bradcurn

I just finished my AFF recently and I did not have video. I suppose having video would have been an advantage in terms of actually being able to see the stuff that my instructors were telling me about in the debrief. With that said however I found that the most important thing for me was spending enough time visualising and practising on the ground. So if money really is a critical factor, I think that you can be successful at AFF without the video option. Whatever you decide, enjoy AFF. It is a great experience, you are going to learn superfast and have a wonderful time. Cheers Bradley

I'm a newbie too and I think that "butterflies" are cool. They're a sign that you appreciate the fact that there are risks involved in our sport and imho they help to keep us focussed on being safe. If I ever noticed the complete absence of "butterflies" on my jumps I'd be concerned that maybe I was becoming complacent. I'd only worry if the "butterflies" overwhelm your enjoyment of the jump, but from your description that doesn't seem to be the case. Good luck!

Finally, (on the sixth attempt) I have passed my first 15 sec jump. Then, just to make it sweeter, I also nailed my 15 sec with alti jump on the same afternoon at the first try . Thanks again for all the encouragement and advice that I got from people here. It really helped me get past the frustration and stay (mostly) positive.

Thanks to everyone for the comments and good advice. I am going to get my next jump videod and hopefully that will do the trick.

I am a newbie doing the Static line progression in South Africa and I've successfully progressed to my fifteen second delay jump. But now I'm stuck. I have done five 15 sec delay jumps and failed them all because of a turn problem. My exits are good and initially everything goes well, on a couple of jumps I have even corrected initial turns and stayed on heading. But then at the end (at about an 11 count) I start a slow turn (mostly to the right) that I can't correct. The JM' s dispatching me can't see what exactly is contributing to my turning problem although they suspect that it is being caused by an asymmetric leg position. I'm still enjoying my jumps and the whole skydiving experience but I must admit to some serious frustration at not being able to nail the skill required to stay on heading consistently. I have decided to give myself some time off and try again in a fortnight, weather permitting. However if I don't pass in the next three jumps I am considering switching to AFF to get the benefit of a JM who will be right there and able to give me accurate feedback about the possible cause of my problem. I'd appreciate any comments on whether switching to AFF will have the desired result of helping me to identify the cause of my heading problems.