iam 0 #1 March 18, 2003 Can anyon give me some tips on how best to exit when filming tandems. I am getting far too much seperation on exit and its taking me upto 15secs to get in fromt of them. I know its probably just practice and being a bit more aggresive, but i would still appreciate any tips. Thanks Ian"Don't ever knock on deaths door, just ring the bell and run away - it really pisses him off" Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
mountainman 0 #2 March 18, 2003 I'm no expert, but you may want to try and describe HOW you are exiting right now so they can perhaps prescribe you something different. Just a thought so they know what you are already trying and may find a fault in that alone. http://www.brandonandlaura.com Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
iam 0 #3 March 18, 2003 Good Point, at the moment i'm floating from the step on a Nomad which has a left handed door. I seem to be getting much more horizontal seperation than i do when i film 4-way. I am not doing anything special on my exit, just trying to keep my wings in and my eye on the tandem. Ian"Don't ever knock on deaths door, just ring the bell and run away - it really pisses him off" Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
underdog 0 #4 March 18, 2003 leave the plane just a hair before the tandem, tuck in your wings and arch. if you leave too early, track up at them while on the hill. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
PhreeZone 15 #5 March 18, 2003 Be aggressive on the exit, legs all the way out, wings in arched hard. Drive towards the tandem. If it takes more then about 5-6 seconds your leaving too early. I've seen the drogue once so that was to late of an exit for me. But you should be driving hard once the drogue is tossed.Yesterday is history And tomorrow is a mystery Parachutemanuals.com Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
YahooLV 0 #6 March 18, 2003 Also, how many jumps do you have? It took me a "few " jumps to get the timing right. Also, if you can, get the tandem masters to have similiar exit counts. Out-in-out seems to work for me. Leave just a touch before them, drive hard to them and watch out for the drogue. Get that all-important opening face shot if you can. Have fun!!!http://www.curtisglennphotography.com Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Deuce 1 #7 March 18, 2003 What aircraft? The exits are different. JP Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
diablopilot 2 #8 March 18, 2003 I'm trying to remember the door of a Nomad so forgive me if this makes little sense. When you leave the aircraft you are going to be affected buy the relative wind more so than the tandem pair. they will seem to drop out on you a bit. This may help. Get low on the step. Rather than standing upright, try taking a grip on the aft door frame about even with the tandem's shoulders. This will put you in position to launch at them a little easier. Think about pointing your head/helmet at the pair like the tip of an arrow. That way when you leave WITH them you are already in a track towards them. If your timing is good you can just shift to your usual filming position. PLEASE NOTE! As both a Cameraman and a Tandem instructor I can tell you this, the instructor with all he/she has to deal with does not want to be hit by the camera person. SO in using the above advice, and with any method you chose I recommend you keep this in the front of your mind on exit. If in doubt on the exit count, leave late and peal off after the pair. If you work it right it can be dramatic video, and it is safer than hitting them. Good luck!---------------------------------------------- You're not as good as you think you are. Seriously. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
danwayland 0 #9 March 18, 2003 People are telling you to leave earlier, but when I first started flying student camera, I wanted to stay tight, but the pre drogue tandem fall rate was sometimes very challenging. If that's your problem, then what worked for me was this: As soon as you exit, reach back with both hands, grab your own ass, and shove it forward arching like mad. This helps you arch much harder than you previously imagined possible and takes your camera suit wings out of the wind. It also looks surprisingly cool, and it's all about looking cool. With a little practice, you should be able to leave right with them and stay tight, steep and deep. Try to keep the plane in the shot because: A - that's a cool shot and B - if the plane's in the shot then there's no way you're getting hit by the drogue. Later on, if you get to be a good headdowner, just roll onto your head when things get fast. However, do not consider that an option until you're consistently able to make controlled docks headdown. You don't want to risk zooming right into the tandem pair or the drogue. Wait till you do some AFF videos and find out what kind of counts those cats give you! check out, check in, up, out, leg, ready, out, hot, shackedy, in, go! Dan http://www.danwayland.com-- Dan Wayland http://www.danwayland.com Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Deuce 1 #10 March 18, 2003 So jp, is the door like a KingAir or an Otter? Anyhow, I get the best exits the lower I am on the door frame. Because the step on a KingAir sticks out at right angle to the fuselage, I can put the ball of my left foot on it and grab the lower half of the door frame, looking up at the faces of the pair. I don't leave until they're committed. Screw the count, it isn't constant. Leaving is leaving, though. I chunk my exits. A trick that Jim Gold taught me is to collapse the wings and put the hands over the chest in a prayer position. Aim the hands where you want to go. I also bring my knees together and up to increase my fall rate. I open up when the drogue is out. I've got a tandem master that tosses the drogue right at exit. If I was standing in the door frame it would hit me. (Yes it's dangerous) Being down low in the door like that also makes making the exit on your back possible, rolling over with your arms at your sides. It's a lot harder than it looks. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
diablopilot 2 #11 March 18, 2003 Quote So jp, is the door like a KingAir or an Otter? Well JP I seem to remember it beeing more like an Otter or Caravan. Quote Anyhow, I get the best exits the lower I am on the door frame. Because the step on a KingAir sticks out at right angle to the fuselage, I can put the ball of my left foot on it and grab the lower half of the door frame, looking up at the faces of the pair. I don't leave until they're committed. Screw the count, it isn't constant. Leaving is leaving, though. This is exactly the type of exit I was trying to describe, except I put my hands behind my back and my elbows are touching my hips. Quote I've got a tandem master that tosses the drogue right at exit. If I was standing in the door frame it would hit me. (Yes it's dangerous) Hmmm.. sounds like they are compensating for a lack of something Especially with a low tail King Air. The only King Air I've done camera from did not have a camera step, so I had to share the door with the tandem. You're right, it's difficult. Thats one of the many reasons I prefer not to jump King Airs. Quote It's a lot harder than it looks. Really? I had a wuffo in a bar recently tell me "Skydiving isn't so hard!"---------------------------------------------- You're not as good as you think you are. Seriously. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Deuce 1 #12 March 18, 2003 Quote "Skydiving isn't so hard!" Yeah! That's why it's so cheap, and so many people do it Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
iam 0 #13 March 19, 2003 Thanks for all the tips....got some new things to try in the next couple of weekends, oh, and btw, the door is mor like a caravan door but higher i would say. Thanks again. Ian"Don't ever knock on deaths door, just ring the bell and run away - it really pisses him off" Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
f1freak 0 #14 March 19, 2003 Let them "Peel" you off, it may feel like you're gonna be right on top of them but you'll find it really helps, also tracking to them from the start may help... now i have had some tm's that want to take the pair to terminal before drogue deployment and if thats the case, letting them drop off a little before you will help on the horizontal problem...HAVE FUN... ...JUST DONT DIE Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
prost 0 #15 March 19, 2003 I have found that the best belly exit is to leave just before the tandem with your hands and feet on your butt. This will make you fall most like a tandem. At first you will be a little below them so you get the plane in the background. Just before they throw the drogue they will pass you. If you arch hard and stay in this position you should only get about 30 feet of horizontal separation. William Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
diveout 0 #16 March 22, 2003 A normal head down exit is the best way to stay with a drogueless tandem pair, you'll have to be on it when the drogue comes our, but you won't be very far away, guaranteed. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
