EChen22

Elaborate, please!

If you can accomplish #2, #1 will be much easier! Welcome to the skies! You may never get rid of the butterflies, but you can teach them to fly in formation.

I second everything Skydivecat said. I was having leg issues during AFF, so my instructor took me out for a fun jump - held my hands and let me kick my feet around to get used to feeling the wind on them. Helped tremendously! (As did the goofy faces he made at me to help me relax, haha) You'll get it. And just remember, you're not "failing" the levels, you're learning a LOT each and every jump you make. Keep us posted! You may never get rid of the butterflies, but you can teach them to fly in formation.

Raised mine +2. If I'm unconscious, I want to give that reserve as much time as I can to fully inflate. You may never get rid of the butterflies, but you can teach them to fly in formation.

These helped me tremendously through AFF with my built-in turn. When you go to tap your feet together, your brain automatically gets your feet on the same "level." Very cool, and helped a lot. Ask about these! You may never get rid of the butterflies, but you can teach them to fly in formation.

After a couple of tense jumps, one of my AFF instructors took me on a "fun jump" in the middle of my AFF course. There were no objectives other than to HAVE FUN! That jump did WAY more for me than trying to keep passing the same level over and over. We stayed linked and just played and made goofy faces the whole time. Someone else mentioned it too - smiling is a GOOD thing and helps you to relax automatically! Not sure if this is an option for you, but if one of your instructors is willing, it could really help! Blue skies, and good luck

It really depends. I bought a rig much sooner than expected simply because it was an amazing deal I couldn't pass up. Knew I wouldn't find that canopy for that price again anytime soon, so I bit the bullet. Plus I figured with every gear rental I was throwing away $ that could be going to repay my canopy. Just what I did, know it's not right for everyone. Goggles and alti were my first purchases right off AFF. Hope this helps, and welcome to the skies! You may never get rid of the butterflies, but you can teach them to fly in formation.

Yep, kiss your savings account goodbye!! In all seriousness, even if you're not jumping every weekend, you'll pick up a lot just being at the DZ. Watching landing patterns, how people/canopies react in the wind, etc. Welcome! You may never get rid of the butterflies, but you can teach them to fly in formation.

I hope its not like donut hole'n. he'll be sore for a week! She, but close. And no, nothing like that. Knew I was in trouble when I saw them both smile and nod at each other. They simply went into a stand and launched me, haha. You may never get rid of the butterflies, but you can teach them to fly in formation.

Had the pleasure of doing my first RW jump this weekend and had a BLAST! Two very experienced jumpers took my little A-licensed self up on a nice 3-way and we had a ball. Think they enjoyed tossing me around the sky more than the actual points, especially since after the third one I forgot what to do next. (Back to closed accordion! Wait, cat! No, wait, oh crap...) It's amazing how quickly you can screw things up, haha. The jump broke off with a ceremonial fruit-looping of the newbie ... You may never get rid of the butterflies, but you can teach them to fly in formation.

Hey Grant, welcome to the most addictive sport/hobby in the world ... As far as tandem vs. AFF, I know there are a lot of opinons, so I'll give you mine. Doesn't mean it's right, just what I did and what worked for me. [/disclaimer] I did tandems. Lots of them, haha. I had no idea I was going to progress to AFF or my A-license (which I acquired this past weekend, WOOHOO!), so tandems were the natural choice for me. I did one, then another a few weeks later, then another, and another ... eight total. I even did a few after I decided I wanted to do AFF, because I was scared of being under canopy and wanted the Tandem Instructor to work through it with me. Aside from all that, you go through such sensory overload your first jump, it helps to be able to just experience it and "enjoy the ride" without any responsibility. Once I knew what to expect in freefall and under canopy, it was easier to do on my own. Hope this helps, and welcome to the Skies! You may never get rid of the butterflies, but you can teach them to fly in formation.

AMEN. You may never get rid of the butterflies, but you can teach them to fly in formation.

Welcome, Kevin! I can't help you too much as far as packages and pricing, but I can tell you that used gear is the way to go at the beginning. It's much more reasonably priced, and what you jump for your first 50 jumps may not be what you end up staying on. My personal opinion, don't necessarily buy anything, used or new, right away. Get through your license, see how you feel, then work on getting gear. I bought goggles and an altimeter near the beginning, because I wanted consistency with those . As far as canopies, I used rental gear all through AFF and just recently acquired a great set of used gear. Good luck and keep us posted! You may never get rid of the butterflies, but you can teach them to fly in formation.

Hey Cape! One of my instructors gave me the idea to lay on my stomach on the floor with my feet up on the couch, legs extended and slightly bent (less than 90 degrees) and press down slightly with my feet for "active pressure" on my legs. It taught my legs what it felt like to be in that position (I bend my knees too much in free fall) and helped work on my "arch muscles" when I lifted my torso off the ground. Just a thought, hope it helps! You may never get rid of the butterflies, but you can teach them to fly in formation.

The funny little secret is that you can apply this to everything else you encounter in life now too. Very true ... I was trying to get a giant bug out of my house the other day and was all "I can do this. I jump out of planes, I jump out of planes ..." You may never get rid of the butterflies, but you can teach them to fly in formation.

Very unhappy Had to cancel a 5-day, 3-game road trip to Western Canada we had planned. You may never get rid of the butterflies, but you can teach them to fly in formation.

Love that

I was pretty stiff throughout AFF (and had a built-in turn), so one of my instructors decided to do a "fun jump" with me. There were no tasks to complete other than to enjoy myself. We went out in a gripped exit and he came around in front of me, grabbed my hands and gave me a huge, goofy grin - instant relaxation! Since it wasn't a "real" AFF jump, there was no pass/fail pressure, nothing I HAD to do, which helped immensely. You may never get rid of the butterflies, but you can teach them to fly in formation.

Great to hear, Ryan! I know the more jumps I do in a day, the more muscle memory comes in to play and seems to make things easier. Have yet to try the tunnel but am eager to try it and see if it helps my progress. If only it could help on exits .... You may never get rid of the butterflies, but you can teach them to fly in formation.

I'm more worried about piloting and landing a canopy to be honest... ! I was the exact same way - which is what prompted me to do 8 (yes, 8 ) tandems prior to AFF. I wanted to make sure I was comfortable under canopy. What really helps me is reviewing the landing pattern over and over and over before my jumps - finding out where my "play area" should be, and when/how to set up my landing pattern. Just makes me more comfortable. I had a radio during the first few AFF jumps, but never wanted to rely on it in case it didn't work. You may never get rid of the butterflies, but you can teach them to fly in formation.

My first AFF jump, I was nothing BUT altitude aware - as in, got stable, did a practice touch, locked in to my altimeter at 9K and ... didn't move until I pulled at 5K, haha. Everyone experiences that first solo jump a bit differently. Since I had done a lot of tandems before AFF, the altimeter and pull-time were familiar to me. But solo freefall? Brand new experience