Just another noob with alot Questions

[skyjumper1988 0]

Hello everyone I Registered for this site about a month ago and I have just been looking at the forums and think of questions to ask I am sorry if some of the questions have aready been asked before. Any help you guys can give me is greatly appreciated :)

A little about me:
I am a 20 year old male that lives in Owasso,OK. I have never been skydiving before. The only skydiving I have seen so far Is just by watching videos on the net about it. I called the Dropzone that I plan on skydiving at yesterday and have scheduled to start jumping on May 9th. I have not been to the drop zone yet. I plan on driving up there the weekened prior to my jump and check the place out. I am a noob with alot of questions.

Why I decied to start jumping:
I turn 21 in April and what eles better way to celebrate then skydiving. My life is a little boring right now and I am searching for a new thrill.

Have I jumped yet?
No, I plan to start jumping on May 9th for my birthday (1 & 1/2 month away).

Where iam i jumping at?
At SkyDive Airtight in Skiatook Oklahoma.

Do I plan to keep jumping after my first jump?
yes, I plan on getting my License and keep doing it as long as I can afford it.

what program do I plan on starting?
The AFF program.

Do I have any other hobbies?
yes, My current and only hobbie is flying remote control airplanes right now. I have been flying remote control airplanes
for about 7 years now and Iam starting to get tired of it and want to start something new.

I probably thought about jumping about 4 months ago but never really looked into it untill now. I have been visiting
various forums, websites, videos, and started to look at how munch it would actually cost to start this hobbie. I Have found answers
to most of my questions by searching the web but there are still a few dark areas Iam not sure about. I know the risk invloved
in this sport and Iam wiling to accept the risk. I know knowledge can save your life in this sport and I want to learn as munch as
I can before my first day. I do not want to be one of the noobs that eaither hurts or kills themself by makeing a simple mistake
that could of easily been prevented or fixed and gives this sport a bad reputation. The following are questions I have thought of in the last couple of days.
I know there are alot of them and some of them Iam about 90% sure I know the answere to but I want to make sure I got it right.

Here we go:

1. on the first day is there a written exame you have to passs after class or can you just make your first jump?

2. If there is a wrritten exame how many questions are there and is there any website that I could use to help prepare for it?

3. With the Aff program, the 7 jumps I do count towards my 25 jumps to get my class A license correct?

4. On the 25th jump to get your class A lincense is there any type of fee for testing or the jump? (other then the normal fee for the jump)

5. I have heard steering toggles and brakes being tossed around in the same sentence and Iam a little confused, Iam
pretty sure the steering toggles and brakes are the same thing is this correct?

6. If you let go of the steering toggle or brakes there is a meteal ring on the riseres that will stop the steering toggles or
brakes so you cant still reach them correct?

7. I have heard some people say "Just unstow your other steering toggle or brake" Does this just mean pull the steering toggle or
Brake down from the velcro holding it in place?

8. Do you have to pay more money the higher you go? (Iam guessing the higher you want to go the more it cost)

9.Is there limit on how high you can jump? (I heard someone say as high as 16,000 feet. I know this largly depends
on the aircraft you are getting the ride in. Also at a certain height you lose oxygen. I am guessing arount 13,000 feet
is the most common.)

10. I have been watching videos and have noticed people have been opening the main parachutes in different ways, some
have been pulling the pilot chute out of the bottom of the deployment bag and others by pulling a handle.
Does this just depend on the way the deployment is designed?

11. Is there only one method to cut away your main prarchute? (The only one way I know of is by pulling the cut away handle)

12. All pararchutes main and reserve have a pilot chute correct?

13. How many ways or methods are there to pack your chute? (the three I have seen the most is the flat packing, pro packing, and psycho method)

14. there is a seprate license you must have in order to start packing your own main parachute correct?

15. Do you have to perform a certain number of jumps before you can get the license to start packing your own main parachute?

16. How many jumps does a main parachute usualy last? (I have no idea what the correct answere is to this question.)

17. The reserve canopy is held under your main canopy correct?

18. I heard someone say you cannnot stear a reserve canopy, this is of course not true correct?

19. How often do you guys usualy jump? (I plan on jumping about every other weekened after I Pass my AFF program,
I have to leave some weekeneds open for my other hobbie)

[wolfriverjoe 1,368]

An lot of your questions are answered in the Skydiver's Information Manual (SIM). You can buy a hard copy, or just download it Here

1&2 - the test isn't until you get your license. The questions are based on the info in the SIM. On your first jump, your instructors won't let you jump until they are confident you have learned what you need to know.

3&4 All jumps count. The 25 is a minimum. You also need to demonstrate certain skills. They are on the card that comes with the SIM.

5,6&7 Toggles and brakes are the same thing. There is a keeper ring, but you want to keep your hands in them all the time. The canopy is packed with the toggles pulled down partway and locked (stowed) in place. This keeps the canopy going slower at opening (among other things). You pull them down and let them all the way up to unstow them.

8&9 Most DZs charge for full altitude. 14k is max without oxygen. High alt jumps require advanced locenses, its in the SIM.

10,11&12 Deployment is dependent on design. On most sport gear you pull the pilot chute from the Bottm Of Container (BOC). The only way to release the main is to pull the cutaway handle. Student gear usually has a single cutaway and reserve ripcord. Sport gear has seperate cutaway and reserve ripcord All canopies have a pilot chute.

13,14&15 You should start learning how to pack your main right away. You will probably start learning Pro-pack. don't worry about any other way for a while.
You don't need a license to pack your own main. Packing reserves and for other people requires a Rigger license (the only FAA license in parachuting other than the pilot).

16 Until it wears out or is damaged.

17&18 The reserve is acually above the main in the container (baqckpack). It is completely seperate, and you don't have to open the main to deply the reserve. Modern reserves are square and steerable just like mains. There are some technical differences, but as far as you care, they are the same.

19 AS OFTEN AS POSSIBLE!! There are currency requirements (in the SIM), but this sport is quite addictive.

Hope this helps. You ask a lot of questions. Your instructors are going to love you.

"There are NO situations which do not call for a French Maid outfit." Lucky McSwervy

"~ya don't GET old by being weak & stupid!" - Airtwardo

[skyjumper1988 0]

Thankyou Wolf for your quick response. I will diffenly take a look at that SIM manual. I Hope my questions did not sound to dumb but like I said i just want to make sure I got the facts straight :)

[wolfriverjoe 1,368]

Quote

Thankyou Wolf for your quick response. I will diffenly take a look at that SIM manual. I Hope my questions did not sound to dumb but like I said i just want to make sure I got the facts straight :)

You are welcome. The only way you get answers is to ask. And the only dumb question is the one you don't ask (or the one that has been answered dozens of times)
FWIW- a lot of DZs require the students to have a hard copy of the SIM.

"There are NO situations which do not call for a French Maid outfit." Lucky McSwervy

"~ya don't GET old by being weak & stupid!" - Airtwardo

[jim_32766 0]

skyjumper - I don't know if if varies from one DZ to another, but I did have a written exam at the end of the AFF-1 course, prior to going for a jump. I don't remember the exact number of questions but it must have been something like 20-30. All the information needed to answer the questions is given during the class. The SIM would be good to read prior to the class, that's what I did.

I am quite the beginner myself. I just did a tandem 7 days ago, and then AFF 1&2 4 days ago.

Good luck, have fun, and be safe.

The meaning of life . . . is to make life have meaning.

[skymama 35]

Welcome to the forums!

She is Da Man, and you better not mess with Da Man,
because she will lay some keepdown on you faster than, well, really fast. ~Billvon

[popsjumper 2]

First, welcome to the world of skydiving!
You picked a very good place to go to do your training.

I'll add some input to what Wolfie said....

#1 & 2 - Written exams during your AFF training - call the DZ and ask. Some require a test after your initial First Jump Course (FJC) training and some don't. There is no USPA requirement for FJC testing. There is a USPA requirement for a test to get your A license. Some DZs give written, some give oral. Again, call and ask the DZ.

#3 - ANY jump your do counts towards your 25-jump requirement for an A license.

#4 - For your A-license "check dive" some DZs require a fee for various reasons and some don't. Call and ask.

#5 - Steering toggles/brake toggles. Toggles are the handles we use to steer the parachute AND to put on the brakes. To turn a 'chute we pull one or the other (left or right) and to put on the brakes we'll pull both of them. So, we say steering toggles when we are referring to turning the 'chuute and we use brake toggles when we are referring to slowing down the forward speed. Either way, we are using the same handles to do either function.

#6 - correct

#7 - yes, that's what it means.

#8 - Call the DZ. Some charge by altitude, some charge flat rate.

#9 - There is no limit. The record is over 100,000 feet but of course that was one special situation. Yes, there is a requirement for oxygen at higher-than-normal altitudes. I'm going to refer you to the SIM for that info because it's really nothing you need to concern yourself with at this time. You will need basic experience and then some to qualify for high-altitude jumps.

#10 - Deployment methods depend on the type of gear/rig you are using. Call the DZ and ask what type of deployment system they will have you using.

#11 - This ties in with what type of gear/rig you will be using. Call and ask.

#12 - That, again ties in with the gear type. By far and away, the answer to your question is yes, they both have pilot chutes. In the "old days" (and some jumpers still use them) reserve chutes were actullly manually thrown out into the wind.
Not to worry, you won't have to deal with that until far, far down the road and only if you choose to do so.

#13, 14, 15 - Packing. Many different ways to pack. Every manufacturer has a recommended packing method and it's much, much the norm to Pro-pack today's parachutes although other methods work well also. You don't need a "license" to pack and you don't need a certain number of jumps to pack. FAA and USPA have rules on packing requirements...I'll refer you to the SIM for details on who can pack what and when.

#16 - Mains typically last for 2000 jumps and more depending, of course, on how well you take care of them and the conditions in which you normally jump.
You will learn more about gear maintenance and care during your training.

#17 - In today's typical gear/rig set-ups, the reserve is packed above the main.

#18 - Excuse me...I have to chuckle. Yes, of course you can steer a "square" reserve parachute. It is flyable just like a main. Indeed, some reserve parachutes can be packed and used as mains. Whoever told you that was probably referring to "round" reserves and even then most of them are somewhat steerable although there are some "round" canopies that can't be "steered" in the normal sense of the word. Not to worry though...you will be using a steerable, square reserve parachute....well, let me re-phrase that...you'll have one in case you ever have to actually use the reserve.

#19 - We jump as often as circumstances allow!
WoooooHooooo!

Wow. I believe I just set a personal record for length of reply.

Again...congrats on your decision to join us in the sky.
You're gonna love it....probably to the point of giving up your other "hobby". Funny how skydiving quickly changes from "hobby" to way-of-life.

My reality and yours are quite different.
I think we're all Bozos on this bus.
Falcon5232, SCS8170, SCSA353, POPS9398, DS239

[skyjumper1988 0]

Thanks Pops and to everyone that has replied so quickly to my post this seems like a great community to hang around in and get answeres from. I have downloaded the SIM and have found alot of helpfull information in it. I am currently printing the manual out now.

Refering to question #18. I was watching a video on youtube about a guy that did his first jump as a AFF student (I am sure you guys have seen the video) and before his instructors could stop him he pulled the cutaway handle for the main and he had to deploy his reserve chute. he ended up crashing into power lines and I was reading one of the comments some guy said you could not stear the reserve. I am sure that was not true but i was just wanted to make sure I was right :)

Thanks again to everyone that has been replying to my post.

[pinkfairy 0]

Hi!

Yep, you're right, most skydivers, like most people are actually nice and helpful and friendly. They will also respond well to free beer, after the day's jumping is done, of course. But don't worry about that yet, the beer rules apply only to licenced skydivers

But you will also meet people that you don't like in this community, and like every community, not everyone is trustworthy.

About Question 18: You are referring to the infameous Scott Lutz video. Search the forum for further info about this. This is a guy who screwed up his level one AFF really badly, and then went on to sue the DZ and the instructors who really did what they could to save his life (look at his instructor diving after him to get him to pull the silver handle, there is no AAD in the rig). Not a popular man in the skydiving community. So the comment about Scott not being able to steer the reserve is true: HE certainly couldn't. There was a big, open field right next to what Scott described as: "POWERLINES, they were everywhere!"

But the Lutz video also demonstrates how things can go wrong on an AFF jump, even with normal, intelligent people who are completely confident that they will handle the situation. Your instructors can help you, but it really depends on you.

I hope I haven't scared you here, but do read more about the risk in the "getting started" article under "safety" here.

You will be prepared for and have routines for almost any situation before you get to jump. Odds are, you are not going to be the next Scott Lutz.

Skydiving is great fun, and you can't know if you like it if you don't try it.


Welcome to the sport and to the forums!

Relax, you can die if you mess up, but it will probably not be by bullet.

I'm a BIG, TOUGH BIGWAY FORMATION SKYDIVER! What are you?

[skyjumper1988 0]

yep that name sounds about right. I can not believe the guy sued the DZ. I hope he did not get any money from them. So far the videos I have seen of crashes or parachute malfunctions have been due to people making mistakes that could have been esaily avoided and most of the crashes and malfuctions have noobs involved and not a experienced skydiver.

I plan on going to the DZ a week or two before I start my AFF class to check the place out, meet the people, and see how everything works.

Refering to meeting people that doin't like this community: I learned very soon that I have to be careful who I tell because I have told a few guys at my work and they just laugh and make jokes about the sport. I doin't know about you guys but I get really annoyed when people make stupid comments like I hope your parachute opens, I hope you can find the ripcord, I hope the pearson packed your chute right, or one of my most favorite ones that really really annoy me is..... Doin't forget to open your prarchute. After they say that I just hope they walk out on the street and get hit by a bus.

[pinkfairy 0]

When you start skydiving or go to a new DZ, you will have to sign a waiver that will make it unlikely that you win if you sue the DZ. In my country, it's about one paragraph, and when I went to the US to skydive it was about 4 pages, but it basically says the same thing: "I accept the risk of skydiving and will not sue if something goes wrong". As far as I remember, Lutz lost, thanks to the waiver, but correct me here if I'm wrong!

About human error: Why do you think there are car accidents? Human error does not just happen with inexperienced skydivers or stupid people or unlucky ones, it can happen to anybody. People, including skydivers make mistakes, and sometimes those mistakes can lead to serious injury or death. Of course, with proper training and attitudes, you will be less likely to make mistakes, but that doesn't mean that you will ever reach such a level of perfection that nothing bad can ever happen to you. Just like on the road. And there is always a factor that you can't control, both in the sky and on the road: the jump plane can crash at take off, or the tired guy in the big truck can cross the yellow line and suddenly be in front of you.

Many people will say that it's not a very good idea to watch videos of incidents before you know enough about skydiving to know what causes them. I think they're quite tasteless myself, and if you have seen one, you have seen them all ("Oh, another low turn!"). You will gain more knowledge by reading the incidents forum here or skydivingfatalities.info. But I think you can wait till after AFF.

People who don't skydive, or "whuffos" as we call them will make stupid comments. But "Don't forget to open your parachute!" is actually sensible advice.

Tell us how it goes when you jump

Relax, you can die if you mess up, but it will probably not be by bullet.

I'm a BIG, TOUGH BIGWAY FORMATION SKYDIVER! What are you?

[GLIDEANGLE 1]

The advice to get and read the SIM is sound. However, the document is large (more than 200 pages).

Start reading in Section 4, the Integrated Student Program. That will be the most efficient way to begin.

Here is a link to the on-line version of section 4 which has interactive quizzes.

http://www.uspa.org/SIM/Read/Section4/tabid/166/Default.aspx

When you are licensed and ready to jump with larger groups (>4)... come visit us at Skydive Dallas. We have two turbine aircraft, great load organizers, big landing areas (plus lots of suitable alternate "out" landing areas) and a very hospitable crowd. We will make you feel welcome and show you a great time. Many, many of us love to jump with novices.

Regarding the "turbine aircraft" above. Generally the advantages of turbine aircraft are three:

---Fast climb
---Can efficiently get jumpers higher (to ~13.5k ft.)
---Large capacity (23 pax on the Twin Otter, and 13? (can't remember) in the Caravan). This means you have more folks to play with!

I loved your toggle/brakes question... I asked the very same question before my first jump (tandem).

The choices we make have consequences, for us & for others!

[skyjumper1988 0]

I will let you know how the jump goes. thanks for that link GlideAngle. I plan to make several jumps on my first day if I can. I have about 2,500 saved up right now Iam hopeing that should get me past my AFF student program. I want to jump as munch as I can when I first start so I do not forget anything.