vt1977

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Posts posted by vt1977

  2. Option a.

    £10 really is f*ck all between the group of us - especially when compared to what we spend on booze there.

    I have no problem with putting 50p in to have a pleasant, whuffo free area to sit in.

    Vicki

  4. :):0:0

    It's England... it's November... it's fucking cold outside. No jumping for me until Empuriabrava at Christmas - I don't believe in paying good money to freeze my butt off. Especially when we have two lovely warm tunnels for me to play in here! B|B|B|

    Vicki

  5. Quote

    What would you do if you cutaway and pulled a severely malfunctioning reserve?



    Stick my head between my legs and kiss my ass goodbye.

    Vicki

  8. I have jumped at all three of those DZs and you would be well looked after by excellent, experienced, safety conscious instructors at any of them.

    As for your safety concerns about UK DZs - you only mention Langar as one of your options - I would say you have no reason to worry. They have excellent, safety conscious and highly experienced instructors there.

    You don't need to worry about being "alienated" doing AFF abroad. There is nothing to stop you completing AFF abroad and then coming back and getting involved in the UK skydiving scene - plenty of people do so every year.

    Some BPA DZs can be a little wary of students who have trained abroad so try to get at least 10 jumps done after your 8 AFF levels and as much as possible of it on video. You may have to do one check out dive with a BPA instructor but once that is done you will be in the same boat as anyone who qualified in the UK. This varies from DZ to DZ though, so check with whichever UK DZ you plan to jump at on your return what their policy is.

    A compromise might be to get on a trip with a BPA instructor to the US or Spain - that way you get the benefit of cheaper jumps and better weather with the benefit of having a BPA instructor who can help when you get back to the UK.

    The reasons most people do AFF abroad are price and weather. Plenty of Brits do AFF in the US and in Spain every year. Equally plenty of people do so in the UK every year.

    Good luck whichever you choose! B|

    Vicki

  9. I have approx 300 jumps on a Spectre 135 and approx 6 jumps on Pilots (both the 140 and the 132).

    Openings - I prefer the openings on the Pilot. They feel softer than the Spectre but they seem to take less altitude.

    Toggle pressure on the pilot feels weird - I agree with what Deuce said!

    Landings - very nice and very easy. Probably easier to land than the Spectre, but maybe that's just me. My Spectre was the first 7-cell I ever jumped and I took my time figuring out how to land it! That said,. I love the landings on the Spectre too.

    I've not had a problem getting back from deep spots on my Spectre either - I usually use the floating back technique rather than rear risers because that tires my arms out!

    All in all - they're both fantastic canopies! If I had 2 rigs, I'd probably have one of each! :)
    Vicki

  10. There are always a decent number of Brits at the Eloy boogie although possibly less this year than previous years owing to the flights being a lot more expensive.

    I have been there the previous 2 years for the boogie and you'll have an awesome time!

    Vicki

  13. I'm exactly the same. Except I don't mind being around my SO when he's ill because we don't seem to catch colds from one another. I guess we must have complementary immune systems or something!

    Vicki

  17. Quote

    Quote

    One caution regarding any steroidal based medicine. You build up physical dependence to steroids and must ween yourself off of them. Your body compensates for the presence of steroids by slowing down your adrenal production. If you suddenly stop taking them, your heart can stop. I was prescribed prednisone for bronchitis once, and only after I was sufficiently hooked, did the doctor fill me in on this little tid bit.



    Hey Rebirth,

    I’m gonna have to disagree with you on this one. This is coming from my father, a paramedic.

    “There is a major difference in taking steroids in the pill form and steroids taken through inhalation. Steroids like Flovent that are inhaled have a very short lifespan in the body. They do not build up toxicity. You are correct about prednisone but not in the steroid medications taken though inhalation. That is why they only give you a short period, week or so, of prednisone.”

    Totally different!!!



    That tallies with everything I've eer been told too. Very occasionally people with very severe asthma get prescribed steroids in pill form, but for the average asthmatic that doesn't happen.

    I was told that if I were to double my dose of Seretide (inhaled steroid) I may start to experience some side effects such as thinning of the skin etc. However the dose I'm on has no side effects whatsoever - for me anyway - and more than controls my symptoms.

    Vicki

  18. Quote

    Quote

    The drug that is sold as Seretide in the UK is called Advair in the US.



    I just started on Advair about a month ago. I'm only taking one puff in the morning cause its SOO danged expensive even with a good health plan, but it's been keeping my asthma under control pretty well.

    I also used to use singulair a few years back which was a pill. I thought that worked really well too.

    One thing my Doc told me is if I'm using my albuterol more than 3 to 4 times a week, I'm using it WAY too much.



    I'm lucky - over in the UK our prescription charge is approx £7 (~$11) so that's all I pay for each inhaler (or for any medication in fact).

    I was also told that using my reliever - Salbutamol or Albuterol - more than a few times a week was too much and meant I may need to increase my Seretide.

    So far so good though - I am absolutely amazed at how well Seretide controls my asthma.

    Vicki

  19. Quote

    I've been taking Seretide for the first time this year. I don't know if it's also called Seretide in the US (google it, I guess!) but WOW!



    I have just googled it out of curiosity and figured it may be of use to someone... The drug that is sold as Seretide in the UK is called Advair in the US.

    Vicki

  20. I've been taking Seretide for the first time this year. I don't know if it's also called Seretide in the US (google it, I guess!) but WOW! That drug has taken me from a peak flow of 270ish most days (I should be 400-450) and using my reliever inhaler several times most days to no symptoms at all.

    After a week on Seretide, I noticed a difference. A couple of months later I have no symptoms whatsoever!

    I literaly haven;t used my reliever in almost 2 months!

    Vicki