jumpmonkeyUK

i suffer from a sort of vertigo that i can only describe as a flight response dilemma...a sort of fear of throwing myself off or falling off objects...that said when i used to rockclimb when i fly i have no fear because i know thats either impossible or unlikely, but if i was free climbing or hanging over a low railed 3rd floor balcony my legs were jelly. my tandem was a great thrill because i could indulge that flight response...i had total faith in my tandem jumper and the kit, so i felt free to indulge away...total freedom. AFF just gets better because its you doing it, your not a passenger. Its that "this is the me flying though the sky" that is rewarding and a totally addictive experience. grief i wish i wasnt so busy and jumping.....arghhh

how did yours go? i found a new aff level called 3.5...oops (postion went a bit pearshaped, needs ahem, a little polish)...im on the cheaper jumps now anyway, looking forward to 2-3 days jumping in a week or so to screw the nutt on it.

http://jamiefuller.com/flash/goatse.php well thats about as close as i got today...bloody english weather

i've lured in my family and friends slowly, been diving, heliskiing, climbing...when i mentioned skydiving i just got a variety of responses between cool and eyes rolling back in their sockets cart blanche as far as im concerned

donkey...the guy i pm'd you about does a tandem as part of the aff...dunno if its a freebie or how its stacks up cost wise, but maybe you can look around for the same deal.

see... gurning like a pro congrats

congrats on your 1st jump... pm sent

you can look forward to grinning like and idiot and gibbering to anyone that will listen to you for the next week ps...PM sent

ah..i wondered because im doing AFF 3 this friday at south cerney... good luck with your AFF :)

cool, where are you jumping?

my first jump was the most expensive considering its got me addictaed to the sport...(why cant i be happy collecting old matchboes or something cheap ;))

i had quite a lot of time distortion on my first jump...after the practice pulls everything seemed fine for ages (2000ft)..then came to lockout and pull and i went into cloud, paniced a bit, fumbled for my pull toggle...it felt like 5 secs, but the video showed it was barely 1. It may be because there was less work for you to do in the dive you may not have any markers in the jump to recognise the stages and the time involved. Its probably like the opposite of watching a kettle boil...my first tandem and aff felt shorter than it was as well, guess thats the adrenalin doing its stuff. Like someone said, a video helps put it all in perspective. Helped me a lot, and the second time around the time distortion felt less...:) Go for another :D

just booked level 3 for a week next friday...:D cant wait...eyeballs have been glued to the sky ever since the jumps :D cheers rob

Hi, Just done two jumps and im noticing a reoccuring habit, which is me not pointing my toes enough in arch ( i do it in track though automatically )...i've had it pointed out on the ground, and like the instructor says "what you do on the ground you do in the air"...and i did...he signalled me, i corrected...again it happened on the second...he signalled i corrected, its in the logs and i get reminded in the plane as well...just worried about it creeping in. So...i wondered if it was smart to scrawl "T" or "toes" on my hand or something so it reminds me in the door before the exit or before circle of awareness when i check altitude... or would that be an unwanted distraction...?

as a student i would like to see the clarification of the point by perhaps a senior instructor to both instructors if it was serious enough that it could cause me concern...i think if it was well handled, that should be done automatically somehow to avoid the student even having to think about questioning his/her current instructor. Once the student has a clear idea what the debate was about then they can make a choice...personally if something was explained to me well, and it wasnt a safety issue, then i wouldnt have a problem with this really and would continue. If it was a safety issue i would probably question just more than the instructor, and go further and question whether i was at the right DZ altogether if it was a right or wrong scenario...i would be confused if there was a lack of clarity on safety. Doubt in an instructor could perhaps lead to hesitation and doubt on unrelated but important matters, if it was left unhandled. Just thought it might help from the other perspective. Oh and i would think it a little unproffessional in the first place...it happens in lots of lines or work etc, but i think something as serious as aff shouldnt suffer from any ambiguity or loss of confidence in teaching.