Hearing protection on ride to altitude..

[Tuna-Salad 0]

Do you wear hearing protection on the ride to altitude?

Millions of my potential children died on your daughters' face last night.

[mcordell 2]

what I need to wear is a gas mask on the ride to altitude

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[kallend 1,623]

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Do you wear hearing protection on the ride to altitude?

Speak up, please, I'm a little hard of hearing from spending too many hours in noisy airplanes.

...

The only sure way to survive a canopy collision is not to have one.

[wolfriverjoe 1,340]

No, but I should. I can tell the difference if I'm flying the plane and wearing a headset.

"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

[amstalder 0]

Yes, from walking out to the plane until landing I wear earplugs... Ive already lost a lot of hearing due to scar tissue build up in my ears, dont need to add to it.

For those concerned, I can hear others under canopy (I tend to shout while Im under canopy and people have shouted back).

The only thing I dont like about wearing earplugs is the pressure cant equalize on its own in freefall, I always have to force it under canopy. (I kind of worry what sort of damage that could be causing compared to the damage of all the noise).

[IanHarrop 37]

Depends on the aircraft...

"Where troubles melt like lemon drops, away above the chimney tops, that's where you'll find me" Dorothy

[awagnon 0]

It would probably be a good idea to wear hearing protection. However, hearing loss due to noise is a function of the intensity of the noise and the duration. The duration of the ride up is over soon enough that not much harm will occur. However, multiple rides up, like a tandem instructor, results in enough exposure to do real damage. Like riding a motorcycle.

Alton

"Luck favors the prepared."

[Jbag 0]

i wont get on a skyvan w/o them. otter's im ok with though.

IHYD

[KermieCorleone 0]

Our Otter is gone for the winter and the Caravan is annoyingly loud so I started using ear plugs and I just bought a few more foam ones from home depot. I dont think I'll jump w/out them now ... its just so nice and quiet on the ride up ...

- Neil

Never make assumptions! That harmless rectangle could be two triangles having sex ...

[kuai43 7]

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Do you wear hearing protection on the ride to altitude?

What?

Every fight is a food fight if you're a cannibal

Goodness is something to be chosen. When a man cannot choose, he ceases to be a man. - Anthony Burgess

[BillyVance 34]

I don't need no stinkin' hearing protection on the ride to altitude.

I'm already fucking deaf so... but if you plan on staying in the sport a long time, you probably should use protection.

"Mediocre people don't like high achievers, and high achievers don't like mediocre people." - SIX TIME National Champion coach Nick Saban

[tetra316 0]

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The only thing I dont like about wearing earplugs is the pressure cant equalize on its own in freefall, I always have to force it under canopy. (I kind of worry what sort of damage that could be causing compared to the damage of all the noise).

If you are having this issue then either the earplugs are way too tight for you or you haven't learned how to manipulate your jaw to clear your ears. I would try getting some looser earplugs and see if you have the same issue.

[FFlyer 0]

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The only thing I dont like about wearing earplugs is the pressure cant equalize on its own in freefall, I always have to force it under canopy. (I kind of worry what sort of damage that could be causing compared to the damage of all the noise).

I ruptured both ear drums on a skydive about 3 years back. One ear if I recall right is what they call a level 1 rupture, and the other was a level 3 (quite bad apparently. I was lucky it didn't burst). Hurt like hell and I couldn't hear for a couple days. I was out of skydiving for 2 months because of it.

Anyway, I went to an ENT specialist after that to get treated and he basically said that wearing ear plugs on the way up in the plane is ok because you can still unblock your ears when you want to. But you should never jump with earplugs in because there's a very good chance your ears wont equalize during freefall. Your ears need free flowing air to equalise and the ear plugs prevent this. That means a drop in altitude from 13000ft to 3000ft (or whatever altitude you jump at) in under 60 seconds, during which time the pressure build up in your ears isn't released.

So basically he said wear ear plugs in the plane on the way up if you want but keeping them in during freefall is a bad idea.

[stayhigh 2]

if you do more than 5 jumps a day, that is close to hour of sitting next to engine that you can hear miles away from the ground...

Bernie Sanders for President 2016

[virgin-burner 1]

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I don't need no stinkin' hearing protection on the ride to altitude.

I'm already fucking deaf so... but if you plan on staying in the sport a long time, you probably should use protection.

“Some may never live, but the crazy never die.”
-Hunter S. Thompson
"No. Try not. Do... or do not. There is no try."
-Yoda

[Joellercoaster 6]

On some planes, it's not so much the engine as the door. There a PAC door I can think of that sounds like a chainsaw if you're sat next to it :(

Earplugs are good (on the way up), when I remember.

--
"I'll tell you how all skydivers are judged, . They are judged by the laws of physics." - kkeenan

"You jump out, pull the string and either live or die. What's there to be good at?

[AggieDave 6]

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The duration of the ride up is over soon enough that not much harm will occur.

Ever jump a 182? How about being a TI at a 182 DZ?

--"When I die, may I be surrounded by scattered chrome and burning gasoline."

[danornan 64]

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The only thing I dont like about wearing earplugs is the pressure cant equalize on its own in freefall, I always have to force it under canopy. (I kind of worry what sort of damage that could be causing compared to the damage of all the noise).

I ruptured both ear drums on a skydive about 3 years back. One ear if I recall right is what they call a level 1 rupture, and the other was a level 3 (quite bad apparently. I was lucky it didn't burst). Hurt like hell and I couldn't hear for a couple days. I was out of skydiving for 2 months because of it.

Anyway, I went to an ENT specialist after that to get treated and he basically said that wearing ear plugs on the way up in the plane is ok because you can still unblock your ears when you want to. But you should never jump with earplugs in because there's a very good chance your ears wont equalize during freefall. Your ears need free flowing air to equalise and the ear plugs prevent this. That means a drop in altitude from 13000ft to 3000ft (or whatever altitude you jump at) in under 60 seconds, during which time the pressure build up in your ears isn't released.

So basically he said wear ear plugs in the plane on the way up if you want but keeping them in during freefall is a bad idea.

Don't know if the above information is accurate or not, but I try to wear ear plugs all the time around noisy airplanes. Have never had a problem equalizing with the plugs in and can hear much better because of them. Already have tinnitus (ears ringing) in one ear and trying to prevent it in the other. Use them on the motorcycle too.

Dano

[wmw999 2,121]

I've been wearing earplug since getting back into jumping 8 years and 1000 jumps ago. Up and down. On the rare occasions when I don't have them in, I'm astounded at how noisy it is, and I can really tell the next day that I didn't have them in.

Wendy P.

There is nothing more dangerous than breaking a basic safety rule and getting away with it. It removes fear of the consequences and builds false confidence. (tbrown)

[pchapman 261]

I've worn earplugs up & down for 2000+ jumps, often in C-182's, but also in turbines. I notice a few of the regular jumpers at the DZ wear them, although most do not.

While I sometimes need to do some pressure equalization under canopy or on the ground to hear fully, the pressure difference has never been uncomfortable. And it doesn't seem any worse than all those tandem students who don't know how to equalize and initially complain of not being able to hear when back on the ground -- so it isn't just earplugs that do it.

Some people might avoid earplugs because their helmets are quieter to begin with, if they wear them all the way up too. Depends on the fit and ear coverage.

[gearless_chris 1]

I wear my helmet on the way up for noise protection, unless it's really hot. I will take earplugs with me next year for the ride up. I need to check if my jacket has an outside pocket for them, if not I'll have to add one.

"If it wasn't easy stupid people couldn't do it", Duane.

My momma said I could be anything I wanted when I grew up, so I became an a$$hole.

[amstalder 0]

Thank you for the info!! I am definitely going to look into finding smaller earplugs, and if that doesnt work Ill start taking them out before leaving the plane.

[faulknerwn 36]

I always wear them on the way up but never on the way down. One time I forgot and I thought my eardrums were going to explode. It was like jumping with the worst head cold ever.. Never again!

[FFlyer 0]

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I always wear them on the way up but never on the way down. One time I forgot and I thought my eardrums were going to explode. It was like jumping with the worst head cold ever.. Never again!

That's exactly the sort of potential problem the ENT specialist I went to was referring to. Defintly not a good idea to wear ear plugs on the way down. If anyone does it safely on a regular basis then just count yourself lucky,...but still very much at risk of it hapenning at some point.

If you just think of it logically, why would you want to block off your ears ability to easily and naturally clear themselves while in freefall? Sure you can unblock them under canopy by conciously thinking about doing it, but you definitly dont do that in freefall so you end up having a huge change in pressure in a very short amount of time without your ears clearing themselves.

If it's an issue of protecting your ears from the noise, then using them in the plane is a great idea, but in freefall just take them out and having your helmet on will aid in reducing the noise.

[CygnusX-1 42]

Ground-to-Ground

I like my hearing so I never take my ear plugs out during any part of the dive.