Anyone gotten burned out on skydiving?

[Jen1129 0]

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And if you get a chance, tell Justin (the Otter pilot) that Mike and Lynn say hi, and he still sucks in the nicest possible way

Suuuure, so then he will drop me directly over the middle of the lake! I might be a newbie but I'm not that dumb... :)

[mfrese 0]

Thanks for the good advice, Chuck. I'm thinking about trying a few new things like wingsuits and maybe BASE (thanks Mischo!) to get the love back.
But about not selling the gear...if I did quit and came back, why would I want to put up with all the new 200 jump wonders freaking out about my "unsafe" old gear . I can hear it now..."You're not getting in the plane with that old Mirage G3"!...or "You only wingload at 1.8? That's way too slow, you'll be clogging the pattern"!

Doctor I ain't gonna die,
Just write me an alibi! ---- Lemmy/Slash

[Eiley 0]

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My biggest advice to you would be that you do NOT sell your gear. You would probably take a big loss anyway, so you might as well keep it that way you are not sucking when you decide to come back. There are people on here who have taken 25 year breaks, yet eventually come back to the sport with the fervor they originally had.

The people that came back after the 25 year break - were they using the same gear?

Cheers,
Eiley

nothing to see here

[darkwing 4]

I got burned out, partly due to "competition burnout" and partly due to priorities changing--I had to get 10 years of college taken care of. I came back though, and am very glad I did.

I have heard your reasons many times before, and they all make me sad. The only one I'd tend to re-write is the "Greedy DZO" one which I'd change to "DZO who is not the kind of businessman I think he should be." Any DZO that I have seen others characterize as greedy was actually just trying to survive. I admit I haven't met every DZO on the planet though.

-- Jeff
My Skydiving History

[sssbc99 0]

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So my question is...has this ever happened to you, and if so, what did you do about it?

Found a new hobby that I do atleast one day a weekend. I still jump, but not as much as I did.
Last year I really only did team jumps and a handful of tandems.

[PhreeZone 15]

>Eric, I figured you'd last at least a whole year... if you quit now I'll lose the "when phreezone will get fed up with tandems" pool!

I've still got the rating till August... I'll be doing them in the sping so I can afford to get my BMI rating. $300 is'nt cheap I'm going to trade my TM for a BM rating. More fun in it that way for me. I'm probally close to the number of Tandems you have there Lisa.. what was it? About 90 for you? I'm up to about 70ish.

Winter is a nice break for me. Forced absence from the DZ does wonders... plus my snowboarding skills (or lack of) make me humble again.

Yesterday is history
And tomorrow is a mystery

Parachutemanuals.com

[sarge 0]

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Forced absence from the DZ does wonders...

Thanks Eric ! I was hoping somebody would acknowledge the 'forced absence' aspect.

Absence makes the heart grow fonder...

With the new season may come new ambition; if not, then, the sport will go on. Albeit including all the crap that goes along with it.

Personally, I have no envy for the grind of doing 8-10+ tandems in a day!!! (At any dz!)

.

--
I'm done with the personally meaningful and philosophical sigs!!

[skybytch 259]

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what was it? About 90 for you?

Uhh... 114 or something like that. I'm trying to block the memories.

[Michele 1]

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"Gee, I'm just a little ray of fucking sunshine today, arent I"

Dearest Ray of Sunshine....

Know what? You still love the sport - you just don't like parts of it. The greedy DZ owners you mentioned don't bother me too much...there's nothing for them to be greedy about...and those actively trying to kill you? I don't deal with them, either. As a matter of fact, I am one of those who unknowingly try to kill others in mid-air. LOL, just sk Sparky.

Look, you started jumping for a reason, right? Identify that reason, and then replicate the situation you found it in in the first place. If you jumped for the sheer joy of shooting your body through the air, take some time and do that again. If you did it because you love turning a bazillion points with your buddies on a 4way, then do that. If you did it because you are the most excellent freeflyer - or could be, someday - and want to go play on your head, then do that.

Whatever it is, go find it again. Once it's found, then you can decide if you are burned out on jumping altogether, or maybe just the teaching of it.

And also take some time for yourself - no jumping!, nothing like that. Go on a weekend getaway - no calls, nothing. Just you and your sweetheart, if possible, and see what the "other half" does. If you like it, do more of it.

Finding the balance is tough...but, little ray of sunshine, you can do it.

Ciels-
Michele

~Do Angels keep the dreams we seek
While our hearts lie bleeding?~

[skydiven4fun 0]

I can relate, But I have never got to the point that I wanted to quit. There is so many things that go on at the drop zone sometimes and it can get depressing at times. I work offshore so that gives me the break I need.
I have learned that the people you think are your friends are not always so, and when you finally get that picture it can make you want to take a break or go somewhere else and jump for a while.
I have seriously been thinking about changing where I jump lately just for those reasons, But not give it up all together.
Stick it out or try somewhere else for a while.

Still here after all these years

Clayton

[skyflyerbritany 0]

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I quit in March - sold all my gear - couldn't be happier....I got sick and tired of how people treated me at the DZ....and the moment I quit - I found out exactly who my real friends were.....such is life - next adventure....

I just wanted to say that I was sorry. Skydiving was the best thing that ever happened to me. The people in this sport or the greatest people i have ever met. I think you were at the wrong DZ. My skydiving friends are my true friends. I can't trust anyone as much as I trust them.

[skyflyerbritany 0]

You should come to skydive mesquite in Nevada. We have a great inviroment. It would be a good break for you. We are having a boogie in jan. There are plenty of belly flyers and freeflyers. Lately we have been doing hybrids. You should check out our web page- www.skydivemesquite.com.
The DZO's are the best you wil never see them w/out a smile. All the staff are great. It is an all around great place to jump.
Check out new places before you give it all up.
I know how it is to get mixed up in being staff. I am only a packer but I have an idea of what it feels like.
Well hope to see you. Just keep your head held high and have fun.

[tbrown 26]

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My biggest advice to you would be that you do NOT sell your gear. You would probably take a big loss anyway, so you might as well keep it that way you are not sucking when you decide to come back. There are people on here who have taken 25 year breaks, yet eventually come back to the sport with the fervor they originally had.

The people that came back after the 25 year break - were they using the same gear?

Some do, we've got a friend who just came back from the eighties, he's jumping a Wonderhog Sprint (that's a pre-Vector Booth rig to you kids...), a Fury main and a 23 ft round reserve. He had the main container altered to a BOC setup for his pilot chute.

I was out for 22 years, and I did sell my rig. I don't hink I'd want to be jumping it nowadays anyway. But it will take several/many years for your rig to go out of date. Put it in a safe dry place in a closet and forget about it if you like, it will keep. Starting to jump again without a rig is a major hassle. I'm renting demo gear and don't know if or when I'll be able to afford a rig.

I burned out back in 1980. After about 7 years in the sport I got fed up with the usual crap. There was also a rash of fatalities and a few friends who opened reserves below 500 ft. We'd all gone to Yosemite and jumped El Capitan, and after that the DZ just seemed boring.

There is a whole world out there off the drop zone and skydiving is only one of life's many flavors. Go to school, get married, make some babies, buy a house, go across Europe on a bicycle. Run for Congress (hell, why not ?). If you're meant to come back, you will. You just sound liike you need a break.

Your humble servant.....Professor Gravity !

[skyflyerbritany 0]

ok ok ok
in some cases it is a good idea to update your gear.
Do us all a favor if you own a wonderhog GET NEW GEAR!
that is just the smart thing to do.

[beej 0]

i use a '88 talon, that ok?

----------------------------------------------------
If the shit fits - wear it (blues brothers)--

[Airborne03 0]

i had my best friend this summer get completely burned out of skydiving. after being off my student status and being all excited to jump he started teaching me new things like rw docks and into sitflying. he then got burned out to the point where he was never even there at the DZ anymore....

however, he did frequently visit the wind tunnel in orlando and has about 10 hours or so just in the tunnel which he claims kept his mind sane from not jumping. its just another place for him.

i know many people at my home dz that jump for work and not for fun. I am the first to always try to organize a track dive for them or something fun, just to do it! its is so much fun!

i eventually got my best friend back into skydiving this past month and he couldnt be happier. all the time in the wind tunnel and the 150 jumps he hasnt seen me make really excite him! we actually are going to collegiate nationals together in a week or so!

for a kid who was about to sell his own rig a month ago...this is a great turn around!!!

try some different flying...sit,head down, base, birdman, camera...the great thing about this sport is we are still inventing most of it!

"Airborne all the way"
EL Cantador Rodriguez

[skyflyerbritany 0]

I think that you would be ok.
Your gear is not hundreds and hundreds old.

[jumperconway 0]

I don't know if you jump for a living but a friend at my dz was totally burned on shooting video for a living and not being able to afford to fun jump. She won a raffle for 1 full day of jumps and found the spark again. Went and got a regular paying job so that she can come back and "fun" jump. She remembered why she enjoyed low pressure jumping!

[NoShitThereIWas 0]

Mike I can definitely feel your pain. Sometimes taking a break and just changing pace is all a person needs. I took a break from jumping twice. Once was when I had to (pregnant) and once when I decided to go back to school full time and remove myself from the same things you are talking about.

I have worked at 2 of the same DZs you have and sometimes just the BS associated with the rivalries, attitudes, etc. is enough to burn anyone out. I have considered quitting myself as I saw my love for the sport deteriorate.

In fact how you feel is sort of how I feel about N. California in general. My answer to myself is to go somewhere else. A place where I think the DZ is different, people are more down to earth (don't have the CA attitude or mentality) and has its shit together.

I assume for safety sake, when I am done with school and get a real job I will probably cut back to just fun jumping/team jumping and maybe rigging after I get my ticket. I love doing AFF and don't really see myself burning out on it if I am happy with my DZ and the people I work with and for. I have had some of my greatest days working at SMB if for no other reason than the people who I was working with. I think the attitudes of the people at a DZ are what make it enjoyable vs. a nightmare. And with all the other stuff you mentioned i.e. money, losing friends, etc., you sort of need that other good stuff to at least balance it out a little.

If DZOs get greedy or treat me like shit it is no longer fun. When S&TAs are lazy that is frustrating, when friends die that is scary and sad and when attitudes are bad ... Sorry Mike, hang in there buddy

[NoShitThereIWas 0]

and also Mike, you and Lynn are too cool and too nice for all that stuff. You should give up hauling meat, get your AFF rating and come with me to Missouri!

Roy Bacon: "Elvises, light your fires."

Sting: "Be yourself no matter what they say."

[betzilla 56]

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So, I'm having one of those days where I'm seriously thinking about selling all my gear and hanging it up. Greedy DZOs, lazy S&TAs, dead friends, money, attitudes, and too much other shit to catalogue have left me ready to just walk away from a sport that I've loved since the first two seconds of my first jump nine years ago. I'm almost shocked that I'm even thinking about this, but the last few weeks have made me realize that I've reached a point where I'm just not sure the joy is worth the hassle...or if there's even any actual joy left.

So my question is...has this ever happened to you, and if so, what did you do about it? I appreciate any feedback from anyone, but I'm especially hoping some of you longtime jumpers can reassure me that it's just a phase, and it'll pass if I give it a couple weeks.

Hey Iceman, I'd give it a little time -- maybe your passion will be sparked again.

I'm a bit burned out on it too (only five years in the sport, but a bad injury made me rethink it a bit). But for me, it has to do with not having good friends to jump with (moved to a new DZ -- it's not the same as "home"), and a lack of confidence that I won't look like an ass in the air, after two low-jump-number seasons. All the other stuff you mentioned comes with the territory, and happens in any other similar hobby too (except the maybe the dead friends ).

Give it some time, think it over, and if you still want to leave the sport, it's your choice. It's your life -- you have to make it what you want it to be.

If you do quit, we'll be happy to have you back if/when you change your mind

[Kramer 0]

This thread's depressing. One of the things I was actually looking forward to way down the road, once I finally have a few hundred jumps under my belt, was becoming a TM.

-Kramer

The FAKE KRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAMER!!!!!!!!!

[geezer7127 0]

Hey Iceman, you've gotten a lot of good advise so far. I hope this will help too.

A pretty good life rule is to "turn negatives into positives." Whatever you view as negative, you always have the opportunity to change the context or the circumstance so that you end up thinking about it and viewing it differently, hopefully more positively. It's always your choice.

In your situation, there may be many aspects of the sport in which you are not yet expert. Set a new goal to become expert in any one of them. Set a new direction for your skydiving career and pursue it with renewed enthusiasm and spirit. If there is a skydiving discipline that you feel is not for you, give it a go. You may be surprised. Most importantly, whatever action you take must shed that which is causing you to burn out, or at least enable you to put it in perspective such that it no longer affects you negatively.

As for DZ politics and stuff, don't get involved if you don't want to. Let it go. Move on. Chart a new and exciting course that steers clear of butt-heads or at least puts you in the driver's seat to pick the butt-heads with whom you will interact.

I wish I hadn't left the sport for 16 years while my kids were growing up. And I'm glad I did too. But no sport or activity ever really took the place of skydiving. My goal now is to stay with the sport for the long haul, learning new things, especially those things that I think I can't learn or don't want to learn (turning negatives into positives.) Take care.

[bodypilot1 0]

Stop doing tandems for awhile, go to a new DZ and get wingsuit.

Or maybe in the opposite order?


.

www.WestCoastWingsuits.com
www.PrecisionSkydiving.com

[DanglesOZQld 0]

When I first started doing skydiving as a full time occupation I had many days when I thought to myself WHAT THE HELL AM I DOING THIS FOR!!! but then you remember the better jumps and why you came into and stayed with the sport. The reactions you see on people's faces who have never done it before and loved it ; the satisfaction of teaching someone to conquer their fear and do it all themselves and the scenery you have to put up with just to name a few good reasons for being there. It certainly beat being stuck in a factory as a printer doing 12 hour shifts for stuff all like I used to do before. You do have to keep the fun aspect going though when it starts being a source of paying the bills. I always said to myself that if I was going to do jumping full time I would still take time out to see the fun aspect of the sport. Too many people burn out when they do see it only as a source of paying bills not as a fab lifestyle choice that it can be given the right circumstances. Sure you will not be rich being a full time jumper but lifestyle is what it is all about and having done skydiving full time for over a year now I would hate to do anything else. After the Tandem Incident I went through some time ago I seriously looked at giving up the sport that I had loved for the last ten and a half years. Self doubt and what ifs still abound and I am still trying to get over a lot more than I let anyone see. Bottom line , if you love it then do it. Some people need some time off and some just need to stop certain jumps (IE - work tandems) for a little while to get the love back. We are each different people and have to go about it in our own way. I wish everyone who has been in anything like the situation/s above all the best. BSBD -Mark.

"A Scar is just a Tattoo with a story!!!"