Skydivesg

I know this is a little off topic but I just can't resist. I remember the first time I went south for a skydiving trip and picked Deland as the destination DZ because of the famous (infamous) "Slots are for Tots" team. While there, this crazy looking biker dude came up to me and forced me to grab on to one end of a set of risers and told me to pull back while he held the other. I half-heartedly did so. He then chastised me because I wasn't "putting enough strength" in it and insisted I put my weight into it. Fearing he might pull out a blade on me I leaned back with all my weight. He then told me to pull on this little 'wiffle ball golf ball' thing which was attached to a plastic coated cable. Afraid for my life, I did as instructed and as the cable came out from under these differently sized stacked rings the two risers seperated and I nearly fell on my ass. I was amazed at what I had just witnessed as was everyone else watching. The Hell's Angels guy was as giddy as a little girl and was anxiously putting the devise back together as he was explaining his new invention. This new cutaway system was a far cry from my shot-and-a-halfs and before I left to go back home I ordered a new rig called a "Wonder Hog". I was told the cut away device was not yet TSO'd and it could be months or even a year or more before I got my rig unless I wanted to have the 'Rodrigues' cutaway system. I gave the man my $50.00 deposit and told him to make my rig when the '3 Rings' were ready. A few months later I got my new rig (I believe it was the fiftieth one made) and after our Club Safety Officer and ASO saw all the new stuff he promptly gounded me from using it citing that it was "unsafe". I was close to convincing him that everything was OK. He was skeptical about me jumping a Stato Star with a slider instead of rings and ropes....... and he was really nervous about the hand deploy pilot chute instead of a rip cord launching a trusty MA-1.......... and I couldn't believe how big his eyes got when he saw the main was held closed using a folded over portion of bridle through an elastic loop. And then............. I showed him the "3 Ring Circus". "Grounded!!!" "There was no way that stuff was being used on this club's DZ." "Stay away from those people in Florida.......... they're gonna kill everyone." And so it began. Sandy Oh.....and then one day I showed up at the DZ with a form fitting nylon "Michigan Suit"..........ahh.... we don't have time for that one.

The weather is starting to look promising. I look forward to jumping there.

Skydive Iowa will once again host it's spring boogie with a Super Otter on May 12, 13 & 14. Free camping, showers, nightly bon fires.... all the usual stuff and more. The Northern Plains Skydiving League will hold it's first meet of the season with the NSL founder and president Kurt Gaebel on site as the meet coach. Kurt will be there Friday the 12th conducting a one day 4 way camp prior to the meet on Saturday. Hope to see everyone there. FFI: Sandy Grillet [email protected] (515) 226-0941

The masses of men shall lead lives of quiet desperation. The second guessing you describe is exactly why most of us started jumping in the first place. Any of us who doesn't admit they were scared is either a liar or stupid. Being afraid of the unknown is natural. However, allowing that fear to dictate how we lead our lives is habit forming. Most people will never overcome their fears and fall lock step into the masses without even knowing it only to realize it when it's too late. They will lead their lives carefully and cautiously only to arrive safely at death. A handful of us will face those fears head on and will forever have a deep seeded sense of satisfaction because of it. We concentrate less on filling our life with years and more on fillng our years with life. Some of the best times of my life have been at the drop zone. Whenever faced with your kind of dilemma I've always tried to remember this: I'd rather be sorry for something I did..... than to be sorry for something I didn't do........ I wish you good luck with your struggle and regardless of your decision I hope your life is full of BLUE SKIES. Sandy Be the canopy pilot you want that other guy to be.

You can come to Skydive Iowa just east of Des Moines. We have a privately owned airport with free camping, hot showers, bunk house rooms for rent, nightly bon fires, BBQ grills and all the trimmings. My sister from Bailey, CO is bringing her 16 and 17 year old sons and some of their friends out after school get's out. Contact me for details. [email protected] Be the canopy pilot you want that other guy to be.

20 minutes is not too much as long as you break it up a bit. Here is how it should work (or there abouts). You spend time dirt diving and learning hand signals with your coach for 15-30 minutes prior to entering the chamber. You enter the sealed holding chamber along with your coach and any other people who will being flying. You and the others take turns flying in the flight chamber. No more than two minute flights. Anything more than two minutes at a time is too tiring and you will have diminished returns. After each two minute flight you come out the exit door into the holding chamber while someone else enters the flight chamber through the opposite door. While the others are flying your coach will verbally tell you what he wants you to work on. When it's your turn, you enter the flight chamber and fly another two minutes. You should do this for a total of ten minutes (five flights). Then, when everyone has used up their time, they will slow down the fans and take your group out while another group goes in. You should take at least a 30 minute break hopefully during which time your coach will work with you (60 minute break would be better). Then you go back into the chamber and repeat the process, which will give you your total of twenty minutes. If done this way you should be able to handle twenty minutes without any trouble, though you will be quite tired. (I do this routine with 30 minutes of flight time and some say I'm a geezer) Do what you can to be ready physically and make certain you stretch for 20-30 minutes prior. And prepare to get hooked. Remember we do all this because it's fun. When you mess up (and you will) laugh it off and smile. I won't remember to check this thread in a few weeks so if you want to email me when you get back I'd be interested in knowing how your progressing. Good Luck Sandy [email protected] BTW You don't jump at the DZ owned by Mario Prevost do you? Be the canopy pilot you want that other guy to be.

Thanks for the info. I never did break anything under my 28' round, PC or Papillion or Stato Star for that matter. But for the last couple of years my ankles and knees have been starting to voice their opinions of those years. Be the canopy pilot you want that other guy to be.

Your instructor is right, 60 degrees on the knees is better. My bad. BTW most of us don't have tunnels near us either. You have to go to where the tunnel is. When you go to the tunnel try to get a minimum of ten minutes. Five - two minute flights. Anything less than that may not be worth the three hour round trip although anything is better than nothing. I'd recommend 15 to 30 minutes. When I go I never buy less than an hour. Also my experience with the normal tunnel staff is that not all of them know what to look for or how to help low time jumpers. It pays to hire a private coach. If there is anyway to get to Orlando. That might be your best option. Flight from Toronto is $225.00. Buy a round trip ticket from Mears Van service in the baggage area -$30.00. They will drop you off and pick you up at the tunnel. No car rental. Stay at the Riande Motel across the parking lot from the tunnel- $30.00 per night. All restaraunts and bars are walking distance. Tunnel time during peak hours is $375.00 for 30 minutes - $700.00 for 60 minutes. Off peak time 12:00 to 5:00 pm is $635 per hour. Hiring "Chromy"-one of the best tunnel coaches in the world from Deland is $100.00 for 30 minutes - $150.00 for 60 minutes. If you choose to do this, time it so you can go to the DZ ASAP on your return. No more than one week if possible. Best scenario: fly down on Thursday. Meet Chromy for 30 minutes of tunnel Thursday night. Then 30 more minutes Friday morning. Fly home Friday afternoon. Go to the DZ to jump on Saturday and watch your instructor smile in freefall. Make the remaining jumps over the weekend and graduate. Caution: Tunnel time is highly addictive. Sandy PS The advice about relaxing is excellent. Also I can give your Chromy's contact info if you want. Be the canopy pilot you want that other guy to be.

I don't want to upset any one here with this quesiton so I apologize in advance if I do. Please don't take offense..........I'm not passing judgement, just curious. Did all these breaks happen from jumping? If so could you give a few details of the accident and how you may have avoided it (canopy loading- jump numbers-etc)? Also whether or not you've had any canopy coaching before or since. I had a compound fracture of the lefrt arm (both bones out the skin) from high school football. Both 12" pins came out within a year. Not my choice, it's just what the doctor did. I've had no problems since.

You old dog...........Are you going to be a POPS this year???????????? I'm not a POPS............That's for those old guys!! I had a "Nova" once........... The tires were bald The dirver's seat was all chewed up The windshield was so cracked you had to lean to the right see out The radio didn't work No A/C No power steering The oil leaked It only ran on 3 cylinders The clutch slipped The paint was faded It over heated every 20 minutes The pasenger window wouldn't roll up The back seat floor board was rusted through God I loved that car

I think we should ground all those old bastards and make more room for us young guys..... Be the canopy pilot you want that other guy to be.

OK first off all, ZigZag has a point. You need to ascertain whether or not you have the ability to think in freefall. There is a big difference between not being able to think and having problems with leg awareness. If it's just leg/body position awareness....that can be fixed. The other is a troubling concern.... especially after this many jumps. Assuming it's awareness. Go to a lumber store and get a 2x8 or 2x10 (narrower is better than wider) 9 or 10 feet long. Cut it so you have three pieces 36 inches long (more or less). Stack the pieces on the floor on top of each other so that you have a platform 36 inches long, 8 or 10 inches wide and 4 to 6 inches high. It would be best if you nail it together for future continued use. (This will also be useful when you want to learn to do leg turns.) I still use mine after 32 years. If you have a weight lifting bench that works too. It's just higher than I like. Place this on the floor in front of a full length mirror or take a mirror off the wall and prop it up so you can see yourself and your legs. Lay on it with your pelvis centered end to end and side to side. Your knees should be just barely off the side edges of the board on either side (no wider). Don't let your knees get below the top edge of the board. Raise your chest and upper body up so that only your pelvis and stomach area are touching the board. (This is where you want most of your arch.) Place your head so you can comfortably look straight out in front of you. Head up. Get in the habit of looking out in front of you (like the horizon in freefall). (this is the start of the famous mantis position) Position your arms so that your elbows are bent 90 degrees (favor them with your hands a little closer to your head rather than farther away). Don't allow your elbows to come in toward your rib cage (we have a tendancy to do this when we arch too hard in our chest). Place your hands so that your thumbs are level with your cheak bones. You should be able to see your hands in your peripheral vision while still looking straight forward. (I know many instructors will tell you to get your hands and elbows further back and imagine a string tied to your thumbs and running through your ears........I just prefer the position I'm describing) Your quads on your thighs may feel some strain. If so, you need to do some strectching excersizes. It also helps to strectch your arching muscles by placing your hands on the floor and pushing your chest up as far as possible while keeping your pelvis flat on the floor and arching in the small of your back. Now back to the body position: Pay close attention to where your knees are. Often times you will notice that one knee wants to drop below the other (in your case probably the right one) Don't let that happen. As you learn more about control you will realize that your legs give you the most powerful turn possible. Which means they can be causing your turning problems. [Rember this: "The knee that goes down is the knee that goes around". Meaning that if your right knee is down it will go around your center point causing a left hand turn. So you need to get it up or push down with the opposite knee to stop the turn or a combination of both.] Back to body position: Your knees should be bent a little less than 90 degrees. Don't let your feet get too close to your butt. In other words your feet and shin bones should feel some air on them if you were in freefall. Turn your board so you can see your legs clearly in the mirror (or better yet have a second side mirror) Do some heel and toe taps. Know where your legs, kness and feet are. While doing all of this make sure you are in the right position and then close your eyes and pay attention to what it feels like. Open your eyes - varify your body position - close your eyes - feel it - etc. Teach your muscles what it feels like when you are in the right body position. Muscle memory. I know this sounds like a lot of effort but I also know it works. So does my young skydiving son. He's spent more than his share of time on the board in front of the mirror. Before you go to all this work please run this post by your instructor for his approval. Remember my way is not the only way and your instuctor may not like my way at all. I'm also confident there will be differing opinions on this forum. In which case.......again, go with what your instructor says. Hope this helps. Sandy Be the canopy pilot you want that other guy to be.

I've helped a number of people with this problem over the years. First you need to know that anything you learn on this site needs be approved with your instructor before you try it in the air. This is imperative. If he says no then don't try it. Remember this, our legs seem to be the dumbest part of our body, some of us have to work harder to have leg awareness. Now before I can offer any advice I need more info. You say that your right leg hangs lower than your left. Does this mean you are in a left turn? Can you stand flat on the floor and lift either leg so that the bent knee can come up to a right angle from your hip? Can you do this with your knee coming straight out in front and can you do this with your knee coming out 45 degrees to either side? Also how far apart are your knees when in freefall? Are your instructors constantly giving you the knees together signal in freefall? Are they constanly having to give you the relax signal? And do you find yourself out of breath after opening? You say that in the pool you can level out your legs by pulling your knees inward. Do you mean closer together? How far apart are they in your normal body position? One thing you should know is that their are quite a few leg amputee skydivers who have over come the built in turn problem so don't get too discouraged. Also the other advise about getting into a tunnel is the quickest and safest way to correct this; although maybe not the most econmical. Sandy Be the canopy pilot you want that other guy to be.

Try e-mailing the CSL director of your wishes. He may be able to help. Also post on the team network for the CSL. Both can be found at www.skyleague.com Be the canopy pilot you want that other guy to be.

I would start by clicking on and printing the "Airspeed Articles" at the top of this page. Be the canopy pilot you want that other guy to be.