freakygirl

i pack my boyfriend's rig most of the time (if i'm there) and he usually does it the other times. i pack pretty neatly up until the point where you put the stupid thing in the bag. then it gets REALLY ugly. his pack jobs are pretty nice, even going into the bag. but why is it that my pack jobs are better openings?? we've done a combined pack job (i did everything EXCEPT put it in the bag) and it still opened the way his normally do - not hard, but harder/faster by comparasin. its pretty consistent that way. any idea why that is?? [ps. i've done searches and haven't found anything in the forums that looks much like this topic, although i'm sure it's there somewhere. i just didn't find it. also, i don't know that this post necessarily belongs under the "anxiety" heading, but whatever.... i'm just curious and this seemed like the best place i could find. it's just a casual question. we've talked about it with others and they seem to agree that messy pack jobs usually open pretty well. just wondering....]

my boyfriend and i went to see it. we were pleasantly surprised. it was one of those where they just made up a bunch of scenes b/c they were funny and just all around fun, but they still managed to keep some simblence (sp?) of a plot through it all, and the humor. i expected it to be cheesier than it was, judging by the previews. we both liked it, and we're kinda pickey about movies. by the way, has anyone seen "Must Love Dogs"?? that was GREAT!!! a friend of ours told us that he didn't "feel" the chemistry b/w lane and cusack, but we disagreed with him. LOVED IT!!! anyone else??

everyone at our dz (to my limited knowledge) says that even if you are confident that nothing could have happened to your pin or flaps, it still doesn't hurt to get a pin/gear check. you're just going to sit there until you get to altitude anyway, so why not spend a few seconds double/triple checking everything?? they told me/us that it should be part of your pre-dive mindset the same way that you visually run through the entire dive beforehand. it doesn't cost you anything and probably will only help, not hurt you. the only exception i see would be if someone checking you got caught on your gear somehow and the plane had to go around again b/c you missed the spot trying to disconnect from your pin/gear-checker person. but how likely is that?? moral of the story: might as well be 100% sure, not just "yeah, it's probably fine since no one has touched it." even if you're careful, you just never know.... better to be safe.

maybe you and your rig should get to be better friends.... if you ambush it all the time it might start to hate you. i'm pretty sure you don't want to piss off your rig.

i only posted this for 2 main reasons: a) i wanted to hear what the hell happened and how it all really went down, and b) i wanted people to maybe learn from this despite reluctance to such a thing (as was mentioned in a previous post). i know people hate learning sometimes, but this is not a sport you want to be ignorant in....

i only heard part of the story and i wasn't there to witness the event, but here's what i heard: someone this weekend at a DZ that will remain anonymous until someone from there decides to change that, spun in a downplane just yesterday. i don't know any of the particulars and niether did the person that told me about it that was at the DZ that day. apparently the guy got up and walked away. i don't know if he had any injuries at all or not, but i just thought i would post this in hopes that someone that knows the details would pipe up and spill it. i definitely want to hear how the hell he walked away from a "landing" like that!!!????

unfortunately for me, money is a huge limiting factor. i'm finishing up college, and trying to graduate in May and that leaves little to no money for hobbies and "i want's." any opinions on what might be more beneficial?? starting AFF in May and just going through like normal or try to get some tunnel time even though expensive?? the closest tunnel is either TN or PN since i live in IN. (what i mean is factor in what it would cost to travel there and back plus the tunnel time.) i have read how helpful the tunnels can be and would love to try it just for fun, but don't know if i have the money.... :( thanks for any input.

any particular reason why not?? just don't like it or what??

skydive greensburg is my "home" dz. that help?? or did you just mean in the US or in Indiana??

just curious on people's opinions on this one. trying to figure out what i like and what to buy when i get my gear. input would be great. i'm planning on trying friends' goggles and helmets when i get jumping regularly. if it matters, i have contacts. just curious what you all think. thanks for the info.

yeah, i know about the toe taps stuff and all that, i was just curious if, in my case at least, the tandem would have helped w/ the body position stuff. every time i watch my video of it, it looks like i have good arm placement, i know that my arch is fine, and my legs look even.... i guess we'll find out for sure how my body position is when i finally get a chance to start AFF.

--------------------- just wondering if it was ONLY tunnel time that helps out that much or if a great tandem would work out that way too?? i did my first jump not too long ago and my TM said that i had one of the best arches he'd ever seen. obviously, that's a good thing, but would that help me progress through AFF better/faster/whatever?? i know now that b/c of that tandem i won't be nearly (if at all) as freaked out as i thought i would have been in FF and doing the tandem helped in that respect also. but my main question is does it help w/ learning stable body position?? i know not as well as the tunnel, but help none-the-less?? just curious....

i was trying to find information on this type of main b/c i have a line on a good 170 hornet and want to learn more about it before i make a buy. even if it is a good deal. still no where near the actual buying stage though so i want to find info on it(the girl i'll eventually get it from if i buy it is still using it until she gets her new rig, which will be a while since she can't jump until july or august due to some injuries). so, if someone can help or send a pm or whatever on where to look for info, i would really appriciate it. thanks.

this is one reason why I'm glad my best friends and family don't jump. For any skydiver I'll try my best till I gotta leave, 2k sounds like a good place but I've never been in free fall that low so self preservation might take me out early (get scared and pull)... for Family or my best friends .. I'm there till my cypres pulls me ... or I hit with them. There are some people on this earth that I would not want to live knowing I let them go, even if it was hopeless. now I'm not counting on my cypres here, infact if it opened while i was still trying I'd probably curse its very existance. The worst part is I KNOW I don't have the skill to catch and save anyone. so IF I jump with close friends I will encourage them to be as trained as possible, with safe gear, ... come to think of it I like to see these qualties in everyone I jump with ------------------------------------------------------ i'd say this sounds like something everyone should talk to w/ the people they love/care about that they jump w/. tell them what you would want them to do and when (alt) you would want them to quit trying. sort of like talking to your family about "what if i was in an accident...." make sure eveyone you jump w/ knows what you would expect of them. tell them that you want to make sure that they are going to be safe first. just a suggestion....

i'm hoping that i'll get one (w/ luck, as a gift) whenever i graduate aff even though i'd wear one right now. who cares what a few people said to you about it though? tell them to back off b/c just the sport itself has changed your life. so what if you're still a student. you don't have to have over 1000 jumps to start showing your support of something so significant in your life, regardless of how long it has been important to you. the fact remains that it is that important. leave it be and good answer when you replied to their arrogance/superiority complex.