garyhugo

About to buy my first rig. Nervous! Big money and many avenues. 6'2", 180lb. Thinking 210 Pilot ZPX, in a 190-170 container, so could (maybe, possibly, one day) downsize, without replacing harness. Problem is, which container? Javelin quote was $2700, Infinity $2200. etc etc I'm not too bothered about the $s. I just don't want f^%$-uo my first real big purchase. I'm sure "they're all fine," but I don't know the differences. So maybe share a little to a newbie?

The question though is how much arch is "normal?" I mean, in the tunnel I could arch to fly upwards, or I could arch to sink. It was easy to judge though because I was either flying with the instructor, or following his instructions. In the air though, with no-one around, I can't seem to judge it (I guess).

Cessna 182. Jump at 10k. Pull at 5k. Initiated barrel rolls (deliberately) by pulling an arm in. First left, then right. Instructor said if I get both done by 8k I can do a 360º. I got done at 7½k, figured that was close enough, so I went for it. Not sure if instructor thought I was out of control (or if I was even, but didn't realize it) but the next thing I knew he'd crashed into me, sending me flying every which way. I recovered onto my belly at 6k, but in a spin. I stopped the spin at 5,200. That was when I spotted the instructor absolutely miles below me. I tried to pull, but couldn't find the toggle, flipped over onto my back, recovered and tried again, finding it higher up my back that the last rig I'd used. I thought the "crash" was some kind of deliberate de-stability training, but apparently it was to stop something (maybe my turn, I'm not sure). I didn't ask too many questions because I was embarrassed that I'd already told other people at the DZ that the instructor had deliberately sent me flying (which, like I said, I thought was part of the training) but apparently wasn't. Oops. =(

During AFF5 I lost the instructor, and I'm talking maybe 100' below me. Maybe more. He was waaay far away! Too far to see his tiny hands giving me a pull signal, that's for sure. During debriefing it was explained to me that I had relaxed/de-arched/cupped/floated after barrel rolls and there was nothing the instructor could do to stay with me. I spent an hour in a tunnel before AFF, so I know a little about arching more to fall faster, or less to fall slower. The problem is I couldn't see the instructor throughout the jump. I had no idea he was falling faster than me. How am I supposed to be able to determine how much to arch when I have nothing to compare myself to in the air? Should I be aiming for maximum possible arch at all times?

James - I'm in Columbus, OH. You? Thanks to everyone else for their suggestions. I tried Yoga for the first time on Saturday (Picture an elephant taking ballet classes!). It was "Hot Yoga" so I was sweating like a pig, and shaking/vibrating trying to hold some of the poses. The room also echo'd a lot, so I couldn't really understand too much. I just kept looking around at what everyone else was doing (which was difficult when I was bent over touching my toes). I found another place that had Yoga Mon & Wed too. I vowed to go to all three every week, but by Tues my body was fried! I've gone back to my old body-building "cutting" regimen (low carbs, high protein/fat) in hopes of healing faster in future. I'd also like to drop maybe 15lb too to lower the wing load slightly. I'm 6'2" and 179lb, which isn't bad, but a winter of beer, beer and more beer () has made the bottom half of my abs disappear. Between the running and Yoga, I'm definitely feeling it, but skydiving is supposed to start up in May, so after that it'll hopefully all be FUN-FUN-FUN!! Thanks again for all the suggestions. Much appreciated. Best wishes to you all. Blue skies! Blue skies!

Can you offer some suggestion? I've been doing my best to do exactly this. I have Skydiver's Handbook, Survival Guide, Jump, Above All Else (which is awesome) and ordered USPA's SIMS manual today. I have a small pile of DVDs, but I could really use some suggestions, please. And thanks. Yeah, unfortunately, that's been a bumpy road. I said she'd be "None too pleased" if I broke something before my A-license, but she's really none too pleased now. She's coming around though, as I explain how safe it is.

*** OK. Phew! That's a relief. Thanks. My whuffo wife has been pretty understanding so far, but if I break something before my A-License I imagine she'd be none too pleased!

Hi! Total newbie here. Four tandems last year. AFF & A-License this year (Hopefully!). Through my DZ's Facebook group, I've been able to meet a few other newbies. One of which broke her leg in two places just this past Saturday. I can't help but wonder... Does anyone have a sense of how many (or what % of) AFF students suffer a major injury before obtaining their A-License?

Hello again! And thanks for all the suggestions. Things have evolved since I last posted. I found a much larger DZ (StartSkydiving in Middletown, OH). It's a bit further away, but the people have been super nice, providing advice despite the number of stupid questions I've been blurting out. I changed from Pigeon Forge to Chicago's iFly for tunnel time too. I have an hour booked at the end of March, with hopes that the AFF jumps will start in April. Wish me luck! And thanks again.

Hello everyone! I just registered. I hope 2015 is treating you all well. Quick intro... A friend asked me to be the Best Man at his wedding last October. Knowing he'd never been in a plane before, I picked a skydiving bachelor party. I got hooked! 4 tandems later, Ohio Skydiving Center shut down, and AFF begins in Apr/May'15. I've been reading the Skydiver's Handbook, Survival Guide, & even "Above All Else" (which is awesome!), meeting skydiving friends of friends online, getting advice, watching DVDs & youtube. Basically living vicariously, but learning as I go. I have four days (hopefully 2 hours) scheduled for the Pigeon Forge wind tunnel mid Apr, with AFF classes starting 2 weeks later. And yeah, if you hadn't noticed, I'm psyched! =) My only real concern is my somewhat beaten & achey 40 year old body. I've heard/read numerous times that stretching would be beneficial (which I'm fine with) but I haven't heard much about an appropriate training program to really help limber up a little before the fun begins. Does anyone have any thoughts? & Thx.