leg straps hurt

[gnotz 0]

So far I have only jumped with rented student gear. Hanging under the canopy, sitting in those leg straps is so painful to the groin that I can't enjoy the experience at all. After 2 jumps I had trouble walking the next day. Could not have imagined doing more. I have tried 3 different student rigs and had the same problem with all of them.
Question: Is this a normal problem with student rigs? Are the leg straps on more advanced containers more anatomical or better padded?
Is there better padding available?
Who knows what I'm talking about and who can sympathize?
If this continues and I can't fly the canopy without a bite-wood, I am not sure how I can stick with the sport that I otherwise love.

[DSE 5]

The rental rigs I had hurt like hell. I used oven mitts to mitigate the pain. Some of it is just your muscles not being familiar with this use. Some of it is that the straps are made to be tough.
Purchased rigs are usually very different.

[tkhayes 348]

some gear just sucks. some instructors/DZs/whatever also may not know how to properly fit the gear either.

Snug yes, take the slack out, but cutting off the circulation is no good either.

Positioning of the legstraps is very important as well. around the thigh and under your butt.

Last, I expect you are a big guy right? How are the openings. Have to learned to sit up for the opening shock so you do not start off the canopy ride with a painful experience (deployment)? Spending another 4-5 minutes under a parachute that just knocked the shit out of you is usually not pleasant.

So too many questions.

Your gear, your size, the fit of the container, your experience level, your deployments- all matter.

[jrmrangers 0]

i would go home with a ring of bruising around my thighs almost evry weekend after using the student rigs so i feel your pain. Like was said earlier, some of that is because your exposing your body to a new shocks and your legs will get more accustomed to it. But the biggest change will be when you get to either rental or your own gear. The difference is huge!! I bought my own gear right off student status and the feel of a rig made for you is amazing!! Good luck with your progression and BLUE SKIES!!!

Wait , I pull what first?

[Blamey 0]

What you are wearing helps too. I once jumped a student rig wearing sweat pants on a hop and pop. Hurt like hell the whole way down, never experienced that kind of uncomfortableness wearing a jump suit.

I am a big guy and on many of the student rigs I jumped the padding on the leg straps didn't really reach around my thigs well but some were fine. This often made then ride a little uncomfortable but I only experienced the above pain once.

Something does seem wrong maybe with the way you are sitting, either while flying or during deployment.

[jsaxton 0]

If your instructor agrees meby you could try slipping a couple of those padded seatbelt covers over the legstraps until you're jumping better gear

[Rover 11]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=unkIVvjZc9Y

2 wrongs don't make a right - but 3 lefts do.

[hookitt 1]

Slide some soft elbow pads over the leg straps That might help. I did that on my BASE rig for a while. The other option is get a rectangle piece of foam. Cut a slot in it so your certain body parts have a place of their own and put it in your pants. Tighten down the rig and enjoy the comfort.

I learned on old Telesis rigs with Super Ravens as the main. They can be packed to open comfortable. We had one seasoned instructor that insisted on packing. He had no clue how to soften the openings. It slammed the shit out of me leaving some serious bruises. I figured out the foam trick on my own. It made a world of difference.

This part doesn't matter now but I also learned that whoever packed the rig, had to put their name in a log book next to the rig number so they could get paid. I made sure to look at the book my last 3 AFF levels and solos until I transitioned to a normal hand deploy rig.

My grammar sometimes resembles that of magnetic refrigerator poetry... Ghetto

[1888 0]

Have you tried moving your nuts?

[Krip 2]

Quote

This part doesn't matter now but I also learned that whoever packed the rig, had to put their name in a log book next to the rig number so they could get paid. I made sure to look at the book my last 3 AFF levels and solos until I transitioned to a normal hand deploy rig.

Hi Hookitt

Ding Ding ding I think we have a winner.

Your post shook some of the cob webbs out of my old brain.

My last canopy was a sabre 1 I only had two very firm openings in about 3-400 jumps.

The first one I packed myself

I did everything to get my 500 jump crusielight to open faster, big hole in slider, nose fully exposed. etc Finally had to throw it away, it got to scary for the altitude we were opening at. Didn't have the heart to sell it for even a nickle.

The first time we jumped the Sabre 1, The opening was I thought my shoes were going to come off on opening.

While walking back to the packing area I reviewed my packing procedures and realized I had made a major brain fart. I had left the nose on a brand new Sabre one fully exposed, just like i did on my snivelly cruiselight

After that fubar I rolled the shit out of the nose, payed attention to the slider etc etc. No more slammers

Until I got lazy on holiday trip to Z-hills and met some real professional packers. Never had a problem with the opening on the Sabre 1

Until I returned to the local DZ and got lazy again and let someone I didn't know pack my Sabre one.

The canopy had 300 more jumps on it, but that opening was much worse than my Fubar, It felt like line dump, improper slider placement, and the nose fully exposed

I didn't bitch, whine or complain, just payed the packer, said thank you, threw my rig in my car and went home. It was my fault again because I let someone I didn't know pack my rig.

Lesson learned the hard way Not all packers are created equal, No one is going to do as good a job as you will do for yourself.

Learn how to Pack ASAP!!!!!! from someone that knows how to pack.

If you get lazy and use a packer at a boogie that you don't know beware!!!

R.

One Jump Wonder

[riggerrob 643]

Quote

What you are wearing helps too. I once jumped a student rig wearing sweat pants on a hop and pop. ...

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Funny!
I had the exact opposite experience during Army jump school.
Since the Army's suspended training harnesses were older-than-dirt, sweat-soaked and folded to a 64th of an inch wide, I cut down an old pair of thick sweat pants and hid them under my combat pants to cushion my skinny thighs.
I doubt if I would have survived the "torture racks" without that extra padding!

[gnotz 0]

I am not overweight (6ft, 180 lbs), and my family jewels are not in the way. Glad to hear I am not the only one with the pain problem. They make those pants for bicyclists that have foam built in. I think I might try some of those. Thanks for all the answers.

[IcarusMaybe 0]

Coming from doing static line military jumps with some snappy openings, and a few incidents involving the family jewels, I wear two pieces of protection. Support shorts, with a cup if I'm doing static line mil jumps, just the shorts for skydiving. They keep everything in its proper place away from the leg straps. The second is slider shorts like baseball players wear. Started doing this when my legs were getting torn up by the unpadded straps on mil rigs. Works great, and a little extra protection if you have to slide out a landing.

[theonlyski 8]

I just wore a pair of PT shorts under my pants. Kept the boys from slipping under a leg strap well enough.

I still remember the bruises from the capewells on the training harnesses.

"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

[riggerrob 643]

"

Quote

... I still remember the bruises from the capewells on the training harnesses.

"

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Only got bruises from Capewells?
You had it easy son!
Back in my day, we had bruises on on body parts we did not know existed before ... ran uphill .. both ways ... in the snow ... FNC1 rifles ... snowshoes ...

[theonlyski 8]

Well. Capewells on the shoulders, d-rings on the ribs.

Cardiac hill isn't the most fun way to wrap a long run up with! No snow shoes though.

"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

[the1337aaron 0]

yeah on my first tandem the leg straps hurt like hell when we deployed and when we did turns with the canopy, felt like it was gonna cut my legs off! hopefully i can tell them the problem next time and they will help me out.

Chuck Norris CAN go skydiving without a parachute

[steve1 5]

One of my rigs has painful leg straps. I took some strips of dense foam and put those between the leg strap and their covers. It helped a bunch...