First jumpsuit

[gale 0]

I've been looking for a used jumpsuit that will fit my needs but I haven't had any luck at all, so I'm thinking (maybe) of buying new.
I'm new to the sport and I need as jumpsuit that will slow me down. My question is what options should I get? How much bigger then me should it be? Any don'ts?
I appriciate all the help. If I'm going to be spending a bunch of money (I don't have) I would like to make sure it's well spent.
Gale
Isn't life the strangest thing you've ever seen?

[Deuce 1]

Gale, I recommend you get an RW suit and do at least 100 jumps RW before you progress to FF. I have a Pit Special that cost a fortune but is worth every penny. I've got over a 150 jumps on it and it really shows no appreciable wear. One of the guys I jump with is notorious for tearing grippers off and he's been unable to tear the one's on my Pit.
It's also now magical because Sebazz jumped it.
Get the huge grippies, but don't get the second row of grippies on the upper arm. They're really only useful to tempt someone to climb onto your back in freefall and ride you. (Not like that's always a BAD thing)
JP

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*** I recommend you get an RW suit and do at least 100 jumps RW before you progress to FF [/qoute]
why do you recomend to do 100 RW jumps. If Gale wants to get into FF, then do it as early as possible. In FF you do have to know how to be stable on your belly at pull time, but other than that, RW is of no use for FF. The earlier you start FF, the less likely you will have a nasty habit of wanting to arch when going unstable in a sit fly. If you do go unstable in a sit fly, go into a ball, and forget arching. An arch will cause you to cork, and corking is the most dangerous thing you can do in FF. In my opinion you do not need to make 100 RW jumps, and certainly you do not need to spend money on an RW suit. Just my 2 cents worth...
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"The greatest trick the devil ever pulled, was convincing the world he doesn't exist!"

[Iflyme 0]

IMHO, you need to walk before you run ... nothing wrong with learning to fly on your belly before moving on to the challenge of learning to freefly.
What about a big yellow suit like mine, Gale??? Actually, I'd keep wearing the coveralls for a bit longer, then look around for a baggy cotton suit.
I was riding a cloud the other day...

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you need to walk before you run ... nothing wrong with learning to fly on your belly before moving on to the challenge of learning to freefly.

If we were talking skysurfing, then learning how to FF would be very important before touching the board. In this case you would be right, you do have to learn how to walk before you run. But RW and FF are such different disciplines, that, in my opinion, you do not have to be good at RW at all, to get into FF. What good would it do you to be able to turn points on your belly. Like I said earlier, you do not want to get into habit of arching in FF. RW is 100% arching. All it will teach you is a nasty habit that you will have to break anyway.
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"The greatest trick the devil ever pulled, was convincing the world he doesn't exist!"

[gale 0]

The thing is, I really don't know what I want to do. I'm really too inexperienced to know. Someone sort of suggested that I get a suit with grippers though to cover myself as they seemed to think I would definately be doing that. (You can freefly in anything?) Like I said, I really don't know.
Isn't life the strangest thing you've ever seen?

[pop 0]

In that case that's a whole different story. I suggest you try both, and see which one attracts you the most. FF is more challenging, so don't give up on it quick. It took me 20-25 jumps just to get my sit right
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"The greatest trick the devil ever pulled, was convincing the world he doesn't exist!"

[TequilaGirl 0]

Pop - you are about to dig yourself into a big ole hole little buddy..........

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Pop - you are about to dig yourself into a big ole hole little buddy..........

What are you talking about?
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"The greatest trick the devil ever pulled, was convincing the world he doesn't exist!"

[gale 0]

Just impatient I guess. Right now I'm wearing this rediculously big overalls provided by the dz. They're really big and the arms and legs are too long. I sort of would like to get out of those as soon as possible Gale
Isn't life the strangest thing you've ever seen?

[mouth 0]

send me a PM ....
If you are anywhere near 5'3", 115 then you can try one of them.
Lisa

[gemini 0]

Sometime in the near future you will need to be able to do RW because bellyflyers and freeflyers are combining and doing 3-D moves together. Just like you shouldn't do head down before you can sit stable, you shouldn't freefly before you learn basic RW. Besides it's only us old guys who have trouble transitioning to freeflying!!! Gemini
... Let go dude! I can't land with you hanging on!...

[pop 0]

I totaly understand how you feel. I just got my suit in last monday. It is my first. I got a bit tired of having to jump shorts and a jacket all the time.
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"The greatest trick the devil ever pulled, was convincing the world he doesn't exist!"

[TequilaGirl 0]

First = Beer.........

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First = Beer.........

I know....I still owe beer for my first CASA jump over the weekend. I am getting into beer debt. Hope there isn't an interest
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"The greatest trick the devil ever pulled, was convincing the world he doesn't exist!"

[mouth 0]

Stupid PM.....this thing hates me. Anyway, I got your PM only it won't let me send back to you. Let me know what you are looking for and I'll keep my eyes open for you.
Lisa

[AggieDave 6]

I do RW in my FF suit, it slows me down enough that I can fall with regular people. IMHO I'd get a good FF suit that you can use for other stuff too...but then again, I'm more of a FFer then a RW guy, so I tend to lean towards the darkside when giving advice. *cough* Freedom Means Choice *cough*
Aerials
So up high
When you free your lives (the) eternal prize

[gale 0]

It's OK, I got it (3 times actually) and I sent you one back.
Gale
Isn't life the strangest thing you've ever seen?

[Deuce 1]

In reply to Pop: I'm probably what you'd call old. I have learned how to do some incredibly dangerous things in my short life. My experience has learnt me to find the grey-hairs that can still beat the crap out of the probies and listen to them. Pretty uniformly they will tell you that if you plan to jump for the rest of your life, learn RW (about 100 jumps) then mix in some freefly. Learn your sit before you go head down. Use a coach at the beginning of each new skill set. Do at least 200 jumps before jumping a camera.
Who is your mentor? Do they have more than 2000 jumps? Most of the freefly skygods I know can nail out RW.
I'm having a lot more fun, cause I can jump with both groups. It seems to be pretty rare for a person who did freefly to come back to RW later. My buddies I FF with are envious when I get asked to participate in a 12 way cause they just don't know how.
A guy who started shortly after I did has over 100 jumps. He started freeflying right off his A license. He couldn't lurk his wife on her tandem to celebrate his 100 because he just didn't have the fall-rate and mobility skills on his belly to safely jump with her. He could have got her first freefall kiss. You should see her, totally worth 100 RW jumps. Really.

[Trent 0]

Mike,
You really do need some belly skills. I would be humiliated if I was a great freeflyer who couldn't fly on their belly. Stevie, Jed, and I often do bellyflying when we're out there doing a freefly jump, in fact... in order to get the Milennium award, you HAVE to be able to fly on your belly. Knowing how to fly your belly is a critical skill in skydiving. If you absolutely suck on your belly, what makes you think you can track well? Tracking is EXTREMELY important, and flying belly will help you get better at it.
Freeflying is not about just jumping out and doing whatever in a sit or on your head. It's about being a good flyer in any position. I make time to learn how to fly on my belly, back, side, head, sit... whatever. You should too.

[Derekbox 0]

Cant he still belly fly in a freefly suit? At least get used to the dynamics of the suit (each suit is different, esp when you have suits meant for different aspects of flying)...
Derek
"Its one thing to tempt death, its another to bitch slap him"
Daytona Beach Fl
DZ: Deland
AIM: Derekbox

[tigra 0]

I don't really recommend belly flying in a freefly suit, especially for a beginner. A freefly suit can be baggy in all the wrong places, plus no grippers. So, while you are trying to work on your skills, you are also fighting a jumpsuit that doesn't fit right and wasn't made for the kind of flying you are doing. Just because you need to slow your fall rate does not mean that you need a huge baggy jumpsuit. You need a jumpsuit that fits, maybe is made of a higher drag fabric, maybe a little bit "blousy" on top.
As far as not needing RW skills while freeflying?? Well, if you never jump with anyone else, I guess that's true. But wouldn't you rather learn to dock from a slower more stable position?? I bet the people you are jumping with would prefer that. As someone else said, most of the really good freeflyers have some kick ass belly skills as well. Just look at Rook Nelson.
So, Gale, find a decent RW suit that fits, new or used. Get comfy with the basics on your belly- diving, approaching, docking, tracking. Who knows, you might even like it! And you will find with a suit that fits properly, your flying will improve which means that you will enjoy it even more.
maura

[dreamsville 0]

Answering the 2nd issue first: I didn't start spending serious time freeflying 'til about jump 500-600, first starting with a sit. When I asked Steve Utter (coach) at Pahokee about desirability of any RW skills before free-fly (even if you don't want any more RW), he said that it is a good idea to know how to be stable and do some movement on your belly as a safety/skill set thing. I can agree with that. Also, I am one who loves sit, head down, and RW, but for somewhat different reasons. The more you can jump, the more choices you have, since it keeps you current with time to practice more things.
On the jumpsuit, the first ?: For RW, if you're thin or other wise have a body shape where you have trouble moving forward as well as you would want, get booties, they're a big help. If you are floaty (again for RW), get a tighter suit and, yes, get good grippers, as the others say. The only thing you may want to consider is that a #10 grip (one of the big sizes) will slow you down if you're floaty. If you're not, obviously that doesn't matter and your suit will probably be looser as well. I used Tony Suits, since they do the job, look good and they are durable (but can be pricey).
Free fly suits (again, my experience): I am not a sky god, so I got a compromise Tony Suit that is baggy around the arms and legs, and tighter in the middle. When you are new to sit the leg bags may seem like they are trying to make you unstable, but that will disappear in time. The baggy legs will help you to get stable in head-down, which is the threshold that I am just beginning to reach now (but more work is definitely needed).
Hope this helps. Smile and relax in freefall and the world can be your oyster, Harry