Landings? What are they like? how hard and fast?

[ashworthy2k 0]

Hi,

After completeting a tandem jump 2 years ago i have been desperate to learn to jump solo. Im 26 years old and in good health. However 8 years ago i had a car accedent where i broke both legs and ankles. Everthing is ok now but i do have limted movement in one ankle so am limited when it comes to fast running and heavy impacts.

The doctors say its up to me to make the decision, but see no problem why i can't.

i was hoping the tandem would give me a good idea on how hard and fast landing are but we slid in nice and smoothe on our butts.

I can understand each landing differs but what can i expect? some people say its like jumping out of a window (which i find har to believe by looking at videos i see) whilst others say its tip toe soft??

Please can you guys give me some advice?

cheers

[CornishChris 5]

Hey.

Landings vary enormously depending on canopy type, landing style and wind level. It is possible to have 'tip-toe' landings on every jump if you are a good canopy pilot however I would expect that almost every single skydiver out there has had a few landings that have been hard, especially when learning. There is a lot to think about when you are a new jumper and until you are dialled in to the idiosyncrasies of your canopy you are likely to misjudge a few landings. This is one reason why newer jumpers start on large, lightly loaded canopies that are more forgiving.

It really is up to you. If you can't jump from, for example, 3 feet up without risk of hurting yourself then I would think again.

Just my view of course...

CJP

Gods don't kill people. People with Gods kill people

[GLIDEANGLE 1]

+1 on Cornish chris' answer.

If you pursue skydiving I would recommend that you err toward an effective parachute landing fall rather than a cool stand-up landing if the landing is less than perfect. Of course that is good advice for any student...even more so for you.

Spend extra time mastering the PLF during ground training, as some instructors don't give it the emphasis that it deserves.

The choices we make have consequences, for us & for others!

[jim_32766 0]

You just got two good answers. As a relative newbie I can tell you that during the learning and/or canopy transition you will have some less than perfect landings. Always be ready to do a PLF. You don't want to risk any further damage to your legs or ankles.

The meaning of life . . . is to make life have meaning.

[virgin-burner 1]

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+1 on Cornish chris' answer.

If you pursue skydiving I would recommend that you err toward an effective parachute landing fall rather than a cool stand-up landing if the landing is less than perfect. Of course that is good advice for any student...even more so for you.

Spend extra time mastering the PLF during ground training, as some instructors don't give it the emphasis that it deserves.

this article contradicts your opinion..

“Some may never live, but the crazy never die.”
-Hunter S. Thompson
"No. Try not. Do... or do not. There is no try."
-Yoda

[Joellercoaster 6]

And an inconveniently-placed rock, rabbit hole or clump of grass will contradict the advice in that article to slide like you're stealing a base.

Student canopies don't have huge forward speed, and they're not landing on a basebal diamond.

And if you are landing on a baseball diamond, then you're probably not jumping a student canopy

[edit: Actually, there are demo teams with Navigators, or at least big Silhouettes, out there. I'll shut up now.]

--
"I'll tell you how all skydivers are judged, . They are judged by the laws of physics." - kkeenan

"You jump out, pull the string and either live or die. What's there to be good at?

[virgin-burner 1]

i was never thaught to PLF.. i'll shut up now too!

“Some may never live, but the crazy never die.”
-Hunter S. Thompson
"No. Try not. Do... or do not. There is no try."
-Yoda

[bluetwo 0]

I actually landed backwards the other day (and I get it, I'm not the only one to do it) with 0 ground speed until I flared then right before I touched down I started to go backwards a little bit which threw me off, and I was so ready to have a nice stand up landing.

I just felt like sharing that to continue the talk about how unexpected things can happen. At least if there is a next time for 0 ground speed I'll know to anticipate going in reverse. By the way I'm about 190 out the plane on a 260 canopy.

_______________________________________

[ridestrong 1]

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I actually landed backwards the other day (and I get it, I'm not the only one to do it) with 0 ground speed until I flared then right before I touched down I started to go backwards a little bit which threw me off, and I was so ready to have a nice stand up landing.

Modern canopies are not designed to fly backwards in 0 winds.. I am quite sure that you were landing into wind greater than 0.

ETA: While they are a necessary tool, PLF's are over-rated.

*I am not afraid of dying... I am afraid of missing life.*
----Disclaimer: I don't know shit about skydiving.----

[theonlyski 8]

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I actually landed backwards the other day (and I get it, I'm not the only one to do it) with 0 ground speed until I flared then right before I touched down I started to go backwards a little bit which threw me off, and I was so ready to have a nice stand up landing.

Modern canopies are not designed to fly backwards in 0 winds.. I am quite sure that you were landing into wind greater than 0.

ETA: While they are a necessary tool, PLF's are over-rated.

And now, we will go over the difference between 0 WINDSPEED and 0 GROUNDSPEED

"I may be a dirty pirate hooker...but I'm not about to go stand on the corner." iluvtofly
DPH -7, TDS 578, Muff 5153, SCR 14890
I'm an asshole, and I approve this message

[theonlyski 8]

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I actually landed backwards the other day (and I get it, I'm not the only one to do it) with 0 ground speed until I flared then right before I touched down I started to go backwards a little bit which threw me off, and I was so ready to have a nice stand up landing.

I just felt like sharing that to continue the talk about how unexpected things can happen. At least if there is a next time for 0 ground speed I'll know to anticipate going in reverse. By the way I'm about 190 out the plane on a 260 canopy.

I've been there, landed backwards a couple times under a 240, off the dz by a mile, and backing up further...

Now that I got a smaller canopy, no more issues with that one... and a smaller one in the works

"I may be a dirty pirate hooker...but I'm not about to go stand on the corner." iluvtofly
DPH -7, TDS 578, Muff 5153, SCR 14890
I'm an asshole, and I approve this message

[airtwardo 7]

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I actually landed backwards the other day (and I get it, I'm not the only one to do it) with 0 ground speed until I flared then right before I touched down I started to go backwards a little bit which threw me off, and I was so ready to have a nice stand up landing.

Modern canopies are not designed to fly backwards in 0 winds.. I am quite sure that you were landing into wind greater than 0.

ETA: While they are a necessary tool, PLF's are over-rated.

And now, we will go over the difference between 0 WINDSPEED and 0 GROUNDSPEED

~ If you choke a Smurf, what color does it turn? ~

[theonlyski 8]

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ETA: While they are a necessary tool, PLF's are over-rated.

Thats what YOU think... tell that to the dozen or so guys in my airborne class that broke ankles, legs or whatever else they broke cause they didnt do them

"I may be a dirty pirate hooker...but I'm not about to go stand on the corner." iluvtofly
DPH -7, TDS 578, Muff 5153, SCR 14890
I'm an asshole, and I approve this message

[ridestrong 1]

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I actually landed backwards the other day (and I get it, I'm not the only one to do it) with 0 ground speed until I flared then right before I touched down I started to go backwards a little bit which threw me off, and I was so ready to have a nice stand up landing.

Modern canopies are not designed to fly backwards in 0 winds.. I am quite sure that you were landing into wind greater than 0.

ETA: While they are a necessary tool, PLF's are over-rated.

And now, we will go over the difference between 0 WINDSPEED and 0 GROUNDSPEED

I was assuming that he was really referring to wind speed. Guess I don't know why someone would be "surprised" to be blown backwards on flare with 0 ground speed.

*I am not afraid of dying... I am afraid of missing life.*
----Disclaimer: I don't know shit about skydiving.----

[theonlyski 8]

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I actually landed backwards the other day (and I get it, I'm not the only one to do it) with 0 ground speed until I flared then right before I touched down I started to go backwards a little bit which threw me off, and I was so ready to have a nice stand up landing.

Modern canopies are not designed to fly backwards in 0 winds.. I am quite sure that you were landing into wind greater than 0.

ETA: While they are a necessary tool, PLF's are over-rated.

And now, we will go over the difference between 0 WINDSPEED and 0 GROUNDSPEED

I was assuming that he was really referring to wind speed. Guess I don't know why someone would be "surprised" to be blown backwards on flare with 0 ground speed.

"I may be a dirty pirate hooker...but I'm not about to go stand on the corner." iluvtofly
DPH -7, TDS 578, Muff 5153, SCR 14890
I'm an asshole, and I approve this message

[ashworthy2k 0]

hi guys

thaks to your response from my questin but to be honest i dont understand what allot of you are saying... about going backwards and what have you.

Was looking for a staight answer really. Chris you said about jumping from 3 feet, its that what to expect on a good or bad landing?

Thank you all for the feed back you have given me, not understanding it completely though. cheers

[airtwardo 7]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_j_ScBDAk54

~ If you choke a Smurf, what color does it turn? ~

[bluetwo 0]

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I actually landed backwards the other day (and I get it, I'm not the only one to do it) with 0 ground speed until I flared then right before I touched down I started to go backwards a little bit which threw me off, and I was so ready to have a nice stand up landing.

Modern canopies are not designed to fly backwards in 0 winds.. I am quite sure that you were landing into wind greater than 0.

ETA: While they are a necessary tool, PLF's are over-rated.

And now, we will go over the difference between 0 WINDSPEED and 0 GROUNDSPEED

I was assuming that he was really referring to wind speed. Guess I don't know why someone would be "surprised" to be blown backwards on flare with 0 ground speed.

bluetwo

Jumps: 8
License: student
In sport: 0

I was right, 0 ground speed BECAUSE I had significantly more than 0 air speed. And I mean I was only surprised because I'm new at this. I almost went into a huge ass ditch which I found out later was why everyone that was watching had this oh shit look on their face.

_______________________________________

[timmyfitz 0]

With every post you make, you prove that your sig line disclaimer is true.

[ridestrong 1]

My bad dude... your in the know.

*I am not afraid of dying... I am afraid of missing life.*
----Disclaimer: I don't know shit about skydiving.----

[bluetwo 0]

I was really hoping we could give examples of crazy landings... of course there might already be a thread for that.

The OP wanted to know about landings though right? I know in only 8 jumps I've had some near perfect soft landings and I've slid in on my ass and knees. I've really got to stop looking at the ground...

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[dreaming13000 1]

To the OP, hello there...

I am still a low number jumper. As far as learning to land the parachute and soft vs hard landings. There will always be hard landings, even for the most experienced skydivers of them all.

During my student progression I had soft tiptoe landings about 50% of the time. the other 50% were always interesting, not always "hard" but often times my feet would be stinging, and I really didn't have a difficult time learning a flaring technique (compared to many other students I have watched throughout the years)...

Even with a nice big forgiving student canopy I've seen students flare at 20 feet (too high) then let the toggles back up which creates a surge towards the ground and then a nice little thud! I've seen downwind landings (in 10mph) which means the student ends up running like a mad man or tumbling like one... it is a learning process, even with an instructor on the radio, the radios can fail to work, the student can be so fixated on landing they just don't hear radio instructions etc.

I began this sport with no previous injuries and in perfect health and I was still very concerned about landings, in the SIM (skydivers info manual) it says "EVERY SKYDIVER HAS HARD LANDINGS" so..... food for thought...

"A man only gets in life what he is believing for, nothing more and nothing less" Kenneth Hagen

[ashworthy2k 0]

thanks for that dreaming13000.

So how would you describe one of these 'hard' landings in comparison. Would it be like jumping of the roof of a 2 storey house, from a 5 ft wall, off a bench.....?
Thanks you for your replys peeps

[JackC1 0]

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thanks for that dreaming13000.

So how would you describe one of these 'hard' landings in comparison. Would it be like jumping of the roof of a 2 storey house, from a 5 ft wall, off a bench.....?
Thanks you for your replys peeps

It varies a lot depending on what canopy you're flying, the wind, how heavy you are, how good a pilot you are and many other things, but if you get it right landing is no worse than stepping off a curb.

When you first start learning, you will get it a little bit wrong from time to time and for the maximum amount of wrong a student will usually manage you can expect something no worse than the impact you'd feel after running and jumping off a 4ft wall.

However, if you get it monumentally wrong at several successive stages of the game and try really, really hard to fuck up as badly as possible, it could be a lot worse. Luckily, your instructors will train you to avoid this, they'll give you a parachute that it is forgiving of most mistakes and a radio with the aim of talking you down to a tip toe landing.

Why not go to the DZ and watch for a day. You'll soon see how hard the landings usually are.

[riggerrob 643]

A good landing is like running down a flight of stairs.
You will bleed off most of your vertical speed, but have a bit if forward speed remaining.
The exact amount of forward speed depends upon wind and how gracefully you applied the brakes.

... and student parachutes are specifically designed to be forgiving if you apply the brakes at less than the perfect time.
IOW Student canopies have large "window of opportunity" for flaring.

You may have gotten confused by earlier posters talking about going BACKWARDS on landing, That was because they were jumping in winds stronger than recommended for students. Professional instructors force their students to stay on the ground when strong or gusty winds exceed 14 knots.