skydude2000

Hey Gang, I'm sure everyone gets this, but I just had to share. After 7 years of sporadic jumping, recurrency training and jumps, a fractured spine, concussion sprained hip and knee, blood, sweat and beers, I FINALLY achieved my 'A' CoP. Now the real fun begins. Thanks to everyone at PST for helping me make it happen, and for putting up with me for so damn long. Thanks Jeff for my FINAL 'A' evaluation jump; it was awesome. It's absolute proof, if I can do it, YOU can do it!!! Blue skies to EVERYBODY!! :) PULL!! or DIE!!

I'm not sure I would say it's boring. Definitely cool to watch. Although I think the concept of swooping is unfortunately backwards. By the time a person has the jump #'s and experience to swoop *safely* they've been in the sport for quite a number of years and generally don't recover from swooping injuries, or injuries in general, as quickly if they DO make a mistake swooping. I would LOVE to be able to do it, but realistically, I don't see it happening. PULL!! or DIE!!

I bought an hour last October, but so far it's been a bit too cold to use it, and I didn't really notice a big difference on my first high jump back last weekend. PULL!! or DIE!!

Hey Guys, Maybe I'm just venting, but I think it's still skydiving related, so here goes. Has anyone else gotten so discouraged with the sport that they've seriously considered quitting? I never thought this would happen to me, but after 7 years of off & on jumping, I still can't get past my Solo. Now, I'd like to think I'm relatively safe in the air. After all, I've been doing whatever I can to avoid the 'golf' or the 'lawn bowling' speech, and so far, I haven't had it. I know my lack of currency is a big part of it, and I have a medical condition that makes it a bit more difficult for me. And my instructors, bless em' all, have done their best to get me where I am, and convince me that I have a legitimate reason for my painful lack of progression. But it's become very frustrating to me to see jumpers who've started since I have, whip through the progression ahead of me and even become instructors and coaches. What can I do to beat this? Because I still loathe the idea of quitting. Thanks. PULL!! or DIE!!

For the record, in Canada the Solo is Oral and the 'A' is written. Cheers PULL!! or DIE!!

Hi all, I was just wondering, what are some of the ways to make the act of flaring easier? I've generally got a pretty good beat on when to flare. I've flown a Tutor 288, which I have no trouble flaring, usually was a single stage, then I moved to an Avatar 210, still didn't have much trouble. I recently transitioned to a Sabre 190 loaded at 0.97:1 and I tried to move to a two stage flare. Maybe not very well. I just couldn't believe the difference in the force it took to do a full flare. For medical reasons my right arm is a fair bit weaker than my left, so I'm concerned about an uneven flare and possibly hurting myself. Is there anything I can do to improve the strength in my weaker arm to ensure an even flare? Any ideas are appreciated. Blue Skies, Skydude. PULL!! or DIE!!

Hi all, I have a few questions about altitude, since I'm stuck on the ground. I've learned it's extremely dangerous to set an aad in the plane. What if you find that your altimeter is not zeroed, or is off by more than a couple hundred feet, from that of another jumper in the plane? Is it dangerous to reset it, based on another jumper's altimeter? Never done it, just a 'what if' sort of scenario. The other question I had is somewhat related. Is it possible, and if so, what is the best way to train yourself to reliably judge altitude by visual reference only? ie. look at the ground and say 'Oh, we're at X number of feet' based on the size of landmarks etc. obviously as a rough estimate. Not really sure of the easiest and safest way to learn that. Blue Skies, Skydude. PULL!! or DIE!!

Hi Smacke, Ralffers and I have had similar discussions about this. I also have CP. The only real challenge I've faced thus far in relation to my disability, is that I am unable to pull with a right-handed rig. I've been lucky enough to have made awesome friends in my DZO and the DZ rigger/S &TA. I'm very very close to getting my license now after an hour in the tunnel. So if ur hungry enough, you try hard enough and you want it bad enough, most other jumpers will bend over backward (pardon the pun ;) to help you make it happen. Good luck, Skydude. PULL!! or DIE!!

I think mine went pretty smooth, although, I think my hand was on the ripcord almost as soon as my ass was off the edge of the plane, lol. It was from 3500'. The weirdest part for me was the actual pull. I went through the TRCP program, where you had to put a $5 deposit on your handle, and if you lost it, you lost your money. So I was like 'YEAH!!! I held on!!!' and then when I started with squares, it was like 'Yeah!!! I got it!! Oh shit! I hafta let go!!' lol. PULL!! or DIE!!

Hi, I know this forum is for instructors, so mods, feel free to delete if I shouldn't be posting here. I'm just curious, does it seem a lot of these scenarios are implying normal exit order vs. emergency exit order? I've never jumped from a large aircraft, either, so I might not know how things should work. But what if said emergency happened at say, 2000 feet or lower? I'm not saying whoever's near the door should just blindly get out, but if I'm in the door and there's an emergency, I'm not going to turn to the TI behind me and say, 'Here, you go ahead.' I'm gonna make sure I'm not over a huge lake or something, have my hands on the appropriate handles, and get the hell out. This is about staying alive, not saving the DZO money. Or is this the wrong attitude? Just my opinion. PULL!! or DIE!!

Thanks Dave, That's virtually the exact thing I was talking about, although that link was for US and I'm in Canada. I understand the first 3 digits of those readings, are for direction, ie. a 270 reading would be out of the west-southwest, and so on. But what does it mean when it says '+05' or whatever number, at 6000'? And what are the different letter acronyms on the left of the screen? Airport codes? I understand the concept of spotting, where to get out, where you want to be when you open, factor in how much FF drift, etc. I guess I just didn't understand some of the numbers on that slip. PULL!! or DIE!!

Hey gang, I've gotten a few quick briefings on this before, but I seem to have trouble remembering. How do you read the upper wind measurements, mainly the speed? I understand the direction, but how do you interpret the changes in speed at different altitudes? I believe on the slip we check, it's measured at 3, 5 and 9000 feet. If anyone could also post a print-out of the slip so I could get a visual idea of the numbers I'm looking at, that would be great. Thanks. PULL!! or DIE!!

Hi guys, I was just wondering, what kinds of things would I need to know if I were ever to visit a big dropzone? I jump at a dz with 2 planes, and maybe 8 or 9 people in the air, max. How much of an adjustment would it be for me, going from that, to someplace like Arizona or Florida at any of the big clubs there? I think I'd be pretty nervous being in the air with 20 or so other people.The last thing I'd want would be to turn into a safety hazard, or have people pissed at me cuz I don't know the dropzone very well. Any tips or resources would be appreciated :) Blue ones, Skydude. PULL!! or DIE!!

That's what I did on my mal. After my reserve was open & I was happy with my direction & everything, I was totally paranoid about losing handles. Stuffed the cut-away down my shirt and slipped the D-ring over my wrist. But I was a little too pre-occupied with the 'Holy Shit' factor, that I forgot to keep an eye on the canopy & the free bag. Found everything eventually though. I felt REALLY bad though, cuz I think we figured out that I hooked up the canopy wrong (done it dozens of times) and I guess forgot to check it. Naughty. Spankin', I know. But hey, walked away, right? For the record, I don't think I beat my RSL either. PULL!! or DIE!!

I'm just curious what the big epidemic with downsizing is about. Why do we associate it with jump numbers so often? If some skygod has 10,000+ jumps, does that mean he should be flying a bed sheet? I don't care how many jumps someone's got or how many years in the sport or how current they are. The ground ALWAYS wins, and it only takes a split second to fuck up, and then you're out of the sport for who knows how long, or even indefinitely. Why would any of us want that? We all look out for each other, and that's one of the best things about this sport. But why tempt fate because someone else tells you when you're ready? Only YOU can tell you when you're ready. If there's any doubt at all in your mind, or in the minds of your instructors, save yourself an ambulance ride, and wait. Take it from someone whose had one. Jump safe, Skydude. PULL!! or DIE!!

Thanks Ben!! You sure showed us how to fly!! Hope to see you again soon. Blue ones, Adam PULL!! or DIE!!

Thanks a lot, Dave!! Can't wait to get into the air with you guys so we can show off our shit :) Probably see ya at the Halloween party!!! PULL!! or DIE!!

Hi all, This may have been asked before, but I did a search & came up with nothing. I asked one of my instructors, and either he mis-understood me, or I mis-understood him. I'm trying to find the exact requirements for the 5 jumps in the 2-way relative work endorsement for the CSPA 'A' CoP. #1 is pins, #2 is levels, I'm guessing #3 is both together. What are the last two? Thanks, Skydude. PULL!! or DIE!!

Has anyone ever thought of something like GPS? Or would that be too risky/expensive/high tech, for something as simple as a lack of the 'finding' gene? PULL!! or DIE!!

I always say the skydiver's prayer right after I gear up. 'Dear Lord, please don't let . . . . . me be the one . . . . . . to fuck this up. Amen' PULL!! or DIE!!

Hi there, I just had my cut-away on my last jump a couple weeks ago. Although I don't feel so much like you do about quitting the sport, I do feel guilty for letting it happen. I was bordering on un-current status and I hooked up my canopy wrong, even though I've done it dozens of times. Was one of those things where you feel really guilty and totally stupid at the same time. But, I landed about ten feet from the peas, hung on to all my handles, we got the main & free-bag back, albeit after quite a bit of searching. I'll definitely be buying a bottle of some sort, I just don't drink beer. Yes, I'm a freak, a non-beer-drinking skydiver. Blues, Skydude. P S. Glad ur okay :) PULL!! or DIE!!

Hi All, Maybe I shouldn't even be posting in this forum, and maybe I should know this already, despite being a noob, but could someone please post a pic of what it's SUPPOSED to look like? Just for my own information. Thanks, Skydude PULL!! or DIE!!

I think the main reason the S/L progression is so gradual, is so that your instructors can diagnose any changes in your stability or body position. I know when I started, I was fine up to 10 second delays, but when I moved up to 15 sd, things started going wonky. So if I had just been stable for 10 seconds, and they said 'ok, you're fine' and then went up to 9,500 feet and did a 30 second delay, I could have gotten into some real trouble. I think it's much easier to fix a stability problem early on, before it gets to the point where the student becomes out of control. As for the reason for line twists on a direct-bag deployment, I'm not sure. I only know one of the clubs I jumped at, switched to D-bag s/l from IAD, because they'd had a number of malfunctions under IAD, and they decided line-twists on student canopies are easier to deal with than malfunctions. PULL!! or DIE!!

Yep, I've got 100 jumps with CP in my right arm & leg. I had to have some mods done to the container, but other than that, I haven't had too many big problems related to stability so far. At least not that have had to do with my CP. Keep working at it & eventually you'll be able to train ur body to remember where it needs to be, in order to stay stable. Good Luck, Skydude PULL!! or DIE!!

Ok, I may have fudged the numbers a bit on the exit weight. I weigh 165, student gear is about 20 lbs, so that puts my exit weight at 185, W/L of 0.64 under a Tutor 288. I'm at 0.88 under the 210, Sabre I think it is. I'm jumping left handed because of a physical impairment on my right hand. I just don't trust it to save my life. I'm using a regular DAS, because I've trained with a 2-hand cutaway, and I'm comfortable with it. If I buy a used rig, I'm planning to just get a rigger to sew a spandex pouch on the left BOC. That way, it's a dual BOC and I don't hafta worry about all that resale crap. I'm just trying to figure out the easiest way to find a canopy I can test jump, that I'll be comfortable with for at least a couple hundred jumps. PULL!! or DIE!!