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Breaking out of the comfort zone – 24. August, 2010

As skydivers, one thing we learn early on is that, in order to improve, you’ve gotta step out of your comfort zone. I mean, hello, skydiving in itself is stepping out of that zone…that’s part of the whole point, is it not?

Though I do have to admit, there have been times while freeflying where I get into this comfort zone and tend to stay there. This happened the first time when I really got my sit down and didn’t want to mess it up by trying to move. So I didn’t. I stayed. Forward penetration and sideways movement to get to the group just wasn’t a priority. I had this sit, and I knew how to make it work, and I wasn’t going to do anything that could potentially mess that up.

Then, one day I went up with Sporto and he flew circles around me (literally) as I hung out in this rigid sit. Back on the ground he was like, “breathe, relax, smile and do something.”

He went on to tell me that I’ve got the fundamentals, I just need to put them in motion, start moving, start docking, and if you cork in the process, you cork, but just hanging out doing only what works will never help you improve.

Good point, Sporto! So I took it to heart. I did a lot of zoo dives with 4-5 other freeflyers and it taught me how to move! It was no longer a knee lock exit into relative sit where Rick and I just stare at each other – it was time to stand to get down to the group, push my hips forward and get moving!

I’ve noticed this same thing with docking. There are times where, my concern of “ruining” the jump overtakes my knowledge that, if I reach forward, I should move my other arm up or back to keep balanced. These are things I know, but they’re out of that precious little comfort zone, and it can be difficult to move past it.

After jumps like this, Rick and I can’t help but laugh at each other – we should have just gone for it. And if we cork, at least my video camera can show us visual evidence of what went wrong.

I’m sure other skydivers out there have experienced this… right? I mean, in the end, we’re all working to get out of our comfort zone, whether it’s taking that first step out the door, learning another discipline, playing with front riser turns under canopy…whatever it is, aren’t we all struggling to get comfortable with the unfamiliar?

One of the things I’ve heard a lot lately is from students/recent A licensers who are having issues with landing. Whether it’s finding your flare, setting up a landing pattern, standing up landings, or even just not landing off, these issues too can stem from being outside your comfort zone, and all of these things can be perfected with practice.

I’ve come to learn that having the attitude that,”I’m going to do this for myself,” really helps you get to that point. Trying to prove something to others only puts additional pressure on the situation, but if it’s something you really want, then make it happen for you. Besides, you can’t let little slip ups be the death of you, especially in front of others. From time to time we all cork, we all have a messy landing, we all have off days – even the best skydivers out there! So if you take out a formation and it gets caught on video, or you slide in a landing and catch a dry spot only to land it on your hands and knees in front of the entire DZ (like I did this weekend…oops), not to worry, because someone else is likely to do something else stupid in the near future. Then it can be your turn to rib them for it!

My two cents – take it or leave it.

Anyway – that all leads me back to this: step out of your comfort zone. Do something that scares you (and if that means making that first skydive, then what are you waiting for?), test out those front riser turns the next time you’re under canopy with time to kill – above 2,000 feet, give those freefly skills another try. Whatever it is that makes you nervous, do it…safely.

You might just surprise yourself with what you’re capable of – and you may even learn a thing or two along the way.

Blue skies!

Ashley

2 Comments

Posted in Free Fall, Freefly, Lessons Learned, Under Canopy

Jump for Diabetes 2010- what a blast! – 20. August, 2010

Well, I’ve finally recuperated from a long weekend at Skydive Pennsylvania for the 2nd Annual Jump for Diabetes – just in time for another weekend of skydiving .

Let’s start with the juicy details: between raffles, sponsored jumps and generous donations, we were able to raise nearly $10,000 for diabetes research – and donations are still rolling in, so we may even surpass that mark when all is said and done!

I’m thrilled with the amount of people who stepped up to support this cause, from the gear donations throughout the skydiving community, to the incredible team of pledge jumpers who came in from all over the country to donate their time to the cause, to the participants at Skydive Pennsylvania – none of this could have been accomplished without your support.

So a HUGE THANK YOU goes out to all who contributed.

As far as raffles go, we gave away more than $10,000 in donated and discounted skydiving gear, local jumper Scott Diesel was the lucky winner of the PD canopy raffle and there were three happy winners in the Grand Prize raffle.

And guess what – we’re going to do it all again next year! We’re planning the event for Aug 12-14 at Skydive Pennsylvania once again, and we’ve already got 4 manufactuers confirmed to be on site. We expect it to be bigger and better than this year – definitely not to be missed.

Okay, so now that that’s out of the way …let’s talk a little about the skydiving, shall we?

Friday after set up we did the first Mrs. Potato Head jump of the weekend. A group of us freeflyers took it to our bellies in an attempt to put her together in the sky. Best part, she was a diabetic, so Rick had a needle-less syringe to stick in her ear. It was far from a success, with us walking away with zero pieces in place, and one lost piece somewhere in the LZ, but I gotta tell you, it sure was FUN! Thanks to Heather for bringing this tradition to Jump for Diabetes!

We gave away our first piece of gear on Friday too, a freefly suit from EG. EG suits came in from Jersey to attend the event. Thanks again EG, you were a hit at Skydive PA!

Saturday started off bright and early with long spots and off landings. We had a fun 2-way freefly practice jump to start out the day before diving into a weekend of incredibly fun freefly zoo dives, like this one:

Both mine and Rick’s parents showed up for the day which was awesome! My dad even got some great shots of me landing and packing. I’m not used to being on the other side of the camera!

The weather played nice until about 5 p.m., at which point our gear raffle picked up. This is where my dad’s height came in handy, as we were selling gear raffle tickets for $20 a body length, so a number of jumpers “borrowed” his 6′3″ frame to purchase their tickets.

Raffle (Grand Prize Raffle drawing, with Skylyn the ticket picker! *Photo by Suji Martens)

Saturday night 4 bands from around the Pittsburgh area showed up to play for us in the hangar…due to the rain. What an incredible party. The beer was flowing and we were even able to have a small fire with numerous smores consumed. Yum!

Sunday started slow because of rain and low clouds until about 3 p.m. This gave us ample time to finish out the raffles before completing the weekend with a couple more fun freefly jumps – starting with Justin’s 200th.

The last jump of the weekend was a 6-way freefly turned into a hybrid, rodeo, backfly, sitfly combo. Was one of the funnest jumps we all had that weekend…guess you had to be there!

I’m still working on a fun Jump for Diabetes video to show the highlights from the weekend, so stay tuned for that.

Thanks again to everyone who did their part to not only make this an incredibly successful weekend, but for making it a BLAST too!

Blue skies!

Ashley

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Posted in Around the bonfire, Drop Zones, Free Fall, Freefly, Jump buddies, Jump for a Cause, Skydiving Community

Review: Infinity Containers, part 2 – 18. August, 2010

So for those who are paying attention, yes, this is my second review on the Infinity containter – but this time, I’m a little wiser, so I’d like to share a few aspects of this brand that keep me coming back for more.

Earlier this season I was talking to a fellow jumper who was looking to buy her own gear. She, like me, was on the smaller side, looking for a rig that not only fits her, but held a moderate size canopy. Most of the used small rigs out there hold 120s and below – not ideal for the recent A-licensed skydiver.

Of course, I wasn’t planning to sell off my gear so quickly, but when I saw a jumper in need, I took the opportunity to not only help her out, but to go down the path of ordering brand new custom gear myself. When it came to a container, naturally, I went with Infinity again.

unpacked

mudflap

(Brand new out of the box!)

The container has since been packed with a brand new PDR 126 and I’m currently sporting a green and white Triathlon 135 until my custom Sabre 2 -120 arrives.

packing2 (Packing up! *Photo by Steve Mead)

Here’s what I LOVE about this container:

1) Integrated secondary riser cover. Not only does this keep everything in place, whether you’re freeflying or belly flying, but it looks slick. It’s all one seamless piece.

secondaryRiserCover (*Photo by VSE)

2) Bridle cover within the bottom flap. My old Infinity didn’t have this feature, and I have to say, for freeflying it’s the only way to go. I have no doubt that my bridle is secure when I’m out there on my feet and (attempting to make it) on my head.

bridleCover (*Photo by VSE)

3) The people! I’m a big believer in customer service can make or break a company. Between Kelly, Tony and Gail, I was given the most incredible customer service ever – even when I was a total pain and asking Tony to send me pictures of fabric colors. Gail even went so far as to send me a picture of my rig before she shipped it off because she knew how excited I was. It’s little things like that that go a long, LONG way in my book. Love these guys!

4) Speaking of colors – the color options they have available are some of the best I’ve seen. I love that they have a charcoal option aside from the lighter silver. And I can’t say enough about the neon blue. Oh come on, you know color matters in this sport – don’t fool yourself, it’d matter to you too!

Infinity Gear Back

(All dressed in my Freak N Suit and Infinity…two of my favorite skydiving brands! *Photo by Steve Mead)

5) Sizing. It fits perfectly! Beyond perfectly. Since it was made for my measurements, it’s one of the most comfortable things I’ve ever put on my back. And as I’m flailing in the sky, I don’t even realize it’s there. This new one is so little and compact too!

6) All the little features like stainless hardware, articulated harness, completely freefly friendly…even the angled tuck tab for easy pin checks.

Needless to say, I’m a huge Infinity fan. Those crazy kids over at Velocity Sports Equipment really know what they’re doing! They got me hooked – I’ll forever be an Infinity users. Thanks guys, for an incredible product with impeccable service!

Blue skies!

Ashley

17 Comments

Posted in Free Fall, Freefly, Reviews, Skydiving Gear

Purchasing Gear – 17. June, 2010

This is something I’m starting to feel like I’ve become an expert at: buying skydiving gear.

Last July I bought my first rig off dropzone.com. I just happened to be surfing online at 2am when it popped up. I was one of 5 people to respond within the first few hours. But luckily, I was the first and had dibs. The entire rig had 70 jumps on it. I thought for sure I’d keep it a long time.

Fast forward to Safety Day this year when a student, who is also a small girl, overhears me saying that I’m planning to downsize and want to sell my canopy. She was all over it. So I just happened to mention that my rig might fit…so she tried it on. Sure enough, she fell in love with it.

That’s when I realized it was time to start looking for new gear, again. Wait, didn’t I just do this?

So, being the mildly obsessive girl that I am, I went home and printed off at least 20 Infinity container order forms, pulled out my markers and colored pencils and went to work designing the perfect rig. I’d told myself I was going to get away from the electric purple and blue color scheme, go with something a little more “me.”

I tinkered with Spartan colors (green and white) but it just didn’t do anything for me. I tried my hardest to find a way to use their blue violet color, mainly because it was unique, but I still just wasn’t pleased. So after weeks of playing with colors I finally settled on a design.

And guess what: my new rig is blue and purple (and black). Turns out that color scheme was me after all.

Naturally, after placing that order it was time to get a matching freefly suit. So I called up my new friend Angela over at Freak n’ Suits and gave her a rundown of what I was looking for – but ultimately I wanted to give her creative freedom to make it look how she thought would be best.

Less than a month later my suit arrived! It fits perfect, and the colors are incredible! I highly recommend the electric blue for any suit that Angela makes for you. I couldn’t be happier with mine!

freefly suit (Hard to tell just how bad ass the suit really is in this photo.)

Of course, the ordering process still is not complete. I need to get with Performance Designs to order my PD reserve – though that shouldn’t be too difficult as I’m just going to get stock white. And of course I’ve spent plenty of hours on PDs online canopy designer trying to find the perfect colors for the Sabre2 135 that I’m thinking of purchasing.

As you can see, purchasing gear can be a very involved process, especially when ordering new. But, in the end, when everything fits you like it should because it’s custom made for YOU, it’s worth it!

Needless to say the buying is never complete in this sport. Just when you think you’ve got it all, there’s the newest toy or shiny object you just HAVE to have.

My rig is scheduled for delivery in mid-July. When it arrives you can be sure to find pictures of my newest toys right here!

Blue skies!

Ashley

2 Comments

Posted in Free Fall, Freefly, Reviews, Skydiving Gear

Doing it for yourself – 8. June, 2010

This post has been a long time coming, but I’ve been struggling to find the words to tie all my thoughts together. So bear with me, if you please, I’m doing my best on this one.

I’m a big believer in the idea that the most important relationship you have on this planet is the one that you have with yourself. My reasoning for this is a whole different story in itself, if you’re curious, we can chat later . That said, there are some things you just need to do for yourself to keep that relationship healthy. Over the last year, skydiving has become that “thing” for me.

Skydiving has always been something I’ve done for myself. It’s my stress relief. It’s my zen minute. It’s my own personal challenge, and a pursuit I continue for me.

Now, don’t get me wrong, having Rick right there with me, passionate traveler, willing to hit it hard with me anywhere, anytime is huge – I love that this is something we can share together – but in the end, it’s a passion I pursue for me.

Something I’ve never fully understood is the constant need to prove oneself to others in this world we live in. We’re all out there with a common interest, shouldn’t we be supporting each other rather than trying to one-up our fellow jumpers?

Sure, I’m all for healthy competition and pushing each other to improve, ribbing one another when we cork out or just can’t manage to stick that sit – after all, that’s what friends do – but above that, shouldn’t the skydive be for yourself?

It’s so freeing, so enlightening. The last thing I want is to get back on the ground and feel as if I’m not good enough because someone else is criticizing, or worse, making someone else feel as if they are not a good enough skydiver. (Editors note: this goes beyond helping others improve in the sky. We all know the difference between talking out a jump and working on fundamentals with your fellow jumpers, and being the asshole who is condescending and talking down to other jumpers as if they’re not worthy).

We’ve all got something to prove in this life, but who is your target audience? Yourself, or everyone else.

As my mother used to preach to me growing up, you can’t please everyone. So, I don’t try to. Maybe I’m different in that respect, but things like traveling and wingsuiting and even this blog, all those things are fulfilling a passion of mine – and no matter what happens with the other aspects of my life, I can know that these experiences were for me, and be proud of myself for these accomplishments.

So to all those jumpers out there stressing about which point to prove next (like how many jumps you have or how great a skydiver someone told you that you are) ask yourself this: are you really in this sport for yourself or is it to prove that you’re this awesome, cool skydiver to everyone else? And in the end, does it really matter what everyone else thinks?

Food for thought.

Blue skies!

Ashley

4 Comments

Posted in Free Fall, I'd Rather Be Skydiving, Skydiving Community, Wingsuit

Wingsuit Weekend – 1. June, 2010

Between last weekend spent at the Ranch for my birthday and the long Memorial Weekend spent back at home (Skydive PA) I’ve got a lot of catching up to do – blog wise.

Today I want to touch on the event that was most exciting for me this weekend. (I promise, soon I’ll get to talking about The Ranch…but this just has to come first while it’s fresh in my mind).

Upon arrival at Skydive PA on Friday evening, I was prepared for a long weekend of freeflying, but that all changed when the beer light came on and my rigger brought out his wingsuit for me to try on.

After hooking it up to my rig and donning the suit, I’d decided that this was the weekend to give wingsuiting a whirl.

Saturday morning I went up for a solo jump to practice some head down moves, then went up again to prove to Rick that I can stick a head down out the door . Just as an aside, this was an incredible skydive. I went head down and he stood to keep relative – when I flipped out we were right there the whole time. We’re really getting it together!

So after a couple warmup jumps, it was time to get suited up for that first wingsuit flight.

Yes, for all those who are screaming “beer” in your heads, that case has already been purchased and drank.

I am extremely lucky to have Moe Viletto as my wingsuit instructor – and that he also had a wingsuit to fit me. After a few hours over the course of a couple days chatting about that first flight, the emergency procedures and how to go about find the “sweet spot,” it was time to become a bird!

Exiting last was strange. I’m used to seeing the tandems on my way out the door, not watching them go before me. It is nice, however, not to have to stress about the spot so much. When you’re a bird, especially one who is pulling a little high, making it back isn’t much of an issue.

Anyway – back to the first flight. So I’m crouched at the door, wings all tucked in and I huck myself out. That first jump I was nervous about opening up too soon and hitting the tail, so I stayed balled up a little longer than necessary, but when I came out of it and caught that first lift, I couldn’t believe what I was experiencing. The forward speed is incredible.

I had a flight path figured out and after doing my practice touches to make sure I could find my hackey with my new set of wings, I looked to my right to see him gliding next to me. What an incredible sight! For once I’m flying next to someone instead of looking down, hoping to get my speed up enough to catch the group.

Wingsuiting is an entirely different experience than a typical skydive…you’re actually going somewhere other than just down.

One of the things I’ve always said I love about freeflying is the speed, and that’s no exception with a wingsuit; difference being, the speed is horizontal, rather than vertical.

The rest of the weekend was spent obsessing over the wingsuit jumps. A couple sunset loads made me realize just how much my eyes have been missing during freefly. The sky is so beautiful, and the clouds are your friends. This is definitely something I want to continue experiencing.

Hopefully in the not so distant future I’ll feel comfortable enough to strap my camera back on my head and give you a little perspective of what it’s like to be a bird!

Until then, here are some pictures from the ground, captured by the lovely Sandy Weltman – love having you out at SPA Sandy!!

(Suiting up for the first jump)

(Sipping up our legs and getting to booties situated.)

(Beyond pumped from that flight…amazing!)

(Running it out with wings is a little more challenging!)

(Coming down from a beautiful sunset flight)

(If I look exhausted it’s because I am…but it’s worth every second!)

Blue skies!

Ashley

1 Comment

Posted in Free Fall, Freefly, Wingsuit

Flying with weight – 25. May, 2010

A few weeks back I decided to open my wallet for a piece of equipment that I’ve been told time and time again I would eventually need to fly with, but I’ve been too stubborn to purchase.

I don’t like being told that I’m going to need something in order to accomplish what I want in freefall. Sure, we all need parachutes, that’s a given. But when I was told I would need a weight belt (or vest) to keep up with others in freefly (and on my belly too, though you’ll rarely catch me there), the stubborn ass in me came out.

“I can just stand and catch up if I need to.”

Well, that didn’t prove to work as well as I thought it would – even standing I’m still pretty floaty.

“Well then, I’ll go head down to catch up.”

Turns out my head down skills aren’t where they should be to stick with a group of sitflyers.

“Well, what’s 10 pounds going to do anyway?”

Turns out…a lot! I’ve been flying with the belt off and on the past few weeks, forgetting it at home once, doing some solos another time, but for the most part the belt has been on. Though until this weekend, I didn’t really realize just how much of an effect it has on my fall rate.

weight (The first jump I did with a weight belt at Zhills. You can see a little bulk in my lower back, but nothing too terrible. In fact, it’s the same jump as my blog header – you can’t even tell I’m wearing weight there! *Photo by Aaron Stocum)

Jump #1 at The Ranch entailed me in a sit, looking down at my buddy Tom. Once I realized a stand was going to be necessary, he was too far gone and I, for the life of me, couldn’t stick a stable stand .

So for jump #2 I strapped on an extra 10 pounds around my waist and off we went. On this jump, I was only very slightly above him, in fact, if I would have kept a better heading and focused on driving my hips forward we could have easily made a couple good docks.

I think I was in awe of the difference the weight really made.

The rest of the weekend I worked on my fall rate changes and focused on the differences the weight makes on my skydive. I was even surprised how much I could feel the difference under canopy and coming in for a landing.

Needless to say, I’m incredibly happy with the weight. Who would have thought a girl could get so giddy about putting on 10 pounds?!

Best part is, in freefall, I don’t really even realize it’s there. I tuck the buckle back between my rig and lower back and, aside from the little jelly roll appearance it gives under my clothing, I’d never even know it was there on the skydive!

For all you floaty skydivers out there, I highly recommend strapping on a weight belt and giving it a go. It might just make all the difference in the world!

Blue skies!

Ashley

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Posted in Free Fall, Freefly, Jump buddies, Reviews, Skydiving Gear

BASE Week: Rick Simenc – 14. May, 2010

Well, this is the last day of BASE Week, and after an interview with Miles D, how can it get much better?

Let me tell you how…with an interview from my freefly partner! He’s also a former BASE jumper so it ties in .

BD1

*Photo by Ashley Mead

Y’all have heard so much about Rick in the past 9 months or so, it’s only fitting that you have a chance to hear the facts straight from him. Some of you may have read the article in the Jan/Feb issue of Blue Skies Mag that discusses diabetes in the world of adrenaline sports – this interview is nothing like that. We’re keeping the topics on the lighter side today.

I struggled with these questions, Rick, as the regular readers pretty much know the basics about your current skydiving career – aside from those days you sneak off to jump without me

That aside, I think I’ve come up with some compelling questions to get your wheels turning and keep the readers entertained. So, here goes nothing!

SDC: Let’s start with the standard question – how did you get your start in skydiving?

RS: To make a very long story short, from day one on this planet I’ve been the epitome of spontaneity and this was one of those last minute choices . I told myself I was going to go skydiving. So I did a static line jump for my 18th birthday.

SDC: Obviously we know your favorite discipline is freefly, but tell us why.

RS: I guess because I’m the black sheep.

SDC: Ah, “dark side” – black sheep. Makes sense. Regular readers know that we travel a lot, tell us about your favorite trip, dropzone, experience – whatever.

RS: Here comes the cheese….I will have to say that my first date with Beans (aka SkydiveChick, aka Ashley) is my most memorable skydiving trip. We went to the Work Stinks boogie last September. Too much fun! All beer has already been drunk! Our first 2-way head-down, first Heli-jump, Ashley’s first sit-fly, my first otter and our first boogie.

SDC: Aw, that’s sweet! Y’all remember this picture I assume!

heli

*Photo by Norman Kent

SDC: You were once a regular BASE jumper. What triggered the switch to skydiving?

RS: I wanted the dirt to look smaller.

SDC: Alright, now I’m really going to put you on the spot…what’s your favorite part about being my freefly partner? (yep, I’m making this one about me…I know you can respect that )

RS: Reverse cowgirl.. LOL! I love when you ride me out the door!!

SDC: Hahaha! For those who are unaware of what he’s talking about, see the video below!

SDC: We’ve had a lot of great opportunities over the past year, what are some of the things you’re looking forward / hoping to accomplish to this season?

RS: My 500th, D license, coach and pro-rating

SDC: Jump for Diabetes is fast approaching! Tell us a little about where the idea came from and how you made it work last year.

RS: The idea came from another fundraiser that was held at a DZ in Omro,Wi while was still a student. It involved jumping out of planes, raising funds and promoting awareness for Lupus. It was fun for all and it was a good cause. I told myself, when I’m able to stay on my feet when landing, I will coordinate an event like that one and try to do the same as them. And I gave it a shot…WTF, ya know?

I’m really looking forward to this years event. I’m very lucky to have Beans and Apt3 Studios on the Jump for Diabetes team. This years event would not be happening if you guys didn’t step up.. PROPS!!

SDC: What is your most memorable skydiving experience so far?

RS: Probably sit’n relative with you.

SDC: So as one of those freeflyers who falls into that oh-so-subjective “intermediate” category, and the person who taught me how to sitfly, let’s hear your advice to all those aspiring freeflyers out there.

RS: Challenge yourself and don’t give up. When you think you’ve done everything you can to get it.. and don’t, push yourself to keep going and achieve your goal. Once you get it, you get it.

SDC: Anything you’d like to add?

RS: It’s been 3 days and I’m jones’n for some ff (freefall).

Thanks, Rick. This was fun.

For anyone who was curious about something and didn’t find out in this interview, feel free to send questions my way. After all, we do live under the same roof.

Blue skies!

Ashley

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Posted in BASE Jumping, Free Fall, Freefly, Hear it from the Expert, Jump buddies, Jump for a Cause, Uncategorized

False alarm – 6. May, 2010

The forecast didn’t look favorable for last weekend – not one bit. With a 60% chance of early afternoon thunderstorms, the crew pretty much assumed Saturday would be 1 and done as far as skydiving goes. Sunday looked even worse, with an 80% chance of storms all day.

Lucky for us, we were only weathered out for a short burst of cloudiness on Saturday and still got 15 loads up.

I was especially thankful as I had not been in the air since South Carolina – so I was jonesing BAD.

At sundown on Friday night, the 2nd annual Tom Watson party started. It included catering, gun shooting, couch burning, good friends, and a beer fire truck..seriously, look!

Beer truck *Photo by Mary Margaret Briggs

Oh, and there were also lots of great skydives! Joe Lunardi was the load organizer for the day, and he put together some great group freeflying and a fun tracking dive.

Here’s some proof from the weekend

This was also the first weekend for me and my 10 pound weight belt. That’s a story for another day.

Sunday’s weather panned out as expected – with lots of rain. But it was still a fun time at the dropzone, hanging out with friends, watching videos and chatting the day away!

Hope y’all had a good weekend! Looking forward to doing it again soon!

Blue Skies!

Ashley

0 Comments

Posted in Drop Zones, Free Fall, Freefly, I'd Rather Be Skydiving, Skydiving Community, Uncategorized

Carolina Revisited – 26. April, 2010

Last week Rick and I took a trip to South Carolina for a long weekend. The main purpose of the trip was to visit his aunt who he hadn’t seen since the 80s, but our adrenaline addiction benefitted greatly when we heard that she lived an hour from Skydive Carolina.

So needless to say we spent some time at this Southern DZ!

The first thing you notice when arriving at Skydive Carolina is the HUGE LZ. H.U.G.E. It’s 70 acres! And there are outs everywhere – not that you frequently need them. Even I didn’t have a problem hitting my target

The only issue we really ran into was turbulence and thermals off the runway.

We were pleasantly surprised when we ran into a few jumpers that we met at the Everglades Boogie. We posted up near a group of belly flyers who made us feel right at home and got a chance to jump with one of the freeflyers who we also met in Clewiston.

On the last day of the trip we were able to jump with Justin, a friend from Skydive PA and now a resident of South Carolina – this was the weekend he made Skydive Carolina his home.

The first jump of the day was a little hairy for me – what with getting kicked in the face and almost getting clobbered by another freeflyer. Whew!

After spending a few days there, I have a good feeling that Justin will be right at home there. The people are so nice and down to Earth! There’s a strong community feel, very encouraging. Most of all, people are just there to have a good time – even the teams in training took the time to chat and share in a few laughs.

Another Southern DZ I highly recommend! If you decide to pay this dropzone a visit, tell Annette that Ashley and Rick said hi

Blue skies!

Ashley

0 Comments

Posted in Drop Zones, Free Fall, Freefly, Jump buddies, Skydiving Community, Uncategorized

Archive for the ‘Free Fall’ Category

Breaking out of the comfort zone – 24. August, 2010

Jump for Diabetes 2010- what a blast! – 20. August, 2010

Review: Infinity Containers, part 2 – 18. August, 2010

Purchasing Gear – 17. June, 2010

Doing it for yourself – 8. June, 2010

Wingsuit Weekend – 1. June, 2010

Flying with weight – 25. May, 2010

BASE Week: Rick Simenc – 14. May, 2010

False alarm – 6. May, 2010

Carolina Revisited – 26. April, 2010

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