burned thru my jumpsuit and i got plowed in the head @8000 ft.
so then this year when i started up again i was doing a level 6, which is just jump out and get stable and hold ur heading nothing more, of course i started turning left, then right then left not too fast and never a complete 360, just never holding one heading- then finally last week after being exTREMELY discouraged i jumped out and was completely stable holding one heading for the entire jump!! something i thought was ridiculously impossible for me. i was actually afraid someone might pull the line "skydiving is not for you"
well today i had my level 7 jump and i was so certain i could do it right and pass it, and i did! i had to jump out do a 360 right, forward motion about 10 ft, 360 left and pull at 5. never been easier!!

now i definitly was freaking out about spinning and not being able to stop or hold a heading after i entered my turn, but really it was so easy i couldnt believe it.

the only thing you need to do is ARCH! if you start doing anything else just ARCH ARCH ARCH ARCH do a toe touch to make sure ur legs are ok, and u can see ur own arms so they should be fine. one other thing- memorize what you have to do before you go on the jump. most of the time im too busy thinking about what i need to do during the jump rather than just knowing what i must do.

i cant even explain how good it finally feels to have done a solo jump the right way. just keep telling urself ur going to pass and you will, i promise ive been in the same place you are
dont get discouraged and dont even think about quitting! you'll get it someday
best of luck on that next jump. keep us posted

p.s. sorry bout the book i just wrote

cya n the sky
~justi

~boogie ho!!
pull before impact!
L.A.S.T#14, PMS #309, Ci EL O DI O SA

[Malta_Dog 0]

I can't help you much about the 'fear factor' (no pun intended) because its is deeply personal, but I had a similar experience on my AFF level 5: I have a stiff back and i can't arch much, so as soon as my JM let me go (he did it very early into the jump this time), I began to wobble and instinctively tried to 'hold' myself onto the air with my hands and legs. Bad idea: I only made the oscillations worse. I had to re-jump this one and, while viewing the vid my JM told me to hold my legs steadier. He also told me that the oscillations aren't so much of a problem...it's not pretty to look at but you won't go upside down unless you change your body position a lot. He also told me that this time I would have to make my first free exit.
So I jump from the plane, instinctively pull my legs forward, tumble for 5 secs (it seemed much longer to me) when finally the lessons kick in: ARCH! Just like a miracle, I slowly come back to a belly down position: 1st huge confidence build-up. However, this time I contract my legs muscles a lot and I begin to spin uncontrollably... I couldn't counter the spin with my shoulders. I was also wobbling again a bit but this time I left it alone and nothing serious happened...2nd confidence build-up.
So I fail this one again but at the same time I feel much more in control: arching DOES work, and wobbling is just a nuisance.
Furthermore, the JM tells me during the vid debriefing that a knee deeper than the other is what induced the spin. He told me to briefly put a foot against the other to check the symetry of my legs if this happens again.
The next day I tried it again and it went like a breeze. Like someone said, I had found the button. And bellyflying is much easier than riding a bike IMO.

I still wobble a bit when I have to use a big old container because all the nice Omega containers have been taken by students who got up earlier than me (I don't own my rig yet). Then I have to arch a lot and really strain the muscles of my back to make it cease (yes I'm really stiff. I can't touch my toes with my fingers by far...).

So if you try it again (I hope so!), just remember:
- even moderate arching works.
- oscillations won't flip you upside down.
- check visually your arms and do a toe touch if you're spinning unvoluntarily.
- your JM is watching over you.
- your AAD is there if all else fails.

And don't give up. This is too much fun.

All your dropzone are belong to us!!!!111!

[boxman-chick 0]

have let my fears get totally out of proportion and just cannot get over it. I think about nothing else.
________________________________________

Ruskin, I feel for you and can tell you what is working for me.
First, I tell the "Ridiculous Fear Demon" on my shoulder to shut the fuck up!
I work hard not to dwell on "what if..." thoughts and focus on my jump, picturing a good and fun one. Like what I'm going to do, the dive flow etc. I play this like a movie in my mind.
I also stopped drinking coffee, the caffein jidders just seemed to fuel the "fear fire" and I switched to Peppermint tea instead, it's calming and gets rid of the knot in my stomach. I continously work on thinking in a positive way and look for stuff to laugh at. Jokes, comedies or just acting goofy. Laughter works wonders. I trust my jumpmaster TOTALLY and know he will take care of me.
Exercising works for me, too. Turning negative energy into a positive one.
Well, maybe there's one in there that you think might help you, too. Don't give up.
Good luck and Blue Skies

--------------------------------------

You gain strength, courage, and confidence by every experience in which you really stop to look fear in the face. You must do the thing which you think you cannot do.
-- Eleanor Roosevelt

[flyingangel 0]

Hey Ruskin

I don't usually respond to posts, but I can tell you I've been in your position and can understand the fear.

On the day I got my solo certification, I went up for my celebration jump (no radio, 1st time totally on my own), I had a 2 out malfunction at a 1000 ft. Luckily everything was fine, but it freaked the living hell out of me. I did a few more jumps (my mom always said get back on the horse), but couldn't cure the fear. All I could think about from the moment I got on the plane to the ground was the canopy ride and the landing. I stopped jumping for about 11 months and had lots of time to pound that fear into my head. I almost gave up jumping and a very smart skydiving friend of mine told me I just had to learn how to compartmentalize.

His advice was
1.to accept that the fear only goes away with currency, and sometimes never. If you can accept that, you can deal with it.
2. In your mind create compartments for each stage of the jump (exit, arch, pull, canopy, landing). This way you can concentrate on each step you have to do at the time, until it gets natural.
And his last piece of advice (which sounds funny but very true)
3. If you get unstable, Arch like a mother-f*****

Chipping and spinning is a pretty normal thing for students to encounter and it's a good thing because then when you get back into your strong arch, you can see how to stop doing both.

Keep trying, I still have the fear but it's getting easier to deal with now. And like everyone has said, it's amazing what happens when you try to relax!

Don't give up, the fun is just beginning!

• Quote

[wmw999 2,129]

About stability. Look at a badminton shuttlecock sometime -- the heavy center always goes first; the feathers always follow. Your body is the heavy center, and the arms and legs are the feathers. The arch accentuates that. Try having half of the feathers or a shuttlecock poking straight out the side sometime -- it won't fly the same. Try tilting all of the feathers (like a propeller) -- it'll spin.

If you let the wind blow your arms and legs behind you, your body will resemble that shuttlecock. The best way to do that is to relax some; then the wind will help blow them back. Of course, you do have to remember not to keep your knees on your ass, but that's still backsliding rather than spinning or tumbling -- much different, and backsliding isn't something that feels unstable.

If you want to turn, yes, drop your shoulder. How to remember that? Look in the direction of the turn -- OVER your shoulder. Practice it, and you'll see that you probably also naturally swivel your hips the other way -- a nice propeller. When you want to stop turning, stop looking over your shoulder.

If you're turning a direction that you don't want to, look over your shoulder in the other direction; the farther you turn your head, the more you'll dip your shoulder.

Good luck to you, and I hope your next jump is fun.

Wendy W.

There is nothing more dangerous than breaking a basic safety rule and getting away with it. It removes fear of the consequences and builds false confidence. (tbrown)

[Ruskin 0]

Thanks so much for your reply. I guessed that I can't be the only one with such experiences. One thing for sure is that I am never going to give up, I want to skydive so much. I too am worried that my instructor will give up on me but he says that he won't unless I become too dangerous. At the moment it all just seems impossible but I keep thinking that one day surely it will just click and that will be that. I hope to look back at this one day and laugh about what I found so hard. I am so emotional about this at the moment that I could just burst into tears every time I think about it. The trouble is that my problems are all in my mind rather than being a practical problem. Anyway, I hope one day to be able to report on this forum that I've finally done it. Thanks again.

[hottamaly 1]

I went through the same thing and what cured me was the SMILE. My instructor say how mad I was getting at myself and this statement was what it took to cure me "I thought we were supposed to be having fun up there"...DUH. Now I never leave the plane without a BIG SMILE on my face, it relaxes you so you can do your drills.

Skydiving gave me a reason to live
I'm not afraid of what I'll miss when I die...I'm afraid of what I'll miss as I live

[ChristianH 0]

Quote

I went through the same thing and what cured me was the SMILE. My instructor say how mad I was getting at myself and this statement was what it took to cure me "I thought we were supposed to be having fun up there"...DUH. Now I never leave the plane without a BIG SMILE on my face, it relaxes you so you can do your drills.

I second that! I had to do my Level 4 twice. I was spinning so fast that I thought that I would develop enough lift to make me go up again! I was also told that I look like I am going to war....

I was told to relax so many times that I got sick of hearing it but what finally did the trick for me was when another instructor was flying in front of me and he started making funny faces and sticking out his tongue at me. I burst out laughing and the funny thing is that got me rocksolid stable! Didn't have any more problems with spinning after that.

The key really is to relax. Hang in there and you WILL get it! Don't beat yourself up over it. I know, easier said than done, but think about it - you are jumping out of a frigging airplane - if you can not laugh about that then what can you laugh about?

[kelpdiver 2]

Ruskin - what exactly did you do in the wind tunnel, and for how long?

It was very effective for me to fix asymmetry problems and calm me down, though it wasn't so good at fixing my forward motion/backsliding issues. We initially started me doing 2 minute bits with the wind pretty low - I was basically on the netting doing turns and practice pulls. Then we added some air flow and got me up to continue.
Perris, of course, has the runway just 200 yards away so I was able to go directly into real practice.

[WrongWay 0]

A great flyer once told me that I needed to learn to "reset" myself. He said that if you screw up once, either in the middle of a dive or the previous dive, then it's your natural reaction to get stressed and down on yourself. The more stressed/tense you are, the worse you're going to fly. Essencially, you need to learn how to take a step back, take a deep breath, forget about what just happened and move on. You can do this in the middle of a dive, doesn't take as long as you'd think. Just think, "Okay I can do this, it's no big deal.", smile, take a deep breath, and do what you need to do.

It's all a learning experience. Nobody flies perfect all the time, not even the pros. If you flew perfect, what would be fun about the sport? Keep your chin up.

Wrong Way
D #27371 Mal Manera Rodriguez Cajun Chicken Ø Hellfish #451
The wiser wolf prevails.

[Ruskin 0]

I only spent one day at the windtunnel in Paris. I did 8 x 2 minute slots which were split into 2 x 4 slot sessions with a half hour break between the 2 sessions. I was with a french instructor who could speak English but not fluently so this caused a few difficulties. Also, I was extremely tired towards the end with doing so many slots close together in a short time. On my first 4 slots I was awful, just could not get stable. I kept dropping to the bottom and clinging on for deal life sometimes because I didn't want to get back up!! After my first 4 slots I thought I would never do it but then decided to really relax as that is what everyone keeps saying. On my 5th slot I just flopped into the air and it worked. I was stable. I stayed stable for ages without moving forwards, backwards, up or down on one of my slots. I even did a few 90 degree turns. I did have a slight tendency to drop my legs at times though still, especially when I was tired. I did a couple of more slots and on these I was sometimes stable and sometimes not. I left the tunnel feeling that it was a fluke the time I did it as it was not consistent. I really needed more time in the tunnel but I went on a Sunday and they are closed on Monday and Tuesdays.

[Fab 0]

hello ruskin..I have send you a private msg/mail

_______________________________________

[Ruskin 0]

Further to my previous post on here to which I am really grateful to all the replies and support offered. I now have the chance to go to California for 2 weeks in November to carry on my AFF training (or maybe start again completely. I am not sure whether to go due to the weather in USA at the moment. I know the hurricanes have been in Florida which is miles away from California but just wondered if anyone has been to California in November and what the weather tends to be like. I cannot bear to go all the way there and end up with bad weather (although I know the weather cannot be guaranteed anywhere at any time). I also cannot afford to go all the way to California and come back unqualified. Maybe this will be good inspiration to get it done this time! By the way, I'm not too good at using this forum yet so I hope this message has attached my previous one to it also so you know what I'm on about!

Quote

Can anyone give me some advice to try and clear my head.
I started my skydive training on RAPS and did 27 static line jumps but never got any further than dummy pulls. I started off confident but got less and less confident on each jump. I then went to Spain to start AFF. I did levels 1 - 3 perfectly but level 4 was a complete disaster. I was with one instructor and supposed to be doing turns left and right. My instructor let go of me and I felt wobberly so instinctively put my leg down and guess what, I began to tumble out of control. This continued down to 4,000 feet when my instructor caught up with me and pulled my main for me. I have done two more jumps since but as confidence building jumps only where I told my instructor not to let me go. The last time I was at a dropzone I waited all day to jump and then it was my turn I could not do it. I have completely and utterly scared myself beyond belief. I did go to the windtunnel in Paris after my bad jump but it was a few weeks before I was able to jump after so I lost any benefit from that. I want to skydive so much but have let my fears get totally out of proportion and just cannot get over it. I think about nothing else. How can I progress if I daren't let my instructor let go of me incase I go unstable again. Any advice or similar stories will be much appreciated.

[obelixtim 100]

Its not all your fault....If you did 27 SL jumps then your instructors were crap and bear responsibility for damaging your confidence......

If the student hasn't learnt....the teacher hasn't taught......get some new ones...

Get yourself off to somewhere where there is a postitive attitude to skydiving...."Skydiving is a FUN thing to do"....and get stuck into it......California is
good but there are other good places as well....Arizona for one.....weathers always good....

Just let your body completely relax, let the wind blow your arms and legs back like long hair does in a strong wind .....and you'll fall stable right down the pipe.....don't try to fight the wind....let it do the work......don't worry about sliding...easily fixed later......just try to fall straight down by finding and focussing on some feature on the horizon......a tree, mountain or something you can use as a visual reference...

Conscious thought and awareness in the air during freefall...............think clearly....and be aware of what your body is doing in freefall...arms, legs and head back.....belly button closest bit to the planet.......

It'll happen for you and you'll soon wonder what all the hassle was..........go for it.....!!!!!

My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

[kelpdiver 2]

Best to post the new stuff on the bottom. Top posting can get a bit confusing.

There are few guarantees with weather, of course. Historically we get very little rain in California before December, but occasionally we do get one or two storms that drop a bit of snow before Thanksgiving. It's rare for these to be more than a couple days, and tend to be more central/northern California. If you're going back to Perris, odds are highly in your favor, esp if you would be there for 2 weeks.

The main gotcha this year is the likely El Nino, which will increase rainfall to SoCal, but probably won't kick in till well after November. I'd say it's a pretty good bet.
Eloy might be the only safer bet out there.

First half of Nov or second?

[Ruskin 0]

Quote

Its not all your fault....If you did 27 SL jumps then your instructors were crap and bear responsibility for damaging your confidence......

If the student hasn't learnt....the teacher hasn't taught......get some new ones...

Get yourself off to somewhere where there is a postitive attitude to skydiving...."Skydiving is a FUN thing to do"....and get stuck into it......California is
good but there are other good places as well....Arizona for one.....weathers always good....

Just let your body completely relax, let the wind blow your arms and legs back like long hair does in a strong wind .....and you'll fall stable right down the pipe.....don't try to fight the wind....let it do the work......don't worry about sliding...easily fixed later......just try to fall straight down by finding and focussing on some feature on the horizon......a tree, mountain or something you can use as a visual reference...

Conscious thought and awareness in the air during freefall...............think clearly....and be aware of what your body is doing in freefall...arms, legs and head back.....belly button closest bit to the planet.......

It'll happen for you and you'll soon wonder what all the hassle was..........go for it.....!!!!!

Wow, your reply amazed me. I tell you why. In any of my posts I have not mentioned my static line instructor/s whatsoever, but you are quite right, there was a problem and my confidence was ruined. In fact, an instructor basically told me on more than one occassion that I should give up trying to skydive as I will never do it! My problems are all in my mind as I work myself up so much about the dangers but still want to do it. My static line instructor told me that AFF would not help me and even hinted that I probably wouldn't dare jump from 13,000 feet. However, i have jumped from 13,000 6 times and ok, i haven't qualifed yet, but I am so determined that I will never give up. Your reply just suprised me that you have picked up on what has contributed to my low confidence without me even saying so. I see you have been in the sport for many years so obviously you can instinctively see the problem maybe. Anyway, I'm going to enquire about some price flights and decide whether to go to California or not. I do not have the choice of going to Arizona as my AFF instructor (who is not the same person as my static line instructor by the way) is going to California. I just hope that one day this year I can post a message on this forum that I've finally done it! Thanks for your support.

[Ruskin 0]

Quote

Best to post the new stuff on the bottom. Top posting can get a bit confusing.

There are few guarantees with weather, of course. Historically we get very little rain in California before December, but occasionally we do get one or two storms that drop a bit of snow before Thanksgiving. It's rare for these to be more than a couple days, and tend to be more central/northern California. If you're going back to Perris, odds are highly in your favor, esp if you would be there for 2 weeks.

The main gotcha this year is the likely El Nino, which will increase rainfall to SoCal, but probably won't kick in till well after November. I'd say it's a pretty good bet.
Eloy might be the only safer bet out there.

First half of Nov or second?

Hi, I think I'm posting this at the end of your reply instead of at the top this time! Anyway, it seems that it may be worth chancing the weather in November then. The date is 15-29th November and my instructor is going there and I will be able to use the wind tunnel which is something I want to do again. I think it will be beneficial to be able to use the tunnel and jump the same day. I don't have the option of going to Eloy or Arizona as I have to go where my instructor is going as my course is all paid for up front. Thanks for you reply.