Jumps needed before attempting winguiting

[showithers 0]

Anyone have any ideas on how many jumps you should make before starting wingsuiting? I know that how well you can track is important, but can someone just give me a number?

[AggieDave 6]

You're looking at a minimum of 200 jumps. Check out the wingsuiting forum. Its not just being able to track well, either.

If you're in LaGrange then get with the Texas Wingsuit Academy folks. They'll set you straight.

Also, get a copy of the SIM, there is a lot of decent info in there that cover recommending skill sets and such with stuff like this (among other things).

--"When I die, may I be surrounded by scattered chrome and burning gasoline."

[ryoder 1,590]

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If you're in LaGrange then get with the Texas Wingsuit Academy folks.

Dammit, Dave!
Now I have a ZZ Top song stuck in my head.

"There are only three things of value: younger women, faster airplanes, and bigger crocodiles" - Arthur Jones.

[AggieDave 6]

Funny, I was thinking about the Chicken Ranch.

--"When I die, may I be surrounded by scattered chrome and burning gasoline."

[billvon 2,991]

200 absolute minimum if you go with a wingsuit instructor. 500 is more reasonable, especially if you're learning on your own or are not jumping with an instructor.

[phoenixlpr 0]

200, in other countries 250 jumps.

You may use a tracking suite with less jumps. Some ppl can track further than other go with WS.

[cpoxon 0]

This question comes up very regularly in the wingsuit forum. In fact it just came up again. Jarno wrote a good response

Skydiving Fatalities - Cease not to learn 'til thou cease to live

[VectorBoy 0]

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I know that how well you can track is important, but can someone just give me a number?

Its not just tracking. It is also being comfortable and symmetrical while wearing a suit that will magnify your sensations of wind resistance and lift. Feedback and response sensitivity has to be re-calibrated by your brain, all of this on your very first jump. Although typically its very easy and results are quiet good even very skilled skydivers on occasion with many times the minimum recommended experience scare them selves to never come back again. Your mileage may vary. And here is the kicker, nobody can swoop down and save you if you mess up real bad.

Then there is winds aloft and navigation issues. Two things that the average wingsuiter typically doesn't have to worry about but can be the worst enemy of the unskilled wingsuiter.

[Chris-Ottawa 0]

Hey,

Personal experience follows:

I went to Z-Hills this past Christmas and jumped a wingsuit. I approached Jeff Nebelkopf and asked him if he had any tracking suits I could try. He did not. However, he responded by asking me my current jump numbers (137) and said, do some more and come see me later in the week or next week. By the time we met up again, I had 167 jumps and he said he had a suit for me. So, needless to say, I did 9 jumps with them over the next week or so.

Now that you know I did it with less jumps, I'll tell you the scary part. There was another guy who was doing his first wingsuit jumps the same day with me. He had 300ish jumps and had done MANY MANY tracking jumps in a tracking suit in preparation for this day. He did his jumps and I didn't have an oppurtunity to chat with him before he left. Fast forward 3 months and I get a comment on my youtube video of my wingsuit jumps from him. We discuss it a bit and I'm astonished with what I'm being told.

He had close calls on almost every jump. I saw the videos and they scared the crap out of me. Flatspins, uncontrolled spiralling, breaking the hard deck are all things I didn't expect to see.

If you want to see my videos and his videos, PM me and I'll send them to you. Absolute night and day. Thankfully he is still jumping and doing well, but it cuold have been much worse.

Anyways, I'll tell you that you can wingsuit and people will train you with less than 200 jumps, but as with anything else in this sport....THINK ABOUT IT!

Looking back, I'm glad I did it, but if I had another opportunity to repeat the past...I wouldn't do it until I had much more experience.

Fly wisely!

Chris

"When once you have tasted flight..."

[MarkM 0]

I wouldn't rush it. Wingsuits are more complicated for a lot of reasons that aren't immediately obvious and the skills needed to handle those issues just come in time with jump numbers.

Traffic patterns, navigation, avoiding the plane's the tail on exit, body awareness, dealing with tandems, body position on pull, dealing with extra gear, being arm restricted after deploying, landing miles off a dropzone, etc etc.

Wingsuits have a great safety record and I think a lot of that is due to the minimum jump rules.

[skron 0]

I do not fly a wingsuit yet, but I am planning on it and am attempting to take all the proper steps before doing so.
The SIM recommends 500 jumps or 200 jumps made in the last 18 months. That is obviously just a recommendation and not a requirement. As with any part of skydiving, it is all based on the individual. Everyone has different learning curves, abilities and personalities. I'm sure there are plenty of people who have flown wingsuits with less jumps than recommended and been fine and I think there are probably plenty of others with more jumps and are not ready for a wingsuit.
I have been doing research on different wingsuits, doing tracking dives, and asking questions of experienced wingsuit jumpers and would hope anyone wanting to fly this advanced piece of equipment will do the same.

Well behaved women don't often make history.