285 pound wanna be jumper

[wasatchrider 0]

What dz is this?

BASE 1519

[chuckakers 370]

wasatchrider

What dz is this?

Z-hills

Chuck Akers
D-10855
Houston, TX

[Amazon 7]

chuckakers

******You missed the part where I said I had extensive experience with paras quads and large people,

I got that experience by actually working with them

Stop being so antagonistic

I am just surprised that a DZO would be quite so dismissive of potential business.

But there are certainly a growing number of DZ's that chase the fast easy dollar with the statistically "normal" but outliers need not show up. Too tall.. with the wrong BMI for the sport In Group-Out group dynamics....love it.

I guess you don't know TK very well.

TK is an excellent DZO and very smart business man. My guess is that he just knows what business he's in. In any business it's not wise to try to be all things to all people and in today's business climate it's often better to identify and target a specific segment of the potential customer base.

All businesses have a finite amount of resources and must maximize profit while staying within resource limits. In much the same way a company stops making a product because the required resources don't justify the monetary return or a retailer stops carrying a product because the sales don't justify the required shelf space, a smart DZO must decide who will get the DZ's resources and who won't.

You may call that being selfish, but I see it another way. A drop zone that makes a healthy profit can afford to donate jumps to wounded warriors, give away jump certificates to local charities for fundraising purposes, and on and on. A drop zone that is on the financial edge can not. It reminds me of a very wealthy friend of mine, who when asked about his fortune has a simple answer - "the more I have the more good I can do".

TK runs one of the most successful DZ's in the country for a reason. He understands who is customer is and who his customer isn't. That's just smart business.

I do not know him personally but I have jumped at Z-Hills... and it is indeed a wonderful place to do so.. even back in the crazy boogie days of the 70's when I started jumping in FL.
I also know that it is adjacent to a hell of a lot of military bases and not all jumpers are tiny little "pretty people". I guess because of some of the treatment I have seen personally I am more inclined to be inclusive of other potential jumpers than being exclusive. I am also more inclined to pay it forward by jumping with those who do get overlooked.

[stayhigh 2]

and none of those military guys are 285.

Bernie Sanders for President 2016

[Amazon 7]

stayhigh

and none of those military guys are 285.

Are you sure????

There are some pretty big guys who certainly are very tall and exceed the rather arbitrary 225 or 230.... and I would bet they are in better shape than many of the people at most DZ's

[stayhigh 2]

Military will chop you if you are 285.

http://www.military.com/join-armed-forces/army-weight-rules.html

If you are 80" tall and aged over 40(fat officers) then your max is 250.

Once you go over the limit, you have to pass the tape test.

Bernie Sanders for President 2016

[Tisket 0]

It's a good thing that nobody ever weighs more than 200 lbs in full battle rattle with a ruck and jump gear then.

If you can't convince them, keep them confused.

[Amazon 7]

Tisket

It's a good thing that nobody ever weighs more than 200 lbs in full battle rattle with a ruck and jump gear then.

Oh shush.. what would you know..... We have all the experts lined up telling people like Tallguy and Bigun etc how they can't possibly be in this sport.

[keithbar 1]

Amazon

***It's a good thing that nobody ever weighs more than 200 lbs in full battle rattle with a ruck and jump gear then.

Oh shush.. what would you know..... We have all the experts lined up telling people like Tallguy and Bigun etc how they can't possibly be in this sport. I'm 260lbs bucknaked. and 6ft 4ish. I guess I'm between 285 to 290 out the door. On a crossfire 2 169

i have on occasion been accused of pulling low . My response. Naw I wasn't low I'm just such a big guy I look closer than I really am .

[yoink 321]

keithbar

I'm 260lbs bucknaked. and 6ft 4ish. I guess I'm between 285 to 290 out the door. On a crossfire 2 169

What were you when you were a student? What were you jumping - a round maybe?


I'm not saying it can't be done.

I'm not saying it can't be done safely.

I do think that if it were my DZ, I'd need a good reason to go against industry standards and put my business at risk other than the feel-goods.

[tkhayes 125]

thanks for the comments Chuck.....fyi, guy showed up yesterday, 400-450 pounds and 6'9" - he did not even know how much he weighed.

seriously....he wanted to learn how to jump and was willing to buy the tandem rig to do it.

I wonder if I should 'chase the dollar' and look at this as a 'business opportunity'?

[TampaPete 35]

TK – Well put.

I think the minimum athletic ability is: can he reach behind his back and extract a pilot chute.

At his dimensions maybe not.

[keithbar 1]

yoink

***I'm 260lbs bucknaked. and 6ft 4ish. I guess I'm between 285 to 290 out the door. On a crossfire 2 169

What were you when you were a student? What were you jumping - a round maybe

I'm not saying it can't be done . yeah I started at ft. Campbell Kentucky at age 19. On t-10's and then paracommander's but even back the I was probably like 210- 215

i have on occasion been accused of pulling low . My response. Naw I wasn't low I'm just such a big guy I look closer than I really am .

[Amazon 7]

keithbar

******I'm 260lbs bucknaked. and 6ft 4ish. I guess I'm between 285 to 290 out the door. On a crossfire 2 169

What were you when you were a student? What were you jumping - a round maybe

I'm not saying it can't be done . yeah I started at ft. Campbell Kentucky at age 19. On t-10's and then paracommander's but even back the I was probably like 210- 215

Oh quit trying to mollify the "cute fuzzy bunnies"

[tkhayes 125]

Quote

...and not all jumpers are tiny little "pretty people"...

And you would be incorrect in any assumption that all we tyake are 'little tiny pretty people'.

Once again, you missed the part where I said I have vast and extensive experience with paras, quads, and large people.

We take all kinds.

285lbs? No, 450lbs. no

250, maybe but you better be in good shape and still flexible.

70 years old? Maybe, but generally not on AFF,

The thread was about a specific 285 pound request and I gave plenty of good reasons why any dropzone should NOT consider this.....it simply is not worth it. For the person, who is going to likely wash out and for the dropzone, which is putting it's business and the health of its customers at risk.

The 'vast experience' part of my time here demonstrates clearly that we are 'inclusive', not 'exclusive'.

[AZogrediver 0]

skyfreek

i was called the other day by a guy who is 285 lbs. he wants to learn how to skydive. he would even buy his own gear to make it happen. my first thought is to tell him no, but i wanted to hear from the peanut gallery...
suggestions?

I'm 6'3" and was 275 when I started jumping(250 now), all 21 jumps so far have been on a Nav 260. The student Javelin I use barely fits but it works(I'm all torso height which makes it harder).
My landings still aren't great but I'm doing just fine.

AFF wasn't easy but my coaches and I worked through it safely.

I'm fast in free fall but have learned to slow down to allow my coach who weighs half what I do to keep up(tunnel training was essential for me).

If you have some gear he can fly safely to start out give him a chance, if he likes the sport he can find gear better suited to him.

[chuckakers 370]

AZogrediver

***i was called the other day by a guy who is 285 lbs. he wants to learn how to skydive. he would even buy his own gear to make it happen. my first thought is to tell him no, but i wanted to hear from the peanut gallery...
suggestions?

I'm 6'3" and was 275 when I started jumping(250 now), all 21 jumps so far have been on a Nav 260. The student Javelin I use barely fits but it works(I'm all torso height which makes it harder).
My landings still aren't great but I'm doing just fine.

AFF wasn't easy but my coaches and I worked through it safely.

I'm fast in free fall but have learned to slow down to allow my coach who weighs half what I do to keep up(tunnel training was essential for me).

If you have some gear he can fly safely to start out give him a chance, if he likes the sport he can find gear better suited to him.

Safely or luckily?

What was/is your rig TSO'd for? Typical sport rigs are TSO'd for 254 pounds max suspended weight.

I personally know a guy that died when his overloaded reserve blew up. Might want to consider that if your rig and/or reserve is TSO'd for 254.

Chuck Akers
D-10855
Houston, TX

[Dopamine_Junkie 0]

I used to be 320 and got down under 250 and there was still only one DZ in Texas that accommodates that and everything is bigger in Texas as they say. Spaceland does tandems up to 280 if you are over 6 feet and their AFF limit is 250. If you can't meet that, you should probably try to lose some weight. There is maybe one parachute you can fly that isn't a tandem and that's a 300 Navigator. Not sure about other brands. It's no fun falling fast and jumping alone. Use it as an excuse to lose weight. I was well under the 225 then had back surgery, got lazy, and got fat. Best excuse ever to lose some weight and get back in shape.

[JohnMitchell 14]

nolhtairt

And... what kind of 285 lbs is he? If he's built like an NFL lineman, he should be fine. If he's like Jabba Hutt... I'd lean towards "no"

This is the important consideration here, IMHO.

[JohnMitchell 14]

chuckakers

Safely or luckily?

What was/is your rig TSO'd for? Typical sport rigs are TSO'd for 254 pounds max suspended weight.

I personally know a guy that died when his overloaded reserve blew up. Might want to consider that if your rig and/or reserve is TSO'd for 254.

I've known DZs to set up tandem rigs as solo static line rigs for 300 lb people. It's a lot of work to do that, though, and maybe the people should just lose that excess weight.

[jbscout2002 1]

I agree. It's a simple matter of the availability of gear. He is going to have an exit weight of 320 or so. The harness, main, and reserve all have to be rated for that. Moreover, it has to fit. A tandem rig would work, but there is a difference between a 150 pound TI carrying a 150 passenger vs a 300 pound dude squeezing into that harness.

That being said, to simply turn people away for being fat seems kind of ignorant to me. Fall speed and physical ability do matter to an extent, but there is a pretty inspiring section of these forums dedicated to skydivers with disabilities. I read one about an Afghanistan veteran, a triple amputee, who completed AFF and got his A license. But I suppose it would have been easier for everyone involved if that vet would have just went and grew a few more limbs and came back looking more like a cookie cutter skydiving student.

[peek 20]

jbscout2002

... But I suppose it would have been easier for everyone involved if that vet would have just went and grew a few more limbs and came back looking more like a cookie cutter skydiving student.

Josh, thank you for that post. Yes, sometimes it is good for the sport to do the extra work to help one of our (future) friends participate in skydiving.

[keithbar 1]

peek

***... But I suppose it would have been easier for everyone involved if that vet would have just went and grew a few more limbs and came back looking more like a cookie cutter skydiving student.

Josh, thank you for that post. Yes, sometimes it is good for the sport to do the extra work to help one of our (future) friends participate in skydiving. and kudos to the manufacturer that built that custom rig for him .that bucket velcro closed apparatus for his lower torso was ingenious. I heard that they did it free gratis I don't know if that's true or not it was a vector? was it not?

i have on occasion been accused of pulling low . My response. Naw I wasn't low I'm just such a big guy I look closer than I really am .

[Benjamin11 0]

Tisket

It's a good thing that nobody ever weighs more than 200 lbs in full battle rattle with a ruck and jump gear then.

A good point. I've been over 300lbs leaving the ramp.

[Baksteen 84]

I see a lot of people condemning others for saying they would turn this person away.

What I don't see is these people stepping up and offering THEY'll do the research, invest the effort and modify the equipment that's needed...

Funny how that works.

"That formation-stuff in freefall is just fun and games but with an open parachute it's starting to sound like, you know, an extreme sport."
~mom