thourb

Haha, i've gotta get a t-shirt made up with that on it! Classic :D

I have checked, they said that I want something with a wingloading of about 1 to 1.1 - This canopy would give me a wingloading of 1.1 - so it should be OK. Thanks for all your advice :)

Looking for a first main canopy here - have found this one: It is a ZP.exe 170, one hundred jumps, DOM was September 2005. Apparently in good condition - no patches, lines are all good etc. Seller wants £400 ($760) for it... Is this a good deal or would it be worth waiting for something else to come along?

Quite simply, they are losing money.. according to Steve Jelf they are losing up to £50 per load and they cant keep going like that. Its because they are having to use the islander and aren't really geared for it - now they are using tandems to try and make the money back. When the LETs are back in operation, the club will re-open, don't know when that will be though, they've been saying that the LETs will be in operation again soon since April...

Best thing is to speak to your instructors. Since its your first jump, you will probably be on a fairly large, docile canopy - so line twists are more likely to be an inconvenience than something that would require a cutaway. General rule of thumb with line twists is to try to untwist them (seperate the risers and kick your legs to counter the twists). If you clearly aren't going to get anywhere (perhaps, because the canopy is still turning), then you should cut away and go for your reserve. This next part should definately be referred to your instructor for advice. I am simply relaying what my instructor taught me. There are two important altitudes which you should have pre-planned before you jump: Your "Decision Altitude" and your "Hard Deck". Again, i stress: Speak to your instructor! Decision Altitude This is the height at which you need to have made a decision on whether to cut away or keep your main. Hard Deck At this height, you should have a working canopy (main or reserve) above your head. A good way to pick up knowledge of the gear is to watch people pack, or learn to pack yourself. I'm sure there will be someone at your DZ who would be willing to help you out. I really can't stress this enough though: Speak to your instructor about anything you are not sure on before you jump. You may be given advice by people on here (such as myself), but your instructors will be able to give you the best information and will explain anything you want. Don't be worried to ask a "silly" question. In skydiving, there are no silly questions. Be safe and enjoy your jump. (disclaimer: This advice is coming from someone with only 25 jumps! Disregard anything that I have said if your instructor disagrees with it.)

Hey, its okay! The exit is the hardest part for most people.. Don't worry if you couldn't manage it first time. There's no need to be ashamed. Like Scoop said, jumping out of a plane is completely against all of our natural instincts, so to be scared is completely natural - it's the human bodys way of making sure we stay alive! Trust your equipment. Trust your instructors. Everything will be okay next time - you'll see!

First off, welcome to the forum and to this wonderful sport! I would agree - Best to not jump if you have a cold.. I did my first jump (a tandem) with a cold. Put it this way, it hurt like hell! Got back to the ground and my head was throbbing for two hours afterwards.. Still, that wasnt enough to put me off - two days later and AFF was booked and paid for! Enjoy your jump and let us know how it goes.

Hi there Alex, welcome to the forums! Tandem or AFF is a debate topic, but the general consensus is that if you really think that this sport is for you, and you have the cash, go for AFF straight away. A tandem jump is a great way to experience your first freefall (I started off with a tandem), but does cost over £200 (More than 10 jump tickets when you're qualified) and does not qualify as a jump towards any future ratings. A big advantage to doing a tandem before AFF is that the freefall experience will not be a new thing when you get onto your level 1 AFF - which may make the experience even easier. I would personally recommend that you travel up to either Bedford or Milton Keynes to do a bit of tunnel time before your AFF course - doing that helped me tremendously and I didn't fail any AFF levels. Being able to keep stability and do turns before your AFF course will make the entire thing a breeze. Being pretty new to the scene, I can't really offer any DZ reviews. You may find it cheaper (and get better weather) going abroad to either the USA or Spain for example - plus you get a holiday abroad to boot! Word of warning on doing this is to ensure that you are trained by a qualified BPA instructor and that any qualifications you get abroad will transfer over to the UK. I did my AFF, Consols and CH1 at the Freefall University near Madrid. You could read the DZ reviews section for more of an idea what the dropzones are like around your area. Hope all goes well with your skydive(s), let us all know how it turns out! Blue Skies

This thread has some pretty good answers: http://www.dropzone.com/cgi-bin/forum/gforum.cgi?post=724453

Welcome to the forums! Prepare to be addicted Really hope you enjoy your tandem as much as I enjoyed mine. It's surprising how easy it is to catch the bug... Tom

Hey Brian, welcome to the club! Just smile and relax and your course will be a breeze. Good luck with AFF, let us all know how it goes! Blue skies!

I will be jumping at South Cerney, near Cirencester. Just waiting for my BPA membership to arrive in the post and i'll be all set to go! Currently saving for FS1 - i'm planning on going back to the Freefall Uni to do that in a couple of months hopefully. Yeah, that porter does get a bit cramped when there are 9 skydivers in it! Wouldn't worry about losing altitude awareness. I semi-lost my alti awareness on my 5th consolodation jump (when I had a cameraman filming me). Shows how easy it is to lose altitude awareness when you have something to distract you! Important thing is that you learn from it - and don't let it happen again! I still opened at the correct altitude, but it came a lot faster than I had expected it to! Good luck doing your consols, maybe jump with you sometime in the future! Blue skies

Not talking from experience here, but i've also heard that the RAPS course can be extremely frustrating.. Especially with British weather! I will briefly list advantages and disadvantages of AFF/RAPS below for your reading pleasure. Advantages of AFF: - Quick qualification time (can be done in as little as 3 days) - Freefall on jump 1 - Likely to get much more personal coaching (1 to 1 or 1 to 2) - Likely to get video briefings of each jump to help you progress Disadvantages: - Initial cost is quite expensive - Having to repeat a level can be expensive (depending on what level) Advantages of RAPS: - Cheaper than AFF initially (but in the end, they work out about the same cost, as RAPS requires more jumps) - Training is very flexible and can fit around your schedule and obviously your free time - Potentially may be able to jump when there is a low cloud base when AFF students may not be able to jump (as you will be exiting lower) Disadvantages: - Progression is much slower - No freefall for several jumps - As you are doing all the jumps on your own, no video debriefs. - British weather can be a pain. High winds will often keep you on the ground, making the progression even slower and more frustrating. Do a google search for more advantages and disadvantages. Not sure if i speak for the majority, but if you can afford it - and you want to progress quickly, definately go for AFF.

Hi! Welcome to the forums! Congratulations on completing your AFF! I did mine a month ago at the Freefall uni near Madrid, had a great time! Don't worry about having to re-take a couple of levels. In my opinion, I was lucky to not have to re-take level 2 (managed to lose an instructor on exit and not do my tasks), but apparently, did well enough to get to level 3 - I subsequently went on to complete all the 7 levels and all consols with no problems. Now all you've got to do is get your consols done and apply for your A license! From what i've seen so far, skydiving is an expensive sport to get into, but the rewards out-weigh the costs by far - its all worthwhile in the end! I've already sold most of the stuff that I own to pay for jump tickets and start saving for gear! Where abouts in the UK are you? Have you had any thoughts on where you are going to be jumping? Congratulations again! Blue skies :)

I had no problem booking my travel insurance to do my AFF in spain online with Endsleigh. You need the category 1 extreme sports cover, essential cover is acceptable but if you want more cover you can pay a little extra for comprehensive (gives higher payouts if something goes wrong, God forbid..) I paid £32 for two people to be covered under the same policy for 10 days.. Thought that was pretty reasonable! Enjoy your AFF, blue skies!