New Kid looking for warning

[JumpsOffCliffs 0]

Ok, ill try to reestablish my english, i apologize it has been a couple months of...well, texting. I will admit english is absolutely not my strong point (Biochemistry)

So my real question is "can i get a heads up on what to expect when i fall out of a plane." I want to be prepared so i get the most out of all the jumps i can afford. im going to leave my question at that to be as clear as i think i will get

the rest of the original post is just cover to hide my question.Unimpressed

again i apologize for the rambling of the original, i want to blame something but i dont think i can.

[grimmie 186]

The gravitational pull on your wallet will be very severe, about 7 G's or so...

[ryan_d_sucks 0]

If you really are broke try to find a dropzone that offers static line training rather than AFF. I started skydiving right before my junior year of college, and by the time I graduated had 150 jumps. There's no way I would have been able to afford to get my license and do those fun jumps if I hadn't done static line.

Now I'm out of college and making grown up money, but I have no time jump! Where is that perfect balance between time and money at?

[JumpsOffCliffs 0]

High School

and ive squirreled away a lot of my graduation money.
And as a college athlete i wont be needing money for much else.

[kelpdiver 2]

Quote

And as a college athlete i wont be needing money for much else.

Will they yank your scholarship if you get hurt on a bad landing?

[Andy9o8 2]

Quote

So ive wanted to skydive since i was 6 and plan on doing it for my 18th birthday(well i have College Orientation on my birthday lame Llamas) but after that im jumping for my AFF license.

so that useless information was for this; can i get some warning on the forces id expect? to my assumption my body will follow my head in freefall?

Im college kid broke so i wanted to get a heads up if its even possible so i can not waste a jump or something

I urge you to take an English composition course when you're a freshman in college. The need for clarity of expression is crucial if you're going to make it in this world, and that cannot be understated. In the meantime, and I mean you no disrespect, I have to confess that I'm having trouble being certain what the hell you're talking about.

[Gato 0]

I must agree with Andy on this one - stop posting like you're texting, please.

You'll need to put on your Big-Boy Pants if you want to hang, kiddo!

T.I.N.S.

[brettski74 0]

Quote

So ive wanted to skydive since i was 6 and plan on doing it for my 18th birthday(well i have College Orientation on my birthday lame Llamas) but after that im jumping for my AFF license.

so that useless information was for this; can i get some warning on the forces id expect? to my assumption my body will follow my head in freefall?

Im college kid broke so i wanted to get a heads up if its even possible so i can not waste a jump or something

Based on Andy's response, I see I'm not the only one having difficulty understanding exactly what your question is. I think the answer you're really looking for is along the lines of shut up and jump!, but I'll give it a go, anyway.

You asked about forces... I wouldn't worry about forces. Once you exit the plane, the only forces acting on you will be a result of inertia, gravity or drag (ie. wind). Unless you do something stupid near the ground, the biggest shock will be opening shock which is typically 3 or 4G from a stable belly-to-earth position at terminal velocity, but that's over in less than a quarter second. You decelerate at about 1.5-2G for another few seconds and then after that you're sitting in your harness and any additional accelerations you wish to feel are entirely up to you.

You also said something about your body following your head. That's pretty much what you want in most sports. To quote Sean Connery in the Highlander, If your head comes away from your neck, it's over. Or perhaps you're asking if it's possible to fly head-down? Yes, that's possible, and part of a popular discipline called free-flying, but you won't learn that straight away. First you'll learn to fly on your belly. Free-flying comes later. You'll get lots of different opinions on just how much later that should be, but you'll have plenty of time to learn about the common and sometimes pointless debates in the sport.

I'm not sure what you're talking about with wasting a jump. If you want to learn to skydive, go find yourself a drop zone near you that offers the type of training program you're after and has people you like and start. You'll have plenty of time to waste jumps later. Right now, you really just need to start learning the sport so that sometime soon, you may have an idea of what questions you really need to ask, but for that to happen, you'll need to experience the sport a little and start to learn a little more about it.

[JumpsOffCliffs 0]

Ok, ill try to reestablish my english, i apologize it has been a couple months of...well, texting. I will admit english is absolutely not my strong point (Biochemistry)

So my real question is "can i get a heads up on what to expect when i fall out of a plane."

the rest of the original post is just cover to hide my question.

again i apologize for the rambling of the original, i want to blame something but i dont think i can.

[IanHarrop 41]

Quote

So my real question is "can i get a heads up on what to expect when i fall out of a plane."

It's really windy once you step out

oh... ya... and... it's the most fun you can have with your clothes on

"Where troubles melt like lemon drops, away above the chimney tops, that's where you'll find me" Dorothy

[JumpsOffCliffs 0]

dang, i didnt plan on having clothes on

[JohnRich 4]

Quote

And as a college athlete...

Tell us what kind of athletic sports you participate in, and maybe we can give you some analogies with skydiving about the kinds of "forces" you'll experience.

[JumpsOffCliffs 0]

haha i dont know why i said that, but i do Pole Vaulting, Hurdles, and now im part of the crew team too.

ive also already gone bungee jumping too if that helps(although i hear its completly different)

[brettski74 0]

Quote

and now im part of the crew team too.

Did you say you're on a CRW team?

If you're question is "what does skydiving feel like?", start with a search, but I can tell you now that no matter how someone tries to explain it to you, you won't understand until you just go and do it. Skydiving is different things to different people and some like different aspects more than others. There are several different disciplines within the sport. I mean, I can tell you it's windy falling through the air at 120mph, but sticking your head out the window while driving down the highway doesn't really do much to clue you in on how you'll feel on a skydive, so just go and jump.

[JumpsOffCliffs 0]

Ok well i already know im going to jump...ive wanted to do it for twelve years. jumping is already two weeks away. but i guess this is a fairly pointless thread when i will probably learn all i need to know in my ground class.

But what i was asking is things like "your going to feel your self looking down but you want to look forward"

eh i guess im over thinking this or something.

[brettski74 0]

Quote

i will probably learn all i need to know in my ground class.

IMHO, the best advice I can give you on learning to skydive is listen to your instructors. There are a few people on here worth listening to, but they'll tell you mostly the same thing in your position. Some will point you to the Skydiver Information Manual (SIM), which you can download for free from the USPA website. If you're into study, that can't hurt.

Quote

But what i was asking is things like "your going to feel your self looking down but you want to look forward"

Again, different things for different people. I'm sure that there have been people who looked down in freefall during AFF. I wasn't one of them. I actually wondered how I would know if I was holding a heading in freefall once my instructor was no longer jumping with me. My first jump by myself, I figured out the answer almost immediately - the ground. I hadn't ever noticed it there on any of my AFF jumps. I was too busy looking at my instructor or doing my training tasks.

Quote

i guess im over thinking this or something.

Probably, but these are common questions from people about to start skydiving. Do a search. They've been done to death, so you're sure to find heaps of responses on here, however, whether they are "answers" or just words may vary wildly from one to the next.

[Gato 0]

Quote

So my real question is "can i get a heads up on what to expect when i fall out of a plane."

I'll give you the answer you need: No.

There are a lot of things these days that you can learn just by watching Youtube. This isn't one of them.

You are over-thinking it. I know, because that's what I did. Don't exhaust yourself trying to find out everything about the sport before you jump for the first time.

What you can expect is a thing we call "information overload" - meaning you'll likely be overwhelmed by the experience. I personally have never met anyone who didn't experience some form of overload in the beginning of their student progression,

T.I.N.S.

[Andy9o8 2]

Quote

The need for clarity of expression is crucial if you're going to make it in this world, and that cannot be understated.

Oops. I should have said "overstated."
We bring you this correction in the interest of clarity of expression.

[Dougiefresh 0]

Quote

opening shock which is typically 3 or 4G from a stable belly-to-earth position at terminal velocity,

I really doubt that anyone gets 3-4 Gs on opening unless something has gone seriously sideways.

Human beings, who are almost unique in having the ability to learn from the experience of others, are also remarkable for their apparent disinclination to do so. --Douglas Adams

[thedude325 0]

Quote

Quote

opening shock which is typically 3 or 4G from a stable belly-to-earth position at terminal velocity,

I really doubt that anyone gets 3-4 Gs on opening unless something has gone seriously sideways.

Yeah, I'd say it feels about 2-2.5 Gs

[Dano302 0]

why the need to know what to expect? half the fun of the first jump is having no idea what your about to experience.

[SPAWNmaster 0]

Quote

why the need to know what to expect? half the fun of the first jump is having no idea what your about to experience.

One very personal aspect of the sport is the risk-reward ratio...I see no reason why he shouldn't want to be more informed so as to make a better decision about skydiving.

[brettski74 0]

Quote

I really doubt that anyone gets 3-4 Gs on opening unless something has gone seriously sideways.

I have data to back it up.

[JumpsOffCliffs 0]

Oh i think u misunderstand why i wanted to know, i already absolutely know that i want to do it, but i wanted to know because i want to avoid being one of those people who tumbles through the air and plummets toward earth(although it would be really really fun) just in the sense of "i spent 180$ and didnt progress toward passing the AFF"

again, ive wanted to do this for 12 years, actually trying my best to imitate skydiving is what caused me to do things like jumping off a roof with a plastic bag(i was like 6...)and bungee jump and pole vault

[JohnRich 4]

Quote

haha i dont know why i said that, but i do Pole Vaulting, Hurdles, and now im part of the crew team too.

If you're healthy and athletic enough to do all that, there's nothing in normal skydiving that is going to tax you more than that.

Opening shock is probably no more violent than going over the top on a pole vault and falling down into the cushions.

You've got nothing to worry about, except bad landings...