3 minute women/men numbers?

[Catwatch 0]

Hi everybody
Yesterday an idea crossed my mind. What about giving out numbers, just like base numbers for everyone who flew more than 3 minutes from, say 14000 feet agl in a wingsuit? Just to mark it as an life time achievement of some kind. Maybe this would also be a promotion idea for some manufacturers...One could prove the jump with gps or protrack data....
What do you think?

Greets
Christian

P.S. Hey Jari I sell this idea to your company for a brand new S3S...just for you to know ..

[voodew1 0]

I wish i could last 3 minutes but hell I am all about me anyways ---- who cares if she gets hers

There was that one night after lots of beer and a few hydrocodones -- I think i made it 4 minutes but there was no video so i guess it doesn't count!!!

The pimp hand is powdered up ... say something stupid

[pbla4024 0]

Protrack will not work.

Fido

[Costyn 0]

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Protrack will not work.

Nope... silly ProTrack stops counting after 119 seconds.

Its time for me to buy a Neptune I think.

Cheers

Costyn van Dongen - http://www.flylikebrick.com/ - World Wide Wingsuit News

[pbla4024 0]

I§m not talking about that bug. There is other one. Below 1400m is Protrack more sensitive, so I got opening altitude 1300 or something like that.

Fido

[SkymonkeyONE 3]

Your numbering system would not be accurate no matter how hard you tried so I don't see the point.

[jojo0815 0]

keep in mind that not all WS jumpers are chasing numbers all the time. in fact most people I have flown with so far are way more interested in flocking than anything else.
and then don't forget that there are people out there already chasing the 4 minute mark from below 14,000 ft ...

I have flown my GPS only a couple of times, never fly it on flocks though. If you are the competitive type chasing numbers do WS hop & pops.... those are so much fun... especially if you have somebody in the plane film your exit and you hear the other people scream "PULL... GOD DAMNIT PULL!!!!!!"

[Catwatch 0]

Maybe you guys missed my point. My idea was to introduce numbers just like base numbers to mark a flight over 3 minutes as a life time achievement only very few people reach in their life. As a 3 minute man or woman you could feel in some way special. I know that proving this is hard and can be faked but this is also possible with base numbers, isn't it?

Btw. whats the best time you've heard of from 14000 agl?really 4 minutes?

[SkymonkeyONE 3]

I didn't miss your point at all. I am just telling you that what you propose; faking; would absolutely happen without video documentation. Also, most people who have gone three minutes simply would not give a shit about applying for such a number; I know I would not. Particularly not if there were any way to make sure the numbers were issued to each and every person who had done the feat, and in order. But hey, that's just me.

Chuck Blue
BMCI

[The111 0]

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Btw. whats the best time you've heard of from 14000 agl?really 4 minutes?

Scary Perry told me this past weekend that he recently got 3:45 from either 14k or 14.5k, I think, in his V1. (saying that Scary Perry pulls low is an understatement, btw )

www.WingsuitPhotos.com

[gus 1]

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My idea was to introduce numbers just like base numbers to mark a flight over 3 minutes as a life time achievement only very few people reach in their life.

Trouble is, the way things are headed, 3 minute jumps will be commonplace before too long.

Gus

OutpatientsOnline.com

[KrisFlyZ 0]

Unless one is really 'flying'(not cupping air) trying to achieve something like this is detrimental to the process of learning to fly. Search the forums and see how much I babbled about long flights. I don't really care for that now.

If you want to spend your energy on numbers anyway, spend it trying to GPS your flights. You will learn more about flying than by looking at Neptune numbers as soon as you get down(I used to do this so I know).

Kris.

[The111 0]

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Unless one is really 'flying'(not cupping air) trying to achieve something like this is detrimental to the process of learning to fly.

Respectfully, I think that is a loaded statement. "Learning to fly" has many aspects, and slow flight just so happens to be one of those aspects, and takes skills of its own. I know, because I am not the best at slow flight (just did my new best of 155 seconds this weekend but most people with my experience/build can do much better). I do agree with the sentiment that focusing ONLY on slow flight will make you a poor all-around flyer. But I do not think there is anything wrong with working on that skill if you want. There's no shame in desiring a "long" skydive - admit it, when we describe wingsuits to whuffos (skydivers), the first question we answer (or info we volunteer) is usually how long a flight can be. Currently I'm very happy with my flocking skills and am working on acrobatics and slow flight when I get a break from flocking.

EDIT: With regards to "cupping air", that is not how I achieve slow decent rates in my S3. If I try to cup air I usually stall and start picking up speed. I basically make my body straight and then roll my shoulders, chest, and hips (a tad), and tuck my chin. I know this technique works because I've had sustained speeds (40 seconds or so) around 36mph. I just don't have the energy to hold this position for a whole jump!

www.WingsuitPhotos.com

[piisfish 135]

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Protrack will not work.

video will

scissors beat paper, paper beat rock, rock beat wingsuit - KarlM

[TomAiello 25]

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...admit it, when we describe wingsuits to whuffos (skydivers), the first question we answer (or info we volunteer) is usually how long a flight can be.

Weird. The first thing I usually volunteer is how fast the forward speed can be. The next thing is usually the glide angle. I think that non-jumpers I have talked to have usually been more interested in "people are going a hundred miles an hour forward" kind of talk, rather than "people are making 5 minute skydives" kind of stuff. I generally thought that they found it easier to relate to a forward speed, especially because when I've volunteered, "it can make a skydive x minutes long" they've usually replied with "but I thought skydives were 10 to 15 minutes long anyway?"

On the underlying point, I think you've got something there. Learning to fly in different ways is just as admirable a goal as getting the best glide angle. Perhaps a "wingsuit dolphin" rating? Or maybe numbers for those who can achieve a 3 to 1 glide ratio?

It's all just silliness anyway. The best wingsuit pilot is the one who is having the most fun.

-- Tom Aiello

[email protected]
SnakeRiverBASE.com

[The111 0]

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The best wingsuit pilot is the one who is having the most fun.

I win!

You are right though Tom, I should have said "one of the first things we point out" about wingsuit flight. I do usually talk about distance covered, glide angle, and CLOUD SWOOPING first. :) But inevitably ONE of the first questions I get is "how long is your freefall?"

www.WingsuitPhotos.com

[KrisFlyZ 0]

Matt,

I think wearing a wingsuit and cupping air to get the maximum times is something one will have to unlearn. I know all about cupping air and wasting skydives.

Kris.

[The111 0]

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I think wearing a wingsuit and cupping air to get the maximum times is something one will have to unlearn. I know all about cupping air and wasting skydives.

Kris,

I agree with you, as I said earlier, that spending all your jumps chasing numbers will not make you a well rounded flyer. And if that's all you do for a long time after your first WS, you will have to LEARN how to flock, and it may be harder than if you had started flocking earlier.

BUT, the simple act of making a slow jump does not mean you have to unlearn something after that jump. Different skills in skydiving are not exclusive. You can know how to do two different things and only do one at the given moment. An example: many people can excel in RW and WS, while very experienced RW jumpers who try to get into WS often have a hard time getting rid of their arch. Saying they have to "unlearn" RW is sort of, in my opinion, an inccurate way of saying they need to learn something new. They can still keep their RW skills in their back pocket. In the same way, it's inaccurate to say slow flight in a wingsuit will have to be unlearned.

As a sidenote, cupping air (slow flight) is not only useful for number chasing. Ever been first out of a plane full of jumpers? Ever fucked up an exit? Ever been taken out in the middle of a flock and found yourself 1000ft low? When you are low on a flock, it is very useful to know how to get back up.
I agree and do stress to newer jumpers that the first thing they need to do once they're comfortable is to start flocking!

www.WingsuitPhotos.com

[notsane 0]

If you're having fun, it's not a wasted skydive. And I can't think of any other reason to do this stuff.

Put on a wingsuit and flock, BASE, go for numbers, do aerobatics, swoop clouds, go alone or with friends ... whatever you like. It's all a BLAST!

Like Matt says: "Wingsuits are like sex; I don't need a partner to have a good time"

Scott

[The111 0]

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Like Matt says: "Wingsuits are like sex; I don't need a partner to have a good time"

Hey, you weren't supposed to hear that!

www.WingsuitPhotos.com

[maretus 0]

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My idea was to introduce numbers just like base numbers to mark a flight over 3 minutes as a life time achievement only very few people reach in their life. As a 3 minute man or woman you could feel in some way special. I know that proving this is hard and can be faked but this is also possible with base numbers, isn't it?

I think nobody missed your point but are you kind of missing the point of this sport ? I mean do you really need a "3min man" -badge and a number to feel that you've accomplished something or that you feel someway "special" ? It's the same with base numbers, not all base jumpers ever apply for a number even if they do jump all of the objects, why would they ? Getting your BASE number or "3min man" -number isn't going to change anything and personally in this sport I'm not that keen on any badges or signs of accomplishment, I'm just in it for the fun of it.

http://www.ufufreefly.com

[lurch 0]

There is no such thing as a wasted wingsuit flight. I've had some uneventful ones where I didn't even have a plan just soloed out like "I'll just fly around awhile just for the fuck of it." I'm timid about barrel rolls so I might throw in a few, work on my (very poor) technique. I don't really go for times anymore... I just do flights where I just want to relax and hang out in the sky with no canopy and sometimes it winds up being that long but its not the point anymore. Besides once you do 3 min a few times it goes from being a goal to being no big deal. Now I'm all about teaching the new birds here all about getting as slow as they can so we can ALL have long flights... But I find flying with others at twice the descent rate I'd do alone is a blast... so I don't care if they can do slow too.
I'll admit I occasionally think about the uniqueness of birdman status, allow myself a bit of pride, how many people alive can do what I just did kind of thing.... I'm sure the number of 3-minute birdpeople alive could all fit in a small room but after awhile that doesn't really matter anymore either... On to the next new thing, too much to learn to honk your own horn forever about each new skill...

Live and learn... or die, and teach by example.

[KrisFlyZ 0]

I meant 'A head up' angle wingsuit dive 'hugging the ball'. Ofcourse I had fun on every single wingsuit flight(Did a 150 mostly solo wingsuit flights at SDC last year) ...it's just in retrospect that I feel I could have learnt more if the concentration was not so much on time. If we can get that point across to newbies we should.

It is not much of an issue on solos, but on flocks a head up position(among other things) causes wobbles and generally makes it look bad on video. You know what I am talking about Matt.

Kris.

[mccordia 73]

[The111 0]

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You know what I am talking about Matt.

I have no idea what you mean... (see attachment)

We're on the same page, Kris.

www.WingsuitPhotos.com