PauseBreak
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- Aug 27, 2003
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Pics at end of story
Today, at 03:45 I got up to a very cold morning getting myself ready for the day, a jumping day. We all lined up and got our counts in formation and loaded on the semi warm buses and headed over to the jump field.
Once we go there we quick ate or cold MRE's (in the dark) and all of us were wondering how and where the shed was to get our harness and wait for our chalk to get called. We quickly learned there was no shed, and we'd be waiting out in the bitter cold. Boo.
Now to the fun part. The wind was blowing quite a bit over the amount it d morning getting myself ready for the day, a jumping day. We all lined up should have been for us to jump. =\ Of course they tell us that AFTER we land and pack our gear up. I was the first one in the line to jump out the back end of the small twin engine plane. Oh hell no! Thank God OUR Jump Master wanted to jump with us. So I wasn't the first. I don't care much for looking right out the plane waiting for the green light.
GREEN LIGHT: "Go go go! Follow me!" Out I went. Not much of a kick, which is always nice. My shoot opened nicely after the 6 sec. count. (Unlike the 4 we had to do in AirBorne school. AB school we had C-130 planes and round parashoots. These were a little different. You could steer these which ever way you so could please. Anyways, good I'm out of the plane falling pretty fast. I find the direction of the wind, adjust my direction of fall, and hopefully have a nice landing and PLF when I find which way I'm going to land.
Now the troubled part. The wind picked up roughly 200 feet (2x tree height) before I was about to land. NOT good, I was blown roughly 100 feet to where I wanted to land. Okay, whatever! Then roughly 100 feet (tree top level) I got another up draft. NOT GOOD AT ALL! That's when people usually break something hitting the ground. Meh.
So there I was, pretty much headed straight for Mr.Ground and I was NOT in a good position to land. 50 Ft. I prepared for the worst saying the same cadence everyone utters before the walk out the plane, "oh shit oh shit oh shit..." but followed by the landing pray, "oh shit, here it comes....."
BOOM! I hit the ground. Pretty hard since the wind decided not to let me fall, but rather drag me down and an ungodly angle. Feet roll over my head and I'm face first in the sand road. My shoot is full of air and DRAGS me over 50 through the sand road. I am on my stomach trying to roll over so I can activate my canopy release. I get to the end of the road where another gust of wind decides to drag me another 50 Ft. through the tall grass, twigs, and rocks.
Finally done after being dragged across all of God's creation I lay there, dazed, hoping all my limbs and everything is the way God intended it to be. Get up and realize being dragged through all that good stuff my reserve shoot was popped open and FULL of dirt, sand, grass, rocks, and twigs. Soon after I get somewhat to my knees does the medic truck come over and ask if I'm good to go. I do a quick check, feet, legs, hips, back, neck, face, hands (which were completely numb) were all on and good. So I packed up my crap, rolled it up, trucked it to my back and went to shoot shake down to put my gear away. I had to explain my reserve to 5 sergeants. lol But one things you should all know...
"I did not pull it!"
Today, at 03:45 I got up to a very cold morning getting myself ready for the day, a jumping day. We all lined up and got our counts in formation and loaded on the semi warm buses and headed over to the jump field.
Once we go there we quick ate or cold MRE's (in the dark) and all of us were wondering how and where the shed was to get our harness and wait for our chalk to get called. We quickly learned there was no shed, and we'd be waiting out in the bitter cold. Boo.
Now to the fun part. The wind was blowing quite a bit over the amount it d morning getting myself ready for the day, a jumping day. We all lined up should have been for us to jump. =\ Of course they tell us that AFTER we land and pack our gear up. I was the first one in the line to jump out the back end of the small twin engine plane. Oh hell no! Thank God OUR Jump Master wanted to jump with us. So I wasn't the first. I don't care much for looking right out the plane waiting for the green light.
GREEN LIGHT: "Go go go! Follow me!" Out I went. Not much of a kick, which is always nice. My shoot opened nicely after the 6 sec. count. (Unlike the 4 we had to do in AirBorne school. AB school we had C-130 planes and round parashoots. These were a little different. You could steer these which ever way you so could please. Anyways, good I'm out of the plane falling pretty fast. I find the direction of the wind, adjust my direction of fall, and hopefully have a nice landing and PLF when I find which way I'm going to land.
Now the troubled part. The wind picked up roughly 200 feet (2x tree height) before I was about to land. NOT good, I was blown roughly 100 feet to where I wanted to land. Okay, whatever! Then roughly 100 feet (tree top level) I got another up draft. NOT GOOD AT ALL! That's when people usually break something hitting the ground. Meh.
So there I was, pretty much headed straight for Mr.Ground and I was NOT in a good position to land. 50 Ft. I prepared for the worst saying the same cadence everyone utters before the walk out the plane, "oh shit oh shit oh shit..." but followed by the landing pray, "oh shit, here it comes....."
BOOM! I hit the ground. Pretty hard since the wind decided not to let me fall, but rather drag me down and an ungodly angle. Feet roll over my head and I'm face first in the sand road. My shoot is full of air and DRAGS me over 50 through the sand road. I am on my stomach trying to roll over so I can activate my canopy release. I get to the end of the road where another gust of wind decides to drag me another 50 Ft. through the tall grass, twigs, and rocks.
Finally done after being dragged across all of God's creation I lay there, dazed, hoping all my limbs and everything is the way God intended it to be. Get up and realize being dragged through all that good stuff my reserve shoot was popped open and FULL of dirt, sand, grass, rocks, and twigs. Soon after I get somewhat to my knees does the medic truck come over and ask if I'm good to go. I do a quick check, feet, legs, hips, back, neck, face, hands (which were completely numb) were all on and good. So I packed up my crap, rolled it up, trucked it to my back and went to shoot shake down to put my gear away. I had to explain my reserve to 5 sergeants. lol But one things you should all know...
"I did not pull it!"
