Author Topic: Finaly done it... jumped out of a perfectly fit airplane (Read 646 times)

Rolex · « **Reply #15 on:** June 12, 2006, 04:29:18 AM »

WTG Saw!

Everyone's face hurts so bad after their first jump - from the ear-to-ear smile. Did you say what most people say after you landed?

"I want to go again! Now!"

I'm an old guy, so my jumps were in old 2TU canopies. Had a class in the morning and came back after lunch to make a static-line jump the first time.

When you make your first solo jump, you'll be in awe of the silence. Everywhere, and at any time, we can always hear some sound in the background of our lives. The only thing you'll hear after your chute opens is your beating heart, and the blood rushing through your veins.

It's a great feeling under the canopy - watching the earth slowing come up to meet you.

Good luck!

Saintaw · « **Reply #16 on:** June 12, 2006, 04:33:38 AM »

Quote

Originally posted by Rolex

"I want to go again! Now!"

I beleive those were the exact words I used

Nilsen · « **Reply #17 on:** June 12, 2006, 04:34:20 AM »

Quote

Originally posted by Rolex
watching the earth slowing come up to meet you.

hehe.. hopefully:D

slow beeing the key word

deSelys · « **Reply #18 on:** June 12, 2006, 04:55:04 AM »

Saintaw, the one-way trip between Spa and Wiltz is 99 km...still shorter than the 156km between my home and Spa.

4K for the 1st year seems a bit over the top for me:
AFF course prices in Spa are 1050€ during weekdays, 1250€ during WE. Included are the insurance and 1 year membership in Spa (jump tickets are cheaper when you're member). Your first solo jump + gear renting + packing is free. This is if you do your AFF without failing a single level. Rejump of level 1-3 cost 190€, 4-7 cost 125€. Most people are able to go thru AFF with 1 up to 3 rejumps. Weather permitting, you should be able to complete AFF in 3-5 days.

When you're waved off to go solo, a jump ticket is 21 € (prices go down as you buy more tickets) and a rental + packing is 12 €. I think you shouldn't buy your gear immediately but take time to try things out and ask a lot of questions. Used gear can be found between 2-3 K while a new gear is 5 K (including an AAD as those are mandatory in Spa. A new AAD is around 1K €). Be aware that used gear suitable to jumpers fresh out of student status are somewhat hard to be found.

Jumpsuit + helmet + altimeter cost around 500 € new, 200-300 € used.

But, as my instructor said to me the 1st day: 'Now your counting your money, within a week you'll be counting your jumps!'. How right he was...

This being said, you need to realize that this is an unforgiving sport and that complacency kills. Like driving a bike, you can do it safety-minded or 'on the edge', and it will hugely affect the involved risk. However, as the old (and almost never bold) skydivers say, 'you can do everything right and still die'. For me, the experience outweighs the risk. I'd even add that I'm much more aware of my mortal condition than 2 years ago and it has changed my views about life and the real important things.

Slash27 · « **Reply #19 on:** June 12, 2006, 05:59:23 AM »

Bunch of lunatics.

Hajo · « **Reply #20 on:** June 12, 2006, 06:43:35 AM »

Saw WTG! Jumped 4 times. Just wanted to get the experience. Was great!

But as StSanta said......be aware! Two months ago a friend of mine who was a Police Chief and a jump instructor.....also jumped in the Military with thousands of jumps died in a jumping accident. He landed unfortunately on a black topped Road. Even though one has experience accidents occur.
His main did not deploy........over the years he's had this happen many times. He did what he usually does, tried to untangle the Main. As I said this was no big deal to him.....BUT!....he was so complacent about getting the Main open he opened his Emergency to late....chute did not have time to deploy and he hit the Road.

Wife and two kids. A pity he was a stallwart of the Community. Don't be a hero! This goes for all who jump. Do not get complacent. Treat each jump with the respect that it is due. We have lots of soft tissue. Keep it in one piece!

BUG_EAF322 · « **Reply #21 on:** June 12, 2006, 07:03:58 AM »

Congrats i remember my first jump was a blackout realizing at the 4th and jumped total 8 times static line dough.

Its still stupid to jump out a good plane.
I enjoyed the ride and the way u can fly with the square chute for what it does.

I never got addicted.

Curval · « **Reply #22 on:** June 12, 2006, 08:02:32 AM »

Come on Saw and Grun...I know there has to be pics or video. Hell, I did mine in the mid-nineties and even back then they had cameras mounted on the wing and the pilot snapped a few remotely as we jumped:

[/IMG]

Saintaw · « **Reply #23 on:** June 12, 2006, 08:10:04 AM »

Deselys, I don't/can't have a car right now, so Spa looks like it could be in China for the time being

. I'm going back to Wiltz this saturday for the 1st class.

Something else has happened to me, I have never been so calm in my life before... I almost fell asleep while the dentists was drilling holes in my body. (I normaly have a catatonic fear of dentists). This morning, for the 1st time in the last decade, I was able to sleep past 6am.

Curval, We didn't have any 'in flight' shots, as we didn't pre-order those... but have plenty of shots/films on the ground... I'm off today, and my mobile cable is at the ofice.. I'll post them 1st thing tomorrow morning

deSelys · « **Reply #24 on:** June 12, 2006, 09:28:14 AM »

Sorry Saw, I had forgotten about your no-car situation.

Please keep us posted about your progression. When you're licensed and allowed to jump with others, I'll make the trip to Wiltz and we'll do a couple of jumps together.

Have fun and stay safe.

PS I don't know if you'll suffer from the same side effect, but I wasn't able to do an iota of work during the week following my first 3 jumps...

Guppy35 · « **Reply #25 on:** June 12, 2006, 12:05:12 PM »

Jumped once, back in college, on a dare, just to see what it was like.

Talk about a dumb thing to do

The instructor spent most of the time telling horrror stories of what could go wrong. I suppose it was to see if we were really going to go through with it. A buddy said it was better to go first then to watch someone jump, so I volunteered.

It was a static line jump from a Cessna 170. The door swung open, I slid out and hung on to the wing strut and stepped on the wheel. Instructor hit my arm and off I went. I got as far as counting 1 and then it went slow motion. It took forever for that chute to open, during which time I made all kinds of promises to the man upstairs about all the good things I'd do in life if he just got me down safely.

After that eternity the chute popped and it was dead quiet. It seemed a long time coming down. Naturally they'd dropped me short of the drop zone and I came down on one side of a fence with my chute falling over the other side. I remember hearing my buddy yelling and whooping it up. He loved it. I also remember lying there, wondering why I'd done such a goofy thing

Glad I did it, saw no reason to do it again. A once in a lifetime experience.

Glad you enjoyed yours.

Maverick · « **Reply #26 on:** June 12, 2006, 12:13:11 PM »

Jumping out of an airplane and heading to the ground is NOT flying. It is FALLING. Flying means you can climb, not just do turns, flips or other gyrations while going basically one direction, down.

GRUNHERZ · « **Reply #27 on:** June 12, 2006, 12:20:29 PM »

Quote

Originally posted by Curval
Come on Saw and Grun...I know there has to be pics or video. Hell, I did mine in the mid-nineties and even back then they had cameras mounted on the wing and the pilot snapped a few remotely as we jumped:

[/IMG]

Pics and vids next time, I'm going again in a few weeks with some friends and then we'll do the videos. My jump yesterday was done on a whim since my plans to go snowboarding got screwed up.

Curval · « **Reply #28 on:** June 12, 2006, 01:49:57 PM »

hehe

Well, I didn't say my jump was pretty in any way.

But, I went...once.

Casca · « **Reply #29 on:** June 12, 2006, 02:21:13 PM »

Three static line jumps in '75. Otay Mesa outside of San Diego. On the last one when I was picking up my gear the owner said, and I quote: "You should really use a 32 foot canopy but this 28 will work just fine." I was driven into the ground like a tent stake. The jumpmaster said he thought he could hear me fart from his vantage point in the airplane. I remember rocking on the ground and making odd little noises in a vain attempt to inhale a little air, every molecule of which had been violently driven from my lungs at impact. My back is still bad 31 years later. I'm not planning on trying it again any time soon.