WorldWarIII

Comprehensive jump course? Jumping at the Ranch? Either way, welcome to the sport! I'm on a hiatus in my jumping now, but hope to get back at it soon. Congrats on keeping up with it! "Some kind of high-powered mutant never even considered for mass production. Too weird to live, and too rare to die."

As a regular member of the USPA, should I be receiving Parachutist magazine in the mail every month? Or is there a separate subscription that I have to make on USPA.org? I paid my yearly $65 fee a few months back but I always assumed the magazine was included. Haven't received it yet. "Some kind of high-powered mutant never even considered for mass production. Too weird to live, and too rare to die."

A few DZs even have combined tandem/IAF (instructor assisted freefall) and for me, that was a happy compromise. I used my first tandem to flush out the overload, and on my second jump I was in the zone enough to perform basic maneuvers without much prompting besides the dive flow. Everyone has their own preferred method. To put it into perspective, the first time I went out the door, my mind couldn't really adjust to it until a few seconds into freefall. Not something I'd want to happen on my first near-solo experience. Others might adjust differently. On the second jump I was much more familiar with the sensations the body experiences, and could replace the few seconds of "shock" with a few seconds of learning. "Some kind of high-powered mutant never even considered for mass production. Too weird to live, and too rare to die."

The irony of all of this is that my car is completely and utterly beyond repair now, just a few days after my original post! Hello new car payment ! Broken rods are quite a nasty surprise. Luckily I'm not so far into AFF that a break from the sport would be detrimental. Maybe I can start learning some packing and rigging skills in the meantime. A student in my first jump course was looking to apply his Army Airborne credentials to that pursuit. Seems like a decent way to kill some spare time on the weekends. "Some kind of high-powered mutant never even considered for mass production. Too weird to live, and too rare to die."

If only... "Some kind of high-powered mutant never even considered for mass production. Too weird to live, and too rare to die."

I'm just in post-college limbo waiting for the next big opening in my field of choice (government, comes once a year, think Christmas). Time I've got enough of, money just enough to fit in the hobbies with the bills. Truth be told it's far from being a balancing act (thank you overtime!). But thanks for the advice anyway! Ramen doesn't taste so bad So, in the interest of keeping this light hearted and back on topic, what kind of crappy jobs (full disclosure, mines crap but still fun) do some of you have? "Some kind of high-powered mutant never even considered for mass production. Too weird to live, and too rare to die."

I'm sitting at an airline ticket counter, midway through my third (of four) 12 hour shifts in a row. Outside the window is a cloudless, blue sky. I'm going crazy. ...but every 15 minutes I'm earning enough for about a second of AFF freefall! So, in honor of you floor mopping, window washing, food cooking, underappreciated bastards like myself, tell us a little about the lengths you go to pay for that next jump! (Sold grandma's dentures, pawned some bling, organ trade, etc.) P.S. If you're driving your BMW to the DZ, I won't hold it against you . But let's hear it for the folks pushing their rust-bucket jalopies to the limit to make it in time for the next load! MODS: Feel free to move to a more appropriate subforum, as you see fit. I got a little lost on my way to the bonfire... "Some kind of high-powered mutant never even considered for mass production. Too weird to live, and too rare to die."

Well, I ended up getting 2 cases of root beer. Dropped one off at manifest first thing in the morning. Left the other in the packing area. Needless to say just about every other jumper had one in their hand by noon on a busy Sunday. I'm thinking brownies or cookies next week. "Some kind of high-powered mutant never even considered for mass production. Too weird to live, and too rare to die."

I was just hitting my solo cross country stage of private pilot flight school, when I plotted out a nice course across upstate New York. Chugging along in a little Cessna 152, with the sky just about all to myself, I thought "This is about as exciting as driving down the interstate. What would it be like if I jumped out of this thing?" I finished school, glad to be a pilot and controller, but something was still missing from the equation. One day on a whim I called up the DZ and put myself down for a tandem, mentioning that I might be interested in progressing to a license. Well, I did my tandem and got incredible tips and instruction on what I thought was going to be a mindless entertainment sort of jump. Needless to say I was back again just a week later for a first jump course, and should be on my first full fledged AFF jump next week! I never have more than $100 in my bank account after a weekend of jumping, but I love every minute of it. "Some kind of high-powered mutant never even considered for mass production. Too weird to live, and too rare to die."

Thanks! You know, reviewing the footage from my first tandem, a red solo cup made it's exit right before my instructor and I. Must be some kind of symbolism there. "Some kind of high-powered mutant never even considered for mass production. Too weird to live, and too rare to die."

I may be perpetually broke, but I can probably manage some ice cream sundays! I like it! And I'll see if I can memorize beer protocol before I move on to the next stage. That is, unless it's already covered in the curriculum. "Some kind of high-powered mutant never even considered for mass production. Too weird to live, and too rare to die."

Thanks! My friends and family think I'm crazy, but thats half the fun! "Some kind of high-powered mutant never even considered for mass production. Too weird to live, and too rare to die."

So, I begin my Tandem/AFF training tomorrow morning, and I'd really like to treat the DZ to something good. I can't buy beer for another 3 months (missing all of my "firsts" haha), but I'm looking for alternatives. My first tandem, I didn't tip my instructor since I'm doing this on a pretty bare bones budget until I graduate AFF. However, the least I can do is buy a pizza for the staff and whoever else is hanging around. Thoughts? If these guys and gals are going to be watching out for me for the next 3 months, they deserve something in return. "Some kind of high-powered mutant never even considered for mass production. Too weird to live, and too rare to die."

Seems to be the way The Ranch's progression goes. I'm comfortable with the tandems right off the bat since I do have a bit more questions about canopy flight than I do about freefall. Just from my own comparisons it seems like it doesn't up the cost unreasonably. My next step is a ground course followed by a second tandem tomorrow morning (provided it doesn't get as gusty as it was this afternoon). Looking forward to it for sure! "Some kind of high-powered mutant never even considered for mass production. Too weird to live, and too rare to die."

SHAWANGUNK! FLY, BABY, FLY! So there I was... wearing the world's bluest jumpsuit, inches away from 6 other adrenaline junkies in an old Pilatus reconnaissance plane. Surrounded by fun jumpers and wide eyed with excitement, a thousand thoughts ran through my head at once. We're taking off now, crossing the Rubicon. My hands are trembling. This is going to be good. An hour early for my very first tandem, I had expected to hang out at the drop zone, taking it all in while I calmed my nerves on the first real warm day of spring. I was finished with manifest, pacing back and forth, checking my phone every 5 seconds when the owner, Joe, walked up with a clipboard and put me down for the first load of the day. Oh boy. Am I ready for this? I'm led back to the packing area where I meet Scott, the man who will be saving my life this morning. Scott and I discussed the day's plan and instantly I was relieved. Him and the other staff are the epitome of laid back professionalism. There are no egos to intimidate you at The Ranch, and the staff are experts at turning nervous energy into productive focus. It was time to get down to business. I suited up, found a comfortable harness, and after going over some do's and don'ts, it was time to jump. On the way to the plane I met Adam, my videographer for the day and another chill personality. Gathered around the vintage PC-6, I had a brief ambush style interview from Adam and my mind was spinning. Like sardines, we hopped in by jump order, and taxied down the runway for the shortest takeoff I'd ever witnessed. Flash forward to 4,000ft or so. Looking out the window, I spotted some landmarks from my days in flight school. There was Stewart Airport. Poughkeepsie next to the Hudson. I talked with the other jumpers on board about flying and caught a few of them shooting some smiles my way. "You're gonna love this, man." Scott hooked me up to his harness, and the door opened. "We aren't so high," I thought to myself, when WHOOSH the first jumper went out the door. Too much in awe to be nervous anymore, I watched him sail off into the blue, a shrinking black dot below. 9,500ft later, and we reached our jump altitude. Some friends jumped out locked together. "ARE YOU READY TO SKYDIVE?" I think I nodded "yes", but it's all a blur. Before I knew it, I was hanging out of the side of the aircraft, laughing into the camera. It's an odd feeling. Sometime during our climb the nerves went away. It was cold up there, but comfortable in a way. I don't think I'd ever been so at peace. And suddenly, we were out. I knew there wouldn't be a falling sensation, but the floating feeling was just as unexpected. There was no perception of time. The moment was everything. I looked below and there was Adam, sit flying with a huge grin as Scott and I entered a close formation. I couldn't stop laughing at the absurdity of it all. The brief eternity of freefall came to a quick halt when our main parachute deployed without a hitch. The rush of wind disappeared and like a cloud, we started our lazy drift back to the DZ. It was my first canopy ride, and Scott used the opportunity to discuss pattern altitude/direction, canopy control, and wind adjustments as we descended. I made a few turns, practiced breaking and flaring, and I was instantly hooked. Earlier I mentioned my interest in pursuing IAF/AFF (accelerated free fall) training. When we landed the first thing I did was sign up. Adam walked over with the camera as we slid to a halt, and said "you're gonna love this world". And he's absolutely right. I'll remember this first jump for the rest of my life, and thanks to Skydive the Ranch for fueling this new addiction! Looking forward to beginning IAF less than a week after my first jump!