stevesimms

I was in the same situation as you. I downsized from a PD190 to a ZP170.. Also F111 to ZP... One sentence... Best thing I ever did!

Why not get a necklace, and then get it engraved by a jeweller? simple solution...

Here are some pics of the Saturday (15th November) Swoop practice for Worlds 2008 at PSC, South Africa.. Enjoy!! PS. Sorry about the dirt on the lens in some of the pics.. Still gotta clean those ones up..

I jumped the PAC this last weekend... I cant say that I enjoyed it that much hey... Its BLOODY noisy! and takes an uncomfortably extra few minutes to get to alti... That been said, yeah, its uncomfortable! And then again, the propblast is extremely uncomfortable... feels like you're holding on for dear life! However, where I usually jump, we've got a super king air B90 . Now that is one fantastic plane! Quick climbs, even when full, no prob blast, and a radio... Bliss

But you're clothed?! We do our 100th jumps here BUTT NAKED.... Hmm... And then beer...

I'd by one

Well, if you've never jumped out of a plane before, I would suggest that you forget about basic moves and exercises, and wait until you have your Ground school done. You'll learn everything you need to know to complete your AFF during ground school... Sick to that, and read up once you've done a few jumps... More importantly, speak to your instructors, once you've jumped.. Have a look here for starters. http://www.dropzone.com/content/Detailed/519.html Best of luck though! And enjoy! Edited to include link

I got Brians book about 2 months ago. I read it all through, and is is correct in what you're saying, in that it tells you all about the advanced techniques early on and it could be a problem with an over inflated ego, but if you're serious enough, just taking time to learn the basics, the book really makes you a better canopy flier. I can vouch on that one!

Ive had a few dreams recently about cutaways.. The first one was rather scary, that I pulled the reserve, and nothing happened, and i saw myself falling back first into the ground.. I woke up in a cold sweat Then the next dream I had, i managed to pull, and the reserve came out, but It was full of twists and I still hit the ground... ... I havent had a dream since... Hopefully this isnt a sign....

Jumping here in South Africa, there isnt that requirement before the A licence. However, the other day, I managed to get myself into linetwists without knowing what i did. In all honesty, i crapped myself, and reached immediately for the cutaway , before looking up, and seeing I could kick my way out of it. When on the ground, I spoke to one of the instructors, and he addressed the whole thing, and explained the principles behind it quite well. There were only about 2 twists, but they happened so damn quickly that I was horizontal at one point.. It was also on a new canopy (190), and figuring out how to fly it... Now ive managed to get some of those quick rapid turns in without the twists, by just keeping at least 1 G on the lines or more. It has definitely improved my ability for low turns on landing

Another thing to think of, is which discipline you might want to follow.. Maybe freeflying once you've got your A license? Then you will need a freefly friendly rig. Speaking from experience (ive just recently bought my first rig, a 170, where on jump 1, i was jumping a 285), wait until you get your A license, downsized to something that you will be able to jump for a while, and try out rigs before buying. Dont think about rigs now at 1 jump, not even at 10. Wait.. it'll work out for you in the end! Best of luck and enjoy the rest!

Have you tried a few hop-n-pops? Then you can figure out how the canopy flies with you, and practice all your flares high up.. You have the alti on you, so you can judge how much altitude it takes, and where your hand positions are when in each stage of the flare. Whenever I have downsized, I always opened high, and practiced all of that before trying anything low down. I understand your predicament though, and recently downsized to a 170. First jump had to adjust the break line lengths, but the second one, i havent had a sweeter landing. Each canopy does land differently, and i think ive figured that out quite well, downsizing from a 285, 235, 190, 185, and now on my 170 in a relatively short period of time (4 months). But as ive said, my best have been on my 170. Maybe it is also just the experience of the previous jumps helping, but i dont know. You need to find out what works for you. Yes, teachers and coaches have thousands of jumps worth of experience, and that experience teaches you to fly the canopy well and safely, but at the end of the day, you need to find out for yourself which landing routine and practice work best for you.

Congrats on the Levels! As for the leg straps, I had the same problem, and found it mostly to be mostly as I was not used to having leg straps on.. and secondly, the rig didn't fit properly. After about 10 jumps or so, I got used to the straps, and changed rigs, and everything got a lot better! Now on my own equipment, and i dont mind doing hop-n-pops from 11k and sitting under canopy. Best of luck for the rest! It only gets better!

You're right Davelepka. I mean the sense of pride, in the way that I handle the canopy on landings, and during flight.. with them being safe and responsible. Maybe I should have clarified that in the beginning.

Damn I never really thought about it that way

I only have 42 jumps, but I pride my self that I have a 100% stand up rate so far... Started on a 285, then 235, 190, 185, and now jumping a 170 with a WL of 1:1. Im still waiting for the day when i faceplant...

Thanks for the info! Ireland looks good, and I am going to be in the area, so it should be great! For holland, I was looking, there is a place near Rotterdam too... Thanks for the help!

I used to have the same problem when I first started. Im sure it was to do with the student rigs.. However, after about jump 8 or 9 (i did 15 jumps in the first month) it got a lot better and didnt hurt as much... Now ive got my own equipment, and snug legstraps definitely make a difference.. but i still find after about 3 or 4 jumps a day my thigh muscles hurt... but its like ive been working out at gym or similar.. Ive just learnt to live with it.. Its all good by the next weekend

Ive just bought my first rig. The thing I looked at firstly, was to make sure that it was 100% freefly friendly. Besides that, the canopy is a ZP170, and as for swooping, yeah, Id love to get there one day, but for now, make sure all your landings are standup, and within a 10m radius of where you pick on takeoff. Try to flare out the landings, so that you glide along the top the ground a foot above it or so. Once you've got that right, then consider downsizing, and only once that is 100% look at a performance canopy.. But have a look here for more info! www.canopypiloting.com

I was jumping a 190 until recently at 4000ft ASL. Downsized to a ZP170 now, and I havent had sweeter landings . CI was nice and let me jump it at 1:1 WL (at 4000ft ASL) with only 40 jumps

have a look at http://www.dzclothing.com They have good shirts, and great designs.. Also based in the UK.

Hey everyone. Im going to be in Europe late December and January Places that I will be staying will be Dublin (Ireland), and Rotterdam (Holland). I want to know if there are any DZ's there that will be jumping, weather pending, in January? I know its going to be cold, and Im not going to be taking my equipment there, so hopefully, hire something? Also, if there are DZ's in the areas there, any idea on jump rates, and experiences? Any help is appreciated!

During my AFF, i used to get very nervous when I looked down at the alti, and saw it was almost time.. I found a song that fitted in with my feelings at the time, and going up I just used to sing it to myself... And then when the door opened, I was feeling good and confident, and ready for the jump.. Now, even with my solo's and license, if I dont sing to myself, I start thinking about all those "What are you doing?!" But by sitting back, thinking of a song, and running through the lyrics... Yeah, that helps me all the time!

Well shropshire, It came across from my CI that I should choose before I continue, that my solo jumps should be leading to somewhere. Im not really into the major competition part of FS, and the fun with mates is exactly FF... Ive also heard though, that FS is the core to going forward in any discipline? How skilled in FS are FF jumpers? and is it worth doing the CAT 3's in FS even if you aim to do FF?

You know. I had this exact same thing happen about 6 dives ago.. We could never link or get close enough in the track... I was always below my mate, and we could never reach. Although the dive was great and thrilling, it was difficult to learn from. When i spoke to the instructors on the ground, they gave me some good tips around dearching in a track, as well as choosing someone to be base when in a dive!! That was the probably the most important aspect that I learnt... Choose someone to be base.. As what everyone else has said too, jump with people way more experienced than you... We'll all get there eventually