TsunamiGilligan

There's nothing dangerous about a planned high opening, so long as you are the last group out and have stated your intentions to the pilot and fellow jumpers. CRW jumpers open high all the time. The danger is in unexpectedly opening high and having someone freefall in to your open canopy. Or if you don't have the right spot, the winds aloft might make it hard to get back. This guy was probably instructed not to open above 6K to avoid those things.

Well most people would advise google and searching the forum, but I've got a minute and I'm fairly new here too, so I'll bite. It's like asking where's the best place to get a pizza. Everyone has a different opinion, and a lot of depends on your geography preferences. There's a ton of good DZs out there. You just need to check out some out in your area. To get your A, you're looking at an investment in the $2000-2500 neighborhood depending on DZ and training method. That includes all your gear rentals while you are a student. That number can also vary based on your ability to master the required skills. Repeat jumps cost more money. You are in control of how fast you complete the 25 jumps. It depends on your mastery of the skills, and the time/money you have to make the jumps. Once you meet all the requirements, you have a completed A license card, which is just as good as the actual license for 60 days. In that 60 days, you will apply for and receive your license from the USPA. USPA's website is a good place to start. http://www.uspa.org/BecomeaSkydiver/tabid/54/Default.aspx

We spent three days there before a cruise. Kayaking through mangroves in the dark, into the bioluminescent bay was amazing. The El Yunque rainforest was beautiful, and I wish we had more time to spend there. Walking around Old San Juan was fun. There’s lots of great food. Definitely try mallorcas and mofongo. Some of the best food we had was at roadside stand recommended by our tour guide just outside of El Yunque.

Good to see that you are reading and being mindful to filter the BS. I'm a relative noob myself, but here's my $.02. As far as statistics, just try not to become one. You know this is dangerous, so it's really all about mitigating the risk. As a student, remember to first and foremost rely on information from your first jump course, and your instructors. Since you won't be doing FJC until the spring, here is some additional reading material that I have enjoyed, and should get you through the off season. http://skydiveschool.org/ The Skydiver's Handbook - Dan Poynter The Parachute and Its Pilot - Brian Germain Above All Else - Dan Brodsky-Chenfeld

I was in the same situation a couple years ago. I had always had a mild interest in skydiving, but every time I mentioned it my wife nixed the idea. My interest wasn't strong enough to make a big deal about it, so I never pushed it. I did try the tunnel in Orlando, which got me a little more interested, but still not enough to push the issue. Then one of my buddies decided that he wanted to get a group to do tandems for his bachelor party. My wife caved to peer pressure and let me go. After seeing how much I enjoyed it, she got me a gift certificate for another tandem a year later. Not long after that, she saw a groupon for a first jump course and gave me that as a gift. She may not have realized what she was doing, but once I got through FJC, I wanted to be a skydiver. She felt much better about it after I was able to explain the safety equipment to her. Learning about reserves, AADs, and all the emergency procedures gave both of us the confidence that skydiving was an acceptable risk. Lots of things in life have potential risk. Managing risk is a personal decision, and everyone needs to decide what their own level of acceptable risk is. I don't have any kids, so that wasn't a factor in my decision. However, I do know a lot of skydivers who do have kids.

I'm a static line progression student myself. My instructor had me do 25 practice touches on the ground to build muscle memory. It feels silly to do, but it really does help. In the air, don't feel like you have to race the static line. Don't feel like you've failed if the parachute is opening before you get the PRCP. Keep trying until you get it, and let your instructor make the call if you were successful. If you get it on your first or even second reach, you should be okay. Good luck!