My flight suit finally turned up on Friday and I couldn't wait to try it out in the tunnel! Yesterday was that day!
Due to lack of cars being left at work I took Luna to MK, it was great to give her a run and I do love driving her, I just wish the heater hadn't decided to brake! It was a bit of a chilly journey, especially sat in traffic for 6 miles. Thankfully though I made it by 7 just before Paul was going to call to see where I was. As I'd had a chilly and long journey the first thing to do was to chill out and put the kettle on. After relaxing, drinking tea and deciding the plan of action it was time to put my suit on. It looked great and a few people commented on it too.
I had 2 sessions of 10 minutes booked up with a nice gap in between and I was determined to get the sit fly so we planned to spend 8 minutes in the first session working on this and 2 minutes in the middle doing something different just to relax my arms.
Progress is still slow with the sitting but I was managing to 'hop' off the net so it's still progress. In the 2 minutes in the middle I decided to try some more belly to back/back to belly transitions, these still need work too, especially when transitioning from belly to back.
As we had a large gap between sessions it was suggested by Paul that me go and grab a proper coffee. So with flight suits half removed and tied around our waists we headed into Xscape on the hunt for coffee. We were heading to Costa, we took a slightly scenic route though as Paul was showing me around, there were things in the shopping centre that I didn't know were there. When we got to Costa though they were closed. Thankfully Xpresso net was still open so we headed there. One cafe latte, one americano, one chicken soup, one carrot cake, a 'dotty' cookie and a nice chat and we were fueled up and ready to go again. Thanks Paul for coffee and cookie :o)
I was still as determined to get the sit fly - my aim was to succeed at it before Christmas and as Paul is on holiday next week this was my last chance. 8 minutes again of sit fly with 2 minutes of back fly thrown in in the middle. I had to try and keep my hips a little higher as the angles were making it difficult to keep my balance. Little by little I was getting a bit of lift, just hovering slightly. With my back fly in the middle of the minutes I was trying to do side slides again but getting my co ordination right isn't quite that easy! Back to the sit fly and a little bit more hovering, I was so so close! This had to be the best sit session yet.
When we left the tunnel I was feeling chuffed that I had got as far as I had, but slightly disappointed that I hadn't quite got the sit fly that I wanted. Paul put his helmet in the drivers room and while he was there looked to see how many were in the next session and as it wasn't a full session offered me the chance of an additional 4 minutes just to see if I could get that sit. Of course I said yes!
Back in the tunnel we went. I had a little bit of time to give my arms a rest before I actually stepped back in the tunnel (thankfully) another 2 minutes of hopping up and down with a bit of hovering, this was getting daft, why couldn't I just stay put... In my last 2 minutes we did a minutes of sit fly exercises, one hand on head, then other hand on head, then both on head. Then it was my last chance to get the sit. Unfortunately though this didn't happen, it was at this point that my shoulders finally gave up. We did a tiny bit of belly fly just to relax at the end of the session.
I was disappointed but still pleased I'd got as far as I had. I've now got at least 2 weeks before I fly again, I'll be practicing my position though at home with the aim of succeeding next time.
Last night was my first double lesson with Paul, plus flight night as well, I wasn't sure how well I would cope and how tired I would get but amazingly I didn't get that tired and I didn't ache this morning!
Paul was teaching first timers as well as coaching me in our first session, they were a very excitable bunch! At least I had plenty of rotations in the session.
My first 2 sessions were spent going from back fly to sit position on the net. This was to try and get me to use my back a little more when trying to sit fly. To begin with I was ending up standing rather than sitting and I had to try and stop myself before I got to that point. By the end of the 4 minutes I seemed to have grasped the concept. I could feel the way the wind hits my back and changes my movements.
I still had 6 minutes in this first session so we did a bit of back flying. I spent most of it on the net learning to do side slides. The co-ordination needed for this is crazy! I couldn't get my head round it to begin with but with Pauls help I was soon moving from one side of the tunnel to the other. I couldn't get to grips with doing it on my own so Paul had hold of my feet. Once I can do this we can start to do some up and overs while back flying.
4 minutes left and time to tackle the sit fly! In to the position, feet on the net, strong arms, a little push of the net, feet out to the side slightly, lift off... and back down. I actually did it! Only a little bit, but I did it! The rest of the time was spent building the time off the net up a little bit at a time. I finally felt that I had made progress with the sit flying, could I keep it up though?
That was the end of my first 10 minutes. We headed back downstairs and I sat watching the live action for a little bit while Paul helped the others from the group put their kit back and handed out their flight certificates.
Once they were all sorted we had just enough time to grab a cuppa before the other flight night people turned up. Paul offered me a mince pie, but I upped the stakes and offered him some of my home made chocolate brownies. I had 6 large brownies with me, 3 of which got eaten while we drank our tea (I had one, Paul had one and Gary had one, just so you don't think me and Paul were greedy!) I was going to put them back in my bag for later in the evening, but one was enough for me, so I left them on the work surface for anyone else who wanted them (Paul warned me that any food left unattended would be eaten)
It was nice to see some familiar faces in Flight Night again, Abbie was there with her skydiving friend and one of the guys from an earlier flight night session was there to (I can't for the life of me remember his name, DOH!) Us 3 girlies were all sit flying so I felt slightly sorry for out chappie as he was still on the basics of belly flying, this didn't seem to worry him though and he took it all in good spirit. Thankfully at flight night we're all very supportive of each other. It's a shame this was the last one of this year.
As the tunnel was empty and we were all ready we headed straight up. Paul suggested that my first 2.5 minutes were spent carrying on from where we left off and that my other 2.5 minutes were spent doing some belly to back, back to belly transitions.
I was feeling quietly confident about the sit fly and couldn't wait to get back in and have another go. I found myself struggling again though, the wind seemed to be slightly faster and it put me off my balance. Not one to give in though I gave it my best shot. I wasn't as pleased with this though as I was with the earlier attempt.
The transitions seem to be getting better though, I still find back to belly easier than belly to back though. Paul pointed out that the basics are there but I'm slightly over rotating when going onto my back and need to throw my arms up more and broaden my shoulders to stop myself. More practice required!
Flight night seems so short time wise in comparison to my private coaching and before I knew it we were on our way back downstairs again. Me, Paul, Abbie and Abbie's friend stood around talking for a fair while. It turned into quite a random conversation about Airkix made up terminology (the backwards goldfish bowl move!) and a new business idea of a pool of parachutes available to hire for skydivers!
When we'd all finished talking we were going to grab another cuppa as I wasn't due to be flying again till 21.30 but this all changed. We were going to be the only people in that session so we jumped in on the next available session. No time for a cuppa, but a quick swig of water and back up the the tunnel!
Paul asked if I fancied doing something new. Me being me immediately said yes! The plan... Back flips from walking up the wall in the tunnel and lay outs (going from back fly to belly fly forwards)
First up walking up the wall and back flips! Paul showed me how to do it and then it was my turn, what a disaster! The first time I tried I didn't go far enough up the wall or push of hard enough and I just ended up on my back on the net! A little more power needed the next time. Several attempts later and I was getting there, I was landing on my feet though rather than my belly, I did manage to land on my belly the last time though. It was great learning to do this!
My second 2 minutes were back to doing more sit flying, the wind speed still seemed pretty hard and I was trying my best to master the sit, it's never quite that easy though. Thankfully Paul was on hand to keep hold of my toes.
On to the next 2 minutes and time to give lay outs ago, again Paul demonstrated and made it look so easy. He'd already warned me that they take practice and they wouldn't look tidy after only 2 minutes. I wasn't deterred though and gave it my best shot. Just like the back flips my first attempt was pretty hopeless! I tried and tried though and finally got something close, landing on my feet again though. Can't wait to give this another go!
Back to sit flying again this time and although my positioning was good I couldn't stay stable enough for Paul to let go of my feet. I'm determined to crack this sit flying before Christmas, that gives my 2 weeks and about 40 minutes tunnel time...
By now my arms were getting a little tired from sit flying so we opted to do some back flying for a minute and then to do some 'grip' exercise for the other minute. My back flying is looking so much better than it was, I just need to be able to do turns and side slides and I'll be making great progress. Going back to belly flying was good to and gave me a chance to have a little bit of fun and practice things I'd learnt in the past.
All in all a good 25 minutes were had and some great progress too and it took me over the 2 hour mark!
Back downstairs and time to get out of all the kit. I handed Paul my helmet to put back and he decided it would be great to write my name on the back of the helmet as I always seem to have the some one. So if any of you reading this go to Airkix MK and have a white helmet with Stacy written on the back of it, you know where it came from!
I've got another 20 minutes booked up for next Tuesday and I also heard today that my flight suit has been dispatched so hopefully it will get here ready for my next flight and I won't get beaten by the Airkix suits!
Flyday has been and gone again and I'm here writing my blog again to keep you all updated on my progress!
With the weather being as unpredictable as it was we left plenty of time to get to MK, it was nice when we got stuck in traffic to not be panicing about getting there on time. In fact we were there 25 minutes early, having not faced the forecast poor weather. We opted to grab a Costa coffee before heading in to Airkix, they had their Christmas menu up and we opted to try a Creme Brule coffee and very nice it was too! We wander around xscape with our coffee before opting to go and sit in Airkix.
We hadn't been sat down long when Paul appeared. The tunnel was empty so as soon as we and the other 2 people in our group were ready we could go on it. While we finished off our coffee we sorted out what we were planning on achieving in the 10 minutes we had. Definitely more sit fly practice and some back flying as well. The idea behind the back fly was that once I had a stable back fly I could try some transitions during flight night. So we opted for 6 minutes of back fly and 4 of back fly.
Once geared up we headed to the tunnel. I was sharing with 2 first time flyers who had 2 minutes each, meaning that I only got a minutes rest between my flights, just about long enough to catch my breath!
Flight one was dedicated to sit fly. As you can see at the start of the video it was a tad chilly in the tunnel! Not a bad session, I was quite chuffed with it actually! Positioning is definitely getting better.
Flight 2 was back flying. The plan was that I was to mirror Paul and to control my movements - slowly! When I got into the tunnel though I forgot once I was on the net to just stay put without trying to fly, this caused a few crashes between me and Paul (sorry Paul!). Once I remembered, with a little reminder from Paul to stay put, things got better.
On to flight 3 and some more back flying. I think I'm finally getting to grips with staying low and slow with this now. Although I've been able to back fly it has been pretty wild at points and I've needed to gain a little control.
Unfortunately after this flight the batteries went flat on the flip video so we're missing 2 more flights from my private coaching. These 2 flights were doing more sit flying with Paul keeping hold of my toes, still no solo flying yet!
Between my private coaching and flight night we sat and had a cuppa with Paul and shared the cookies I'd baked earlier in the day. This gave me time to chill out and get my energy back ready for more flying. This time also gave me the chance to 'try' and explain to mum how to use the video on my iPhone. Mum and technology really don't mix all that well...
It was nice to see Abbie back at flight night again, we seem to be about at the same place with our flying at the moment (which proved useful later in the evening...) and we were joined by just one other person for the session. I think the weather had put the others off!
Flight 1 saw me attempt belly to back, back to belly transitions. Not bad for a first attempt I don't think. I found it quite strange having to push down with my arms and chest to get lift to push my body up and over my legs while going from belly to back. I found back to belly easier!
Flight 2 and back to sit flying. I can see in the video and Paul pointed it out aswell that my feet keep slipping forward which is causing me to be pushed on to my back. This is something to work on next week. By the end of it my arms were tired and we did a little bit more back fly. Even getting back onto my feet at the end caused me problems!
On to flight 3 and some belly flying. I hadn't done any belly flying for a fair while so it was nice to go back to the beginning. Me and Paul did some up and overs which was visually pleasing and a bit of fun too.
This should of been the end of my flights again for tonight but Paul offered us the chance to buy another flight night. Me and Abbie had shared a session last time so it didn't take much persuading for us to share another one! Rather than just split the time 2.5 minutes each Paul suggested we have the first 2 minutes in there together with him doing some sit fly exercises and then have 1.5 minutes each afterwards.
I didn't realise until we started the exercises how tired my body was, you can see this in the video, I kept falling back and getting back up, but I was determined not to give up without a fight!
Having now watched all the videos back I can see what I need to work on at the next session. Roll on next week!
I've finally found time to write this weeks update! Busy busy!
Well Tuesday saw me make my weekly pilgrimage to MK for a private coaching session with Paul. Thankfully the traffic was kinder to me this week and I made it in plenty of time. It's so much better when I'm chilled out from a good drive up and not a bit tense because I'm running a little late!
I signed in and headed down to the briefing area, it wasn't long before I was joined by Paul. After discussing what the plan was for today (getting from the net into the sit fly position and the sit fly itself) I asked Paul if he could be the last reference on my application form, luckily for me he agreed, so we moved to the staff room to fill it in.
Once this was done it was time to get geared up. On the the flight suit, grabbed my goggles and ear plugs and an Airkix helmet and we headed up stairs. While we waited for the group that was in the tunnel to finish we worked on my sit fly position on the sofa, it's totally different in the tunnel though!
We were sharing the tunnel with 4 first time flyers and Dan was going to be teaching them. There's something about watching the first timers, the smiles on their faces and sense of achievement that they get, it's just great! Reminds me of the feeling of my first flight.
We opted to go first as we had the most tunnel time booked. Into the tunnel on my feet and to the centre of the tunnel. I was going to be practicing getting into the sit fly position from being on my back on the net. The logic behind it - if I bail onto my back when I'm sit flying that I can safely get back into the start of the sit fly position. I leant back slowly onto the net, think I've finally cracked this without going splat! Now I was led on my back with my feet in the air and I had to throw my head back with my arms above my head and arch my back to bring the upper part of my body up, and bend my legs to land in the sit position. My problem to start with was that I was throwing my hips forward aswell which was changing the way the wind was hitting me and sending me forwards. By the end of the first 2 minutes though I'd just about got my hips under control and was moving from the net to the sit! Hooorrrrayyyy!!!
The next 2 minutes were more of the same, but at a higher wind speed. This changed everything again and I found my self flying across the tunnel again and I'm pretty sure at one point I ended up in Paul's arms and I may have also kicked Dan who was stood in the doorway! Oooopppsss! Sorry guys! I'd just about got the hang of it by the time the 2 minutes were up. Enough for Paul to say I was safe if anything happened anyway!
Now that I was safe enough to get from my back back to the sit position, it was time to work on the sit fly itself. I seem to have the knack of getting into the sit fly position on the net, I do still have the odd wobbly moment which sends me off across the tunnel, but once I have my balance I get straight back to where I should be and start again. Paul took hold of my toes and we had lift off, it was short lived though as I was still rounding off my shoulders causing me to end up on my back. This seems to be my main pitfall on sit flying.
The second flight of sit fly was a little better but still not great, I was still not arching my back enough to keep me upright. As I was feeling myself falling back I would throw my chest out and my head back and would be back where I was supposed to be, but would soon end up falling back again... grrrrrr!
When I came out of the tunnel from this flight I was roasting! Working hard to stay upright. I had 2 minutes to cool down and get ready for my last flight.
The first half of my last flight was I feel the best, the second half fell apart slightly as my arms got very very tired! I managed to stay in the sit position with Paul keeping hold of my toes until my arms got to tired. I ended the flight with a bit of back flying as I couldn't sit fly anymore!
Flying over and back downstairs to get the suit off and put the kettle on! We spent ages in the staff room drinking tea, eating mince pies and discussing all things flying. I think the guys are getting used to seeing me around now!
Paul thinks that 10 minutes more of sit flying and I will have cracked it and he'll be able to let go of my feet, then it will be trying to learn to turn! Hopefully this will be part of next weeks lesson. I'm making speedy progress apparently and I feel great about it all. I know there is still stuff to work on, but practice makes perfect!
Once we'd finished in the staff room, we headed to Andy's office to hand in my fully completed application form. There are no vacancies as an instructor at the moment, but as I'm not physically fit enough to be an instructor yet it's not a major issue, but at least my application is in. Andy did mention something to me though which gave me food for thought...
What a nightmare journey to MK last night! The fog was thick and people just didn't know how to handle the situation. The traffic was a lot worse than normal and people were driving a lot slower. This resulted in us still being 10 miles out side of MK at 17.30, when I should of been at Airkix. As I was having private coaching with Paul, he rang to see where I was (he knows I'm normally early or on time) I explained and thankfully it was only me and Paul and one of the other instructors in the session so I didn't have to panic too much.
We finally made it at 17.50 and I filled in my statement of risk as normal, went to the desk, the receptionist read my statement, said "You've had a dislocated shoulder?" I replied yes thinking I would be getting the normal 'we advise you not to fly talk' but was gob smacked when she said I wouldn't be able to fly. I explained that this would be my 11th flight and that I was here every week. Thankfully Andy was stood behind the desk with Gary and they both recognised me and as I had flown before several times they let me fly! That was nearly the straw that broke the camels back!
Once I was clear of reception we headed round to the briefing area and met Paul coming the other way. We started discussing my flying straight away. Plenty of things to work on and more of letting me teach too. Next up was gearing up, Paul headed to get a suit and I darted in the loo! I was busting!
We headed up to the tunnel and round to behind the control room. I was to teach Paul how to back fly! Paul led down on the board and I explained to him how to make the various maneuvers including going up, down, round to the left, round to the right and side sliding. The idea behind this was that it would help me with my positioning in the tunnel for my back flying and to help me with when I (hopefully) become an instructor.
We moved into the staging area with Dan (the other instructor) Paul and I opted to go first. The first 2 minutes were going to be me stood teaching Paul the correct positioning for back fly.
The wind started and we moved into the tunnel. I stood on the edge and Paul led in the middle of the tunnel. I explained as best I could using hand signals how to get lift and turn and then side slides. I really feel Paul allowing me to do this will be beneficial to me in the long run and I gain alot from it.
My next two minutes were back to sit fly positioning. I had a bit of a wobbly start and lost my balance and shot off across the tunnel and straight into Paul! Once I was back on my feet and back in position I remained stable for a while before losing my balance again and ending up on my back! I had a dodgy zip on my suit and upon getting back up the zip was down and I was verging on giving poor Paul and eye full! A quick zip up and I was ready to go again. Rather than trying the sit fly position again, Paul taught me how to go from standing to belly flying and back again. One foot up, two feet up, belly fly! Then back to feet, although the wind caught me and I ended up against the glass. Back to belly fly again and then time was up. Rather than flying out I opted to go back to standing, rather more successfully than the attempt before and walked out of the tunnel.
Between flight we stuck the zip on the suit to save any more embarrassment!
Flight number three and an attempt at me back flying... I obviously wasn't half as good at it as Paul, but I can work on that! At least I managed to lower myself onto the net without going splat! That's an improvement straight away! Back flying is still causing me a few issues but I did manage to get lift, but as soon as I did I was spinning around pretty fast! It looks pretty cool in the video but it's not what I wanted to do! Thankfully Paul stopped me before I came to any harm. Lots of bouncing around the tunnel followed before I got a stable position again, then of course my time was up and Paul guided me to the door.
On to flight number 4 and a bit more back flying, this really does seem to be taking me a while to pick up! This time seemed to be more successful though! Once I had my positioning Paul had the wind turned up to see if I could remain stable. There were a few hairy moments with a couple of random turns and a bit of a dive for the net, but nothing too disastrous! Think my back fly still needs some work though...
On my last flight of my first session we were back to doing more sit fly positioning. I walked into the tunnel, got into the position and moments later was on my back! I was straight back onto my feet though, although I'm sure I was supposed to get back into the sit position. Paul showed me where I was going wrong with getting up and then it was my turn to try again. Getting down onto the net is the easy bit, it's getting back up again I seem to have an issue with, I think it's in the balance and the positioning. Paul pointed out that I'm nearly there, I just don't follow the movement through. When I did manage it we moved back to the middle of the tunnel to do more sit. This was going OK until I lost my balance and ended up on my back (again!) That was time up again...
That was the end of my private coaching session, but I had more flying to come with flight night. Between sessions mum and I opted to go in search of food and drink, we'd forgotten to bring anything with us, doh! I un suited and we headed to Costa, 2 rather yummy hot chocolates with whipped cream and marshmallows followed, along with some sandwiches. We didn't stay long and headed back to catch up with the rest of the Flight Night group.
Thankfully Paul had found me another suit so that I didn't end up nearly baring all to everyone again, we all sat around talking for a little while before it was flight time and I asked about the new ruling on shoulder dislocations, hopefully though it shouldn't affect me... we shall see!
We moved up to the tunnel and the group before were still flying, there seemed to be loads of them! While stood waiting we watched and ran through what we were going to do again. I seemed to be in with a good bunch and we all had a chuckle.
I was third to go into the tunnel from our group and was going to do more sit fly. The wind had been turned up this time ready to try and get some lift and I certainly noticed it when I got into position, it swept me straight off my feet and straight towards Paul, I got my balance back on my feet and moved back again, tried to get the position again and was swept forwards again. Third time lucky and with a little help from Paul I finally managed to stay in position. Paul took hold of my toes and we had lift off! It was short lived though as I was soon on my back again, onto the net, then in an attempt to get up I was thrown back against the wall and straight back onto my back. Once back on my feet it was time for the second attempt at sit fly, again Paul took hold of my toes and I was in the air, again though it didn't last long. There wasn't time to try again so I left the tunnel.
On to flight number 2. I still hadn't quite got the hang of getting up from the net into the sit position so we tried a bit of this to begin with. Paul demonstrated and made it look so easy, but I couldn't get to grips with it, I either flew across the tunnel or couldn't get off the net, there is obviously a knack to it which I don't have yet, more practice required! Back to my feet and back to trying to sit fly... on trying to get into position I managed to end up sit flying, completely unintentional of course! Paul took hold of my knees to keep me stable, I managed to (just about) stay in the sit this time until my time was up again.
This should of been my last flight for tonight, but two people had booked to attend flight night and didn't turn up, so Paul offered the 4 of us the chance to purchase the additional time. There would be no point wasting it so we all opted to have additional time.
Back in the tunnel for the last time and straight into the sit fly, looking a lot more stable this time! We even managed some forwards and backwards movements before I ended up on my back again. It took a few attempts to get up correctly though (this definitely needs work!) Rather than trying the sit fly again we tried some walking at the higher wind speed, I followed Paul around for a little while before I ended up against the glass. Time was up again.
A total of 17.5 minutes racked up in the tunnel last night and I can't wait to get back for more!
When we all went down to take off our gear me and Paul were talking about becoming an instructor again and he asked if I'd spoken to Andy (the manager) about it and when I said no he suggested we go and see what he had to say. We headed off to his office leaving mum waiting patiently (thanks mum!)
I'm now currently filling in my application form in the hope that they like what they see and give me a chance and I've got to work pretty hard to be fit enough for if they do call...
Yesterday saw me head to Airkix MK again, this time though I was going for my first private coaching session with Paul. I opted for Paul to be my coach as he's helped me alot at flight night, is a great instructor and is willing to help me reach my goal, what a great guy!
I reached MK an hour before my booked time and sat watching the live action on the TV screen, Steve was also teaching in the same session as Paul and I and he came and sorted out his student and explained he didn't know where Paul was. It didn't matter, I was happy watching for a while. Not long after though Paul came down from the wind tunnel, briefly sat down next to me then asked "Fancy a cup of Tea?", "That sounds like a great idea" I replied. At this point I thought we'd go to the coffee shop or something but was shocked when he said "Well if your going to be staff you may as well see the staff room" I felt honoured!
The kettle was on and tea was being made, marvelous tea it was too, we ended up talking about the instructor side of things and also what the plan was for the 10 minutes flight time I had booked. After much discussion we decided we'd do a little more back flying as this is still something that I'm not 100% at, try the sit fly positioning again carrying on from last weeks flight night and Paul also thought it would be good if I could be the instructor and correct his body position (he was going to put his body in the wrong position and I had to tell him what to do to correct it)
It was nearing flight time so it was time to gear up, Paul asked what I was going to do with my stuff and I said I'd put it in a locker, he reminded me that I'd have to pay £1, I wasn't worried though but then he offered me a box to put my stuff in and left it in the staff room for me! I grabbed as much of the stuff as I could remember that I needed for flying and put the rest in the box. My purple goggles were about to make their second appearance in the tunnel!
We tried to remember what colour grips I had last time to find the right size suit for me but neither of us could remember, so we guessed, the first one though was a little too tight for sit flying in and the only other one they had was a little large, it would have to do though (this was something I would regret later though!)
We headed up to the wind tunnel and as the group before were running slightly late we decided to run through the movements required for back fly. Trying to remember everything was going to be a nightmare!
When the other group had finished we headed into the staging area and put helmets, earplugs and goggles on. Steve and his student were going first as they had a few more minutes than me. Paul suggested back flying first, this was fine with me, I was to walk in, crouch to the net, get flying and try some turns - easier said than done! I walked in, fine, crouch = splat onto net, I really hadn't got the hang of that! I was fine getting lift, but then I would hit a wall and everything would go to pot, I really need to have more faith in my self in back fly. I was slightly frustrated as I had succeeded at this last week and now I wasn't so great at it again. Never mind, plenty more time to get to grips with it! Before I knew it the first 2 minutes were over and I was out of the tunnel watching the play back. Paul pointed out the good bits and the bad and I ended up not feeling quite so deflated about it.
Next up we were going to try the sit fly position. This had caused me a few problems last week, I seemed unable to keep my feet in one place and just to sit, I was trying to move my feet underneath me which is how I ended up kneeling on the net, I was determined this week though I wasn't going to do that. I stepped into the tunnel feeling determined, stood in the right place and watched for instructions. First things first arms, 90degrees at the elbow and a little less than 90degrees at the shoulder, palms flat. So far, so good. Now the bit I'd struggled with before, legs slightly apart bend the knees into a sitting position, chest forward, back back. I leant back slightly, throwing my chest forward and bent my knees, I could feel the wind on my back supporting me, I'd done it! The smile on my face must of said it all! Once I was in that position we tried a few stability movements, left hand on head, then back to neutral, right hand on head, then back to neutral, left hand again on head, then right hand on head too, a few little wobbles but nothing major! I was well chuffed!
We watched the play back again and Paul seemed pleased with the progress, much, much better than last weeks attempts.
The next 2 minutes were going to be interesting, I was to get into the sit fly position and to walk around the edge of the tunnel in that position, then change direction and go the other way. It was like being a crab (that's the best way I can think of describing it!) I stood in the doorway while Paul demonstrated to me what to do, then it was my go... I stepped in and rather than finding a nice place to get into the sit fly position I tried to do it just inside the door, it wasn't as successful, so I moved slightly and tried again. Now I had my position I had to try and move myself round the tunnel, little by little I got there, I did stand again at one point when I lost my balance. When I reached the exit door I turned around and went half way back the other way, then back to the middle of the tunnel. We were just going to do a few more things when time was up again. I was roasting when I left the tunnel!
More video playback - this is extremely helpful as I can see what I'm doing wrong and how to improve it for next time...
My next 2 minutes were something totally different, Paul was going to be the flyer and me the 'instructor' I was going to be in the tunnel stood to one side and he was going to fly while making deliberate mistakes and I had to correct them. I really enjoyed this exercise and it gave me a chance to put into practice what I had learnt from flying. Paul did some great stuff, putting his head low, I would point to my chin, chin up. He was flying towards the wall in front of him, I gave the hand signal to bend his legs a little. He also did flying into the wall behind him, side ways, and just lying on the net, maybe I'll make an instructor yet!
It was strange watching the playback of me telling Paul what to do, it's normally the other way round!
Back to sit fly for the last 2 minutes, tackling the forwards and backwards movements. Forwards no problems, it was similar to walking round the tunnel, backwards was just strange. To move forwards you push your chest forward more giving you more drive on your back to go backwards you have to throw your body forwards to get drive on your front to push you back. This seems totally un-natural and goes against pretty much everything you've been taught. We did this a few times though and if I recall correctly I did end up losing my balance at one point and ended up on the net! (this wasn't the first time in this whole session and I lost track of the number of times I kicked poor Paul - sorry Paul!) We did a few more stability moves, taking grips and then I went from a stand to belly fly. Not an easy transition but not bad for a first timer! It seemed a little strange being on my belly again, it's been a little while that's for sure!
That concluded my tunnel time and I had a great time and came away feeling rather pleased.
We were going to go into one of the team rooms and watch the play back again, but the system didn't want to work so we sat on the sofa and discussed the flight before going back downstairs.
There was more tea drinking in the staff room and discussions of becoming an instructor. When other members of staff came in you could see them wondering why I was there and then they would hear part of the conversation and they'd say "You want to become an instructor?" every time I smiled and said "Yes"
I finally left at a little before 9pm, a little later than normal but who cares!?! I'd had a great time and had had a taste of being an Airkix instructor... I want this more and more now!
Next flight is booked for before flight night next week... until then I will be flightless, but I have the gym to keep me busy!
After chilling out for a little while it was time for my next briefing. Paul was back after debriefing after the last session. We moved into the briefing room and once again it was all fresh faces, this still surprised me as flight night was designed for people to progress. Soon after we started though a couple of familiar faces turned up from the first flight night. Paul went round the room finding out where people were at with their flying and suggesting what to try and achieve in the flights. I was first up and as he had seen me fly in my last session he suggested we carry on from there with a minute of back flying, but he was going to turn the speed up, just like the instructors, just to see how I coped. He then said that he really wanted to push me and thought we should try some positions ready for sit fly. So on the same day as successfully back flying I was already moving on towards sit fly! Amazing! One of the others in the group was still doing basic belly flying and Paul wanted to get them moving around the tunnel touching the 'X men' she wasn't sure on how to move backwards and forwards and Paul was going to demonstrate, but changed his mind and asked me to do it! I got up from my seat and positioned myself on the 'flight table' (yes we really have made this up as the term to describe the bench/table for showing body positioning!) I proudly told the room that to move forwards they needed to bring their arms back towards their body and straighten their legs, I then showed them how to go backwards by straightening my arms and bending my legs. Paul proudly told them all that he asked me to demonstrate as in the future I wanted to become an instructor, he then used me to show them how to move arms and legs together. I loved the opportunity to 'teach' hopefully in the future I'll be in Paul's position and I'll be teaching classes. After the briefing the others got geared up and we headed up to the tunnel. There were some skydivers in there so we watched for a little while before it was our turn.
We all moved into the staging area and I was 5th to go. This gave me plenty of time to run through all that Paul had told me and to make sure I was ready. When it was my go I walked in, I tried to crouch and lay on my back but once again it was the flop onto the net, Paul checked I was OK though before we carried on. I opened up into the back fly position and after a little bit of random flying about the air flow was increased. I think I managed to fly quite well with the higher speeds and I didn't end up all the way at the top of the tunnel, surely that's a good thing!?!? Although I'm sure some of you would of found it very amusing, picturing me pinned to the veins at the top of the tunnel. Once the air flow was slowed again, Paul stood on the ends of my shoes and I stood up, I walked to the middle of the tunnel and we began working on the sit fly position. I stood opposite Paul and he was showing me what to do, first up was to put my arms out to the sides and bent at the elbow to point forwards, I had them a little high to begin with so Paul came and lowered them, he moved back to be opposite me again and began to crouch, legs apart into a sitting position. I found this quite difficult, I couldn't seem to get the balance on my feet and I was leaning forwards into the wind rather than standing straight to my hips and then leaning back. We only got as far as this and my first 2.5minutes were up. I exited the tunnel and watched the play back. It was by watching this I realised how much I was leaning into the wind.
Abbie, in the group was learning Sit fly too, but had been trying for longer than I had so I decided to watch her closely before I went back in to see if I could improve my position, she made it look so easy!
I walked back into the tunnel for my second flight and we were straight into trying to get the sit fly position, again I could get the arms right but when it came to crouching I just couldn't get my balance right and rather than keeping my feet still and bending my knees and hips while leaning back slightly I was trying to tuck my feet underneath me. At one point I ended up on my knees in front of Paul, oooppsss! I did eventually manage to get a position that was close to what Paul wanted, but it does need work! Once I was in that position I was asked to try and fly, I pushed off slightly and Paul took hold of my legs, but all I succeeded in doing was flipping from my sit fly position into a back fly (at least I had that to fall back into, not that that's any consolation!) Unfortunately we ran out of time to try again, but I know for next time that I need to lean more into the wind behind me to crouch. Hopefully I will be better at it next time!
Once again Paul was a fantastic coach and I thank him for all his help, encouragement and support. I'm now trying to organise some one on one coaching with him as he seems to know how I fly and definitely knows where I'm heading (or hoping to head!)
Overall I was extremely pleased with both flights from last night and can't wait to get back in the tunnel to try more sit fly positioning. My next flight is booked for just under 2 weeks, but whether it will stay that way is any ones guess...
After my extremely frustrating attempt at back flying on Saturday, I opted to book some additional time before my already booked flight night. I'm extremely glad I did!
After a nightmare journey getting to MK, arriving half an hour late, I left mum to see to getting the parking ticket and locking up the car and I headed straight in. I quickly filled in my statement of risk and headed down to the meeting point, I expected to see everyone in the briefing room, but it was empty. Paul (my flight night instructor) was briefing some people, but Gary was my instructor, so I waited patiently on the bench and before long he appeared.
We went into the briefing room to discuss what I wanted to achieve. I explained about Saturday and feeling like I was in a pinball machine, so we opted to go back to net work to begin with, working on turns and forwards and back and then moving on to actual flight. As it happened I virtually had a private lesson with Gary as there were no others booked in other than Paul and his 3 private coaching people.
After gearing up - I got to use my new goggles! we headed up to the tunnel to wait. Unusually the tunnel was empty so there wasn't much to watch. After Paul and the others came up we headed into the tunnel, a little earlier than we were supposed to.
We let the others go first and Gary explained that he wanted me to walk into the tunnel and then crouch down so my bum is on the net and then lean back so I'm on my back on the net. Sounds easy huh?!?
When it was my turn I walked into the tunnel - no issues there - but the crouching bit proved to be a little more difficult! I got so far down and then relaxed a little too much too quickly and flopped onto the net with legs in the air, not very angelic at all! To begin with I seemed to have solved my wonky body issue from Saturday and set about performing turns on the net. Turning with my arms left and right went well but feet were a little more difficult. I couldn't quite get the right angle for the air to hit and spin me round. Gary helped though and I was soon turning circles. While doing this though my wonky body had come back, DOH! We were just about to try arm and leg turns when my time was up. Gary wanted me to stand up from the back fly and walk out of the tunnel... he stood on my feet to stop them moving and told me to put my head right back and widen my shoulders to allow the upper half of my body to lift, I did and within a flash I was face to face with Gary. I exited the tunnel. Due to the fact I had Gary to myself, we watched the video play back and he explained what was good and what was bad and what we were going to try next.
My second flight was spent trying to learn how to get up and down from being on the net on my back to standing up. I think I was just about getting the hang of it and at least I was managing to stop myself while getting up before colliding with Gary. After getting up and down a few times we tried moving forwards (towards my head) This is where my wonky body crept back in, but I fought it and finally managed to stay straight. Gary put my feet between his knees and I moved my arms down by my side causing me to move straight forwards, we did this a couple of times and then my time was up again. Once again we watched the video playback and discussed what we were going to do next.
On my 3rd flight I walked in again and Gary helped me down onto the net, we practiced moving forwards and backwards, forwards this time was better than in the last flight and backwards worked a treat too. I bent my legs, lifted my arms above my head and I moved towards my feet, whoooo! Next up was to actually try flying, to begin with Gary kept hold of my feet and moved my legs as to go up and down in the wind tunnel. I was then allowed to try on my own, after a little bit of bouncing around on the net, takeoff! I did it! Gary was there just in case and did take hold of my feet a couple of times just to be sure and to adjust my position. I was just so happy that I actually managed to back fly! After all the frustration on Saturday I was so proud. Thanks to Gary for his help in getting me to fly!
Gary pointed out that I needed to bend my arms slightly more and push them back to give me more lift by providing a larger surface area. This was something to work on but at least I had succeeded in flying without help! As I was flying again an hour after I came out the tunnel I kept my jumpsuit on and sat with mum downstairs watching the kids club on the live action TV screen. For kids they were fantastic! I enjoyed the chill out time between sessions, but I wish the benches were more comfy!
In my last post I mentioned about attending the Fright Flight at Manchester, but having thought about the logistics of it, with the help of Mum I decided that I was wiser just booking myself some more time at MK, so this is what I did! As great as it would of been to fly on Halloween I opted for the Saturday night instead, this allowed both Mum and Dad to come and watch and for me to get in the additional time that I wanted. I hadn't flown on a Saturday evening before and when I arrived I was amazed at how quiet it was, it wasn't until later that I realised why. The receptionist recognised me from my very first flight (8 weeks ago now!) and I filled in my statement of risk and was informed my instructor was Joel. Joel had been my instructor 2 weeks previously and it was great to know I was having an instructor I had had before. I headed down to the waiting area ready for my brief and still there was no sign of anyone, we sat watching the live action for a while where a group of Italians were training. It wasn't long before Joel turned up, he sat on the bench opposite and asked "Have you been in one of my groups before?" when I replied yes he said I was the first person he's ever recognised from a previous group. I'm not sure whether this is a good thing or a bad thing, did I make that much of an impression on him? (good or bad!) My aim for the 6 minutes I had booked was to carry on learning to back fly, Joel ran through all the movements again with me to make sure I was happy. He then explained that we were going to be sharing the tunnel with the Italians who were training and I was the only 'normal' Airkix booking there! They were going to show me up big time! Joel sorted out my gear for me and said I could go and do what I liked for 30 minutes before meeting him up by the tunnel. We opted to just go up to the tunnel and watch the Italians train. Andy (my very first instructor) was in the tunnel with them and I'm not sure if he recognised me or if he was just being friendly but he put his thumb up and smiled. At one point while we were watching Andy was stood in the door way and one of the Italians put their feet out the door and managed to catch Andy right in the crown jewels. I guess it's a risk that comes with the job, but I don't think he deserved it. He's such a character though and managed to laugh it off! After 45 minutes it was our time to enter the staging area, the Italians had swapped round too and I had a new bunch in with me. We let some of them go in the tunnel first as they had the most time to use. When it was my turn I entered the tunnel on my back and moved to the middle of the tunnel. I tried out my turns which for some reason were proving more difficult then when I was doing them on Tuesday, it turns out I wasn't keeping my back straight and was twisting at my hips, unfortunately I didn't managed to rectify this problem for all 3 flight, DOH! It was only when I watched back all of my flights I could see what I was doing. Joel was trying his best to get me to stay straight but I just couldn't! I think I was maybe trying too hard and you can see in the videos the concentration on my face. Turns and forwards and backwards (in between me randomly dotting around the tunnel on my back) were all we did in the first 2 minutes before Joel turned me back on my belly and I flew out of the tunnel.
While the Italians were flying again Joel was explaining to me where I was going wrong and how I could improve, his main point was that I needed to relax (told you I was trying too hard!) We were going to try up and down in the next two minutes... As soon as I entered the tunnel and was on the net I was already rocking and looking unstable, my left foot was constantly trying to balance me off the wall. Joel took a hold on my feet and I put my arms up and out and I was in the air. Do you think I could get myself into the air though or even to stay in one spot? NO! I did manage to turn my self over into a belly fly and exit the tunnel though! (That's something I guess!)
Into the tunnel for the 3rd time and as soon as I tried to get any lift I was spinning again, my body still wasn't straight which was causing me issues. No matter how hard I tried I just could not stay put! At times I just about got lift, but was soon back on the net by not being able to keep still or straight. Frustrating! To top it all off when trying to exit the tunnel on my belly I somehow manged to roll and ended up being caught by Joel! Not my best session to date that's for sure!
To say the least I left yesterday feeling slightly frustrated and disappointed with myself, I had been totally fine in the middle of the net on Tuesday night but yesterday I just could not hold still. At the end of the day though I was still smiling and it now gives me something to work at and to improve. I was bound to meet a point in the tunnel that would become my nemisis and I think this is it (for the time being anyway!) The feeling of frustration still hadn't subsided by this morning and it was suggested to me to book some additional flight time while I'm at Airkix on Tuesday for Flight Night. Me being me didn't need a second telling and went straight on and booked 6 minutes at 6pm for Tuesday before Flight Night with Paul. I WILL NOT let back flying beat me!
Thanks to Joel for his patience and help last night!
Until the next update in the story of my flying antics...
I just couldn't wait until my next flight night to get back in the wind tunnel, so I booked myself a flight for last night. Mum was unable to come this week due to me going straight from work (thanks to Dad for letting me leave early) so I will apologize now that there is no photos or videos to go with this post. Having left work at 4 to allow plenty of time to get to MK, I only just made it! I don't know why, but people obviously wanted to spend alot of time broken down yesterday which caused chaos to all other road users! It's supposed to be half term, there for it should be less busy on the roads, WRONG! Thankfully I did make it just on time, after frantically finding a parking space! It did mean that I left my hair grips and my new ear plugs in the van though! DOH! My instructor was yet again someone different, this time it was Chris. I, again was the only one in the group who had flown before so he set the DVD going for everyone else and came to talk to me about where I was at with my flying. I explained what I had done at flight night last week and we opted to move onto Back Flying. This was something new to me, but I like a challenge and looked forward to giving it a go. As mum was not with me, I had to use the lockers for the first time, I know they used to be free, but Chris informed me that they now had a £1 charge on them, this wouldn't of been so bad if you got your £1 back when you finished but you don't. I can understand to a certain degree why they have done this, but you'd think with what you pay to fly that the least they could do would be to let you use a locker with no charge. It won't stop me from going back though, it's just something to be aware of in the future. The plan was to be geared up by the time the others were finished watching the DVD but that didn't happen, thankfully though I could just get on with getting ready while the others were sorted out. When I was handed a pair of Purple Goggles though it made me smile. They obviously have new goggles as there weren't purple ones available before. Those of you who know me know how much I love purple! I'll always be wanting the purple ones now! Once everyone was kitted up Chris sent them up to the tunnel while he explained how to go about back flying. Getting into the tunnel was the first thing to be explained, locking your knees on the outside of the door and leaning back, he was trying to show me in an open area without falling over! Next he was led on the floor showing me the arm and leg movements required to turn and to go backwards and forwards. It all made perfect sense, but would it be that easy in the tunnel? I was in first as I had 3 flights (3 x 2minutes) and everyone else had only 2 flights. Chris showed me how to get into the tunnel on my back and I couldn't wait to get started! I stepped forwards towards the door and turned around. I crouched slightly and locked my knees on the outside of the door, I leant back and put me arms out at 90 degrees, and I slowly lowered towards the grill in the tunnel. I tucked myself into a ball as to not fly around. Chris put me in the middle of the tunnel and stood over me with a leg either side of my chest. This was so that I could practice where to put my hands and legs to turn without actually moving. First up I had to put my right arm out and up (as if I was flying) then had to move my arm, from the elbow so that my hand was now parallel to my side rather than above my head. I could feel my body turning, which is a good thing, but I couldn't go anywhere due to Chris standing either side of me. I did the same exercise with the other arm and could again feel my body turning. Surely this was a good thing? Next up came using legs to turn. I pushed my legs away from me slightly and then from the knee down I swiveled them left, to begin with I didn't do it enough and Chris pushed them a little further, after that I could feel the impact it had, the same was done by moving them to the right. Chris then moved from being stood over me and let me try the moves again, this time obviously though I would actually be turning. Although I was still only on the net I felt like I was acheiving something as the moves that I was doing were having the desired effect. I only got as far as using my arms to turn before my first 2 minutes were up. Chris helped me to my feet and I exited the tunnel on foot. I must admit I only half watched the other flyers due to trying to watch the video playback of me in the tunnel to see how well (or not so well) I had done. Chris seemed to have his work cut out though, the girls in the group just wouldn't hold still, causing all sorts of stability issues! Before long it was my second go at back flying, I entered the tunnel in the same way as before and Chris was waiting ready to request me to make moves. First up was turning with my legs, I moved them as before and to my amazement it worked! I turned a circle one way and then the other! Chris was then stood behind my head and asked me to move towards him, I did this correct the first time by straightening out my legs, but got totally confused the second time and tried to straighten my arms! Doh! I soon twigged though and straightened my legs and moved towards Chris. It was then time to actually try and leave the net, would I be as successful at leaving the net as I had been with my turns? Hmmmm, not quite! I had to widen my legs from the hips and put my legs from my hips to my knees straight up and from my knees to my ankles straight along (so 90 degrees and 90 degrees at my hips and knees) then I had to put my arms out and up... slowly. This should give me the surface area to get some lift. I did lift but was a little unstable at points and rather than bringing my arms in slowly to steady my self, I was bringing them in quickly causing me to drop rapidly (thankfully not from a huge height) and bounce on the net, not what I wanted! Chris had advised me to try and not do this. As soon as I realised I was doing it I tried to stop. Chris had just suggested he was going to hold my legs while I moved my arms when my time was up again. I opted for my last 2 minutes to Belly Fly again just to have some fun. I did some side slides, some knee turns and some up and down movements, just trying different things to see how it affects the movements. I think I maybe should of used the last 2 minutes to do a bit more back flying but I also just wanted to have a bit of a play! My next flight should be flight night next Tuesday with Paul again, but I'm trying to decide whether to venture to Manchester for their Fright Flight on Halloween, it seems like a good deal and a great deal of fun... but am I too old for face painting and tunnel fun... I'll let you decide!
Yesterday saw me attend my second Flight Night with Paul Capsey at Airkix in MK. I drove through torrential rain to get to MK last night and at one point I wondered if I was going to make it on time at all. The rain caused a lot of additional traffic and made driving conditions pretty difficult. I did make it though and I'm once again so glad I did! While I waited patiently for Paul, I expected to see the familiar faces of the others from my last Flight Night, but there was no sign. Paul arrived and I think he was looking for the familiar faces as well, he spotted me and the others who were waiting though and came over. He asked how I got on with my flight on the 10th and I smiled and said I'd been back twice since the last flight night and explained all that I has achieved so far. We moved into the briefing room (me and the other 2 flight night attendees that were on time) and discussed where everyone was at with their flying. It turned out that the other 2 had only flown once before and that was over 18 months ago! Poor Paul was going to have his work cut out. As it had been so long since the other 2 had flown, they opted to watch the training video again. I stepped out side, shortly followed by Paul to discuss what my aims were for today. I think after I mentioned I'd been back twice since the last Flight Night, Paul realised I was serious about progressing. His first question was where did I want my flying to go in the future? I thought for a split second before blurting out that I wanted to eventually become an instructor. I really wasn't sure what sort of reaction this would get and it seemed like forever before he replied, "brilliant!" This put a smile on my face straight away.Paul was very encouraging about my goal and as such tailored my flights to suit. We decided for the first 2.5mins to carry on with my over and unders, flying in each others air and that for the other 2.5mins I would try to walk in the tunnel. This was to give me a taste of what the instructors do when they're helping us to fly. This meant skipping a few steps according to the IBA (international bodyflight association) but would give me the chance to see what it was like. While we were in discussions the other 3 people for Flight Night turned up - better late than never I guess! We were soon all getting suited and booted ready for our flights! We headed up to the tunnel and just ran through what we were all going to do and before long we were in the tunnel ready to fly.I was 3rd to go today and had great fun just watching the first two fly. Believe it or not you can learn so much by just watching others. My turn came and I jumped into the tunnel, I seem to have this off to a fine art now, well at least it's getting better! Paul was flying with me and I eventually got to grips with going under and over, this still needs some work though but practice makes perfect. The feeling of flying in the tunnel with someone else was great, keeping track of where the other person is though takes a fair bit of concentration. I didn't want to fall on Paul or crash into him. Next time I think I will have a better idea of what the idea is and I can improve on this a bit more.
After watching the other flyers it was my turn again, this time I was to walk into the tunnel, this was something I hadn't done before so I cautiously stepped through the door. I was trying to remember all that Paul had said about body position and how to move my legs. The instructors make it look so easy but it's really not! I don't think I did bad for a first timer... but there 's always room for improvement! I can't wait to have another go at this next time!
5 minutes of flight time goes by so quickly! After the de-brief we headed back down to take all our kit off (that sounds wrong I'm sure!) Paul took the time to explain to me about being an instructor and that it was also a great way to progress with the bodyflying. He also pointed out that I would be one of only 3 Lady instructors in this country! What an achievement if I can pull it off! I still have a lot of hard work to do, but hopefully it will all be worth it in the end. Until then I can keep enjoying the flying that I'm doing and look forward to when the next flight will be!
I look forward to keeping everyone who takes the time to read this informed with how I'm getting on.
I know, I know, I said it would be 9 days before I flew again... the only problem was I couldn't wait 9 days! I learnt so much last weekend, I couldn't wait to try it all out again. I know flight night is only on Tuesday but I wanted to go back to flight night and be able to say that I had made progress since last time... I think it's now safe to say that I can say this. I must of been mad to book the flight I did today, I decided at work yesterday that I couldn't wait until Tuesday to fly again, so as soon as I was home I was on the computer and booking up a flight. The only problem was that the only times available were first thing in the morning (the latest being 9am) or in the evening (the earliest being 19.30) I didn't fancy another late evening driving home from MK so opted for the early morning flight. Mum once again decided she wanted to come and watch (she's so great keeping me company on the journeys and videoing me for my records!) we left home at 6am! I thought I might find it difficult getting up early but I must of been looking forward to it (you don't say!) as I was up and about with no issues at all! I must say it was pretty cold outside this morning and scraping ice from the windscreen in October is slightly mad! Once we reached Airkix I filled in my statement of risk again and signed my life away again. We headed to the benches to wait for the instructor. While we were waiting we were chuckling to ourselves about one of the instructors. He really looked like he had that Sunday morning feeling! Shoulders down, head low, it was quite funny to watch and I said to mum if he's my instructor he needs to cheer up FAST! Guess what... he was my instructor... Joel. I managed to avoid going in for the safety video - again. I think I've been enough times in the last few weeks not to warrant me watching it, so I got geared up straight away and we discussed where I was at with my flying and what we aimed to achieve in the flight. I think Joel was beginning to wake up by this point and he was joking about how cold it was going to be in the wind tunnel. Off to the wind tunnel we go... Today I was in with a new flyer and a skydiver who was being taught by (a very heavily pregnant) Claire 'Sparky' Scott. I was doing 4 x 1.5 minutes flights today to allow for Sparky and the skydiver to have gaps between their flights. This didn't matter to me as it meant I could practice my entrances and exits a little more. My first flight I was finishing off what I'd started last Sunday with knee and arm turns and the side slides, the knee turns were coming a lot more naturally but I was still struggling to relax into doing the side slides. On my second flight I was still getting to grips with the side slides and finally they were beginning to take shape, with a little helping hand from Joel. I got very enthusiastic entering the tunnel for the third time and ended up hitting the wall on the opposite side of the tunnel. I was soon back where I should be though and back to the side slides. Once I had them sussed at a low level I was asked to go up, across, down, across to make a square. Next Joel was to create a 'burble' underneath me (this is taking away some of my flying air to see if I can keep my position etc) He started by getting me to fly high in the tower (Joel is pretty tall!) and to side slide over him while he walked under me. Thankfully I kept my body position and only dropped in the air slightly. My fourth entry was a little more controlled - thankfully! We were straight into Joel creating a burble, again I managed to keep my body position but was still dropping in the air slightly. Next Joel decided to created a bigger burble by flying underneath me. This I found slightly more difficult and the first time he did it I dropped as far as the net. This happened on the second time as well. I began to get the hang of it, but it does need a little more practice! Joel did a great job in teaching me today and I'm now looking forward to Tuesday's Flight Night with Paul. Hopefully I will get to grips with the airflow being taken away from me.
Every time I fly at Airkix it makes me more determined to keep aiming for the goal I have. For those of you who may not know me in person or who I may not of told, I would like to become an Airkix Tunnel Instructor. Helping all those people to 'fly' must be amazing feeling and all though it must be hard work I'm sure it's worth it for the satisfaction.
I'm sure there will be another update after Flight Night on Tuesday, but until then have fun!
I'm not long back from another session at Airkix MK and yet again I'm on cloud 9! There's just something about the feeling of the flight that leaves me feeling fantastic! My flight for today was a family flight, shared with my brother, resulting in 5 minutes each, split over 2 flights. Upon reaching Airkix and signing the statement of risk I was once again given the details about flying having dislocated my shoulder in the past, thankfully I know that this is part of their job and have a joke with them about it but I hope that as they see more of me they will get bored of reminding me! We sat for a little while watching the current group before Steve came to greet us. Everyone moved to the briefing room to watch the introduction video, but it wasn't long before I was out again and everyone else was left to watch the DVD! Steve came and discussed with me where I was at with my flying and what I would like to achieve. We decided on working on knee turns, arm and knee turns and side slides... so much to try and remember! Before long the DVD was over for the others and we were all getting kitted up, I was at this point nominated to go first! Talk about being in at the deep end! We still had 15 minutes before our flight so decided to go and watch the end of the previous group, letting Seb see what he'd let himself in for! He was still looking forward to it though! Let the flying begin... I decided not to attempt entering the tunnel on my own, not for the first flight anyway, so Steve kept a hand on me and yet again I was flying! It didn't take me long to settle back into it and I was turning using my arms in no time at all. This was just recapping what I had learnt previously. Soon Steve was pointing me in the direction of doing knee turns, getting the angle of your leg just right to make you turn takes a bit of practice! Also just to confuse you even more, to turn left you bend your right leg and to turn right you bend your left leg... still with me? You're doing well! I found myself thinking about it far to much rather than just getting on with it, when I first managed to turn I hit the side of the tunnel and ended up on my back on the floor, thankfully Steve rescued me and I was flying again within seconds... Not really a successful knee turn in sight to start with though! To top it all off I couldn't even get myself out of the tunnel and ended up being man handled out! Oppppssss! Seb was up next, I'm still not sure how he managed to get any lift, being as skinny as he is! He was described by our parents as a leaf floating in the autumn breeze! He did quite well for his first time though and just like me ended up on his back on the floor! Steve was trying to persuade him to use his arms to turn but he said afterwards he could understand what Steve was saying but wasn't to sure if he should try it as he didn't know what it was supposed to make him do! He seemed quite happy just randomly flying around though and if you're having fun what difference does it make?!?! After the others had flown - watching these was fun aswell! It was my turn again (yipppeeee!) It was time this time to try and enter the tunnel with no instructor help... thankfully it went with no hitches and I was flying just as I should (thank goodness!) I was determined this time to succeed at the knee turns (I can do this, I can do this!) and my determined attitude paid off! Once I'd successfully managed the knee turns it was time to combine the knee and arm turns... this will confuse you again... you have to use opposite leg to arm when doing this... the result though is a fantastically fast turn! I hope you don't get dizzy easily if you decide to try this! Apart from thinking too much about it again, the turns seemed to go well, time was up though and with a little help I left the tunnel. This was supposed to be all the time I was flying today... Seb went in for his second flight.. I did chuckle to myself that Steve could nearly put his arm all the way round Seb's waist and back onto his hip! This time he did decided to try the turns and apart from nearly exiting the tunnel head first he did rather well! His overall outcome on the experience is that he enjoyed himself and will come back if he gets the chance on a family flight with me again. Doesn't look like he's hooked like me though and won't be joining me at Flight Night. Everyone else had their turns apart from one who decided that one flight was quite enough for them! We seemed to have got through everyones flights within a good time so Steve asked if anyone wanted more time, my answer.... YES of course! I was so close to getting to grips with the knee and leg turns and wanted to try side slides, so... another 2 minutes on the clock for me! I entered for the last time for today's session on my own and was straight into knee and arm turns, I wasn't wasting any of my precious time! I was spinning happily in both directions so with guidance from Steve I started on side slides. Persuading my mind and body to change again was fun, I was now going from using opposite arms and legs to turn, to using the arm and leg on one side of my body to move sideways... just as I began to get the hang of it my time was up again... apart from getting my foot caught in the grill on the way out I exited well. Unfortunately I now have 9 days to wait until I fly again, this will be another flight night again and I can't wait to see what Paul has in store for me! I think I've babbled on enough about how I'm getting on so I'll leave you with a video of how I'm getting on and I'll update you again after Flight Night!
