NuMRX

60 seconds, that's not too long even 120 seconds that's not tool long. How long does it actually seem when you are freefalling?

Wow, dang there have been some great replies. Thanks everyone!

You certainly sound worried...and rightfully so. I'm sure we ALL were worried when we started out. It's natural. As John mentioned...fear-unknown go hand-in-hand. You'll get over it. 99% of us do. Your question will be answered in your First Jump Course (FJC) by your instructors. They will teach you what to do and how to do it. I'm reluctant to say anything about how to do it because it may conflict with what your instructors tell you. There is more than one way to skin a cat, so to speak. Follow their instruction, not the internet's advice. BUT! There IS some valued learning you can get under your belt before the FJC. Since you didn't fill out your profile, I'm going to give you what is good in the U.S. (and mostly good for the rest of the world). Start with the United States Parachute Association (USPA). Download the Skydiver's Information Manual (SIM). Here's the link: http://www.uspa.org/SIM.aspx You'll want to read Chapters 1-3 and Categories A-C in Chapter 4. That's pretty much what will be covered in the FJC. Do try to avoid getting ahead of yourself too far. There's a lot of information in that book and we want you to focus on what you are learning now without having all the other stuff clog your brain. Also from the USPA, look at their Ground School presentation. You'll be getting a lot of that in FJC, too. http://www.uspa.org/BecomeaSkydiver/OnlineGroundSchool/tabid/557/Default.aspx Good luck and Blue Skies! Thanks a bunch!!! Those links are super informational

Haha, yeah I've heard that and I think I'm going to get addicted to it for sure. Although I'm afraid that they are going to cover so dang much in ground school for my first AFF jump that I'm not going to pass the test. I hate cramming.

Get to a wind tunnel and do a couple 15 min sessions. When you do your AFF the fear of spinning out of control won't even be there. Yeah, I'm very interested in doing some wind tunnel training before my first true solo jump (without instructors holding onto me)

Yes, but not usually. When it's time to pull, you gotta pull, no ifs ands or buts about it. What I mean is that stability is not that hard to achieve, your instructors won't put you out on your own until you're ready, and you're getting all worked up about it before you've even started jumping. The root of most fears is ignorance. Take the class, learn to skydive and see if the unknown worries you as much as it did before. Our sport is simple. -arch -watch your altitude -open the parachute -make a safe landing Don't worry so much. Yeah I'm not really worried just trying to get as much knowledge as I can before I go to ground school. It sure sounds like a simple sport!

But couldn't you get caught in your lines or another part of the parachute assembly?

I am really wanting to get into skydiving but I have a few things that bother me when I go on my first solo. I am probably going tandem on my birthday but I'm even more interested in going solo soon after. My biggest fear is losing control when skydiving without instructors holding onto me later down the road on my later AFF jumps. How easy is it to regain control when flying my body? How do you regain control to be in the correct face down position? I'm assuming that you can't just pull if you start tumbling because I could get caught in the the lines, etc. All I know is that having a relaxed and limp body position really helps to regain control, but that probably isn't the only thing you have to do to regain control. Any words of wisdom? Thanks guys

I'm new to the forum and I thought I'd drop by and introduce myself. I'm really wanting to get into skydiving and it's been a goal of mine for quite a while but I just haven't done it yet.