brucet7

I was in Caldwell for a class reunion. The weekend was a little slow, not a lot of people, but I enjoyed my time with Paul (DZO) and everyone. They have a 402 which was great to jump from and we (they) organized a cross-country jump which was a blast. Totally randomly, the exit spot was over the house I lived in when I was in high school. I don't get over there often, but when I do, I will have my rig and stop and jump again.

I started by talking to the S&TA person, the rigger, and several instructors. They not only gave good advice, but actually did some research and found me mine. They then checked it out and handled the payments between us. POPS #10623; SOS #1672

+1 Mt Rainier to the Southeast, the Olympics to the Northwest, the ocean off in the distance. Add to that Seattle and Mt Baker, the Cascades, Puget Sound, Hood canal. It took me more than one jump to enjoy the scenery. I still do solos when all I do is look. POPS #10623; SOS #1672

My Sabre 2 has the habit of turning on open, usually to the left. I used to roll the nose but after the watching video I stopped and that has helped a little. It seems to me that the thing is twitchy, but it is the only chute I have much experience with, so I don't have anything to compare it to. POPS #10623; SOS #1672

Anything that strengthens your core. POPS #10623; SOS #1672

This week I was visiting with a young jumper (18) who was there doing jumps 98, 99, 100. He was talking about equipment he wanted as he packed. He needed to get a jump suit and a camera. We talked about how much a Contour costs. I then mentioned (having no real authority other than advanced age) that "they" recommend 200 jumps before flying a camera. "Oh, I know." I don't know what he will do but sure hope he goes for the suit and not the camera first. POPS #10623; SOS #1672

Shortly after I got my "A" license, I said to my wife, "Thanks for letting me take up such an expensive sport." Her reply, "You're welcome. And it is cheaper than a psychiatrist." And she is a professional counselor.

That is kind of cheating. Shoot, if you built it right you wouldn't need a wingsuit. Just make it real tall, real wide, and watch for splinters. POPS #10623; SOS #1672

Open discussion by those on the load. Usually it is 6 or 7 seconds, but some ask for a little more time. The line is usually, "Be sure to give us plenty of time." POPS #10623; SOS #1672

Time. based mostly on group size and what they are doing. POPS #10623; SOS #1672

Except the head down transitions.... we were kidding. I knew that POPS #10623; SOS #1672

What everyone else said and . . . Practice the skills on the A license card. Go through the check dive skills and count time in your head. You may not get it perfect on test day, but there is a better chance if you have done it several times. Tracking and moving distanced are hard to judge when you are alone so think headings and form more than distance covered. Another idea is take a jump or two and get oriented to the surroundings. Which way is the line of flight? What is on the horizon perpendicular to it. Find the plane after leaving it. Often it flies that line one way or the other then knowing tracking directions will be more natural (and check that heading on the way up every time). It is also a good time to be aware of the area beyond yourself. When doing RW our focus is on the 5 to 10 feet around us. Memorizing what the ground looks like at various altitudes can help in case haze overtakes you and you get turned arpund. Look to see where others are opening, learn to find them, even as you are sniveling, watch your own chute, and maybe hear the tandems passengers behind you yell with excitement. You might need to know the difference between them and someone warning you they are close. Most important have fun. Once the RW starts the stress soon follows. It is great fun, but can be a bit nerve racking, not wanting to make mistakes that mess everyone else up. POPS #10623; SOS #1672

It might depend on where you jump. I jump with people working on their A license and pay my own way. There are others who do the same thing. Hopefully you can find some people where you jump. Ask around. You will probably need to pay the instructor for the check jump. There are plenty of coaches who will gladly fly on your dime, but lots of us just like to jump with students. I remember those who jumped with me and want to return the favor. POPS #10623; SOS #1672

There is no rush to spend $8000 on new gear. Most new jumpers start on used equipment. There are several places to find it, including here on dropzone.com. The staff at your DZ can no doubt help you. You will be learning, and downsizing as you go along, so let someone else pay for the new stuff. And there is some good stuff around for $3000. And congratulations. Keep jumping. POPS #10623; SOS #1672

45 lbs sounds about right. That leaves, according to my scale, about 12 lbs leeway and I have a heavy canvas jump suit cause I am a big guy. Granted, I have a 230/253 at this point, so maybe an extra pound or two for the increased canopy size. POPS #10623; SOS #1672

Dave, I appreciated the list of skills that one needs work on. That is almost the exact list that I am working on. One or more of those things is the objective of every jump. I jump with lots of new jumpers, even though I am not really that great myself. One week we are trying to stay in the same area and a similar altitude. The next week I see them they are too busy working on their freefly to do a two way and showing me there new camera set up. They funnel out the door, but they do have nice pictures to show on the big screen TV in the hanger. I personally have not thought about a camera other than looking at a helmet that will one day maybe hold one. But then I am old and hope to get older. POPS #10623; SOS #1672

PD Navigator 300 is approved for someone with exit weight of 289 lbs. POPS #10623; SOS #1672

For me, it was a matter of added heart rate and a bit of cotton mouth. I found that it actually helped once I made that first one as I knew that I knew what to do when I needed to. The first one after the cut away was a lot like the first one. POPS #10623; SOS #1672

I have never been to Elsinore, and know nothing about it. I do know one of the new instructors and he is a quality person. I would trust him with any of my family or friends. POPS #10623; SOS #1672

1, 1 POPS #10623; SOS #1672

I sold him something a few weeks ago and he sent the money quickly. I would buy from or sell to him any time. POPS #10623; SOS #1672

I said no, but I am going to start. Just got the ear plugs and ready to when the weather cooperates. POPS #10623; SOS #1672

1. 120 2. 1 3. Partial POPS #10623; SOS #1672

I endered 7 but really my AFF was six or nine jumps. I started static line but couldn't get the practice pulls. After three attempts, they suggested I move to AFF, and started me on level 2 AFF. Thus six jumps AFF jumps, and 3 Static line jumps. POPS #10623; SOS #1672

May is a pretty good time. And BTW -- I did AFF not IAD. POPS #10623; SOS #1672