Im new

[Ensmith76 0]

ok im 16 1/2 and I have 2,500$ for a setup. what would anybody reccomend? Im completely new to the sport and im just looking to buy early before I turn 18.

[billvon 2,400]

>what would anybody reccomend?

A first jump course would be your best bet. It's not that useful to buy gear before you are able to use it (and before you know what you will likely want.)

[cocheese 0]

Keep saving your money kid. When you turn 18 you can throw it all out of the plane like confetti.

[BIGUN 1,053]

First, please fill out your profile. Second, not sure what having $2500.00 now has in correlation with 18. If you're here in the US, there's a lot of DZ's that will allow you to learn to skydive (with written parental consent (parents have to come to the DZ)).

If you can get that permission, that money is well-spent going through the program and while doing so; investigating and demoing gear once you're cleared. There's a lot of information you need to gather to make the right gear choice for you when the time comes.

If getting parental consent is not an option, then continue to save your money for the program and to buy gear after that, rather than buying gear first. If you bought something today, you may have a different feeling about it after you've gone through the program and gear education process. Plus, gear "could" change exponentially by then.

Nobody has time to listen; because they're desperately chasing the need of being heard.

[LuvToFly 0]

Quote

ok im 16 1/2 and I have 2,500$ for a setup. what would anybody reccomend? Im completely new to the sport and im just looking to buy early before I turn 18.

One of the amazing things about being 16 is that you know for certain what you want, and then in a couple of years, it changes anyway.

Don't invest in something like skydiving until you have exposed yourself to it a number of times, maybe a few tandems. Even though the price of tandems is pretty stiff, it's still a lot cheaper than blowing a lot of money on training and gear for naught. Also, you need to do it enough to understand whether you are looking for the thrill, which might be over in a short time, or if it is something that has longer term appeal for you. This means you have to let a bit of the "cool factor" settle. It is for sure, cool, but it's also a life and death game and you need to be certain that you are able to mix the coolness with concentration and ability so that you can perform consistently and safely.

Also note that $2,500 isn't a lot of money towards gear these days, depending on what you are looking for (new vs, used, etc). Whatever you get, you want it to be sized right, and fit right - otherwise you could be opening a whole can of hurtin. Most would recommend that you not use a rig without an AAD as a new jumper in particular and that can add signficant cost to your set up.

Since you are only sixteen, your body shape, size may still be subject to change. You don't want to invest too much money in a setup that may not fit you in a couple of years.

Even if you go through AFF, I still think it's a good idea to rent for some considerable amount of jumps until you can figure out what your abilities and goals are - Otherwise you have no real benchmark to know how much canopy you want to fly, and a lot of that will depend on what kind of skydiver you intend to be. Constant gardener, or weekend warrior? Participate in an amateur 4 way, or just a fun jumper? All of these factors may alter what you need, and that will take some time to sort out. Don't rush into that -

It's an admirable thing to have a passion, but you are likely to have many such. Make sure this is the one for you before you get in too deep -

"The helicopter approaches closer than any other to fulfillment
of mankind's ancient dreams of a magic carpet" - Igor Sikorsky

[juanesky 0]

As other have already posted, you don't need to buy gear.

Depending the state you live in, then you should try wind tunnel, it will probably give you a good taste, and practice.

"According to some of the conservatives here, it sounds like it's fine to beat your wide - as long as she had it coming." -Billvon

[SARLDO 0]

Here's an idea, Invest your money in ME jumping and I will give you detailed debriefs of each and every jump. This way, you get to benefit from the experience of others while eliminating the risk associated with the actual dive.

"Always do right. This will gratify some people and astonish the rest" ~Samuel Clemens

MB#4300
Dudeist Skydiver #68