You know, rig inspections, reserve repacks, cypress maintenance, all those little safety things that, come May, you’ll be so thankful you did so that you’re not out of commission, or worse, spending your hard-earned cash renting gear while your Cypress is in for it’s 4-year.

So if you haven’t already, pull out your reserve repack card and take a look. If you’re due anytime in the next few months, it might be time to start thinking about setting up a time for a repack so you can spend every moment of nice weather this spring doing what you love most – and no, that doesn’t mean hovering over your rigger for that last-minute repack so you can get back in the air.

Speaking personally, I’m kinda kicking myself for not having thought about this sooner. In all reality, in December I should have remembered that my Cypress is due for it’s 8-year maintenance and sent it in – especially knowing that I’m due for a reserve repack in February anyhow. For those who are new to the sport, when you’re dealing with AAD maintenance, it’ll require a reserve repack as well – do yourself a favor and time it right so you can kill two birds with one stone.

One thing to remember when you have an AAD, especially a Cypress, is that you have regular intervals where this little bomb on your back needs some TLC. Battery changes and manufacturer maintenance can come at the most inopportune times if you’re not diligent. With Cypress, you have to send the device in for two weeks – add shipping time in there and you’re looking to have your rig out of commission for the better part of three weeks. What a more convenient time to get this out of the way than during winter when, if you’re like me this year, it’s very likely you’re sitting on the ground (well, for at least 3 consecutive weeks at some point or another).

Another good suggestion, while your rigger has your gear, is to have him give it a good once over. Some riggers don’t include inspections in their reserve repack pricing, so you can’t just assume it’s going to happen. Most good riggers do take the time to look over your rig, after all, your safety is their priority (if it wasn’t they wouldn’t waste their time getting paid pennies to ensure you have a reliable back up ride in case of emergency, now would they?). But you can’t just assume that’s going to be the case as every rigger is different.

Take time this winter to establish a rapport with your rigger. Let him learn about you, your skydiving habits, your wants and desires in the sport. Build up a little trust in this person who may be packing your next  reserve ride. Having a solid relationship with your rigger will help, trust me. Besides, if they know that you typically throw your rig on the bottom of the closet in your damp basement, at least they’ll know to look for black mold during a repack.

For those that didn’t catch it, that was a bit of sarcasm. Please, never, ever store your rig in an unsafe place. Invest in a gear bag, keep it in a cool, dry place. We may all be thrill seekers, but most skydivers I know don’t seriously have a death wish…

Alright, enough with the black death talk. Point here is, take care of your gear. Do it now before the weather turns nice and you’re spending a day on the ground because your reserve repack date was on the most beautiful day of the spring.

Blue Skies!

Ashley

Five days a week (sometimes six or seven, depending on the week) I’m  a digital marketing consultant. My work consists of many moving parts for large and small clients. Staying on top of it all requires a tight organization system.

This is something I’ve managed to perfect over the years – something I’m still tweaking to fit as needs change for individual clients.

One area I’m having trouble keeping organized is my skydiving life. I’m so go, go, go when it comes to days where blue skies appear that I don’t take the time to slow down and make sure I’ve got all my ducks in a row.

Recently I’ve done such things as leaving my camera at home, forgetting goggles and not realizing until the plane has already lifted off (twice), and losing my camera cord so I can’t upload videos. There are other things I have temporarily misplaced that have since been found, so no need to mention them here .

Though I’ve taken steps to remedy these organizational issues, like purchasing a dedicated skydiving gear bag, I still can’t seem to keep everything in line. Maybe I need to establish a better getting ready routine – or maybe the spare bedroom should be turned into a hobby den where everything has a place.

What do you think? What steps do you take to stay organized and on top of the things you need for skydiving?

Blue skies!

Ashley

If you’re anything like me, as the season came to an end you were determined not to let the colder weather stop you from jumping when there are blue skies.

But the first time that bitter chill hits your exposed skin on the ground, you think twice about heading up to altitude in those conditions – sunny or not.

Of course, on a sunny mid-December day it didn’t take much coaxing to get me up in the air. It’d been two weeks since my last skydive and I was starting to twitch with the earliest signs of withdrawal. I was starting to feel like I needed a support group.

“Hi, I’m Ashley, and I’m a skydiver. It’s been 14 days since my last freefall…”

Alright, enough of that.

So as I mentioned on Monday, we headed down to Grove City for a couple jumps out of the C-182. Jeff, our pilot and recent past DZO consistently took us up past 11 grand – gotta love that kind of altitude out of a tiny Cessna.

The ride to altitude was surprisingly mild, but around 9,000 feet, we all started gearing up appropriately. As soon as the door opened, signaling the beginning of our jump run, we were thankful to have donned so many layers.

Given that this is the firs…um, err… the only winter so far that I’ve gone skydiving, there were plenty of lessons learned moments.

So, for those of you who are thinking about making a jump in the snow this winter, or are traveling to colder climates and want to skydive, I’ve come up with a short list of recommendations for walking away from a fun day of jumping, sans frost bite.

If I’ve missed anything, please chime in down there in the comments.

1.) Make sure you have a good pair of gloves.

-This is one I haven’t fully figured out yet, as my gloves just didn’t cut it. Gloves need to be thin enough so you can still find and grab your hackey to pull out your pilot chute, but thick enough that you’ll be able to feel your hands enough to do so.With incredible wind chill that you experience in freefall, it’s important to have gloves that will not only keep your hands toasty and comfortable, but that will cut the wind. The Nike ACG gloves that I was sporting did little to protect my fingers from stinging and turning bright red post jump. Even with latex gloves underneath, I wasn’t satisfied. Skydiving glove recommendations for this freeze baby are welcome and encouraged.

2.) Wear a full face helmet, if you have access to one.

-My buddy Don wore his new Cookie full face that he loves and it worked well for him. Helmets like that make me feel a little claustrophobic so I’ve stuck with my Bonehead Pimp Daddy that I love. But, by simply adding a balaclava I was totally fine. My face stayed nice and toasty. If you choose this route, do know that your goggles will fog up almost instantly in the plane, but once you’re out there are no fogging issues – even under canopy.

3.) Doing RW? Use your booties!

-As a girl who doesn’t do much RW these days, I find that booties help me stabilize and move more precisely. They also work wonders with keeping my tootsies warm. They help deflect the wind away and protect your feet and ankles (that would have been exposed while wearing my freefly pants).

4.) Check the winds aloft forecast.

-Though it may be fairly calm on the ground, the winds at altitude the last couple times I’ve jumped have been stronger than normal. This leads me to my next point…

5.) Check your SPOT!

-We take for granted that our pilots have GPS and the spots are usually good. Well, when winds at altitude are strong, you want to double check where you’re getting out. This will prevent you from an off landing and waiting in the cold for someone to come pick your ass up.

6.) Carry Chapstick in your pocket.

-Even if the wind isn’t directly hitting your lips, they will feel dry. Some good, protective moisture never hurt anyone.

7.) How about a breath mint?

-You know how your mouth tends to get dry just before leaping out the jump door? Well talk about cotton mouth – it’s worse in the winter. With the dry air at altitude, your skydiving partners will thank you for popping a mint before getting in that cramped little plane.

Hope you found these few little hints helpful. But tell me fellow skydivers, what am I missing when it comes to tips for winter skydiving?

Blue skies!

Ashley

When I first started skydiving back in April, I was lucky that the weather was warm enough that I didn’t require too many layers, even at altitude.

Though after my first few AFF jumps, we had a spring cold spell here in NE Ohio and I was donning gloves and a hoodie. I was nervous the first time jumping with gloves. I was so used to reaching back and grabbing the hackey with my bare hands that I was afraid I wouldn’t be able to feel it, or worse yet, find it with gloves on.

Luckily, my winter gloves have grippers on the palms and fingers, so I felt confident that deploying my pilot ‘chute would not be an issue.

Sure enough, the gloves worked perfectly. In fact, I came down from that skydive with a preference for  gloves. Not only do they keep my fingers nice and toasty at altitude (as we’re all aware that I’m a little bit of a freeze baby), but they protect my hands in freefall too. After all, haven’t we all had those moments of,” hey, my hand is bleeding…how did that happen.”

No, just me? Well, okay then.

(Suited up in my RW gear, gloves and all)

Until the heat of summer set in, I was in the habit of donning gloves before every jump. It was something I became quite accustom to. It’s also something I’ve had to do this fall in order to ensure I can feel my hands post-freefall to work my toggles properly.

Not many of my skydiving buddies wear gloves on a regular basis, but I’ve heard from some who swear by it. I suppose it’s all what you get used to over time.

For me, gloves are where it’s at – though we’ll see if that holds true during heat waves next summer.

What’s your preference? Gloves or no gloves in freefall?

Blue skies!

Ashley

You may recall a couple months back when I was lucky enough to attend a local Aerodyne demo tour and test out a brand new Pilot canopy and Icon rig. I fell in love with the Pilot and knew that one day that would be the canopy for me.

In fact, shortly after earning my A license I was prepared to start piecing together the perfect rig. Lucky for me, the perfect complete system was practically dropped into my lap during a random search on Dropzone.com.

The main canopy was a Triathlon. In student training I’d jumped one 7-cell and liked it well enough, and given that it’s an Aerodyne product, I figured it was a good enough option.

What I like most about this system is the Infinity container, manufactured by Velocity Sports Equipment. As soon as I put it on I knew it was the rig for me. It fit like nothing I’d ever tested before. Sure, most of those were student rigs, but even those that were sport rigs didn’t fit quite like this. For a girl with a small frame, it can be hard to find used gear that fits quite this well. I’d recommend Infinity to anyone with a small build – they certainly know what they’re doing.

Other points to note: it’s completely freefly friendly and packs like a dream! Two things that were critical in choosing a rig.

(Climbing out for our three-man rolling train last week)

As you’ll notice, it’s very sharp, too. Purple with blue, black and gray accents. Now, if only I had a matching pair of freefly pants…

If you’re in the market for a new rig, or know someone who is, I highly recommend checking out Infinity.

Blue skies!

Ashley

If you live in my neck of the woods and you looked skyward this weekend, it may have seemed like a bust for us skydivers, but for me, that couldn’t be farther from the truth.

Saturday morning I got up bright and early to make the trip up to Skydive Tecumseh to take advantage of the Aerodyne demo tour that was in town. With the consistent cloud cover throughout the day, the Cessna was only running hop & pops, but that was sufficient for canopy demos.

Though don’t get me wrong, I would have loved a couple trips up to 14,000 in the Otter, but for the purpose of testing out the Pilot, I was completely content with what we got.

When I arrived, I headed straight over to the reps to get myself a rig and canopy to demo. Naturally, we ran into the issue that I’m a small girl with a low number of jumps. So they had rigs that would fit with canopies that were way too small to even consider jumping, or canopies that would fit into a smaller rig, but then the reserve is entirely too small.

But, with some quick thinking and innovation, the Aerodyne team put together a rig for me to test out. I was happily able to jump an Icon with a Pilot 188. It was a great ride. Still a bit too big for real excitement under canopy, but it got me to the ground safely and smoothly, which is all I can hope for at this point.

Now, I’ve always been a huge fan of the Pilot. It packs easy – well, at least the one’s I’ve packed before – and opens comfortably. It flies flatter than some of the other canopies I’ve tried out in the past (you know, those 10+ different rigs you jump as a student) giving me time to get back from a long spot or just to play around a little longer and still know I’ll get back to my target.

I also learned that the Pilots tend to react better to turbulence than some of the other canopies on the market, too. A huge plus for me!

It definitely looks like I’ll be purchasing a Pilot in the near future. After this hop & pop and the great customer service of the Aerodyne folks, I’m sold!

Once it appeared that the clouds were just not going to cooperate, the rest of Saturday was spent back on the road to Cleveland so I could get home and rest up for a big Sunday.

Sunday morning I was back on the road to Canton Air Sports for my friend Rick’s 200th jump. The weather wasn’t looking so great for us this day, either. 

I sat around the drop zone for a few hours, watching BASE jumping videos with the other regulars, while trying to will the clouds away. Just as I was about to leave we got word that the weather was clearing from the North. So I stuck around. After all, I didn’t drive all that way to miss Rick’s 200th.

Around 5:30 we were able to get into the air. Rick decided on a shirtless, shoeless hybrid (him, not me), with our buddy Tod doing outside video for us. So we piled out of the Cessna-182, with me and Nick as the linked base, and Rick hanging from our chest straps.

*Photo courtesy of Bill Ramey. Thanks Bill.                

This is what our hybrid looked like!

The exit was flawless – except that Tod couldn’t see Rick’s count and ended up shooting video a little higher above us than expected. Nick and I kept a steady base from which Rick hung straight down. He even kicked his leg out for a bit and put us into a fun little spin. We broke off at 4,000 and met up back on the ground to celebrate Rick’s accomplishment. 

So glad I got to be a part of your 200th, bud!

Thinking that was going to be the last of the day, I finished logging the jump and packed up my stuff. Naturally, I was convinced to get on the sunset load – really, who can pass that up – and headed back up for a three-way with Rick and Tod. 

We were going to do the hybrid again, with me in the hanging position, but changed our plans on the ride to altitude. Instead, Rick and I did a train with a rolling exit. This was my first true freefly attempt – yes, I know, beer – and was a little bummed when it didn’t go exactly as planned. But we did manage to exit smoothly and stay linked for about 4,000 feet until we spun apart.

With a little post-jump coaching on the ground I completely understand how it should have worked to get us vertical. Next time we’ll get it!

And yes, I did mention that video was taken on both of these. As soon as they are in my possession I’ll be sure to post them. With three jumps, I definitely made the best of what otherwise would be seen as a cloudy, gloomy weekend.

Blue skies!

Ashley