Listening to music when you jump? would it work?

[FlyingJarhead 0]

Does anyone jump with their ipod? i have the sony headphones that are airtight i was curious if anyone thought they would work under my helmet?

[MB38 0]

It would work, but it would be a danger. It's not an issue in freefall, but consider the potential warnings you might hear in the plane and under canopy. What if somebody's yelling "EXIT! EXIT! EXIT!" inside the plane and you only hear your music? What if somebody's screaming to get your attention under canopy to avoid a collision and you can't hear them?

Better safe than sorry, in my opinion. But that's just one.

I really don't know what I'm talking about.

[Frenchy68 0]

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Does anyone jump with their ipod? i have the sony headphones that are airtight i was curious if anyone thought they would work under my helmet?

Not sure it's a great idea. You may want to be able to hear if someone is screaming something to you in the plane as you are standing at the door; it may also be a good idea to be able to hear while under canopy. Only my opinion, but the less non-skydiving related distractions, the higher the chance of survival. Just my ¥.02...

"For once you have tasted Absinthe you will walk the earth with your eyes turned towards the gutter, for there you have been and there you will long to return."

[AggieDave 6]

It has been talked about many many times before. If you do a search you'll find a lot of different opinions.

Really, at the end of the day what I took away from wearing my MP3 player on some jumps about 4 years ago is that I had the have the player up so damned loud that it definately wasn't good for my hearing. All other safety concerns aside.

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

[valcore 0]

I think I might get so into the music and jump that I would be pulling really low. Like when my cypress fires. So I don't jump with one..........


There are things that you need to focus all of your attention on and I think that skydiving is one of them. At least while jumping

The most terrifying words in the English language are: ‘I'm from the government and I'm here to help’. ~Ronald Reagan

30,000,000 legal firearm owners killed no one yesterday.

[DSE 3]

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Does anyone jump with their ipod? i have the sony headphones that are airtight i was curious if anyone thought they would work under my helmet?

I guarantee you your Sony earbuds aren't air tight. Sony doesn't make an air-tight or sealed system.
I have a pair of custom-molded in-ear Etymotics, and THEY are air (and water tight). Even with these, air rushing by gets into the ear, you'll hear a dull pounding. The cable also transmits a certain level of bottom end directly to your skull, and if you have bass-heavy buds such as the Shure i-Series or Etymotic white series, it's just mud in the air.

I wear mine on occasion, and it's never been an issue of not being altitude aware and "getting into the music" but I can certainly see how it might be for some people. I wouldn't make a habit of it, never do it when with a group, and I won't do it when I'm not the last guy out. But on a last-out sunset dive, with Creed, James Horner, or Simple Plan playing at a good level...it's heaven.
If you set levels correctly and have genuinely sealed cans, then you can have conversations albeit loudly, and you can easily hear any commands or concerns at the door.
My method however, is to have my Rio in mute mode until I'm actually leaving the plane, hitting the mute-off mode once I'm out the door. Not because I'm worried about not hearing instructions, but because I prefer to hear the prop blast. But once in freefall, there is nothing like loops, barrel rolls, and transitions in time to punched up rhythm. Eminem's "Lose Yourself" is another great one, I usually start it about half-way into the song before exiting the A/C.
It's just plain fun and a good experience, but has to be well-considered prior to the jump.

Bear in mind as well, I jump at a very small DZ and there are never more than 3-4 fun jumpers landing in the same field as me, and if I'm last out, I'm usually pulling around 4k anyway so I can enjoy the music longer.
If the loads were bigger, more people landing, or a bigger DZ, I'd probably be afraid of music for all the reasons listed above.

[Professor 0]

There are issue with the hard drives head-crashing at high altitudes, as well, so you may want to use a solid state player, like a mini or a shuffle, instead of risking your full out iPod.

Ted
Like a giddy school girl.

[FlyingJarhead 0]

its a nano

the earbuds i have are airtight and im sure under my helmet they would be fine. i was more curious..something to get into someday......

[Professor 0]

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its a nano

Maximum operating altitude is 10,000ft for nanos, according to apple.

Ted
Like a giddy school girl.

[kelpdiver 2]

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Maximum operating altitude is 10,000ft for nanos, according to apple.

They say the same for the shuffle. Clearly a matter of testing parameters, not a true limitation. Both use solid state memory.

My mom had hers going on Denali for 3 weeks at up to 17k, thanks to a solar charger.

[br0k3n 0]

why dont you try it, see what you can hear....

I listen to my ipod on the plane most of the time, I tried it on a couple of jumps and found it pointless....

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--+ There are 10 types of people in the world: Those who understand binary, and those who don't.. --+

[br0k3n 0]

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There are issue with the hard drives head-crashing at high altitudes, as well, so you may want to use a solid state player, like a mini or a shuffle, instead of risking your full out iPod.

I have a G2 ipod, and it has been used at least 150 times on the plane, and its still going strong......

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--+ There are 10 types of people in the world: Those who understand binary, and those who don't.. --+

[br0k3n 0]

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There are things that you need to focus all of your attention on and I think that skydiving is one of them. At least while jumping

True, but i bet you drive with the stereo on........

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--+ There are 10 types of people in the world: Those who understand binary, and those who don't.. --+

[Amazon 7]

Works best with a tiny MP3 player that I mounted inside my helmet..... oh and keep the selections you record onto it.... short.. like 45 seconds

[Ron 7]

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There are things that you need to focus all of your attention on and I think that skydiving is one of them. At least while jumping

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True, but i bet you drive with the stereo on........

Lets see.....I bet you have about 13 hours of freefall? I am willing to bet you have MUCH more experience driving a car.

Me? I have about 65 hours of freefall...And that is nothing compared to the amount of time I have behind a wheel.

I think listening to music in freefall does almost nothing but increase risk, for little reward. And due to that I can't really say it is a good idea for anyone.

"No free man shall ever be debarred the use of arms." -- Thomas Jefferson, Thomas Jefferson Papers, 334

[br0k3n 0]

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I think listening to music in freefall does almost nothing but increase risk, for little reward. And due to that I can't really say it is a good idea for anyone.

Im not disagreeing, but what I am saying is that no matter how many hours you have behind the wheel of a car, having the stereo on is without a doubt a distraction, and can only but increase the risk of an accident….

And people here are quick to point out that jumping with your ears plugged into your ipod is a risk, but I bet everyone of these people is more then happy to cruise down the freeway at 120kmph with the stereo blasting, without thinking twice...

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--+ There are 10 types of people in the world: Those who understand binary, and those who don't.. --+

[jumpjunkie 0]

Im not disagreeing, but what I am saying is that no matter how many hours you have behind the wheel of a car, having the stereo on is without a doubt a distraction, and can only but increase the risk of an accident….

And people here are quick to point out that jumping with your ears plugged into your ipod is a risk, but I bet everyone of these people is more then happy to cruise down the freeway at 120kmph with the stereo blasting, without thinking twice...

[valcore 0]

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There are things that you need to focus all of your attention on and I think that skydiving is one of them. At least while jumping

True, but i bet you drive with the stereo on........

I do but I have much more experience driving then I do skydiving maybe someday I'll get to that point. Besides I don't think you can really compair driving to skydiving. They are a little different

The most terrifying words in the English language are: ‘I'm from the government and I'm here to help’. ~Ronald Reagan

30,000,000 legal firearm owners killed no one yesterday.

[DSE 3]

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I think listening to music in freefall does almost nothing but increase risk, for little reward. And due to that I can't really say it is a good idea for anyone.

That is your POV, and you're very welcome to it. On the other hand, I find that listening to the music in a skydive can affect how my dive goes if I'm considering the jump prior to boarding the a/c.

Jumping with a camera increases risk
Jumping with smoked eyewear increases risk
Jumping with a mini bottle for your 100/1000/whatever increases risk
Jumping with others increases risk
Jumping from a 182 increases risk
Swooping increases risk
Hook turns increases risk
No AAD increases risk
Having an AAD increases risk
Lack of bridle cover increases risk
Stacked exits increase risk
Wingsuits increase risk
changing the dive plan after leaving the ground increases risk.
Being overweight increases risk
Being underweight increases risk
Sitting at the far back of the aircraft increases risk
Jumping on a hot day increases risk
Jumping in zero wind increases risk
Jumping in greater than zero wind increases risk
Turning points increases risk
Not tying up long hair increases risk.
Not wearing good footwear increases risk
Not wearing a hook knife increases risk
Wearing a hook knife increases risk
Keeping your reserve/cutaway handle increases risk
Exiting too close to previous person increases risk
Some say that jumping on Sunday increases risk

Search the words "increased risk" and you'd likely be surprised at how often this is a response to sometimes complex, but often simple questions.
What *isn't* an increased risk in an already risky adventure?

Hell, the S&TA at a DZ had a fit because I was wearing a red T-shirt shirt with a red cutaway pillow, and insisted that I wouldn't be able to see the cutaway should I need it, so he taped black gaffers on my pillow for that jump.

In other words, whilst I'm not recommending that people jump with or without headphones, making the statement that "it increases risk" is an impotent response in comparison to what many people do each and every day to 'increase risk.'
Isn't it all about properly managing the level of increased risk?

[Ron 7]

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In other words, whilst I'm not recommending that people jump with or without headphones, making the statement that "it increases risk" is an impotent response in comparison to what many people do each and every day to 'increase risk.'
Isn't it all about properly managing the level of increased risk?

Notice that your DZO put black tape on your pillow? That was taking steps to reduce risk. So, you ahve to look at the risk to reward ratio.

The real danger with listening to music is not being able to hear right before exit and really under canopy.

The potental risk? Killing yourself and maybe someone else. Hell, we just lost someone this weekend to a wrap. Why ADD un-needed distractions?

Potental reward? Music.

Risk seems a hell of a lot greater than reward to me. And to be honest I would rather not be in the air with someone who is distracted.

This is a sport where mistakes are often paid for with your life....Why add BS that could kill you?

"No free man shall ever be debarred the use of arms." -- Thomas Jefferson, Thomas Jefferson Papers, 334

[DSE 3]

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This is a sport where mistakes are often paid for with your life....Why add BS that could kill you?

True. Why fly CRW either? Or tube-dive? or...

Now I'm starting to sound like the idiots that say "You don't skydive with me, so you don't know..."
And that's not me. I'm exceptionally conservative in this sport for the most part.

Music is not "BS" to me, it's the industry in which I make my living. BTW, I also wear headphones when scuba diving/snorkeling as well. It's a soundtrack to the experience.
I just looked at my logbook, and less than 4% of my jumps have included headphones, all are with me exiting last, and all but one are sunset dives. On all of those jumps, I dumped at 4k or higher.
For me, the risk is worth the reward, in the few times I exercise the option. Just as I imagine CRW, Mr. Bill's, and big ways are worth the rewards to others.

[Ron 7]

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This is a sport where mistakes are often paid for with your life....Why add BS that could kill you?

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True. Why fly CRW either? Or tube-dive? or...

For me, the risk is worth the reward, in the few times I exercise the option. Just as I imagine CRW, Mr. Bill's, and big ways are worth the rewards to others.

Ah but here is the difference, you can ONLY fly CRW when you are jumping, you can ONLY do a tube dive in the air, you can ONLY do a Mr. Bill when skydiving, you can ONLY do a bigway from a plane. These acts DO increase the risk. But they also can only be done in the air. You can listen to music on the ground, you can't do CRW in your living room.

So you are adding risk that is not needed for an event that could be done better somewhere else with less risk of death.

You like music and skydiving? Make video's with your favorite soundtracks and play them so everyone can enjoy it. No risk of death there.

And just like drivers ed will not let you play Motley Crue, or your parents tell you turn the radio down, or how when the weather is crap how most drivers turn the radio off to concentrate on the task....Music is a distraction and how much distraction is worth your life skydiving?

"No free man shall ever be debarred the use of arms." -- Thomas Jefferson, Thomas Jefferson Papers, 334

[DSE 3]

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You like music and skydiving? Make video's with your favorite soundtracks and play them so everyone can enjoy it. No risk of death there.

You're right no risk of death, just copyright lawsuits. Sorry, ain't going there. Stealing music just isn't in my lexicon.

I guess we'll just have to agree to disagree. You apparently are one of those folks that doesn't understand music and what it means to some people.
And I'll never understand the folks that don't understand what music does for others.
Music *isn't* a distraction unless you allow it to be, but I dont' think you'll ever get that. Is music a distraction when you're watching a movie? Or is it part of the experience, driving the moment forward?
FWIW, it's been proven over and over again that music improves muscle memory, provides cognizant associative feedback, and is a valuable tool for sports training.
On the other hand, you'll have a hard difficult time convincing me that I'm putting myself or others at greater risk by listening to music when I'm alone on a skydive, with no one else behind me, and me pulling high to enjoy my tunes that much longer.Thx for an interesting dialog tho.

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[kallend 1,649]

Just a personal data point.

In my plane I have XM radio and my iPOD wired into the intercom so I can listen to music while I'm flying cross-country. I NEVER have it on for take-off, and I ALWAYS turn it off prior to arrival at an airport because when I'm getting busy with preparations for take-off or landing I find it a distraction. I consider skydiving AT LEAST as demanding of concentration as landing my plane.

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

[kkeenan 13]

Since the air noise under canopy is much less than in freefall, I think having music for CRW jumps would be ideal. Plus, the time under canopy is so long, you wouldn't have to worry about pulling low so you can hear the end of a favorite song.

I can't imagine a more blissfull experience than being in a wild CRW wrap with "Hot Rails to Hell" by Blue Oyster Cult blasting on the headphones.

Kevin K.

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Dude, you are so awesome...
Can I be on your ash jump ?