BannanaGirl

Hey you!!! Well done mister! I knew you could do it!!!! And the sun always shines on the righteous...or so they say. If I don't hear from you in the next few days....some serious stalking procedures will be used. You have been warned!!!!!!! Enjoy the rest of your trip bruv!!!! Mex

I did a tandem first then AFF. I think if you can afford to do the tandem and then the AFF I would say do the tandem first. AFF is a lot of money to put down and then not go through with it. A tandem is no stress...just a taxi ride..and like it has been said make sure the TI is aware he is thinking about going further. The"oh my god what the HELL is going on" stuff is'nt there as much on the second jump. He will take it in and remember it more because of his previous exposure to freefall and knowing what to expect. I could not wait to get out the door on my level 1 because I knew what was coming. I think I would have been bricking it and VERY stunned had my first jump been an AFF1. But that is just me, and then again I actually got more nervous further on in my course.

That is so how I am feeling right now. Once I used to have something that resembled a life. Yesterday I spent the day at a festival out of duty...beautiful blue skies and all I was was a miserable cow from start to finish. No fun whatsoever. I could not even hold a converstaion with my non skydiving friends or even concentrate on what they had to say...it was as if I was off on planet skydive the whole time, drifting off and just nodding at them like some zombie, thinking "this weather will be at the DZ soon, maybe if I leave now I could get a few jump in by 6?". Although I have only done a few jumps I really did think that just doing a few would sort this out. WRONG!!!! This is getting even worse by the day and the more I jump the more I want to do it. What the hell are we turning into? Somebody HELP!!!!

Although I love ALL different types of music...dance music being one of them ...I do agree that dance music can be souless when watching a skydiving video. My AFF I had rock and metal on there simple as...sommit with a bit of balls to it Metallica being the flagship band I had to have on there. My outtakes version I wanted the Benny Hill music but unfortunately I ended up with wait for it....dance music!!!!!

"Is it funny to push somebody out of the door?" Nope. Is it funny to punch someone in the face? That would be my response, I guess that would'nt go down too well would it.

Hi. Turning was my achilles heel and I failed my level 5 several times because of it. (360 turns left and right) Obviously your instructor knows the problems you are causing yourself but really the biggest thing I know that helped me was to STOP trying so hard. It is a vicious circle. You want to pass (this is expensive as well!!!) you tense up like a piece of board (even if you think you are relaxed it is likely you are not relaxed the way you will come to understand) so loads of rocking and rolling in the air. Panic sectors of the brain start going off at this point...on my god I'm screwing up..I'm screwing up...try HARDER! Even more tense now. What chance have you got of turning in this situation. Get the picture. I did not really relax properly until my consols. My last jump it just all came together as the pressure was off (no need to perform except what you want to do). I could feel my body position was so much better and I had no "buffeting" at all. If I wanted to go over there...I went over there without a thought. Cool. This is what they mean by relax. This may not be the case with you at all but I swear when everyone was telling me to chill out and just relax, they were so right. It really did help the head stuff so I could work on the body stuff. Anyway good luck with the rest of your course and welcome to the sport.

Yep your bitten. Welcome to the sport. I hope you have a LOT of patience. Mine is getting tested as it is very iffy the weather over here at the moment, windy and sunny or breezy and raining. Arrrrrrrhhhhh!!!!!! I have spent the best part of my weekend off staring at a windsock!!!! Today I am at work and the sun is shining and no wind at all! Typical. Anyway you are perfectly normal and not demented or anything like that yet. Just be prepared for your non-skydiving friends to stop calling you to go out with them soon as they can't be arsed to have the converstation gravitate towards skydiving again and again. Anyway good luck with your skydiving future and I hope you achieve all you aspire to achieve in this sport.

I had really bad blocked ears on my tandem and first AFF level1, so bad infact I could not hear the radio to land (which I did obviously!) And the top of my left eye was hurting, the pressure was unbelievable! Anyway I just found that on the ride to altitude I sort of would swallow every time I felt the pressure build up and that would pop it, and also yawning seemed to do the trick. It did not seem as drastic as pinching my nose and blowing..which for me did'nt really work. Equalize the pressure on the way up and then when the canopy opens as you do your checks, gulp/swallow like a good un...works for me.

I beat you! 13! Unlucky for some but not for me! Seriously RELAX.....and it will happen, but it easier said than done when you are hurtling towards mother earth at 120mph. I made my hand bleed (I had an old cut which had nearly healed) on one jump my body was so tense clawing at the air as I was falling! As if there is anything to hold onto, duh! Finally it just came together and I was'nt rocking around in the air getting all freaked and I seemed to fall...with some style at last! Probably something to do with just being familiar in that enviroment and the more air time you have the more confident you become. It does not matter how many goes it takes, unless you simply cannot afford to continue, but what does matter if you really want to do it and you hit the "wall", push through and keep going, it is so worth it in the end when you do your first real skydive.

Genius! I've just learnt something new!

Yep it is incredibliy pretentious...but that's why I like it, some sodding non-italian thinking they are getting all continental on everyones ass or even worse actually believing they are very sophisticated and they actually know a foreign word! I do it just for that reason alone especially when I've sunk a few pints of silly sauce. Even though it is my native tongue I love the brit term "tosser", sums it all up quite nicely when someone is one, everyone knows exactly what you mean in one simple eloquent word.

Know it all bitches who think they know everything are actually really annoying to those of us who do. . Anyway, the more someone has to say the more I tend to get hypnotised by them even if what they are spouting off is shite. It is what keeps us all so colourful and it expands our knowledge to stay the fuck away from them in the future.

I have not read the whole of this thread but I want to put my 2p's worth in on this subject. I work full time and I have a young pre-school child. I did the stay at home thing for 6 months and then went back to work as I had to. Childcare costs an obscene amount of money in my area and if I was on a lower paid job I simply could not afford to send her to the sessions I do. A lot of mums are faced with this issue and hence it is actually ecconomically sensible for them to stay at home until pre-school grants etc are issued and the cost of care is reduced. I am fortunate as my kiddies father looks after her sometimes as he has a shift system he works in his job, so my child spends lots of time with daddy. However I do feel it frequently, the "am I a good mum syndrome?" as I am so tired after work sometimes and I have very little time (or energy to be truthful) to spend with her, I sometimes wonder if I did the right thing. I would love to do what some of my friends do and spend a morning painting and making things together...something I just do not seem to do enough of. Consequently I feel a failure at times and a very underachieving mum. I look all respectable in my suit going off to work in the mornings, but I do wonder if the stay at home mummies kids end up better off in the long run. Sometimes I do feel like a foreigner dropping in for a visit in my own home at times. Being a good parent is a hard job and requires a lot of patience and inspirtation, something I am rapidly losing the skill of owning. I take my hat off to stay at home parents that use that time to enrich the childs quality of life. Yes there are those who abuse the system and in your job I guess you see them a lot, but they are still a minority. Dix

Well done girl! I flunked my level 5 several times and all of it was because I was all tensed up in freefall and not RELAXING! The pressure to perform all that is required of you is intense...the fear of failure can be overwhelming as well. Like it has been said my instructors were nowhere near as hard on me as I was on myself. You can kinda get yourself into a psychological trap I guess. I was flying under my canopy at 2 grand on one of the attempts thinking "That went shit and I really do not want to do this anymore. I have had it with this damn sport". But then I realised I did want to do it and got on with it, finally succeeding. My head played all sorts of strange games on me throughout the course. Some jumps I would pratically be so realxed on the ride up I was nearly asleep, other jumps I had a very real sense of dread about my own mortallity and some very strange things going round my head to make the experience all the more terrifying! But like it has been said I knew once I was in that door I still loved being in the air and you do too. For me this experience is not just about skydiving but about going through a process of facing and embracing fear. I think it has changed me as a person already and this is early days. Had I given in at the point I could quite easiliy have done I know I would be sitting here right now nursing a bruised and saddened ego, trying to work out how to get back in the air again. So keep at it and all the best with your subsequent jumps. Dix

Hey Neil, Welcome to the sport! I am new too and I had to retake my level 5 several times. I really felt pants about it at one point but hey if you want to skydive you have to keep at it, and I wanted to skydive so I kept at it. Personally I was as tense as anything in freefall and just got worse the more I screwed up (you know thinking I was relaxed but really I was clawing at the air! F*@k me I'm in freefall!!!HELP!) Then suddenly it just seemed to click, oh this is what they mean...relax...ahhh. and suddenly it all just seemed to happen. The psychology of throwing yourself out of an aeroplane is a huge hurdle in itself before even getting in the door, although I could exit well in FFall I just tensed up. Some people just sail through and others take more time, just like driving tests and anything else. But hey! you did it brother and good for you! And as for living on baked beans - do you still want friends at altitude? Oh an bank managers like people without money for some reason so I would'nt worry about that too much. Dix

NOnonono! Not BEER!?NEVER! But yes I can see this becoming even more of an obssession as each day passes. I thought that just by doing the AFF I might have got it out of my system....WRONG! My situation has just gotten a whole lot WORSE! I produced a budget forecast for myself (I am totally anally retentive about these things at times!). 90% of earnings are allocated to skydiving funds and 10% for all other living expenses, so the tea and toast diet it is then and I have'nt been on that one since I was 18! Negative equitity here I come!!!

Alright....I will admit the figure was a bit on the ambiguous side of the spectrum. But there was a line just a fuzzy one.

Totally girl!!! You know it! Everytime a plane flies over you get all fuzzy, it is like being in lust with a really fit bloke. I knew it the moment I landed on terra firma from my tandem that this is what I HAD to do and believe me I am SHIT scared of flying! I mean you know, can't break concentration on the pilot because it is me holding the plane up and all these people are gonna die if I blink! Duh!!! Absolutely insane I know, but like you I knew this is what I wanted to do. I was surprised about it and a bit unprepared financially and mentally to start with but you find a way. You always do when it means so much to you. I am happy to report that flying on a jump plane is cool...airliners I have to oil myself with lots of Vodka before boarding. I do suggest you go to Spain and the south is the place to go with the guys I used for sure. Can't recomend it enough. If you are not so good with the heat like me come down in end Sept early Oct (I am going to do my FS1) and we can have loads of fun together. Also it will give you some time to save up some cash for the "adventure of a lifetime!". And the language thing is no problem. I managed to hold a full conversation with a bunch of Spaniards for a full half an hour using just sign language and exagerated mouthing movements. I thought I handled the situation very well. Or maybe they thought I was just completely demented!? Blues skies girl! Dix

Hey Ricky, I don't really want to discuss the cost of things as I have already been in trouble and branded a "fake", but all I will say is it was very, very good as the course itself but then I did have some retakes (which put the price up a bit). However I still managed to keep within a "I won't cross that line figure". I will PM you. At the end of the day if you want to do AFF it is an investment in your future and you will need to make a very broad budget for the course, and don't forget to include the beer fines! These are compulsory and you will be briefed throughly in your ground school before anything else, gives you something to aim for I guess. Hope we meet soon and it is in Seville. Happy jumping daydreams. Dix

Hey, I have managed to get myself flamed already on another thread, so I guess it is time I introduced myself properly and remember my manners. My name is Diana and I live in the UK. I use to post here under another name Virginflyer3, but seeing as I have well and truly broke my cherry now (skydiving that is!) I thought I would post under a new name and introduce myself to you all properly. I have just done my AFF in Seville, Spain and had the BEST time. I am totally hooked. I am even in the process of booking my next trip out there as I can't wait to getback there. Credit is all ok at the moment but I can see that not lasting for too much longer. I am looking at things already thinking "hmmm that'll cost me half my FS1" or " I could pay for 1/4 of rig". The new car I was going to buy is not going to happen now. The heap of shite I drive will have to just keep going, on faith if needs be. WHAT IS HAPPENING TO ME!!!! Anyway if you are wondering why I have called myself BanannaGirl, it is because I can fly in a bannana shape, on a heading!!!! Had to take my level 5 several times because of it, but I got there in the end! I am looking forward to learning to skydive now (at last!) and to making friends with you guys from anywhere in the world. Adios and Blue skies Dix

Yep Skydive Spain it twas. Were you there? I met loads of formation skydivers out there at the start of my stay and I was a bit starstruck at times. Maybe that is why I fly like a bannana - all a bit overwhelming maybe - stunned in freefall? I was like..."oh I've seen you in The Mag, oh and you! And you!" It was cool. Absolutely beautiful weather pretty much all week apart from my last day, but I was nursing the hangover from hell so I would'nt have jumped anyway. Joel:- Ahhh ha so you had a peak at the "directors cut" when I left then! Have you got my "outtakes" version? Thanks for the congratulations by the way brothers and sisters, it means a lot to me.x

Get back and Step away from the handbags! You might have someones eye out with them! C'mon guys just chill out! Please don't piss all over my bonfire.... pretty please.

Thanks sister. Who knows we may meet one day!

Thanks for the congratulations brother. And no this is not an advert for the Freefall Addicts. I had a great time and I chose to share my experience, sorry if I offended you by trying to share my experience with others. Anyway what is wrong with sharing a great experience? I want others to go through what I have just been through. If my words point them in the right direction that is a good thing and what do I stand to gain by marketing FreeFall Addicts. I genuinely feel passionate about what a fantastic experience I had and I want to shout about it. Don't like it then don't listen. I am a real student I can assure you of that. Again thanks for the polite "welcome to skydiving" and I look forward to seeing you at a DZ soon, the name is Diana by the way. This is all a bit like my last thread when I initailly started researching AFF schools, that got all bitchy and nasty. What is wrong with you people? Should'nt you all be encouraging people like me to be passionate about something? The artist formally known as Virginflyer3

Hey RobMox, I have just done my AFF with FreeFall Addicts in Seville and I had the time of my life. They welcomed me into their home and fed and watered me, made sure I was entertained and they treated me like a friend, not a cash cow. I really was well looked after. Yes I had to repeat level 5 several times but that was down to me. Yes I had to pay for retakes but I was more than happy to as I knew what I was doing before I went on this course and that was making an investment in my skydiving future, retakes were par of the course. I have definately had the best start using these guys. Their location is excellent in sunny, sunny Seville and the aircraft (a Dornier) was getting up to 16 grand on some lifts all in around 12 minutes. I am going back and like Joel I know I have chosen the BEST that is out there to help progress with my skydiving career. Yep, there are some bitchy skydivers but then there are some bitchy self marketing, money lusting geeks that get off on trying to spoil your fun in all walks of life, skydiving being no exception. Ignore the tossers and live the dream...and I will see you down in Seville.