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I had this exact experience, loved backflying in the tunnel! Felt really comfortable & was so excited to go have some backfly fun in the sky. A few "what the f" jumps later, I just went back to comfy sit/HD stuff. All the instructional videos I can find are for tunnel flying. Does anyone have advice for transferring tunnel knowledge to the sky? I think it's obvious having a giant growth (rig) on your back is going to affect the flow of air. So, do you end up more butt high, head high, more arched? There is no can't. Only lack of knowledge or fear. Only you can fix your fear. PMS #227 (just like the TV show)

My personal fav is the boys who sit with their legs spread well over 90degrees. It's like their balls are sooo huge they simply can't get enough room. There is no can't. Only lack of knowledge or fear. Only you can fix your fear. PMS #227 (just like the TV show)

They won't offer the same protection as more "serious" shoes, but there are bunches of light weight mesh shoes around. Since there's really not much to them you do get quite a bit of airflow, but you still can't really wiggle your toes under canopy with anything on. At least you'll won't know what your missing. (sorry) There is no can't. Only lack of knowledge or fear. Only you can fix your fear. PMS #227 (just like the TV show)

Wow, with so many people having the same experience, it seems like a kinda under-covered topic. Granted no where near the necessity level of canopy training or exit separation, but something could be mentioned at some point. When I was a student I kept asking when I could wear sandals – no one ever discouraged me. I got a few people warning that it could hurt, but never a “you could lose a toe” type story. So many of those stories give me the shivers!!! Dave, all I can say is OMG!!! That is ridiculous. JP interesting about going with trainers rather than skate shoes, I would have thought the exact opposite. I know skate shoes have more side support for longer ware while trainers have more base support ment for harder impact but shorter wear time. Rover – dang! Extreme but I guess a good policy to have. E – heya, will YOU be at safety day? I don’t think I’m going to bring this up though. Kallend – the people I think of as die hard could have been on that jump, I love the pic & wish we didn’t need to think of a potentially bad landing so we could enjoy the freedom of toes in the air. But the ground does bite! There is no can't. Only lack of knowledge or fear. Only you can fix your fear. PMS #227 (just like the TV show)

I came to a realization the other day about the type of shoes I wear while jumping. I use to always wear tevas or chacos - i loved the wind on my toes, keen's always seemed so closed in. I know a lot of people who jump in sandals, some even in flip flops and even a few die hard bare footers. Sorry for the long backstory.... One day in 2006 I was landing off on a gravel road & fell down, I literally ground a hole in the top of my foot and now have a very nice dark 1/2 dollar (US $) scar. At the time a good friend (highly experienced successful full time skydiver who's input is greatly valued) said some silly statement about the fact that everyone should wear full covering shoes for jumping. Just as soon as it got cold I followed his advice. Fast forward to 2007 season, i'd gotten use to wearing tennis shoes by this time & while I really REALLY missed the wind on my toes I continued to follow my friend's advice. Every now & then I would contemplate wearing my chacos again - but since they were all the way in my trailer I didn't. About 2/3 the way through season i had another off landing and fell down, this time on asphalt - unfortunately this time it was worse, I destroyed my ACL & tore the MCL. i've complained a few times about the resulting huge gash in my jumpsuit and more about the tar & rocks ground into the boc on my rig, into my jumpsuit and into my shoes. I loved those pink & white shoes - they were light weight & breathable. Yesterday I was going through our gear sorting it out for this year's season & I came across those tennis shoes, one almost destroyed & the other pretty mangled and it hit me. If i had been wearing sandles all that tar & all those stones would have been ground into my foot. I'm pretty sure one whole side would have been ground off one of my feet & probably a little toe too. All my gear has been fixed & cleaned - though a foot would be much more difficult to replace. So, thankfully this tread is not to dissect my bad-off-dz landings (i've done that i promise!). But rather to hopefully make some people think a bit more about the footwear they chose. In my sandals I've landed in corn & in beans, stood up & fallen down on gravel & asphalt and it's all been fine. I'm not the only one out there that's done it & gotten away with it. most people just consider that sandals would suck if they landed in deep dirt or corn or something... but what about when it really goes wrong. anyway just thought i'd share my realization. Again, sorry for the length. There is no can't. Only lack of knowledge or fear. Only you can fix your fear. PMS #227 (just like the TV show)

I can't help with future jumping advice, I just had my surgery in early December & am wondering the same thing. One additional question I wonder is if there's a difference for people that had a doner (aka cadaver ligament) replacement vs. people that used their own ligaments (patella or hamstring tendon) and necessary use of a brace. But that's probably a question best left to an ortho. There is no can't. Only lack of knowledge or fear. Only you can fix your fear. PMS #227 (just like the TV show)

Just a question to you & any man who would advise his S/O to not skydive during "your" pregnancy. Would YOU stop jumping during the same time in support of your child bearing love? There is no can't. Only lack of knowledge or fear. Only you can fix your fear. PMS #227 (just like the TV show)

Plus I'd rather have evil corn as my alternate landing area than a forest!!! There is no can't. Only lack of knowledge or fear. Only you can fix your fear. PMS #227 (just like the TV show)

I had this error on my newer PC 1000 (bought used on ebay), instead of risking a whacking (hehehehe) i used the extended warrenty that came with my purchase. not only would i get the reinsert cassette error when i tried to start recording, but it would also stop recording (a few times in the middle of freefall!!!) & blink the error. A few times after reinsertting the cassette it would eat the tape. After sending the camera to Mack Camera for repair 2X the guy I bought my camera from had a conversation with the tech.... So, when doing tandem videos pretty much everyone I know uses JVC MiniDVs bought in bulk and many of the same people with the PC 1000 end up with the same error. It'd be a big bummer to have to invest in the Sony/Canon tapes since they're so much more expensive especially not in bulk... but obviously worth it if the other tapes ruin the camera. I just thought I'd put this information out there for anyone else with this problem. And to see if those of you way more informed than me think it's full of bologny? There is no can't. Only lack of knowledge or fear. Only you can fix your fear. PMS #227 (just like the TV show)

My s/o was never pied for his 100th, so I pied him around jump number 785 - I had to get it in before 800, cause that's not pieable. There is no can't. Only lack of knowledge or fear. Only you can fix your fear. PMS #227 (just like the TV show)

2 times for me. On AFF level 2 I um forgot to flair cause I was focused on being freaked out that I was landing in corn. When my feet hit the top of the corn (approx 4' high) I flaired HARD. I totally forgot to PLF & fell like a total girl . When I fell, hands forward my pinking caught on a stalk of young strong corn & shattered, a plate & 4 screws, almost 2 months of cast + almost one month of therapy later I was back in the sky. 2 weekends ago on jump 830something, bothced out landing on the road. Destroyed my ACL and almost completely torn my MCL - this one'll take a long time. After the MCL heals and after PT for getting that fine I'll have ACL replacement surgery & face 5 - 6 months of PT for that. Hey, at least this time it's winter too! There is no can't. Only lack of knowledge or fear. Only you can fix your fear. PMS #227 (just like the TV show)

Me too - but just one week ago. There is no can't. Only lack of knowledge or fear. Only you can fix your fear. PMS #227 (just like the TV show)

Be careful with hail!! Some old timers at my dz will tell you of a jump that ended up being a hail jump. It hurt their faces/necks so badly many of them rolled over onto their backs. One of them hit a hail piece so large it actually bent their reserve pin!!! Just a tad bit - but that's not something you want to jump in! There is no can't. Only lack of knowledge or fear. Only you can fix your fear. PMS #227 (just like the TV show)

This makes me laugh. Imagine if rain fell at approx 120mph we'd all run inside everytime a storm cloud gathered overhead, cause that'd HURT! And if rain fell that fast imagine how fast hail or sleet would fall!! Sorry for pickin, but that's a bad thought! ps. I've jumped in barely there "rain" & ended up with red mini-welts all over - don't jump in the rain. There is no can't. Only lack of knowledge or fear. Only you can fix your fear. PMS #227 (just like the TV show)

I am absolutely no expert, but I get those pains sometimes too. Recently at the therapist for a protruding disk in my back certain moves really hit me hard. I told the therapist - they said when doing these back strengthening moves (like a plank) I'm straining my neck to keep my head up. they said to really (and boy do they mean really) keep my neck in a neutral position. otherwise i'm obstructing nerves and or the blood flow. for example when i bend over a swiss ball & then walk my hands out so it's like a push up but my knees end up up on the ball - the neutral position for my head makes me feel basically like a cow out to pasture grazing on some grass. hard to describe accurately - but once i got my head in the right place (literally) the pain went away. good luck!!! It's so tough trying to get back into shape. There is no can't. Only lack of knowledge or fear. Only you can fix your fear. PMS #227 (just like the TV show)

Yes, yes it would be

Perhaps since he was jumping a very small (I think they said 76 sq foot) canopy out of a chopper (which = subterminal deployment) - they static lined it so he would have a cleaner opening? Just guessing. Let's get over the TSO issue - it's not the point of THIS thread. There is no can't. Only lack of knowledge or fear. Only you can fix your fear. PMS #227 (just like the TV show)

Nothing is going to look small with a large canopy stuffed inside. The G4 has a tapered bottom and the G3 is squared off. So you're probably thinking of the G4. There is no can't. Only lack of knowledge or fear. Only you can fix your fear. PMS #227 (just like the TV show)

That's not what I meant. I meant that it'll probably be good rented in a few years from a movie rental place so you can watch all the episodes together, like one long movie (that's how I got hooked on Weeds). 30 new episodes sounds good - those big gaps were annoying. I too wondered why nathan didn't just fly peter up high & drop him or fly him to the desert & drop him off or something. there'll probably be some reason for him being killed. peter's my favorite. but i feel bad for ando, he wants to play too. There is no can't. Only lack of knowledge or fear. Only you can fix your fear. PMS #227 (just like the TV show)

At the very end I thought the thing shadowing the sun was going to be a UFO, making this about aliens - i hate aliens!!!! i am so pissed that hiro didn't cut off sylar's head. dang those eyebrows are annoying. peter should have flown himself into the sky. i know it's about shared experiences, but.... and finally, what power does nathan & peter's mom have?! i need to know! that's it not much to add - just that this show would be better watched as a movie, all at one time. so, when does next season start & will it too have month+ long gaps? There is no can't. Only lack of knowledge or fear. Only you can fix your fear. PMS #227 (just like the TV show)

I don't where she is now - but middle of 2006 she was at Chicagoland skydiving helping demo some kind of container (Javelin maby?). I think she travels a bunch, dunno though. There is no can't. Only lack of knowledge or fear. Only you can fix your fear. PMS #227 (just like the TV show)

By watching it? Have you seen accuracy jumpers landing from the same jump run? Why oh, why do they land as they do? Vertical separation? "By watching it" that's what I'm saying is the problem - you can't tell by watching it. Besides, comparing a typical landing pattern to accuracy landing doesn't work - they're not the same. I'd put their landing sequence/set-up more like the swooping competition landing than regular fun jumps. If I'm at approx the same altitude & approx the same wing loading with 7 other people; 4 on one side of the landing area & the other 4 on the other side (which happens) - light & variable winds - unless someone specifically spirals down (which is not the thing to do) - there's no telling who will be the first to land. Well, I guess I could study each person's sink ratio, but I'd rather have my head on a swivel making sure I'm not about to intersect with someone else. Add in follow the first man down rule - now I also now don't know which direction they're going to pick so I don't know how to set up. Landing can be often complicated - it should never be assumed that it will be simplified (ass - u - me kinda thing)

What if I'm on a 4 way HD group, 2nd group out behind a 4 way belly. Now all 8 of us opening at about the same altitude & same time but on opposite sides of the landing area (strong uppers = long seperation delay). If the lower winds are light & variable, how the heck am I suppose to know which way the first man down is going to land? Especially if I'm going to be landing just seconds after him. I think 1st man down is a completely hokie rule & only works in some situations. Especially if many of the first people down are swoopers - they land in a seperate area & have their own directional issues. Then what the 4th/5th person landing sets the direction & everyone else has to hang in brakes far away trying to figure out just exactly who that is. There is no can't. Only lack of knowledge or fear. Only you can fix your fear. PMS #227 (just like the TV show)

Very nice blog - i'm sure someone looking into starting to skydive will find it very informative!! Not to be too picky, but since you asked, a few suggestions: As to Static Line - many dropzones actually can do it, they just don't advertise as it tends to be less popular & requires some extra work setting up to do it. Perhaps you could reword the "being replaced by" to something along the becoming less common line? Exit altitude is affected more by the drop zone's altitude than cloud cover. Also saying that many drop zones "provide video footage" sounds like it's free - it's typically not. What about: many drop zones offer the opportunity to have the experience recorded on video and photo. The 1st jump being the same day as the FJC is pretty iffy - lotsa classes are taught on days a student can't jump. At the next opportunity they'll make their first skydive. Also, what about saying something to the length of the class 4 - 6 hours is a bunch of time to commit. I don't know about other places, but in the mid-west the waiting game is part of initiation; especially if you take FJC in the spring. The wind means a lot of time (weeks +) sitting on the ground. Which is a great opportunity for people to learn/ask questions/observe. Then when talking about the instructors and that they "exit the aircraft with you" they are actually holding onto you. When you say "when you complete AFF...." it sounds like one jump - you don't mention that it will be at least 8-13? jumps (I can't remember) and could be more. On your prices, put an asterick the word "approximate" so they'll know to refer to the asterick note under the list. Anyway, after all that - very good. It's really great how you talk about the non-jumping side of the dz experience. It's a wonderful place to interact with a wide cross-section of society. There is no can't. Only lack of knowledge or fear. Only you can fix your fear. PMS #227 (just like the TV show)

Stitch, you have the right DZ, but now it's just Doug's Todd's moving away to a warmer state. I am glad everyone has fun there, it's such a great place. And both CSC & SDC have seperate landing areas - it's great!! There is no can't. Only lack of knowledge or fear. Only you can fix your fear. PMS #227 (just like the TV show)