I can't fly headdown!

[Vallerina 2]

I've tried everything! I can't seem to fly headdown at all! It seems weird and unnatural to me.

On exit, I guess I "look for the ground" and that throws me out of whack. I dearch a bit too much and stick my butt out.

What can this belly-flying girl do to learn headdown? Am I ueselss? Has anyone else had this many problems trying to learn it? I've tried so many times, and I'm getting so frustrated!

There's a thin line between Saturday night and Sunday morning

[CanuckInUSA 0]

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On exit, I guess I "look for the ground" and that throws me out of whack. I dearch a bit too much and stick my butt out.

Look for the horizon, spread your legs (hey get your mind out of the gutter) and relax. Your torso needs to be vertical. Otherwise you will catch air and be all over the sky. Freeflying is not easy. But any problems you (and I) may currently have with it can easily be overcome with a few thousand jumps.

Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

[Vallerina 2]

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spread your legs

I've tried everything with that...pinching my butt cheeks, pointing my toes outward...sigh...nothing works

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Your torso needs to be vertical. Otherwise you will catch air and be all over the sky

This is the part I just don't get. I have no idea of what it feels like for my torso to be vertical while headdown.

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Look for the horizon

I do that while attempting to flip headdown from my sit...still doesn't work.

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But any problems you (and I) may currently have with it can easily be overcome with a few thousand jumps.

That's what I was afraid of!

Anybody have any hidden tips or tricks for someone who just can't get it??? I really have no idea of what I'm doing wrong. I've tried so many times and I can't even get headdown....grrr....

There's a thin line between Saturday night and Sunday morning

[skymama 37]

Have you tried having an experienced freeflyer take you out the door head down and then had them hold you there so you can feel what it's supposed to be like? This is how I've been learning. I started out with them holding my rig, then it progressed to my upper arms, then to my hand, etc, so over a period of time they were doing less and less of the work and I was doing more, but I still had them there as a crutch when I needed them.

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

[Vallerina 2]

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Have you tried having an experienced freeflyer take you out the door head down and then had them hold you there so you can feel what it's supposed to be like?

Yeah...I've tried that with a few people. Nothing seems to work!

There's a thin line between Saturday night and Sunday morning

[skymama 37]

Could it be you're concentrating so hard on doing it that you're not relaxing enough?

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

[cheneyneel 0]

To be honest you are going to have to relax and try to have fun no matter how bad you think you are doing.. You will only progress if you have a good time doing it.. It is so much about feeling it..

You are going to have to jump twice as much as you already have to just get the basics.. It is not a quick learning process.. Flying headdown is a long process that takes dedicaton to fun and progression. I hate to rain on you but it takes a while.. Everyone that can fly headdown will tell you that.
I have almost a thousand jumps and my level is just now at a point that I can soflty and quickly close a 4way round in any position, horizonal, vertical, and inverted.
Just dont give up!! Believe it or not you learn every time you do a jump..It is just that there is SOOOO much to learn....

[LouDiamond 1]

A very wise jumper once told me the following: spread your legs as far out as possible and pull your toes back, breath through your mouth, and your thumbs should be in your peripheral vision. Back must be straight and to accomplish this stand with your legs as far apart as possible against a wall and learn to feel the body postion.

"It's just skydiving..additional drama is not required"
Some people dream about flying, I live my dream
SKYMONKEY PUBLISHING

[Zenister 0]

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Your torso needs to be vertical. Otherwise you will catch air and be all over the sky

This is the part I just don't get. I have no idea of what it feels like for my torso to be vertical while headdown.

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Look for the horizon

I do that while attempting to flip headdown from my sit...still doesn't work.

[Vallerina 2]

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the issue many people have is a 'built in arch' this is particularly a problem with well developed women, bodybuilders or anyone with military fathers who have been taught to "stand up straight with their chest out"

Well, I'm not a well-developed woman, but I do think that is a problem for me...my spine curves in a bunch.....I did learn to stand up straight with chest out...etc etc. My back just doesn't go straight! I'll have to find someone to work with me on that. Thanks for the great tip! I hadn't put too much thought into that...although I was wondering about my one weakness in gymnastics...handstands....wonder if that's related

Thank you very much for the tips everyone. You might be right, Andrea, I may be concentrating on my body position too much. We'll see!

There's a thin line between Saturday night and Sunday morning

[dove 0]

Hey Val... you can learn a lot and have a TON of fun from doing a buncha 2-ways. Any chance you'll be near Orange, VA or Crosskeys this summer? I'd love to jump and play with you!

Fall in dove.

[FallingILweenie 0]

hey Val, something else that you may wanna think aobut is that perhaps you are trying TOO hard to get the right body position instead of just relaxing and letting go, and trying to feel where the wind is hitting your body....

[blazingcannon 0]

I highly recommend the mirror and coach trick. (edited to add: .."the mirror and coach trick zennie talks about above")
Along with that, try this:

Go slowly toward the pressure.

If you feel pressure on your back, you are going forwards.
If you feel pressure on your chest and face, you are moving backward.

For a few dives, SLOWLY move your head and shoulders forward and back until you can feel pressure going from your back to your front.
Again, -- -- slowly -- -- is the key.
This will feel very fish-floppy but you need to do this to learn where the walls of the tube are.
(I call this "tuning" - like tuning a guitar, only with your body)

Then concentrate on keeping your pelvis rolled forward in the air for a few dives to get rid of any arch.

Next, do the pelvis thing along with the head and shoulders moving thing.

Somewhere in the middle of the two pressures there will be a place where you feel no pressure. That's the tube, or somewhere very close to it.

E-mail me and let me know how it works.
glen@niagaraskydive.com

Cheers, and good luck!
Glen.

"Spread your legs and fly"

[CanuckInUSA 0]

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I highly recommend the mirror and coach trick.

What's this mirror and coach trick you talk of?

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For a few dives, SLOWLY move your head and shoulders forward and back until you can feel pressure going from your back to your front.

Hey the next time I'm on a solo I will definitely try this. My head down is better that what it was when I first started trying it. But it's far from proficient and it's likely because I haven't tuned in the tube that you speak of. So thanks for the info.

Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

[blazingcannon 0]

What I meant about the coach and a mirror trick is: Check out zennie's post above -- he talks about using a mirror to get your body straight and learn muscle memory of a straight body position on the ground. I highly recommend this idea. The coach part of it is simply working with the coach, which is an obviously helpful thing to do.
Cheers,
Glen.

"Spread your legs and fly"

[kansasskydiver 0]

hey are you going to freaks? if so there are some people that you can jump with who can help you a great deal. other than that, what everyone has said is correct, the only other thing i can think of is delearn rw...

<--- See look, pink dolphins DO exist!