Appropriate Jumping Winds

[CHRCNF 0]

What kind of winds do you usually declare as your limit?

What are the biggest predictors of winds?

Have you ever gone up in completely reasonable winds and then started your pattern about the same time as some big gusts came in?

W/ only 40 jumps (and awful canopy control) I'd prefer to stay below 18 MPH, but what conditions would be appropriate to keep myself from jumping?

CHRCNF

[NWFlyer 2]

Depends on a lot of factors for me.

1) Are they steady or gusty? I'll go up in higher winds that are steady.

2) What's the landing area like? Things I'm considering are size, availability of good outs, direction of the wind relative to objects that might cause turbulence, etc. In a wide-open landing area I might go higher than a tighter, turbulence-prone landing area.

3) What's the weather like generally? Are there storm clouds lurking? Are there big temperature shifts going on? Is the wind direction making big swings (light and variable is one thing, but a switch from 15 north to 15 south and back again indicates some sketchy air may be around).

4) What are canopies doing on landing? Watch a load. Are canopies bucking or otherwise looking "squirrelly" on final?

Those are just some of the things I consider - all of them have helped me to build up my "gut instinct" about when it's time to sit down.

Of course the best thing you can do is to watch the old-timers. When the only people on the load have

"There is only one basic human right, the right to do as you damn well please. And with it comes the only basic human duty, the duty to take the consequences." -P.J. O'Rourke

[wolfriverjoe 1,340]

Quote

What kind of winds do you usually declare as your limit?

What are the biggest predictors of winds?

Have you ever gone up in completely reasonable winds and then started your pattern about the same time as some big gusts came in?

W/ only 40 jumps (and awful canopy control) I'd prefer to stay below 18 MPH, but what conditions would be appropriate to keep myself from jumping?

CHRCNF

My limits vary. Steady are higher than gusting.

Direction matters too. At my DZ southwest winds cause the worst turbulence in the landing area, east winds cause the least.

I'll jump in worse conditions at this time of year than early in spring (currency).

The best predictor is knowing your local weather patterns. Learn to read aviation weather reports. The pilots will help with that. The oldtimers can usually predict local weather pretty well. Talk to them.
Learning some basic meteorology is a good idea. Understanding how fronts work and how high and low pressure affects weather will help you figure out what's going on.

I've ridden the plane down due to weather worsening. We could see the trees moving around differently when the front came through and decided not to risk it. We probably could have landed ok (in retrospect) but I have no regrets for paying for that ride. I've also landed in conditions that were much worse than when we took off. It wasn't fun. The landing was ugly and I ended up getting dragged a bit.

You have to decide your own limits based on your abilities and local conditions.

Although it can be frustrating, I've always followed "When in doubt, sit it out". If I'm not reasonably sure I can handle what's happening, I will sit and watch.

I would much rather sit on the ground today and maybe jump tomorrow than have to jump today and maybe sit out the next couple months.

"There are NO situations which do not call for a French Maid outfit." Lucky McSwervy

"~ya don't GET old by being weak & stupid!" - Airtwardo

[skyrider 0]

Quote

What kind of winds do you usually declare as your limit?

What are the biggest predictors of winds?

Have you ever gone up in completely reasonable winds and then started your pattern about the same time as some big gusts came in?

W/ only 40 jumps (and awful canopy control) I'd prefer to stay below 18 MPH, but what conditions would be appropriate to keep myself from jumping?

CHRCNF

You answered your own question....stay in your comfort zone!

here in Ca. you also keep you eyes open for dust devils...they can happeen in zero winds even!

[thrillstalker 0]

Quote

What kind of winds do you usually declare as your limit?

What are the biggest predictors of winds?

Have you ever gone up in completely reasonable winds and then started your pattern about the same time as some big gusts came in?

W/ only 40 jumps (and awful canopy control) I'd prefer to stay below 18 MPH, but what conditions would be appropriate to keep myself from jumping?

CHRCNF

i have recently had to make this decision for myself so ill tell you what i think.

if the wind sock is moving more than 100 or so degrees and the winds are faster than 10 i will NOT even think about jumping. i don't feel comfortable enough with downwind landings to have more than 10 mph extra on landing.

if the landing area has a lot of obstacles around it (lots of trees, buildings, big hills, etc), then the air will have more turbulence at lower wind speeds. if it is wide open and flat, i feel comfortable jumping in higher winds.

other people have mentioned if the up jumpers aren't jumping, they wont be jumping. this is very good advice imo.

sorry i cant give you a magic number, but with everything else in skydiving it is a personal choice that involves a lot of variables.

good luck and blue skies

"Never grow a wishbone, where your backbone ought to be."

[absane 0]

Without any specific numbers, I'll jump when the gusts aren't much stronger than the average wind speed and when the thermals aren't strong. Gusty winds and thermal updrafts scare the shit out of me. One day I came in for my final and got hit by a strong gust just as I started my flare... I ended up hitting the ground hard from 10 feet and my instructor thought I was injured. It hurt like hell, but I walked away with only scratches on my hands and a good laugh. But, I don't want to repeat that.

When I come in to jump, I'll watch one load land and see what they are dealing with. If I feel kind of "iffy" about it, I'll ask them how the winds are. If I'm unsure still, I ground myself until the winds calm down.

Don't forget to pull!

[Hvance 0]

One weekend recently I saw the winds picking up and started looking around to see who was not jumping. When the video guy with ~2500 jumps says he won't go up, that sure as hell gives me my answer.

I wish Google Maps had an "Avoid Ghetto" routing option.

[absane 0]

Quote

One weekend recently I saw the winds picking up and started looking around to see who was not jumping. When the video guy with ~2500 jumps says he won't go up, that sure as hell gives me my answer.

Or, as you might hear: the experienced jumpers will sit one out and watch the inexperienced jumpers get experienced.

Don't forget to pull!

[riggerrob 558]

In the Southern California desert, when winds get more than 22 knots and gusts get more than 5 knots, I sit it out.
Yes, I used to jump in those winds, and yes, I collected a lot of bruises.
I also collected a lot of cactus thorns from my buddy's toes!
Hah!
Hah!

[airtwardo 6]

Quote

What kind of winds do you usually declare as your limit?

What are the biggest predictors of winds?

Have you ever gone up in completely reasonable winds and then started your pattern about the same time as some big gusts came in?

W/ only 40 jumps (and awful canopy control) I'd prefer to stay below 18 MPH, but what conditions would be appropriate to keep myself from jumping?

CHRCNF

I use the old~ 'Marlboro Method' of deciding if the winds are too high...

If a pack of cigarettes blows off the mock-up...time to open the cooler.

~ If you choke a Smurf, what color does it turn? ~

[Hvance 0]

Quote

Quote

What kind of winds do you usually declare as your limit?

What are the biggest predictors of winds?

Have you ever gone up in completely reasonable winds and then started your pattern about the same time as some big gusts came in?

W/ only 40 jumps (and awful canopy control) I'd prefer to stay below 18 MPH, but what conditions would be appropriate to keep myself from jumping?

CHRCNF

I use the old~ 'Marlboro Method' of deciding if the winds are too high...

If a pack of cigarettes blows off the mock-up...time to open the cooler.

You can also use those cigarettes to determine pull time. If the houses look like cigarette boxes, pull. If the cigarette boxes look like houses...fuck.

I wish Google Maps had an "Avoid Ghetto" routing option.

[CHRCNF 0]

What is the method used to place the cigarettes on the mockup?

Do you place them standing up to where you can read the label or rather on the side?

And does your mockup use circular metal as the one at my dropzone does or is it squarish?

[thrillstalker 0]

dont use cigarettes, find out what the winds are, watch a load land, ask an instructor.

"Never grow a wishbone, where your backbone ought to be."

[absane 0]

Or you could just try pissing into the wind. If your stream is strong, and you still manage to piss all over yourself, don't go. You'll have a hard time explaining to the other jumpers on the load why you smell like urine how you pissed all over yourself.

Don't forget to pull!

[shropshire 0]

It's better to be on the ground wishing that you were in the air, than to be in the air wishing that you were on the ground.

(.)Y(.)
Chivalry is not dead; it only sleeps for want of work to do. - Jerome K Jerome

[Gators1240 9]

I'm new to the sport but one of the biggest things that worry me is either no wind or very light changing wind. The last couple jump days that's what it was like and I had my worst landings so far.

Yesterday I jumped and the winds were maybe 1 mph and changing constantly. I jumped once, had a little bit of a hard landing and strained a muscle in my leg as a result of it. I could have continued jumping that day (it was very bad) but decided that I wasn't comfortable with the current conditions. It's a personal decision and in my opinion if you don't feel comfortable or are questionable about the conditions you should just stay grounded. It's better to miss out on a few jumps because you are unsure then have it be your last.

[doughboyshred 0]

I called it yesterday.
10 mph variable winds combined with a general feeling of not being "on it" made me cancel a couple jumps. I was having a hard time deciding if it was my gut instinct or just fear that I had to overcome. I went with my gut instinct. With only 9 jumps I was actually a little surprised that my instructor wanted me to jump in those kind of winds.

[theonlyski 3]

Quote

I called it yesterday.
10 mph variable winds combined with a general feeling of not being "on it" made me cancel a couple jumps. I was having a hard time deciding if it was my gut instinct or just fear that I had to overcome. I went with my gut instinct. With only 9 jumps I was actually a little surprised that my instructor wanted me to jump in those kind of winds.

Quote

Maximum ground winds

1. For all solo students

a. 14 mph for ram-air canopies

If your instructor said you were ok to jump in 10mph winds, he was within the BSRs.

Either way, its up to you, if you don't have a warm fuzzy, don't do 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