Advice for a Pianist?

[miconar 0]

Hi everyone

I started jumping four months ago. Among my other interests i also play the piano. Recently I had slider stuck all the way up, and had to pump it. It all worked out fine and I had a good chute by 3k. But after the experience, I noticed some pain in my fingers, which I can only assume happened when I was in a hurry to grab the toggles and pull them with force to pump the chute open. Now im not being a baby here, if skydiving was all i needed my hands for I probably wouldn't even notice that pain. But as a pianist, my fingers are sacred to me.

Now the pain was gone shortly after that and had no effect on my playing. but the whole thing got me thinking about hearing twice already about people breaking fingers while parachuting. and then I also need my right leg at the very least for the pedal, and of course first and foremost be alive and well enough to play.

So while my basic idea of saftey is the same as anyone else, that is, survive, survive uninjured, survive with out incident, I was hoping for some advice to minimize finger and hands injuries. I would of course break all my fingers to save my life, but if it is not necessary, Id really prefer to skip it. The survive part and the bigger more important part of survive uninjured and with out incident I learned in my aff and im still learning it day by day with instructors at my dz and experience as it comes. its the smaller bits of the survive uninjured and with out incident im asking about.

So any ideas? all I came up with so far is gloves, something that would add some toughness to my fingers and still be flexible. is that a good idea? other suggestions like how to handle riser and toggle issues in a safer way? how do people break fingers or get hurt in the hands while skydiving?

and how about minimizing incidents that require risking fingers and hands to fix like (almost any malfunction I guess) line twists or stuck toggles or stuck sliders hard pulls and handle problems?

Thank you for answering:)

[virgin-burner 1]

i never jump without gloves..

“Some may never live, but the crazy never die.”
-Hunter S. Thompson
"No. Try not. Do... or do not. There is no try."
-Yoda

[GLIDEANGLE 1]

1. Gloves. This will is very helpful for diminishing scrapes/scratches/imbedded gravel from lousy landings.

2. Keep your hands in close to you when flaring. Many folks reccommend keeping hands in front of crotch when finishing the flare. That keeps hands from being likley points of impact if you roll out the landing.

3. Beware of the door on an Otter. There is a wicked pinch point between the bar at the top of the door and the metal reinforcing strips on the inside of the plexiglass. If a hand is around the bar when the door is opening or closing....OUCH!!!

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

[beowulf 1]

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3. Beware of the door on an Otter. There is a wicked pinch point between the bar at the top of the door and the metal reinforcing strips on the inside of the plexiglass. If a hand is around the bar when the door is opening or closing....OUCH!!!

Done that before!! Very painful. I have video from my point of view looking down at my knuckles outside the Otter watching the blood flow!

[Fast 0]

I think this goes w/o saying, but maybe not.

Don't wear ANY rings while you are skydiving. Not even a wedding ring. The risk of getting your finger stuck somewhere on the ring and then having your whole body hanging from that finger (i.e. having your finger ripped off or badly broken) is up there.

~D
Where troubles melt like lemon drops Away above the chimney tops That's where you'll find me.
Swooping is taking one last poke at the bear before escaping it's cave - davelepka

[loumeinhart 0]

Playing piano is about 85% of my income and I don't do anything different. I don't wear gloves.

I landed hard at around 50 jumps and banged my left wrist pretty good. I can feel it click sometimes if I'm comping with my left hand.

My fingers/wrists feel like they are worked harder from packing rather then jumping.

And don't let anyone request piano man!

[wmw999 2,452]

OK, I realize this ain't Bonfire, but this is just too good. Advice attached.

Wendy P.

There is nothing more dangerous than breaking a basic safety rule and getting away with it. It removes fear of the consequences and builds false confidence. (tbrown)

[virgin-burner 1]

isnt that true for everyone!?

“Some may never live, but the crazy never die.”
-Hunter S. Thompson
"No. Try not. Do... or do not. There is no try."
-Yoda

[Andy9o8 2]

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Advice for a Pianist?

So this guy finds a magic lamp, and rubs it. Whooosh! Out pops a genie. Just the guy's luck, the genie's getting up there in years, and is hard of hearing. The genie says, "OK, make a wish." The guy whispers something into the old genie's ear. A cloud of smoke, a crackle of lightning, and Pooof! - next thing the guy knows, right there next him appears a 9-inch tall guy dressed in a tuxedo, standing next to a little toy piano.

[miconar 0]

Thanks everyone for the ideas..

The packing is shit on the fingers, yes, I just take my time and make sure I dont aply too much force.

Any more ideas?

and about the drug use is a good advice for everyone :)

[Halfpastniner 0]

Sing us a song.... Piano Man!

BASE 1384

[moto89 0]

Be careful about reaching up to grab your risers early in the deployment. I injured my right thumb when it was whacked by riser slap, and I'm certain that I am not the first person to experience that.

Less talking, more flying.

[wmw999 2,452]

To be honest, the other thing I'd be careful to protect while skydiving would be hearing. Use earplugs.

Wendy P.

There is nothing more dangerous than breaking a basic safety rule and getting away with it. It removes fear of the consequences and builds false confidence. (tbrown)

[MikeJD 0]

Ah, mystery skydiving injuries. They're all part of the sport. Once in a while you finish a day's jumping with a massive bruise somewhere and no idea how you got it.
If you're an FS jumper using creepers then you're pretty much guaranteed to get a finger run over every now and again - hurts like hell, but breaks are rare and gloves do help. I also always jump in gloves, even on the hottest days.

I'd recommend always taking an overhand grip on the aircraft rail - especially if you're wearing an altimeter that can get trapped between the rail and the fuselage.

Packing takes it toll, but mainly superficially - I suspect it's actually pretty good finger exercise.

Probably the easiest way to really mess up your hands and/ or wrists is with a bad landing. It's human instinct to put a hand down when we're falling, and a good way to break it. Don't do it! In a PLF position, which is the recommended way to deal with uncontrolled landings, you're doing the opposite - pulling your hands and elbows in to protect both them and your face.

Still, your priorities come across as a bit skewed. The situations you mention are a potential danger to your life, not just your fingering! You should be trying to avoid them whether you're a pianist or not.

[BenediktDE 2]

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3. Beware of the door on an Otter. There is a wicked pinch point between the bar at the top of the door and the metal reinforcing strips on the inside of the plexiglass. If a hand is around the bar when the door is opening or closing....OUCH!!!

Same on some C208 Caravan doors!

For every complex problem there is an answer that is clear, simple, and wrong.

[skydiverbry 0]

Sing us a song tonight...........

--------------------------------------------------
Growing old is mandatory.Growing up is optional!!

D.S.#13(Dudeist Skdiver)

[miconar 0]

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...
Still, your priorities come across as a bit skewed. The situations you mention are a potential danger to your life, not just your fingering! You should be trying to avoid them whether you're a pianist or not.

Thank you for all the info in your post, it was very helpful, and thanks everyone else for your ideas :)

Like I said in my original post, I'd break all my fingers to save my life. on that malfunction I was talking about, I was not thinking about my fingers. I was thinking about my safety drills, and going through them. Having done that I decided to seek advice on protecting my hands and fingers while being a safe sky diver first.

[Andy9o8 2]

Read this thread, entitled "Broken finger, stupid mistake."

http://www.dropzone.com/cgi-bin/forum/gforum.cgi?post=3655423;sb=post_latest_reply;so=ASC;forum_view=forum_view_collapsed;;page=unread#unread

[miconar 0]

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To be honest, the other thing I'd be careful to protect while skydiving would be hearing. Use earplugs.

Wendy P.

Are we talking regular earplugs to mute the engine, or something that has to do with the quick pressure changes involved in a jump?

[Andy9o8 2]

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To be honest, the other thing I'd be careful to protect while skydiving would be hearing. Use earplugs.

Are we talking regular earplugs to mute the engine, or something that has to do with the quick pressure changes involved in a jump?

Noise-dampening earplugs to reduce the amount of noise reaching your ears from (1) the aircraft engine, and (2) the sound of the wind in freefall. Over time, repeated exposure to each of those noises can take a toll on one's hearing.

[hackish 8]

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Noise-dampening earplugs to reduce the amount of noise reaching your ears from (1) the aircraft engine, and (2) the sound of the wind in freefall. Over time, repeated exposure to each of those noises can take a toll on one's hearing.

Sorry. What did you say?

I'm wondering if anyone has considered the noise exposure in different planes? Skyvan is definitley loud! Or how about freefall with different helmets?

-Michael

[labrys 0]

we're all in the mood for a melody....

Owned by Remi #?

[virgin-burner 1]

my mindwarp cuts out any noise pretty good i think..

“Some may never live, but the crazy never die.”
-Hunter S. Thompson
"No. Try not. Do... or do not. There is no try."
-Yoda

[madhatter 0]

And you've got us all feelin' all right.

A VERY MERRY UNBIRTHDAY TO YOU!!!
D.S # 125

[wishnstar611 0]

Although I don't play professionally, i've been playing piano my whole life (and various other instruments). Been in the sport for 4 years and have had a lot of mysterious minor bang ups but nothing to impair my piano playing. I have had some random cuts on my hand from hard openings (not quite sure how it happened) and i've banged my hand on the side of the plane on exits before but nothing too bad....i don't wear gloves, but I probably should. You'll probably have the occasional random scrapes and bruises but thats it. Just keep your hands in if you are having a hard landing and try not to take out a formation! Oh and if you are floater on a CASA watch your arm/hand on exit. Smacking the side of the tailgate hurts!