Is skydiving for me?

[mrbiceps 0]

I was scared out of my mind on my first AFF jump. when i finally held my "A" licence in my hand i felt that i had really accomplished something. Having something that in australia only 1 in 10000 people hold. The thing in life i am most afraid of is one day lying on my death bed and thinking "i wish i had tried that, but now im to freaking old to wipe my own bum let alone jump out of a plane..."
im not here for a long time, only a good time...

[popsjumper 2]

Denete offered a great insight when he said, "I am also a person who considers all of the negatives of a situation...along with all of the positives. That you admit this "ability" is good. You will make a safer skydiver."

Great attitude. As far as skydiving being for you, you'll never know until you try it.

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

[chrismgtis 0]

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Except on hot sunny days in June at Chester, S.C. during a boogie. Sorry, I just could not resist. I tired I really did.

Wait, do I know you?

Rodriguez Brother #1614, Muff Brother #4033
Jumped: Twin Otter, Cessna 182, CASA, Helicopter, Caravan

[PeregrineFalcon 0]

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Nope. If you're questioning it, it isn't where you need to be...atleast not at this particular point in your life. Not sure if you made a jump yet or not or if your first jump was based upon a bet gone wrong or what...but it seems to me based upon the info given that you aren't pursuing the sport for the right reasons.

Just my 2 pennies.....

That was my first reaction too, but then I got the feeling that he's really already decided to jump and is just posting because he is either the type of person that needs to hear that he's making the right decision or he doesn't yet have the money and he's thinking about jumping so much that he's bored and is posting.

For me, I'm trying to space out my trips to the DZ to every other week for the sake of money. I find myslef getting on this site a lot as a result.

[skymama 37]

Most of the skydivers I hang out with are average joes and not life-long thrill seekers. The comment I get from most people when I tell them I skydive is, "You? But you're so reserved!". It takes all kinds. Do a tandem and see if you like it.

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

[billvon 2,991]

>Is skydiving for me?

Try it. If you like it and the risk is worth the reward, then continue. If not, well - you've still made one more jump than most people.

>it's something that's meant for only the most extreme life long thrill
>seekers, and not so much average joes.

I know surgeons, pilots, accountants, former childhood stars, golf pros, Marines, politicians, admirals and beach bums who skydive. There's on one type.

[endlesst0m 0]

Thanks for the replies everyone. Although a few of you seem to think that simply because I'm questioning it and asking other people about it I shouldn't do it, most of your replies encouraged me to try it. Hopefully I can find some friends to do it with and we'll jump out of a plane together one day soon

[nigel99 474]

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>Is skydiving for me?

Try it. If you like it and the risk is worth the reward, then continue. If not, well - you've still made one more jump than most people.

I am not convinced that people who are dead scared should try skydiving (tandems would be fine) as brain lock is more likely to occur. This is from personal experience where due to lack of funds I jumped infrequently and struggled through progression and a log book full of comments that I looked like death. It has been 12 years since I last jumped and I still long to take the sport up again (stopped because of marriage and kids) but when I remember how lacking of awareness I was at 100 jumps compared to other people I am glad that I never had a "major" malfunction. If people like freefall then there is the tunnel now (which I really enjoy), if it is flying then there is either paragliding, microlighting or gliding all of which put you under considerably less mental stress than a skydive.

If you are determined to try skydiving and are nervous or scared then I would suggest doing at least 3 jumps a day as frequently as possible as the currency really helps with the fear management - the worst thing that you can do is 1 jump every week or two.

Experienced jumper - someone who has made mistakes more often than I have and lived.

[virgin-burner 1]

i was thinking about skydiving from like 15yrs. old on. that was the time when all those skysurfers were present on tv. and since i was probably one of the first snowboarders in europe..

i'll be 34 this year. started out last year. i finally got around to do it, had the money and the time available. like you, i came up on this site and asked a bunch of questions. then went to the dropzone itself and checked that out. asked the instructors a bunch of questions, occupied one for half a day. in the end, i said, ok, i'll sign up for aff. she said "yea-yea (i bet)!", turning her eyes skyward. one month later, i was there.

we were two guys starting our aff. me, the rather lazy, geeky-nerdy crazy type, and alex the sportsman. our instructors made a game out of who had to take who. my instructors lost..

alex flew through his aff. me, i struggled a little. guess who got his license first! alex was never to be seen again.. now, a little more than a year and 170 jumps later.. i'm really happy i took it up and wish, i did so much earlier..

never did a tandem. my wish and determination were my driving factors. i shit my pants on my second and third jump. at around 30 or 40 jumps i almost gave up due to some shit i did. quite a low pull for a student on an rw jump.

now i'm happily freeflying, getting my canopy-piloting build up (major problem for a long time), i love that swooping stuff and want to get good at, so i'm completely drawn to the dark side.. oh, and wingsuiting sooner or later! so i got plenty of stuff to work on and wont be bored for the next 2- or 3000 jumps.

and what i also wanted to tell you: i never considered myself to be the fearful guy. in fact, before skydiving, i was never scared of anything. maybe a little anxious about heights. for the first 100 jumps or so, i always had this urge to cut my main away, so i would spend less time under canopy..
i'm actually enjoying it now..

skydiving's good fun!

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

[npgraphicdesign 3]

"What if you get scared half to death, twice?" - Larry the Cable Guy

I felt the exact same way when I started. I only have 4 jumps so I am as noob as they come. But, in terms of overcoming the fear? Just do it...it's the best way. I first did two tandems, and that (in my opinion) is a good gauge of whether you'll enjoy going solo. Yes I was scared/nervous, still am...but it's the best feeling in the world. Well...almost.

Go to a good dropzone, pay attention, ask questions, learn, and jump!

Good luck with making a decision and jumping!

[CSpenceFLY 1]

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Thanks for the replies everyone. Although a few of you seem to think that simply because I'm questioning it and asking other people about it I shouldn't do it, most of your replies encouraged me to try it. Hopefully I can find some friends to do it with and we'll jump out of a plane together one day soon

Life is too short to stand around waiting for other people.

[Icon134 0]

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What do you think?

I definitely don't qualify as a "thrill seeker"... I just enjoy skydiving...

Livin' on the Edge... sleeping with my rigger's wife...

[billvon 2,991]

>I am not convinced that people who are dead scared should try
>skydiving (tandems would be fine) as brain lock is more likely to occur.

I agree, and if there are people who really are scared to death even after the first jump course, then they shouldn't feel bad about telling their instructor they don't want to do it. I've had several students back out before we got in the plane, and a few even on jump run, so I think they're capable of making their own decision on that when the time comes.

(And as you mentioned, tandem is a good choice for such people.)

[Stuntbabex 0]

My humble little theory is that the more scared you are to do it, the more youre going to love it after you try it.

[endlesst0m 0]

Oh, I just remembered I have one more thing I wanted to ask. Why do parachutes malfunction sometimes? What causes it?

[Tuna-Salad 0]

From what I've been told.. most malfunctions are attributed to poor body position during pull and opening. - To answer the question if skydiving is for you or not? The only way to find out is to do it. You will either love it or hate it.

Millions of my potential children died on your daughters' face last night.

[Erroll 80]

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Why do parachutes malfunction sometimes?

To give you a reason to be scared.

[Ion01 2]

I found the best way to deal with fear is education. Learning about all the different possible malfunctions and situations, what caused them, and (most importantly) how to deal with them removes the fear because fear is usually a result of the unknown. Also, people often have misconceptions regarding the actual risks. Once you are educated and trained the fear is greatly reduced if not removed.

[JohnMitchell 16]

Just try it and tell us what you thought.

Have fun.

[nerd137 0]

No. Well, maybe. Okay, yes.

Do a tandem. Then decide. That's my sage advice.

[squarecanopy 0]

In fact, I've always been a pretty cautious person who often considers what could go wrong in a lot of situations.

I'm hoping skydiving is like that, but I'm afraid it might be scary as hell, and it's something that's meant for only the most extreme life long thrill seekers, and not so much average joes.

What do you think?