From: artb@hplsla.hp.com (Art Bori)
Newsgroups: rec.skydiving
Subject: Re: Night Jumps/Misc.
Date: 9 Oct 92 18:58:15 GMT
Article-I.D.: hplsla.6730170
Organization: HP Lake Stevens, WA

In article by the Skydivin' Dude:

>I'm interested in hearing anyone's night jump stories. I need to do 
>two of them, and I don't mind jumping in the dark, but I'm scared to 
>land.

I assume these jumps are for your D-license requirements.  You probably
know that you'll neeed to make 1 solo and 1 RW jump.  The way we've 
always done this is to make sure everyone gets a complete briefing.
We have jumpers gear up and stay in relative darkness for 15-30 minutes
before getting in the plane.  This insures that your night vision is 
at maximum.  I believe that the USPA requirement is a 30 second delay so
we usually tell people to count as well as refer to their altimeter.
A Dytter is a good back-up.  I remember being pretty pumped up about 
the first solo - almost as much anxiety as my first jump.  Just relax and
do your count.  For the RW, keep it simple.  We launched a 2-way and held it
for about 10 seconds and then tracked for all we were worth.  We had 
agreed that I would track to the east and my partner would track to the 
west.  We also agreed that I would open at 3000 and my partner would 
dump at 3500.  It was another major adrenaline hit.

> A few weeks ago I made a jump after sunset, a dusk jump, and 
>while I didn't think it was much darker than my first SL jump, I 
>landed two feet lower than I thought I was going to, and it hurt.
>My depth perception was horrible. Maybe I just new glasses..

Personally, I dislike jumping right at dusk.  (I also dislike driving
at that time.)  It seems that my depth perception is worse in that
half light than it is when it's really dark.  We usually set up a 
bunch of cars in a "U" shape so that their headlights illuminate the
landing area.  We set the open end of the "U" facing upwind, ie. you 
land coming over the closed end.  We also have a set-up with two white lights
and one yellow light that hooks up to a car battery.  This is used as 
a "wind-sock" with the three lights set up a triangle and the yellow
light pointing upwind.  This helps if the wind shifts and the cars can't
be moved.  Of course, with the cars set up this way, it puts a premium
on landing in the illuminated area.

One thing I try to do is to flare a little higher and a little slower.
If I flare too high then I won't stall too high off the ground.  If the
flare is too low, I won't be hitting at full glide.  I've made about 20 or
30 "official" night jumps and stood them all up except one.

Of course the ultimate night landing accessory is the ever popular 
"flare puppy."  This is where you jump out with a small puppy and when
you get close to landing, you lower the puppy at the end of a rope of the
appropriate length.  When you here the puppy start squealing, you know 
it's time to flare :-)

This talk of night jumping brings back some memories.  I had 
just landed after a night jump and we were waiting for the next load to 
land.  It was a two-way and we could see their cylumes.  We saw the two lights
separate and track in different directions.  One we could see after canopy 
opening; the other just kept going.  Half the people thought the person 
had gone in.  The other half hoped he had just lost the cylume which is
in fact what had happened.  It didn't help that he landed off the field 
and no one knew where he was.  Some jumpers immediately went looking for
him and it was pretty tense until he finally walked back to the landing area.
The moral:  be sure your lights are secure and never, ever purposefully
drop a light.

A more enjoyable memory was a 9-way night jump we did during a full moon.
It was a 4 point jump that ended with all of us in a 9-way line
facing the moon and howling.  We held that last point for about 10 seconds,
screaming and howling the whole time.  People on the ground even heard us.
It was on the same dive I think that one of the jumpers decided to jump 
out with a cylume in his mouth.  It sounded like a good idea, but right
after exit he bit down a little too hard.  So now he's got this foul tasting
glowing liquid in his mouth and all over his face.  He made quite a sight
when he landed.

Good luck and have fun!

Blue skies,
Art Bori
D-11402