Sky diving

[tichy]

So anyone done it, what's it like, would you do it again. I've been thinking about it for quite abit now. I just don't know whether I could jump out. I know I'd love it once I'm out, it's just the jump out the plane that sh**s me up.

So any experiences ?

[Brettles1986]

cue Ross who is in fact an instructor.

[P_Connor]

Wouldn't mind getting some rough prices from Ross (for sky diving this time) ;)
Never have but would love to do it.

[Brettles1986]

Wouldn't mind getting some rough prices from Ross (for sky diving this time) ;)
Never have but would love to do it.

Free for you no doubt, parachute not included ;)

[b0t13]

pros - its awesome
cons- makes all rollercoasters boring and nothing compares :D

im gonna do a bungee soon as thats the only thing similar that can give a similar rush :D

[P_Connor]

Free for you no doubt, parachute not included ;)

Fancy tagging along? Two birds with one stone and all? Threes a party with Jay? xoxox

[12u55]

It's certainly on my bucket list.
Bungees are awesome, just mind the whiplash. :P

[Ross]

So anyone done it, what's it like, would you do it again. I've been thinking about it for quite abit now. I just don't know whether I could jump out. I know I'd love it once I'm out, it's just the jump out the plane that sh**s me up.

So any experiences ?

We're talking about tandem skydiving here - not learning to do it yourself (note: I'm not a tandem instructor so can't take you, but I am an AFF Instructor so can teach you from zero to hero on being a solo skydiver). Obviously I'm experienced in how tandems etc work...

Depending on where you do it (I'm going to presume in the UK for the benefit of this post) you'll likely not actually SEE the ground at the moment you leave the aircraft. You'll see the door open (scary) then see others leave in front of you (now shit just got REAL). Then you'll shuffle to the exit with jelly like legs whilst your tandem instructor tries to get you to sit on the edge. You may at this point look down, but likely the instructor will pull your forehead back ready for exit - you need to be looking up not at the ground when you leave:

http://www.bpslangar.co.uk/sitedata/e2b1e64f-4064-4269-87c8-6e9b0e3eb9d6/image/contentimages/GW-TandemInDoor(1).jpg
(That's a friend of mine Milko who's the tandem instructor in that photo)

Exiting the aircraft you don't generally feel any sense of falling (occasionally some say they do RIGHT at the point of exit for a second or so) as quickly the wind speed picks up and you're supported by air countering gravity so there's no actual sensation of falling like you get bungee etc).

Enjoy your 45-60 seconds of freefall, then tap on the shoulders, arms in, boom, look up - parachute (hopefully). 4-5 minutes of canopy ride and you're back on the ground. Repeat if addicted. :)

If you're looking for SOME of the sensation of skydiving (the freefall bit) without the exit plane/malfunctioning canopy worries, then consider tunnel flying: www.airkix.com. I'm a International Bodyflight Association "pro flyer" and rated coach there too and teach a lot in a wind tunnel. Lots of fun, and considerably cheaper than the skydive. Just without the view :)

I can waffle for hours on the subject so if you've questions, ask.

[McGuire86]

cue Ross who is a fat instructor.

Not very nice.

[Nates-VTR]

Would love to try it! What sort of speed do you be falling at?

[Ross]

Not very nice.

Fat Controller... Get it right.

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/1/18/Fat_Controller_TTTE_1.jpg

Prick. ;)

Would love to try it! What sort of speed do you be falling at?

120-130mph ish.

[stinkycheese]

How much time & £ does it take from zero experience to qualified instructor?

[Ross]

How much time & £ does it take from zero experience to qualified instructor?

Difficult question to answer to be honest.

The "legal" minimum in most countries is 500 jumps and 6 hours of freefall time at the moment, although that's changed up and down over the years.

Qualified skydiver jumps are around £23 a jump, so call it £11,500 in jump tickets alone to reach the legal minimum (not including YOUR first jump course, which runs to about £1600 on its own), plus the cost of the instructor rating (about £1600). Then equipment costs obviously - around £4000 for 2nd hand but decent gear. If you said £20k you'd not be far off.

There's a big difference between someone who's current (IE, jumping all the time, every weekday, 4-5 times a day but only has 2000 jumps) and some old timer (6000 jumps over 20 years). From a student perspective, I'd urge them to the more "current" jumper.

Tunnel time helps massively with the freefall control element of a skydive however, and in turn, in making you a more capable skydive instructor. I only have about 1000 jumps, but quite a lot of tunnel time which gave me a good headstart for the freefall elements of my instructor rating tests. When I teach a new student skydiving, my package price includes 10 minutes of tunnel time in the deal - so I can see how they can control their body etc in a safe environment before they try and kill themselves and me in the air).

Most people "drift" into becoming an instructor - they start out jumping for the thrill, then get together with mates and jump with them, then realise they can give some pointers to a new guy who's just started jumping, so think about getting a coach rating (200+ jumps required). From there, you know if you'll make a decent instructor. :)

[Carlvtr88]

We're talking about tandem skydiving here - not learning to do it yourself (note: I'm not a tandem instructor so can't take you, but I am an AFF Instructor so can teach you from zero to hero on being a solo skydiver). Obviously I'm experienced in how tandems etc work...

Depending on where you do it (I'm going to presume in the UK for the benefit of this post) you'll likely not actually SEE the ground at the moment you leave the aircraft. You'll see the door open (scary) then see others leave in front of you (now shit just got REAL). Then you'll shuffle to the exit with jelly like legs whilst your tandem instructor tries to get you to sit on the edge. You may at this point look down, but likely the instructor will pull your forehead back ready for exit - you need to be looking up not at the ground when you leave:

http://www.bpslangar.co.uk/sitedata/e2b1e64f-4064-4269-87c8-6e9b0e3eb9d6/image/contentimages/GW-TandemInDoor(1).jpg
(That's a friend of mine Milko who's the tandem instructor in that photo)

Exiting the aircraft you don't generally feel any sense of falling (occasionally some say they do RIGHT at the point of exit for a second or so) as quickly the wind speed picks up and you're supported by air countering gravity so there's no actual sensation of falling like you get bungee etc).

Enjoy your 45-60 seconds of freefall, then tap on the shoulders, arms in, boom, look up - parachute (hopefully). 4-5 minutes of canopy ride and you're back on the ground. Repeat if addicted. :)

If you're looking for SOME of the sensation of skydiving (the freefall bit) without the exit plane/malfunctioning canopy worries, then consider tunnel flying: www.airkix.com. I'm a International Bodyflight Association "pro flyer" and rated coach there too and teach a lot in a wind tunnel. Lots of fun, and considerably cheaper than the skydive. Just without the view :)

I can waffle for hours on the subject so if you've questions, ask.

Something i'll probably do in my life. It looks awesome.

I did however, have visions of you getting that belly over bridge feeling the whole way down lol. Which isnt the scary bit. Its copping your breath that always worried me.

[Ross]

Something i'll probably do in my life. It looks awesome.

I did however, have visions of you getting that belly over bridge feeling the whole way down lol. Which isnt the scary bit. Its copping your breath that always worried me.

Don't think about breathing when you stick your head out the car window at 70mph do you - it's all just air. ;) It's a common question tbh - some people try to hold their breath or something daft. Air's still up there at the altitudes we jump from - no problem breathing! :D

[Brettles1986]

If you ever die via a skydiving related accident, can I please have the 106 monster?

[saxova]

Dibs on all the gold plated goodies. ;)

[Ross]

lol @ the vultures

[Carlvtr88]

Don't think about breathing when you stick your head out the car window at 70mph do you - it's all just air. ;) It's a common question tbh - some people try to hold their breath or something daft. Air's still up there at the altitudes we jump from - no problem breathing! :D

It's not so much there not being air available but like, you know that falling feeling you get on a drop ride, for example, Apocalypse.

Now that sudden drop sometimes makes me exhale all the air out my lungs then when it halts I take a breath. In my head i imagine the initial shock / nerves and adrenaline would kinda leave you with shallow breathing lol. Maybe i'm overthinking it.

Nevertheless i'd still give it a blast.


I think it's like anything

Shitting yourself
Shitting yourself
Shitting yourself
Shitting yourself
Best thing you've ever done.

That is, unless your completely forced into it, in which case you'd be screaming like a bitch all the way down then start fitting on the floor when you hit the ground at 200mph because you forgot to pull the cord lol.

[Ross]

Well instructors like me have a vested interest to keep you alive when learning. The paperwork is a nightmare otherwise...

[TomT]

Well instructors like me have a vested interest to keep you alive when learning. The paperwork is a nightmare otherwise...

Had many accidents and failed chutes etc or?

[Jizanthapus]

The only thing I would be thinking is: What happens if my parachute doesn't open!?

Doesn't that scare you?!

[Ross]

Had many accidents and failed chutes etc or?

Nope. None. All students so far have survived (although some have gone on hundreds and thousands of jumps later to fuck themselves up doing stupid stuff... but that's their problem :p)

The only thing I would be thinking is: What happens if my parachute doesn't open!?

Doesn't that scare you?!

Difficult as it is to believe, a parachute is packed in such a way that it REALLY wants to open. In fact, we have to have a thing called a slider to slow down it's opening otherwise it can damage/injure you opening too fast. Malfunctions are the name given for any abnormal parachute (canopy) opening, and they range from the "perfectly landable" to the "holy fuck" in scale. A "total" malfunction (where you pull your pilot chute and basically nothing happens) is actually quite rare. More likely is line twists or a tension knot or one of a dozen other things that are shitty.

But - sports parachute gear has a malfunction rate of about 1 in 1000 jumps. And the same with the reserve parachute. So to get a combination of a main parachute malfunction and a reserve malfunction on the same jump is realistically a 1 in a million chance. You'd have to be having a really bad day. If it's a "get me outta here!" malfunction on the main canopy, ditch it, deploy reserve.
:)

[TomT]

Nope. None. All students so far have survived (although some have gone on hundreds and thousands of jumps later to fuck themselves up doing stupid stuff... but that's their problem :p)

Have you personally had any problems though, proper interesting job yours

[Bedford126]

Going be a smart arse and make your job look technical as fuck Ross.

http://hypertextbook.com/facts/terminal-velocity-01.gif

And people trust you with their live's?

[Ross]

Have you personally had any problems though, proper interesting job yours

Nope no problems myself. And I'm statistically due one as I've a thousand jumps :p Couple of landings I'm not proud of (15 knot downwind landing on a canopy that does 20+mph = trying to run at 35mph. Note: Not possible) but nothing I've had to be carried away from. I'm pleased you find it interesting. It is! It's actually pretty simple but like anything there's a lot to learn at the outset.

And people trust you with their live's? Hold your horses. I teach. You're responsible for your own life ;)

On a serious note, (and this is a personal thing for each instructor) there's basically a sliding scale from the 1st jump onwards. On the first jump I'd consider myself 95% responsible for the student. Kit him up as he doens't remember how. Guide him to the plane (avoid shredding him on the prop he's not seen with his anxiety infused eyes). Help him to the door whilst he's shitting himself. Hold him in freefall so he doesn't go unstable into a position he cant recover from. Hopefully he tries to pull his own parachute (most dont by the way - sensory overload) and I end up doing it for them. Repeat on jump two. By jump 3, if there's no attempt to deploy for themselves for example, they fail the level and we repeat until they get the hang of staying alive... Slowly they get better and more aware of their surroundings. :)

As early as jump 8 you could be solo skydiving if everything else went well and you pass all your levels with flying colours. In that case, I'm no longer really responsible for you - yeah sure, I still check your gear is on correctly before you get on the plane, I still check it's safe for you to exit the aircraft (IE, not over cloud/ocean/live RAF air display...) but fundamentally the stage between being passed as a new skydiver and before your first "licence" (A licence) you're considered to be "self supervised". IE, we'll help, but you're making your own decisions.

Some point between there and (say) jump 200 you should be entirely responsible for yourself. If you forget to do something really really vital, or do something really really stupid (more likely) and you die, 99.9% of the time there's only one person to blame. You. :)

[Carlvtr88]

Nope no problems myself. And I'm statistically due one as I've a thousand jumps :p Couple of landings I'm not proud of (15 knot downwind landing on a canopy that does 20+mph = trying to run at 35mph. Note: Not possible) but nothing I've had to be carried away from. I'm pleased you find it interesting. It is! It's actually pretty simple but like anything there's a lot to learn at the outset.

Hold your horses. I teach. You're responsible for your own life ;)

On a serious note, (and this is a personal thing for each instructor) there's basically a sliding scale from the 1st jump onwards. On the first jump I'd consider myself 95% responsible for the student. Kit him up as he doens't remember how. Guide him to the plane (avoid shredding him on the prop he's not seen with his anxiety infused eyes). Help him to the door whilst he's shitting himself. Hold him in freefall so he doesn't go unstable into a position he cant recover from. Hopefully he tries to pull his own parachute (most dont by the way - sensory overload) and I end up doing it for them. Repeat on jump two. By jump 3, if there's no attempt to deploy for themselves for example, they fail the level and we repeat until they get the hang of staying alive... Slowly they get better and more aware of their surroundings. :)

As early as jump 8 you could be solo skydiving if everything else went well and you pass all your levels with flying colours. In that case, I'm no longer really responsible for you - yeah sure, I still check your gear is on correctly before you get on the plane, I still check it's safe for you to exit the aircraft (IE, not over cloud/ocean/live RAF air display...) but fundamentally the stage between being passed as a new skydiver and before your first "licence" (A licence) you're considered to be "self supervised". IE, we'll help, but you're making your own decisions.

Some point between there and (say) jump 200 you should be entirely responsible for yourself. If you forget to do something really really vital, or do something really really stupid (more likely) and you die, 99.9% of the time there's only one person to blame. You. :)

Is this your full time job ?:y:

[EwynSaxo]

Always wanted to do something like this would prefer to be attached to a professional other than going solo though

[tichy]

I'd really love to jump solo first instead of tandem, but I don't know weather I've got the balls lol.
What was your first jump like, what made you get into sky diving.

[Ross]

Is this your full time job ?:y:

It was for a time. I'm now back in IT for my sins (and lack of money in skydiving / me wanting a different lifestyle / settling down etc). Now I teah mainly in the wind tunnel as Airkix Milton Keynes is only 30 minutes from my house and I get to keep my "day" job and coach in the evenings :)

I'd really love to jump solo first instead of tandem, but I don't know weather I've got the balls lol.
What was your first jump like, what made you get into sky diving.

lol @ professional. :p We're professional and serious about safety most of the time, but I promise that 90% of accidents that happen at dropzones happen on the ground not when you're jumping. We're a bunch of fucking idiots when we're bored and on the ground (think: long weather hold and egomaniacs all round).

I fancied doing a tandem for the thrill. Enjoyed it. Did another a week later, thought "fuck me this is expensive, there must be a cheaper way" and asked how I got into it. I had a rough ride when I started (I actually couldn't learn in the UK due to a disability) but the flip side to that was that I went to Florida to learn - and I learned from one of the worlds best (guy called Pine @ Skydive Deland in Florida), and met some amazing people along the way. I'm very lucky that my work has brought me into contact with some of the most talented skydivers in the world on a daily basis.

[TomT]

Double post

[TomT]

Nope no problems myself. And I'm statistically due one as I've a thousand jumps :p Couple of landings I'm not proud of (15 knot downwind landing on a canopy that does 20+mph = trying to run at 35mph. Note: Not possible) but nothing I've had to be carried away from. I'm pleased you find it interesting. It is! It's actually pretty simple but like anything there's a lot to learn at the outset.

Well, good luck haha

Even if it was simple as shit you get to jump out of planes for a living.

Ever considered base jumping?

[tichy]

[QUOTE=Ever considered base jumping?[/QUOTE]

i was just going to ask that lol, i think its a lot more risky though.

Ross - do you get scared when you jump now or does it not bother you now

[dave_1]

Depending on where you do it (I'm going to presume in the UK for the benefit of this post) you'll likely not actually SEE the ground at the moment you leave the aircraft. You'll see the door open (scary) then see others leave in front of you (now shit just got REAL). Then you'll shuffle to the exit with jelly like legs whilst your tandem instructor tries to get you to sit on the edge. You may at this point look down, but likely the instructor will pull your forehead back ready for exit - you need to be looking up not at the ground when you leave:



When I did mine in NZ I was the first out the plane so had to sit there for a bit with the door open looking out but once out freefall is amazing doesnt feel like 60 seconds and if you get a cool camera man/spare jumper he'll spin you round.

[Ross]

Ever considered base jumping? Some people take to BASE from skydiving like it's natural. I'm much more reserved and it's been a long road for me. I've spent the last two years being guided by my BASE mentor, and I'm still at this stage yet to jump. There is an order of magnitude more risk and I'm very keen to do it slowly. I've seen some close friends get awful hurt on their first jump. I'm in no hurry to get broken. :drink:

I don't get "scared" as such, but there's a difference of being careful and cautious to being complacent. I treat every gear up as if it's the most important of my life, always take my time, always cover the basics, and always try to land safely. So far it's worked for me! It's being complacent that kills skydivers unfortunately.

[haz_pro]

Reading this thread has made me sad that I never took the oppertunity of doing the AFF whilst at University. Me and my friend said at the beginning of every year we would do it, but never got round to it for one reason or another. I finished Uni about a week ago so it is too late, I wonder if i could join the Uni club still as alumni... hmm.

I am pretty terrified of "heights" and was hoping this may help elliviate my fear. What are you feelings on this Ross, am I being stupid?

[stinkycheese]

http://www.liveleak.com/ll_embed?f=6220c9cbc6c3

What happened here?


Some base numbing accidents. http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=8l4BWUnrAPA

[Ross]

http://www.liveleak.com/ll_embed?f=6220c9cbc6c3

What happened here?

Remember I mentioned the "slider" above (designed to keep the parachute from opening too fast) - that's slid down the risers above his head over the place on the riser where you stow the toggle ("handle") to control the brake lines. The canopy is packed with the "brakes on" at about 1/4 position. This is normal.

First, he left it much too long before checking the canopy and trying to release the brakes and do controlability checks. So when he eventually goes to release the brakes, and can only release one (the right one), the left side of the canopy is still in brakes, driving the canopy on an anti-clockwise spiral. He fiddles with it, and then more so, and then more so, but the canopy when it's spiraling like that it's losing altitude quickly, and he doesn't seem to be aware of the altitude loss. I watched twice but cant be sure - either he released the right brake before he was able to release the left, or the right side had what we call a "brake fire" where it releases on it's own - it's possible his stowing of the slider (done to reduce drag and perfectly normal) caused a brake fire.

Either way, he spent too long without doing a controlability check, and then spent too long trying to fix the problem. Should have gone straight to the reserve really after the first fiddle didn't fix it.

Probably hurt some too.

[Carl-h]

What sort of prices do you have to pay for a sky dive? Tandem versus solo all in? I'd love to do it! Think I will this summer.

[LSOfreak]

i'd quite like to do a skydive

I've done a few bungee jumps now off a local crane. It's seriously addictive (and an expensive habbit too). Love the feeling off just falling. Its completely different to a skydive though because you don't feel the air resistence. Its a bit like the feeling of jumping off a building, except you don't die once you reach the bottom lol

[blackie_2k5]

Love to do it one day but who ever I'm with will have to be strong to get me out the door..

[tichy]

Ross if I do a tandem would person I'm strapped to just jump even if I'm trying not to leave the plane. I think I'd have to be pushed out tbh

[spacehopper]

my experience...

im a bit of an adrenaline junkie (and a bit scared of heights!) and did a Tandem jump in New Zealand a couple of years ago.. always wanted to.. and its a bit cheaper out there.. and the weathers generally much nicer in the summer!

the plane ride up was jammed.. 8 people plus the pilot in a tiny plane.. and it took about a million years to get upto 12,000 ft (i think..) a million years of adrenaline flowing oh god im about to fall out of a plane that is..

see the other 3 people go first... zoiks!

manouvere into position..

look down.. see the ground.. *oh crap*

try to hang onto the plane so i dont fall out..

instructor takes my hand off the plane...

and then boom.. were tumbling..

see the plane for a brief moment going rapidly into the distance above us.. *eeep*

then freefall...

the first ten seconds where mostly adrenaline fueled wwwooooowwwwww!!

then the rest of the 60 second or so freefall was.. oddly just boring and really really windy..!! no real sense of falling at all..

then the canopy opened...

and this was the best bit for me.. it felt amazing.. like flying almost.. and the views where amazing!!

the instructor even let me have a go at controlling the chute for a bit.. which was pretty cool!

then before you know it you are back on the ground..

i'd probably do it again.. but only if it was cheap and with good views...!

when i'm over there next february i'm going to give paragliding a try... same thing but without the long plane ride and 60 seconds of windyness! and the flight time might be a bit longer if the conditions are good!

[blackie_2k5]

Ross if I do a tandem would person I'm strapped to just jump even if I'm trying not to leave the plane. I think I'd have to be pushed out tbh

Yes unless you were kicking and screaming not to be :y: