flyingarab

Ok..try this.. WOOOO SAAAAAAA WOOOOO SSAAAAAAAA tends to help out when things in forums get carried away! Want to fun jump..then fun jump. Want coaching, then pay for the slot atleast. Anything worth my time and yours is going to cost someone money. Paying for a slot is a lucky way out. Most sports you pay for time, skill level, and various other things. If you can pay for the jump and pack job of the person you are learning from, you are in great shape. If you get one for free congrats, but consider it a bonus. In the end, we all know skydiving to be a sport that not only breaks the bank but causes drama along the way. If I want to learn from someone, I pay their slot and pack job. $20.00 for a jump is fair. They have put time and money into the sport and not only that, they are placing their life in harms way (so to speak) in order to teach you something. There has to be reward for that. Sincerely, FlyingArab www.flyingarab.com

Unlike most people, i started jumping at 100 jumps and have never quit it. However, I did take steps before my hundredth jump in order to prepare. First, I attached the DBox to my helmet and jumped with it empty for about 10 jumps to get the feel for the lines near it etc... Once I was comfortable, I put the camera in it and did not try to focus on anything for about 50 jumps. No dot on goggles, no ring site, just fly and film. After the 50 jumps I went to the dot on my goggles and tried to get target center framed. Once that was done, I moved on to a ring site and now fly a top still and side vid. The only problems I have ever encountered is when I put my chest strap too tight which caused my lines to be a little too close to the side mount. This sport is not as cut and dry as we would like to think in regards to jump #'s being the answer. The best way to know if you are ready is to have someone with great camera skills and flying skills go up with you and see how you fly and how stable you are. A great jumper with 100 jumps can easily fly camera..while a shitty jumper at 200 jumps should be no where near a camera mount. Hope this helps.. Sincerely, FlyingArab www.flyingarab.com

Good point. Perhaps a simple mention by jumpers while on the plane regarding landing patterns will be a great way to make it happen. We also have alternate landing areas and I am sure they will see more use now than ever before.. Sincerely, FlyingArab www.flyingarab.com

Well, with all the different opinions, I think one thing is clear. We all want a safe sport...so let's make it that way. Take care guys.. Sincerely, FlyingArab www.flyingarab.com

Hey Ron, I was simply stating that people should take extra time. . . . Safety is a key issue in this sport. . . . There is a ton of emotion in the sport. I love the sport more than anything else in my life and so do many of the jumpers that I know. It is not possible to love something and remove emotion from it at the same time. When someone dies or gets hurt in the sport, it is that same emotion that allows people to heal and move on. Perhaps with your "skills" you have replaced emotion with nonsense, but that is for you to deal with on your own. I believe that fellow skydivers, given the time and opportunity, should take a moment to just make sure that the person beside them is ok. If that is going beyond the call to you, then perhaps you need to go back and figure out what this sport is all about. More stuff deleted Sincerely, FlyingArab www.flyingarab.com

Hey Ron...Wooosaaaa Wooosaaaa PA deleted I wish you luck bro as your health, heart, and mind will need it with an attitude like that. For the rest, I am not saying it is time to babysit, but the point was, assisting your fellow skydiver is a good thing. I will do it to someone now no matter how many jumps he or she has. It is just a simply thing that could one day save a life. Sincerely, FlyingArab www.flyingarab.com

I have thought long and hard about this issue and have come to a conclusion of my own (partly based on what I have read etc..) The main issue here is that I did think I was the first one down, so the idea of landing into the wind with the chance of a collision was not even in my mind. Had I seen this other person coming in at the same time, I would have made the decision to land far away from the main area. Granted, as billvon and others have stated, given the choice of a downwind or collision pick downwind. That is a no brainer. However the key words used are "given the choice". Being that when I looked neither myself or the other jumper were able to spot eachother, removed any idea that a choice was even necessary. To us, it look as though each was the only one remotely close to landing. I realized that the canopy I could not see was a dark colored one and the jumper was wearing a gray / black suit. I am used to spotting the bright canopies and suites making this a little different. Being that there are trees and brush in the area, it was not easy for me to see the jumpers with such colors. Also, I have come to realize that the arrow idea is one that should be accepted for the most part. This means, if you want to land in the main landing area (where spectators are watching) you must land in the direction of the arrow. IF you want to turn and land opposite this, you must land away in an area that will set you aside from the other jumpers. I want to thank those of you that add input to this in an educated way. I have come to realise that there are two types of people who give advice. Those that can play both sides and comprehend what was happening in all ways, and those that simply want to be right no matter what. For those of you that have taken the time to visualize this situation, my dislocated shoulder and I thank you. Your input is much appreciated and well noted. Sincerely, FlyingArab www.flyingarab.com

hey brit, I appreciate your reply to this and agree with you 100%. I am going to see an ortho tomorrow and will take it from there. I have already gained a ton of movement back and want to remain pos. about the whole thing. Being out this sport for even a day is uncomprehensable to me at this point, however I will do what is determined to be safe for myself and my fellow skydivers. have a great one..you rock! Sincerely, FlyingArab www.flyingarab.com

you know what the differnce between a real skydiver and a guy that jumps out of a plane? The difference is that a real skydiver considers his fellow jumpers to be family and his DZ to be his home away from home. This means that a real skydiver would treat the facility with the most respect and would do what was necessary to make sure his "family" was safe. A jumper, well he or she would just get on the load, jump, land, and go home at the end of the day. I love being a skydiver and am thankful I am not just a jumper. Sincerely, FlyingArab www.flyingarab.com

It seems to me that depending on who you speak with, the answer to this question is not as simply as "do as the romans do". However, if this means that the first person down should land down wind in order to avoid collisions, the idea itself does not make sense. The point of the streamer and wind sock is to inform us as to the direction of the wind. The rules of into the wind landings to not apply to winds that exceed 5mph but instead all wind conditions. Being that the other jumper and I were down and the same time and simply did not see eachother, we both setup to land as if we were the first ones down. As I stated earlier, the tandem that left after us landed in the pattern that you stated and he had a hell of a time slowing down. Although the speed of the winds does not seem extreme, it can still be deemed unsafe depending on the jumpers skill level and the type of landing being performed. Upon take off, landing patterns are set, but that is given the notion that the winds will not change direction. In this case, the winds did a 180 degree change. As told to me by an "experienced jumper" there are clues all around that the winds changed. Not just the wind sock and streamer but flags on poles, water in the lake and pond etc... Not being able to see the wind sock or streamer does not mean that a down wind landing should be performed. Perhaps you both should take some time to define low winds. Perhaps to a skilled jumper a low wind is 10mph and to a newbee the low wind mark is 3mph. However there is not misunderstanding when you use the term down wind, into the wind, or cross wind. Those terms are specific and we are all taught to land into the wind. Sincerely, FlyingArab www.flyingarab.com

First, I would like to congratulate you on all that you have overcome. To battle illness, win, and then come back to the sport that you love, it something we all can admire. As for what you can expect, if the finances are there, I would simply start over. It would assure you a safe and confident return to the sport and at the very least, set you back a little bit of cash. However, we have all learned that skydiving is a sport where taking time and being safe is the only way to survive. Good luck with all that you do! Keep us posted on your success with it. Sincerely, FlyingArab www.flyingarab.com

This weekend a friend of mine boarded the plane and intentionally left his chest strap undone in an attempt to see how many people would notice. He even went a step further to get attention by giving each of us the famous skydiving bird (middle finger skydiver style) and although we all had a great laugh, none of us, including myself, ever noticed that his strap was not on. When we landed, he made an announcement at manifest regarding what he had done and brought special attention to the fact that no one noticed. As the season picks up, being aware of your gear and the gear of those beside you on the plane will become more important. This has taught me a very valuable lesson in regards to making this sport a more safe one. I believe that pin checks and gear checks on the plane should be done by ever jumper and would also like to see everyone check the person's gear sitting beside them. We have 14K feet to get this done. It only takes 1K feet to do it and it could save your life or the life of someone else. This is just a thought that I had and wanted to present it to the rest of the SD community as we grow closer to a busy season. Sincerely, FlyingArab www.flyingarab.com

If you are looking for bad ass music, such as techno or fast shit for the jump, go get sonic foundry acid and make it yourself. It is an easy program and you can add beats to match the jumps. Sincerely, FlyingArab www.flyingarab.com

Landing down wind is never the right option unless it is to avoid hazards, incidents, or to practice swoops. If you are the first down, and you know that others are going to follow your pattern, and you still choose a down wind even at 5pmh, you have just put some low time jumpers at risk. This situation was an issue of visibility of eachother not whether or not 5mph winds or 4 mph winds are worth dealing with. Sincerely, FlyingArab www.flyingarab.com

Wow, meaning that winds that are 4-5mph are not worth worrying about? That is interesting considering the Tandem felt as though landing down wind on that one was way too fast. We have streamers for a reason. To disregard any wind direction or speed is the only thing that I would consider silly or dangerous. All wind conditions should be taken seriously no matter how fast or slow. If not, why even have streamers? Sincerely, FlyingArab www.flyingarab.com

haaa...and vicodin Sincerely, FlyingArab www.flyingarab.com

Wow..well let me just tell you, I dislocated mine yesterday due to a ground impact after a canopy collusion upong landing. I train with weights twice a day up until this point and hope that all will be well. I will visit the ortho. on friday of this week. He did look at x-rays and says that two weeks should be long enough given the muscle build etc... Being that it is on my right shoulder I am concerned about what will happend at pull times and hope that this will not pose a problem. I guess I will leave it up to the doc for now and hope that the weight training up to now will pay off with a quick and reliable recovery. P.S. Coming out is ok..popping it back it at the DZ, that sucks! Be safe.. Sincerely, FlyingArab www.flyingarab.com

The terms "no wind" and "set landing patterns" can be very misleading from what I found out. After this jump was over and my shoulder was popped back into place, the other jumper, myself, the S and TA, other people on the load, and various up jumpers all gathered around to discuss this landing. Unfortunately, the person that posted this initial thread, was not involved in the discussion, and was not able to get all the information accurate before he posted this article. For the sake of actually trying to help others in the same situation, I am going to post the information that was discussed in our briefing afterwards. The rule of thumb when landing is that the first person usually sets the landing pattern for the rest of the jumpers. (this is a good safe way to land and you hope that the first person is not screwing around trying to make down wind landings) With this being said, it is important to note that no one had landed when I made final approach. This being the case, I flew over the wind sock and the streamer to make sure that the winds had not changed. As I passed over them, I noticed that the windsock was relatively still and that the streamer was out at 90 pointing that winds were now coming from the north and not the south. Given that no one had landed yet, I setup my landing pattern to land into the wind. After speaking with other jumpers on the load, some said that although the streamer was moving but the wind sock was not, they were going to maintain a north to south pattern while others changed to go opposite because of the streamer (this is problem #1..the importance of the streamer vs. the no wind landing pattern) I made the decision that since the streamer was at 90 in the opposite direction than initially thought, I would correct my landing pattern and land into the wind. The other issue here was that I knew there were two other people in the sky that should have been under canopy around me. I took time to look around but for whatever reason, I was not able to spot either of them. At 1K I setup for my approach and came in for an aggressive (swoop) landing. The other jumper involved was also coming in, at that exact time, in a swoop as well, at the exact spot that I was coming in. We both noticed each other at the last minute and barely avoided a full body collision. The other jumper stated that he was following the landing pattern set earlier that day and that he was too far from the streamer to see what it was doing. However, he did state that the winds were very mild and that he felt the landing pattern set earlier was the landing pattern that should have been used in such calm winds. During the briefing, there were very different opinions about the winds, the streamer and how important it is in the decision making of a landing, and most of all, landing areas and what should be done to avoid this situation. The pilot informed us that the winds were in fact coming from the north and that, upon final approach by the plane to the runway, he was being pushed from the north as he landed north to south. This being said, the focus turned on to the streamer and the wind sock and just how much the streamer should be used in regards to final approach. It was my opinion that the winds, being only 4 - 5 mph, still warranted an into the wind landing. However, if others were below me, and were landing the opposite, I would then have two choices. 1. land in the same pattern or 2. land away but still land into the wind. Since no one was down, I chose to set the landing pattern my landing into the wind. Some people in the briefing stated that the streamer does not produce enough wind information to change the landing pattern while others pointed out that the streamer is there for a reason, to indicate low winds and landing patterns. I do know that in the end, the decision was split as to what should have been done. Many very experienced jumpers say that the landing pattern should have been south to north (the approach I used) while just as many said it should have been (north to south) the pattern the other jumper used. In my opinion, there were two things that led to this collision: 1. awareness for others in the sky - Although I looked for other jumpers, I did not see this jumper until it was too late. Had I been able to spot him, I would have made sure to do my part to avoid this collision and his feelings are the same. 2. landing patterns - if there is a situation where winds are changing and speeds are mild, each load in the air should mention the set pattern if at all possible. During our briefing, I was informed that a landing pattern two loads ago was set to north to south. I, along with some others did not hear this, and by load 4, the winds had changed to the opposite direction. This situation has many different factors that caused much confusion amongst jumpers on the ground. I am glad that I walked away with only a dislocated shoulder and that the other jumper was also able to walk way with minor injuries. We both could have been killed but we weren't. This landing was not as simple as the title of this topic states. We all know that in a no wind landing situation jumpers should land in the set path. We also know that if you are following others in, you should all land in the same direction. Neither of those were the case on this jump. As with any incident, much can be learned from this. Based on what I heard during our briefing, I can only assume that there are mixed feelings about this in the SD community at all DZ's. I was told yesterday that this situation is a "gray" area and that nothing is really set in stone about it. I THINK THAT IS THE PART THAT PISSES ME OFF THE MOST. This sport is far too aggressive and far too dangerous to have "gray" areas. Although people might feel differently about it, rules set in stone at each DZ about situations Sincerely, FlyingArab www.flyingarab.com

I was having the hardest time doing a head down with my still on my head. I have a hawkeye with side mount and top mount and when the top mount was used, it almost acted like a fin. When the air would hit it as a slight angle, I tended to move in that direction. I decided not too long ago to try it with the helmet off and what a difference it made. Just be ready to really work on it. Sincerely, FlyingArab www.flyingarab.com

Hey Brother..this is my first post on this damn site and I just wanted to let you know that no matter what you are doing, count me in for video. You rock and it is always fun to be jumping with you. Well, we have to plan our head down sometime soon..but for now congrats and thanks for being so awesome at the DZ.... Sincerely, FlyingArab www.flyingarab.com