skydiving info session
Post on 20-May-2015
603 Views
Preview:
TRANSCRIPT
Did you know?
Skydiving is a real sport!
There are lots of different ways you can fly
Lots.
No really
A lot a lot
You can compete!
Team competitions involve timed rounds where you make
formations with your teammates.
Depending on the competition, the formations could be all on
your belly or in any orientation.
Your team jumps out at 10,500-13,500 ftAlong with your video guy, who videos the whole jump
They take the video to the
judges on the ground, who
watch and count how many
formations your team made in the first 35 seconds.
The team with the most wins!
You can compete under
canopy too
Usually you compete for accuracy
But speed and distance
competitions exist, too
Or you can try to make bigger and bigger formations
instead
This can take multiple planes
There’s plenty of ways to goof around too!
And plenty of fun things to jump out of!
What equipment do you
use?
Skydivers use ram-air, square parachutes. You can flare
these, so if done right your landing should be no harder
than jumping off a step!
You have 2 parachutes – if your main one fails, you can cut it away (not literally) and pull
your reserve parachute
Most gear has an AAD (Automatic Activation Device) that will deploy for you if you
are falling dangerously fast at a low altitude (like if you were
unconscious)
Obviously the parachute’s the most important, but there are
some other good things to have!
1. Altimeter – tells you the altitude so you know when to pull
2. Helmet – Protects your noggin
3. Jumpsuit – Covers your clothes and can make it easier to control your motions in freefall
4. Ditter – beeps in your ear at preset altitudes
1
2
3
4
But is it safe?
Risks
The inherent risks of skydiving are obvious and serious
That being said, a lot is done to mitigate these risks.
Skydiving Safety Stats
In an ordinary year, there are ~3 MILLION skydives made at USPA (United States Parachute Association) drop zones, but only ~21 fatalities. This means that in any given jump, you have a .0007% chance of dying. More people die per year in the US from lightning strikes!
Of those fatalities, almost none are due to equipment failures. Most are experienced skydivers attempting risky maneuvers under fully functional canopies
So how do you learn?
This is a tandem jump! You are attached to an instructor
Your first jump will probably look like this
For some people, that’s enough. I’ve never talked to anyone who didn’t enjoy their skydive (even people who are terrified before hand), but I’ve talked to plenty who don’t want/need to do it again. That’s OK!
…but some of us need MORE.
By the end of this 7 jump course you will be allowed to jump solo!
For those of us, there’s AFF (Accelerated FreeFall)
Before your first jump, there will be a 5 hour ground course. Your instructors will talk to you about body position during freefall, emergency procedures, and how to fly and land your canopy
safely. Then it’s into the air!
AFF Levels
AFF Level 1 – Deploy your own parachute at a safe altitude
AFF Level 2 – Forward motion and turning while instructors hold onto you
AFF Level 3 – Instructors release you for the first time! Stay stable
AFF Level 4 – Released to do turns
AFF Level 5 – Bigger turns
AFF Level 6 – Exit solo, back flips, tracking (fast forward motion)
AFF Level 7 – Clearance dive: do all the maneuvers
Your first three jumps you will have 2 instructors to hold onto you and keep you safe. As your
skills progress, you will only have one instructor for jumps
four through seven.
Each level has a central “goal”, designed to help make you a
safe skydiver.
But you’re not done yet!
After AFF you can skydive solo and with one other (much more experienced) person, but you can’t jump with whoever you like or do all the types of jumps you might want to do. To be a full fledged skydiver, you should get your A-License
How do you get an A-License?
Have 25 Jumps
Learn how to pack your own main parachute
Be able to dive after another jumper and dock with them
Land accurately
Do a Hop n’ Pop (exit at 3500 feet, get stable within 3 seconds, and deploy)
Demonstrate understanding of equipment used
Etc
Yeah but what does it cost?
A lot
Numbers
AFF 1 + Ground Course - $285
AFF 2 - $200
AFF 3 - $200
AFF 4 - $150
AFF 5 - $ 150
AFF 6 - $150
AFF 7 - $150
Total : $1285
Jumps after that: $25! :D
For a tandem you should expect to pay $200-$300,
depending on where you go, cash/credit, weekday/weekend,
group discount, college discount, etc.
For a video, you should expect to pay ~$115
The good news
You don’t need to have $1285 right now!
To stay current you need to do at least one jump a month. This means you just need to scrape together $150-$200 a month after AFF 1 – very doable!
$25/jump is awesome
The not-so-good news
Yes you can fail a level (no this doesn’t mean you die, you just didn’t accomplish the goal of the jump)
You then have to repeat that level.
Taking too long between jumps may make you rusty, increasing your chances of failing a level.
Gear rental is $20/jump until you sort out getting your own gear
Sign me up!
Just a tandem nearbyFinger Lakes
Skydivers
40 minutes away
$275 weekend jump paid cash
Nice view of the Finger Lakes from altitude
I can sometimes find people a ride here
Skydive CNY
1 hour away
$229 college student weekend jump paid cash ($199 for a group of 5+)
You are on your own to get here
C-182Both of these drop zones use a Cessna 182, a small prop plane
that carries the pilot and 4 skydivers to 10,500 feet AGL
But if you’re more seriousYou should go to Endless
Mountain Skydivers.
They offer the AFF program and a Twin Beech ( holds 14 people) and goes 12,000-13,500 AGL).
They are 2 hours away (but you can crash on the drop zone for
free and stay the whole weekend!)
Tandems here are $210 cash or for college students
That’s all folks!
Questions?
I have cool videos too :D
If enough people finish AFF and are on their way to getting their A-License, maybe we can form an official club or sport club!
top related