How many days did you go to the dz as a student and never get to jump?

[metalslug 31]

Zero!
South African 'highveld' weather, yeah baby!

In winter its mostly clear skies and light wind.
In summer it's mostly scattered thunderstorms that blow over in an hour or two.
High winds have grounded students several times at my DZ but the wind has never persisted more than an hour or so.

Of course, I do make a point of checking the weather forecast before driving out to the DZ.
That usualy helps a lot in improving my chances of jumping when I get there.

[vt1977 0]

I did my FJC in the UK, in February on rounds! So quite a few days…

Vicki

[shunkka 0]

6 month... 3 days/week 2 hours/day

-------------------------
"jump, have fun, pull"

[Reginald 0]

Quote

Id even go two or three days in a row of being out there around 8hrs and not get a single jump even though they sent load after load of tandems and funjumpers up.

Now to be fair tandems and fun jumpers don't have a 14mph wind limit like students do. this happens all the time at my DZ but it is explained to the students. Is this a possable explaination??

"We've been looking for the enemy for some time now. We've finally found him. We're surrounded. That simplifies things." CP

[Zenister 0]

never got a hold during student status..I love Eloy, but considering i went thru AFF in late spring i'd say i was pretty lucky..

since then i've been amazed at students whining (or even throw things and pout like a six year old ) when they couldnt get in the air during a weather hold...even as we were watching highly loaded canopies backing up on final...

i suppose excitement of the new overrides common sense far to often...i'm glad i skipped that stage

____________________________________
Those who fail to learn from the past are simply Doomed.

[jumperconway 0]

The year that I did my tandem and subsequent AFF course I was usually the first person at the dz every Sat. and Sun. Over a 4 month period I was only able to do 4 affs,level 1 twice and level 2 twice. I remember the reason usually being lack of AFF instructors more than weather/wind. When a tandem would come in there went the available jm. After the frustration of paying $400 a month country club dues without getting to play golf, I quit trying. I came back almost 2 yrs. later to a different dz and got off student status in less than 2 months! They were not a tandem factory, students were a priority. That was about 3 1/2 years and almost 1800 jumps ago!

[Phillbo 11]

Only once .. That was the day I took one for the team and cracked open a Fosters so the clouds would part. It worked so it was worth it .

[SkydivingNurse 0]

I wanted to jump today. It's my Birthday and I thought that getting back into the air would be a nice way to celebrate. Unfortunately, it was cloudy all day today. Oh well. There will be other times, and I've taken two cases of beer to the dz and hung out and talked and generally had a fantastic time. I'd have loved to jump, but hanging out and bs-ing were fun, too.

[lawrocket 3]

I got winded my first day. Then my second time I had to wait a long time to jump.

I was out of money or ill on several other occasions. Yes, I showed up to NOT jump, and instead to soak in some knowledge.

I put in 5 times I was grounded due to wind, but did not count the several times I went to the dz and did not jump due to choice.

My wife is hotter than your wife.

[WrongWay 0]

I'd have to grab my logbook to make sure, but I don't think i waited on any. I hit all my student stuff pretty rapidly, all in a course of about 6 days (three weekends), and it was luckily at a nice point of the season where the weather stayed calm and clear.

Dumb luck, 100%.

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

[Deuce 1]

It seemed to take me forever. At Byron over the summer it can take quite a while. I started in April and finished in August and I was out there every weekend.

[tsampson 0]

Not one day spent waiting. My instructor is a buddy, and when the weather looked good, and the work load was light, we'd hit the DZ. We only had one actually pre-planned day, and everything was great that day too.

[EricaH 0]

Sometimes I'd have to wait all day because the tandem business was so busy. Otherwise, I never didn't jump on any day I was @ the dz.

Sometimes I saw the weather would be shit & wouldn't go, but once I got started (end of August), I pretty much went straight through - license in in mid September.

And that was all @ Chicagoland.
though literally the WEEKED AFTER I was off student status, the winds started increasing to a not jumpable speed

There is no can't. Only lack of knowledge or fear. Only you can fix your fear.

PMS #227 (just like the TV show)

[Adrock 0]

There were many days, here in Kansas, that I as a student was not able to jump. However, those days were the days that I sat around, watched, and listened to the more experienced jumpers.

Yes, it was frustrating at the time to not be able to jump, but there were benefits as well.

As a result of that, I think I both learned more and was more "accepted" as part of the skydiving family than those who would call up, ask what the winds were doing, and then not show up.

Addie

[riddler 0]

I did a tandem in August, then took FJC the weekend after September 11th. It was several weekends before I ever got in the air after they suspended all the air traffic. I was there every weekend, but couldn't jump for almost a month after FJC.

This is another instance when having money helps. If you can afford it, you can fly out to Eloy in the winter and crank out the entire AFF in a weekend - I think there's only about 7 inches of rain a year there. Wind is another story, though.

Trapped on the surface of a sphere. XKCD

[DrStrangelove 0]

sat on the ground more than a few times for AFF. took my FJC/L1 jump in early oct. and didn't get to try L2 until early april. time well spent tho. hanging out at the dz as a student teaches you just as much as your classroom instruction. imho. zealous instructors and a friendly dz make all the difference in the world when grounded.

[Unstable 8]

My first 5 jumps were all exactlly 4 weeks apart, and I went out to the DZ EVERY SINGLE WEEKEND, all weeked. What can I say, Oklahoma Sucks and Nebraska Blows!!!

=========Shaun ==========

[bskyz 0]

I learned to jump here in New England, so it took me from the beginning of May until the end of September of going to the DZ and camping out EVERY weekend to get my A license.

But you know, I don't think I would have had it any other way, because on all those windy / rainy days, I was wandering the dropzone gathering advice and making friends that I wouldn't have time to do if I had banged out all my jumps in a couple of weeks. In the end, I think it made me a safer jumper.

Blue ones
Dave
My site...

[weegegirl 2]

i was nototious for that.

the day of my first jump class - too windy.
came back - took off in C182 - got to 3.5 - flung open door - too cloudy - back down.
then it was at least a month of every other day showing up at the dz to find i was "weathered out" again.

to any students going through that... stick it out... it sucks.. but it's well worth it.