Turn up at the dropzone for an afternoon jump, and get on the board for in about an hours time, so help out catching tandems. In this hour, the clear blue sky starts to fill with patches of cloud that start grouping together. By the time we get up in the air, theres some pretty large patches floating around, and in the plane on the way up, we are told that we may have to go back down. Im due to be first out, so am sat right in the door, and looking through the holes in the cloud. At jump height, the jumpmaster points out to me the end of the runway directly below us in a perfect hole in the cloud, and gives me the thumbs up, I dont need telling twice, and roll out of the door.

I get stable, and as im first out again, i turn and do a good 20 second track away from the plane, this is brilliant fun, proper like superman, flying through the sky, i think next time, ill try it with the one arm out :p after this, a few fast 360 turns, before turning back to face the runway, but, below me, either the hole has closed up, or ive tracked quite far and am now over somewhere that im not too sure about.

I open my canopy at just under 3,500 feet, and do a few rear riser turns, i then do some hard 360 turns, first left, then right, then left again, just to see how fast i lose height while turning like that, at 2,500 feet, i go into the cloud, i turn into the wind, as i dont want to end up miles away, and pop out of the bottom of the cloud at just under 2,000 feet, with the landing area behind be, and im still facing into the wind, excellent 🙂

A few S turns to get rid of a bit more height, then at 1000 feet, start my approach. During my crosswind part, and while watching the windsock below me, the direction of the wind changes by around 60 degrees every now and then, so my crosswind is half the time into wind, so i abandon the idea of making it to the blue flag, as im being blown sideways too much, so i turn into the wind at about 500 feet, and just keep adjusting my direction slightly to stay in the wind.

As i flare to land, i feel the left pull starting, which i had a lot of in the past, so, i give a little more pull to the right, followed by a full flare, and land nicely, standing up, and collapse my canopy 🙂

after updating my blog earlier today, i checked back over my logbook and paperwork, as something in the back of my mind was saying that id missed something…….

I’ve completed everything needed for my JM1 sticker in my license 🙂

and 11 more jumps, with 3 more on target pre declared landings, and thats my B license sorted as well 🙂

If you read my post about the last jump, then on this jump, I’m going to be first out of the plane, and I’m sat next to dave howerski (legend) and my live spotting is good to go 🙂

Plans for this jump, stable backwards exit, try out my new (second hand) time-out audible altimeter (which will be my 2nd audible) get my spotting signed off, a pre declared landing and trying to extend the range of my canopy during landing, to get me a little further towards my landing spot. No pressure on myself at all :p

On the way up, im sat IN the door, dave takes me through the spotting process a few times on the way up, at set intervals, i hear my audible altimeter beeping, as it should, so, so far, alls good. Then we get to 6,500 feet, and theres patches of cloud, EVERYWHERE. Everyone else ive spoken to about doing their spotting, they said there wasnt a cloud in the sky, they looked down, and ‘theres the dropzone’, for me, this will be like looking through a white waffle……

I plan my jump, and landing out in my head, sun to my right under canopy means the winds behind me, try my backwards exit, then i suddenly realise, i have a camera flyer girl sitting on my lap, what better time to ask for a few photos for facebook while im in the door 😀

At 12,000 feet, the ‘get ready’ light goes on, so i lift the door, its locked into place, and i look down, its like looking through a chess board, I really dont know if i can do this, and even though im being supervised, im the spotter for this whole plane load of people. i look through the gaps, and i then recognise things, i know where i am :), i verify with dave, and am given the thumbs up, just as the green light goes on 🙂 i double check, and im told to jump, no need to tell me twice, and im gone, backwards, and can see Teej, the camera girl, with her head out of the door watching me fall away. With looking at the cloud and the gaps, i forgot that id asked her to take a few pics lol :p

my backwards exit still turned a few times, then i did a few backflips, 360 turns and a little tracking in the direction the plane had come from, as i knew there was no danger of there being anyone there, and i think this was the langest track ive done so far, before opening my canopy at around 3,500 feet.

Under canopy, i headed straight for the holding area, and was working out my final approach height, based on my last jump, to be around 1000 feet then turn into wind at around 600 feet. approaching the flag for landing, at one stage i thought i was going to actually land on the flag, or the person very close to it, so i used my risers to extend my reach a little, and land past the flag, which took me about 20M past my original intended landing spot, added an ‘extend the range of the canopy’ kark to my paperwork, and another succesfull pre declared landing, with a perfect flare

I was close enough to the car park for my son to see me landing, and as i had a face mask on to keep the cold out, he said ‘dad, that was awesome, you looked like a navy seal with your helmet and mask on, you landed then turned round and just started rolling your parachute up’

that last 3 seconds comment by my son, made this the best jump ive ever done 🙂

Jump number 38, I’ve now jumped more times in Wales, UK, than i have in Empuriabrava, Spain 🙂

For this jump, I’, looking ahead to not only having my B license, but also to a tandem jump that my fiancee is booked to do on June 1st. She will be having it filmed, and I’d like to be cheekey and ask whoever is doing the filming of her jump, to also film my exit to go on her DVD, and get me simply falling away from the plane, with my thumbs up, and staying stable and facing the plane whilst doing this. On quite a few jumps, ive exited looking at the plane, as i simply enjoy seeing it get smaller, but im also aware that i turn whilst doing this, so my next few jumps are to practise this stable backwards exiting.

Backtrack a little bit, me and my son get to the dropzone, and i can be on THIS lift, if im quick, theyve been told to wait for me, holy crap, im ready in about 4 minutes, and as i run out of the door, the planes leaving, damn….. but, while we watch the plane, and a police helicopter lift off, i notice how cold it actually is, so a few minutes later, a few more layers of thermals etc are put on 🙂 then im on lift #7 (turned up at dinner time :p ) and lift #9

lift 7, jump 38 is off the ground, ill be 3rd out of the plane, and its a little cloudy with lots of holes in the cloud, i only need my ‘live spotting from above 10,000 feet’ for my JM1 sticker, and dave howerski (legend) has said to give him a shout when on a lift and we will get it signed off, but, allthough hes on this lift, hes with a student, theres 4 people in the plane to exit before me (2 x teams of 2), so i just concentrate on my jump

once im in the door, i exit backwards, and try to stay stable from exit untill im falling at full speed, i turned once or twice, but was able to see the plane moving away from me, i was also very stable at the end of this, not quite on my back, and not quite sitting, but it was working for me, this is something ill play with on future jumps. i then took note of the planes direction, and tracked for a short while, before doing a few 360 turns and opening my canopy at 3,500 feet

Once my canopy was open, i started to make my way to a holding area, and as this is a pre declared landing, i need to land withing 30M of a flag on the landing area. by the time im at about 1,200 feet, i know ive stuffed it up, and am not going to make it as far as the flag. I still land within the landing area, and was a perfect standing landing, but not close enough to the flag for this to be a successfull pre declared landing, this is the first failed landing on my B license sheet

but was still a fun jump 🙂

With being 75% of the way to my B license, ill soon be able to wear a full face helmet (like a motorbike crash helmet, with visor etc) so ive been keeping an eye out for a bargain, as these generally cost £300-400 new, or around £180-220 second hand in good condition. So, xmas money has been kept to one side, and today, while browsing facebook, a Parasport Z1 helmet, like new, im my size, got posted for sale, and i was able to reply within 90 seconds of it being posted 🙂 i managed to get it for 1/3 of the retail price, which meant that i had a little xmas money left over, then 20 minutes later, a ‘time-out’ audible alitmeter, with visual indicator was posted, for £20, which i also snapped up. this now gives me a full face helmet with visor, my normal open face helmet, 2 audible altimeters, one of which is a small computer that logs everything, my hand mounted analogue altimeter,3 different sets of goggles, 2 different types of jumpsuit (one with grips), 2 different sets of gloves and numerous different thermal options to keep most parts of me warm, and a few other random bits and bobs

all i need now, is my own rig

I’ve updated a few blog pages, and added a few more pages. At the top, you’ll now see Logbook, which is an electronic copy of the basic information of every jump, which will tally up with the full write up of each jump, a weather section, which at the moment only shows details for Swansea drop zone from the met office and XCWeather, and a beer fine page, which i thought will be fun to add. The jump stats on the right now links to the pages that describe what each part means, and the weather section on the main page has been fixed to grab the info from yahoo and show it on the right hand side, including sunset times, which with summer coming, normally dictates the time of the last jump.

the blog will soon be updated with graphical banners to skydive swansea, ukskydiver forum, activeskydiving-uk and possibly a few other links, to add some colour, and to advertise the places that have helped me progress in my new hobby 🙂

After the last jump, i have to get back up and do it again, manifested to be on lift number 2, and just waiting for the canopy to be packed, get all kitted up, and away we go again. The plan for this one is a downward dive exit, and practise some fast 360 turns. On the plane during take off, we go all the way down the northern runway, i think this is odd, as we are landing on the northern area, but think that its just something ive not seen before. enjoy yht views, and plan out my jump on the way up, then, at 10,000 feet, get told that me and 2 others wont be able to jump, as the landing area has switched to the southern landing area, gutted 🙁 some of us swap places in the plane now that some of us are going back down with it, then when the door opens at ~ 12,000 feet, the spotter tells the pilot that all the landing equipment is still on the northern area, the pilot tells everyone to hold on, and the plane is still climbing. i look at my altimeter, 12,300 feet, 12,500 feet, 12,700 feet, 12,900 feet, and thinking to myself ‘damn, they getting extra height as well, cant believe we have to go back down’ when suddenly, the pilot announces that over the radio hes been told everyone is good to go 😀

Goggles on, and a few seconds later, im in the door, look at alti, 13,000 feet, then i dive out, straight towards the floor, get stable, and im at just over 11,000 feet, wow, that went fast, do a backflip, then a few fast 360 turns each way, a small track, and open my canopy at 3,500 feet. while on the ground, i took note of the windsock, and its relation to the sun, but, pointing at the sun as i was expecting to be, the wind has changed, so i look at the windsock on the ground, and make my way to a holding area to the right of the runway. judging by my last descent, at about 800 feet i line myself up for my landing, and this is a pre declared landing, so i have to land within a 30m radius of the flag thats in the landing area, by about 500 feet, i know that im going to massivley overshoot the flag, so i apply the brakes a little, and my landing  spot comes closer, and by the time i land, i flare perfectly and simply step onto the ground, about 8M away from the flag 😀

this was my last jump of the day, as they then switched over to the south landing area, so i helped catching tandems for a while, as well as chatting, but, for my first day back jumping, in 2 months, i loved it 🙂

Its the first chance i get to jump since before xmas 😀 and i have a beer fine before i even get to the drop zone 😀 its early, just gone 8am, and ill be on the first lift. Its cold, but, over cristmas, i stocked up on thermal layers, so under 2 layers of thermals, normal tracksuit, thick hoody and a jumpsuit, im toasty warm. its nice to see everyone again, and a few things ive been asking about on the forums about equipment have been explained to me, then, its time to board the plane. I dont know if im scared, or excited, but i like it, i have a jump planned out in my head, and ill be the 3rd one to jump.

On the climb to jumping height i enjoy the views, the plane goes around at 7000 feet to let out a ‘ground rush’ jump, and from here i think about what im going to practise on the way down, mainly thinking about my landing and canopy ride. 11,000 feet, goggles on, and a few mins later, people are leaving, then, its my turn, and the feeling from earlier is completley gone, and without an hesitation i dive out of the door and curl up into a ball,  im flying again, this is awesome :D. i do a few backflips, and a bit of tracking, before deploying my parachute at ~ 3,500 feet.

the canopy seems to be taking a very long time to open, im watching it all unfold, its following the usual steps that i see, but it just seems to be taking for ever to get fully inflated. a little worried that i may be experiencing my first malfunction, i check my altimeter, as im aware that im not falling at full speed, and im just above 3,000 feet. I reach for the steering toggles, knowing that flaring them sorts out the ‘end cell closure’ issues, which this looks like a double whammy version, and at the same time looking where my emergency handles are, just in case. I flare the toggles, and the canopy fully inflates, i do another 2 just for good measure, and make my way to the holding area.

I plan out where i want to land, try to get a feel for the wind, and then at 1000 feet, start my descent to the landing area, and i already know im not going to get to the point i want to reach. I’ll still be on the landing area, but, ill be about 100 yards short of my intended ‘target’. I get lined up into the wind, come in to land, then flare slightly too high, so land with a slight bump, roll it off, and feel awesome about my first jump of 2014 😀

Because in real life im a bit of a geeky nerd who loves gadgets and anything with blue LEDs on it, when I saw a brand new PC interface for the Pro Track altimeter i managed to get at a bargain price, i had to buy it. Also, as the corner of the screen on the Pro Track is cracked, this would also allow me to see my speeds during skydiving. So, another ukskydiver forum bargain has seen me get an £80 bit of kit, for 25% of the price. Gets home from work, to see the postie has left a package, rip it open, and its the new toy, plug it in, install the software (which also had a new license key) and start setting up my ‘logbook’. I then connect it to the Pro Track and start to import the information stored on it. While browsing through this information, I see that on my last jump, 2.2 seconds before deploying my canopy, i had actually increased my speed from 122mph, to over 165mph 😮 and the sudden increase happened at around 5,000 feet, just where my altimeter seemed to stick. I dont know if this was caused by a difference in air pressure, its something i’ll be asking about, but, impressed with the amount of information that this little tiny box captures during each jump, and, it stores it all as well 🙂

Todays the last day Skydive Swansea is open untill Feb 1st, and im working, and the weathers brill, but, im also working in swansea 🙂 this can only mean one thing, and, between jobs, i ‘pop’ to the airport, and manage to get a cheeky jump in 😀

Its a little bit on the windy side, but i have my landing planned out in my head, get geared up, and we’re on the plane. I’ll be the 3rd one out of the plane, this means im sat right near the door, and as the plane is full, i have the luxury of a few inches extra legroom. Its a nice clear, but cold, day, and the plan for this jump is to see if i can get from being on my back, to a sitting position, and see what happens when i try.

We get to jumping altitude, and then im out, dive out rolled in a ball, open up on my back, and something is hitting me in the side of the neck, i put my hand to me neck, and this turns me over onto my front, i let go of my neck, ive forgotten to do the zip all the way up on my jumpsuit, and the metal tag on the top of the zip is slapping me in the side of the neck. Im 2 miles high, theres a whole chunk of the beautifull welsh gower racing towards me at 120mph, and theres one thing going through my mind, Scotty Milne, my AFF instructor, telling me in spain ‘make sure everything is done up tight, anything loose slapping you in the neck will leave a bruise like a lovebite, and you try explaining that to your missus when you tell her youve only been skydiving’

Would a normal person be thinking things like that, right now? Would a normal person throw themselfs out of a plan, for fun? So, i continue my skydive, and change my plan slightly. Im now falling with my right hand holding the side of my neck, and my left hand in front of me keeping me stable. I practised this in the wind tunnel, ‘You never know when you may need to turn with only one hand’ and in the tunnel, id managed to get it, so now, im practising doing 360 turns, staying flat and stable, using only one hand. Keeping my eye on my altimeter, as i always do, i notice that it seems to ‘stop’ at just above 5,000 feet, so i tap it against my helmet, where it drops to just under 4,000 feet, i wave off, and pull at ~ 3,500 feet.

The canopy opens fast, it wasnt hard, like some of the fast openings ive experienced, which seem to push you down into the leg straps, but it was open and fully inflated a lot faster than usual. I turn into the wind, and have a look around at the other canopies, and see 2 opening above and behind me, and think theyre quite far out, and will be flying into the wind all the way back. I get myself lined up for my landing approach, but, mess up my cross wind part of it, which put me a bit further away from the landing area then id have liked to be. This was my first attempt at a ‘pre declared landing’ which means i have an area about 30M squared to land in, and i missed by about 20M, but, this is still a MASSIVE improvement on where i was happy to land within 300 yards of the landing area 🙂

On landing, my flare was good, another standing up landing, before gathering up my canopy, and then heading back to work, with a bruise free neck :p