Literature advantage...

[SPAWNmaster 0]

Hi there,

As you may have read from another thread, I am new to the forums and to the sport. I would like to get into skydiving but will wait for the spring (north america) so as to have consistent weather to get my A license.

I bought a book called the "Skydiver's Handbook" and i have the SIM on it's way. I was wondering if any of you experienced jumpers think this can offer an advantage for when I start training?

The way I see it, the more I know coming into the training process, the better off I will be.

On the other hand I can see why some would argue not to read up as certain DZ's may have their own methods or gear that may be contrary to information given in the book(s).

Any thoughts?

Sorry for the newb post!

-Andrew

[dragon2 2]

My advice would be to leave that book until after student status... Listen to your instructors they will teach you what you need to know when you need to know it. Information overload is no good and conflicting info (or more advanced) may hinder you and also your instructor: 'yeah but the skydiver's handbook says...'

After student status this is much less of an issue so then would be an excellent time to start reading you'll also have a basis then to understand the book way better.

BTW why wait for spring? You can jump in the winter too y'know.... Find a DZ that stays open all year and go jump

ciel bleu,
Saskia

[Bill_K 0]

Quote

BTW why wait for spring? You can jump in the winter too y'know.... Find a DZ that stays open all year and go jump

What he said!!

Go do your training, even if it takes longer you can learn a TON sitting at the DZ, getting to know people and learning about the sport. You would also be surprised at how much of your training you can get done. I started mine in Oct two years ago and it took me 5 months to get through AFF... I spent many, many a day at the DZ watching and waiting.

Good luck, have fun, blue skies!!

[UDSkyJunkie 0]

Quote

I bought a book called the "Skydiver's Handbook" and i have the SIM on it's way. I was wondering if any of you experienced jumpers think this can offer an advantage for when I start training?

I haven't read the skydiver's handbook, but the SIM has lots of good info... probably as said a bit more than is really necessary. Teaching an AFF course to someone who has memorized the SIM would probably be frustrating since training methods do differ from DZ to DZ.

Have you taken a first jump course? If not, I would encourage you to talk to the instructors at the DZ you intend to do your training at and ask to sit in on a course. At the end, ask them which parts of the SIM you should be familiar with (probably the Basic Saftey Recommendations and the Category A material of the Integrated Student Program). Having taken the course, this material would have a lot more meaning.

Prior to your jump in the spring I'm sure they'd have you take the ground school again, but you'd be pretty prepared and it would go more quickly, and you could ask more informed questions.

"Some people follow their dreams, others hunt them down and beat them mercilessly into submission."

[tombuch 0]

Quote

I bought a book called the "Skydiver's Handbook" and i have the SIM on it's way. I was wondering if any of you experienced jumpers think this can offer an advantage for when I start training?

The way I see it, the more I know coming into the training process, the better off I will be.

On the other hand I can see why some would argue not to read up as certain DZ's may have their own methods or gear that may be contrary to information given in the book(s).

Any thoughts?

Both are outstanding books, and well worth reading. Some DZ's do things differently, but they should stick pretty close to the material in the SIM and the Handbook.

You may find the books overwhelming before you jump, but they may also provide you with context now, and then be even better reads once you have been jumping for a while. So, if you are the type of student who wants to know all the tech stuff first, go ahead and read up.

Tom Buchanan
Instructor Emeritus
Comm Pilot MSEL,G
Author: JUMP! Skydiving Made Fun and Easy

[SPAWNmaster 0]

Thanks guys! I'm definately the type to soak things up like a sponge and am certainly willing to take the info in those books with a grain of salt to focus on the instructors advice. By the way i was told by both dz's nearest me (one of which is open even in the winter) that it would be best to wait till the spring so I can jump consistently. I live in Ithaca new York so if you know anything about the weather you could understand the advice lol. The other thing is that my car is out of comission till the spring leaving me with almost no way to get to the all-year dz every week.

Well i appreciate all your comments!

[peregrinerose 0]

I had a student just like you on Sunday... I taught the first jump course as well as made the Category A skydive with him. He was extremely well prepared after reading the Cat A portion of the SIM, had great questions, absorbed everything I taught very quickly since he already had a basic familiarity with the terminology. He was a dream student and made a beautiful skydive. Like you, he understood that the information that he read was to supplement his training and re-enforce it, not replace it.

Not a bad call on waiting til spring. I started AFF fairly late in the season 3 years ago as a student, and it took freaking FOREVER (at least it seemed like it to me!) to make those first few jumps just due to winds/weather. Good luck with your training!!!! It's beautiful up in that part of NY, I'd love to jump up there sometime... must be nice skydiving

Do or do not, there is no try -Yoda

[councilman24 37]

I went to my first FJC in 1978 not having a clue. Made two jumps and for lots of reasons waited until 1980 to retake FJC and really get into it. In between I had the chance to read EVERY issue of Parachutist ever published at the university library. I was the most educated student my DZO ever had. Obviously LONG before the internet, SIM, etc.

BUT, I kept my mouth shut and listened except for a couple of safety related questions. You will be taught what you need to know. Your pre-learning will be reenforced and you'll understand the information more easily but don't be distracted by what you think they're not telling you. It's probably on purpose.

The WORST students to deal with were the ones that came out with print outs from internet forums and said "but so and so said you should be doing this, telling me this, letting me jump this, ...." It took a long time to convince them (him) that, at least at that time pre dz.com, that information on the internet was like used chewing gum. You didn't have a clue where it came from and didn't know if it had any use.

As to information here. Learn who your reading, hearing from, dealing with until you give ANY weight to their opinion. INCLUDING MINE. Just like at the real DZ, make sure your talking to one of your instructors and not a 40 jump wonder. (See recent chest strap thread.)

I'm old for my age.
Terry Urban
D-8631
FAA DPRE

[GLIDEANGLE 1]

Quote

I bought a book called the "Skydiver's Handbook" and i have the SIM on it's way.

I can readily identify with your situation... I was there just a few months ago. I had a big pile of books and desire to learn as much as I could about skydiving. As noted above, it is possible to get ahead of yourself. Relying on your instructors for your info at the outset will make things much simpler for you.

I found the Skydivers Handbook a bit stale in some ways. However.... I will always remember a single image from that book. It is the image on page 120.... makes me real careful about premature deployment! (This is the photo of the small plane with a HUGE hole ripped in the side due to the departure of the jumper THROUGH the side of the fuselage during a premature depolyment.)

Be Safe, have fun.

Blue Skies

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

[popsjumper 2]

Quote

I had a student just like you on Sunday...

Gotta add my $0.02, FWIW.

Just like my beloved peregrinrose said...all of it.

My best students were those who came into the FJC with some knowledge and exposure to skydiving. These are the ones who are the most enjoyable to teach if for no other reason that I appreciate those who are willing to learn.

My worst ones are those who do not take their learning and knowledge seriously. Can you believe it? There are jumpers out there who have very little memory of how to handle EPs and who have not even so much as picked up a SIM nevermind actually reading it. They have no more knowledge than what they "learned" (and forgot) in FJC.

So, in a nutshell, I commend you for your desire to learn and I would recommend reading both books with this in mind:
Much of the stuff you will read applies to experienced jumpers. What you will learn and focus on in your FJC is the basics....start with the basics and later you will be applying the more advanced techniques. Listen and learn at the start of your training progression and please don't try to jump-the-gun, so to speak,

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

[SPAWNmaster 0]

Going to follow up on this since it may help newbies (or perhaps instructors).

A year later that book had me extremely well prepared. I flew through AFF up to A license in about 2 weeks (as sometimes happens...not necessarily a good thing of course)-

But Poynter's book was an outstanding resource that kept me well informed and ahead of the curve as a student.

The main advantage as I see it, is that I increased my basic understanding of skydiving so that I was less overwhelmed by the things I had to pick up during student-through-A training and thus able to focus more on new information.

[riggerrob 623]

Good start.
Like you I read Poynter's book part way through my student jumps. Since I am a visual learner one diagram (of a ram-air canopy) told me more than a month's drunken ramblings around the campfire.

Just read through Poynter's once to get a quick over-view, but try not to get hung up on details.

For example Poynter's chapter (or USPA's chapter) may say six levels of AFF, but that sometimes gets modified to suit local conditions. For example, the AFF program may be written for schools that operate large airplanes that consistently climb to 13,000 feet, giving students plenty of time to complete all the learning objectives on a particular level.
However, if your local school only flies Cessna airplanes that only climb to 10,000 feet, you will have less time to complete learning objectives, then local instructors may reduce the number of learning objectives and ask you to make one or two more jumps to complete the AFF program. By the time you have enough jumps for a license (say 25) the extra two jumps will be insignificant.

In conclusion, books are a great way to grasp the "big picture" but you still need local instructors to fill in the details.