Tunnel vs Freefall

[Blassiter 0]

I am going to be starting my AFF training in about a month in virginia and right now im home visiting family in orlando. I found out they have a tunnel here and i am going my first time this friday. I was wondering how different it is from actual freefall? and if it would be a good idea for me to go down to the tunnel first as opposed to actually getting some time in the air?

[sinjin 0]

the tunnel in belly is the same as in the air and can only help in your AFF. enjoy it and listen to the instructors. the only deficiency of the orlando tunnel is for freeflyers particularly head downers as it may not be fast enough.. but for belly it will be perfect..great idea... prepare to be poor financially but rich in spirit the rest of your life once you take up skydiving....blues

dont let life pass you by

[dupmaronew 0]

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I am going to be starting my AFF training in about a month in virginia and right now im home visiting family in orlando. I found out they have a tunnel here and i am going my first time this friday. I was wondering how different it is from actual freefall? and if it would be a good idea for me to go down to the tunnel first as opposed to actually getting some time in the air?

i personally said you hold off on the tunnel till you graduate AFF unless you have a lot alot of money.

AFF is a breeze to pass it. I only know a few people who actually had to repeate a level or two.

but I say you go to the tunnel after you get your A license and just use your extra money paying for coach jumps...

[Blassiter 0]

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i personally said you hold off on the tunnel till you graduate AFF unless you have a lot alot of money.

AFF is a breeze to pass it. I only know a few people who actually had to repeate a level or two.

but I say you go to the tunnel after you get your A license and just use your extra money paying for coach jumps...

well heres the thing, I wont have the money to do all my aff right now and I want to pay for it in one shot and dot it at one dz. This is gonna happen in october when i go to va. if i was gonna be down here in orlando I would use the money to start my first or second aff jump and just wait till october to do the rest, but that isnt the case. So i was gonna go down to the tunnel for a day on friday(im leaving to go to ct on saturday). I really just wanted to go to get a little bit of a feel for how difficult it is gonna be before i start my aff and also have some fun

[millertime24 8]

I've done about 16min in the tunnel so far and the only huge difference is your point of reference. In the sky your pretty much relying on things like other people (not a fixed POR) and the horizon. In the tunnel you have the walls as a POR. In our tunnel here there isnt much room so if your not perfectly stable then you will go into a wall one way or another. This does help with AFF (at least it did with mine) only providing that you actually can get stable in the tunnel. If you can get in the tunnel and just stay stable (no backsliding, unintentional turning, fliping, etc) then the whole AFF is easy-cheezy or at least it was for me.

Muff #5048

[Reginald 0]

As an AFF Instructor, I HIGHLY recommend you go get a little tunnel time if you are near one. It will do you a world of good and be very helpful in your progression through your student progression.

Just tell the staff at the tunnel that you will be doing AFF next month and they will help you with the skills you need for AFF.

So how much tunnel time are you planning on doing?

"We've been looking for the enemy for some time now. We've finally found him. We're surrounded. That simplifies things." CP

[Blassiter 0]

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So how much tunnel time are you planning on doing?

well to be honest I dont really know. I have been talking with a girl online down here in orlando that skydives and goes there regularly and we talked about going friday and she said she was gonna call and reserve a time for us so I dont really know how much time she is gonna book

[tdog 0]

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i personally said you hold off on the tunnel till you graduate AFF unless you have a lot alot of money.

Personally (with the credentials of an AFF instructor, sorry for the credentials dropping) disagree with you 100%.

Any student who has tunnel time has a much better progression thru AFF jumps.

It is not a guarantee for success, I can name some factors that students still have struggled with after tunnel time, but almost every student I have jumped with, tunnel time makes a difference, huge difference.

How much time to get? As much as you want/can afford.

The key is to get GREAT coaching while in the tunnel. If you come in as a non-skydiver, sometimes the instructors just want to give you a fun time with minimal progression... Instead, you need to express you are in there to learn - and your coaches will instead of letting you goof off, will keep pushing your limits and learning to the point sometimes your confidence level will be reduced, you will walk out frustrated, and you will not truly enjoy the time... But it is like going to the gym - no pain - no gain. A day later when the results sink in, you will be glad...

I don't know why you suggest to hold off until after AFF... The skills you will learn will apply to your AFF jumps as well as your coach jumps (or lack of coach jumps).

I believe the tunnel increases success rates. I had a formal conversation with the Eloy staff about this, instructor to instructor, and they confirmed their DZ has increased success rate too (less redo AFF jumps).

So, in the long run - tunnel time will likely pay for itself in that you will be paying less in AFF. For sure the tunnel time will pay for itself in you will be doing less coach jumps. And finally, when you are invited on your first 8 way jump with very low jump numbers and are able to stick with the experienced guys (tracking/sit/belly/whatever) - the return on investment will be "priceless".

[Blassiter 0]

one other thing I was wondering is lets say the tunnels helps me out a lot and when i start my aff I end up doing really well(im very optimistic I know). Would I be able to, lets say bypass some of my aff levels? like would i be able to tell the jumpmasters "hey I think i can do this this and this" and have them observe me on one jump for multiple aff levels? or would I still have to do those jumps seperately?

[tdog 0]

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one other thing I was wondering is lets say the tunnels helps me out a lot and when i start my aff I end up doing really well(im very optimistic I know). Would I be able to, lets say bypass some of my aff levels? like would i be able to tell the jumpmasters "hey I think i can do this this and this" and have them observe me on one jump for multiple aff levels? or would I still have to do those jumps seperately?

At some DZs yes. I watched a friend on vacation with me get thru AFF in 3 jumps.

At my home DZ - no... We just make it much more challenging for you on the AFFs, so you feel challenged and you learn. Likewise, instead of teaching you how to freefall, we now can spend the time on the important things that save your life, like equipment, maintenance, canopy control, rules, recommendations, etc.

The problem with combining levels - over 50% of the stuff you learn is ground school, and 95% of what saves your life is canopy control. These things don't come in the tunnel - but can be taught with much higher quality to people with tunnel time as the freefall is low stress and easy.

You should talk to your home DZ to see how they handle this... The problem is the manifest office and management will give you canned answers. You will have to meet your actual instructors and build a relationship... At that point, you can say, "Hey, I think I can do two sets of turns. Can we try?" Your confidence will convince the instructors.

[cocik 0]

If you have a chance to get to tunnel before AFF, do it, get a good coach and tell him/her you need to practice for AFF. I took an hour, but 15-20 minutes should be enough to get you a good start.

Anyway, the tunnel has a few differences - apart from the points of reference it MAY also be the speed (you MAY find actual freefall to be faster), but it is a great experience for first-timers. The confidence and stability will pay off in your AFF.

Just to get an impression of how such coaching looks like, you can check my vid. I did not have any real freefall experience when this video was shot in SVCO.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dXcPzSWEmgQ

(edited to add URL)

[Fast 0]

I agree with tdog and as an AFF Instructor and previously as a coach, everyone that I have worked with that had tunnel time did MUCH better in the air. You are much more confident and quite a bit less nervous about the whole experience.

Go do it but like was mentioned before. Let them know that you plan on doing AFF.

~D
Where troubles melt like lemon drops Away above the chimney tops That's where you'll find me.
Swooping is taking one last poke at the bear before escaping it's cave - davelepka

[NickDG 23]

>>AFF is a breeze to pass it. I only know a few people who actually had to repeate a level or two.

And I know hundreds . . .

NickD BASE 194

[NeedToJump 0]

As many of the intructors and experienced people have already said, definitely do the tunnel time. It will help you with body position, freefall skills and overall confidence; all of that together generally makes for much more successful AFF.

Have fun!

Wind Tunnel and Skydiving Coach http://www.ariperelman.com

[ladyhawke 0]

My husband is currently going through AFF after doing tunnel time last year. He swears by it and he's passing his levels the first time!!

"It is our choices that show what we truly are far more than our abilities." - A. Dumbledore