Jump 25, this is the 50% mark for jumps towards my B license 🙂 and, its the last jump of the day again, a fun jump with the staff, and get an extra few hundred feet alti before jumping.

The plan for this jump, is a dive exit from the plane, flip onto my back and enjoy seeing the plane vanish (cos i like that) then back on my front and practise leg turns again, all of this went exactly to plan. Opened at 3,500′, and it seems that no matter what i try, i just cannot get towards where i want to land, im over the dropzone, and the large landing area, but the wind just wont let me get further up the runway. I hold as best as im able to, and see that my landing area will be close to a small tree, so put the brakes on a little bit, flare as i come in to land, and this is when i realise that where im landing is not just grass, but 4 feet tall grass type stuff, covered in millions of white fluffy things, then, i vanish into them. I didnt want to risk damaging the canopy by pulling it, so spent a few minutes gathering everything up, but at the same time im aware that all everyone else would have seen is me vanishing behind a tree, so im shouting that im OK, but, the wind must have drowned this out, as the buggy came round, just as im carrying the canopy above my head out of the bushes. It was at this point I was told that if i was still on a 280 canopy, id have been blown miles off course, if id have been allowed to jump it.

An enjoyable jump though, even if i did look like a snowman coming out of the bushes, and even poor Laura, one of the packers, ended up covered in them too from repacking the canopy 🙂

After the last jump, and landing, I cant wait for this one. As I get to the dropzone, one of the regular jumpers has just done her FS1 skydive, and passed, and I get chatting with one of the coaches. He gives me some ideas to try out, with the way I hold my hands, and turning using my knees. On the plane, im the only fun jumper, the rest of the plane is tandems, and their cameras, so ill be the first out. Ant (one of the camera flyers) says that if i hold on to the door, and just fall away backwards, he will get some pictures for me 🙂

I hang on to the bar above the door, and fall away from the plane 🙂 the pictures look like im riding an invisible skateboard away from the plane. I get stable, then try the new hand position, then turning with my knees, and its really simple, and quick, do a few 90 degree turns in different directions, before pulling at 3,500′

just as i finish all my canopy checks, I enter the top of a cloud, and cannot see a thing. I do a few turns, ensuring im looking all around me, but i have absolutley NO idea which way is which, apart from up and down. Then I remember, on my first jump at swansea, Will mentioned having my back to the sun under canopy, so i turn with the sun behind me (this also put the wind behind me). I pop out of the cloud at about 1,800′, and the dropzone is BEHIND me :o. Turn around, and into the wind all the way, but, what looks like itll be my landing spot, is right where theres a small comms tower, windsock, and other equipment. I dont know how to extend the range of the canopy, especially into the wind, so i put on the brakes, this seems to work, and my landing spot seems to now be moving closer, and a bit to the left of all the equipment. Just begin to flare and a nice wind picks me up, great, i hold onto the flare, as i know letting it go is the worst thing i can do right now, and wait for the ground, land and roll it off, then fight to collapse the canopy

But, really enjoyed 🙂

After yesterdays jumps, i wanted to fill the last page in my student logbook, and start a new one. Checked swansea skydives facebook page, and they are jumping on the northern landing area, so after dinner, head down there. Just as i arrive, they switch to the southern landing area (which you need a minimum of 50 jumps experience to land on) and im unable to jump. Hang around for a couple of hours in case it changes again, but no such luck 🙁

Maybe next week 🙂

For this jump, Will, the dropzones boss, has given me a smaller canopy, all of my other jumps have been on a 280, im now on a 240. I ask what will be different etc, and am told ill have more control and itll be a little bit faster. This jump is all of the dropzone staff, myself and 2 other fun jumpers. The plan for this jump is a rolling exit then practice turns with hands close again, everything goes to plan, then open at just under 4,000 feet, have a play with the canopy, hard banking seems to throw me out sideways, hard, so i’ll leave playing with that for now. on coming in to land, i start downwind then turn in, and hope this time to land closer to everyone else, and, at one point, being only a few hundred feet away, im sure im going to plough right through the middle of everyone, so i adjust a little bit, adjust a little bit more, and everyone on the ground is watching me, i come in about 10 feet to the side of everyone, and flare, perfectly, and just step onto the ground. A few clapped and commented on the landing, which i was really happy about. 2 instructors asked if i had a radio on and was talked in on the landing, when i said it was all me on my own, they said i did really well, and when my logbook was signed off, the instructor also added ‘Nice landing!’ underneath it all.

Got to the dropzone just after dinner time, Swansea has 2 landing areas, northern and southern, and the wind, and runway in use dictates what landing area is in use. The northern landing area is wide and long, while the southern is smaller and at the end of a runway, and you have to have over 50 jumps to land here, and today, the southern is in use. The airport itself closes at 5PM, so then the northern is opened, so, i settle in for a wait, and get chatting with everyone there. 5PM comes round, and my names on the board :). Shiney new jumpsuit on, my new (2nd hand) alti on my right hand (upside down) and an alti that i know is working on my left hand. The plan for this jump, is to practise freefall with my hands closer to my body, as discussed with Kris the FS coach, and check the 2 altimeters against each other. I’m 2nd out of the plane, and fall nicely into a stable position, check one alti, check the other, then a practice pull. ring my hands in, and find that i can remain stable like this with no problems, check both alti’s, then cary out emergency drill practice. Arms back in, check alti’s, and pull at just under 4,000 feet. Upon opening, I look up for a canopy check, and one end cell is collapsed, and theres half a twist at the risers, which im turning into, so i kick my legs, untwisted, and grab the steeriing toggles, the end cell opens on the first flare 🙂 nice smooth ride down, and on landing flared perfectly, and landed perfectly, even if i was a few hundred yards from everybody else 🙂

Had another bargain from a ukskydiver forum member, an FT50 altimeter (normally ~ $170) for £52 delivered, another bit of ‘own kit’.

A nice bright day, so spend the afternoon hoping to get a jump 🙂 but, the wind wouldnt let me play. Im booked on a packing course on the 20th Sep, so spent the afternoon watching others packing, and chatting with everyone. Met Kris, the FS coach, and got a few ideas of things to try on my next few jumps ready for when I actually start towards my FS1. Helped out a bit ‘tandem catching’ and enjoyed the general banter in the packing areas.

Maybe get to jump next week 🙂

After browsing skydive forums, ebay, and every facebook ‘skydiving for sale’ page, i finally found a bargain on Gumtree. Being 6’1″ tall, finding a used suit was hard work, but, found one in belfast, its brand new, black and royal blue, and cost me the massive amount of £26, delivered.

Just have to wait now to get the weather to try it out 😀

Helmet and alitmeter are next on the shopping list

Managed to get a few hours, so took my son with me to the DZ, and managed to get one jump in 🙂 I have recently bought new goggles, and on this jump wanted to practice my emergency drills, the first thing i niticed, that the small foam ‘bit’ at the bottom of the gogles impared my vision unless i pushed my chin so far down that it caused me to start turning into a slightly head down position that i couldnt actually see my handles, so from this jump, ill be buying a new pair of goggles. I also went through my first proper cloud 😀 and seeing the sun reflecting as a halo off the top of it was brilliant.

Did some practise flares under canopy, but found myself a little too far downwind when it came to landing, and flared a little bit too late, but, a very enjoyable jump 🙂

Get to the DZ for 8:30AM today to go through emergency drills and some malfunction pics, as well as landing patterns etc, get chatting to a few other newbies like myself, as well as some more experienced jumpers, get chatting with ‘rob’ (who started me off on all of this) about my problems flaring and he gives me some ideas. The wind means myself and other students cannot jump, so a few of us go out to be ‘tandem catchers’ but even these are brought back down in the plane due to the winds, i had to leave after lunch, but about 4:30pm the jumping started for everyone 🙂