Deb Moureau: Overcame Fears and Limitations

My experience as an AFF student at Skydive Orange was beyond everything I could ever expect. I never thought I’d ever feel so comfortable skydiving on my own. I’ve overcame fears and limitations and the credit goes to the environment as a whole, manifest people, packers, coaches, instructors and of course management. All of them have always been extremely respectful with the challenges I’ve faced during the course, specially when it comes to safety. They make sure AFF students are well prepared for any adverse situation that might happen, big part of that are the EPs practices before our day get started, they teach you what to do and how to handle unexpected situations in case they happen. You’re probably thinking “yes but every drop zone teaches EPs”, yes that’s right but at this place they make sure you build a muscle memory by doing it over and over again and the goal is making those procedures turn into an instinct reaction, AFF students don’t get in the load before getting EPs done every morning, and that makes all the difference. Besides that they’re constantly checking winds and conditions for AFF students, and if they need to hold you on the ground all day because it’s not safe for your knowledge level, they are going to do so with no hesitation. I had the chance to jump at a big and well known drop zone during my AFF and I definitely didn’t feel half of the security I feel when I’m home, I was uncomfortable and all I could think about was how much I wanted to run back to my home drop zone. All the staff are really supportive and they do everything they can to help, teach and show what’s a good and smart path to take for when you become a licensed skydiver. It amazes me how the instructors and coaches are extremely knowledgeable and they have so much experience in the field, it’s unbelievable how much I’ve learned from and with them. On days I had to stay of the ground because of the weather conditions, that is when I became a sponge and suck all the knowledge out of them. This place showed me that becoming a skydiver is not only about jumping out of planes, know how to land your parachute and survive, it’s way more than that… you get to know who you really are and you face your worst fears but also your happiest dreams, skydiving is my passion and even if I try I wouldn’t be able to put down in words how grateful I am for choosing Skydive Orange to be the place that introduced me to the rest of my life.