When I woke up this morning, the sky was absolutely beautiful and the weather forecast for the day was perfect for skydiving. It was an opportunity to get in a couple of jumps so that I could pull off my 900 on Saturday.
There wasn't time to get dinner in the oven before I left - it would have to wait until I got back home. Virginia Skydiving Center is about 45 minutes from our house and they were planning to start at 11. I figured I could do a couple of jumps and be home no later than 2.
As I was leaving the house at 10:12, I sent Dania a message to let her know I was on the way. When I pulled out of my drive way, I saw my neighbor Jenny and stopped to say hello - this put me a few minutes behind schedule. At 10:23, I got a message from Dania that they were waiting for some laundry to finish.
By the time I got to the DZ, it was 11:15. There were only a few people at the drop zone - not nearly enough to put up the plane. I inspected my gear, turned on my Vigil and got ready to jump. Once I was ready to go, I sat in the sun and waited for others to show up.
Around 12:15, Tim came out to tell me the load would go up with just the six of us. I went inside to get ready. By the time we got on the plane, two more people had arrived and the first load went up just before 1.
Unfortunately, my video camera didn't work on the first jump. I did a four way with Sherry, Tim, and another local guy. It was a fun jump and the winds were just right.
Given the late starting time, there was no way I'd make it home in time to fix dinner before leaving to take Price to NOVA. Instead of stressing about it, I let it go. I could figure out something else for Matt's dinner.
While we were packing, Dania and Doug showed up It was already 1:30! My second jump of the day was a three way with Dania and Sherry. On this jump, my camera got knocked down. I think the pictures are interesting.
As soon as I landed, I daisy chained my rig and hustled back to the hangar. There were quick goodbyes and I headed out. When I got to the house, it was nearly 3:30. I quickly packed my rig and showered. I managed to be ready to leave and even had 10 minutes to spare!
Even though the day didn't go as planned, I was thrilled that I got in two jumps and had picture perfect landings!
