Busy day full of firsts!

[dustin19d 0]

So I meander out of my tent early and get on the first king air load. 6 tandem pairs, one camera, and me. Obviously Im out first. Everyone knows I'm a newbie so they wont let me spot, nor will they brief me on the uppers, or jump run direction(but I can tell looking out the window). The 5 minute light comes on, I do final checks and move to the door. The lone camera man on the load spots me then points and says "Go" . The second I jump I knew I was short. I tracked @ 45 deg from the line of flight. As soon as I hit the beach I tracked for the DZ. I made a mistake in pulling at 3500, I should have pulled higher. My options where a polo field full of horses(dont want to get trampled) or a 30ft wide streatch of beach with overhanging palm trees. The look I got from a lady on her second story balcony as I passed within 20ft was priceless.
By the time I got to the nearest road there was a truck waiting for me.
Then after I pack and go out to watch the next load pull I get to see a tandem pair cuttaway with a step through.(First cuttaway I've seen).
Next jump, a 2 way track, we get out way too early. We exited at the same spot as the 7-way track we did the day before at 14,000. This time we exit at just under 9,000. We split up and both deploy at 3,500(mistake). We both end up in the polo field. Good thing the horses where locked up by this time.
Then the last jump of the day I'm telling Dan who has 258 jumps to hurry up his pack job so we can make the last king air load.( I packed slopily in 1/3 the time) We planed on breaking off at 5000 so we could deploy early and fly around. So at 5000 I track hard for a few seconds the turn 90 deg so I can watch him deploy. We dump at the same time. I look up stow my slider, then look back at him just in time to see him chop his main. He went back into free fall for maby 3-4 seconds(FF suit was covering reserve handle) I follow his main around and watch where his free bag lands. When I finaly determined his main was headed out to sea I went back to the DZ.
His main landed 100m from the beach.(all recovered)

On top of that I'm as red as a lobster from this Hawaii sun.


What a day!!

[blueskyserenity 0]

Are you freakin kidding me? I'm so jealous! Not only skydiving during the week, but in Hawaii over the ocean near a polo farm? Live it up!! Glad you had a great day. Just thinking about it will make me have a better day, after my coffee of course.

I like coconuts. You can break them open and they smell like ladies lying in the sun!

[seekfun 0]

dustin19d,

I can empathize my friend.

Last November, I had just gotten off of student status and decided to visit a new DZ to get over that umbilical issue that affects most new jumpers.

When I arrived, the staff informed me that they'd just purchased new rental gear and were eager to have people jump it and give them feedback. Now, I don't know what kind of meaningful feedback a newbie is supposed to give on new gear, but it was new gear and I was excited to jump it nonetheless.

So, I go up and make an uneventful first jump from the C182.

The second jump was exciting though, because I was going to get my first King-Air jump and we were going to build some three-way speed stars.

So, we're falling and I'm all smiles having just jumped a new DZ, a new aircraft, and participating in my first three-way speed stars. Then it comes time to deploy. Several cells collapsed on one side of the canopy (lineover?) and I'm entering a moderate spin. I reach up, clear the toggles, and try to pump them to clear the mess. The next thing I know, I'm holding on to a steering toggle that isn't attached to anything. I'm simply holding a nice, new, bright yellow, steering toggle that is on strike or something. There's no steering line to be found.

But, what occupied my mind slightly more than the toggle's employment status was my rapid loss of altitude.

So, I chopped the main and was in the process of extending my reserve-handle-filled hand when the reserve reached line stretch. Man, those RSLs can work fast when you chop from a spin.

So, on my first day at a new DZ:

New rig
New aircraft (for me)
New jump (for me)
And my first Reserve Ride!!!!

We recovered the main and the steering toggle. Both were in perfect condition. Neither was broken in any way.

So, now I pay lots of attention to how steering lines are attached, I got my own damn rig, and I pack it myself - thank you very much.

Incidentally, I have visited said DZ on a few ocassions since, and they're all an absolute riot to jump with. We all learned from the incident. I learned to do a better damn pre-jump check and they found different union representation for their toggles.

Rock on Milwaukee,

topher

"...there is a there out there..." - Tom Robbins

[Fast 0]

Quote

Everyone knows I'm a newbie so they wont let me spot, nor will they brief me on the uppers, or jump run direction(but I can tell looking out the window). The 5 minute light comes on, I do final checks and move to the door. The lone camera man on the load spots me then points and says "Go" .

Cool story, it would be great to get to jump in such a cool place. I will chalk it up to being at a DZ other than your home DZ, but I don't think its cool that they wouldn't brief you on the uppers, spot, jump run. I think thats a mistake. Even if your not good at spoting you should be learning. I might not have many jumps (78) but I do have a decent idea how to spot, I always ask what the uppers are, and what jump run we are flying. How else can i learn anything?

/sigh

Glad you had fun

~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

[maestro 0]

Quote: "The next thing I know, I'm holding on to a steering toggle that isn't attached to anything. I'm simply holding a nice, new, bright yellow, steering toggle that is on strike or something. There's no steering line to be found."

oh jesus I know it's not funny but that is so funny!! I can just picture your face - nice new yellow defunct toggle - hahahaha

That reminds me of a kid at a teeny DZ in the UK, who absolutely trashed the brand-spanking new Student Javelin Odessey (sp??) on it's first jump out of the factory by spudding in on a 10-sec delay or something. Forget grass stains, I mean shreds. The CCI's face was a picture

The kid was fine, came back all smiles after a great freefall but the rig - over £3,500 worth (about $6000???) was ruined. Reserve pack job got shredded too

Aaargh I must be due a mal about now, hopefully just a nice gentle broken steering line, not the horrendous things described here!!!

Kay x

[seekfun 0]

Maestro,

It's OK if you thinks it's funny. Truth be told, I have a tendency to either laugh or sing when I'm nervous, and I did emit a giggle when the toggle came off. So, it was funny in a "Wow, that's interesting" sort of way.

TTFN,

topher

"...there is a there out there..." - Tom Robbins