AFF1- Rode the plane down :(

[luke2481 0]

Keep up with the assumptions buddy. You are one of the reason's i have never been on here.

[stringtheorygal 0]

Well, I'll just have to discuss whether or not the sport is for me with my instructors who seemed quite pleased with my AFF3 yesterday.

Super clean exit, got stable right away and fell right down the tube with a smile on my face! It was pretty AWESOME (still smiling) and I'm headed back for more this weekend.

Definitely getting that nervous anticipation on the way up, but as soon as the door opens, it's all laser-focus.

So, while I appreciate your surely well-intentioned advice, I'll keep jumping, learning, smiling and enjoying until my instructors give me the heave-ho.

Thanks again all! Blue skies!

[luke2481 0]

Well yes, it was well intended. Is intentioned a word? Just offering you the other side of the coin, which is more than likely something you have already thought about.

[shorehambeach 9]

Thanks Buddy. Move on. Nothing to see here.

[shorehambeach 9]

WOWZA ! SUPERB !!! Well done.

Post the vids if you have one.

[stringtheorygal 0]

http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/well-intentioned

:)

[shorehambeach 9]

fookin brilliant

[stringtheorygal 0]

Thanks shore! No videos yet but hopefully this weekend's jumps will yield a couple. Will definitely post up!

[skymama 37]

That's enough fussing for now. The OP is passing her levels and is feeling more confident. Adjusting to the sky takes some longer to calm their nerves than others. I admire the OP for her perseverance and tenacity!

She is Da Man, and you better not mess with Da Man,
because she will lay some keepdown on you faster than, well, really fast. ~Billvon

[RevvyAiny 0]

Hi there. Welcome. Just want to offer you some encouragement.

I am a written exam away from my B license. Twice during my AFP progression I chose to land with the plane rather than jump. If you are not feeling confident, then you are not feeling confident and pushing through is not a good idea.

I had several skydivers, including my AFP instructor, encourage me to honor that feeling of "not now; not today." It could save your life sometime.

Something I did to help my head game: I ordered a kind of self-hypnosis CD by a sports psychologist from Amazon.com. It helped immeasurably.

I also learned to channel any anxiety about jumping into positive things: checking my gear, rehearsing the dive, deep breathing. Singing also helps

Hang in there!

[popsjumper 2]

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I had several skydivers, including my AFP instructor, encourage me to honor that feeling of "not now; not today." It could save your life sometime.

...as it should be.
And you may tell them for me..."Thanks, and a tip o' the hat from an old-timer."

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

[Namowal 0]

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I admire the OP for her perseverance and tenacity!

Agreed!

My blog with the skydiving duck cartoons.

[hybrid59 0]

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Flip your perspective of fear. I never feel so thoroughly alive and in the moment as when I am afraid. That is part of why skydiving hooked me in the first place. As crazy as it sounds I love the feeling fear gives me. It feels as if all of my senses go into high definition. It is like a sudden injection of the best drug in the world. The sky is bluer, the grass is greener, and I become hyper alert. Everyone feels fear when they start in the sport. Those that don't are either liars, or they have a screw loose. To be honest sometimes I still get a pinch of fear when doing something new in the sport. My first tandem (as the instructor) I felt that old familiar feeling creep in. Put a big ass smile on my face because I hadn't felt it in awhile, and I missed it. My first cutaway was amazing. It feels really good to save your life. Remember fear is temporary, but regret is forever.

I respectfully disagree with others that have stated something similiar to laying off the studying and preperation. I am stoked to hear a student put in that kind of work. There is only so much information I can bombard a student with in the first jump course. Getting your own time in the SIM is awesome, and is to be applauded. The sport is risky. You CAN die. If you are willing to accept that risk the next step is do do everything you can to ensure that you don't (die). The only way to do that besides actual experience (that comes with jumps and time) is by doing exactly what you have been. Know what to do when the shit hits the fan. Throwing yourself out of plane without that knowledge is suicidal. Your first jump course was just the bare legal minimum.

You just need to accept fear. It is okay to be afraid. Just don't let your fear keep you from your dreams. Learn to embrace it, or just kick it in the balls.

The dreams are normal.

That is probably the best advice I have ever heard or seen on the internet or otherwise. That goes way beyond just skydiving, it goes for any dream anyone has. EFD4LIFE you are a wise person!

[stringtheorygal 0]

Revvy, thank you for your thoughtful and encouraging post! I'm so pleased to hear of the support you received re: "not now, not today".

You know, it's funny...I've gotten both flack and words of commendation for my refusal. Guess which age group gave me the most support? If you guessed the older, been-jumping-for-20-years group, you'd be right. Hmm....maybe that's why they've made it to that 15 thousand+ jump mark :)

[stringtheorygal 0]

Oh my! I feel like a celebrity just commented in my thread...wowee!

I love your blog and think of it often- especially when I hit those rough spots along the journey. Thank you so much for your inspiration- you have an incredible gift.

Hope your recovery is moving along swiftly.

[Namowal 0]

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Oh my! I feel like a celebrity just commented in my thread...wowee!

I read this reply first without reading who it was addressed to and thought Celebrity? Did Felix Baumgartner or someone chime in here? Then I found it it was to me, noob of noobs, and no role model (at least when it comes to exiting the plane)

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I love your blog and think of it often- especially when I hit those rough spots along the journey. Thank you so much for your inspiration- you have an incredible gift.

Thanks. I never knew it would inspire anyone when I first started working on it. So much of it was (and is) unflattering: me being afraid, me screwing up etc.. I guess the good news is that you don't need to be fearless or flawless to get better at the sport.

My blog with the skydiving duck cartoons.

[ghost47 18]

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I never knew it would inspire anyone when I first started working on it. So much of it was (and is) unflattering: me being afraid, me screwing up etc.

That's why it's inspiring. You were afraid, you screwed up, yet each time you tried again, you learned, you got better. Someone who wasn't a natural skydiver but kept trying and trying until she got it is much more inspiring than someone who was naturally good at it.

[377 22]

Good for you to have the guts to tell your story here, most wouldnt.

If in doubt, dont jump, ever. Its not bad advice. Riding the plane down might get you ridiculed, but thats not such a big deal.

Lets say you were climbing to jump altitude and you couldnt remember if you cocked your pilot chute, or armed your AAD or ... best bet is to just spend the $20 for a round trip plane ride.

As for being scared to exit, it will start to attenuate around 30 jumps or so. I was really scared on my first freefall jumps. They didnt have AFF or tandems back then. You just exited alone and hoped you could stay stable. Eventually you learned. Now 43 years later, exiting isnt scary, but my heart rate still acclerates after I toss my pilot chute and am waiting for my canopy to open. This sport never loses its thrill because no matter how long you've been doing it, there is always some aspect that gives you a big shot of adrenaline.


377

2018 marks half a century as a skydiver. Trained by the late Perry Stevens D-51 in 1968.

[stringtheorygal 0]

Here here!

[stringtheorygal 0]

Glad to hear the thrill never dies! Had a couple of non-skydivers (I'd call them whuffos, but hey, I'm still one of those!) roll their eyes saying once the "new" wears off, it will be like anything else. I don't see them jumping, though

Interesting, from most I've spoken to, it seems somewhere between jumps 20 and 40 that the exit fears appear to dissipate. It really is so odd to see other jumpers "dozing" on the way to altitude. I feel like standing up and shouting, "how can you sleep???! Do you realize what you're about to do??!!!!"

Thanks for your thoughts, 377. I'll remember to trust my gut, even if it keeps me off the "cool" list . Hey, I'm throwing myself out of a plane...last thing on my mind is "cool". Ha!

[Trafficdiver 8]

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It really is so odd to see other jumpers "dozing" on the way to altitude.

Someday you will doze too. Especially on a Sunday morning of a boogie.

[muff528 3]

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Glad to hear the thrill never dies! Had a couple of non-skydivers (I'd call them whuffos, but hey, I'm still one of those!) roll their eyes saying once the "new" wears off, it will be like anything else. I don't see them jumping, though

Interesting, from most I've spoken to, it seems somewhere between jumps 20 and 40 that the exit fears appear to dissipate. It really is so odd to see other jumpers "dozing" on the way to altitude. I feel like standing up and shouting, "how can you sleep???! Do you realize what you're about to do??!!!!"

Thanks for your thoughts, 377. I'll remember to trust my gut, even if it keeps me off the "cool" list . Hey, I'm throwing myself out of a plane...last thing on my mind is "cool". Ha!

Nope! No longer a whuffo ...you're on your way! Funny thing is you will soon fear riding the plane down!

[FlyingRhenquest 1]

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If in doubt, dont jump, ever. Its not bad advice. Riding the plane down might get you ridiculed, but thats not such a big deal.

Damn straight. You should always trust your instincts. I'd rather ride the plane down early on a few times and be wrong about whatever set me off than jump and get hurt. No one (who's not a huge asshole) should ridicule you for trusting your instincts and riding the plane down. If someone's enough of an asshole to ridicule you for that, you shouldn't care what they have to say anyway!

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As for being scared to exit, it will start to attenuate around 30 jumps or so. I was really scared on my first freefall jumps. They didnt have AFF or tandems back then. You just exited alone and hoped you could stay stable. Eventually you learned. Now 43 years later, exiting isnt scary, but my heart rate still acclerates after I toss my pilot chute and am waiting for my canopy to open. This sport never loses its thrill because no matter how long you've been doing it, there is always some aspect that gives you a big shot of adrenaline.

It was much sooner for me, with the AFF program. It's going to be different for everyone, of course. Around jump 4 or 5, I realized that the worst possible thing I could think of happening at the door was my strength just completely failing me and falling out the door early. Being confident of my equipment and realizing that "falling out of the plane" was pretty much my goal anyway, I was no longer afraid.

I'm not sure what my reaction would be if I were next to the door without a parachute, though. I'm also still a little wary of it on the ride up. A couple places down there, your only choices for landing would be a road or a bunch of trees. I play a little game of "Spot the emergency landing zone" on the way up.

I'm trying to teach myself how to set things on fire with my mind. Hey... is it hot in here?

[RevvyAiny 0]

Same here -- the support came entirely from older skydivers who have been around, seen a lot and have their own stories to tell about heeding that instinct. Their understanding and encouragement helped me face down the collective "what's wrong with you" I was getting fr other corners.

If any if you are reading this -- thank you!

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[pookieland 0]

The first step is the biggiest. If you payed attenchen in the class room and you understand that things can go wronge. You'll have no problem dealing with anything that may come up.
You had to take a test to get your drivers lisence and you deal with way more obsticals. But by using the information you got in a class room in knowing what to do is how you enjoy getting around in your car.
You been to class you got the mental tools, and I hope you get a chance to enjoy the fun time infront of you..

Stop Touching Me!!!

Muff Brother# 4466