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crazymel

Heading Control

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Hi All! I completed the AFF course about 3 weeks ago. Pretty damn amazing. Only thing now is I jump with a jumpsuit without booties, and I struggle to keep a steady heading. I keep doing 180 turns....might be because I'm still a little nervous to do solo jumps. Any advise to correct the problem?????

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>I keep doing 180 turns....might be because I'm still a little nervous to do solo jumps. Any advise to correct the problem?????
Begin learning leg turns, if your AFF course taught you to turn with your upper body. Usually, when someone turns accidentally, it's due to your legs doing something bad. Learning leg turns will help you overcome their tendency to do the wrong thing.
To practice, get a creeper and put it in front of a couch or chair. Lay on it, arch, and put your feet on the couch. Use both your feet to push on the couch and turn your body left and right. That's it - the same action works in the air to turn your body (although for a completely different reason.)
-bill von

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Hi, CrazyMel -
I friend of mine just completed AFF too, and now she's having the same problem...she jumped with a coach who told her what was happening, but it wasn't until she saw herself on video that she was able to really understand. What she was doing is kind of "crunching" one side of her body just a little. She was also pulling her elbows back towards her sides (like a chicken wing), and 'round & 'round she went. The harder she tried to stop the turn, the faster she went...very frustrating. So, for her, the solution is to get those arms back to a neutral position and straighten out her torso. It's fine to have someone *tell* you what your doing wrong, but it's a whole lot easier to see for yourself and then talk with the coaches.
Hope that helps! Good luck with your jumps :-)
Blue skies, light winds,
Karen
P.S.
One more thing...keep your priorities in order at pull-time: even if you're in a turn/spin, when it's time to pull, be sure you do. Don't keep working on getting the spin stopped, even if it means you may have to deal with some line-twists after you open, k?

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Karen: That is so true. I viewed my video several times last night and I also realized that my RIGHT arm was higher than the left...giving me a constant tilt to the left...thus spinning to the left. In addition to that...my left arm was crunched. It also seemed as though I was trying too hard to focus on getting my heading with the camera man...(who by the way is a way cool guy! Lots of great info from him) It's amazing what you can learn from watching yourself on video.
I'm hoping that by just relaxing again & getting back into neutral position, that will correct the problem.
What you "think" you cannot do ...you CAN if you "think" about it ;)

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Hi, Terry! Didn't realize you were still around this weekend...thought you were headed off for the Olympics! Thursday was an absolute blast...I had so much fun! And you were a great "date"! lol Really hard to go back to work on Friday, though. And Lee really enjoyed his tandem...his wife & he are both coming out again for another one :)Btw, I was really proud of you for pulling at 5k just like you planned, even though you were still turning...it's not easy to always do that! And you spotted for the rest of us going after you on that jump, and that's cool too! B|
Blue skies, sweet rides,
Karen
P.S.
I agree, JP is awesome (and cute :D)!! He's always willing to help out, explain things, etc. And he'll video you anytime you ask, although we always pay his ride + tip.

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Thanks Karen! You were a great date too! ; ) I was still jumping and flyin around the office on Friday. Hard to keep my mind on work.
I saw that when I pulled at 5k, I finally stopped the spin. Funny how that happens. And you are absolutely correct, pull at the altitude you say you will, better to have a few line twists that pull too low, or worse, not at all!
We're leaving on Thursday for the Olympics. We'll only be there for 4 days, ($$ made it difficult to stay longer) It should be lots of fun!
ps: You're right, JP is cute, and very helpful. ; )
What you "think" you cannot do ...you CAN if you "think" about it ;)

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