Kelly

i am at a period where im able to jump a few days a week. Today was the third day in a row for me. A new record high. So i get manifested for my first jump, a coach jump with monkey claw. Im a bit weirded out but i cant figure out why. Maybe its because i packed the rig the day before and am jumping it the next day (im on the demo program so at the end of every day gear normally gets disconnected and rigger rolled). This just isnt normal for me. I remember that i keep jumping different containers.. Did i check the reserve data card in this one? I cant remember so i pull it out, just in case i need that reserve i know what im hanging under. k. good enough. I get on the plane . Again, the ride is weird. Ive been a bit more anxious lately. Its like im suddenly developing a Plane deamon or something. I dont know. Exits okay, im a bit stiff. We continue with the skydive and i find myself on my back at 6 grand, not a problem. Im learning to sit fly, ive found myself on my back numerous occasions :) Since breakoff is planned for 5 grand and im on my back at 6 grand we end the skydive, its only a few seconds early.. So we turn away and begin to track. I count to five, check airspace/wave off and dump (higher than i have been lately). I look up and the right side of my canopy is picture perfect. The left side has a line over on the second cell. ARGG!!!! I start a medium speed spiral.. I look right, grab right, look up as im about to peel one more time to see the line over as its clearing itself. im hanging under a good canopy, I cant believe it cleared itself! So i grab my toggles and do a controlability check just in case somethings damaged. I spent the rest of the C.R. yelling in joy. point in case, I felt dammed low to the ground and i was actually at 3,800 feet. Its the thought of another freefall and seeing how much lower than normal you are.... shuddder. SO what did i learn? I want to be deploying at 4,000 feet, not ending a track. sometimes that Spectre im flying can really snivel. Next coach jump were breaking off a little bit higher...Also, if something feels odd it just might be because it is. After i landed i packed for myself again, but this time i was pretty carefull and attentative. I analized THAT pack job.. but i realized that sometimes things just happen. I didnt do anything different than i normally do when i pack for myself. So i chalked it up to "shit happens" and am just more attentative to those damned D lines that are just out of reach. im glad that i went into the harness this weekend for some practice cutaways and reserve deployments...and im glad that i had this close call, its gives me encouragement that when its for real i can handle it. Im sure ill be back in the classroom, practicing cutting away and deploying my reserve Isnt skydiving grand! "i can not attest to what i did, just what i remember...." ~me, after one too many

jay, so many of the staff at cross keys have over 4,000 jumps (Read: their flying highly loaded eliptical canopies), add to that the number of relatively new jumpers fresh out of aff and you can have some confusing patterns on your hands. my solution for all that: dump high. Im not talking 6 k or anything, but around 4ish. I wave off at 4 grand and am under canopy by 3 grand. I dont spiral, and i start watching the others right away. When im staying upwind (above 1,000 ft) i dont hold into the wind, instead i just do some lazy turns, running the length of the treeline. This way im able to see the jumpers landing, their constantly on either my right or left. This also gives the time for the newer people who want to spiral down and break the natural 'stack' of canopies setting up to land. by the time im at 1,000 feet im ready to head downwind. if i have to do a little bit of manuvering on my base to eat up altitude the swoopers have already landed, so im not S turning in airspace where their trying to hook it in, or set up a hook. I can definitally understand your desire not to be overtop the trees below 1,000 feet. sometimes i turn away from the field, sometimes towards it . it depends on how the winds are, what im above, exactly how much altitude im trying to burn up. I also tend to land far out in the field, cause the experienced jumpers are landing near the hanger, and most of the fresh-off-AFF jumpers are TRYING to land as close as they can. Many a time ive landed a good distance farther out than AFF students. No biggie, id rather walk back to the hangar then ride to the hospital... ya know? well anywhoo, thats just my 2 cents. I could be doing stuff totally ass backwards and be a danger to people, but so far nobody has told me that so im pretty sure its an ok plan. all in all, take what i say with a grain of salt. Im not experienced, but i sure in hell am learning. kelly "i can not attest to what i did, just what i remember...." ~me, after one too many

s that from the Prom or a wedding? _______________________________ com'e on! dont cha know? were talkin bout chuck blue here, the ONE the ONLY skymonkey! that tux is just his regular everyday threads. :) ' but really chuck, what did it take to get a rig off your back and a tux on your body? musta been the wedding.... "i can not attest to what i did, just what i remember...." ~me, after one too many

A Super Otter has a GTOW (Gross Takeoff Weight) of 12,500 exactly ___________________________________________________________ Not the frankenotter!!!!!! whooooo heeeee! (sorry, couldnt help bragging :) "i can not attest to what i did, just what i remember...." ~me, after one too many

mike, take it from another begginer freeflyer.. Get coach jumps from the start!!!!! some people think that paying the extra $ for a coach right away is a waste of money.. but its good because youre taught the right way BEFORE you develop any bad habits. Hell, today on my first freefly coach jump (with heath from Monkey Claw) i was sit flying! on my second jump i held a sit stable (without the legs out as much as a regular sit. their kinda tucked up) for 1/2 of the skydive. the difference between jump number 1 and 2 is amazing. It still needs work, so thats why ill be out there tomorrow for another day of coach jumps with heath.... get coaching from the start!!! dont give yourself the freefly skydives to develop bad habits. kel "i can not attest to what i did, just what i remember...." ~me, after one too many

jessi, I recently got a Pro-Track and i love it. Im very inexperienced as far as F/F time goes... only have 36 jumps. So a lot of my jumps are solos. Right now im getting ready to train with Monkey Claw within the next few days. Heath has me getting out of the plane (doing a solo) and learning to be comfortable flying on my back. Without the pro-track I wouldnt have any idea what my speed(s) are. But now, when I do do that first coach jump with him and he asks me whats my fall rate like i can give him some definate answers. (damn, i sound like an Infomercial). But its pretty cool knowing how fast im going, how fast my average speed(s) were. Besides that, I hate doing math, and because i added in my previous jumps before my first jump with it on it adds up my F/F time too. besides all that, im a sucker for details, and my protrack gives me that. kelly PS~ im one of the 'narrow headed' folks that jump/love my invertigo~ "i can not attest to what i did, just what i remember...." ~me, after one too many

jimbo,. i agree. Seeing that firsthand, hell, being victem number 2 was enough for me. Shit happens once in a while, taking out 3 people in 2 weeks doesnt. or at least it shouldnt. "i can not attest to what i did, just what i remember...." ~me, after one too many

SKYDIVE ORANGE!!!!!!! never been there myself, but i gotta vote for my friends from orange. Just know that their a crazy bunch, and prepare for some nakedness! haha kel "i can not attest to what i did, just what i remember...." ~me, after one too many

pammi, cute! thats funny that a girl posted that to a forum like this :) hehe. but for real, my cousin's band, along with other local acts from the tristate area put some of thier best songs on a cd and are donating the proceeds to those who need it most~ the people that are feeling the effects of 9/11 directly. Its good music.... for a little sample send me an email, and ill forward the email that i got from him. Its free. If you like what you hear you can make your own decisions from there on, if you want to purchase it. my email is [email protected]. If youre interested send the email to that addy, as its the one that i have the original under. thanks. kel "i can not attest to what i did, just what i remember...." ~me, after one too many

...and they think that my full name is "kelly G. Evans". I wrote my name down about a dozen times trying to figure out how they could get that one.. Turns out my E.'s look like G's. BTW its Kelly A. Evans. No bother correcting it. ive written them, emailed them.. next step i guess is calling them and still getting mail stating I'm Kelly G. Evans. oh well "i can not attest to what i did, just what i remember...." ~me, after one too many

oh thank you sooooo much. i got my mom to tape it and she watched it but got the characters mixed up... and then my neice wasnt typing well, so i couldnt uderstand that... and then my friend is a guy so that explains his reasons for not making sense.... you put it so simply. THANKYOU!!!! kel "i can not attest to what i did, just what i remember...." ~me, after one too many

oh my god! my family is not the brightest! i got an ambulance call and missed "friends" somebody please tell me whos pregant, explain what i missed! kel "i can not attest to what i did, just what i remember...." ~me, after one too many

oh my god.... im calling the convent today!!!!! Sister Kelly... yeah, that has a nice ring to it..... "i can not attest to what i did, just what i remember...." ~me, after one too many

seems that a few dropzone.com folks have gotten some skydiving fame to their name lately... THAT KICKS ASS!!! have fun at the boogie lara! kel "i can not attest to what i did, just what i remember...." ~me, after one too many

andrea, this gives a whole knew meaning to the expression "you better watch your ass buddy..." haha! "It's funny how being in the sky can help me get my feet back on the ground." ~Michele

this is a weird coincidence. in this months Readers Digest they have a story about a twin turbine aircraft carrying 18 (?) passengers that had a similiar problem. The blade had a crack in it and the failure caused the prop to be pulled off. NOt saying thats what happened here, but the coincidence of the hard facts (props falling off) is just weird. kel "It's funny how being in the sky can help me get my feet back on the ground." ~Michele

fruce, haha. when i posted this, Marrisa was online and i thought of her and the 'twins' and laughed cause i know thats what 'their' called. haha. I got a voodo container, red, navy blue and royal blue. its got white trim down the sides, and the little head down guy on the center of the 'eye'. The main is a spectre 135, with a PD 126 reserve. kel "It's funny how being in the sky can help me get my feet back on the ground." ~Michele

i have an nvertigo and absolutely love it. before this i was jumping an old second hand protec that was wayyyyy to big for me. before i brought a helmet i tried on dozens of different sizes/brands. i brought the nvertigo because: A) The fit is amazing. I have a problem with chin straps (if i can feel em, i dont like em) but the nvertigo hugs my jaw, and takes the pressure off of my voice box area (best way to describe that skin under your mouth.) B) the design. Its simple, but nice. C) the adjustor on the back. I can wear my helmet comfortably loose and tighten it a few minutes before jump run. Also, with the shape of my face (narrow and thin) it seems to fit so well. I can take the helmet off without pushing in and releasing the 'tightness' as i demonstrated when we were forced to abort jump run and fly the plane down. I forgot to push the button in and just took it off. No problems there. D) the ability to mount 2 audibles. I plan on using my helmet for a long time to come, and since i plan to freefly my ass off, a second audible is feasible in the future. E) my goggles sit nicely on the front of the helmet when I have it on. Meaning, i can get completely ready at 9,000 feet and when its time to get ready to exit all i have to do is pull the goggles down and tighten the helmet up a notch or two. Try on different brands. see what you like. Its your head. make sure its comfortable. kel "It's funny how being in the sky can help me get my feet back on the ground." ~Michele

michelle, once again you have found a way to make normal skydiving words come alive! youre writing is amazing, and your passion for flying is obvious. I just might have to use that line..... kel

ahahahaaaa!!!! Last saturday i ordered my gear, everything brand spankin new. This sunday, 8 days later i went to square 3 to get some demo gear. Mary and i are checking the reserve data card when she 'remembers' that something came for me.. she takes me in the back and shows me a box. hmmmm... I open it and what do my eyes behold but a Beutiful blackberry, white and watermelon colored main and a bright, magnificent yellow reserve!! So im jumping up and down, yelling happiness and squeezing the life out of mary. It was hilarious. I couldnt decide if i should stay and 'play' with my canopies or go get one jump in before i had to leave. Mary assembled the rental gear so i could play for a few minutes, then i went and manifested. weather moved in so i played some more. then it was time to take my 'babies' to my pops house and show em off. so for this weekend im at: 0 jumps, 0 beer (i refuse to buy every time a piece of my gear gets here if im not using it yet :) and 0 booty but im happpppppppy as helllllll!!!! oh yeah, originally it was 6 weeks on the voodo, now its 4. so a week got cut off. YAHAAA!!!! my babies are safe at home now, in their respectful bags, in the box, with a trashbag over top, sitting up high on a shelf in a well ventilated room, no where near any windows (it rains occasionally :) ~happy me!!!

bill von, ha! i used that one about 12 or so jumps ago. Those damned thermals that had been bumping me around for the 2 weeks prior and also had been annoying/scaring the hell out of me actually got me back to the dz with enough time to set up for a safe final and do a couple of S turns to burn off some Alti... now i dont mind the thermals.

pull-outs have their advantages and disadvantages. one thing that was really stressed to me by a friend with 4,500+ jumps and mulitple ratings was this: having a pull-out when its winter time and youre wearing gloves isnt a good idea. Nothing has that distinct 'hackey' feel to it if ya ask me. other than the whole "are you jumping with gloves" issue, i like the idea of a pull out. unfortuantly, i live in the NE, and gloves are not an option in the winter.

seperate landing areas are a good idea. My reasoning why: this past weekend we had a landing collision between two jumpers. one jumper was an 'experienced' jumper, flying a higher performance canopy. The other jumper was a bit of a 'newbie'. the 'newbie' landed right near the deck. The 'experienced' jumper did his hook turn and came in for a nice landing. that is until he landed into the other guys canopy and dragged the guy a distance. The 'newbie' shouldnt have tried landing near the hanger, thats where all the higher performance canopy pilots land, and besides that, their are obstacles there (a runway to the left, buildings there, trees, a industrial sight to the right etc etc). There is a huge field connected to this area, where the only obstacles are woods, and the field is large enough to stay over the grass and still not hit the trees with a LONGGG final approach. Its almost always empty/ very light as far as landing traffic goes. The 'newbie' flew and landed his slower canopy in an area where people are whipping in. The experienced jumper was already into his hookturn and about to land... maybe it could have been avoided, maybe it couldnt have. I dont know. but what i do know is that I dont land near the hanger for a reason... and thats my reason. as far as landing patterns go: safely landing your canopy is the best landing pattern ive found so far. I was a 'must use a left hand pattern' girl until the day that i shouldnt have. I still did, but it really shortened my downwind/base/final. So after that i purposely began practicing weird patterns, and letting the other people on the load KNOW what i was doing. eliminating a holding area, or not doing a downwind or not doing a base, or just going into final. So that when the time comes i can do it and not freak. And the time came, and i did it, and i didnt freak. this is just my method. ask your S&TA. hes the one responsible for safety on your dz afterall.

if you go to The Ranch's web site they have tandem vids online. Their located in Gardener NY.. sorry, i dont havea link to their web site

______________________________________ I was sleeping dude! ______________________________________ a little too much 'personal' time ormi? :)