How many of you DON'T wear altimeters?

[Plummets 0]

Alti and Pro trak.

On my second consolidation jump after AFF i checked my alti and thought I must be getting better and relaxing more as had been in freefall ages and still read 11K, had a double take the third time it still said 11K . I still remember taking a while thinking thats strange and looking down seeing the pond on the golf course a whole lot bigger than normal . Deployed straight away which jolted alti back into life, in the saddle at 2K. (instead of the 4.5K planned)

I then changed my internal mantra from "check alti" to "check alti - read it".

"Life is a bowl of deadly nightshade, stay way way out on the rim brother"

[Aviatrr 0]

I normally wear an altimeter, but I won't hesitate to jump without one. I did about 25 jumps last week without one because the face shield on mine shattered halfway through the week. The eyeballs should be the #1 "altimeter" for experienced skydivers. Everything else is just a backup. For students and those that are still relatively inexperienced, an altimeter is absolutely necessary until they develop that visual sense of altitude.

Mike

[Aviatrr 0]

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if you're looking at your alti, you're not paying attention to the task at hand (you're not seeing the next grip you have to take or the cue you need to move to the next formation). Of course, this is typically only done by those who are very comfortable with jump timing, etc., so as a rookie, you should be thinking...altimeter good , audible good

So what happened to the 4 way team out at Perris while practicing for Nationals about 5 years ago? I guess their sense of "timing" was not so great. If just ONE of them had checked their altimeter, there probably would not have been 4 Cypres fires. They got out lower than they were used to(somewhere around 7,000ft, IIRC), and did their routine right up until the Cypres fires.

If anything, I think doing 4 way(or anything competition related) requires an altimeter more than fun jumping - JUST BECAUSE of the fact that people are so focused on the task at hand.

Mike

[migliore 0]

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So what happened to the 4 way team out at Perris while practicing for Nationals about 5 years ago? I guess their sense of "timing" was not so great.

It would appear not, huh? I am not familiar with this incident, but it would seem this team made at least 2 bad decisions...1) no audibles on anyone and 2) soley relying on timing on a jump from an altitude they were probably unfamiliar with. Thank God they were all at least wearing AADs.

As I stated on an earlier post, I personally always use a visual altimeter, an audible altimeter, and my eyes to gauge altitude...and I recommend the same for all skydivers.

Shane

[Aviatrr 0]

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I am not familiar with this incident, but it would seem this team made at least 2 bad decisions...1) no audibles on anyone and 2) soley relying on timing on a jump from an altitude they were probably unfamiliar with.

Actually, they all had audibles....but stated that they never heard them. I heard somebody say "goddamn those guys are low", and when I looked up I saw freebags clearing the reserves. It was an impressive, and sickening, sight.

I heard somebody say that they were using audibles that go off after a set time rather than altitude, but I'm not familiar with any of those, so I can't say for sure.

Mike

[migliore 0]

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I heard somebody say that they were using audibles that go off after a set time rather than altitude, but I'm not familiar with any of those, so I can't say for sure.

I've also never heard of such a beast, but i can't understand why any modern skydiver (much less all 4) would rely at all on a device that doesn't consider exit altitude or changes in fall rate due to body position, clothing, etc.

That must have been one of the most scary yet relieving moments in your skydiving career.

Shane

[Rdutch 0]

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But I also use my internal clock, eyes, my altimeter, and my 4 way team members eyes, internal clocks, altimeters and audibles to signal break off.

Cool thing about being a cameraman, Im looking down the whole time, so if a whole team looses altitude awareness (and its happened 4 cypress fires at a world meet) Im under canopy at a safe altitude.

But to answer the Original ? I wear one but I havent looked at it in hundreds of jumps, My eyes work great, and in Florida we have a temperature warning, its the same thing that makes camera lenses Fog up at break off every time.

Ray
Small and fast what every girl dreams of!

[OzoneJunkie 0]

Sorry to keep beating the horsie corpse - but if you have severe line twists - and can't *see* the ground (you're on your back), or the ground looks a bit distorted (high speed spins), then what? I like to know if I have time to attempt to clear the problem. That's one of the biggest reasons I can give for wearing a visual alti.

[DALAILAMA 0]

I don't mean to be the mean opinionated one, but here it goes!
This is purely my opinion.
There is no reason in the world not to wear an altimeter audible or visiual. There are alot of impressionable younger jumpers out there reading these posts!
I can understand getting out low and immediately deploying, however, if the practice of jumping without one continues there are grave consequences and sooner or later someone will pay them (god forbid it be anyone at all!)
How many times have we read the phrase "lost altitude awareness" in the Fatality reports.
I think there fore I am,
If I don't think wisely I will not be!
-The Dalai lama-
AKA. ME!

"Dropzone.com, where uneducated people measuring penises, has become an art form"

[DanG 1]

If you have severe line twists, are on your back, and are spinning so fast the ground looked distorted, I don't think you are going to clear that malfunction. I have had this happen to me, and I did have an altimeter on. I didn't have to look at it to know I needed to chop immediately.

I agree that wearing a visual altimeter is a good idea. I hardly ever look at mine unless I'm with a student and checking to make sure they perform altitude related tasks on time. Doing 4-way and video, I never look at it in freefall (I wear two audibles). I have made about 50 jumps with no mechanical or electronic altimeter. On one of those jumps I wish I had a visual, because we ended up punching a cloud, and I couldn't see the ground for a couple of seconds (my video shows a quick glance at my naked wrist).

I always try to wear my visual now just in case, but I have no hesitation jumping without it if I forget it or lend it to someone else who's forgotten theirs.

- Dan G

[OzoneJunkie 0]

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If you have severe line twists, are on your back, and are spinning so fast the ground looked distorted, I don't think you are going to clear that malfunction. I have had this happen to me, and I did have an altimeter on. I didn't have to look at it to know I needed to chop immediately.
- Dan G

I've cleared line twists while spinning on my back. As long as the slider is down all the way, and the g's don't build up, with sufficient altitude, there's a chance. Even if the ground is distorted - it doesn't take that fast of a spin to throw off your judgement. That's the point, at least for me. It's so much easier to check the alti - which often doesn't even require moving any body parts to check, versus getting a potentially inaccurate (or hard to aquire) visual ground check - too distracting. Guess it's a matter of personal preference...

[Hooknswoop 19]

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How many times have we read the phrase "lost altitude awareness" in the Fatality reports.

How many of those people that lost altitude awareness were wearing an altimeter?

Wearing an altimeter does not ensure altitude awareness and not wearing one does not mean that the jumper can't be altitude aware.

I was recently on my back spinning under a Crossfire 104 after a Birdman jump. I looked over my shoulder at the ground to check altitude as I un-zipped the wings and then harness shifeted to stop the spin. Then I kicked out of the line twists, maintain altitude awareness the entire time.

I don't recommend not wearing an altimeter, but they aren't required for altitude awareness.

Derek