Looking for advice

[skysail 0]

I have been out of the sport for over a year. Ever since I recieved my A license I have been wanting to purchase my own gear. The reason is because I feel that I will become more confident jumping my own rig, instead of jumping from rig to rig... and I will be getting a nice tax return this year, enough to afford some used gear.
I think I found something suitable, problem is I dont even remember how to pack a parachute and would need some insruction.
My mentor that taught me years ago moved on and we lost contact. Im waiting for the season to open to get back into it and to meet some people. Would you buy this rig in my situation? Or use the rental gear to get current and hope I come across a similar deal in the future?
I guess what Im trying to get at is shoud I feel dumb for buying a rig when I forgot how to pack?
Any advice is appreciated, thanks.

[dthames 0]

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I have been out of the sport for over a year. Ever since I recieved my A license I have been wanting to purchase my own gear. The reason is because I feel that I will become more confident jumping my own rig, instead of jumping from rig to rig... and I will be getting a nice tax return this year, enough to afford some used gear.
I think I found something suitable, problem is I dont even remember how to pack a parachute and would need some insruction.
My mentor that taught me years ago moved on and we lost contact. Im waiting for the season to open to get back into it and to meet some people. Would you buy this rig in my situation? Or use the rental gear to get current and hope I come across a similar deal in the future?
I guess what Im trying to get at is shoud I feel dumb for buying a rig when I forgot how to pack?
Any advice is appreciated, thanks.

I don't see how your situation is really any different than a new jumper buying their first rig. If it is a good deal and a good fit, I would get it. You never know what will be out there later.

Instructor quote, “What's weird is that you're older than my dad!”

[NWFlyer 2]

My concern would be less that you don't remember how to pack (it takes practice, and repetition, and you're brand new and haven't been jumping), and more whether you're able to adequately evaluate the suitability of the gear you're considering. It sounds like you don't know that many folks, so do you have a rigger that you can work with to evaluate the safety and quality of the gear before you make a final purchase? Do you know someone that can help you evaluate your skill set and recommend appropriately sized canopies for your experience level?

Without those things, I'd recommend against a purchase until you are able to reconnect and find those people who can help you out.

"There is only one basic human right, the right to do as you damn well please. And with it comes the only basic human duty, the duty to take the consequences." -P.J. O'Rourke

[skysail 0]

Ok I guess Im just overthinking it. I do have a rigger that will inspect the gear. The canopies that I would buy are the same size that I trained with. If I like the rig and end up buying, Ill have an instructor help me out with it until Im recurrent. I guess Ill have a rig that I can practice packing at home too.
thanks!

[jtfreefly 0]

If you have the opportunity, and it is good gear, etc, get it! Packing is no big deal, get with some people and they should help you out. I always offer for people needing help with packing to come my house and do few pack jobs free of charge. It was taught to me free so I pass it on for free. Once you get your rig and learn packing again I highly recommend packing a few times a week at home this will help muscle memory for packing and your speed. The faster you pack the more likely you are to get on more loads.

Joel

[mr2mk1g 10]

Treat it more like buying an expensive, used car. It's less about whether you have a valid drivers licence and more about whether you know shit about cars.

1) You're a keen motorist, enjoy tinkering and know the car make inside-out including the model, sub-model and options packages, know common its faults and how to spot them and are confident going through the service history with a fine-toothed comb. You're reasonably competent to view and buy yourself without much risk.

2) You know squat about cars in general or about this model and its features or known issues. You can't spot the subtle signs the engine's about to blow. You don't really know if it's the right car for your needs. You're therefore entirely in the dark about whether or not it's a good car to buy.

You can deal with this by:
2a) You go to a dealer you trust who can help you find the right model and car for you.

2b) You take along someone to do a pre-purchase inspection, either a friend who falls in to 1) or a mechanic offering this service .

2c) Work hard at getting into 1). This may take months or years and hour after hour of reading, researching and talking to people. Be ware of thinking you fall into 1) earlier than you actually do.

2d) You risk your money on a purchase that may turn out to be a complete waste as it's either un-roadworthy or completely inappropriate for you.


If you don't know how to pack I suspect you know very little about used gear in general. You probably don't therefore fall into option 1. You fall into one of the other options.

2a) might mean buying from somewhere like square1, chutingstar or similar.

2b) might involve sending the rig into a rigger for an inspection.

2c) may well start with learning to pack and is likely to take some time can can't be overly hurried by reading on places like here. Attempting to short cut matters by researching only things that crop up in adverts is dangerous as you don't know what you don't know and you can't judge things without general background knowledge. It's possible, but takes time.

I'd avoid 2d) but it's your money.

[waveoff5500 0]

hey if you have the money go for it. get it inspected of course, but i think owning your own rig especially early on is a big contributer to staying in the sport for some people. as for packing, just practice as much as you can and learn about your gear which will boost your confidence. also go to safety day at your dz and meet people and instructors.

good luck!

"its just a normal day at the dropzone until its not"

1653

[skysail 0]

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hey if you have the money go for it. get it inspected of course, but i think owning your own rig especially early on is a big contributer to staying in the sport for some people. as for packing, just practice as much as you can and learn about your gear which will boost your confidence. also go to safety day at your dz and meet people and instructors.

good luck!

Yeah thanks a lot everyone. I think that if I bought one right off the bat I would prolly would have gotten more into it after training. The funds just weren't there after AFF.