What was YOUR bottleneck?

[Baksteen 84]

Like I said elsewhere, everyone has some bottleneck or other that 'hinders' their progression toward their licence.

For me it was the accuracy trick coupled with flying a consistent pattern - and on new (to me) canopies it still is to some degree.
As a consequence, I have "unnecessarily" made tippety toe perfect landings (as well as some slidings) in any type of field you can imagine, including corn taller than I am, wheat, grass, McNasty's actual front lawn, grass fields with or without different types of livestock, dirt, potatoes, a freshly manured field etc.

At some point I had 1 in 3 out landings... then i suddenly saw the Light.

So what was your 'handicap'?

"That formation-stuff in freefall is just fun and games but with an open parachute it's starting to sound like, you know, an extreme sport."
~mom

[danielcroft 2]

Does the weather count?

[Broke 0]

Right now I am working on learnign a new to me canopy. I need to open up my pattern more than I am used to. I used to fly an old F111 7 cell, and now I am flying a not as old ZP 9 cell that is 10 sq feet smaller. Definitally a learning curve there.

I also need to work more on the accuracy trick more so I can get my B and do night jumps.

Divot your source for all things Hillbilly.
Anvil Brother 84
SCR 14192

[slingerapie 0]

For me, it was doing a backloop... For some reason it took me forever nailing it. Sometimes I was too slow and going around every axis my body could find, or too fast making 2 backloops in one, or didn't come out stable enough, or, when I thought it was pretty good, it wasn't observed....

Some other tasks took me 2-3 jumps, but most of it was 1-2.
I think that our dutch way of going for your A licence differs from the US way.
(btw, I was static line trained)

No problems with accuracy and flying pattern here... LOL.

Illona

Don't try to live forever, you will not succeed!

[repcool 2]

I struggled with my flair for the longest time.

It took a solid commitment to hop n' pops for a couple of months to get to where I can fly the canopy into landing instead of just wishing really hard for it to be over.

[grimmie 186]

My wallet!

[wildWilly 0]

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My wallet!

Bingo

growing old is inevitable, growing up is optional.

[JohnMitchell 16]

Flat spins. Wasted three 15 second delays wondering why I spun like a prop. Looking back now as an instructor, I realize my training was sub par.

[LloydDobbler 2]

For me? Fall rate.

Weighing 130 out the door (fully geared-up) meant coaches couldn't stay up with me. Every time I got a coach I hadn't worked with before, I warned them that "I have the fall rate of a ping-pong ball"...and every time, they said, "I'll wear a baggy jumpsuit, and we should be fine."

And every time, they sunk out. (One of them even wore his camera wings to fly with me).

Results:

1) I got really good at diving down. When I started doing 20-ways about a year ago, I quickly became a late diver. I've been last one out a number of times, and close on formations with no problems.

2) I spent a lot of my first 50 jumps flying by myself. While it was a good excuse to work on my sitflying, it really took a lot of the fun out of it.

It wasn't until I got in the tunnel with a good coach who taught me the mantis and showed me that yes, I *can* arch harder (in spite of being a relatively-inflexible guy) that I got over that hurdle. And yes, I strap on a few pounds of lead on occasion to help me fly in my neutral position (instead of max arch)...but for the most part, I've just learned to fly my body.

Signatures are the new black.

[JohnDeere 0]

Time

Nothing opens like a Deere!

You ignorant fool! Checks are for workers!

[brucet7 0]

Like you, Fall Rate. Except just the opposite. I am 260+ out the door and fall like a rock. I have a couple of people I can jump with, and I am getting a bigger suit this week, but my RW has suffered because people can't keep up with me. I am doing what I can, but it ain't easy.

Oh, and for those who want to suggest lose weight, I am, 70+ pounds and still going down.

POPS #10623; SOS #1672

[dragon2 2]

Clear&pulls. Took me forever to do them stable, and since I was jumping a lightning at the time, every unstable/too long delay hurt too I got nicknamed a freeflyer for a while then too

ciel bleu,
Saskia

[Andy9o8 2]

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Flat spins. Wasted three 15 second delays wondering why I spun like a prop. Looking back now as an instructor, I realize my training was sub par.

That was my problem, too. Lots of flat spins, tumbling, etc. The only ongoing "training" I got was being told to "relax", as if a student can just will himself to do that, and "try not to kick". Well, I wasn't aware I was kicking when I did it, thanks to sensory overload, etc., so I just kept going back up and doing the same thing again. By the time I got stable, it was time to pull, so I was stuck on 5 or 10 second delays seemingly forever.

I also immediately arched belly-to-earth right off the step; it wasn't until I had over 20 jumps that a newly A-licensed jumper (but not any of my JMs) told me how to present to the relative wind, and look up at the plane. And that cured the problem. But it was taught to me by another newbie, not an instructor.

A few female students with stability problems were taken on AFF-style jumps by male up-jumpers (this was in the 70s before AFF existed), but that option was never given to male students.

[Ether 0]

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Like I said elsewhere, everyone has some bottleneck or other that 'hinders' their progression toward their licence.
So what was your 'handicap'?

I'm stuck at solo status because I'm too shy to ask for a coach to help me sign off my 'A' licence requirements.

Looking for newbie rig, all components...

[jrcolo 0]

Having to go to another DZ

[JohnMitchell 16]

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The only ongoing "training" I got was being told to "relax", as if a student can just will himself to do that,


it wasn't until I had over 20 jumps that a newly A-licensed jumper (but not any of my JMs) told me how to present to the relative wind,

Yep, I was trained in the frog position, arching on top the packing table, stiff as cast iron. They kept saying "relax" and I said that I was, and I was doing the body position as trained.

The whole reason I got a JM rating was to pay back my good instructors (Thank you) and to dilute the few crappy ones I had. I like to think I've done okay.

[grannyinthesky 0]

It took me to jump #23 to stand up a landing. I was beginning to wonder if I was ever going to manage it.

"safety first... and What the hell.....
safety second, Too!!! " ~~jmy

POPS #10490

[ladydyver 0]

my first handicap was backsliding....man could i backslide like the wind blows....then it was landing which I had worked out for about 100 jumps than BAM! Injury. now my handicap is my knee - but I am ahead in PT and will be jumping as soon as possible.

DPH # 2
"I am not sure what you are suppose to do with that, but I don't think it is suppose to flop around like that." ~Skootz~
I have a strong regard for the rules.......doc!

[danielcroft 2]

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I'm stuck at solo status because I'm too shy to ask for a coach to help me sign off my 'A' licence requirements.

Maybe there's a coach on here from your DZ that could help you?

[popsjumper 2]

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Flat spins. Wasted three 15 second delays wondering why I spun like a prop. Looking back now as an instructor, I realize my training was sub par.

I'd pipe in here too like Andy908 but I can't. My brother was my JM. But he DID pound PLFs into me and I am forever thankful for that.

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

[Andy9o8 2]

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Flat spins. Wasted three 15 second delays wondering why I spun like a prop. Looking back now as an instructor, I realize my training was sub par.

I'd pipe in here too like Andy908 but I can't. My brother was my JM. But he DID pound PLFs into me and I am forever thankful for that.

That is so gay. (Not that there's anything wrong with it.)

On the subject of PLF's & the adequacy of training, in my FJC (and other FJC's I saw at that DZ around the same time) we were not taught PLFs - at all. Mind you, this was the 70s, so we were all jumping cheapos (mil-surp rounds). I distinctly remember our FJI telling us, "we teach the stand-up landing," which was simply "face into the wind, feet & knees tightly together & look up at the horizon; and when you land, try to 'squat.' " That was it. (Purely out of interest, I taught myself - I guess - how to PLF by jumping off our picnic table in my back yard.) Another DZ.com-er who trained at that DZ about a year before I did has mentioned that his class was taught to PLF. Well, maybe so, but by the time I got there they were not doing it.

[micduran 0]

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I'm stuck at solo status because I'm too shy to ask for a coach to help me sign off my 'A' licence requirements.

This is the saddest statement I've read on here.
Are the instructors and coaches at your DZ not approachable? Can you travel to another DZ? Or talk to the DZO about getting some help?
I'd hate to see you spend so much time on solo status that you just give up the sport.

Be patient with the faults of others; they have to be patient with yours.

[Ether 0]

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Are the instructors and coaches at your DZ not approachable?

The DZ atmosphere is kind of funny, but not much different from others as far as I can tell. Sometimes it feels like I'm back in high school again and I'm the geek in the corner watching the jocks run around having fun (something someone else observed quietly to me once too).

No, mostly it's just that I'm very, very, shy, and that doesn't pair well with being a perfectionist and not having great self-confidence in my physical ability. My learning curve is very odd -- I appear to not have gotten the hang of anything at all until I fully understand all components and can put it all together, and then BAM! I've got it all right -- great at work when I can get up to speed on new things quickly, but crappy on the dropzone when I screw up everything and get the bowling speech before getting my solo (and then a hospital ride at a boogie).

I took up skydiving precisely because it's such a challenge though, so I think I'll be sticking with it...

Looking for newbie rig, all components...

[airathanas 0]

I agree with Michelle-

Speak up! I love jumping with newbies!!

As far as my own 'hiccups' in progress:
-landing patterns (consistenty entering the pattern too early)
-flare timing (I still wear knee pads)
-sit flying (my arms and posture)

Packing, money, and time used to be issues, but not any more!

http://3ringnecklace.com/

[mamajumps 0]

Thanks so much for starting this thread! My issues have really hurt my confidence, but it is good to read about others and how they have overcome it. I am demoing a Sabre 2 170 this weekend, we'll see how me and my landing issues fair with that!