Rettrae

Some people do get into this for the wrong reasons. (to impress others is the main wrong reason!!!) I am about to finish my level 7 and start my solo jumps and for the longest time, I would tell myself "just one more jump and I quit" I did this all the way until my AFF 5, where I actually had fun and remained stable, landed well,ect. As for the people who want to impress others with the fact that they skydive, but dont want to do the work involved in being safe and good, do a tandem, get your t-shirt and buy a round of beers for everyone.

I am going out to do my level seven jump this weekend. This will be my first diving exit. I am glad you recovered so well. Wish me luck

I agree with the others, there is no such thing as a wasted jump when you fail a level. I failed level 3 twice because I wasnt relaxing and doing a proper arch so I could be stable in freefall. I just finished level 6--unassisted exit/freefall/backloop/tracking. Everything I learned when I was struggling (screwing up) has made me more confident as I progress. I would rather make my mistakes with the JM's there! You are going to jump all by yourself soon enough!

I understand the problem with "door fear". I would feel just fine until they opened the door and everyone went out. To deal with this, I would just look away and just busy myself with shuffling forward and protect my gear. Once I got to the door, I had something to do, therefore I was able to focus on the task at hand, get in position, and jump. Now on jump #9, I am able to watch everyone else exit without any problem. The more you do it, the easier it gets, go more often if you can. R

I also had trouble with level 3. I had a hard time relaxing my body so I could do the 90 degree turns. The first time, I froze up and wobbled with my JM, lost altitude awareness and she pulled for me, the second time, I went into a "reverse frog" where my knees bent and my hips went up instead of down, causing me to be unable turn. Went to the Perris wind tunnel, learned a lot in 10 minutes there, and have been doing very well ever since!!!!!!! on to level 6

I agree with your statement about hating the door. I would do good until the plane slowed down and they opened the door, then I had to look away and just busy myself with moving forward and watching my step. As soon as I was up to the door, I was able to get into position and exit with no problem. I guess it was just unnerving to watch people get in the door, one moment be there, then suddenly disappear!!!! Now I force myself to watch so I can learn to exit like they do after AFF. Good luck with your A!

Wait till level 4, when they let you go!!!!!!! WHeeeeE!!!!!!!!!!!

I am moving through my AFF right now, doing pretty good with everyting but the landing. I seem to flare too late and end up PLF'ing and skidding head first on my back ( all but once! ) On my approach, the ground rushing up at me is almost overwhelming, and it is hard to judge when I should flare, have heard too many stories about flaring too early and people getting broken backs. I would rather bust a leg than my back, but obviously experience neither sensation preferrably. My father used to be a cessna pilot (he took skydivers up in the 60's) and he asked me to try to find a point on the ground that does not move compared to what seems to be coming towards me. That is the place where I am going to land if I dont make any adjustments. This is the trick he uses to land his plane. Going to try that next weekend, any other tricks I should try?

I had to repeat level 3 twice because I would get stiff and lose my arch. I went to Perris (near riverside ca) and worked on my arch in the windtunnel and learned that if I push my chin up, breathe, click my heels to find my feet, then push my legs back a bit, I have good body position. So, between the tasks I have to complete (COA, turns, ect) I run through the arch position, chin,relax,feet,extend legs a bit. Works for me, good luck to you

When I started AFF, I believed that it seemed pretty ambitious, learning all of this in 7 jumps, come on! Well, after repeating level 3, three times because of bad body position (wasnt arching well which made me unstable) I am now in level 5 and will not be suprised if I need to repeat more levels before I graduate from direct instruction. My JM's have said that AFF just teaches you the basics so you know how to return to a stable belly-to-earth position before you deploy. I would rather learn how to get myself out of trouble within reach of someone who can help. Also, after I am out of AFF, I will go up with other people who can critique my work so I will get better. i am sure the learning will never stop.

I am having trouble with basic stable arch position-went to tunnel for 10 minutes and learned a lot! But, as I watch the video I am noticing that I am rocking back and forth, my head dipping low then up while my knees dip low. It gets better when I make sure my chin is up and the rest of my body seems to look ok. Its hard to describe without seeing it, I'm taking the video out to my DZ next weekend for some advice. Also when I did my turns, learned that a little bit of movement goes a long way! Good thing to remember. I am totally going back soon--this is probably the only way I am going to get comfortable with freefall. Great people there, I would recommend Perris to anybody nearby.

Where did I hear that if I brought my own blank VHS tape, Perris would videotape my time in the tunnel for free?

Or be able to read the clever slogan on the front of his T-shirt!

She said I flattened out halfway through the freefall which caused me to start wobbling, I guess this is because I was concentrating on my turns, my last alt check was 9000. When I finally remembered my alt and looked to my left to see 6000, I ducked my head while reaching for my pilot chute like I was looking for it. My legs straightened out also, causing me to go vertical when she pulled for me. I take it the wind tunnel at Perris is good, good instructors, all that stuff. right?

I plan to go down to lake perris and work on my arch,90 and 360 degree turns in the wind tunnel before I go back up. I believe that if I have more experience keeping myself stable and going through the turns, COA will go back to being routine. It seems that I was flat when I started to wobble, and in my panic, I leaned forward to reach around my hip to pull my pilot chute, which caused me to go vertical just before my JM said I was about to roll onto my back. Hey! my first freestyle! Did that count? HA HA

I was shown PLF and have landed that way ever since. Please note the # of jumps I have actually done! I am hoping that around my 100th jump I will not have to pick stickers out of my socks and other various parts after rolling around on the ground like a pig OINK! Seriously, I believe it has saved my legs, ankles, knees from injury, especially when there is no wind help brake my canopy

yeah, I kept on looking at my primary JM, asking myself stupid questions, "why are we wobbling?" "why is she having such a hard time keeping me stable?" Duh! No time for stupid questions, the answer was relax, arch, and look at my alt. Better jump next time

I did my #3 AFF today--90 degree turns left and right with one or more JM's in tow. Good exit - 1 prct, good turn left, secondary JM let go, good turn right. Then hell broke loose! My primary JM and I did a lot of wobbling and I kept looking over to her, ignoring my altimeter. I suddenly remembered, saw 6000 (i need to pull at 5500) I panicked since I had not looked at my alt since 9000, lost all of my arch position groping for my pilot chute, JM ended up pulling for me, at that time I was vertical and about to (flip?) roll over onto my back. I thought being aware of my altitude was going to be a no-brainer. I am humbled. I have no problem doing this one over again. I got the standard advice to just relax and arch, but that is hard at crunch time.

Sounds like a book I should get.. next stop, Amazon. com

This is a great way to get over your fear of heights!

how many times do you need to competently pack your own chute under supervision in order to be allowed to do it yourself? are you then allowed to pack anyone elses chute if it is the same type as yours? or is this limited to only your own?

Pac 750 - door is 6 feet wide and 4 feet high. Secondary Jumpmaster stands in middle of doorway and I put my back to him, hold on to the forward edge of the doorway,facing the prop, Primary jumpmaster is inside, holding onto my right side, do the check, rock out in out. Just the squatting and forcing myself to the edge of the platform so I get a good exit is tough right now. I bet when we move on to head first exit's, it should be easier

I am a newbie working on my level 3 AFF, my first two jumps, I have had trouble positioning myself to exit the plane without being in danger of falling back on my ass-I know, I am working on strengthening my upper and lower body to compensate for the extra weight of the rig. I know I could do the exit without that extra weight, but wait! I think that parachute is important for something, hmmm. Also, I have done PLF's for both of my landings, one in good wind, the other in no wind. I have been told to do a more agressive flare upon landing. So far, to save my knees, I am always planning on a PLF unless I can tell if the landing is going to look good. The trouble is, how would I know?

How much experience do you need and what types of tests/courses do you need to be come a FAA cert. rigger? How much does it cost for them to inspect your rig every 120 days? What do they check for?

The weight limit for a tandem at SkydiveTaft was 230 pounds - I think 250 or 270 for AFF. That weight limit was a HUGE motivator for me to get down to 230 pounds and I am 5'9", and now after 2 tandem jumps, I am working my way through AFF. AFF is very physically tiring and it has forced me to stick to my exercise program so I dont drag for 4 days afterward. Side affect of all that exercise? A loss of 15 lbs after 3 months! Do a lot of hiking/bike riding to strentghen your legs and knees and build up your cardio.