Kirsten Johnson
Kirsten Johnson
Jul 18kirsten (at) kjphouston.com
Kirsten also graciously allows us to use her domain name FlyLikeaGirl.com. Say thanks when you see her! :)
| First jump | October 23, 1993. I was dealing blackjack in a disreputable bar when a guy came to my table, asked me if I wanted to join a skydiving team. I asked, “Do you have to have any experience?” He said, “Nope.” I replied, “Sign me up!”
I made my first jump a couple weeks later. I laid of for a year, twice, early on in my career due to funds or “better half” entanglements. So I got a better job and got rid of the “better half.” I haven’t been un-current since 1997. |
| Jumps | 3600+ |
| Ratings | USPA Coach, Lapsed AFF-I |
| Future ratings | None |
| Container | Pair of matching Javelins. Sunpath has been around for years, always looking at ways to improve their gear, solid design, can take a beating for a long time. I’ve had Helen and Everett since January 2006. They are my first custom made rigs and I love them both dearly.
They are also named for my grandparents. |
| Main canopy | Stiletto 135s. Matching, affordable canopies when I wanted to downsize from Spectre 150s. I looked at Safires but couldn’t afford a pair when I needed to get them.
In the next few years, after I save enough pennies, I will likely upsize back to 150s but something with a low pack volume. And I will upsize my reserves as well. |
| Favorite discipline | Relative work (belly flying), coaching |
| Skydiving Training | Old Spaceland (League City) |
| What would you most like to improve about the sport of skydiving? | Eventually, I’d like to learn some vertical skills. Also, I could always learn more about canopy piloting, even though I’m not a swooper. |
| Most common mistake you see new jumpers make? | If you don’t have someone to jump with, and you’ve got your own gear, go do some hop n pops to learn how to fly your canopy, not just land it.
Going to too far, too fast with their jumping and choosing jumps that don’t always feed their knowledge of the sport. It’s hard sometimes to choose quality over quantity. |