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Airhugger

Which level of flying skills have you reached after your first 10 hours in the tunnel?

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What tricks, flying positions and skills have you become able to perform after your first 10 hours in the tunnel? 

The purpose of the question is to make some references to compare with, to know if one’s training is achieving the desired results. I know that everyone learns at a different pace, but I still think that it must be a general guideline to trace the progress keeping in mind the individual differences between fliers.

I have 10 hours coached tunnel time, and now I’m able to fly comfortably as Class A static (European system) flier with belly carving from the dynamic part plus basic sit flying abilities. In the IBA rating system it’s level 2 plus sit fly position and belly carving. Is it good? Slow? Normal?

What about you?

 

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(edited)

I've just passed the 10 hour mark in the tunnel, and I have just started nailing sitfly to head down backflip transitions.  Starting on the last Level 4 skills next week (front flip to head down).

Checked off on all Level 1, 2, and 3 skills in IBA and I've started flying some Intermediate VFS with a buddy.

Edited by ty_tanium
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I only did 12 hours, I have signed off IBA level 1,2,3 after 8 hours, while also exploring all level 3 dynamic moves. Good with belly face in carving too:)

By 10 hour I could comfortably sitfly carve, comfortable with help of a coach to do back to belly layouts and a bit less so with belly to back layouts. I was okay with back in face carving but at slow speed, getting there with knee flying and outface carving. I also did about 20 mins Head down by then, but I struggled a lot... I still do and I only lifted once for a few seconds with help of a coach and a spotter.... so that will be a long road for me. 

I found it hard to compare to other flyers, I was eager to learn quick, but other who had more physic did learn certain things quicker. I had to learn to fly (especially sitfly) without using my arms as they are weak... hehe

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17 hours ago, ty_tanium said:

I've just passed the 10 hour mark in the tunnel, and I have just started nailing sitfly to head down backflip transitions.  Starting on the last Level 4 skills next week (front flip to head down).

Checked off on all Level 1, 2, and 3 skills in IBA and I've started flying some Intermediate VFS with a buddy.

Wow! good job, it seems like it's going very well and fast for you. How many skydives do you have? and how old are you if I may ask?

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13 hours ago, dolphinka said:

I only did 12 hours, I have signed off IBA level 1,2,3 after 8 hours, while also exploring all level 3 dynamic moves. Good with belly face in carving too:)

By 10 hour I could comfortably sitfly carve, comfortable with help of a coach to do back to belly layouts and a bit less so with belly to back layouts. I was okay with back in face carving but at slow speed, getting there with knee flying and outface carving. I also did about 20 mins Head down by then, but I struggled a lot... I still do and I only lifted once for a few seconds with help of a coach and a spotter.... so that will be a long road for me. 

I found it hard to compare to other flyers, I was eager to learn quick, but other who had more physic did learn certain things quicker. I had to learn to fly (especially sitfly) without using my arms as they are weak... hehe

Nice, it's going fast and good for you as well. Level 3 wasn't that easy for me because of the sit flying it took me about 3 hours just to be able to sit still, and I've never sat in the sky before.
I agree it's hard to compare to other fliers, everyone is good at something and less good at other things. The physic is not everything, I don't have any problem with strenght and I'm a Crossfitter, my coach used to tell me that I'm using too much strength against the wind instead of just relaxing and go with the wind flow. Ppl with agile bodies got som more advantages in this sport I guess :) 

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6 hours ago, Airhugger said:

Wow! good job, it seems like it's going very well and fast for you. How many skydives do you have? and how old are you if I may ask?

210 Skydives as of today, 32 years old.

One thing that really helped me out was yoga.  I found that the body position awareness and flexibility helped more than any strength training did.  That and starting VFS - in my experience, the time limit/pressure of VFS really makes you forget about the details of how you are positioning your body and gets you to start flying on muscle memory.

Edited by ty_tanium

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2 hours ago, ty_tanium said:

210 Skydives as of today, 32 years old.

One thing that really helped me out was yoga.  I found that the body position awareness and flexibility helped more than any strength training did.  That and starting VFS - in my experience, the time limit/pressure of VFS really makes you forget about the details of how you are positioning your body and gets you to start flying on muscle memory.

I totally agree that Yoga does help. I have a hard unflexible body with a bit shreded muscles which it was more like a disadvantage for me in this sport. I started doing some Yoga from Youtube with focus on stretching and flexibility, I hope it would help. I've never tried VFS though my coach tried to make me dock with him on some positions with the same purpose that mean, to fly with muscle memory. I'm 29 btw good to hear that you are 3 years older so it doesn't feel like I started too late xD

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Airhunger, I am not a skydiver, so all my experience is pure in the tunnel. I did hear that sitfly is easier if you don’t use your strength. I saw a couple of guys once who could sitfly and standfly after 5 hours total and they were super strong with huge biseps. But they didn’t look controlled or graceful. So while it made me feel like I didn’t progress as quick as them, I realised that my skills are more refined:)))

Did it take you 3 hours to sit still or also move up/down/sideways? Sideways was the hardest for me. I am trying to figure out one leg stretched sitfly now.... I can’t get it and my leg doesnt want to bend the way coach wants me to bend it haha 

you definitely didn’t start late, I am few more years older:) 

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12 hours ago, dolphinka said:

Airhunger, I am not a skydiver, so all my experience is pure in the tunnel. I did hear that sitfly is easier if you don’t use your strength. I saw a couple of guys once who could sitfly and standfly after 5 hours total and they were super strong with huge biseps. But they didn’t look controlled or graceful. So while it made me feel like I didn’t progress as quick as them, I realised that my skills are more refined:)))

Did it take you 3 hours to sit still or also move up/down/sideways? Sideways was the hardest for me. I am trying to figure out one leg stretched sitfly now.... I can’t get it and my leg doesnt want to bend the way coach wants me to bend it haha 

you definitely didn’t start late, I am few more years older:) 

Oh I wish that you start skydiving, with the skills that you collected from the tunnel, skydiving is gonna be even more fun for you :) Yeah using strength is just a disadvantage but it's an instinct reflex for some ppl.

3 hours just to sit still, I still can't do almost anything while I'm sitting except going up and down with bad stability. And yeah legs and arms do whatever they want to do in the tunnel :D 

Good to hear. You know sometimes you meet kids in the tunnel who fly like flying should look like, and then comes the feeling of (ok... what I'm exactly doing here!?) but I'm gonna keep working on it as much as possible :) 

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For me sitfly was all about the back, but my back and the rest of me is actually hyper mobile, so it is an advantage:))

 this is my first sitfly attempt at around 4 hours of flying. 

and this was 10 hour mark, so an improvement, but not sure if it is quick enough or not.:)))

I stopped comparing myself to kids long ago....... they are way too good and learn too quick hehe the only question I ever have is who are they parents and how they can afford it :))

Skydiving is not on an agenda at the moment :))) but everyone tells me I should do it :))) I had a few static line jumps when I was 14 (no free fall), I was part of drop zone and had to even pack my own canopy before every jump. So I know the atmosphere and experience of soaring under the Shute... so I don’t feel huge attraction to do it again:))) I’d rather ski;) 

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Wow Dolphinka, your first attempt is way more better than my first hour of trying to sit haha.

I don't know if it's quick in general or not but it's quicker than me anyway.

In the tunnel that I train in the kids are often the staffs children.

At age of 14!! here you are not allowed to jump if you are younger than 16. I've done the static-line as well, I don't know I love it and I have no planes to quit one day :) 

Skiing is good specially if it's mixed with parachuting aka speedriding xD 

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Haha I think that will be me with head down. I think I already did at least 30 mins HD and I only lifted once for 5 seconds while two instructors were holding me everywhere Ahahah :)))

I think it depends on drop zone plus it has been years ago, things change! :))

Speed skiing is a good idea of course :)))

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