chanti

I don't believe anybody should get that speech unless they are a serious threat to the safety of other skydivers. What happened to you doesn't sound like recklessness, just bad luck. I'm having a similar sort of "am I jinxed?" feeling at the moment - lying in bed with a broken femur, and 3 reserve rides in 186 jumps. My mom suggested i take up knitting Unfortunately, bad things happen. Don't give up what you love and what you are passionate about because you're going thru a rough spell. It will pass. ----------------------------------------------------------- -Chanti-

Thanks for everybody's replies. I have been given clexane injections to thin my blood and these "really sexy" stocking things that supposedly prevent clots. It was just a weird chain of events really. We were participating in a mini meet (we're a very junior 4 way team) and got put on load 1 (which i really hate),so i was stressed out before i even got into the plane. The run-in got switched 180 degrees to what it usually is and that ended up being a mistake as there was quite a strong tail-wind at altitude. Because we were the last group to exit our spot was WAAAYYYYY off. Freefall was uneventful. At 4000 ft I tracked from the group and pulled at 3000 ft only to have my canopy spinning like crazy. My first thought was "one toggle off" but I looked at the toggles and could see both were still stowed. I left them there (silly mistake) and cutaway. My CI later explained to me that the cat eye had slipped off the end of the toggle and the bottom part was still stowed. My reserve opened fine but I was at 1200 ft and over houses. I landed in somebody's back yard but turning like crazy to avoid telephone lines, power lines, fences and trees. I didn't even realise anything was broken until I sat up and saw that my thigh was at right angles to the rest of my leg Fortunately I got pumped full of morphine so the rest of the day is a complete blur! I have a titanium pin in my leg now and apparently the break is not so bad - nothing shattered, and it didn't break through the skin. The doc doesn't want any weight on my leg for 2 - 3 weeks so i'm pretty much laying around all day at the moment. ----------------------------------------------------------- -Chanti-

I just want to know from all those unlucky enough to have played femur tennis with mother earth and lost, the following: 1. How long before you were allowed weight bearing on the broken leg? 2. How long before you were allowed to return to work? 3. How long on crutches? 4. What kind of physio exercises did u do? 5 AND MOST IMPORTANTLY: how long before you could skydive again? I'm supposed to be on my back for 2 weeks but I feel I'm making good progress. My leg was operated on Saturday PM and already I'm scooting around the house on my crutches, so maybe sooner rather than later? It's also killing me being off work - I feel so guilty. Advice, please, everyone! I want as much info as i can get! (And if anyone has a spare femur lying around.. ------------------------------------------------------------ -Chanti-

I'm not disabled, just temporarily out of action. I thought that forum was for amputees, quadriplegics, etc?

Is there a place in cyberspace for femured skydivers to get together and whine about their injuries and feel very sorry for themselves and count the days until they can jump again without annoying the other dz.commers? ----------------------------------------------------------- -Chanti-

Wow, I didn't think you could get places like that in the US! That's quite cool! It sounds about right, except for the grape leaves part - that's a new one for me. What did you eat? Also we South Africans are very proud of our wines, so you kinda have to have an SA wine with your meal ----------------------------------------------------------- -Chanti-

I get the same feeling. I femured on Saturday during a mini meet and the look on my parents' faces were like:"Maybe this is a good thing, now you know what you put us through" Damn, I wouldn't wish this pain on my worst enemy, but there's no way I'll ever quit skydiving. ---------------------------------------------------------- -Chanti-

I wanted to be wingsuiting by December but it's taking forever to get to 300 jumps Sigh ........ maybe next year...... __________________________________________________ -Chanti-

Dude! That's VERY sexist! Not true (I'm an eye doc so I know what I'm talking about!) While there are some differences in anatomy between the male and female brain, the optical pathways are identical so your info is BS! However, eye problems (even slight ones) can interfere with spatial awareness so it might be worthwhile getting that checked out More BS! -------------------------------------------------------- -Chanti-

I had a hard pull after using that method and wasn't able to clear it by my hard deck so it ended up being a reserve ride, so I guess no method is completely foolproof -Chanti-

So yesterday I asked my CI this exact question and his reply was that the belt should ALWAYS be worn INSIDE the jumpsuit. His reasoning was that when over water (altitude permitting) you could still unzip the suit and ditch the belt. He told me that someone had bounced at one of our local DZs due to belt getting in the way of handles. Still confused. There are sensible arguments for and against. Guess it's just one of those "grey areas" of skydiving?!! -Chanti-

I am also on the lighter side, and actually found it easier to land the smaller canopies due to having more glide. I was on a 170 by jump 50-something and put a good 100 or so jumps on the 170 before getting my 150 which I'm loving! The best way to know if you're ready is to talk to an instructor/jumpmaster at the DZ - someone who has been watching your landings. Good luck and soft landings!

Nope. Unless you count:"Don't land in water!" Nope ... ? Thanks for everybody's replies! -Chanti-

I always used to wear my weight belt inside my jumpsuit for fear that it got snagged or interfered with my handles. This past weekend my friends and I did some jumps at the coast and I was told to wear the weight belt on the outside in case I landed in the sea. Does this make sense as my rig weighs a lot more than the weight belt? Where do you guys wear your weights and why? -Chanti-

That's true. Your cornea has no blood supply of its own (otherwise you wouldn't be able to see through the network of vessels!) so it relies very much on the thin tear layer covering it. This tear layer can be reduced by something as simple as air conditioning, let alone relative wind! If your cornea dries up and stays that way you will have a scarred cornea and permanently reduced vision.

When I started AFF I kept having the same dream of doing a perfect stand-up landing and then realizing i have my cutaway and reserve handles in my hand ... and can't remember how they got there! A year later somebody asked me if I'd had a reserve ride and i said no but told him about my dream while kitting up for my next jump. Guess what ... tension knots with club gear on that jump! First reserve ride. This year I'm driving to the DZ one Sunday morning thinking"wow I haven't had that screwed-up dream in a while now, phew" Second jump that day I have a hard pull and end up pulling reserve just below the hard deck - AAAHHHH I'll probably get a mal now just for posting this

It's a newish canopy - I bought it brand new last year and now have just over a hundred jumps on it. Never been relined

I recently noticed that my canopy does not fly straight when in full flight (without any toggle input). It turns very slightly to the left. At first I thought it was wind or that my legstraps were not equally tightened but neither is the case. A while ago my boyfriend (who also skydives) lengthened my brake lines by 5 cm (just undid the finger-trapping) - could this be the cause? I can fly the canopy without problems - i pull the right toggle a little further than the left to keep it on heading, and landing is fine although again i have to flare with the right toggle slightly lower than the left. Anybody know what could cause this and how to remedy?

Don't go to a whuffo optometrist - go see a skydiver optometrist! There's LOTS of us out there

I definitely recommend Brian's course for skydivers of ALL levels. I took his course in December 2005 and before then could never understand why i always had bum landings. We tend to spend more time learning tricks in freefall than learning to fly a canopy and it's the latter that saves your life, not the former! Thanks to Brian my ankles and knees are still intact and i'm ready to downsize! -Chanti-

Thanks girl! The 8-way was a screw-up mainly cos i was so unstable! But it was an awesome experience! Really cold tho blondez rule ok!] -Chanti-

I had a great time - the canopy course was fabulous - i have not learned so much in 3 days in a long time. And i had an amazing 100th jump with great friends - very very memorable! Yes, i would have loved to jump out of an antinov, but hey, there were more positives than negatives. Thank you to the organisers and Brian Germain! -Chanti-