FlyBabeAU

My FS suit from Spirit Sky Sports was made in Sydney, Australia. Designed & made by the owner who also measured me. Awesome fit, construction & fabrics, flies amazing. NAYY.

I own a Vector 348 and am renting a Pilot 188 ZPX, have a PD 160 reserve. I am renting the canopy from a Master rigger who is highly regarded- he verified it was going to fit and would be safe to jump in that size container. It is a brand new canopy, I have been learning to pack with it, jumping it both with other packers packing it for me and also packing and jumping it myself a few times. There have been no problems with the bag extracting or the canopy coming out of the bag so far. Am using the original D bag that came with the V348 It was fitted with a near new Sabre2 170 that I packed for practiced a few times before getting the Pilot 188 ZPX. Feels very similar to pack into the container as that did- both are a full fit. I had to work about the same to close the container for each canopy type. Neither are fun to pack yet. The Pilot ZPX that is brand spanking new is extremely slippery, not even close to fun to pack or bag. It is not easy for me to pack, I am slow and I take my time. And sometimes swear when packing But openings have been sweet. Bear in mind this is just my opinion based on what I have felt and seen packing it as a less experienced skydiver, and that I took advice from a rigger that knows his stuff. UPT do say the V348 is a full fit with a LPV Pulse 190 which is also equivalent or so pack volume to a Sabre2 170. Talk to a rigger you trust about it. Hope this is helpful. :)

When I had a stinky second hand suit for RW arrive from the seller, I washed and dried it twice over with Napisan and cool water. Not warm water because of potential for colour run and because it had spandex components. I figured out most of the stink was coming from the booties and it was the leather on the soles. Bacteria for sure and maybe some mildew as well. I turned the suit inside out and right way out, dried in the sun. Hung out in the fresh air during the day for a few days in a row with those booties facing to the sun. It's not free of odour in the leather parts, but is much better than it was.

I removed the mouthpiece liner and know of others also who did the same. Infact they suggested I do it, as the fit was more comfy for me that way, when my helmet was really new. Maybe as the foam eventually squishes down more I may put it back in. Nice having options.

Hey! Hope you love your AFF course. Its different to tandems of course because you're learning to fly yourself, but its so much more awesome because of that. And challenging, but amazing. So fun. I recently got A licensed and am learning heaps. Met the best people through the sport. I hear great things about Skydive Perris from friends who have jumped there- have fun!

Hey Cloe, I'd try to resist the urge to do more tandems if you already know you love the sky. Tandems are expensive, perhaps consider saving the money and put towards your AFF training and the ongoing costs that follow. It is expensive as a sport, not just the course cost, but the gear, then there's coaching, additional courses, boogies, tunnel time if you fly Down Under to access a tunnel, lots of jump tickets, plus plenty of beer... and the list just goes on. Lets just say I don't know of many skydivers who are well off Having said that, it is amazing and if you think you'll love it, find a way to make it happen, even if that means waiting a while till you start AFF. See if you can pay as you go rather than having to find all the funds up front. Also budget extra for additional jumps as not everyone gets through the course with zero repeats. Sometimes you might need to practice the skills on a level again before you nail them. Strength wise if you think you lack upper body strength just be aware student canopies are large and take some strength to flare to land them. Doing some push ups or other exercises to build a bit of upper body strength is not a bad idea. For climbing out into the wind if you have a plane with a cute little step to get onto, flying your canopy, even carrying it back to the pack room after a jump, all takes a bit of strength. The stronger you are, the easier you may find that stuff. I was one of those girls who had to do push ups to build enough strength to more easily flare the canopy on landing, and have built some muscle I didn't have before by jumping. Its a good thing :)

I was really very freaked by the noise and volume of wind at the door. Exit can be extremely tough mentally. I am not yet licensed and I am not an instructor either, so take what I say in the context of that. But, what I found worked best for me was to visualise a perfect jump on the ride up and the steps I would have to do on that level. Push aside other thoughts. Know its normal to be scared especially early on. But if you want it enough you will find a way to feel the fear but do it anyway. Door fear lessens with each jump even if it takes a few to feel a big difference. You just have to find ways to manage the fear and keep in mind your goal, that you want to learn to skydive. For me what I found was on the ride up I would deep breathe to relax my body as much as I could, and visualise a great jump and go over all the steps repeatedly in my head on the plane (and I had been doing this on the ground too, before gearing up) so that I knew the dive plan. Instructors told me to do this but also I learnt it after my first jump, from reading Brian Germain's book Transcending Fear. Its a great book if you have not read it. When it was time to go to the door, I just focussed on the required steps to exit. Then once I was out, the second I hit the air, the rest of the dive plan for freefall and deployment. Then the rest till I was on the ground. I honestly think the only way I handled it was to just eat the elephant one bite at a time. Those first couple of jumps, when I thought about all of it it was overwhelming. Breaking it down really helped. I was so scared on AFF 1, I was literally pushed/pulled out the door on my exit count, because my legs didn't work. I can laugh about it now but it wasn't much fun at the time. Its easily the hardest thing I have ever done. I just grit my teeth and dug my heels in and was determined to learn despite being scared. Just because you are scared right now does not mean you can't learn, so long as you can function and follow instruction. You will probably find the next exit tough but if you re-manifest and jump again the same day, the ones that follow will be easier. One of the biggest things that I wish I could have got sorted earlier was noise reduction by a good helmet, because I found the noise was a massive distraction. The helmet I had in AFF did not fit well, but had a radio installed in the back of it. Zero noise reduction from it. The fit was so bad for me I hated it and hunted down a good design preloved helmet to get started with once I was off radio support (with instructor approval of course). I hated the wind in my ears. I can't say how much difference it has made to my ability to concentrate and relax. Its a helmet from Cookie, and what I found was I can still hear the instructor talking to me in the plane but the noise reduction when the door opens and when I am out is really awesome, everything is a lot more peaceful and I can think. There is still noise of course but its in the background now. For me it was almost like the wind at the door, and the first few dives until I learned to sort of tune it out more, were just extra sensory stuff on top of already being scared, that I found it all almost totally overwhelming. The helmet really helped reduce that sensory input a lot. I graduated AFF a few weeks ago and love skydiving so much. Tunnel time certainly helps you learn to relax in the wind. Do some reading on the forums, if you search for Door Monster or Exit Fear you will find threads where others before you have shared what worked for them. If you are truly freaked out maybe talk to your instructor if they offer TAF programs. A friend of mine got really scared, bailed out of the first jump as AFF, did it as TAF. Came back after a bit and worked through the AFF course. Graduated. Whatever it takes to learn... I hope you keep at it. The rewards are absolutely worth it.

I never had the chance to skydiver earlier though I would have loved to. No DZ where I was living. So when I moved, and stuff happened that led me to try skydiving, I fell in love with the sky, and grabbed the chance to learn with both hands. Like you am a recent AFF graduate and not too far off earning my A. Its a sweet feeling isn't it, doing that first solo? Love the sport, have an awesome DZ community, its all good.

I picked this up preloved for a sweet price, from another skydiver right as I was coming out of AFF, as a less expensive option than buying a helmet new. It may not be a helmet I use long term or maybe just for hot summer days when I want some wind in the face. Movng to a full face helmet soon for added protection of face for jumping with others. Noise reduction is great. I really like how much more peaceful jumps are with less wind in the ears. Its cosy but the fit is almost a bit tight at the temples for me, which was not something I noticed immediately. I even went one size up on the size chart than what was recommended on the basis of other reviewers suggesting the fit of the Ozone was on the small side. I would agree. Also it depends on shape of head how it will fit, it fits my friend with a different shaped head differently, although we have the exact same circumference head. So, try one before you buy it if you can. I would say if it fits you well, its a nice sturdy but lightweight carbon fibre helmet. Chin strap is padded and comfy, and adjustable. Has internal pockets for audibles.

Yep Australia has cloud regs. I've lost lots of days in the past month I would have liked to be able to jump, thanks to clouds in the wrong place. Bit frustrating. Not that I'd want to be jumping in them anyway, I like a nice clear blue sky with awesome visibility. Hard to avoid what you can't see up there.

This is Gold!! So excited for you. I look forward to having landings where the only thing that touches the ground are my feet. Softly. Right now it feels like the Holy Grail. One way or another, grass seems to end up in my mouth or up my nose.

Hope the snow melts soon for you. I haven't been in a wind tunnel yet, initial free fall experience was a tandem, from 14,000 feet.

Hope you get up for your jump soon. Rotten weather that shuts down jumping is just part of the deal. I coudn't jump yesterday- drizzle, then rain and heavy low cloud all day so bad that early in the morning the DZ decided no one was going up all day. And I have a drive there that takes a while. So usually, on days when I have been put onto weather hold because of winds being too high for student jumps, when the DZ was otherwise open, I have had lessons on packing, watched others land, watched dirt dives, talked to people and learnt as much as I could that way, and made a bunch of friends. It has never been a loss, I have always learnt loads, even though it is frustrating to not get to jump sometimes. Have fun with it- when do you get your first freefall, when you are on a static line program? Canopy flight rocks, but freefall is amazing, I really can't decide which I love most. I'm in the AFF course, loving it, heading in to Level 4 next jump.

So many I have talked to had fear on at least AFF level 1 including some of the instructors. I certainly did. I think it must be very normal. Learning to skydive is a big thing and it takes some courage, so it seems perfectly rational to give it some thought before you start the course. What we do is not a natural thing and I am willing to bet in your dream your brain is trying to process what you are thinking about during the day, thats how it works with dreams. Our brains do crazy stuff when we are asleep. But your logical brain when you are awake knows what it wants to do and is smart enough to think about the risks of skydiving and accept it, since you still want to skydive. That desire is probably not going to go away any time soon, so you may as well learn to jump :) Just think what is it that you really want, and if that is to skydive, then do it. Keep that goal in mind when you feel nervous, it can help you push fear aside when you want something bad enough. That was how I got to the door when I was extremely stressed for my level 1 jump. Mental discipline, just forced myself to do it even when part of my brain was screaming "don't do this!" as I sat by the door waiting to jump. The second I was out the door, the fear was gone and I was so happy to be jumping. I am part way through the course myself now, loving it. Next jump will be Level 4. Each level you do prepares you for the next. Its ok to be nervous, most everyone I have talked to have said they were to start with. And then it becomes fun. One of the best resources I found for dealing with fear and understanding it is Transcending Fear by Brian Germain. I followed the advice in the book on deep breathing, relaxation and visualisation which worked very well for me, I really recommend it.

Awesome! :)