GentleTiger

Great set up: big hangar, lots of carpeted packing room, air conditioned skydiver lounge, shower, classroom. nice lawn for landing. Stuff: Fast little 182, BOC rentals, packers and riggers usually on hand. Staff: Very experienced, knowledgable and friendly. Up in the air: it's nice and cool in the summer, incredible views of the countryside, Skiatook Lake and Tulsa. Under canopy: Usually a 10 - 12 knot wind out of the southwest. Atmosphere: Folks always looking to jump together for fun and RW, lots of old timers, very relaxed.

quit jumping? they gonna have to pry my toggles out of my cold dead hands. ________________________________________ Look, up in the sky! It's a bird! It's a plane! It's a tiger in the sky!! Throw down some steaks and run for the hills!!!

stevemeisterrrrrrrrr! thanx! will be back on Sunday...stopping in Skydive Dallas Saturday. Fun. bbs ________________________________________ Look, up in the sky! It's a bird! It's a plane! It's a tiger in the sky!! Throw down some steaks and run for the hills!!!

hey girl! how you doing?? send me an email and tell me all that you're up to these days! will always remember plf...I've done it so many times and ya, I think the field elevation had something, but little difference...the difference was in the winds..perfect tnumerous time o start running the jump out. so now I wait for lesser and lesser winds, speeding up my ability to run. WAAAAAAAAAAAHOOOOOOOOOOOO! never thought skydiving could be so much fun! love Skydive Airtight, the poor dzo has me buggin him all the time...canIjumpcanIjumpcanIjump??? wind is 10,0000,000 mph??? no problem canIjumpcanIjump??? bbs to u mar, ________________________________________ Look, up in the sky! It's a bird! It's a plane! It's a tiger in the sky!! Throw down some steaks and run for the hills!!!

hey guys, most of you have read about my skydiving career, so, if you haven't read my threads, you may want to check em out...bad landings, lots of lessons and a broken back. now, it took 132 jumps and 1 1/2 years in the sport, I finally stood up the jump and ran it out!!! in fact, I have 3, yeah, count em 3 walk it out landings now!!! while landing on my feet is becoming less of a surprise for me now, I haven't tired of doing a silly victory dance afterward. yep...stood up. walked it out. damn...it was easier than I thought, I just had to get out of the fear. oh, ya...I even have witnesses!!!! muhahahahahaha

Wow, thanx everyone, I think Billvon's advice was outstanding...there's a proper response for each situation, and that response depends on the situation...Thanks Katee...I know I've had my "ups and downs" in this sport, but I'm always learning and having a great time...landing out was a wonderful challenge, and I LOVE obstacle avoidance. And thanx to the rest of you for such wonderful comments...I"m going to open high and play as soon as it stops raining. A quick story about cows: I used to live in Montana, deep in the Cabinet Mountains. There was a herd of cows that kept overstepping the road barriers that were placed there to keep the cows IN. So, when I'd see them coming down my driveway, before they'd get to my horses, I'd go out there, blow a few rounds of my 9mm into the air, and they would turn tail and go. Except one time. They got real pissed and stampeded. Towards me. My eyes got REAL BIG and I turned tail and ran!! I had no idea I could go so fast!! Everything turned out okay, and the rancher moved his cows. bbse1 and thanx again!! Tiger ________________________________________ Look, up in the sky! It's a bird! It's a plane! It's a tiger in the sky!! Throw down some steaks and run for the hills!!!

Hi all, sometimes I write and ask questions and people get into an uproar about things totally unrelated...they bicker about the smallest detail...it's kind of understandable, because it's the detail that can make or break us...but bickering about them just confuses low timers like me, so please be gentle. I have a question, I'd like to find the general consensus, without us bickering please. After tracking away from a 4-way, I opened way out and had an upwind attempt at getting back to the dz. It's happened to me once before and I was told by an old timer that I should have used rear risers, instead of trying to find the best glide using the brakes. In any case, the other day, when it happened again after tracking away from the 4-way, it was a very windy day. I used rear risers to try to get back, and at 700 feet or so, knew I wasn't even going to come close, so, I picked my spot and landed just fine, avoiding a ditch, a stream, a fence and wooden stakes. using rear risers, I was able to get past the buildings and into the grass. when I got back to the dz (after rousing security of the place where I landed, and the dzo), I was welcomed back with big smiles and lots of pats on the back and hugs. I was then advised by a couple of other people that I should have used nothing at all, brakes, or front risers. (using front risers seemed sort of moot, I wasn't trying to penetrate anything, I was going for distance). So, what is the general consensus and thoughts of trying to get back to the dz, up wind? It seems using rear risers makes the most sense, but, as someone said at the dz, the more info I can get, the better. I"ll appreciate all of your experiences and wisdom. Thanx! bbs, Tiger ________________________________________ Look, up in the sky! It's a bird! It's a plane! It's a tiger in the sky!! Throw down some steaks and run for the hills!!!

yeah, one of my guys at the dz who knows his shit... yknow, it seems some of you are just lookin for an argument...lighten up, give it a rest and stick with the thread. I'm not the only one who said driving is safer, so get off my back. ________________________________________ Look, up in the sky! It's a bird! It's a plane! It's a tiger in the sky!! Throw down some steaks and run for the hills!!!

well, it's easy to spend a couple of hundred hours in the car and not get killed...in skydiving terms, it wuld be the equivilant of a few thousand jumps. pretty good odds I'd say. Nowadays, there are people with 10,000+ jumps and they are still jumping. You'll also find peiple with years and years of jumping who haven't been killed..with that in mind, in 10,000 trips I think I can speak confidently about bang ups...fatal or not. Last year, or the year before, there wre 2.5 million tandems, zero fatailities. pretty goo odds there too. so, while the consequences are inherently high, statistics can show you that it's safer than driving, or they can show you that it's more dangerous...it depends on your own mind set. Sure, we walk away with bumps and bruises at times, but very few fatalitises if you compare them to the number of fatalities in the US while drving. I have to admit that from these posts, I am reconsidering the truth of my stance on this issue. It was something that was said to me, so I pass it on to newbies considering the sport to help calm them down. I'm so tired I'm seein double, but I hope this answers your question. I'm surprised this thread hasnt' been moved. bbs Tiger ________________________________________ Look, up in the sky! It's a bird! It's a plane! It's a tiger in the sky!! Throw down some steaks and run for the hills!!!

well said. bbs Tiger ________________________________________ Look, up in the sky! It's a bird! It's a plane! It's a tiger in the sky!! Throw down some steaks and run for the hills!!!

Numbers are tangible and they don't lie, however, there are any number of ways to interpret statistics. You will find that I am, by far, NOT the only one who says that "Statistically, skydiving is safer than driving." For example, say there's a piece of land a company wants to log. They hire surveyors. Environmentalist groups hire their own, then the government hires theirs. Now, they come up with the same numbers, but the way they interpret them supports their existing beliefs. The answers you get depend on the questions you ask. From my point of view, skydiving IS safer. Your argumentativeness was uncalled for. Tiger ________________________________________ Look, up in the sky! It's a bird! It's a plane! It's a tiger in the sky!! Throw down some steaks and run for the hills!!!

maybe I should have typed "people" instead of "guys". this was a post about giving advice to someone who is considering the sport, not an argument of how statistics should be interpreted. may I suggest you stick with the thread? Tiger ________________________________________ Look, up in the sky! It's a bird! It's a plane! It's a tiger in the sky!! Throw down some steaks and run for the hills!!!

I've been thinking about having the LASIK done, but after reading these posts, there is no way I'm having anything done. I don't like the eye doc to begin with...I know that as I'm getting older, my eyes are changing, I'll stick with my glasses and have THEM adjusted every couple of years. I'm not afraid to be a coward! BBS Tiger ________________________________________ Look, up in the sky! It's a bird! It's a plane! It's a tiger in the sky!! Throw down some steaks and run for the hills!!!

Blue Man Group: The Complex ________________________________________ Look, up in the sky! It's a bird! It's a plane! It's a tiger in the sky!! Throw down some steaks and run for the hills!!!

You will have to rip my toggles out of my old, cold, dead hands. ________________________________________ Look, up in the sky! It's a bird! It's a plane! It's a tiger in the sky!! Throw down some steaks and run for the hills!!!

I agree that jumping is high risk, but only because if something happens, the consequences are high. As far as living on a VERY dangerous street: A. That's a choice and B. It's really only dangerous if you make it dangerous, i.e. pulling out of the driveway and sitting in the line of high speed traffic, not having a "safe" car, etc. Tiger ________________________________________ Look, up in the sky! It's a bird! It's a plane! It's a tiger in the sky!! Throw down some steaks and run for the hills!!!

those incidents, you may find, were for the most part guys who like to swoop by doing last second turns, people who don't do gear checks, and mis-packed parachutes. All perfectly avoidable incidences, with the exception of a very few. Statistically, skydiving is safer than driving down the street. If you're nervous about going out on your own, do some more tandems and talk with lots of folks at the dropzone. I also welcome you to read my other posts...I had a handful of concerns too. Blue Skies and best of luck, Tiger ________________________________________ Look, up in the sky! It's a bird! It's a plane! It's a tiger in the sky!! Throw down some steaks and run for the hills!!!

As many of you know from my posts, learning to skydive has been an uphill job for me...it doesn't come naturally to me as it does for some people, but somehow I've survived and just got my B license!! First I had to deal with my fear. I examined all of the possiblities and conquered each one as it came to my awareness. In my self-examination, I asked my instructors a gazillion questions, quite possibly exxasperating a few, but I asked anyway. I believe that the only stupid question there is, is the one that's left unasked...so I asked a lot. Then, on my 6th jump after AFF in March of '04, I broke my back on a blown landing, so when I came back to the sport, I was scared and cautious. But I came back and have made 65 jumps since late July. By breaking my back I learned several things...knowing how to do a good PLF being the most critical. A few weeks ago I made the same stupid mistake I made when I broke my back, but my response was completely different...instead of raising my toggles cuz I flared too high, I held them steady, and when I got the lift after the flare, I was still about 8 feet off the ground. Instead of trying a butt-slide, I did a PLF, and walked away without even so much as a bruise. I have to attribute my success in this sport to all of the jumpmasters at Mile Hi Skydiving in Longmont, CO, and to this website. Since I've had so many struggles, I hope to become a coach soon...they say the best coaches are the ones that had the toughest time learning... My recommendation for anyone reading this is to read all of the Safety and Training articles you can find, and stay current on this website. The jumpers with one jump or thousands of jumps can teach us all a lesson or two...so stay open-minded and in your mind, stay a beginner. Great Thread!! BBS to all, Tiger ________________________________________ Look, up in the sky! It's a bird! It's a plane! It's a tiger in the sky!! Throw down some steaks and run for the hills!!!

make sure your chest strap is completely threaded and secured...if you don't have it under the last piece of metal, you're dead...your rig will come off you on opening. And: PLF PLF PLF PLF PLF ________________________________________ Look, up in the sky! It's a bird! It's a plane! It's a tiger in the sky!! Throw down some steaks and run for the hills!!!

ouch sorry this didn't make sense to you guys...I listed this as a poll cuz it was a question I was hoping many of you would answer with your opinions on which are the safest canopies, and which aren't. Maybe I should have phrased it differently...but can't think of a more straightforward way of asking...are there canopies that are more prone to mals than others? Which are more prone to line twists, bag locks, line overs, etc I'll do some research and get back...once again, sorry guys. bbs, Tiger ________________________________________ Look, up in the sky! It's a bird! It's a plane! It's a tiger in the sky!! Throw down some steaks and run for the hills!!!

I'm trying to figure out which canopies had the most mals, not skydiver induced...are there any that are most prone? bbs, Tiger ________________________________________ Look, up in the sky! It's a bird! It's a plane! It's a tiger in the sky!! Throw down some steaks and run for the hills!!!

Hey Dorbie It takes a LOT of courage to jump when your "landing" gear is not at its peak. I've had a missing ACL for 27 years and I refuse to get sugery. Everyone I've asked about surgery has had something negative to say. Just remember, sugery is final, there really are no "do-overs", Braces, specifically fitted for you cost a fortune and surgery takes a lot time to recover. For me, I so knee, calf, hamstring and quad strenghening, and take a regular sporto neoprene support, and then on top of that I put on a brace with metal hinges on the side. Between the two, my knee feels nice and tight again, and I've put it through a few paces. It's a lot less expensive than a custom brace, it gives my knee the support it needs, you may want to give it a try. keep me posted, bbs Tiger ________________________________________ Look, up in the sky! It's a bird! It's a plane! It's a tiger in the sky!! Throw down some steaks and run for the hills!!!

Hi folks, As many of you know, I'm coming back from a broken back from a flubbed landing. I've got about 40 jumps now since the injury, and today, the same thing happened...I flared too high, and was lifted considerably off the ground (by about 10 feet I'd say) and then just dropped. The last time it happened, I let up on the toggles, the canopy lunged forward and I pendulummed into the ground, doing the old reliable butt-slide... that's what broke my back and lost me 1 3/4 inches in height. This time, I held the flare and PLF'd. It save my ass bigtime. SO, practice PLF's...I did it jumping off of swings in playgrounds, and hold that flare (unless your 50 feet above ground and can get some speed back into your canopy for a proper flare. I am so proud of the difference between then, and now...I've learned so much from these forums, as well as the instructors at Mile Hi, who have allowed me to ask my gazillion questions and answered them so patiently with their experience and wisdom. I could never speak highly enough of the staff at Mile Hi...it's because of you all that I learned and walked away from this jump with a very happy and full heart. Blue Skies Always to you, Tiger ________________________________________ Look, up in the sky! It's a bird! It's a plane! It's a tiger in the sky!! Throw down some steaks and run for the hills!!!

Hi Raistlin, It took 3 months for the fractures to heal...the doc told me to start "weaning" myself off of the back brace, but, as you can imagine, in it went into the closet, never to come out again. That weekend I was back at the dz, bugging an instructor to give me a recurrency jump. Via the weather or unavailable jm's, it was another 6 weeks before I actually got back up in the air. I was on the Navigator 260, and we're friends again. In fact I hope to jump a Spectre 230 soon. blues, Tiger ________________________________________ Look, up in the sky! It's a bird! It's a plane! It's a tiger in the sky!! Throw down some steaks and run for the hills!!!

I think most of us have been injured in this sport, from being bruised to shattered vertebrae. But some of us come back to the sport from the more severe injuries, I am one of those people. I just love the freedom too much to say goodbye. How can I come back? That's a question we all ask ourselves as we mentally prepare to skydive again. First, there was the decision to return to skydiving. That commitment alone is 60% of the preparations. Secondly, while I was still injured, toward the end of healing, I began training to correct my issues...my issue was butt-sliding. I trained to correct my inadequacy by jumping off of swings, watching the treadmill as it rolled under my feet as I jogged---the speed of landing, generally, is a perception thing. I also talked with people, asking all kinds of questions, I read peoples' posts here, and asked more questions. So, finally I'm on the plane, and I'm nervous. I don't want to get injured again, and my back wouldn't be able to handle it either. Rather than getting scared about landing, because I know I'm going to jump, and landing is inevitable, I concentrate on being in the door when I'm at the door. As I'm doing my exit count, I'm concentrating on doing me exit count. As I'm getting stable, that's all I think about...as I'm flaring, that's all I thing about...so there's no worrying about the future. I also used a coach to tell me when to flare so I could concentrate on landing on my feet or doing a PLF. I have yet to stand up a landing, but my confidence is coming back because I've been doing PLF's without even thinking about what I'm doing...they just happen now...and it's saved my butt on at least 3 occassions that I can think of. It takes time and courage to come back, but well worth the journey. I hope this helps someone out there. bbs, Tiger ________________________________________ Look, up in the sky! It's a bird! It's a plane! It's a tiger in the sky!! Throw down some steaks and run for the hills!!!