The Art of vRW. The way of freefly by Pat Works

[Katrinka 0]

guys,

who knows where to find this book?
needed english variant, strongly needed!

Its time to rock&roll.

[benbrockwell 0]

http://www.square1.com/manufacturers/square1/p1065.asp

[fedykin 0]

dont get it, i used it as a door stop for a year till it came apart a couple of years ago. not worth the paper its written on

[Katrinka 0]

which ff books do you consider as good ones nowdays?

Its time to rock&roll.

[fedykin 0]

there arent any to be honest, one of the issues with the sport, a body of qualitative data hasnt really been complied and circulated-olav has written some stuff but not for general consumption.
the skydive U dvd's that ive seen are very good though!
the organisation does seem to be very good at structuring and compiling information in a format that is readily usable and intersesting

[KidWicked 0]

Quote

dont get it, i used it as a door stop for a year till it came apart a couple of years ago. not worth the paper its written on

You really have no soul. Pat Works clearly loves freefly (or at least he did when he wrote the book) and put a lot of thought into the book.

There are some real nuggets in there that can teach the new flier a lot.

Coreece: "You sound like some skinheads I know, but your prejudice is with Christians, not niggers..."

[fedykin 0]

yeah, cheers for that, i guess ill go down to the tait and buy tracey emins next works becuause she clearly loves art(in reference to her i use the term very loosely), not because it has any inherent value or she has any technical ability.
this is a completely new way of thinking for all consumers.
IF THE MANUFACTURER CLEARLY LOVES WHAT THEY'RE DOING YOU MUST BUY IT
gotta get my dolphin container and time out dytters on order 'cause they're so passionate about what they do, they put alotta thought into the products- irrespective of the fact that relative to other products they are inferior

and on the point of having real nuggets, 'just feel it', yeah ill pass that one on to my next student, really usefull technical information that empowers others to further thier skill set...

thanks kidwicked you brightened up my day!

[KidWicked 0]

Quote

yeah, cheers for that, i guess ill go down to the tait and buy tracey emins next works becuause she clearly loves art(in reference to her i use the term very loosely), not because it has any inherent value or she has any technical ability.
this is a completely new way of thinking for all consumers.
IF THE MANUFACTURER CLEARLY LOVES WHAT THEY'RE DOING YOU MUST BUY IT
gotta get my dolphin container and time out dytters on order 'cause they're so passionate about what they do, they put alotta thought into the products- irrespective of the fact that relative to other products they are inferior

and on the point of having real nuggets, 'just feel it', yeah ill pass that one on to my next student, really usefull technical information that empowers others to further thier skill set...

thanks kidwicked you brightened up my day!

I'm British and therefore impervious to sarcasm.

Name me a better book about freefly than Pat Works book. I'm all ears.

Coreece: "You sound like some skinheads I know, but your prejudice is with Christians, not niggers..."

[PhreeZone 15]

Brian Germain's Vertical Journey?

Yesterday is history
And tomorrow is a mystery

Parachutemanuals.com

[Andrewnewell 0]

Gotta agree with you on that one!

Door stop! Hahahaha. Like the review!

Yeah Katrinka get your self the Skydive U DVD's (back fly, sit fly) some proper technical thought has been put into those videos.

[fedykin 0]

its funny how things go about, the british claiming to have a decent grip of sarcasm as it trully has its home in the USA. i really believe the british are pretty oblivious to subtlety and wit...things you can only really learn in the US, why dont u drop by mine sometime and ill give you a lesson..

on the book debate, as previously mentioned, there arent any what i would call good guides to freefly, olav has a MASSIVE and highly technical document that even his instructors rarely get a peek at and nothing else is trully what i would call a 'technical document'.
the skydive u DVDs are as good as it gets in the industry as far as im concerned, in terms of related matierial check out 'Mental training for skydiving and life', though anything on modern sports training and conditioning properly adapted is worth its weight in gold

[cutaway1 3]

Probably one of the best things out there to learn basic positions is Trace 101 by Babylon, it is easily obtainable. You have to ignore the promotions and the french smugness, but the part about basic moves is very good, and the form of these flyers is awesome, it is not the greatest ideal guide for students of freefly, but you can learn alot from it. Also Olavs Spacegames 10, if you can find it, has a wonderful section on basic freefly moves. One of the best things you can learn from Pat Works book is the inportance of relaxing. Hope this helps.
Aloha,
Tim

SCR-21

[Vertifly 0]

There is also a section in Worthless Eye Candy that has the basics as it pertains to USPA scoring. The moves are textbook.

[Katrinka 0]

seems like nowdays the best freefly reading is that phrase Ive been told half a year ago "In the
meantime, I would say the best thing you can do now is go skydive! The
freedom of the air will give you more space, confidence and speed to learn
and practice your motions and balance. go jump!!!!"
I watch video, not that you have mentioned from Skydive U.

Its time to rock&roll.

[losty 0]

I think that watching videos and trying to build up a cause / effect relational model in your head is the best way to learn how to freefly. This of course along with coaching when required to guide your “Oh, I SEE” moments. Sometimes it’s needed to open up your eyes.

Building up a model where for example you just visually “know” that pushing your legs down from a sit into a stand causes you to gain speed and travel down in relation to other objects. Just “knowing” in the same way that you “know” how to fly your hand out a car window. Just “knowing” that if you angle your hand in a certain way that the wind will push it accordingly. You can visualise your hand as a wing of sorts. I’m sure most people can relate to that analogy.

Once you understand(an ongoing process of refining your model) it's just a matter of training your body. Some people may disagree but I believe your understanding should surpass your actual physical ability.

In other words: Knowing how to perform a manoeuvre but not being able to actually do it……..yet!

POINT: YOU CAN’T GET BETTER WIHOUT KNOWING WHAT BETTER IS

POINT: WATCH LOTS OF VIDEOS

Those Skydive U videos sound really good.


Another thing I found really helped with Freefly is learning to separate your visual and feeling awareness.

Can you feel your arm for example without visualizing it at the same time?

This internalizing of your visual awareness detracts from your ability to react to what is going on externally. Practice keeping your visual awareness wide with one central focus while FEELING your body.

This is no rigid rule but a general rule of thumb. Sometimes when required it pays to visualize your body while flying and your brain can use the model you have built up from watching tonnes of video. You visualise your body from outside for example to tweak your body position. If you don’t know what causes what how can you make an input with any certainty of response? It’s just blind stabbing around in the dark.

After a certain point the body with an intelligence of it's own requires little outside input and you will fly with little extra concentration. It has come completely habituated.

Separating your visual and kinaesthetic awareness is something to think about anyway. I think that the reason eye contact works so well is it forces our mind external and we react better. We don’t get so bogged down “thinking” about our body position. What is thinking really but being aware of a representation in a sensory fashion? Your thoughts are comprised of sensations.

You can learn to be visually aware externally and completely feel your body at the same time without flickering back and forth. You only need to when required.

So what I’m saying is to build up a visual model and develop the judgement to know when to use it. That would be most definitely on the ground and sometimes in the sky.

On the ground: Muscle memory drills – the process of relating your visual model to a feeling. This is very important and can not be stressed enough.

In the sky: Docks etc. or when learning sometimes it helps to visualise your body position.

POINT: LEARN TO USE YOUR MINDS EYE INDEPENDENTLY OF YOUR PHYSICAL EYE AND INDEPENDENT OF YOUR KINAESTHETIC AWARENESS

One of my coaches when I was just first learning to freefly really stressed the importance of muscle memory and eye contact.

He suggested that while on the ground I should practice keeping my head and eyes on one point while I monkeyd around, spinning around and getting all twisted up. Dancers and martial artists actually do similar exercises and in skydiving tradition rel workers drill it in with their creeper work. You just have to think in more dimensions – move your body in as many ways as you can while keeping your head and eyes pointed towards a fixed point. Practice it until it feels completely natural. This didn’t seem like work to me – just “play” with it.

POINT: TRAIN YOUR BODY ON THE GROUND AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE – ITS CHEAPER THAN SKYDIVING AND CHEAPER THAN A TUNNEL.

There is a lot to play around with and think about – a lot more than I have time for to share now and a lot I don’t know. Hopefully this can be of some assistance though.

Just keep playing and be patient. I use to be always in a hurry to get somewhere without even knowing where I wanted to go. Life is more process than end product. It’s more of a journey than a destination.

There is A LOT of literature out there that you can apply to skydiving. Thousands of years of evolved thought. Skydiving has only been around for how long ? Look outside traditional skydiving information and you will find some gems.

Yahoo Serious

[Katrinka 0]

wow....
THANK YOU! I was really impressed....

Its time to rock&roll.

[patworks 5]

Copies of this book, I still have. The video is outdated. I beleive the words hold their own.

Pat Works nee Madden Travis Works, Jr .B1575, C1798, D1813, Star Crest Solo#1, USPA#189,

[Katrinka 0]

hi Pat!
thank you
I would like to get it - the way its book was written is very positive!

Its time to rock&roll.

[rhys 0]

Good on you katrinka,

there are far too many negative people on this site that put people off.

If all you get out of the book are a couple of good pointers.... then it is wort it.

I also suggest trace 101 and the university videos.

Take it all in. and keep that endless smile


Rhys

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