How TO Know When Skydiving Is NOT The Sport For You.

[shibu 1]

I have enjoyed skydiving in the past & would love to start up again. I recently made two jumps after a 4 yr lapse. I only have an A license so I took a recurrency training class. Unfortunately due to weather conditions I was unable to jump for ~2mos after I took the course.
I made ~6 mistakes in 2 days that could have jeopardized my life or the lives of others.

I definately need more canopy training. I'm reading Basic Canopy Flight & watching the Basic Canopy Flight video from Skydive University. I also found this article here that I will read today:

http://www.dropzone.com/cgi-bin/safety/detail_page.cgi?ID=536

But besides canopy issues I also did not have good altitude awareness. I pulled.. but too low.. which I think added to my poor canopy control.

Here is the scary part. On my second jump I turned 90 deg away from my coach @ 6,500ft & tracked for what I thought was 5 sec. When I opened my altimeter said 2,000ft!

If I didn't realized that I dropped ~3,500 while I was tracking, is my brain too slow for the sport now???

If not, are there any other articles you can suggest on canopy control... I mean really basic stuff like how low you can safely turn...
Or are there other things you would suggest other than reading? The mistakes I made ranged from
1) not removing the seatbelt @1kft in the plane
2) walking too close to the plane's prop after a bad landing.
3) Not maintianing Altitude awareness 2 dyas in a row
4) Bad landings. One very hard.. One on a roof!

[AndyMan 7]

The only time that 'Skydiving is not for you' is simple to tell - it's when you can't make a commitment to doing enough jumps that you maintain currency.

You're hardly the first person to make these mistakes, and some of the people who've come before you and made similar mistakes have gone on to become world-champions.

The difference between you and them, is that they made commitments to keeping current, doing lots of jumps, and improving on every jump. If you can also make these commitments, then you too can progress into an excellent skydiver. If you can't make these commitments, then you may be right - skydiving may not be for you.

_Am

__

You put the fun in "funnel" - craichead.

[obelixtim 150]

Make sure your brain is always switched on before getting into the plane, during the flight to altitude, during the skydive, during the canopy flight, during the landing, while walking back to the packing area, and during the debrief.....

My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

[thrillstalker 0]

sound like you need to do a jump and just watch your altimeter. pick a thousand foot mark and count to five in the time it takes to hit the next thousand. do the count over and over so you know how fast/slow to count.

you just need to get your internal clock calibrated.

"Never grow a wishbone, where your backbone ought to be."

[shibu 1]

Thanks for the response. That makes alot of sense. Clearly not staying current was the cause of all of my problems.. except maybe my lack of altitude awareness.. that still scares me. I am going to read everything I can to help me get more proficient & if I realize that I can not stay current.. well then maybe I am not as committed as I should be to this sport.

Thanks for the perspective.

[shibu 1]

This sounds similar to what my coach told me after the dive. I just forgot how important it was to unbuckle at 1k ft.. how that can take down the whole plane.. I suppose that just comes down to lack of preparation. I am re reading everything I can find before my next scheduled visit to the DZ in ~2 1/2 weeks.

There is no excuse for walking too close to the prop.. even though it was right after my roof landing.

Thanks for the advice. I'll take it to heart.

[shibu 1]

That's great advice. Honestly I didn't know what to do about my brain counting too slow. At least now I have a plan to recalibrate my brain for proper altitude awareness.

BTW, I read this article & was very impressed. I am going to try & rush order his book.

Any recommendations on other books/videos for canopy training?

[fly67 0]

I went through periods of doubt and doing things wrong (pulling a little low (got stern warning), wrong landing pattern (got stern warning), flaring high, flaring low). It's all part of it. I feel for you that you can't get any momentum.

If you have the commitment, time, and money, you could travel to a DZ with good weather and spend a week (or a 3-4 day weekend) getting current and getting coaching.

I found it can be better to focus on one main thing at a time until it kind of clicks. Doesn't mean you've totally learned it, but if each jump has a main focus, you can gain better experience in each area.

While being coached/watched doing tasks, it can be hard to focus on both the tasks and the altimeter. It's better to focus on the alti (every 5 secs) if you have trouble remembering (yeah, do a few jumps just watching altitude). If you start tracking at 1.5-2k above pull alt you should stop tracking in about 5 secs, check alt, and lock in with 1000-500 ft to go. Even if the track is only 3 secs, that's fine if it's just you (and one other).

As a novice myself, I still do a lot of solos and try to time my track and then pull right at my target pull altitude. Remember that 3 secs of fooling around is 500 ft. So even waving off and reaching can eat up 500 ft. I try to throw the pilot chute at my pull altitude.

For canopy practice, do dedicated hop-and-pops to practice flares and turns up high. Then try to set up a repeatable landing pattern.

Try to have patience... it's a long road.

[vanair 0]

Whats the plane doing on the roof?
seriously you'll be fine, it's the people that don't ask us or themselves these questions that worry us.

[theonlyski 8]

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Whats the plane doing on the roof?

Bad winds, only landing area.

"I may be a dirty pirate hooker...but I'm not about to go stand on the corner." iluvtofly
DPH -7, TDS 578, Muff 5153, SCR 14890
I'm an asshole, and I approve this message

[mrubin 0]

Talk to instructors and coaches at your dz. They can watch how you fly your canopy and give you specific advice.

Stay current, and I don't mean doing one jump a month. Try to get out to the dz a couple times a month and do multiple jumps each trip.

The fact that you are recognizing some of the troubles you are encountering and are working to fix them shows that you have a good attitude. Don't rush yourself. Everyone progresses at a different rate. Do what you need to stay safe and improve your ability. Learn from the mistakes you've made and the ones that others have made.

Relax, have fun, and be safe.

"I fly because it releases my mind from the tyranny of petty things." - Antoine de Saint-Exupery

[thrillstalker 0]

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If you start tracking at 1.5-2k above pull alt you should stop tracking in about 5 secs, check alt, and lock in with 1000-500 ft to go. Even if the track is only 3 secs, that's fine if it's just you (and one other).

i do not agree with this. you do not need to lock onto your altimeter. you need to glance at it when you come out of a track and clear your airspace. check altitude and wave off/pull.

right now you might not be jumping with many people. if i am on a three or four way and we leave on level i wont barrel roll, but if there is a single person i dont know the location of, i check.

to me that is a much better use of the 5 sec you wasted looking at you altimeter.

"Never grow a wishbone, where your backbone ought to be."

[obelixtim 150]

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clear your airspace. check altitude and pull.

Don't forget to wave off before you pull......

My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

[thrillstalker 0]

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clear your airspace. check altitude and pull.

Don't forget to wave off before you pull......

of course. i even wave off when i am doing a solo. good habit.

"Never grow a wishbone, where your backbone ought to be."

[obelixtim 150]

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good habit.

Always wave off....

My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

[obelixtim 150]

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There is no excuse for walking too close to the prop.. even though it was right after my roof landing.

Yeah, the aeroplane mincer takes no prisoners.....

....apparently it really hurts the second time it hits you....

My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

[fly67 0]

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If you start tracking at 1.5-2k above pull alt you should stop tracking in about 5 secs, check alt, and lock in with 1000-500 ft to go. Even if the track is only 3 secs, that's fine if it's just you (and one other).

i do not agree with this. you do not need to lock onto your altimeter. you need to glance at it when you come out of a track and clear your airspace. check altitude and wave off/pull.

right now you might not be jumping with many people. if i am on a three or four way and we leave on level i wont barrel roll, but if there is a single person i dont know the location of, i check.

to me that is a much better use of the 5 sec you wasted looking at you altimeter.

I'm only saying to lock on at this point since he doesn't yet have altitude awareness (blowing by pull altitude). This forces him to look at it rather than continuing to track for 5-10 more seconds and possibly pulling 1-2k low. Eventually he will be able to use an internal clock to track for x secs, quick look at alt, check airspace, and pull.

Also if he's by himself or with one other person tracking off at 180 degrees, it's not as critical to look above, more critical to pull (I may be wrong though).

[GLIDEANGLE 1]

1.  Sit down with your DZs chief instructor and put together a plan to help you get back on track.  Things to consider include:

- canopy control course
- formal coaching in your areas of weakness
- identifying who are suitable folks for you to jump with in an  informal coaching manner (often a grey beard who doesn't want to work at the DZ but who is wise and willing to jump with new folks.)
- Review of EPs regularly (at LEAST monthly).

2.  For a while... Pretend that you don't have a license and follow the "student" rules in the BSR and local DZ rules.  These rules will help you stay safer.  These rules will guide you to conservative gear, weather, and such. 

3.  Hang out and learn as much as you can on the ground both during the day and after the beer light goes on. 

4.  Jump, land, pack, repeat....   In fact, I suggest that you plan a three day weekend of concentrated jumping to "prime the pump".  You could easily do 15 jumps in three days... Which would be ~50% of your career jumps to date. If you did that with good dirt dives and debriefs from experienced jumpers or coaches... I think you would probably solve your problem!  Two solid weekends (10 jumps each weekend) would do the same thing.

5. See my reading list here

[URL]
http://www.dropzone.com/cgi-bin/forum/gforum.cgi?post=4052172 [/URL]

Good Luck!!!

The choices we make have consequences, for us & for others!

[robinheid 0]

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I have enjoyed skydiving in the past & would love to start up again. I recently made two jumps after a 4 yr lapse. I only have an A license so I took a recurrency training class. Unfortunately due to weather conditions I was unable to jump for ~2mos after I took the course.
I made ~6 mistakes in 2 days that could have jeopardized my life or the lives of others.

The most important thing is:

You recognize that you have some issues that need to be addressed and are willing to go either way depending on how that comes out. I can't emphasize enough how vital it is to have exactly this attitude.

As other posters have said, work with your instructors and other experienced jumpers and see if you can spool up your performance to the necessary standard. Also, ask other newbies how THEY handled the things you are facing... sometimes you can get more insight from people closer to your skillset and experience level because, unlike the experienced people, it's all still fresh in their minds.

As other posters have also said, currency is important -- especially when you are first starting out. You really do need to make a serious commitment to make at least a couple of hundred jumps in the next year or so to hardwire in your learning and awareness and muscle memory, etc etc.

As you do this, it will become evident whether or not your brain/body is up to the demands of parachuting or if you'd be better served by doing something different.

In the meantime, keep on doing exactly what you're doing in terms of reaching out to learn more and figure out what you need to do next. You have the right attitutde and right approach and that will help you figure out if you also have the right stuff for parachuting -- without hurting yourself or anyone else in the process.

Rock on.

SCR-6933 / SCS-3463 / D-5533 / BASE 44 / CCS-37 / 82d Airborne (Ret.)

"The beginning of wisdom is to first call things by their right names."

[airtwardo 7]

right now you might not be jumping with many people. if i am on a three or four way and we leave on level i wont barrel roll, but if there is a single person i dont know the location of, i check.

to me that is a much better use of the 5 sec you wasted looking at you altimeter.

[popsjumper 2]

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That's great advice.

NO, not at all.

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Honestly I didn't know what to do about my brain counting too slow.

And that's why it's not a good idea.

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At least now I have a plan to recalibrate my brain for proper altitude awareness.

Use your altimeter. It's much more reliable that an adrenaline-filled brain. Your perception of time will improve with comfort and confidence levels.
Ask your instructors about Time Distortion.

Careful on who you take advice from here. Your instructors are the ones to talk to before you try anything.

My reality and yours are quite different.
I think we're all Bozos on this bus.
Falcon5232, SCS8170, SCSA353, POPS9398, DS239

[thrillstalker 0]

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right now you might not be jumping with many people. if i am on a three or four way and we leave on level i wont barrel roll, but if there is a single person i dont know the location of, i check.

to me that is a much better use of the 5 sec you wasted looking at you altimeter.

Correct me if I misunderstand, you barrel roll on a two way?

[thrillstalker 0]

how is he supposed to check his altimeter in a full track?

"Never grow a wishbone, where your backbone ought to be."

[popsjumper 2]

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how is he supposed to check his altimeter in a full track?

Well, see? This is one reason why one needs to be careful about the advice one regurgitates as a young jumper...especially to other young jumpers.

It's easy enough to glance down at your alti in a track...evidently, you can't do it or have never tried?

Your sense of "time" will improve with experience, comfort level and confidence....not counting seconds under the influence of adrenaline at this time.

Edited to add:
And no, it's NOT a good idea to "lock on" it while tracking away.

My reality and yours are quite different.
I think we're all Bozos on this bus.
Falcon5232, SCS8170, SCSA353, POPS9398, DS239

[airtwardo 7]

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right now you might not be jumping with many people. if i am on a three or four way and we leave on level i wont barrel roll, but if there is a single person i dont know the location of, i check.

to me that is a much better use of the 5 sec you wasted looking at you altimeter.

Correct me if I misunderstand, you barrel roll on a two way?

you misunderstood or i wasn't very clear. on anything up to a 3 or 4 way it isn't necessary to barrel roll if everyone is on level and you know where they are going.

anything bigger and you bet your ass i'm doing a barrel roll. which is a better use of that 5 seconds.