Backpack/skydive in Asia

[alurpal 0]

So I did my first tandem jump yesterday and obviously I wouldn't be posting here if it wasn't amazing. I was surprised by how it was much more than an "adrenaline rush" it was. I would describe it more as an "internal peace rush on crack."

Anyway, I put in my 2 week notice at my job yesterday as I'm planning an indefinite backpacking trip through Asia. After doing my first tandem, I have an insatiable urge to continue with skydiving and thought it would be amazing to dive through-out Asia. Has anyone done this before? I read a few threads on diving through Europe, but not Asia. Are there many DZs there or can you just pay local pilots to take you up?

So, I'm about ready to start my AFF course and before making an investment on gear want to get everyone's opinion.

Thanks!

P.S. All opinions welcome

[crotalus01 0]

You would need your A license and your own gear before you left for Asia as there are very very few places that I know of where you could complete AFF in Asia (Japan maybe). I have been all over Asia and have seen virtually no dropzones. Notable exceptions are annual boogies held in Thailand and Laos, and there are dropzones in Japan and I believe Malaysia (wouldnt swear to it though).

As for me and my house, we will serve the LORD...

[theonlyski 3]

Id like to add that most gear thats good for a student/new jumper is going to be heavy, especially if yer walking across Asia with it.

"I may be a dirty pirate hooker...but I'm not about to go stand on the corner." iluvtofly
DPH -7, TDS 578, Muff 5153, SCR 14890
I'm an asshole, and I approve this message

[davelepka 4]

You're going to want to get licensed and knock out a good 80 or 100 jumps before you venture off into private airstrips, and renting non-jump planes being flown by non-jump pilots. There are a variety of considerations to make when jumping away from an established DZ, and you will be the skydiving 'expert' among all involved, so you might need more than the 25-jump basic A license to pull it off safely.

[kasch 0]

not really related to skydiving but more backpacking.

you might find this site helpful when you are looking for information about places you're going, places you never thought about going, or general backpacking tips.

http://www.travbuddy.com/register.php?ref=1653928

Sex with sith is like sex with a stripper. A lot of flashing lights and waving of glowing sabers, but in the end you end up with something dark and wrinkely.

DPH# "-13"
TSK# "-13"

[grosfion 0]

Just check with Danniel if you are travelling through Singapore/Thailand/Malaysia.
He does Tandem/AFF and I did my Tandem Instructor with him:

http://www.skydivesingapore.com/contact.html

blues,
Marcus

[mdrejhon 8]

Japan is incredibly expensive. It's cheaper to fly to Los Angles, San Francisco or Seattle, get your A license in a two week period, and fly back. (Do your research on dropzones that provide good quality training). In fact, it may not be safe until you got enough jumps to safely land in unexpected landing areas (surrounded by fences, trees, power lines, and hazards) in a variety of countries.... meaning, several dozens of good accuracy-practice jumps are needed.

You may on the other hand, stick to Tandems, since there's a big capital cost of around 50 or more jumps before it becomes easy to jump at any FAI dropzone, then again the jumps become only one-tenth the cost of a tandem if you own your own gear and license. (B or better preferably, if you become a travelling jumper) ... Now if you're going to do bandit jumps by having a non-jump-pilot drop you at a non-dropzone (illegal in my country...but if that's apparently legal in your country), you're going to need to learn additional safety considerations over additional jumps, as well as become familiar with the dangers such as snag hazards that can bring down airplanes, etc.

[robinheid 0]

Quote

You may on the other hand, stick to Tandems

+1

Really, guy, everyone's had good advice but this is the best... just stick with tandems wherever you go on your backpacking trip and you'll end up with a great beginning to your parachuting career.

Get a "real" logbook, and start logging the jumps, and be sure to take Dan Poynter's book (much lighter and less bulky than a rig) and otherwise start learning as much as possible about jumping.

And then learn more on each tandem too... you may not know this but tandem was in the beginning designed to be "dual instruction" the same way as airplane training is, but then it turned into an amusement ride.

The more jumps you make, the better you'll be in the air, both in freefall and under canopy.

So make sure when you do those tandems, you make it clear that you're not just there for a tourist ride, you want to learn too...

Seriously, that will be the perfect way to backpack AND make some great jumps and then when you get back to wherever you live, you'll have more cool jumps in more countries than a lot of your future instructors.

Plus you'll also have more "air sense," gear knowledge, canopy control and navigation knowledge, and all-around understanding of the sport than pretty much any other student, which will make your training more fun and efficient and you'll (probably) be rocking on your own faster than average -- plus you'll have a better start to a jump career than almost every other kid on the block.

And then you can buy mdrejhon a beer when you run into him at a DZ somewhere for making such a brilliant suggestion.



p.s. with all the extra charges on airline luggage, the $$ you save by not flying your heavy gear around will at least cover part of the extra cost of the tandems, and the sweat you save by not lugging it around, and the stress you avoid wondering if some fool-of-customs-inspector will pop your reserve, will probably cover the rest.

SCR-6933 / SCS-3463 / D-5533 / BASE 44 / CCS-37 / 82d Airborne (Ret.)

"The beginning of wisdom is to first call things by their right names."

[mdrejhon 8]

robinheid's got some good suggestions too. Once you settle down somewhere, you can then get your license, get good at one dropzone, then you can feel much safer about being an international travelling skydiver...

[aussiechick 0]

Great DZ.http://www.thaiskyadventures.com/

Sorry, can't make it clicky.

[theonlyski 3]

Quote

Great DZ.http://www.thaiskyadventures.com/

"I may be a dirty pirate hooker...but I'm not about to go stand on the corner." iluvtofly
DPH -7, TDS 578, Muff 5153, SCR 14890
I'm an asshole, and I approve this message

[Gutterboy 0]

Thai Sky Adventures is a good dropzone with an excellent plane but not a good place for students as the landing area is dangerous and the instructors are too busy to look after their students properly. You'll be much safer and learn a lot more at Bird's Paradise (a.k.a. Sakorn Nakorn) Check them out on www.thaiskydiving.com or get in touch with Danniel at www.skydivesingapore.com as he runs his courses there as well.
Good luck!

[vegasskydiver 0]

These guys are in Korea:

http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#!/profile.php?id=100000012753805

[Gutterboy 0]

Don't buy any gear just yet as you will need to change it so quickly as you progress in the sport, plus it's a lot of extra weight to carry around the world! Every dropzone that does AFF will have student gear for you to use so you really don't need to worry about buying anything until you have a good number of jumps under your belt - I would recommend an A licence at the very least..
Doing a lot of tandems is not a bad idea but it's a very expensive way to learn not very much. Really there's no substitute for AFF and no better way to learn than to start jumping yourself!!
Blue Skies