Skydiving safer then driving?

[Meadman 0]

Im not sure you could even get the numbers close for this kind of analysis, even if you charted it by deaths in a year. I know I spend about 4 hours driving a day and alot spend more then that, a true comparison like Minutes spent driving each day vs Minutes in flight would probably show it to be around a billion times more dangerous. I think it ranks up there with Deep Sea Scuba(Done this, about died) and experimental/ultra-light piloting(remember John Denver)

[FuriousBroccoli 0]

The average car user has a 1 in 6000 chance of dying in any year in an automobile accident (based on an average of 10,000 miles/year for the USA).

There's a 1 in 70,000 chance of fatality in any one jump, so if you jump less than 11 times a year, your odds are > 1:6000, meaning you're safer in the air.

Otherwise you're safer in your car. e.g. 600 jumps gives you 1/116 odds of going splat, which is roughly equivilent to your chances of dying in a car accident in your entire lifetime. So if you've jumped more than this, you're already more likely to be dead than you ever will from driving.

That's why I'm a big whuffo and don't jump as much as I'd like to.

[ltdiver 3]

Sorry...OT...what the hell does "FuriousBroccoli" mean? And how does it describe you?

ltdiver

Don't tell me the sky's the limit when there are footprints on the moon

[nightjumps 1]

The odds are - anything is dangerous if you have your head up your ass.

[tbrown 26]

How many skydivers do you know that have died skydiving vs. skydivers that died in car accidents?

[mjosparky 3]

Quote

The average car user has a 1 in 6000 chance of dying in any year in an automobile accident (based on an average of 10,000 miles/year for the USA).

Nobody drives only 10,000 miles a year.
Sparky

My idea of a fair fight is clubbing baby seals

• Quote

[mjosparky 3]

Tom,
Was the headon a guy named Jimmy C?
Sparky

My idea of a fair fight is clubbing baby seals

[flyer299 0]

I do think Skydiving is a risk, but it is a risk that I feel I can manage to an acceptable level. I do everything in my power to make a safe jump each time.

I also feel that the general public needs to look at driving in the same way. Most drivers just go and drive with out thinking. If drivers spent 1/2 the engergy that skydivers do in keeping save, we would loose a lot less people on the roads each year.

[phonics1981 0]

You can die in 1 car crash or 1 skydive. Whichever one gets you, is the most dangerous.

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[Vertifly 0]

I don't think that it is "SAFER". This is like comparing apples and oranges.

If you forget to fill your gas tank in a car, you can just pull over. When were you in a car and had to drive through a forest because you ran out of road?

...And I don't check my breaks, my steerability, look at my headlights, or where to drive in case I run out of road. Should I?...On most of these, probably not everytime anyway - On some, never.

Everytime I bring my rig(s) to the DZ, I check certain things. Evertime I put a rig on my back, I check certain things. Everytime I climb into a plane, I check certain things. And when I jump out. And when my parachute is open. And when I pack.

While both are inherently dangerous, it is possible that the planet, which is coming at you at about 120mph, is less avoidable than another car. Which, in this case, demands more attention than a seat-belt (or whatever), break checks, etc.

my 2-cents

[Mad47 0]

Yesterday, after making several jumps including one on sloppiest pack job I ever had I was finally scared on busy highway diving back to Dallas. Seeing all these drunken idiots speeding and cutting you off without any reason on Saturday night often makes me think that skydiving is less dangerous than driving. But this impression is wrong since correct statistical analysis suggests the opposite.

[alain 0]

my little experience (and stats):
10 years driving over 300,000km: that is something like 4000 hours spent in a car. Result is: no accident but 2 or 3 close calls (one was my complete responsability)
2+ years jumping, 500 jumps: that is barely 8 hours free fall and 25 hours canopy time. Result is no accidents but 5 very close calls: 2 involving only myself under canopy (my fault), one nasty near mid air collision (not my fault), one near freefall/opened canopy collision (not my fault: the guy pulled at 6 grand and flew back allong the jump track) and one even more scary near freefall/aircraft collision (not my fault either: the pilote fucked up with the radio and crossed the jumping area at 3000' AGL).
So yeah, there's a bit more of danger involved with skydiving than driving...

Alain

[linuxguy 0]

I don't believe you can compare skydiving to driving - as most would consider driving a neccessary risk, whilest skydiving is not.
However, I have been involved in many sports in my life, and have been driving for 5 years.
I drive different cars with out a second thought and occasionally speed or talk on my cellphone whilest driving.
How many ppl check out their cars thoroughly before getting in to drive ?

there are multiple things that could go wrong with your care that could pottentially kill u !!

IMO skydiving is by far the most safety consious ... You check your gear, a friend checks your gear, certain dz's also do mandatory gear checks.

If I jump a new canopy, I open higher and test for the stall point, I play in the air to make sure I am 100% confident with canopy to land.
I would also never intentionally open low /concentrate on shopping etc whilest skydiving.!

Basically what I am trying to say is that If done correctly, "carefully" within your own skill ability, you are just as safe skydiving as driving, of course you can never take other ppls actions for granted.
Making mistakes in both can kill you.

[The111 0]

Quote

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I would also never intentionally open low /concentrate on shopping etc whilest skydiving.!

I try not to shop in freefall either.

www.WingsuitPhotos.com

[linuxguy 0]

u know what i mean
when u skydive u are 100% in the skydive, while I drive my mind is not always 100% concentrating on driving

[DHead 0]

I know exactly what you mean. I used to have a 1hr drive to work every day and there so many days when I got to/returned from work and thought "What actually happened on my journey?" and couldnt remember a thing.

That really scared me

[Maxim 0]

Its just something you cant compare.

the difference between how many people drive and how many people skydive is to great.

Life is Great. Even Greater what we do with it.

[Push 0]

I think that the danger to a first time jumper is less than the drive to the dropzone. That being said, once the jumper gets the privilege to choose their own gear, their own pull altitudes, their own landing zones and their own freefall tasks, the risk increases dramatically. This makes education and good decisions even more important.

-- Toggle Whippin' Yahoo
Skydiving is easy. All you have to do is relax while plummetting at 120 mph from 10,000' with nothing but some nylon and webbing to save you.

[PhillyKev 0]

I can't believe so many people think that driving is more dangerous than skydiving. I think some of you need a reality check. This stuff is dangerous, and should be treated as such.

[Push 0]

I did not say I believe that skydiving is less dangerous than driving. I said that a tandem may very well be less dangerous than driving. That, at least, is believable. The jumps we do 5-10 times a week are much more dangerous than driving.

-- Toggle Whippin' Yahoo
Skydiving is easy. All you have to do is relax while plummetting at 120 mph from 10,000' with nothing but some nylon and webbing to save you.

[PhillyKev 0]

Wasn't directed at you...directed at the poll results. You just happened to be the last poster.

[Push 0]

Oh, alright. Sorry, I misunderstood. I must say that I agree with you. The poll results are disturbing. Folks, you're falling at 120mph, not bowling. Make sure you pay attention.

-- Toggle Whippin' Yahoo
Skydiving is easy. All you have to do is relax while plummetting at 120 mph from 10,000' with nothing but some nylon and webbing to save you.

[dreamsville 0]

I answered "no" as a general belief, but when I compare jumping with people/loads I regularly jump with to some of the situations I see with "screwdrivers" on the freeway, I would say that I'd rather be in the sky with them than with some of these dumb bohunks that have all these near misses as they radically change lanes and fly along at barely-subterminal speeds.
|

I don't drink during the day, so I don't know what it is about this airline. I keep falling out the door of the plane.

Harry, FB #4143

[LiamM 0]

Although slightly askew of the main topic, an interesting comparison could be to look at skydiving incidents compared with motor sports incidents (I have no statistics nor any idea where to find them). The point is skydiving is a dangerous sport, whereas for the large part driving to the drop zone is a mundane activity. People are more likely to be pushing the limits of their capability whilst skydiving - there can't be too many who attempt to do so in driving there, and so the number of fatalities is inherently going to be larger. But where motor vehicles are pushed to the limit (in motor sports), the risk will increase.

However, the very nature of most people who are willing to skydive can create the illusion of more safety. Most will be very anal about safety (no bad thing) and likely to want to feel complete control of a situation. This coupled with the adrenilin of the skydive can lead to a feeling of being able to deal with any situations.

When driving to the DZ, this level of control of a situation can be removed and placed into the hands of others, without the same perspective on safety, and so can create an uncomfortable feeling of danger.

So whilst driving may be a lot safer, it can feel otherwise.

fell free to shoot down any points made here - I am very very new to skydiving (damn that British weather)

[dropoutdave 0]

87.482% of statistics are made up on the spot.

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