PeteW

I think zero tolerance is a great practice. I don't drink and drive either especially with my son in the truck. Why take the chance? When I had my jeep I used to wheel with a club but more than half the guys were shitfaced after a day of wheeling. We quit going because I didn't want to accociate with half a dozen drunk drivers.

I stopped for 9 years. I also took up paragliding but crashed and injured my back. In that time I moved a bunch of times, found a wonderful woman, married her, had a son and now in the last two weeks I have taken up skydiving again. My son is 3 and its great to have him come watch. The people at the DZ are very welcoming and helpful. IF you need to take a break its not a bad thing. Gravity isn't going anywhere.

Yeah I just enjoy it for now. On Saturday I did 5 or 6 backflips on exit. Felt great, standup landing right on target. I was high as a kite lol.

Ha ha thanks. Feels good to be back. Definitely from adrenaline. Today was 15c.

I'm not worried about this but I haven't seen too many other people with this. I have just returned to skydivng after 9 years. But I had this after pretty much every jump. I'm a bit jittery while getting gear on, but calm while in the plane, climb out is very relaxed, free fall and canopy ride is fine. But after I land I can barely get the toggles back in the keepers. If I hold my hands out they are shaking like crazy. Is this just an after effect of the flight or flight response?

Good for you. MY injury was not that serious compared to yours. Mine was a stable fracture and required nothing but physio. For me if I stay active my back is fine. And the two jumps I did yesterday didn't bother it one bit. I wish we had a tunnel where I live.

Well I finally did it! My wife looked me I the eyes and told me to go! Been almost ten years. Did a hop n pop and then 30 sec free all! Back feels great. Best part was my wife and son being there.

Six years ago I crashed paragliding and had a compression fractured L1. A non flying buddy was visiting me in the hospital. So you broke your back on a mountain eh Pete? Broke back Petey ha ha ha ha. A few people called me that but the flying community never heard it.

I want to enjoy my life in all aspects. I'm a stay at home dad because that's what works for us. And my wife is better at making money than me lol. Following the norm is great for some people. But it doesn't work for everyone.

I was the kid that was scared of roller coasters and haunted houses. Something clicked when I was 21(37 now) and I started skydiving and then paragliding. I would do anything I could including jumping out of a tandem paraglider with a base rig, I did a paraglider d bag from a tandem as well. In 2009 I crashed and compression fractured my L1. I gave up flying after that and slowly gave up my crazy hobbies. I met my wife and we have a 3 year old son. I continued to give up everything with risk and crazy adventures. Not because of my wife thou. It was me trying to be a safe dad. From there I slowly sank into a a depressive state and was rung with anxiety and panic attacks. Panic attacks? I used to jump out of planes and run off mountains. When I met my wife I had a jeep that we would wheel together. Sold that too but last year she kinda forced me to get an xterra. I wanted a family car that was fuel efficient. We started to wheel again. I got help for the anxiety and depression. So looooong story short I tried going the safe route. I hated it and it almost ruined me. I haven't flown since 09 when I crashed. But as soon as the dz is open I am going back. I have an amazing wife and son. Our life is great but it's been hard to feel complete. I've wanted to jump for a long time and my wife actually has encouraged me to go back. She knows it makes me happy. Ya gotta live life. We all die one day. Make the best of it.

The guy is just an idiot. I met someone online that didn't have pics. But figured what the hell why not. We met and I was not attracted to her at all. We still had a nice night, good conversation, I still bought her supper ect. Kept in touch for a bit but I think we both knew it would not work. I found no reason to be rude to her. I like the funny pics. I eventually found my wife on a dating site, the picture that attracted her to me was me pointing to a sign that said slow children playing.

I crashed paragliding six years ago and compression fractured my L1. Its been 9 years since my last jump. I was sure I would never fly again, I was done with it. But I can't stop thinking about it. So I am pretty sure this fall I will be back at the DZ. I spoke with my DR, he warned me my actual spine may not be as strong as it was pre-crash. But I am fit able to jump.

I almost barfed on my tandem. It was actually on jump 16 or 17. It was during opening. Never had the problem again.

Been a few years and I had 36 jumps. But back flips were always my favourite.

MY back is the same. If I am lazy I pay for it. The more active I am the better I feel. My only worry is crashing again, but can't live life on the couch. I would hate to try and live a perfectly safe life and die in a car wreck.

Ya I never screw around with insurance. I took my son out to the DZ last week. He loved it! Just gotta chat with my Doc. Don't plan on being a dumbass anymore. I took more risks when I was single. Plus I am too busy to spend every weekend there. Will be once or twice a month for the next few years. Family comes first then my work.

Im married now, but I never liked to play games. Relationships were always black and white for me. It was either on or off. I liked someone or I didn't.

Thanks for the solid advice. I was having trouble as a dad. Almost made me feel guilty. But its great to have a supportive wife too. Will do the life insurance. I agree with the risks that come along with it. But life is a risk too. I time off from flying when I needed it. I feel like I am in the right headspace to keep going now. Hey I really like the part about not settling for status quo. I feel like thats where I was slipping.

I did one years ago with a base rig. It was a PCA. Even with my limited experience it was easy. Passed the PC to the pilot, undid my straps. Hardest part was trying to balance where I was comfortable and then rolling out. Was fun.

I guess I just don't like the negative connotation that goes along with drone. I never fly over crowds, private property or near airports ect. To me its a tool to get some amazing pics that are hard to get. Maybe a similar public image that some people think all skydivers are nuts and have a death wish.

Ha ha. I have a dji phantom 2 with fpv and a gopro 3. I always correct people and tell them its just a quad copter with a camera. One guy was chatting to me while I was flying. Then he said I bet you could spy on the neighbours. So I brought it down lower so he could hear it. I also pointed out the flashing lights on each arm. I said I would have to be about 10-15' away to spy.

I couldn't go hardcore right now. Maybe once or twice a month. It's better than never going. Then when the boy is older I can commit to it more. Thanks and best of luck to you too.

Yeah 1-1/2yrs old. I can't be the only one wanting to jump and have a kid?

Thanks dude. I think I am just gonna do it. I can't stop thinking about it. I find myself being more and more scared of stupid things. I went ziplinning last week and it awoke that feeling that I miss. Almost felt like it cleared my head a bit. But of course it wasn't enough. A few months ago I was almost scared to get on a passenger plane. Wtf?

Hey I got my solo cert years ago then moved to a town where I could paraglide right in town. Ended up paragliding for a few years and 105 flights. I had 36 skydives and one jump out of a tandem paraglider too. As well as a paraglider d bag from a tandem. My 105th paraglide was a bit of a raunchy day and I had some strange tangle as I launched. Ended up stuck in a hard left turn and went through the trees. Dropped around 30' and landed on my ass giving me a compression fracture. During recovery I had decided that I was going to quit flying. Fast forward 5 years later m now married with a toddler. Life is great but I find myself missing being in the air. Wife is more than supportive. Not sure what I'm really asking. I know my back is healthy and strong. I guess I thought I was done but I can't stop thinking about jumping. It's more mental than anything else. Any advice lol?