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Apparently I have not learned Lesson 2 - I got my rig back on Saturday and tried to recreate the stepthrough packing error to make sure I would know how to avoid it in the future. Rotating the bag 360 degrees didn't make the risers twist inside out. I know it didn't happen when I landed because that was the sweetest landing I had all day....and I didn't have any concerns about my pack job on that one. Any wisdom out there about how I could have done it? It freaks me out not knowing because I might inadvertently repeat it.

You're welcome.

L A T E B R E A K I N G N E W S ! ! ! This just in from my rigger: I asked him to shorten the brake lines which he didn't want to do. He called the manufacturer and this is what he said: "I spoke at length with Precision Aerodynamics and got the line trim specs for all their canopies. I spot-checked a number of lines and, particularly, the brake lines; They were not only within their tolerances, but right on. I cannot change this. "I spoke with George Galloway (President) and his response to my inquiry was: "1.) The Raven III is indeed 249 square feet "2.) The recommended minimum wing loading for this canopy is 0.7 (therefore a minimum suspended weight of 174 lbs.) "3.) Since the canopy is not being loaded heavily enough and the fact that you are not very tall (i.e. shorter arms), his opinion was that the canopy is simply too big for you." Lesson No. 13: Know what you are buying when you buy used gear. Make sure it is designed for you. I thought the reserve was a 230. Question: Is it safe for me to jump if I wrap the brake lines around my hand to shorten them? I have a new rig on order, and it should arrive within a few weeks, but my next jump could be a reserve ride.

Spend some time in a training harness pulling handles. I try to get in one at least once a month. The velcro in our training harness is worn out, and no instructor ever mentioned having to peel the handle off. In fact, they always taught us to use two hands to pull the cutaway handle and keep an eye on the the reserve handle because it moves after pulling the cutaway. I wanted to pull with one hand on each handle because my full-face helmet limits my vision. Thanks for commenting...you always give good 'food for thought' on safety issues.

At Skydive Orange in Virginia after a day of coaching me. When can I expect you?

Weather hold... sky cleared... plane took off... clouds came in on the way to altitude... 13,000'... no holes... start down... arousal level up... will we exit our 4-way?... will we exit solo?... will we ride the plane down?... 6,800' we exit our 4-way... 3 points in 17 seconds... break off early because we are too far from DZ... track away and pull... look up... Lesson 1 - All malfunctions are not taught in the student program. What is that?... canopy flying great... slider down... risers are twisted inside out... no toggles to be seen... they are inside the twist!!!... Lesson 2 - That's a packing error called a stepthrough. The deployment bag must have rotated 360 degrees before I put it in the container, and I didn't notice the twist in the risers. Is it there (yes)... is it square(yes)... is it steerable/ landable(no!!!) Lesson 3 - Sometimes you can pull the twist down far enough to free the toggles and land the main. I have to cutaway... I don't want to!!!... oh well, it's due for a repack in two days... 2,080'... right hand on cutaway handle... left hand on reserve handle... pull right... nothing!!!... Lesson 4 - It would have pulled fine if I had peeled the velcro off from the bottom to the top first. Cables interfere if you try to peel it top to bottom. Practice this the next time it is due for a repack. Two hands on the cutaway handle... look at the reserve handle... pull/arch... the reserve handle disappears from sight... I'm falling!!!... oh well, I have a RSL... I'm falling for an eternity... if that RSL doesn't work soon, I'll have to find the reserve handle myself... Lesson 5 - Never depend on the RSL no matter what - even if you are not used to the feeling of falling. The reserve opens... what do you know, I have a bright orange reserve, and it looks small... grab toggles... it doesn't flare or steer much... the lines are too long!!!... Lesson 6 - You can wrap the lines around your hand to shorten them. If they are uncomfortable, let them go between maneuvers. Be sure to wrap them right before landing so you will get a good flare. The DZ is far away... Lesson 7 - Winds can change 180 degrees when you are on your way to altitude. When that happens, you have not exited in a good spot. I don't have time to worry about the long steering lines... push out on the rear risers to extend the glide... the DZ is getting farther away... I'm flying backwards!!!... Lesson 8 - Pushing on your rear risers when facing upwind makes you go backwards faster. Does it extend your glide only when you are going downwind? What about crosswind? I'll land in that field in front of me... it's going away from me... I'll land in that field to my right... it's going away from me too... If I turn downwind I might be heading for a lake!... There is nothing but trees under me now... oh #&*@, how was I taught to land in a tree?... it's 500'... I don't want to land backwards... let go of the rear risers... pull down on the left toggle as far as I can... turned 90 degrees... crosswind is better than downwind and landing backwards in a tree... Lesson 9 - If I didn't already believe in a benevolent god, I would start... I'm heading straight for a horse pasture... It is the last open area before a large forest... I would have landed in a tree if I had turned right or 180 degrees. There is a row of white posts going down the pasture... I bet it's an electric fence... I want to land beyond it and away from the horses... nope, there is no controlling the reserve... I'm landing in the middle of the horse pasture... Flare!!!... nothing happens... I don't slow down at all... HARD butt landing... pain!!! Lesson 10 - A PLF would have been a good choice. The cutaway handle was on the ground beside me when I landed... a wuffo stopped to look for the skydivers who were landing off and drove me the two miles back to the DZ... Lesson 11 - Your friends first reaction is to make sure you are OK before the fact that you owe beer. The canopy and deployment bag were found 24 hours later by a bunch of DZ friends who thought of it as an adventure to search all day... the only thing I lost was the reserve handle... Lesson 12 - Your friends won't let you pay them for finding your stuff. Question: Have I learned my lessons correctly? Are there more lessons to be learned that I haven't thought about?

To find those clear blue skies. I've driven 4.5 hours because the weather report for my DZ was for rain. I'm as addicted to this sport as any herion junkie. What do you call a beautiful, sunny day that comes after two cloudy, rainy ones? -- Monday.

I couldn't agree more about our experience last week. Pete Allum is one of the warmest and most likeable human beings I have ever met. It was such an honor to be coached by him. I learned many things and have made some needed attitude adjustments. Thanks Skydive Orange for sponsoring the coaching. The experience was life changing. What do you call a beautiful, sunny day that comes after two cloudy, rainy ones? -- Monday.

Tracking away and a tracking dive are two different animals. The object of tracking away is to get away from others in order to safely open your canopy. Putting your arms down by your side makes you go faster away from the formation. A tracking dive has everyone playing 'follow the leader' trying to make a tight formation. You need to keep levels and not go so fast that you overshoot the leader. I only have a handfull of tracking dives under my belt, and everyone seems to have a different theory about how to use your arms. I've been told to have my arms down my side and only adjust by using the pitch of my body and legs. Others say to modify the angle of your arms. I'm just learning so I "dance with the boy that I'm with." I was doing pretty well staying with the leader though. I'm on the leader's left with the white grips in the tracking dive picture. What do you call a beautiful, sunny day that comes after two cloudy, rainy ones? -- Monday.

i've heard of people using their car headlights to make like a landing strip to land it. sounds like a really good idea to me after hearing these stories of people getting freaked out by their shadows There was a row of cars lined up perpendicular to the landing area with their headlights on. The runway lights ran perpendicular to the other side of the landing area. The headlight beam did not penetrate the darkness of the whole landing area. It was more of a help in locating the landing area than to illuminate it.

I did it, and it was awesome!!! After a cloud delay the plane took off at about 9:30 p.m. Some people covered their glow sticks, some didn't. The ones that were uncovered didn't seem to affect my night vision. Some people didn't even wear glow sticks. The full moon was high in the sky and shining brightly. There were clouds in the distance being illuminated by lightning....beautiful sight!!! I was surprised that there was plenty of light to do points. We planned to do right-hand open accordion, compressed accordion, left-hand open, compressed. After about 15 points my partner got bored and started doing 360s. I thought he was turning to track. I started to do the same and noticed it wasn't time yet....confusion. That was not a good time to change anything. Plan the dive and dive the plan. I had no concept of what the SIM meant about your shadow from the moonlight causing a problem. When I was about 50 feet from the ground, I saw "another jumper" about ten feet below me. It looked three dimensional and much closer to me than the ground. I was sure it was the person who went with me on the 2-way. Since "he" was to my right, I didn't think I would collide with him. But it distracted me enough to have bad timing on my flare. I pitched forward and landed on one knee. It never occurred to me that it was my shadow. An AFF instructor (who had many previous night jumps) was so distracted by the shadow that he did not flare at all. They say he bounced eight feet and screamed in pain when he landed. He had injured his knees. His new nickname is Shadow. I pray that he heals quickly. I appreciate all of your shared wisdom. I felt much better prepared and was able to convey some of it to others doing the night jump with me. I can hardly wait to do it again! What do you call a beautiful, sunny day that comes after two cloudy, rainy ones? -- Monday.

So are you going to share the photo? What do you call a beautiful, sunny day that comes after two cloudy, rainy ones? -- Monday.

Wow! I really appreciate all of the helpful information. I feel so much more knowledgeable now. No one has mentioned taking a cell phone along in case you land off. How would that be carried on the jump? The only place I can think of is the inside pocket of my jumpsuit. A friend of mine had some money in the inside pocket of his jumpsuit. When he landed, the money was gone. Somehow his zipper came undone during freefall. Is there any chance of losing my cell phone this way? What do you call a beautiful, sunny day that comes after two cloudy, rainy ones? -- Monday.

Don't you only need to be "B-qualified" for night jumps? That's how I did them. It's up to the S&TA at my DZ to determine if you are 'B' qualified or not. If you applied for the license, you wouldn't have to worry about it.

http://www.uspa.org/publications/form.pdf/License_app_06-05.pdf Here is the license application form that you can copy and paste. If you have all of the requirements, it would be a good idea to have the form signed. It takes a lot of initialing and signatures.

It depends on who is giving the class. The first time I took it from instructors from my DZ. We went to a pool and put on a harness over our bathing suits. A canopy was attached to the harness with the chest strap undone. We had to jump into the deep end of the pool, and the canopy was thrown over top of us so that the fabric was covering our heads when we surfaced. We had to dive down and out from under the sinking lines, and get out of the harness. I failed because I have a phobia of getting my head under water. I couldn't make myself jump in. When I tried to jump into a pool the week before, I panicked and nearly inhaled under water. After six weeks of forcing myself to put my head under water I could dive off of the diving board.... then I had to find someone to give me the water training again. That was harder than getting over the phobia. I finally found a different DZ to give the water training.... in October.... in a river!.... with dead fish floating all about.... and it smelled.... much more realistic. We had to wear a jumpsuit over our bathing suits, helmet, goggles, shoes and the chest strap attached. We jumped in and they threw the canopy over our heads. We had to struggle to get the chest strap off and the harness down our legs and over our shoes... by far the hardest part. After freeing ourselves from the harness we could either dive down and out from under the canopy or follow a seam along the surface of the water being careful not to get tangled in the lines. I followed the seam since I still couldn't dive. I insisted on wearing an inflated flotation device. I would have been better off without it. It just got in my way. My DZ did not give students the option of following the seam out. I must have looked very frightened because they allowed me to jump in without the chest strap attached and no helmet or goggles. A lifeguard jumped in before me just in case. I did just fine and would have been OK without the allowances. When I climbed out of the river, I had my 'B' license since I had already met all of the other requirements. Look in the SIM for what else is required. There was only one student from both water trainings that had any problem at all. He kinda panicked and couldn't get the canopy off before the instructors removed it. He repeated it that day and did fine too. I'm glad I had the training. I'm much more confident now that I would be able to survive a water landing. Reading about it was just scary. I'd recommend your getting the training whenever it is offered even if you are a student. The classes are not held very often. And if anyone has not bothered to get their 'B' license, the watering training would be very helpful for them too. What do you call a beautiful, sunny day that comes after two cloudy, rainy ones? -- Monday.

I'm very goal oriented and enjoyed getting my 'B' on jump 54 (I failed the water training the first time or it would have been jump 50) and my 'C' on jump 200. Getting 'B' allows you to do a night or helicopter jump without having to get special permission each time. What do you call a beautiful, sunny day that comes after two cloudy, rainy ones? -- Monday.

Sparky Thanks Sparky - I'm planning on using a strobe flashlight that is advertised as being visible for three statute miles in addition to the glow sticks. On my first night jump I tied a long string to one, attached it to my chest strap, stuffed it inside my jumpsuit, and pulled the zipper up. When the canopy opened, I unzipped the jumpsuit, took the light out, turned it on, and dropped it. The light dangled below me from the long string so that my body would not obstruct the light from any direction. The only problem with this scenario was that I butt landed and the strobe flew up and hit me on my mouth. It didn't matter. The adrenaline rush was incredible.

What is Gaffer Tape? Is it similar to duct tape? I did use a glow-face Galaxy on my first night jump. I couldn't read the numbers under 1,000 feet....maybe because I'm old or maybe because it was January 1 and my goggles may have been fogged up a bit in the cold. That was Jump #84. Hopefully, I won't need it as much under 1,000 feet now that I have more experience. I just got a Neptune. I'm going to jump that with the illumination on and wear the Galaxy on my other wrist. Is there such a thing as too many altimeters? What do you call a beautiful, sunny day that comes after two cloudy, rainy ones? -- Monday.

I'm going to make my second night jump on Saturday. The first time I only had one glow stick on the top of my helmet. This time I'm bringing five...one for each extremity and one for the helmet. The instructions say the glow sticks take several minutes to illuminate fully. I should activate them on the ground. How do you attach them to your body? How do you keep them from glowing on the plane ride up? What do you call a beautiful, sunny day that comes after two cloudy, rainy ones? -- Monday.

So how did the 100-way attempt go at West Point, VA this weekend? What do you call a beautiful, sunny day that comes after two cloudy, rainy ones? -- Monday.

I found out last weekend that today is Carolyn's 56th birthday. Happy Birthday Carolyn! Hope you get your 100 participant bigway record. What do you call a beautiful, sunny day that comes after two cloudy, rainy ones? -- Monday.

we have tomorrow off and some are at nationals, so i highly doubt they will be jumping at all. matt **************** The following is from their website. That makes me think that they are jumping on Monday. September 2005 Labor Day Weekend Sep. 3-5 What do you call a beautiful, sunny day that comes after two cloudy, rainy ones? -- Monday.

Skymonkey: Chuck Blue has partied with you, likes you, and hats you. That, my dear, is as good as it gets. ----------- That doesn't explain why Chuck Blue chose Skymonkey. Certainly that must be an interesting story. ------------ Now, getting a Monkey Name is even more of an occasion. HotMamaMonkey comes to mind. ------------ And what, pray tell, did HotMamaMonkey have to do in order to earn that moniker and make it so memorable? Is it some sort of milestone in one's skydiving career to get a Monkey Name? What do you call a beautiful, sunny day that comes after two cloudy, rainy ones? -- Monday.

"Monkey" seems to be a very popular word in skydiving-related names. Can someone enlighten me on its significance? What do you call a beautiful, sunny day that comes after two cloudy, rainy ones? -- Monday.