performing backloops

[Tonto 1]

Others have already answered this, but I'll give it a go. Most AFF is pretty boring. Some students are either loopers or spinners. The loopers go 3D on you, and I go and get them. I enjoy it. I also enjoy martial arts.

Regardless of the student and how good you think they are, all of them are capable of moves that will test your skills, reflexes and capabilities beyond what you can imagine as an AFF instructor.

I now have over 1300 AFF dives, and every few months I'll see something I never believed possible, but have somehow always anticipated.

t

It's the year of the Pig.

[Erroll 80]

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To demonstrate loss and recovery of stability, while under the supervision of someone who can intervene if the student gets into difficulty or cannot recover stability.

Above I gave a description of my AFF level 6 where I got "stuck" in a continuous backloop (was flipping repeatedly for about 5000ft). I managed to get stable right around pull altitude, and my instructor swooped in and grabbed me hard as I pulled. On the ground, a little shaken, I said "hey, thanks for helping me stabilize out up there". He said "I didn't do anything, that was all you. There was no way I was coming near you with you flipping like that." This coming from the DZO of DeLand with many many skydives to his name.

During my AFF course, I never managed to actually do a full backloop. Every attempt had me on my back looking up at blue sky. This included level 7 (which was the last dive before the hop&pop). This dive (known in SA as the full series) consisted of a dive exit, backloop, 360 left, 360 right, backloop. Both 'loops' had me on my back with my instructor off to the side. He would give me a thumbs-up, signalling that I should go back to belly-to-earth. On the ground he congratulated me on my control and ability to get stable again. I concede that at no point was I truly unstable and at the time told him so. He said the test was to see if I could get back to a normal belly-to-earth, still altitude aware and in control. (I passed.) He added that it was also good for the student's confidence, knowing that he/she could stay in control.

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[Ron 10]

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After their exit task, their freefall task could be one of many things including backloops. I just think that teaching the student to correct instability as its own lesson is better than including it in the when you fail at the backloop part. Why don't you try it sometime? Teach the exit and recovery followed by backloop(s). You may be surprised at how your student does with the whole 'being on your back' thing out of the way.

Then we are done. Most programs teach both.

And I think both are very good TLO's.

You may disagree.

But backloops and rolls are very good for letting a student get more comfertable in freefall....And that is a goal of any program of instruction.

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If they have already successfully dealt with instability this is not likely.
We still offer standard progression where I work (mostly in the winter) and while the problems inherent with it are numerous, students freaking out while trying to do backloops is not that high on the agenda at instructors' meetings

It happens, read the reply from "the111" on this very thread.

"No free man shall ever be debarred the use of arms." -- Thomas Jefferson, Thomas Jefferson Papers, 334

[Tonto 1]

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Avoid teaching through hidden agendas.

That sucks. Do you think the AFF Instructors teaching AFF programs all over the world developed those programs?

I don't charge for rejumps. What's my agenda for teaching backloops?

t

It's the year of the Pig.

[RippedCord 0]

I was told it was to get you into an unstable position so that you could show that you could get back into a stable one.

AMDG

[Nightingale 0]

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What happens if you task the student to do backloops and they do backloops. Now you have to do another AFF jump because you have not achieved your goal of having the student experience instability. Is the student getting their money's worth?

Perris doesn't teach backloops til the A license check dive. I nailed them both. 360 right, 360 left, perfect backloop. 360 left, 360 right, perfect backloop.

Did I get my money's worth? HECK YEAH.

From my own experience, I'd say you can't do a perfect backloop if you don't have a sense of where your center of gravity is. If you know where your center is, its easy to stay stable, do a flip, and pop back into an arch. Again, from my own perspective, I'd say someone who can do a backloop understands stability and balance, which is what you're checking for anyway.

Perris had me do an unstable exit on level 6 out of the skyvan. Both the unstable exit and the backloops were confidence boosters (not to mention FUN!) and the more confident someone is, the less likely they are to freak, and the more likely they'll do the right thing, ie. relax and arch.

[chuteless 1]

That is a perfect description of what backloops are all about. Very well put.

You will obviously become a very good skydiver.

Bill Cole D-41

[Nightingale 0]

thanks!

[Fireflyer 0]

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you just described me.

I never had instability issues in AFF. If my instructors hadn't made me do barrel rolls and backloops and unstable exits, I wouldn't have learned what instability felt like, and if it'd happened on one of my solos, I'd have freaked. At least this way, instability was planned and I knew to expect it and deal with it. I knew what it felt like and how to deal with it, it made it easier to deal with it when it popped up unexpectedly.

That's my personal experience as a student. Dunno about anyone else.

Edit: I was told before my backloop jump that the point was to see if I could recover from an unstable situation, not to complete a perfect backloop, so if I fouled up the backloop, that was ok, so long as I got unstable and kinda upside down, and then stable again.

this was was my training experience exactly also. i agree that its a valuble tool...