milutim

aha... of course. duh.

a problem i had on sunday (my second jump): intense back pain. i think maybe... my instructor strapped me in too tight (and i wasn't able to arch properly)? or... maybe it was just a jerky opening? either way, it was serious enough that i wasn't able to breathe properly until the next day (as if I had the wind knocked out of me). in fact, even now... i continue have discomfort (i am actually debating whether or not to see a chiropractor or a shiatsu masseuse). i can't imagine that this is normal. is everybody out there just jumping through the pain or is there a way to avoid this sort of thing? any thoughts on back pain or back injuries would be greatly appreciated. thanks

i had a similar problem with my second jump (last sunday) and was reminded of problems i used to have scuba diving (when scuba diving, if i had had a cold of any sort up to one or two weeks before my dive it would put me into insufferable pain, to the point that i wouldn't be able to complete the dive). sudafed was always recommended for these problems. here's another problem i had on sunday: intense back pain. i think maybe... my instructor strapped me in too tight (and i wasn't able to arch properly) or... maybe it was just a jerky opening. ?? either way, it was serious enough that i wasn't able to breathe properly until the next day (as if I had the wind knocked out of me) and even now i have discomfort. i can't imagine that this is normal. is everybody out there just jumping through the pain or is there a way to avoid this sort of thing?

bigway, thanks for the clarification. i'm kind of touchy about being conditioned into not asking questions, however silly or uptight they may seem. all questions are the right questions for me at this point. no such thing as a stupid question when a.) you don't know anything and b.) you're falling through space at 120 mph. n'est-ce pas? i saw a jumper on sunday with a t-shirt that said "invincible". you'll never catch me wearing a shirt like that, but that doesn't mean i'm not enjoying myself up there. i had my second jump on sunday and am working through a certification course so i will probably be going through this whole program soon enough. thanks everyone who responded for all of the positive reinforcement.

skygod... i guess with your 100+ jumps you don't need to ask questions any more. and what's with "get a life"? i'm trying to keep mine. that's what i thought this website was for. wondering about the average rate of malfunctions for tandems seems to me to be reasonable and responsible.

Tom, Thanks for the response. That's just the kind of info I was looking for. Regards, Michael

I had my first jump (tandem) on Monday. My instructor had over 7000 jumps and about 9 malfunctions. Most of his jumps had been tandems, which I am told have higher malfunction rates (1 in 400). I concluded that this was a good sign, since an average tandem instructor should have-- based on this statistic-- twice as many malfunctions by 7000. I also felt it was a good sign that he had experienced 9, since he would therefore not panic if it happened again. is this correct logic? what can i do to maximize safety on tandems? it seems that everything is pretty much beyond my control. what sorts of questions should i be asking when searching for a competent, qualified instructor? what should i be looking for?

Bertrand Russell: "The trouble with the world is that the stupid are cocksure and the intelligent are full of doubt."