Tolgak

The above x 1000. A good jump is one of the most calming and joyous things I can do. I've had a few times since I first started that were really rough on me. The emotional pain gave way to bliss each time I hopped out. I guess it's a combination of a few factors: The overwhelming beauty of the view; the fact that for the next minute, literally nothing matters but your jump and the safety of those in the air, the cleanness of the air, and often the looks of joy on the faces of others on the jump. I am left at peace with everything. Dropzones are terrible places for inspiration. What does one think when one looks up for a sign only to see a bunch of people falling?

Broke mine during the week before thanksgiving. I was hanging up a poster on my wall (of skydiving), and as I jumped down I landed directly on my tailbone on the corner of the desk. You really can't take much worse a hit on it than I did. It still hurts to sit in various positions. I went skydiving a few weeks later, but a lot of you are missing the real advice... It isn't the parachute opening or the landing that will get you, it's the ride up. If you've got straddle type benches, you're good. Don't sit quite centered on them and it shouldn't even be an issue. For side benches, push down on the bench with your arms to keep the pressure off your tailbone. Leaning towards your knees also helps. For aircraft without benches, sit on the side of your hip. The leg on the ground will be somewhat straight while the other will be more bent than usual. You'll take up some more space than in a normal position, but people can deal with it (unlike the people who will fall into your lap and not even check to see if you're ok with your balls being pancaked). Here's the most important part, don't shift your weight. The pain will be excruciating if your tailbone is moved the slightest bit. Find a comfortable position and stick to it. The worst part for me was sleeping in the first month. Prolonged sitting sessions will numb the pain, but you will feel it when you get up. I never took any painkillers. I figured I would have much less to complain about in the future if I could take the pain immediately after the injury. However, you should do what's most comfortable to you. I just hate being tethered to pills. Dropzones are terrible places for inspiration. What does one think when one looks up for a sign only to see a bunch of people falling?

Slow enough that there are many loads with no tandems on board. Busy enough that even on a day heavy with tandems and team training, you can still get a ton of jumps in with good time management. Dropzones are terrible places for inspiration. What does one think when one looks up for a sign only to see a bunch of people falling?

I was there until pretty late and I heard nothing of success. The clouds were heavy enough that at one point, a load I was on had to circle for about 10 minutes waiting for holes so the 4-way teams could jump. I can't say whether or not it happened, but the cloud cover was prohibitive for much of the afternoon. Dropzones are terrible places for inspiration. What does one think when one looks up for a sign only to see a bunch of people falling?

One more. Dropzones are terrible places for inspiration. What does one think when one looks up for a sign only to see a bunch of people falling?

What can you do after you release your pilot chute to hurry up your opening? You're saying it yourself. Aside from body position, everything you do to control the length of your opening happens before you put your rig on. If you pull your PC late, there's no getting out of it. If you start your initial dive for a swoop late, you can still abort. It's the difference between dropping a dumb bomb and dropping a guided one. Once you release it, you can't change the course of a dumb bomb. The course of a guided bomb can constantly be adjusted. Control means you can adjust as you perform the move. It gives you a lot more leeway in terms of safety. Dropzones are terrible places for inspiration. What does one think when one looks up for a sign only to see a bunch of people falling?

No offence meant, but here is another example of speaking with authority on something you have little knowledge about. Solid built 7 cell with a free-pack strap and a pullout pilot-chute approaching the size of what (gee) B.A.S.E. jumpers use...sit up and throw the same WAY every time, and you will be in the same PLACE every time it opens. The point I was making is that, as far as I know, you cannot control the length of the opening once you commence the sequence. A packing error cannot easily be compensated for while you're waiting for the parachute to inflate. I wasn't considering base jumping in my argument as the packing methods are different. A swooper can pull out of his dive early if he needs to (and has the altitude). He can turn away from obstacles and adjust his flightpath as he goes. I don't think there's much you can do to speed up the opening of your canopy after you pull your PC. Dropzones are terrible places for inspiration. What does one think when one looks up for a sign only to see a bunch of people falling?

Here's where to draw the line. A swoop is a controlled maneuver. A low pull isn't. You cannot guarantee with any precision the altitude and time it will take for a canopy to open. The thousands of successful swoops that happen every weekend in this country show that swooping is a repeatable maneuver. I am curious though. Do the majority of swooping incidents happen because the initial spiral to speed up is too low, or is it that the person misjudges his recovery arc and doesn't flare as he approaches the ground? Dropzones are terrible places for inspiration. What does one think when one looks up for a sign only to see a bunch of people falling?

I'm kind of late but here's my take on it. My mom has an account and I really wish she didn't. My dad doesn't have an account and I really wish he did. It's a great way to keep in touch with family, but the quality of that connection depends on the personalities of members of the family. If I go on facebook at any moment my mom has internet access, I will get stuck in a conversation with questions I have no idea how to answer. I can't turn off the chat because I have other people to talk to. I have to be really careful about what I post for fear my mom will interpret it the wrong way and overreact to it (the aftermath of my first posted skydiving picture was an experience I wish never to live through again). If I post a status update that's negative in any way, like a simple sad face, I get a flurry of calls and e-mails and chat messages asking why I'm "so sad." On the other hand, I want an easy way to show my dad pictures and videos of my shenanigans, without having to send new links with each e-mail (which he ultimately forgets and asks me for again). Some of my family on facebook wont respond to anything, and I end up more frustrated and wanting to contact them by e-mail. Now I have to remember which e-mail is the one they look at often. If he really wants you to have an account, it's a good call to get one. Just be reasonable about the amount of participation you have in each others' accounts. Dropzones are terrible places for inspiration. What does one think when one looks up for a sign only to see a bunch of people falling?

These people were telling me that it was something that goes on even after you commission. I'm glad to hear I am wrong, as I'm working on joining in the near future. Dropzones are terrible places for inspiration. What does one think when one looks up for a sign only to see a bunch of people falling?

From what I know about my own research and skydivers in ROTC at my school, there is an agreement you sign regarding high-risk activities that basically says you accept all repercussions, and may lose some of your insurance benefits if you get hurt. Dropzones are terrible places for inspiration. What does one think when one looks up for a sign only to see a bunch of people falling?

Jumpchuterist. Dropzones are terrible places for inspiration. What does one think when one looks up for a sign only to see a bunch of people falling?

I have no belief in the supernatural, so spirituality isn't the word to describe how skydiving affects me. Skydiving brings me a temporary but thorough release of stress. At the moment, it's the only thing that can consistently bring me happiness. Even on jumps that are intense and complicated, I feel at peace with everything. The best way to put it is that it's the ideal activity to relax my mind. I rarely have a lasting thought while in freefall, and the thoughts I get under canopy are almost always positive. It brings me clarity and joy. That's all there is to it for me. Dropzones are terrible places for inspiration. What does one think when one looks up for a sign only to see a bunch of people falling?

That's what I mean by a procedure. You're not checking to see if the gear will work at that point, you're rehearsing an emergency procedure. I'm saying that it is the procedure of touching your handles (as you described) that will save your life. You could make sure your AAD is on, your pin is smiling, PC is cocked, everything else is well set up. But that checklist isn't going to do squat for you if you don't practice touching your handles. I guess I'm just arguing semantics, as none of what you said is wrong. But I think it's important to differentiate the idea of a gear check from the idea of an emergency procedure. Doing gear checks ensures that your gear will work. Practicing emergency procedures (as you call, checking your handles) ensures that YOU will work. Dropzones are terrible places for inspiration. What does one think when one looks up for a sign only to see a bunch of people falling?

Incorrect. Yes, it is a huge part of being safe. However, your first concern should be yourself and the environment. You should know what you're getting into before you even consider touching your gear. The reason behind this is that you will be more inclined to go in adverse conditions if you have your rig on before you look at the environment. At that point, you're in jump mode, and for most people, you are more tolerant of threats to safety. But none of that helps you react to a malfunction, it just ensures that your solutions will work as designed. You could run through the most thorough checklist ever created before a jump and still freeze up during a mal. Working on those procedures is the only way to minimize the risk of a brain freeze when the situation goes bad.. Dropzones are terrible places for inspiration. What does one think when one looks up for a sign only to see a bunch of people falling?