AlsoTim

That was the greatest thing I've seen in a long while. Incredible project and incredible results. I'll happily eat a dose of your humble pie. Amputee or not there was one line in there that I think a lot of us can relate to: "The first time I was freefall was the best feeling I think I've ever had..."

I did pay my beer fine :P

Yesterday went swimmingly well. Graduated AFF on my first jump, had a bit of wind delay afterwards and then jumped my solo in the afternoon. I talked to my coaches and instructors and made sure to knock out the basic acrobatics for A license card and took the rest of the dive to just appreciate how awesome it is to be a skydiver. The whole day was easily one of the best experiences in my life. This is how obsessions begin.

I love being single so much right now.

I may be a newbie, but I'm not pants-on-head retarded though. I figured it was a joke :)

I'm near graduating AFF now (just have 1 jump to go). Based on how smooth and easy my last few jumps have been I'm expecting AFF7 to go smoothly as well, which leaves me with my first true solo jump on Saturday. I'm curious, what did you guys and gals do for your first solo jumps? I was wondering how much planning you did for freefall maneuvers/choreography versus just "HOLY SHIT I JUST JUMPED OUT OF A PLANE BY MYSELF. WOOO!" I saw a post on here about someone doing multiple continuous backflips (that sounds like fun!). Wondering if you folks had any more great ideas for me to think about?

I actually wear an analog watch, but that's just vanity. I find digital readout a much quicker and easier to read for just about every application. Which is probably because I'm 30 and grew up in the digital age.

Hola, I'm a new jumper (just finished AFF 3 this past weekend and waiting for good weather to jump 4). I've been jumping for about a month. My three jumps have gone really well, aside from a tumbled landing this past jump. I've read as much as I could and I suspect the first piece of advice I'm going to get is to wait to buy gear and spend my money on jump tickets instead. However, I'm working with a limited budget so I'm trying to plan ahead and save some money to get some of the accessory gear when I finish up AFF - a good rig (even a used deal) is going to take several months of saving for me so I'm not even looking seriously yet beyond just trying to educate myself with what's out there. That said, for accessory gear, which ones do you folks think are the most critical - or rather, if you had to piece together an accessory set over a few months what order would you do it? Asking around my DZ the consensus seemed to be a digital altimeter first and foremost - despite the relatively high cost, I can see why they're so valuable (being quick and easy to read, some with audible alarms, jump logs, etc..). One of my instructors has generously offered me a hand-me-down full-face helmet that was given to him when he graduated AFF. I haven't tried it on yet, but he's about my same shape and size so I'm thinking it should fit, or at most just need a new liner. I don't have enough experience to start picking out a jump suit yet, beyond my instructors noting that I fall fast. I know that I want to stay a belly-flier for a good long while - at least until I feel very confident in my skill there, and I'm not there yet. What else should I be considering as I start to budget and plan for my new hobby of choice and in what priority? For a good digital altimeter I was recommended the Viso II, are there others I should be considering around or below that price point? Again, please keep in mind I'm just trying to budget and plan - I'm not rushing out to drop $1000 on equipment when I'm a month in to a sport. The reason I'm budget limited is so I can continue to afford more jump tickets and tunnel time!