LGTProfessor

Welcome! I had the pleasure of jumping down there at the end of September. Great bunch of folks! Might make it back for the boogie in February. Have fun! 7-Way Hybrid at night? F*$k Yeah!

I am curious... How did the tunnel time go for you? Were you as nervous in there? I would say keep flying in the tunnel as well (with coaching); even if you never decide to go back to solo out of a plane, it can be a LOT of fun and you can learn to be an amazing flyer. I had tunnel time last night. :-) Working on belly/ 4-way RW right now. 7-Way Hybrid at night? F*$k Yeah!

If you go to Bear Mountain, then Perris Valley, Skydive Elsinore, and Above L.A. Skydiving are all fairly close. There are some more a little farther away, but Elsinore and Above L.A. both have AFF. Near Mammoth: Bay Area Skydiving (Byron, CA), Skydive Tahoe (Minden, NV) and a few others farther away. Use the dropzone locator and/or google maps (search skydiving) to see what's near the area you're going and get links to the individual websites. Skymama could probably recommend one over another, too, and I don't think Perris is a USPA drop zone if that matters to you. 7-Way Hybrid at night? F*$k Yeah!

Congratulations! Now go jump! 7-Way Hybrid at night? F*$k Yeah!

Sweet! I'll be out there Saturday for sure (short guy still wearing a student jumpsuit ). I'm close to my 50th, so depending on whether I get any jumps today and how many I get tomorrow I may or may not be there Sunday. A lot of the peeps from Jacksonville even come out Friday night to be there early Saturday and stay all weekend, so you won't be the only one in that boat. The weather is supposed to be great all weekend, too, but it is getting cooler out. 7-Way Hybrid at night? F*$k Yeah!

So many of these replies are exactly what I was thinking. Granted, I'm still new to the sport myself, but I applaud your decision. If you are that anxious and uncomfortable, you are doing the right and SAFE thing. EVERYONE appreciates that fact because more safe for you generally means more safe for all. Think of it like driving a car. I fully appreciate someone who can rise above other people's issues and take the passenger seat instead of being on the road causing accidents-regardless of whether they are injuring themselves or others. If you feel more comfortable at a later time, then try solo again. If not, keep having fun with tandems!

Skydiving has issues with the weight, it's true. Losing weight now will help you get through your student jumps faster. Between AFFIs that can/will jump with you (match your fall rate), limited space in the plane, and equipment that fits (container AND/OR canopy), having excess mass is certainly a detriment to the experience. It's not all sunshine and rainbows being the 5'6", 140 pounder though, either. It's a good choice to get in better shape no matter what the reason. Don't concentrate too heavily on weight while you're doing it; rather concern yourself more with size. Weight will fluctuate, but if you're not losing weight and you're losing inches you are still getting healthier- it's just that muscle weighs more than fat and you may have reached one of your "stall points". All that aside, do as the others have said. Go talk to people! It may motivate you further and you can learn a lot before you even REALLY start jumping. Even on days I don't intend to jump, I go out to the DZ to socialize and soak up what knowledge I can. Skydivers are great people that come from all walks of life. I'm proud to be one. 7-Way Hybrid at night? F*$k Yeah!

Ha ha. Will do. I just started on the forums, though I've been tooling around the rest of the site for a little while now. Several people out at Raeford didn't know the dates, but I already had the flyer. I hadn't looked at the Xtreme Divers' website since I left PR to see if it changed. Thanks for the tip. 7-Way Hybrid at night? F*$k Yeah!

Thanks, I think so too (and so do the instructors/coaches around RPC). I'm thinking about the boogie. I may hold off on this one, but if enough people from RPC decide to go they may influence my decision. I'm not from there, but have friends that live there, otherwise it would be a no-brainer. Did you see the dates? Last news I got was a flyer from them saying 15-19 Feb, but I don't think it was on their website yet. 7-Way Hybrid at night? F*$k Yeah!

Just search for Skydiver's Information Manual. I know for sure it's on android market, and I am pretty sure it's on iPhone. I guess I could be wrong on that one, but I am almost certain I've seen iPhone users with it. I have it for my android. 7-Way Hybrid at night? F*$k Yeah!

Hey all! I've been checking out the site for a little while, but am now a member. I just started jumping mid-July and am now up to 41 (have to take SOME weekends off). I took so long to submit my paperwork for my A license, I figured I might as well wait for my B... which is why I don't have a license nor "student" filled out. Soon though. It may sound ambitious, but I will be pursuing RW and freeflying simultaneously (though majority concentration WILL be on RW at first). I also intend to take a canopy course right away- never too soon to be a better pilot, right? I have the good fortune to call the Raeford Parachute Center my home DZ, but I have also jumped with Xtreme Divers in Puerto Rico and look forward to jumping all over the country and World. 7-Way Hybrid at night? F*$k Yeah!

For the most part, you probably won't be able to overdo it at first. That's what I was initially going to comment after your first post. Go Jump, but don't get discouraged if you have to sit around until you get off of student status. Just get out to the DZ early or, since you have a flexible schedule, call ahead to the DZ on a weekday and make sure they have AFFIs available for you to jump with. I just started mid-July and have 41 jumps already; and that's with having to sit out several weekends. If you jump a lot in a short time, you will likely be a little sore. Getting in better shape is never a bad idea for any athletic activity- and skydiving is more rigorous than you probably realize yet. As mentioned above, check out the Skydiver's Information Manual (SIM). There is even an android/iPhone app. You can see the requirements/dive progression, basic safety requirements, licensing requirements, and a whooole lot more. Cost is really high at first, but it cuts down to the prices you've been told pretty quick. Get those student jumps out of the way now, before the weather is too bad. Students have more restrictions. 7-Way Hybrid at night? F*$k Yeah!

I got my license at the Raeford Parachute Center (Raeford, south of Raleigh- near Fort Bragg). I love it there. I haven't gone anywhere else in NC yet, but there are also Skydive Carolina (SC) and Triangle (a little north of Raleigh), as well as a few others. Use the drop zone locator on this website to find the one closest to you. We also have the Paraclete XP Skyventure wind tunnel in Raeford, about 10-15 minutes away from the DZ. Just saw you are a Marine... Will tell you several of the guys that jump in Raeford drive out from Jacksonville. 7-Way Hybrid at night? F*$k Yeah!