Skydiving

Recreation Sports
1

Truant’s post here got my thinking about skydiving, so I wonder if anyone has ever done it.

Me, well I did a 14000 foot tandem jump in Sydney about 12 or so years ago. A lot of fun, but over too quickly. We had a group of about 20 people all pitch in a bit of money to take a friend for his 30th birthday. Even though it took about 2-3 months of planning, and his 7 year-old son knew about it, we somehow managed to keep it as a surprise gift. Everyone just turned up at his place at 7am one Saturday morning and his wife hired a bus and driver to take us to the skydiving center. He was blindfolded and led to the bus and it was only after that that we told him he was about to jump out of a plane.

So, everyone else, share your skydiving adventures here.

2

Yeah, did a tandem too.

Before that I thought bungee was something, but there’s no comparison. A parachute jump is something very different. Freefalling is the best feeling (in that adrenaline-seaking category).

All that noise and the wind and the… well, the fact that you’re falling and are about to hit the ground… And then the tug comes and wham! suddenly it’s like someone has turned off the sound completely and stopped you in the moment.

Then you can really enjoy the slow descent and the scenery and the fact that you’re just hanging in the air.
Wonderful stuff!

I’d like to, when my priorities change a bit, take a proper course in skydiving. Longer freefall, more control, more scary. YAY!

3

who knows about skydiving in taiwan? how much is it? how long is the training course? i would really like to do that but not right now, i want my wife to be back in taiwan the do it !!! so i would appreciate any info on the subject

4

“Nothing falls out of the sky but birdsh!t and fools”

…and yeah…I was one of the fools. But I got paid for it.

5

I jumped twice, both in the same day and by myself. I wouldn’t do it today so I’m glad I did it when I was young.

After many hours of in class training and pretend jumping outside, the single prop Cessna went up with three students and an instructor. I felt just fine until the door opened and the wind started to rush in. The first guy went and he fell backwards (parachute pointing down…oops). Then the instructor told me to step out of the plane and hang on to the strut underneath the wing. Gulp. So I did, one foot on the step outside the plane, the other foot hanging, and both hands grasped tightly to the strut. It started to rain and the propeller shooting painful darting rain in my face didn’t help the confidence factor. The instructor then said, “GO!”. I looked at him and feigned a “Huh?”. He yelled “GO” again and I let go. I didn’t realize until I landed that I had closed my eyes during free fall so I made sure I jumped a second time right away before I came to my senses.

The second time down, my parachute didn’t open all the way. I guess that’s the whole purpose of those hours of in class training, to deal with situations like these. I’m glad I remembered what to do.

All in all, a great experience.

6

I got 250 jumps under my belt, static line and freefall. Like TC, I also got paid to do it.

7

Done 11 dives so far. Got some kind of late-20s mid-life crisis a little over five years ago just by trying to spice my life up skydiving. Started the classes to get my pilot’s license as well and got certified to skydive which made it much much cheaper, only about $20 per dive compared to well over $100 pre-certification, forgot exactly though. I understand the pilot’s license part, but the sky-diving, I still don’t know what the f*ck I was thinking. Scared the shit out of me so bad each time I did it I nearly cried, but I guess it was the “I really don’t care what happens now cause it is too late” part that made it worth it. What a rush though.

And I can truly say skydiving is the root of all my evils considering the fact that it was what gave me the balls to quit my very successful career, leave everything and come here. AND more so by the fact I took my ex-wife skydiving for our first date. She said I wouldn’t do it, and being 50% redneck I couldn’t let anyone say that, especially a girl so that is how I met her.

Therefore I consider skydiving to really be the absolute biggest factor in my decision to move to Taiwan. Skydiving gave me the courage and setting for love to be sparked, and love game me the stupidity. A Dangerous combination that led to me being stuck on this island for five years now. Wouldn’t change a thing though.

8

Along with bungee jumping and other activities that stake your life on someone else doing simple things carefully and correctly, skydiving seems like something no-one should ever do in Taiwan …

9

but who knows about skydiving in taiwan, a contact person or a phone number…

10

I asked for and got a jump when I graduated from high school. Went twice on a static line and loved it.

11

Private aeroplanes are not allowed in Taiwan, which would make skydiving a little difficult.

12

i thought so… damn think i will have to wait until i go back to my country for holidays

13

Anyone change the law in the last year?

14

Unfortunately, no !

15

There must be some sort of organization. Because Iv seen them go up in helicopters at Green Bay before. Jumping out of a helicopter. Wonder what thats like?

Friend of mine was a German paratrooper and he and I went down to Green Bay but he wasnt part of the team and they didnt know his credentials and they wouldnt let him jump. But there must be some sort of organization one could join?

16

I competed against the “Fallschirmjager” at the Military World Free Fall Championships in the 1990’s.

For sure, they can fly. :notworthy:

However, the Spetsnaz won that specific competition. :notworthy: :notworthy:

Perhaps because they spent at least 2 hours a day in gym and several hours practicing their Relative Work. All this while the members of the German, French, and Italian contingents were … erhm … socialising in the beer garden. :laughing:

17

Hey guys,

Love any thing to to do with wings or wingless.

Taiwan doesn’t have enough laws to regulate the airspace in Taiwan and as Jackie CHen said 5 years ago that Taiwaness Goverments are too messed up so they never permitted him to enter taiwan since then.

To allow an aeroplane to make a drop, there must be a governmnet body to regulate the airspace, and since everything is controled by the politics, you cannot perform such action. General aviation doesn’t exist so therefore, sky diving won’t happen because not enough regulations and anything happens could ended up in the court.

I was going to take the AFF course in Australia for like $2000AUS but couldn’t take time off, so the closest to get to free fall is diving into my bed and my local swimming pool.

If you really want to take up sky diving, you could join the military service, where they take you up some 300ft (not 14000ft for free fall) and jump off the aeroplane and the ripped cord is pulled straight away which is not as fun as the free fall but better than nothing.

Someone was asking about jumping off the heli, now I can explain that. Most sky divers like to jump off a heli, cliff, hot air balloon or off the building is because the body is still static so from 0 movment to terminal velocity requires some time. So there is a constant acceleration and your body an feel it which makes your heart pumping harder and this may suit you more if you are a adrenline junkie. Jumping off the plane is not as fun as jumping of a building or heli is because the aircraft is already moving and your body is moving with the aircraft so you are already moving. Then when you jumped of the aeroplane you don’t have that much change of acceleration so, if you want to impress chicks, go and jump off a heli.

Just a fact, someone tryed to open Taiwan’s first General aviation flying school, but got shut down within the year, and let’s just say, if there is no regulations, how can a flying school teachs the students to fly??? Last time I checked my aviation documents, I coudn’t put them back into my closet because there were too many folders.

I don’t know much about aviation in Taiwan because it doesn’t exist and controled by the military and politics, but out side Taiwan, I know quite a fair bit. I couldn’t mind get myself an ultralight aircraft from Australia. I’ve got enough space to store it but might have to ask the farmers behind our property to stop farming for a while so i can use it as an air strip.

Anyway, many people asked me why wouldn’t you want to jump off a perfectly good aeroplane???

18

today.msnbc.msn.com/id/28250733/

still wanna skydive?

19

[quote=“Monk”]Done 11 dives so far. Got some kind of late-20s mid-life crisis a little over five years ago just by trying to spice my life up skydiving. Started the classes to get my pilot’s license as well and got certified to skydive which made it much much cheaper, only about $20 per dive compared to well over $100 pre-certification, forgot exactly though. I understand the pilot’s license part, but the sky-diving, I still don’t know what the f*ck I was thinking. Scared the shit out of me so bad each time I did it I nearly cried, but I guess it was the “I really don’t care what happens now cause it is too late” part that made it worth it. What a rush though.

And I can truly say skydiving is the root of all my evils considering the fact that it was what gave me the balls to quit my very successful career, leave everything and come here. AND more so by the fact I took my ex-wife skydiving for our first date. She said I wouldn’t do it, and being 50% redneck I couldn’t let anyone say that, especially a girl so that is how I met her.

Therefore I consider skydiving to really be the absolute biggest factor in my decision to move to Taiwan. Skydiving gave me the courage and setting for love to be sparked, and love game me the stupidity. A Dangerous combination that led to me being stuck on this island for five years now. Wouldn’t change a thing though.[/quote]Monk -
Good story. Great way to learn what the future might hold re: life and the lady.

Tommy -
Helo jumps are a bit weird but basically the same. I’ve went off the side of a UH-1 and for some reason found it slightly unnerving.
Walking out the back of a CH-47, that big long one with the rotors in the front and back, it was more fun. Running out the back, falling out backwards or doing a swan dive, thats better. Maybe it was the fact that we could stand around and BS while waiting for the go made it better.
Also the Ch-47 jumps were made while it was moving so it felt a little more…uh…“normal.”

All but 6 of my jumps were made while I was in the military. And, as might be expected, with the 6 civilian jumps…there were women involved…promises made while drinking…you get the idea… :sunglasses:

20

[quote=“section61”]Hey guys,

Love any thing to to do with wings or wingless.

Taiwan doesn’t have enough laws to regulate the airspace in Taiwan and as Jackie CHen said 5 years ago that Taiwaness Goverments are too messed up so they never permitted him to enter taiwan since then.[/quote]

Does that apply to wingnuts, too? Yer man Jackie was in Taiwan around six months ago. No, he wasn’t arrested at the airport, nor did he HALO in discretely

HG