Skydiving is a sport that may make you shake to your core, that is if you're afraid of heights. So let's know the basics of skydiving, to make us feel a little bit safer when we try to jump. Skydivers can fly laterally, they can also do barrel rolls, somersaults, swooping dives, and glide and soar like a bird. But how do they do that?
This is because the falling body reaches Terminal Velocity. There are no acceleration, the body have gained a steady momentum because the atmospheric drag or air resistance and body weight became equal and opposite. At terminal velocity, the falling sensation disappears. The Terminal velocity makes it easier to perform acrobatics, formations or just take picture from the specially mounted camera.
Remarkably, skydiving is a safe sport. Those who experience accidents are often under a fully functioning canopies and experienced jumpers who try to do extreme movements. Beginner accidents are rare and fatalities due to malfunctioning equipment are rarer still.
There are four essentials in skydiving: fundamental safety, free fall plan, parachute usage and manipulation, and safe landing.
With fundamental safety, this means knowing the how and when of this sport. Checking the gear, proper procedure in jumping, presence of mind in case of emergency, parachute deployment, managing parachute failure, selecting a good landing site and actual landing is included in fundamental safety.
A skydiving beginner should learn how to maneuver or turn the body while in free fall. It is important for the diver to manage a stable position while falling downward at a velocity of 120 mph. This is the second basic element in skydiving.
Parachute usage and manipulation is the third essential thing to learn about skydiving. It is important to learn how to open the parachute in mid-air safely or open the reserve chute when the major parachute would not open. Opening the parachute requires timing. It even pays of if the beginner knows how parachute works and what it is made of.
Choosing a landing site is also a fundamental of skydiving. Choosing the right landing spot will help you avoid tangling on trees or ending up in open sea.
When you have enough knowledge of the four fundamentals, it does not mean that you will jump aboard the next plane and do the dive. There are preparations to be done by a skydiver before jumping. Make sure that the equipment are properly packed. You also need to coordinate the jump with the pilot of the plane.
Weather and wind conditions should be checked and monitored, these will decide the best place for jumping off the plane. Jumping pattern and order should also be determined to avoid mid-air collisions. Jumpers should practice the maneuvers that they will do before entering the aircraft.
The average fall speed of skydivers would be 120 to 150 mph. When they are free-falling in the air, jumpers can change their body position and do the maneuvers. All maneuvers are stopped at about 1,200 m or 3,900 feet. Jumpers have to turn away from each other and give the signal before deploying their parachutes. Waving their arms show that the jumpers are ready to deploy the parachutes. But they would have to gain enough space first from each other.
A parachute ride normally lasts two to three minutes only. The jumpers could make the landing softer by flaring the parachutes seconds before the actual landing. To avoid injury in arms and legs during landing, the jumpers could roll forward. There are some experienced jumpers who land on their feet while running.
Skydiving is an enjoyable recreational activity, as long as beginners follow the basic safety measures and listen to their skydiving mentors.
Sky Diving Myths
Myth 1: You need to be in good shape
People see sky diving as extremely physically demanding, and they think that you need to be in tip-top shape to do it. Although it is true that you need to flex some muscle, you don't necessarily need to be an Olympic athlete. As long as you doctor doesn't feel that sky diving will be harmful to your health if you have a condition, then he can give you a permission slip that will allow you to sign a medical form for attesting that you are fit enough to participate. You don't need to be particularly strong either to learn how to jump.
Myth 2: You have to be young
Another misconception is that only young people can sky dive. Although most skydivers are between the ages of 18 and 40, as long as you have the drive and desire to learn, there is nothing that says you cannot start learning sky diving at a late age. With the advent of new safety precautions, more and more older people are learning how to sky dive. To make a point, even former President Bush jumped from a plane at the age of 80 to celebrate his birthday!
Myth 3: You need a lot of money
One big factor that discourages many people from sky diving is that it is quite an expensive hobby. Parachutes and jumpsuits are very expensive, and you have to hire a plane and pilot every time you want to jump. Initial classes are also expensive.
However, some people have found ways around this problem. Some people have discovered that they can set up charity events and get people to sponsor your jump. If you get enough people you can fund your jump and the remaining proceeds will go to the charity of your choice. There are many organizations that already hold these sky diving charity events on a regular basis, and they are usually free for those that want to join.
Myth 4: Sky diving is dangerous
Although it is intuitive to think that it may be dangerous to leap out of a plane thousands of feet above the ground, sky diving is actually not as dangerous as it seems. According to studies, the annual number of deaths in the US due to sky diving is 1 in every 100,000 jumps. This makes sky diving no more dangerous than driving a car or riding the bus. Plus, with all the safety measures and technologies being used today, the risk of injury is greatly minimized.
If you are one of those that are hesitant to try skydiving, then hopefully this article has changed your mind, or at least, has sparked an interest. The rush one gets from sky diving makes it a very fulfilling sport, and the sky diving community is full of friendly faces who will help you every step of the way.
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