staying stable....

[doddy 0]

My next AFF jump is totally solo inc the exit from the plane.
I know to hard arch and go into the boxman, but my bloody legs seem to have a mind of their own, and i was just checkin out the thread of the aff stage 6 and that was very good in my untrained eye's.

Do any of you seasoned jumpers have any tips far me? I'm jumping this weekend so want to be fully prepared.

Thanx in advance
Doddy.

A man who views the world at 50, the same as he did when he was 20, has wasted 30 yrs of his life.

"Muhammad Ali"

[AggieDave 6]

Quote

I know to hard arch and go into the boxman

Obviously, talk to your instructors about any advice you get here, before taking it to heart!


Here's my opinion:

Think about going into a nice relaxed arch, hips forward, head up watching the airplane flying away, arms and legs in the neutral position.

If you think tense, you'll get tense and you'll fly like a piece of cardboard.

--"When I die, may I be surrounded by scattered chrome and burning gasoline."

[doddy 0]

Yeah agreed, they say im a bit tense at times, if the law allowed it i could have a relaxent, but then i'd be dead so.......i'll just try to relax a little!

Thanx dave

A man who views the world at 50, the same as he did when he was 20, has wasted 30 yrs of his life.

"Muhammad Ali"

[Salsa_John 0]

I am very new to this but had some fairly bad freefalls. I had many problems learning to arch and keeping my legs out straight.
My Primary even pulled for me once.

My instructors gave me the best advice.....Relax. They were correct. Oh, I did have my freefall videoed at the suggestion of my instructor. That helped too.

"You did what?!?!"

MUFF #3722, TDSM #72, Orfun #26, Nachos Rodriguez

[bodypilot1 0]

As Dave said, "Think about going into a nice relaxed arch, hips forward, head up watching the airplane flying away, arms and legs in the neutral position."

Can't really say much more then that my friend.

Except maybe to just relax and do it.
Trust the relative wind, that is coming from the direction the plane is flying in, and you'll get stable faster then you think.

Here is a pic of a level 7 student I had last saturday in my course and he did GREAT!


Let us know how it went.


Ed

www.WestCoastWingsuits.com
www.PrecisionSkydiving.com

[doddy 0]

Thanx for the words. i will relax i will relax...........

I know i can do it, i just have to relax!

I'll post monday and let ya know how i went

A man who views the world at 50, the same as he did when he was 20, has wasted 30 yrs of his life.

"Muhammad Ali"

[AggieDave 6]

For relaxing here's what I do, about a minute before door, have all your gear on, be ready to go (helmet and all), close your eyes and visualize a perfect skydive. Deeeep breath in through the nose, hold and slowly out through the mouth. Repeat a couple more times if you need to.

That will help you relax, I promise. I've had to do it a few times even recently on high pressure skydives, where I know if I get amped, I'll fuck up. Learning to find your perfect level of arousal for your peak performance takes practice, but once you figure it out you'll know just how amped or relaxed you need to be to do your absolute best.

--"When I die, may I be surrounded by scattered chrome and burning gasoline."

[Travman 6]

I may not be a seasoned skydiver, but the 2 things I was told that helped me, was arch with your hips, not your stomach
and
RELAX!

[JustaBill 0]

Quote

My next AFF jump is totally solo inc the exit from the plane.
I know to hard arch and go into the boxman, but my bloody legs seem to have a mind of their own, and i was just checkin out the thread of the aff stage 6 and that was very good in my untrained eye's.

Do any of you seasoned jumpers have any tips far me? I'm jumping this weekend so want to be fully prepared.

Thanx in advance
Doddy.

Relaxation is the key, but to get a better feel for what your legs are doing try going without socks and rolling the legs of your jumpsuit up slightly so you can feel the wind on your legs better. My sister was having trouble with her legs and the instructor suggested exposing just a couple inches of skin to help feel the wind on her legs. Worked like a champ for her, although if you are in a cold weather spot this may not be a good idea, and as always check with YOUR instructor first

------------------------------------------------
I've done so much, with so little, for so long
I'm now expected to do everything with nothing forever

[doddy 0]

Thanx for that info seem's like a sensible thing to me, but i will ask my instructor first!

A man who views the world at 50, the same as he did when he was 20, has wasted 30 yrs of his life.

"Muhammad Ali"

[calledisrael 0]

i went on the advice of my instructor to get a big yoga ball, and have been lying backwards on it to practice my arch and be relaxed. i have the same sort of issues... i like exiting, and i can arch pretty okay... i just get tense easily and it screws me up.

that was my problem in 5, i did everything right, i was just so stiff that i drifted too much and ended up having to fight harder than i should have.

i am doing the same jump this week... let us know how yours goes!

life is either a daring adventure or nothing at all.
(helen keller)

[Feeblemind 1]

I am learning also and all I can say is LISTEN TO YOUR INSTRUCTOR!!! My instructor is Bodypilot1 and he included a pick of my grad dive. Bodypilot1 qoute --As Dave said, "Think about going into a nice relaxed arch, hips forward, head up watching the airplane flying away, arms and legs in the neutral position." He said those exact words to me and it worked like a champ!! My instructor would not allow me to progress if I did not complete the prior dive requirement and I am sure yours is the same (yes I did repeat 2 dives and I am damn glad I did!).

Does your instructor video your dives? Bodypilot1 does this and there is no better instruction tool then seeing it for yourself. If he/she doesn't do that spend the few bucks to take a camera flyer with you (if your instructor will allow it) The knowledge you will gain from seeing yourself is very valuable.

Blue Skys,

Phil

Fire Safety Tip: Don't fry bacon while naked

[yarpos 4]

its very simple

my early FF instructor noted that I fell "like a sheet on plywood" stiff as a plank, face down , text book arch but no heading control.

stop thinking, start with basic arch and relax your muscles, just let your arms and legs find there natural positions in the air. If you do it, you cant do much else but fly right.

The harder you try and make it happen and think too much , the longer it will take. Think about how much you "think" about riding a bike.

hope you go well...sorry, you will go well..no reason why you wouldnt

Enjoy and relax, Steve

regards, Steve
the older I get...the better I was

[flyangel2 2]

How funny that everyone says to relax. I know what you are thinking. Hell, I'm about to throw myself out of this plane, and you want me to relax. WTF.

Relaxing will come with time.

Zipper to the wind is what I tell my students. It's easy to get your hips into the wind, but then that doesn't mean your shoulders and chest are there too. But zipper to the wind covers it.

I don't really feel like typing it all out again, but I did a reply to a thread about Muscle Memory here. Practice on the ground and it will carry over to the sky.

May your trails be crooked, winding, lonesome, dangerous, leading to the most amazing view. May your mountains rise into and above the clouds. - Edward Abbey

[Superman32 0]

Quote

How funny that everyone says to relax. I know what you are thinking. Hell, I'm about to throw myself out of this plane, and you want me to relax. WTF.

My feelings exactly

Inveniam Viam aut Faciam
I'm back biatches!

[Zheka 0]

Point your toes out... in fact combine this first with the exercise that flyangel2 suggested... forcing your toes to point out will help your legs state awareness and maintain a better control of them, hence stabilizing in freefall.

[yarpos 4]

yes I know its counter to most versions of common sense but it (relaxing) actually is the main answer....about the only thing I think you can do well in skydiving with your whole body tense is track (IMO)... when I faced this hurdle I didnt think about the relax part until I was out the door (like you relaxing prior when I just had few jumps was BS).....I exited,sometimes well sometines not....started my "fall like a sheet of plywood routine" and then thought....stop trying so hard, let your arms and legs relax and find their own position, look around a little...not so ground fixated. The affect was immediate.

This does become natural and once you can fly its hard to explain to others how you actually do it, I only have the sense of "I want to go there , or turn here and its happens" I really admire the people who can really coach and mentor this stuff as I will never be one of them.

good luck with your progression, remember you have the same number appendages as everyone else (well the ones usually allowed to hang out of clothes anyway), there is no black magic, they can do it , so can you

Steve

regards, Steve
the older I get...the better I was

[WrongWay 0]

RELAX.
I've found through experience that the easiest way to relax before a jump is to loudly sing "I feel pretty, oh so pretty........"

Trust me, not only will you laugh yourself, but it works on other people too.

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

[yarpos 4]

floral jumpsuit?

sounds like a good tactic, if I heard that break out in the plane I would have to laugh

regards, Steve
the older I get...the better I was