Standup Surfing

Whether you are just starting out in skydiving or have been doing it for some time, it is always fun to try new tricks and standup surfing is one that is the very most fun to try. To attempt standup surfing, you must first be able to hold a standup position while in freefall mode on your own. You can then attempt to try it on someone’s back or belly, whichever gives you the most kicks!

The hardest part about completing a standup surfing position is to get on the platform, which would be your partner. The important thing is that when you start out in position, you are both belly-down with the surfer about 3 feet above the platform. Once you are ready to complete the position, the platform can gently spread their arms and legs and point them up while the surfer points their toe until it hovers above the point of the back or belly that they want to maintain the position. They can then slowly allow the rest of their body to enter the platform’s gurgle.

The ABC’s of Skydiving: F

F-111 - Pronounced “F-one-eleven”, this is a common type of material used in canopies.

FAA - This is a US agency that skydivers should familiarize themselves with. The Federal Aviation Administration oversees all aviation activity, and this includes skydiving.

FAI - This is another organization that skydivers should become familiar with. The Federation Aeronautique International is the organization that oversees all air sports.

FARs - These are the Federal Aviation Regulations and these are the laws that any people partaking in aviation activity must adhere to.

Fall rate - This is how fast a diver falls before their chute opens and it’s most important when referring to formations as each diver must have the same fall rate to execute formation properly.

Finger trap - This is a type of loop that can be installed into the loop so that it provides another method of positioning the brakes without creating rough spots in the line.

Flare - This is a way to slow down by pulling the ends of the canopy forward.

Floaters - Floaters are divers that jump out of the plane well before the base point. They are referred to as floaters because they need to descend at a much slower pace to ensure that they don’t touch down before the base point. The term floating can also be used to describe an exit position outside of the plane.

Freestyle - This type of skydiving looks very much like gymnastics being performed in the air.

FS - This means formation sequence. In this type of skydiving, a number of jumpers exit the plane at the same time and perform predetermined freefall sequences.

Formation - This can refer to either: more than one jumper leaving the plane to perform a formation or; more than one jump plane carrying divers.

Funnel - When one skydiver in a formation becomes unstable in the air and fall out of formation, the other divers tend to fall out of formation as well and this is known as a funnel.

The ABC’s of Skydiving: E

Elliptical - This is a term used to describe the shape of a wing. With this shape, the ends taper off so that the middle is much broader than the sides. This shape can be found in most higher-end canopies.

End cell - The cell that is at the outermost part of the canopy.

Exit weight - The combined weight of the jumper, clothing, and equipment.

The Aerial Freestyle Guide Book

The Aerial Freestyle Guide Book is the perfect gift this Christmas for anyone who loves skydiving and wants to learn more about it as well as the different tricks they can do while in the air. In this book, you will learn 89 different skydiving moves and positions, all with clear illustrations to further explain how to do them and in-depth detail on how to get into the position, what it will help you accomplish, and how to get out of it. The different moves range in difficulty from very basic to advanced and so any skydiver is sure to be able to find something useful and while beginners can learn about the very most basic moves, advanced divers can find more challenging moves to work on.

This book has been written by professional skydiver Dale Stuart and is available for approximately £10.00.

What to do when Your Chute Malfunctions

It’s every skydiver’s worst nightmares and it’s one reason why many people don’t feel brave enough to ever try the exhilerating sport of skydiving - the main parachute has malfunctioned. So what do you do? Well, while you’re in the air is no time to be thinking of strategies so here are the very basics of what to do when something’s gone wrong with your chute.

Don’t panic. Yes, it’s frightening but remember that you still have some options. Panicking will only make you forget emergency procedures and could lead to disaster.

Know your altitude. Many emergency procedures depend on the altitude you are at, as different altitudes require different procedures. A small problem could be made into a major one if you forget you don’t know your altitude and therefore, don’t know which procedure to use.

Only cut-away if you’re above 1,000 feet. For almost every parachute malfunction, it’s recommended that you cut away the main chute and use your reserve. However, if you are under 1,000 feet you will hit the ground before your reserve has time to inflate. Still open the reserve chute but keep the main canopy open just to be safe.

The ABC’s of Skydiving: D

DC-3: A type of aircraft that can hold 40 skydivers.

De-arch: This is accomplished by placing the body in the opposite position of the standard arched box man. The result is a decrease in falling speed.

Dacron: This is the material that suspension lines are made from. They are stronger than microlines.

Data card: This can be found within any parachute and it contains information regarding the reserve chute such as when it was last packed, the type, and serial number.

Dead spider: Another name for a de-arch.

Decision altitude: This is the altitude at which the skydiver must determine that it is time to begin emergency procedures.

Deployment system: This is the system that deploys the parachute and it includes the pilot chute, bridle, and bag.

Dirt dive: This is a skydiving trick or position that is practiced on the ground.

Dive floater: This position is only in large formations and it’s the diver in the airplane who is in the exit lineup but is jumping before the base.

Dive loops: These are loops (sometimes called ‘blocks’) that are located on the front risers to make it easier to grab the risers and steer. Generally only advanced skydivers use these.

Diver: A skydiver that is leaving the plane for a large formation.

Door jam: This is practicing leaving the airplane door before it’s actually done.

Down plane: This is when two canopies are in the air and are both pointed down. Although this is usually reserved for group formations, a single jumper can also do this with both their main chute and the reserve chute.

Drop zone: This is what a skydiving center is called in skydiving lingo.

Dytter: A type of audible altimeter.

The ABC’s of Skydiving: C

Call - This is the amount of time you have until you board the airplane.

Canopy - Parachute. More commonly used to specifically refer to the rectangular-shaped chutes made from small pockets of air.

Cascade - This is where two lines meet and form one line. You can cascade the suspension lines to decrease the amount of drag in your chute.

Cell - This is the complex ‘pocket of air’ that canopies are made of.

Center point - The actual center point in movement. With group formations it refers to the center of the formation and with an individual, it usually refers to the torso.

Cessna - Aircraft manufacturer.

Chute assis - A French term which refers to sit flying.

Closing loop - After the container has been closed and the pin has been guided through the loops, the closing loop holds the container closed.

Coach - An experienced skydiver that can assist and instruct during freefall.

Container - The part of the parachute that holds the canopy.

Crabbing - This can be done by flying the canopy across the ground sideways as well as forward.

Creep - A technique used when practicing formation skydiving.

Creeper - This is the board that skydivers use when creeping. It has wheels and is used as a stimulator for freefalling.

Cross ports - Small holes at the sides of the cells in a canopy that allow air to be passed from one cell to another.

Current - This is the status of a skydiver. They are ‘current’ if they have recently jumped.

Cut away - This is an emergency procedure that relies on breaking free from your parachute and relying on the reserve.

CRW - Canopy Relative Work. Essentially, it’s the formation of canopies.

Cypres - A type of AAD.

Understanding your Canopy

There’s no doubt that when you’re in the air, your canopy is the most important piece of equipment you have. It’s what allows you to enjoy a scenic glide to the ground, instead of crashing towards it at alarming speeds. So before you strap on your pack, you really should take the time to fully understand your canopy.

The chute you will be flying with is most likely a canopy, a rectangular-shaped chute made from cells of inflated air. These are huge improvements on the balloon-style chutes that were first used in the sport. The canopy uses an angle of incidence, which is built right into the canopy and consists of two lines: the lines in the front, shaped like an “A”, which are short; and the lines in the back, shaped like a “D”, which are longer. These lines cause the canopy to descend down and slightly forwards.

The toggles on a canopy can be used to slow the chute down or to turn it. To slow down and turn right, you pull on the right toggle, which causes the back right corner of the canopy to be pulled down slightly. It’s important to remember when you are making any turns with your canopy, that it will always cause you to fall faster than when you are just gliding alone. Forgetting this can cause you to turn or land far too quickly and is the biggest reason for parachute injuries.

However, pulling down on both toggles at the same time will result in the canopy sloping slightly downward and the entire chute will begin to slow down. Normally chutes are flown ‘toggles up’ so that the maximum amount of air can pass through it and you can get a great dive! Experienced skydivers will sometimes fly ‘toggles down’ and may even completely stall their canopy in mid-air but for those who don’t know what they’re doing, this should not be attempted and the movement is actually restricted on most student canopies.

Before the Jump

The sport of skydiving starts long before you’re in the airplane getting ready to jump and even if you have taken all the required lessons and are simply out for a fun dive, there are still some things that you always need to keep in mind before it comes to the fun of the freefall.

While on the ground, one of the most important things to remember is to never be late. You will most likely not be the only one jumping when you go and the other twenty people in the airplane won’t wait just because you’re running late. Also make sure that you know exactly how the jump will go, whether it’s your first or your fiftieth, before  you get into the plane. When you’re in the plane is no time to be sorting out the details so make sure you can picture it perfectly in your head before boarding. One thing that you can do in the plane is back out and that again is whether it’s the first of fiftieth jump. Sometimes you just don’t feel it when you get up there and it’s perfectly okay to go back down with the plane.

The ABC’s of Skydiving: B

Backslide - This is when the diver is falling backward during freefall. It’s usually caused by poor form and is something to be avoided.

Bag - This is simply the bag that the parachute is packed in.

Base - This is what a formation centers around. It can involve one or more skydivers.

BASE Jump - BASE stands for building, antennae, spans (or bridges), and earth (such as cliffs.) BASE jumps are then jumps that are not made from an airplane but from one of these locations.

Beech - Nickname for the manufacturer Beechcraft, who specialize in aircraft. Although they are not very popular today, they were once a top name in skydiving.

BOC - This is short form for Bottom of Container and it refers to the position of the pilot chute.

Body Position - This simply refers to the posture of the body while it is in the air. It can be changed during the dive to accomplish different freefall maneuvers.

Boogie - An event held for skydivers. These events are all about loving the sport and sharing that with others and does not focus on competition.

Bounce - This is when a landing is made so fast that it’s impossible to survive it. It’s a rarity in skdiving and is also sometimes called to frap, or go in.

Box Man - This is a trick that can be done while in the air and is usually done while in formation. This is a face to earth position in which the arms are bent at a forty-five degree angle and the legs are also bent at about forty-five degrees.

Brakes - These are the brakes of the parachute, which are also used in conjunction with the steering lines. Using them together will result in the parachute slowing down while only using one set of lines will cause the chute to turn.

Break off - To leave a formation by moving away from the formation before deployment.

Bridle - This is part of the system in the parachute that deploys it. The other parts are the pilot chute and the bag. The bridle is the webbing from the pilot chute to the canopy.

BSR - These are Basic Safety Requirements. Although they are not legally enforced, it’s generally preferred safest to follow these guidelines.

Burble - This is the turbulent air that is left behind once a moving object has passed through it, whether it’s a plane, person, or parachute.