Knowing Your Limits

This weekend was another skydiving lesson learned – this time, from the comfort of the ground.

Or really, I should say the uncomfort of the ground. As anyone who’s engrossed in any sport knows, having to sit on the sidelines while fellow athletes are out doing what they love has a tendency to make you quite antsy.

At one point, one of the jump masters asked me “are you okay, or is this killing you?”

Sure, I wanted to be jumping, but I was not about to enter into the risks under canopy yesterday.

As I mentioned in a previous post, Cleveland Parachute is a place where friends gather every weekend, and we’re getting a great core group of jumpers. We’re out there supporting each other, giving each other a hard time when our landings are sub-par, and learning from one another.

It’s great to have other jumpers with similar experience, and those with significantly more experience to provide pointers. And although skydiving is one of those sports where you have to learn the little tricks that work for you, it never hurts to hear and see what the experienced jumpers are doing.

This weekend was a great learning experience for us all. 

Winds were high – higher than normal anyhow – and there was lots of discussion on canopy control and staying West of the drop zone as long as possible.

Unfortunately, for us students, with larger canopies and less experience, the winds were very much against us. As I watched two of my friends who are current AFF students get pushed backwards into fields far past the drop zone I quickly decided that jumping was not a smart idea. And given that I jump a ‘chute the same size as these guys (who are both 40 pounds heavier), who knows where that wind would have pushed me.

So, to save myself from ending up in Pennsylvania, I stayed grounded.

In hindsight, it probably didn’t hurt to give my elbow an extra week to rest from last week’s fall. 

Regardless, it was a great day spent at the DZ with my weekend family. And if the weather stays true to the forecast, we’ll be headed back out this coming weekend for some more jumping.

Blues Skies!

-A

Lessons from Under the Canopy

The more I participate in skydiving the more I realize that it’s numerous sports wrapped up in one. For those of us who are drawn to the thrill of free fall, we’re also forced to become sports parachutists as well.

At least, if we want to do it more than once, that is.

Canopy skills are imperative to a successful skydive. You have to learn how to check the parachute upon opening to make sure it’s safe to land, maneuver with toggles and flare for landing. On top of that, you need to learn how to spot and navigate properly for a safe landing.

These skills are learned and perfected over time, but it’s important to start early. From my first AFF jump my instructors were talking over the winds with me and teaching me how to spot. At first I thought, “this is so foreign to me, I’ll never get it.” But once you’re jumping regularly and on your own, it forces you to focus and learn quickly.

This weekend I made it my goal to maintain a heading in free fall to drop nearly straight down. When my ‘chute opened I was directly overhead the drop zone and in good position.

I was feeling great about my navigation skills and at 800 feet started heading toward the target. It looked great, so I made it my goal to land in the middle of the target. There was no wind that day, I could tell it was going to be close. Coming in a 1/4 brakes to slow forward motion then letting up toward the end so I had a good flare.

One thing to remember when you’re under canopy is that you’re moving 10 mph forward. This can seem pretty quick when you’re getting close to the ground. This became apparent when I let up on the brakes. In turn, I flared a little soon and stalled my canopy about 5 feet above the ground.

Yep, you guessed it, no where to go but straight down.

This is why PLF (parachute landing falls) are so important. I rolled it out and walked away, ankles in tact. Though I do have a sore elbow as I didn’t keep my arms in flare position during the roll out.

Oops! Looks like there are two lessons here:

1) Don’t flare too soon, and if you do, be prepared to roll it out and,

2) Keep your elbows in!

Precision will only come with time and experience. But on the plus side, I landed about 10 feet from the target and felt pretty great about it.

(Feeling pretty great about my landing!)

Do any of y’all have tricks you learned to help with canopy control?

Blue Skies!

Ashley

I’d rather be skydiving

This weekend will be the first in over a month where I haven’t thrown myself from a perfectly good airplane. I can’t begin to tell you how much I wish I could squeeze it in, but that just doesn’t look possible.

Unfortunately, sometimes life gets in the way.

This little truth has inspired me to start a regular column. So welcome, to the first installment of “I’d rather be skydiving.”

Don’t get me wrong, I’m beyond thrilled to be heading back home – to small-town Michigan –  for a weekend with my family, but there’s a part of me that’s always craving the free fall, the adrenaline rush, the challenge of a good skydive. I think this is true for all passionate skydivers.

So while I’m spending my weekend celebrating my little cousin’s graduation from high school and spending some quality time with Dad, I hope y’all can get out and enjoy some of the local skydiving events in your area:

• June 20 – Full ‘A’ License Course. Skydive Nagambie, Australia. The ultimate skydiving holiday! Seven adrenaline filled days of fun and learning will see you walk away with an internationally recognised ‘A’ Lisence. Information courtesey of Dropzone.com.
• June 20 – Dago Fest. Chicagoland Skydiving Center. Enjoy some Italian Food around the bonfire after a great day of Skydiving! Learn more at SkydiveCSC.
• June 20-25 – Skydive over Mt. McKinley. Denali Park, Alaska. A high-altitude, high-open (HAHO) tandem skydiving event over Alaska’s Mt McKinley. Jump from over 22,000 ft high. No skydiving experience necessary. Visit Incredible Adventures for more information.

Of course, if you’re curious about the sport and want to make your first jump, what a better weekend to do so? Bring dad along for a tandem jump. It’ll be a Father’s Day he’ll never forget! Visit WhereToJump or the USPA Drop Zone locator to find a DZ near you.

If you’re in Northeast Ohio, I highly recommend Cleveland Parachute Center. Tell them Ashley sent you. They’ll take good care of you.

Blue Skies!

Ashley

DZ Friends

The importance of drop zone friends is highly underrated.

These last couple months at my home drop zone I have had the pleasure of meeting not only some great skydivers, but some wonderful friends as well.

It’s a great feeling when you head out to the DZ on a busy weekend and are welcomed by all the regulars. It’s like a little skydiving family out there. Everyone is cheering on everyone else, excited to see the reactions from the first timers, enjoying the crazy parachuting tricks of the veterans.

It’s comforting to know that, for me at least, everyone is looking out for me. It is not uncommon to be headed out to the plane and get stopped two or three times by different jump masters who want to look over my equipment one more time. This, of course, is welcomed. You can never be too careful.

I’m still meeting new faces every weekend, but the more regulars I meet, the more I feel like Cleveland Parachute is a home.

Do y’all feel this way about your home DZ too?

Blue Skies!

Ashley

Skydiving Vacation

This is something I’ve always wanted to do – take a vacation purely for the skydiving.

Well, my dream has come true. Sorta. Tomorrow I’ve decided to take a vacation day from the office to get in a few jumps over at Cleveland Parachute Center.

Sure, there aren’t pristine beaches involved, but the weather is supposed to be fairly nice and I’ll have a chance to do some back to back jumps without having to wait for the line up of tandems that typically occurs on the weekend.

Though don’t get me wrong, I’ll certainly be headed back out to the DZ for a jump or two on the weekend as well. Just try and keep me away.

But this mini-vacation does have me thinking about my next trip and possible locations for skydiving.

As a former Dallas resident, I’m always thinking about heading back to the Big D to spend some leisurely time with my friends. I’ve heard great things about Skydive Dallas.

In August I’m planning a trip out to Los Angeles with my old college crew and I’d love to get in a jump on the west coast if possible. A quick Google search revealed a number of locations for the sport. Any DZ recommendations in the LA area?

I’d love to head out to Australia and New Zealand some day for the view of a lifetime from 13,500!

Photo courtesy of Skydive the Glaciers

Of course, one day I’ll head back to Skydive Miami where my journey as a sports parachutist began and complete a solo jump.

I can’t wait to jump with this guy again. After all, he’s the one who got me hooked!

What other drop zones do you recommend visiting? Where have you had great experiences?

Blue Skies!

Ashley

A video montage

Skydivers love to have videos of their jumps. Not only do they come in handy when you have a great jump and want to show it off to your friends but they are key in learning from your mistakes – especially when you’re just starting out.

Reviewing video footage of yourself free falling, observing body position, hand signals, and seeing the skydive from start to finish can really help you see where changes need to be made.

What I’ve found is that even videos of other jumpers can be quite helpful. In a quick YouTube search I came across a number of video resources for the newbie and experienced skydiver alike.

The first one is of a student skydiver, working toward his license. He’s on his 22nd jump, still getting the hang of body control in free fall. I like this video because it shows those who aren’t as familiar with the sport that it’s not as easy as it appears. But, it is way more fun than it looks!

22nd Jump

The next video is of a much more experienced duo, pulling off some pretty amazing aerobatic tricks.

Free Fly Duo

And just for kicks, here’s a video of a tandem HALO jump from 30,000 feet. Notice the amount of time they are in free fall. This is definitely something that’s on my bucket list.

Tandem HALO

If you have time to browse YouTube I highly recommend searching for skydiving videos. You’ll find everything from one-time tandems to student jumpers, to wing suits and team jumps.

Blue Skies!

Ashley

Now that was fun!

Today was my fourth AFF jump, and it was by far the most fun yet!

It was a beautiful day, light winds out of the west, not a cloud in the sky. As the first jump of the day I had quite the audience of tandem jumper, including a bachelorette party, watching on as I came in for a smooth landing (no pressure).

So smooth in fact, that I probably should have stood up rather than PLF, but given that I landed in eight or so inches of brush I took the safe route.

But let’s back up to the free fall for a second, shall we?

Today was my release dive. I went out the door as usual, Dan on my right, Tom on my left.

We exited together, took a few seconds to level out – arching hard to get belly to Earth – and went right into my first circle of awareness.

Only a couple hand signals and minor body position changes before I found myself in free fall alone. Officially my first solo free fall.

Surprisingly, I kept it cool and stable. A few minor, unintended turns, but I waved off at 5,500 and deployed the pilot chute. And that’s when I realized it….I completely forgot about practice touches after the circle of awareness.

Before the jump we had modified our routine to allow as much solo free fall time as possible, and in those modifications we decided on just one practice touch. Regardless, I was still released, but when I reached for that hackey to deploy it hit me, “holy crap! This is the first time I’m touching this… I completely spaced on the practice touches.”

Minor mistakes aside, I felt great about this skydive, and my instructors seemed pretty proud too.

This was the first time I felt like I had more fun than I did stress.  Each time I jump I become more aware of just how much I was meant to be a part of this sport.

What has been one of your best jump experiences?

Blue Skies!

Ashley

It’s a good thing I like physics

For a girl who’s not much for math, I always gravitated toward physics in high school. Maybe, subconsciously I knew that one day I’d be involved in a sport where a solid background in physics would come in so handy.

At first, it sounds a little funny, but when you think about it, every aspect of a successful skydive can be calculated. After all, physics is the study of matter and its motion through spacetime and all that derives from these, such as energy and force.

In the instance of skydiving, the human is the matter and the fall through the air – both free fall and under canopy – is the motion. The energy and force are elements such as human muscle and wind.

Of course, this is just a very basic overview, but I’ll spare you the details. I’m just learning myself, and what I find out every day is that there is way more to this sport than I ever imagined – even the pros never top learning.

I’m excited for the endless challenge of skydiving and hope you are too!

Blue Skies!

Ashley

The First Five

Well, this newbie skydiver has successfully completed her first five jumps! Here’s what they looked like, in a nutshell.

#1 – Tandem at Skydive Miami.

After a Caribbean vacation we decided to go out with a bang and skydive. Going in for a one time thrill I never imagined that I would fall so madly in love with the sport.

#2 – Tandem Progression at Cleveland Parachute Center (now my home DZ).

This time around I knew I was headed down the path of becoming a skydiver. At this point, I wasn’t quite comfortable going it on my own. So with 30 minutes of on-the-ground training, learning hand signals and the importance of altimeter checks, I was strapped to Dan for a free fall from 10,500 and deployed my own ‘chute. At that moment I was hooked!

(Unfortunately, no photos of this jump.)

#3 – AFF #1 at Cleveland Parachute Center.

After 5 hours of one-on-one training on the ground I went up with my own parachute. My nerves got the best of me and the free fall didn’t go as smoothly as we’d all hoped. An instructor was lost along the way but I still managed to pull at 5,500 and steer the canopy in for a soft landing. This was a big learning jump for me, and I figure, what a better time to make mistakes to learn from? After all, I’ve got two instructors right there to help me with the necessary corrections.

#4 – AFF #2 at Cleveland Parachute Center.

I was determined to have a near perfect skydive this time. So I came back to the drop zone the next morning and was the first jump of the day. Success! My nerves were calmed as I knew what to expect this time around and overall the skydive felt great.

#5 – AFF #3 at Cleveland Parachute Center.

This weekend I headed out for another early morning skydive. It was cold in the sky, very cold. So I donned gloves and a hooded sweatshirt under my jumpsuit. This time we performed team turns. I felt much more aware of my leg positioning and even got a couple thumbs up in free fall. Tried to squeeze in another jump later in the day but life got in the way and time ran short.

I’ll be back though, next weekend. You can count on that.

Blue Skies!

Ashley