Price of Canopy Control Courses

[diablopilot 2]

Canopy courses are greatb resources, and I recomend every skydiver look into one. That said, not all are advertised, some are even free. If you find the right people at your DZ, they may be willing to help you. The trick is finding those that are helpful and not those that just think they are.

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You're not as good as you think you are. Seriously.

[jheadley 0]

Jim Crouch will do a 5 jump canopy control course for 75 dollars + jumps

[SkymonkeyONE 3]

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Canopy courses are greatb resources, and I recomend every skydiver look into one. That said, not all are advertised, some are even free. If you find the right people at your DZ, they may be willing to help you. The trick is finding those that are helpful and not those that just think they are.

J.P. just hit the nail on the head. There are three kinds of people out there running courses right now:

-People who can swoop their asses off (either down the beer line or even in competition), but really don't teach well as they have no experience in doing that or just outright do it poorly. These classes are a joke. If you can't articulate what you personally can do to others, and you can't articulate to a student exactly what he is doing right/wrong (and how to effectively fix it), then you have no business taking money from anyone.

-People who teach the skill well, but don't necessarily swoop that well in competition (there are at least two of these guys running courses regularly).

-People who both teach well, plus have the skill-set and great competition credentials. There are a couple of these guys running courses as well.

There are plenty of people out there, like myself, who fall sort of in the second category (I don't do bad in competition and can definitely teach), but just don't have the desire to market myself in that regard right now because I make plenty of money at my "real" job. Guys like me don't need your money, but will gladly help you out in any way you need so long as we have the time. Simply asking for help will get you a long way at most dropzones.

I have sat through several courses run by a number of individuals. Most everything I have heard is based off the writings Bryan Burke did a decade ago. I know for a fact that the original Evolution school sylabus was nearly identical to it. All of those writings are still archived somewhere on the Skydive Arizona website.

If USPA ever mandated some sort of rating in order to teach intermediate/advanced/expert canopy piloting then I am sure I would get the rating (since I have every other meaningful rating).

[Shark 0]

Billvon wrote:

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4) Offer this new training as part of the ISP.

We do.

[SkymonkeyONE 3]

I spend quite a bit on time in the FJC teaching canopy skills. As it is a part of the ISP FJC guidelines, everyone ought to be doing the same.

What I see most skydivers doing, and have been seeing for way more than a decade, is forgetting the basics of canopy control when they change canopies. I seem very few people who can fly an effective pattern and almost no one who plans for and steers for a landing on a specific piece of the DZ. Same for flaring. Very few people who have problems landing their canopies flare more than half way.

Chuck

[skyyhi 0]

Mark, good point. I probably learned more canopy control during my AFF than most. I was impresses with the canopy control portion of the course. That being said, I am extremely thankful that Jonathan and the Flight 1 program exists to further my skills. . .I plan on taking that in February. . .

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Take risks not to escape life… but to prevent life from escaping. ~ A bumper sticker at the DZ
FGF #6
Darcy