[Question] New to skydiving

[Plokkum 0]

Hey all!

I just turned 20 and am really looking forward to follow a AFF course next month in the Netherlands. I did a lot of research on every aspect I could imagine, but I still have a little question regarding the reserve chute.

If, in any case, you need to follow your emergency procedure - is there a big chance that your reserve chute won't open? Or are the chances equal?
Also, how much time do you still have to savely pull your reserve when you need to start your emergency procedure from about 3500 feet?

It might sound like a whimp question, but it's not :) Just doing some research

Thanks in advance!

Weee, got my AFF :D

[Dougiefresh 0]

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is there a big chance that your reserve chute won't open? Or are the chances equal?

Don't worry, the reserve will work if and when you need it to. There is a reason only riggers can pack them. The chances of a double malfunction are pretty low. The chance your main will malfunction is higher than the chance your reserve will.

From 3500 feet, you have about 15 seconds to pull your reserve.

These are things you should ask your instructor, as well. Keep asking questions, it might well keep you alive. There's no such thing as a "wimp question".

Human beings, who are almost unique in having the ability to learn from the experience of others, are also remarkable for their apparent disinclination to do so. --Douglas Adams

[kelpdiver 2]

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From 3500 feet, you have about 15 seconds to pull your reserve.

And without suggesting you let it do the work, as a student, and likely as a licensed skydiver in Europe, you will need to have an AAD like the Cypres or the Vigil that, if working properly, will deploy your reserve about 4-5 seconds above the ground. Though extremely reliable, this isn't guaranteed, and will cost you a few hundred euros in parts, so better to take care of business yourself in the first 10 seconds.

[skydivermom 0]

Hey! I cannot give advice but I just wanted to say thank you for your post. You asked a question that I was going to ask next time I jumped. I, too, am a student and started out on AFF. I had to find a dz closer and the one I found teaches static line. I love it!

Best of luck with your skydiving venture. You will have a blast!

Mrs. WaltAppel

All things work together for good to them that love God...Romans 8:28

[rendezvous 0]

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It might sound like a whimp question, but it's not :) Just doing some research

Research is a good thing.

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If, in any case, you need to follow your emergency procedure - is there a big chance that your reserve chute won't open? Or are the chances equal?

Canopies, main or reserve, normally want to open. There are a lot of other contributing factors such as loss of altitude awareness, bad body position, badly maintained gear etc that tend to make the equation tilt against you. Since a reserve is packed by a rigger chances are you have a well inspected reserve packed neatly. This increases the success rate of a reserve deployment. However factors such as two canopies out etc will still influence how cleanly a reserve deploys. Point being, canopies will try and open but there success depends on the quality of the environment they are operating in, the condition of the gear, and your ability to deal with a stressful situation.

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how much time do you still have to savely pull your reserve when you need to start your emergency procedure from about 3500 feet?

At terminal you are doing about a 1000ft every 5.5 sec. If your hard deck is 1500 you have 2000ft for decision and action before you hit your hard deck. That gives you about 11 sec. Ofcourse, if you still don't have a canopy as you go through your hard deck, you have an additional 5 odd sec but every second there after will reduce your margin of safety exponentially. That is because if you open 100 ft above the ground and fly into powerlines you haven't really solved the problem yet.

[Brian425 0]

Don't ever be afraid to ask a question in this sport. Lack of knowledge can have severe consequences. If someone tells you you asked a stupid question about skydiving, the only mistake you made was asking a stupid person.

In general main parachute cutaways are fairly rare. Reserve failures are even more rare. The reserve is packed by a certified professional (rigger). The extra care and some slight differences (ie spring loaded pilot chute) make for very reliable reserves.

Have fun and ask all the questions you want. Understanding how and why your parachute works will make you feel a little more confident.

The only time you should look down on someone is when you are offering them your hand.

[yarpos 4]

hi plokkum

keep in mind also that mains and reserves are not the same types of canopies generally. You are not just using the same technology twice in a malfunction situation. Each is designed for a purpose. As people get experienced most go for a higher performance canopy which has a slightly higher chance of malfunction. A reserve is built for one primary purpose and , without getting technical (and I'm not expert anyway) its design is based on reliable openings and strength e.g. the width/depth (aspect) ratio of the canopy is lower/more square in shape which contributes to reliablity. BASE jumpers who take only one canopy, use canopies a lot like skydiving reserves (but also with specific differences for that purpose). Bottom line is that if you do the right thing at the right hieght, your probability of smiting the earth are very small. Getting between an open canopy over your head and being safely on the ground is another story, which you need to talk with your local instructors about. have fun, steve

PS: good question, keep asking , keep learning, and take an interest in the gear and how it works

regards, Steve
the older I get...the better I was

[Plokkum 0]

Thanks for all the replies, all! I really appreciate the helpful community here!

I'm now convinced that the reserve chute is indeed pretty safe. I've also seen some movies of people who paniced and didn't know what to do, and some movies of people who didn't panic and almost immediately recovering from their situation. So the ground training is something really important.

Again, thanks for the response!

Weee, got my AFF :D

[mdrejhon 8]

Most skydivers and riggers pack the main parachute, sometimes sloppily (depends on whom...some pack the main very meticulously!). That's where most of the worry should be, not the reserve. The reseserve is packed by a professional FAA-certified rigger (if packed in US). It's much more reliable!

[Plokkum 0]

Thanks ;)

I've got another question though:

Hard openings: How do they occure, and what does it usually result in?

Rate of descent: How many feet/s are you falling in a regular freefall?

Flaring: I just saw a movie of beginners who flared way too early and plummeted to earth the last few meters :p I do have an understanding of lift/drag and all that stuff since I've been flying my rc aircraft for nearly 10 years, but I bet it looks different from the para's eyes. I'm sure this will all be tought to me, but I'm just curious if there are any beginner tips to prevent stalling

Weee, got my AFF :D

[dragon2 0]

Hard openings:
- body position
- packing
- some types of canopies are more susceptible to this
- shit happens

rate of descent:
- depends on weight, body type, suit
- depends on body postion
usually, about 120 mph on your belly.

flaring:
- usually for students the steering lines are longer making it harder to stall the canopy
- student canopies are usually big enough that even if you flare too high you won't hit very hard, at least not as hard as I would with my canopy
- stalling is not a problem really, sometimes in canopy control courses they will ask you to do it on purpose, just don't do it lower than 2000 ft
- don't flare too high
- if you did flare too high, don't let up, that'll hurt more!

ciel bleu,
Saskia

[dragon2 0]

Where are you going to do your course?

Check out www.parachute.nl if you haven't already, and www.paraforum.nl.

ciel bleu,
Saskia

[Plokkum 0]

Thanks Sas,
I'm sure I'll have a fairly safe landing then! ;)
I saw some movies from Martijn van Dam showing some students hitting the ground pretty hard :) It's funny to see though :)

I came across parachute.nl and with some research I found out that Teuge would be a very good choice. So I signed up for the AFF course this morning. Hopefully the weather will be ok in two weeks, cause I want to go through all levels in one week.

Again, thanks a lot!

Weee, got my AFF :D

[tafarezz 0]

Do you have any links to see the video ?? As a beginner, I'm quite curious !

[Plokkum 0]

Sure :)
http://www.martijnvandam.nl/htm/global/videos/bloopers/bloopers_large.htm
Make sure you also visit his own site, it's pretty cool: http://www.martijnvandam.nl

Weee, got my AFF :D

[pccoder 0]

another factor you should consider...if you are experiencing a high speed malfunction you are loosing altitude more quickly than you were when you were terminal. Your time to cutaway and safely deploy your reserve becomes directly affected by this.

PcCoder.net

[Plokkum 0]

Yeah I'm sure it does. But after watching some movies, it doesn't look hard to do a "cutaway" and pull the reserve. I might be wrong, but to me it looks like it could be done in 2 seconds.

Weee, got my AFF :D

[pccoder 0]

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Yeah I'm sure it does. But after watching some movies, it doesn't look hard to do a "cutaway" and pull the reserve. I might be wrong, but to me it looks like it could be done in 2 seconds.

IF YOU PRACTICE. I always went through the motions, on every jump. But somehow forgot about that whole "peel the cutaway handle from the velcro" part of the procedure and struggled with that for a few seconds on mine.

PcCoder.net

[ripcord4 0]

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another factor you should consider...if you are experiencing a high speed malfunction you are loosing altitude more quickly than you were when you were terminal. Your time to cutaway and safely deploy your reserve becomes directly affected by this.

I find it hard to believe you lose altitude more quickly under a high speed malfunction than you do at terminal velocity. Even a malfunctioned canopy provides drag to slow you down somewhat.

[pccoder 0]

[replyI find it hard to believe you lose altitude more quickly under a high speed malfunction than you do at terminal velocity. Even a malfunctioned canopy provides drag to slow you down somewhat.