AdrenalineBluez

My only thought is a meat bullet like you doesnt need to add any WEIGHT!!! "Uh oh! This is gonna hurt!"

6 days... Wasn't planning on more than doing anything beyond AFF1... Funny how this sport sets the hook in ya... "Uh oh! This is gonna hurt!"

1: 2: 4 "Uh oh! This is gonna hurt!"

With diesel well over 3 bucks a gallon, and my truck getting all of 13.7mpg it should cut in to my jumping... However, I have deemed food the greater of two evils... So I can jump until I pass out from starvation... "Uh oh! This is gonna hurt!"

I did my first static line 18 years ago at the ripe old age of 18. I didn't stick with it so I don't consider that my start... I did my first AFF jump at 35... I stuck with it so far so I consider that my start in skydiving... "Uh oh! This is gonna hurt!"

Or a spelling challenged baboon in a jump suit such as myself... "Uh oh! This is gonna hurt!"

Prior to last weekend I would have said no. However, since I did my first jump (beer) without a visual altimeter. I have to say yes. Well.. Because I did... What a hippocrit I am!!!! I almost got a foot in the peas too!!! Maybe I should stop using it to set up my pattern??? "Uh oh! This is gonna hurt!"

Gahhhhhhhhh I can never type what I mean!!! lol People with the "I can handle it" mentality seem to ignore the possible ramifications of thier actions because in thier mind they have designated what they are about to do as acceptable risk. If they would deem it a certainty they will crater in by exceeding thier skill and experience. (refer to the what is the worst thing that can happen to me if I do this comment.) And take the answer to heart it would make it less likely they will leave a divot at some point. As for the ones that refuse to heed the warnings, and leave thier common sense in the truck... Big5 is having a sale on divot fixers???? Ummmmmmmmmm lets see if this comes out right... The possibility is actually a reality when it is your ego talking...???? or for some If the mouth is on the brain is off??? "Uh oh! This is gonna hurt!"

The analogy about putting the gun to your head and flying or exceeding your limits are divided outcomes. One is a given the other is a possibility. Why we are very conscious of a given and very lax in our approach to a possibility is just part of the "human" condition. I.E. You put a gun to your head and you pull the trigger it is CERTAIN you are going to be injured and in all likelihood will die. So that is an automatic no no for us. With either the canopy flight or the 10 way head down scenario there is no certain or given with respect to the inherent danger. There is only the possibility you could be injured or die. Which fits in to the mindset we associate with our sport. We already know we could be injured or die. So the increments in which we inject risk in to our activities are not nearly as pronounced. Nor are they acknowledged very often. People seem much more willing to face chance than certainty... This brings me to acceptable risk. Most people have their own perception of acceptable risk. In our sport we know we can be seriously injured or die on any given skydive. Assuming you continue to jump that becomes an acceptable risk. Albeit that it is still only a chance. Throughout our jumping career we will at our own discretion deem elements of the sport acceptable and unacceptable risks. For me right now there are things I will and will not do. Some of those things will change with experience, and some are carved in stone and I will never attempt them. The catch is that most of the time the person/persons do not or have not fully recognized the total risk of the situation and proceed on.... They will strap on a cross braced napkin sized canopy at 200 jumps and eventually femur in because they thought "I can handle it". How or why they arrive at that conclusion escapes me. To me it boils down that they never asked themselves the one important question. "What is the worst thing that can happen to me if I do this?" I leave my ego in the truck when I go to the DZ. Do I want to downsize? Yes I do, as I am sure most newbs like me would like to do. Do I want to be in on more skilled and aggressive skydives? Again yes I do. Are any of the risks involved to doing either at this point unacceptable? ABSOLUTELY!!!! I have made some really good friends in my time in the sport. I don’t care to ever see any of them get hurt or die because I didn't say something. Granted opening my mouth may or may not change the outcome. However, as a skydiver I feel it is everyone’s obligation to our brethren to speak out against the runaway ego. Hopefully that is a two way street... If I haven't fully recognized the risks of something I am about to do I want someone to go "Hey stupid ya wanna be the next fatality report?" As to why some people will push it so hard, and pay the ultimate price when it could have easily been avoided??? My ego is in the truck.... "Uh oh! This is gonna hurt!"

1: 2: 0: 1: Beer owed and delivered for my first night jump. 2: A couple of kewl RW jumps... 0: Spent the day at the DZ getting coach stuff signed off. "Uh oh! This is gonna hurt!"

I was pretty much in sensory overload from the time we exited. I did note the "pucker factor" was +10 or so. I missed my second COA and the video actually shows the instructor WHACK me on the melon to bring me back from whatever planet I had gone off to inhabit... At pull time the instructor guided my hand back to the handle. I gave him a brief look, and yelled "see ya"... Then attempted to avoid loading my jump suit until it opened... After I was under a good canopy I distinctly recall saying to myself "WHAT THE F*CK WAS I THINKING!!!" and then "I DUNNO, BUT WE ARE GONNA DO IT AGAIN!!!!" "Uh oh! This is gonna hurt!"

I keep losing my job. I have lost it repeatedly... Somehow it always finds me again... Never had a problem with Square one. I have bought several pieces of gear through them. They have always gone out of thier way to help me out. I deem it more than worth while to drive up from San Diego to make my purchases there... Even though when I have ordered online through them it has been no hassle. Maybe I think my job won't find me up there so I prefer just to drive up... I would reccomend them to anyone needing gear. "Uh oh! This is gonna hurt!"

I was just out of AFF, on or about my 5th solo. I had what I deemed (yes in all my rookie experience at the time) An opening that sniveled FAR too long. Long enough for me to actually grab my cut-away handle. Right about that time I was rewarded with the comfortable whump of my main fully inflating. Anyway, the next time I went up. I got to the door. Looked out... Paused... Then promptly went and sat down. I just couldnt exit. Something to note here. The plane ride down is scarier than jumping!!! Pilots are whacked!!!! (kidding) I have coined this condition as "dive lock". For me the pucker factor got to be so intense the vaccum it created made it impossible to break the seal my arse had on the seat. Thereby making it impossible to exit the aircraft. I literally spent the better part of two weeks going to the DZ every day of the week, and both days of the weekend. I would sit there from first load to the sunset load trying to convince myself to get on the plane, or even rent some gear for that matter. Eventually I got myself to make some coached jumps, using the AFF linked exits. Made several of those. I flew fine, the gear works. I still couldnt exit solo... I had NO IDEA why!!! Finally on the 5th coached jump the instructor refused to link in the door. He actually sat down and crossed his arms. Plane load of people, and knowing what the ride down was like. I Just hucked myself out the door. Once I was out there I was "WHAT THE HELL WAS I SCARED OF!!!" Wha did I learn from all of this??? Go to the DZ as often as you can. Be as calm as you can get yourself, or go and totally flip out... BUT GO!!! Just being at the DZ instills something I can not put my finger on... Be persistant, and dedicate yourself to working through this. Talk to the instructors. Spend a whole day or whole WEEK or MORE learning your gear inside and out. sit down with the riggers, or someone experienced and watch em pack. Trust me, what we learn in AFF is just enough to get by. The extra knowledge you can pick up is a very cool thing. Find out everything you can about it. Knowing how your rig ticks top to bottom is a huge confidence builder. Watch a lot of video's. Anything you can do to immerse yourself in the sport. If you "truly" want skydiving to be a part of your life it can and will happen for you. Smile A LOT!!! It will pass... You can do it!!! P.S. Still to this day I have no idea why the fear finally passed (meant to mean became manageable because I still get nerves). I don't really care why it did. All I know is that staying as close as I could to the sport, and learning all I could facilitated getting back in the sky... "Uh oh! This is gonna hurt!"

I have a very close relationship with God... I talk to him from exit to deployment, and then thank him as soon as my sorry canopy pilot self puts his in tact arse on the ground... "Uh oh! This is gonna hurt!"

I knew coaching was something we required. There was never a doubt about that. One of the many lessons I have learned in this sport is a coach makes all the difference in the world. I am headed to Perris at some point to get some LONG over due water training, for my "B". I will make sure when I am up there I look you or Chris up for some coaching. It should'nt take much arm twisting to get the other three to head up that way with me... Thanks!!!! "Uh oh! This is gonna hurt!"

Try and try again??? "Uh oh! This is gonna hurt!"

My overall newbness, and that of the three other guys who I am doing 4-ways with have made for some comical moments... We actually do put the fun in funnel... My question is what is the best (easiest) setup to get a 4-way out the door??? turning points is academic after we exit if we can't getRdown the hill without scattering all over the sky like roaches when the lights come on... Oh!!! This is out of an Otter.... Any advice would be GREATLY appreciated. P.S. I did search. However like I said I am a newb and deciphering who is the cat or spinning the cat and other stuff escapes me... Who takes cats skydiving anyway??? "Uh oh! This is gonna hurt!"

Yup "Uh oh! This is gonna hurt!"

I took 3 of my 4 kids to the Perris tunnel a couple of weeks ago. 2 are 9 year old girls, and 1 boy that is 3. It was an amazing and awe inspiring experience. The 3 year old was gung ho until we got in the ante-chamber. Then he was a little reluctant, but manned it up and went in anyway. The girls both took the tiger by the tail a both excelled and enjoyed the experience. All 3 can not wait until we go again. So... Yes I would take them again, and will as often as my wallett allows. I dont have any expereience with open air tunnels. So I can only comment on the Perris tunnel. The staff rocks and I never doubted the saftey of my kids for a second... So go for it they will have a blast... "Uh oh! This is gonna hurt!"

The list isn't too terribly long. However, there are lessons I have learned that STUCK!!!! Toyed with the idea of chopping a step through until below my hard deck and decided to land. It was not as controllable as I thought. *Bruised ego* NO I DIDN'T PACK IT!!! Went on a dive that I should not have been on 12 way and went low because I couldn't decide if I should open. Everywhere I looked there were people in free fall or opening canopies. 1900 feet when I was in the saddle. Not low for some to be in the saddle but TOO low for someone at 50 jumps at the time. (one time) Climbed back IN the plane after climbing out on a red light my first time on a camera step. (one time) Flew under 2 others in a 3 way burble washing both of them. Resulting in minor collisions. (one time) Made a low turn and ate sh*t because I didnt want to get chewed out for taking a down winder, and breaking the pattern. Got chewed out anyway for being a tard!!! (one time) Forgot to activate my AAD. (one time) Forgot to put my face shield down on my A3, and spent 3000ft getting it closed instead of looking where I was going at terminal velocity. (one time) Ok. I have to stop now... I am thinking I should T.U.G. In any case. Everyone makes mistakes. Hopefully we learn from them all and become better skydivers. Hopefully we learn enough from ours and others so that we never make "the one". Dont be too hard on yourself... Focus.. Learn.. Grow... HAVE FUN!!! "Uh oh! This is gonna hurt!"

I meant in retrospect I should have jumped to avoid nearly soiling myself from the ride down... I am fairly certain jumping is safer... No wait... I am totaly certain jumping is safer... No real story to the pimp daddy thing. He calls everyone big pimp so I call him pimp daddy... The whole staff there rocks!!! I can honestly say after my ride down I would not be jumping today if it weren't for some of them. Brook, and Patrick are key in the reason I have gotten as far as I have... Shoot me a PM and let me know when you will be at the DZ. Or come down Saturday and I will introduce you to some of the riff raff I jump with... Anyway, knock out the rest of that AFF and get your "A". We are always looking to for someone else to join the mayhem... Oh!!! Cool home page and stuff too!!! "Uh oh! This is gonna hurt!"

I did eventually get a plane ride back down... On my 5th solo... Dunno why... got to the door, looked out said "Nope not today" and sat back down. In retrospect I should have jumped... Something about right after the last jumper exiting and the resulting dive the plane did registering as an 8 second freefall on my protrack doesnt sit right with me. As a matter of fact Brook was flying camera on that jump... Turkey left me on the plane tho... KIDDING!!! His jump was paid for so he jumped with a friend and shot video... Ok nuff hijacking your thread... Next time ya see Brook Call him "pimp daddy" and tell him Shannon says hey... OH!!! And Brook is right... It takes courage to stand up (errrrrr sit down) when things arent right in your head... Ok now I am done hijacking... "Uh oh! This is gonna hurt!"

Without ever really knowing why we came to the subject a friend and I made reservations for AFF1 at Skydive San Diego. Figured we would do it ONE time... "Are you ready to skydive????" I knew I wasn't ready to ride the plane back down... I had seen the approach through them lil hill thingers... "YES!!!" and out we went... The rest is history... OR academic.. OR something... So much for just one time... "Uh oh! This is gonna hurt!"

: 4 : 1st Full altitude H&P with Nate and a few others... Found out sd-slider has a belly down fall rate that rivals an MX missle at full flight. I could have kept up with him head down... Errrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr cept I dunno how to go head down. "Uh oh! This is gonna hurt!"

1. Whats your name? Shannon (AKA Matt) Dont ask :^)~ 2. How old are you? 36 I think... 3. Why did you decide to start jumping out of airplanes? I have no clue. Decided to do AFF1 to see what it was like. Somehow a week later I was off AFF, and hoplessly addicted. 4. Are you single or taken? Engaged 5. Do you have kids? 4 (shoot me now) 6. What do you drive? 2004 Dodge 3500 7. Have you ever done a kisspass? No 8. Where do you live? San Diego 9. Do you have any pets? Nope 10. How many jumps do you have? 127 11. What color eyes do you have? Blue 12. What is your nationality? Mutt 13. Have you ever dated someone you met off the internet? Yes 14. Favorite Movie? Chronicles of Riddick 15. What do you do when you arent skydiving? Work too much... 16. Have you ever BASE jumped? No 17. If not... do you want to? Yes 18. Do you have siblings? Not that I will admitt to in public... 19. Where do you want to travel to the most? Tavarua island (Fiji) 20. What's your favorite color? Black 21. Where was the last place you flew to ( not skydiving )? Hawaii "Uh oh! This is gonna hurt!"