Trying to get a canopy course at my DZ

[EFS4LIFE 0]

Ok so I was wondering if anyone knew of a good canopy course instructor that is willing to travel to our DZ and conduct a course. We are located in Missouri near St. Louis. I have received permission from my DZO to look into organizing a course. If anyone can refer me to someone it would be appreciated.

I am also looking into how many jumpers in my area would be willing to commit to attending. Just starting to look into things right now, but I know I need it, and a lot of the newer jumpers in my area would probably attend as well.

Thanks for any help in advance.

I am an asshole, but I am honest

[DocPop 1]

Here's a starting point for you.

http://flight-1.com/school/

"The ground does not care who you are. It will always be tougher than the human behind the controls."

~ CanuckInUSA

[chaospilot 5]

Also Brian Germain....he visited Skydive Kansas City earlier this year.www.briangermain.com

Bryan Cavage, D-19100
AFF I, Tandem I, Vidiot
http://www.dropzonesolutions.com
-Social Media Consultant and Skydiving Gear Guru

[danielcroft 2]

I've done Brian Germain's course and I'm currently trying to organize to get Flight-1 out to my DZ as well (damn Ian, where's my update?).

Good work trying to organize!

When I started talking to flight-1, I had the course added to our DZ newsletter and just had people contact me that way. If that's not an option for you, try posting up a flyer at your DZ to get interest and just generally ask around.

I think I mentioned in the other thread that flight-1 requires at least 6 and at most 10 jumpers in the Essentials course. There's also and Advanced course but that's a separate course.

Good luck dude, hope you can get them out there.

[skybytch 259]

There is no one at your dz capable of teaching basic canopy control? Wow.

[projekt9 0]

I never post on here but recent events at my DZ made me realize that the SIM needs some revision.

At my DZ there are lots of capable people that can teach basic canopy control. But there is where it ends. There are not many people able to teach anything more than what they can spew from the SIM. The people that DO know advanced canopy control (and I am not just talking about swooping) are too busy working all day or are unwilling to help the younger jumpers.

People at my DZ get yelled at when they make honest mistakes under canopy and the AFF instructors have nobody to blame but themselves - there is a lack of instruction that goes beyone basic canopy control and basic landing patterns. The SIM needs to be revised to include more canopy related material and the AFF instructors need to get their act in gear and teach better canopy related information. I have been brought in on more than one AFF category lesson that was dealing with canopy stuff because I understand and explain it better - and I am not an AFF instructor.

As for courses... the best thing anyone can do is to take a canopy course or at least ask questions of competent people. I have seen too often someone giving advice when they don't know sh*t. Flight 1 is your best alternative, I think. I have heard a lot of complaints about Germain.

Just my opinion. I jump at a very canopy paranoid DZ and it is an uphill battle for everyone looking to do more with their parachute than to use it to land after a sky jump.

[thrillstalker 0]

contact ian drennen. he is a mod on dz.com

"Never grow a wishbone, where your backbone ought to be."

[buff 0]

Quote

At my DZ there are lots of capable people that can teach basic canopy control. But there is where it ends. There are not many people able to teach anything more than what they can spew from the SIM. The people that DO know advanced canopy control (and I am not just talking about swooping) are too busy working all day or are unwilling to help the younger jumpers.

People at my DZ get yelled at when they make honest mistakes under canopy and the AFF instructors have nobody to blame but themselves - there is a lack of instruction that goes beyone basic canopy control and basic landing patterns.

AFF - accelerated free fall
There's your problem. Get em up in the air quickly and who cares what happens after they pass those 7 levels.

Your profile says you are an instructor and you post shows that your DZ has an instructional problem. Do something about it. It's really that simple.

Pass up the jumps, money, whatever, and put it on your shoulders. Be leader, be an instructor, be the guy who gives students the tools to survive.

It's called the Hillbilly Hop N Pop dude.
If you're gonna be stupid, you better be tough.
That's fucked up. Watermelons do not grow on trees! ~Skymama

[projekt9 0]

I agree with you.

I have a tandem rating, but not AFF. I have often thought that I should become an AFF instructor and I think I'd be a good one. But you are absolutely right, I should play a bigger role and get people more comfortable under their canopy.

But, the problem still exists that, from my perspective, there are a lot of AFF instructors that can't correctly teach the canopy portions of the lessons. This isn't their fault entirely, it is that to become an AFF instructor, you don't to pass any strict canopy control tests... it is basically all freefall. Revise the IRM and SIM!

A couple weekends ago a guy who is an AFF instructor, tandem instructor, coach, etc. broke his back. He has over 1000 jumps and made some mistakes that shock the hell out of everyone. On a hop and pop he somehow couldn't make it back to the LZ, ended up having to downwind it in a baseball field of all places. He freaked and was flying in deep brakes all the way on final and just before landing he thought it would be a good idea to stall his canopy out on rears. Conclusion, broken vertabrae. Remedy, revise the IRM so that instructors have to prove they know how to fly a canopy before they teach it and then revise the SIM so that they are actually teaching students how to fly a parachute instead of how to just make it back to the LZ and land.

The root of all these canopy related inuries sand fatalities isn't because someone is downsizing too quickly, it is because they are not given the fundamentals of flight from the beginning.

[skybytch 259]

Quote

The people that DO know advanced canopy control (and I am not just talking about swooping) are too busy working all day or are unwilling to help the younger jumpers.

I have been brought in on more than one AFF category lesson that was dealing with canopy stuff because I understand and explain it better - and I am not an AFF instructor.

There is no requirement for an AFF rating to teach a basic canopy control course. There's a basic outline of Flight 1's course in the SIM. What's stopping YOU from putting a course together?

[davelepka 4]

Quote

I have a tandem rating, but not AFF. I have often thought that I should become an AFF instructor and I think I'd be a good one.

You don't need any rating to teach a canopy control course. Thanks to the USPA, there is no structure or system in place, so anyone can teach anything they want with regards to canopy control.

That sounds bad, but the long and short of it is that if you want to target licensed jumpers, you are free to conduct any course your DZ will allow (if you intend to teach it at a DZ, you can teach ANYTHING you want at home in your garage).

I'd be willing to bet, however, that if you presented a syllabus to your DZO that was correct and complete, and didn't contradict the primary training they do at your DZ, they would also allow the unlicensed jumpers (aka, their students) take your course as well.

[SRI85 0]

Greg Windmiller runs an awesome course, i know plenty of people that have taken other courses and learned alot more with him.

I didnt think i could get much more performance from my canopy, until i took Gregs course. He changed that. Also learned some stuff that i ended saving my ass.