juliebird

How about something along the lines of "I'll land you in your dream home"?

Dude.

Raccoons are cool!

I was JUST about to say... bring on the armadillo pictures!

Dude, that's a mighty sinister looking raccoon you've got there. Your cat probably wouldn't stand a chance against that thing.

This one is pretty bad too... http://www.ebaumsworld.com/squares.html

I hope I'm not being too optimistic, but I guess I'll also point out that there is a very high probability that you will not have a hospitalizing injury, and an even greater probability that you will not die. The glass... it's half full.

Yeah, I agree with that. I've yet to jump without instructors but I will tell you, after having dropped from 13K with my own parachute, I can say it's an experience I'd never want to have taken away.

The other hilarious part about that movie is when Keanu jumps out after Patrick (whilst wearing NO gear) and then grabs onto Patrick and proceeds to have a heated argument with him in freefall. "PULL THE CHUTE!!!"... "NO!!!" I knew nothing about skydiving when I saw that movie and I STILL thought those scenes were ridiculous.

AN ARMADILLO? I don't think I've ever seen an armadillo before. Poor little guy... there has to be someone who can help him. Good luck!

First of all, hijack away! That's what it's for. I don't think it's fair to tell yourself you should have jumped. You have to listen to your gut... always. Not just skydiving, but always. You're right though... you probably should have jumped and it was those damn nerves that got the best of you. I'll be sure to say hey to Brook, although somehow I just can't picture myself calling him "pimp daddy." I'm sure there's a story to go with THAT one, huh? ;-)

Ha! I DID ride the plane back down, so how about that? Rode it back down, with Brook sitting right there with me for moral support. He told me it took a lot more courage to do what I did than it does to exit the plane. Because of that, I'll always think he's just PLAIN F*CKING AWESOME. I went back the next week, did one more tandem with him and then did my first AFF jump (then second and third and fourth...) Oh, and, by the way, freefall and canopy ride are a hell of a lot less scary than riding the plane back down RIGHT over those mountains at Skydive San Diego.

Well, everything I've read says SCUBA is more dangerous anyway. So you took the safe way out!

If they have to go looking for dirt on your dz.com profile, you must be doing alright. ;-) What losers! I agree, fleas from camels are most definitely called for.

Hah! I love stories like this one. I have to ask... is SHE a skydiver? It's always great when the draggee keeps jumping and the dragger won't have anything to do with it. ;-)

So, I'm curious... I know what got me into this, and I'm wondering what it was for everyone else. How many jumps before you stopped wondering whether you'd taken leave of your senses? How many before you weren't terrified anymore and started to really ENJOY it? If you're inclined to share the events that surrounded your introduction to this awesome sport, I'd love to hear about it! For me, I always wanted to try it and I was pretty sure it'd be a one-time thing. The night before my first jump, I sat thinking just think... this time tomorrow, it'll all be behind me! But the minute it was over I was left thinking WAIT! That's all?!? So, I had to get back up there. Six jumps now and my last jump was the first one that I didn't sit in the plane and seriously consider seeking professional mental help right after landing. I'm starting to enjoy it, but I do have to admit I go back and forth about the whole thing (especially after I've paid for my next jump and I'm sitting at the dropzone listening to people talk about whatever recent cutaways have taken place and why). Do share!

Yo Joe! I'm right there with you. Finished L3 10 days ago and I'm ready to go back for 4 & 5. If you're anything like me the level progression continues to introduce new, frightening things and your relationship with the whole thing is ever-changing. I am sure your instructors are excellent and can be trusted to guide you in the right direction, just as mine can. One thing I have already learned in this VERY short time is that they aren't there to make friends with you... THEY WON'T PASS YOU IF THEY DON'T THINK YOU'RE READY. I had to repeat L2 and on this last jump when they cleared me to L4, I have to admit there was a part of me that questioned that. But, they are the experts... the ones with thousands of jumps and MANY students behind them. They've seen it all. So when they clear you, trust them. I don't think it means everything will always be peachy... this is an unpredictable thing. But what it DOES mean is that they truly believe you're ready for the next set of instructions. No sense second guessing them. Good luck! ;-)

I'm bored off my ass as well... in San Diego.

Cool! I love surveys... 1. Whats your name? Julie 2. How old are you? Just turned 30 3. Why did you decide to start jumping out of airplanes? Always wanted to try it. I was PARTICULARLY bored a couple months ago and started randomly running into skydivers. So I booked myself a tandem. 4. Are you single or taken? Married? Single as can be. 5. Do you have kids? No. 6. What do you drive? 2005 4Runner 7. Have you ever done a kisspass? No. I don't think so. 8. Where do you live? Encinitas, just north of San Diego. 9. Do you have any pets? 1 cat (or 2 if you count my roommate's) 10. How many jumps do you have? 6 11. What color eyes do you have? Blue 12. What is your nationality? Welsh, English, Irish, German 13. Have you ever dated someone you met off the internet? Yes. More than once. 14. Favorite Movie? I have way too many favorites to even try listing one here. 15. What do you do when you arent skydiving? Work, party, sleep. 16. Have you ever BASE jumped? NO! 17. If not... do you want to? No. 18. Do you have siblings? Nada 19. Where do you want to travel to the most? Spain or Italy 20. What's your favorite color? Blue 21. Where was the last place you flew to ( not skydiving )? Chicago

I like "flock." And if it's a group of student skydivers it could be called a brood... http://dictionary.reference.com/search?q=brood

That's it! I've heard it with an adjective at the WFFC. "A Fuckload of skydivers." t The problem with this one is that it tends to convey the idea of a large quentity, as opposed to just any quantity. Therefore it wouldnt sound right to call a 6-way (for example) a fuckload of skydivers. I would feel comfortable using "fuckload" to describe a group of 30 or more. Hilarious. ;-)

The coolest thing about tandem is that you won't have to worry about anything... your instructor will handle all of the details so you can just enjoy. ;-)

Hmmmm... how about a "load"?

Okay, this whole thread is freaking hilarious. They should make a new forum for "paranoid delusions."

I'm also AFF 4 and I'm still nervous. I think it's normal to be nervous and maybe the answer is not in trying to make the nerves go away, but learning how to relate with them (i.e. for me, deep breaths in the plane, remembering how much fun I have, remembering it's not half as scary as I'm making it, remembering how good it feels to be in freefall). I have experienced new nerves throughout the course of what I've done so far... first I was just plain scared shitless to even jump tandem. Then tandem wasn't so scary anymore and I went for AFF1. Then I knew I could do that, but it scared me to try to move around up there. Then I was scared because they were going to let go of me. Now that I know I'm relatively stable in freefall, I feel better... but I'm scared for the next level because I know I'll only have one instructor. I think skydiving is going to continue to introduce new, scary things for a while. It's the nature of the sport. The nerves will naturally get better with time. We're still REALLY new. ;-)