Question for any small TI's out there.

[Cari 0]

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I have met a few very talented smaller instructors, it is very possible to be a TI be small and be a very good instructor. Kim is the one of the most talented skydivers I have ever met. She is phenomenal, I am not a great judge of height but I would say she is maybe 5'5" or 5'6". Kim can take any size of person do 10-15 tandems in a day, pack most all of them(if not all of them) herself, do handycam and land everyone to a stand up(without any help from the student).
In my opinion being shorter just means you have to be more talented and creative than us taller instructors.

Oohhh...that's encouraging! Thanks! :)

[AggieDave 6]

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I have to laugh every time I hear about the high toggle pressure on EZ 384s

Then you must laugh about people wanting to jump only Icarus tandem mains since the toggle pressure on the Sigma 370 is too high.

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

[Kimblair13 0]

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I am not a great judge of height but I would say she is maybe 5'5" or 5'6"

HEY! I'm 5'8". Or at least I was before I started doing tandems.

[TheCaptain 2]

Sorry Kim (Generally), I think of people as either short than me, same height or taller than me. I really do not look much beyond that and you fit into the catagory of short than I.

Kirk
He's dead Jim

[riggerrob 558]

Hah!
I am even older than you, because I jumped Pioneer Hi-Lifters and PD 360s as Mains!
Tee!
Hee!

Alkso jumped Galxy 400, PD 421, Strong 425, 520, EZ 384, Firebolt 396, Jump Shack rectangular 400 and 500 as main canopies.
Mind you, the heaviest toggle pressures were on Strong 520s. At Hemet we just tied all four steering lines to two toggles and muscled our way around the sky.
Those 520s opened like freight trains! I blew up far more 520s than I care to remember.

Modern tandem instructors have it easy.

[Andrewwhyte 1]

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Hah!
I am even older than you,

Who you talking to? Moses?

[rhys 0]

My freind is a small-medium sized female, she can't reach the drouge on the ground, yet she has over 2000 tandem jumps,

once your customer is connected the harness sits higher and it is no problem.

attitude is the key,

Micro sigmas are much smaller in the yoke, and the adjustable main lift webs make it a perfect rig for small people, if i can take a 6'5 275lb student, (i am 5'8 and 160lb) then a 5' 110lb person can take a 200lb 6 ft person.

It is all about technique, attitude and a decent briefing.

"When the power of love overcomes the love of power, then the world will see peace." - 'Jimi' Hendrix

[SkymonkeyONE 3]

I am 5'7 and 155 pounds and have over 1500 tandems. Another thing to consider for smaller wannabe TI's is simply buying your own rig to ensure it fits you, and buying a suitable low-toggle-pressure main. My 2K3 Racer tandem rig weighs 38 pounds, fits me like a glove, and my Firebolt 350 (should have bought a 330) has low toggle pressure and swoops great. My rig has no bulky adjustable lift webs and was built specifically for me; perfect. I have a ton of jumps on Sigmas as well and never had any problems with their size. I have jumped people over a foot taller than me and over 100 pounds heavier than me with no problems whatsoever. I made the decision to jump larger people after I got supreme confidence in my own abilities and worked out what weaknesses I had. I have never, ever had a problem with the taller/heavier students; only the short/skinny girls who want to perform the pike and cat-on-a-hot-tin-roof maneuvers.

If you are a small person and jump at a Strong DZ then you have your work cut out for you. It's the only US tandem system rating that I do not have and do not want. WAY to long, big and bulky for my taste. That's not saying anything about their durability and reliability; only their bulk/size. YMMV

Chuck Blue
D-12501
AFF/SL/TM-I, PRO, S&TA

[aironscott 3]

5'9" 185 lbs. And I hate Strongs too.

“God Damn Mountain Dew MotherFuckers!”

[mischo 0]

You are not Girly, you are a viking goddess

[lewmonst 0]

Thank you.

I'll always be Valkyrie to you...

http://www.exitshot.com

[toolbox 0]

I remember the old canopies and I remember thinking how easy to use the 384's and the set 400's were.

[toolbox 0]

All BS aside,a larger TI who is fit,athletic,and knows how to fly,will always out perform a smaller TI.
It is plain old physics at work here.
This said,it does not mean smaller TI's are not good or that they are unable to haul meat. It means they will work alot harder to do so and will be more likely to struggle for control both in FF and under canopy.
You won't know wether you can do it until you do it.

[quicksilver8 0]

sorry gotta disagree with you there.

ask taff clarke my examiner, he was the best dude at tandem aff and camera. he could skydive the ass of most people, do it all day every day, with a smile and never complained. all at low drag levels, i think he was around 5ft 2.
as he said to me once method and technique will beat muscle any day, and i,m 6ft1

[riggerrob 558]

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All BS aside,a larger TI who is fit,athletic,and knows how to fly,will always out perform a smaller TI.
It is plain old physics at work here.
This said,it does not mean smaller TI's are not good or that they are unable to haul meat. It means they will work alot harder to do so and will be more likely to struggle for control both in FF and under canopy.
You won't know wether you can do it until you do it.

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May I half disagree with you?

If large TIs can out-muscle students, they never have to bother learning to out-fly students.
I have worked with plenty of large, muscular TIs who only had the vaguest clue about what happened in the air.

OTOH small TIs have to learn how to out-fly their students from the start.

[toolbox 0]

A larger TI who is fit,athletic,and KNOWS HOW TO FLY! YOU MUST KNOW HOW TO FLY! no matter what you have for surface area or strength.
I also know some great smaller TI's and I know some great larger TI's.
The bottom line is, know matter how you feel about it,a larger TI will out perform a smaller TI of equal skill and many times even of greater skill.
It is simply physics.
Does this mean only large people should do tandems? Hell no! If you can do it if you can do it,if you can't you can't. My advice to anyone large or small who want's to do tandems is go for it,but remember that tandems are by nature the most dangerous skydive an experienced skydiver can make.
When things are going bad,it is nice to have a little extra horsepower to go with all that skill.
A little good luck is nice also,even though some poeple believe luck has nothing to do with it.
P.S you can disagree with me completely if you want.
Blue skies!

[toolbox 0]

I agree! But how about method and technique with a little more power to back it up?

[jumpwally 0]

Somewhere on this site is a pic of a really tall guy hooked to a really tiny TI, its funny as hell, i suck at searching tho,,,,,,

smile, be nice, enjoy life
FB # - 1083

[BUBLHED 0]

I'm not a TI, I can speak as a large person who had a small TI. I did the tandem progression years ago.
At the time I was 6'3" and 230 lbs. my TI was 5'8" 165. He had absolutely no problem stabilizing us in freefall. What's amazing is that this was after some incredibly bad exits. We were in a C-206 so climbing out on the step HE was the passenger. When on the step ready for exit in order for me to make enough room for him I was curled up into almost a ball. It was impossible for us to do anything but a backloop of the step. Before the third jump the DZO and my TI were discussing my bad exits with me. We went to the mockup and after getting into position discovered the only way for us to have enough room for any kind of poised exit I would have to have my right leg hanging of the step. We still had to leave slightly to the side but were able to get decent exits. This was in 1986, I know that flipping exits are common now, but at our DZ back then they were frowned upon. So even with horrible exits it can be worked out, and a small TI with good technique can make a good instructor for someone much larger than themselves. Hope this helps you or any TI from the passengers perspetive.

PS He taught me the flare on the way down and we both flared for landing. Nice easy stand-ups every time.

ATTACK LIFE ! IT'S GOING TO KILL YOU ANYWAY!!!!

[riggerrob 558]

"... This was in 1986, I know that flipping exits are common now, but at our DZ back then they were frowned upon. ..."

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Flipped exits are still frowned upon at many DZs.
Flipped exits are seen as poor planing/poor flying ability on the part of the TI.

Similarly, I quit doing poised exits after bending a reserve ripcord pin back in 1990.

[matthewcline 0]

Is the "no more poised exits" decision from C-182/206 type A/C with a swing up door? Would it change for you if it was a roll up door from the same A/C?

Matt

An Instructors first concern is student safety.
So, start being safe, first!!!

[riggerrob 558]

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Is the "no more poised exits" decision from C-182/206 type A/C with a swing up door? Would it change for you if it was a roll up door from the same A/C?

Matt

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Two separate issues here ....

Let's get our terminology straight.

"Swing up" doors are usually stiff and made of aluminum and installed beside the co-pilot's seat of single-engined Cessnas. Too many swing-up doors have exposed handles, locking bars, rough edges, etc. just waiting to snag reserve pins.

"Roll up" doors are rare. Roll up doors are made of fabric with wood or metal stiffeners and secured to the door frame with Velcro. I have only seen them on cargo door Cessna 206, Caravan and Twin Otter. I have never seen a roll-up installed in a Cessna with a co-pilot's door. Because they require two or three hands to roll up and secure - they are too cumbersome when you only have a lone tandem onboard. Roll up doors were rare in the 1990s and I have not seen a roll-up door in this century.

They were largely replaced by "slide up" doors made of clear Lexan. Slide up doors are standard on most Twin Otters used for skydiving and are also popular in Caravans and cargo door Cessna 206.
Apparently single-piece, Lexan slide-up doors have been installed in the co-pilot's position of a few single-engined Cessnas, but I have not jumped them. I suspect that slide-up doors reduce the - already tiny amount of - head room in a Cessna cabin.

[riggerrob 558]

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Is the "no more poised exits" decision from C-182/206 type A/C with a swing up door? Would it change for you if it was a roll up door from the same A/C?

Matt

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I hated poised exits when I earned my TI rating back in 1986.

I hate poised exits even more after bending a reserve pin - during a poised exit - in 1990. That was he last time I did a poised exit from a Cessna.

In conclusion I hate poised exits.

Rob Warner
Strong Tandem Examiner

[matthewcline 0]

Yeah, "slide up" would have been the proper term, oops.

I have seen 1 "roll up" (Paris, TN) and 2 "slide ups" (Ohio and Florida), all the rest have been "swing up" style using the original door modified.

I prefer diving type exits from the C-182/206 type A/C.

As to the head space issue for a "slide up", yeah it does take some of the usable space away.

"No shit there I was" on my "first slide" up C-182 exit in Florida as T-I. Videographer Yells "DOOR!" and WHAM! right up side the mellon I get wacked. I am leaning on the edge of the pilots seat and my head has stopped the door about half open. So what would the Videographer do in this case? Yep you guessed it, reload and WHAM! shot to the head number two! I "tapped" the fellow on the shoulder and got his attention, he let me duck the third attempt at trying to take my frap hat off.

Matt

An Instructors first concern is student safety.
So, start being safe, first!!!

[riggerrob 558]

"I prefer diving type exits from the C-182/206 type A/C."

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We agree on that point.