Greetings from NY!

[DavidMK 0]

Hey everyone, I'm Dave from NYC! Very new to skydiving and scheduled a tandem jump on Novermber 3rd at SDLI. My concern is about my height & weight. Because I stand 6'4" @ 245 lbs I feel as though I'm a much higher risk and or danger to the TI and myself and would be way more gung-ho about the situation if I was 5'5" and 150lbs. The DZ told me over the phone I would be a perfect candidate for the jump but was wondering if any TI's or anyone for that matter has had experience with someone of my stature, if so please share. Thanks in advance, you guys are a great bunch from what I've seen so far from reading around the forum.

[OneJumpWally 0]

If your already skinny, don't worry about it. If your a little bit overweight and can stand to lose a few pounds, go ahead and do that. The decreased weight will not only improve your future flight, It will improve your quality of life...

[FlyingRhenquest 1]

Maybe ask down in the instructors forum if you don't find the information you're looking for here.

I weighed in at 247 just before my first jump, but went straight to AFF so I never did a tandem. Not sure I could do one now -- that's scary! Didn't have a problem in AFF, though, and have lost 20 pounds since then.

I'm trying to teach myself how to set things on fire with my mind. Hey... is it hot in here?

[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

[DavidMK 0]

Hey everyone! Thanks for the advice and replies. I went through with my first tandem jump ever with no hesitation. I weighed in at 234 lbs with a few layers of clothes on since it was 39 degrees that morning. The experience, unparalleled to anything, ever! Shame I did it so late in the season since I've decided it's not enough. Having a bunch of vacation days I am obsessively contemplating taking a vacation in Florida, seeing some old friends and obtaining an A license down there. Now my worry stems from me not being so flexible and agile. I'm currently 6'4 at 230's and worried that might be a deal breaker for my new love of "jumping out of a perfectly good plane".

[jrouse 0]

I'm kind of in the same boat as you are. I live in north west pennsylvania and its been snowing on and off the last couple of days. But as you are, I am so anxious to start my IAF/AFF training that I too was thinking of using some of my vacation days up after the first of the year and go somewhere like Florida or Arizona to do training. Not sure yet so I'll have to wait and see what the next 2 months bring me.

Lovin every second of it!

[FlyingRhenquest 1]

It sounds to me like you're in nominally better shape than I am, and I don't have a problem. Skydiving's not a huge workout, but I've found it to be a good motivator to eat healthier and exercise more. You're tall, but I don't think that should stop you. Unless you have a medical condition you should be concerned about, I'd say stop worrying and go jump out of an airplane already!

'course if you're worried about body control et al, you could find a wind tunnel somewhere and put in some time. It's great training for flying and not a bad workout either. Alas, kind of pricey to do regularly, but still a good way to learn how to fly. Especially in the winter. I've got another 15 minutes scheduled on Saturday to learn how to fly on my back (And it's supposed to be nice this weekend, so I'll probably come back north and do some skydives, too.)

Can you get an A license in the time it takes to do a vacation? It took me a couple of months, but I was mostly just doing a few jumps on the weekend. If you set up camp at a dropzone that's open all week and did several jumps a day, you might be able to manage it. That'd be pricey, but maybe it's possible. Also check to see if the dropzone you select offers a canopy course; maybe you can get that in as part of the 25 jumps you need to get to your A license. The sooner you learn to fly your canopy well, the more ahead-of-the-game you'll be.

It's a seasonal sport in a lot of the USA. My DZ flies all year, but if we were much further north it'd be a problem and I'd have to take a vacation in Florida or Arizona a couple of times in the winter to stay current. I might want to do that anyway, though I have some gear now that should keep me warm enough to jump in any weather that they'll fly in.

I'm trying to teach myself how to set things on fire with my mind. Hey... is it hot in here?