The111 0 #1 September 5, 2003 I searched around some old posts about skysurf but didn't really find an answer to this. I'm assuming it used to be more popular? I guess a lot of people like to do what most people at the DZ do, so if something goes down in popularity, it goes down exponentially. I do enjoy jumping with other people, but I'm gonna try it when I have the experience, even if I'm the only one left interested in it, and if I like it I'll keep doing it. :)www.WingsuitPhotos.com Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
PhillyKev 0 #2 September 5, 2003 Might have something to do with some of the big names in skysurfing quitting because they think it's too dangerous. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
kevin922 0 #3 September 5, 2003 QuoteMight have something to do with some of the big names in skysurfing quitting because they think it's too dangerous. ditto.. i don't know much about it, i know lew was / is active with the board. I don't know how much benifit it really gives you.. a belly flyer will still be able to fly right with you, and my rigger (who used to actively jump the boards) said your forward speed really isn't that great.. the footage you see just makes it seem like they are hauling ass on the board. With a wingsuit you have very obvious advantages over normal skydiving and the risk is worth it for those advantages.. as far as skysurfing goes i'm not real sure what the advantages are, other than you can spin real quick which seems to be disadvantage if you're not skilled enough to stop it. Then again all this is coming from someone who hasn't had a board on their feet before. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
The111 0 #4 September 5, 2003 QuoteMight have something to do with some of the big names in skysurfing quitting because they think it's too dangerous. Hmm, I wasn't aware of that. I don't know a lot about skydive history or even who the big names are. Forgive my ignorance, but what makes it more dangerous than a normal skydive? Besides the obvious, that it's very difficult to stay stable. Only possibilities I can think of, and this is total newbie speculation... - spinning so much in freefall you pass out? - deployment more risky? (this problem exists for WS though I think...)www.WingsuitPhotos.com Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
SkydiverRick 0 #5 September 5, 2003 QuoteMight have something to do with some of the big names in skysurfing quitting because they think it's too dangerous. If my memory is correct, some of them didn't quit soon enough. never pull low......unless you are Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
The111 0 #6 September 5, 2003 QuoteIf my memory is correct, some of them didn't quit soon enough. Hasn't stopped BASE from becoming popular on the cult level. But then again they've (BASE) also managed to separate themselves from skydiving to some degree which maybe helps that status... skysurfing could never exist in that way since they (surf) need to exit from the same planes at the same DZ's as normal skydivers. Unless... surf BASE! www.WingsuitPhotos.com Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
quade 3 #7 September 5, 2003 I think skysurfing got hit pretty bad when the X-Games decided not to have it as an event anymore a couple (3?) years ago. Right up to that point it was going strong, but the financials for skysurf coverage in the X-Games just wasn't there so they axed it. As a result there was very little incentive for a lot of folks to continue. There's still quite a bit of skysurfing done at the major DZs and it does occasionally come up in commercials, but nothing like 3 or 4 years ago.quade - The World's Most Boring Skydiver Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jmpnkramer 0 #8 September 5, 2003 IT"S DEATH ON A STICK MAN I also agree with Quade that when it got cut from the X-Games it lost its Spunk. We also lost some Outstanding Skydivers Doing it. ALL WET in FLORIDA, KRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAMER!!!!!The REAL KRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAMER! "HESITATION CAUSES DEATH!!!" "Be Slow to Fall into Friendship; but when Thou Art in, Continue Firm & Constant." - SOCRATES Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
PhreeZone 15 #9 September 5, 2003 There has been a decline in the number of skysurfers ever since it was dropped from being in the Xgames. Skysurfing is more dangerous then normal RW, but there are far more dangerous things out there. Unfortunally most of of the former top skysurfers (Rob, Patrick, Jerry) have passed away so their drive in the sport died with them. Out of those only Jerry was involved in a skysurf at the tome of his death.Yesterday is history And tomorrow is a mystery Parachutemanuals.com Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
davelepka 4 #10 September 5, 2003 This all just my opinion, but: 1. Takes up aolt of room in the plane. Even in an Otter, if the load is full, it's a big pain in the ass for you and others during ther hook-up. With samller planes, it only gets worse. 2. Beginner boards are generally smaller. This means when (or if) you get on top of it, you are hauling ass (slow freefly speeds). You can either pull at that speed (ouch) or belly out, try to keep the board out of the way, and dump. I have seen many a d-bag bounce off a beginner board durung belly fly deployments. 3. Cut aways. Most boards are equipped with a recovery chute, so if you cut it away, it will slow the decent, but it's still a big chuck of wood falling from the sky. Unfriendly toward people and property underneath it. 4. Limited mobility. You aren't moving very far, or doing a whole lot of tricks aside from spinning and flipping. Docking and tracking around the sky are reserved for the very experienced. 3. Freefly / X - Games. When skysurfing went big it was because of the X Games. Once that was cancelled, it lost some steam. During the X-Games run, freefly started to grow in popularity. It gave jumpers easier and more immediate access to the type of flying (non-RW) they were looking for, without the added risks of skysurfing (yes freefly does have it's own risks, but they pale in comparison to skysurfing). Those would be my guesses as to where skysurfing went. If you want to try, give me a call when you are ready. Filming first time skysurfers has always been tons of fun. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
whocares 0 #11 September 5, 2003 Keith Snyder of Arizona is competing as I write this in the world meet in France this weekend in sky surfing. So I guess it is still popular on the world level. http://www.mondial03.com/index.php Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
billvon 2,392 #12 September 5, 2003 >Why is skysurf so uncommon today? Cause wingsuits came along, and they're a lot more fun! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Ron 7 #13 September 5, 2003 QuoteI searched around some old posts about skysurf but didn't really find an answer to this. I'm assuming it used to be more popular? 1.A large number of the best in the world are dead. 2.A large number of the best in the world saw the other best in the worlds die and thought "Maybe thats not such a good idea?" 3.XGames canceled the skysurf....It was a very small segment of the sport anyway, and with the 3 things listed above...It does not attract the same following it did. You are adding a board that its only reasons to be there are to make you look cool, and try to kill you. Ron"No free man shall ever be debarred the use of arms." -- Thomas Jefferson, Thomas Jefferson Papers, 334 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
davelepka 4 #14 September 5, 2003 True, but I think the question was why you don't see many skysurfers at DZ's across the country. I'm sure there are fewer competitors in that comp. as compared to five years ago. Stlye and accuracy are still part of competitions across the country, but again, the participation is down from where it once was. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
The111 0 #15 September 5, 2003 Quote4. Limited mobility. You aren't moving very far, or doing a whole lot of tricks aside from spinning and flipping. Docking and tracking around the sky are reserved for the very experienced. 1,2,3,4...3? 5 comes next. I like this explanation a lot. One of the old threads I dug up compared WS to surf tracking speeds; it said that a great skysurfer probably couldn't even keep up with a belly tracker. Off-topic question: how do freefly horizontal speeds compare to belly tracks and wingsuit tracks? I always hear that HD newbies are "all over the sky" so I'm assuming horizontal speed is good, but coupled with the faster downwards speed makes it quite different from WS or belly.www.WingsuitPhotos.com Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
cpoxon 0 #16 September 5, 2003 QuoteUnless... surf BASE! BASE surf actually :-PSkydiving Fatalities - Cease not to learn 'til thou cease to live Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
The111 0 #17 September 5, 2003 Also, I don't think anyone really addressed my question as to why surfing is dangerous? Someone mentioned dbags bouncing off boards, but someone also mentioned that out of the "greats" who died, most of them weren't surfing when their incident occured.www.WingsuitPhotos.com Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
The111 0 #18 September 5, 2003 QuoteQuoteUnless... surf BASE! BASE surf actually :-P Yeh I almost wrote it that way. Now show me a picture of BASE FF!www.WingsuitPhotos.com Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
quade 3 #19 September 5, 2003 Depends on the individual on the board doing the tracking. I think someone small and light on a big board, say Tanya Garcia-O'Brien, might actually be able to out track most freeflyers on a normal tracking dive. Someone larger and a bit heavier might not be able to keep up.quade - The World's Most Boring Skydiver Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
darkwing 4 #20 September 5, 2003 It is interesting that one of the most common questions I get from prospective members of my university skydiving club are something like "can I skysurf?" To address your question though I don't think that skysurfing has ever been "popular," certainly not in proportion to the air time it gets on the television. -- Jeff My Skydiving History Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
quade 3 #21 September 5, 2003 The boards, at least in the early stages of learning, have a kind of life of their own. It's a fairly large surface area on a fairly long lever (your legs). Control is a huge issue especially if something wacky happens like one foot comes loose. Beyond that, there's the problems of what the folks on the boards are normally doing -- fast spins in various positions. Freefly friendly isn't just a term to be bandied about lightly when spinning that fast. A premature deployment will spin up (because you're already spinning) so fast and has so many things to entangle with it isn't funny. The camera flyer has to be very close to this spinning dangerous thing too. It's not like you'd just get a little chest bump.quade - The World's Most Boring Skydiver Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
The111 0 #22 September 5, 2003 Good point Quade. DW you're probably also right. As I said I don't know a lot about skydiving history, but I do know that TV rarely represents anything accurately.www.WingsuitPhotos.com Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Jayruss 0 #23 September 5, 2003 Quote>Why is skysurf so uncommon today? Cause wingsuits came along, and they're a lot more fun! and you can go jump a wingsuit without needing X number of sit fly jumps and lessons etc. I’d say it was hard to get into skysurfing then once there you couldn’t just go do it with your friends. __________________________________________________ "Beware how you take away hope from another human being." -Oliver Wendell Holmes Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
DrewEckhardt 0 #24 September 5, 2003 Skysurfing is neat but it lacks social aspects of other skydiving disciplines which keep them fun after many jumps and isn't scary enough to stay interesting without that. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
FoxHound 0 #25 September 5, 2003 All disiplines have their ups and downs. Believe it or not, Style and Acc was "the shit" at a time. Skysurfing gained it's popularity when freeflying was doing the same. Freeflying was more appealing and just squashed skysurfing. While the bigger more sponsored like beefed skysurfing into the xgames, freeflying was more commonplace at all DZ's. As scary as this thought is, swooping will loose it's appeal and eventually just become another disipline, taken over by the next 'big' thing. Fox Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
