First jump - it was ok but

[JasonAndrews 0]

Hi all,
Did my first tandem jump a little while ago...
http://www.marksparaglidingpages.com/Video/skydivevideo1.wmv

I already paraglide so there was no fear exiting the plane and stuff so I gotta say, it was ok but I think I'm going to have to BASE jump for a real rush.

Do you need special kit for BASE?

Jason

[johan420 0]

http://www.dropzone.com/cgi-bin/safety/detail_page.cgi?ID=64....don`t die!!!

[d_squared431 0]

Quote

Hi all,
Did my first tandem jump a little while ago...
http://www.marksparaglidingpages.com/Video/skydivevideo1.wmv

I already paraglide so there was no fear exiting the plane and stuff so I gotta say, it was ok but I think I'm going to have to BASE jump for a real rush.

Do you need special kit for BASE?

Jason


http://www.marksparaglidingpages.com/Video/skydivevideo1.wmv

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[skymama 37]

Welcome to the forums!

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[Peej 0]

Welcome to dz.com!

I dunno about the whole rush thing, for me skydiving is something very different. When i do tandem video it's about sharing in the whole experience that the passenger is going through.

It starts with making them feel at ease on the ground, then sharing in the excitement and trepidation in the plane and then watching their face change from fear to pure, unbridled, ecstatic joy when they realise they are out of the plane and this thing that was scaring the crap out of them a few momets ago is something that's rather enjoyable.

When we are on the ground they belong to the TI in a sense but as soon as we leave the aircraft, for me, everything slows down and i get to play and interact with them for the next 40 seconds. And for that 40 second we are almost as one, my smile is as genuine as theirs, their laughter is my laughter and so it goes.

Then when we get down on the ground i get to put music to their footage and leave them with a product that, hopefully, they will proudly show their friends and family as something they feel they have achieved.

Then i get to do it all over again.

God i love this sport.

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[northcave 0]

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I'm going to have to BASE jump for a real rush.

Of course it was only "ok" you were in tandem. Its not even in the same state as going solo, never mind the same ball park.

P.s believe it or not you need to learn to skydive before jumping off a cliff. Kinda helps

[rygon 0]

well not much the jumping off...more landing safely.

Never done a tandem myself but i think jumping out on your own is a whole different kettle of fish

plus the rush comes not only from the height/speed you are jumping but what you do in that time...
my last jump (aff level 4) i managed to guide myself down where i missed the spot by only a couple of feet (and stood up)

I think its like driving a car and being a passenger. totally different experiences

[jakee 1,489]

Quote

Hi all,
Did my first tandem jump a little while ago...

Well that is your problem right there! Tandem is generally little more than a carnival ride.

Do a few AFF jumps putting your life in your own hands before you write off skydiving. It's not about the adrenaline rush, it's about the skill and the challenge. Planning a difficult jump and nailing it is what brings the rush.

And getting straight into BASE jumping without doing a lot more skydives would be very inadvisable

Do you want to have an ideagasm?

[pinkfairy 0]

I don't do it for the rush, that's just an extra bonus sometimes. I do it to fly my body, that's what I love about it.

You might want to read up on BASE jumping before deciding on it, there are articles on this site about it.

Also, about your tandem jump: if things are hyped a lot, and said to be "the greatest kick", then you'll easily disappointed. Maybe there is no such thing as "the ultimate kick", only different degrees of fun, or boredom. Maybe you have to make the most of what you get and that it's ultimately up to you how much fun you have.

I've had OK jumps, boring jumps and jumps where I was tracking away, thinking : "OMFG, I'm the best, this is sooo cool, don't forget to open parachute and land, now!"

Skydiving is very different from paragliding, for one thing we pay for altitude and then burn it, while paraglider people gain altitude by flying. It's also pretty short and intense, and very social. The really fun stuff is done with your friends.

Just my thoughts.

Relax, you can die if you mess up, but it will probably not be by bullet.

I'm a BIG, TOUGH BIGWAY FORMATION SKYDIVER! What are you?

[anthonymcgrath 0]

I started my static line last year but didn't get very far with it at all - I went up sat morning, did all my paperwork n groundwork and it was good fun. weather prevented my getting a tandem jump that day though :(
I went back on the sunday which was a nice sunny day and did my first tandem jump and bloody loved it.
We landed I jumped up and down and said get me up there to start my static line asap please.

so - 1 hour later, I'm back on the plane. I only had to do a first static line release from 3.5k feet - a doddle I thought... we climb the height and as we get higher and higher I'm thinking "I have to jump out of this plane on my own"... thats was a scary moment and I nearly didn't go any further but I thought "I'm up here I may as well get down the way I wanted or I'll just be annoyed at myself later on" lol!
I step out onto the wheel/brace thing as instructed in my ground tutoring... outside the plane at 60knots and the wind feels like ice shards on my fingers. I'm holding onto the support strut of the plane wing, stood with one leg hanging out in the pre-let go pose (sorry I dont know the jargon yet lol!)... I look left and I can see the tutor sat on his knees in the safety of the plane with his thumb up urging me to let go. fortunately I didn't really think or panic and just did as I was told assuming that hips-pushed-forward pose as best I could and did my count.
my canopy opens but I look up and see twisted lines and a high riser. I got a fright and remember hearing myself going "oh shit oh shit" yet at the same time I distinctly remember auto-kicking outward in circular motions (again - as instructed on ground) and the lines unravelled and my riser came down too hurrah!
After that it was check around for other jumpers and then enjoy the view, which was an awesome contrast to what had just happened, before coming to landing time I did the approach correctly but flared a little too high and ended up in a heap but fortunately not damaged - I was tought some kind of roll on the ground which I employed as soon as I contacted the ground - forgot the name now though.

so once I were on the ground it occured to me what had happened up there. I got back to the hangar and told the guys about my twisted lines 'ah it happens all the time' I got back!!! !?!! cheers chaps!
of course they're never gonna tell you that on the ground as you'd get a fright before even getting up there and thats why you do all the groundwork in prep for things like that happening.
It then hit me later on that my first static line jump hadn't really gone all that smoothly BUT I had got a chance to test out all my tutoring and that gave me a great buzz that I hadn't really panicked and just auto-resolved the problems in possibly the most extreme situation I've ever put myself in!
I'm due to start my AFF course on the 7th july and I have about six hundred quid on top of that for extra jumps during the rest of the week - a year later, barely any skydiving and Its still imprinted in my mind - I want that 14,000 feet jump to be MINE - not attached to a tandem instructor and by jiminy I'm gonna go get it :D

ant