Swoop Ponds

[prost 0]

Does any one have suggestions for building a swoop pond and for management of the pond? We are considering building a swoop pond and would like to know what has worked well or not so well for others. Depth, size, layout? Also suggestions on what control measures we should place on the pond.

[PhreeZone 20]

I'd give Jim Slaton a call at Perris and talk to him. There are official sizes to a swoop pond to make sure that it's safe for contests. He's an organizer of the Para Problade meets too. He'd be your best bet.
Do I HAVE to do another raft dive???

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[cobaltdan 0]

we need to nail down regie (designed the airblades and swoop course of the para-performance games)
for some standard courses. rember these are not straight swoop ditches but highly challenging 3d courses
set on a diamond pond.
this way us east coasters can practice.
it does not create a fair field when only people at perris valey can practice on a course prior to a competition.
blue skies
dan

[prost 0]

Do you know how big the pond in parris is?

[prost 0]

If we are going to build a pond I would like one that would be good for swoop competitions.

[SkymonkeyONE 4]

You need to decide what form of competitions you plan on hosting. If you ever planned on hosting one of Reggie's events, then you really need a diamond shaped pond, about 190 feet from tip to tip. If you plan on running water-level type of events like they do at The Ranch, then longer, straight ponds will work fine. To host one of Reggie's events, or do one in a similar manner, then you are also going to have to purchase or build a bunch of airblades. The MINIMUM number you will need is as follows: two 17' blades so that intermediate-catagory competitors will be able to practice their entry into what we call the "speed" event. You will also need at least two 14' blades so that people can practice for pro-catagory speed. You will next need at least four five-foot blades so that people can practice for the PPPB distance and accuracy events. All "Reggie type" events begin over water and end over land. This is so that if you pound in, it will be into water. If you or any of your fellow jumpers on the DZ ever hope to compete in a PPPB event, then this is what you need to have set up. Blade swooping with water as a safety stop is very different than pond swooping. The average joe is going to use whatever you put there as a swooping pond. That is to say, he or she is going to be toe-dragging and shooting rooster tails. You can still put up the tall blades out towards the middle of the pond so that PPPB competitors will be able to judge their entrance height, but putting the five footers about 20 feet out from the leading edge of a 200 foot pond will give more than ample safety for people practicing their distance runs. Carving "speed" courses, like at the PPPB do not turn until you are out of the water, so straight ponds work fine for them, assuming you don't have high berms.
On the other hand, you have water-level events in which rectangular (or natural) ponds like those at Waller, The Ranch, Elsinore, etc work fine. With those, you can set up entirely different events. The in-lane distance and carve events at The Ranch were run and judged using 300-foot lines of floating pool buoys adjusted in different configurations. The buoys were set up in equal-length strips of different colors. You could start dragging a toe anywhere along the line and people could identify your start and finish point by color, then calculate your longest continuous drag. Other events there included an accuracy event in which you kicked the maximum amount of sponge buoys as you passed by and dragged your toes; very fun. There was also a raft accuracy event in which one had to first contact the water in his surf, then land on a mattress; very difficult to get stopped.
Fabricated ponds are generally between 2.5 and three feet deep all the way across. Natural ponds, obviously, vary greatly. a man-made pond that is the depth discussed above will both absorb most impacts without having you "bottom out", plus allow you to quickly stand up if you chow and get your reserve out of the water. As for water level maintenance, the diamond-shaped pond at Perris used 400 gallons per day during the meet in June. I doubt the one at waller does, as it is shaded. Same for the ranch, but I think it is also fed by a spring. I would call Waller or Elsinore if you don't have a ton of room.
Hope this helps.
Chuck

[fonz 0]

> I'd give Jim Slaton a call at Perris
The Team Extreme guys (including Jim) can also be contacted by
e-mail: canopyflight@skydiveperris.com
Blue skies,
Alphons

[prost 0]

Thanks Chuck. Right now I am in the proccess of figuring out where would be the safest and easiest place to build the pond. This info helps a lot.

[jfields 0]

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Does any one have suggestions for building a swoop pond and for management of the pond?

Sure. Don't stock the swoop pond with piranha.
Justin
My Homepage

[prost 0]

Thanks, Jim just got back to me with some great suggestions.

[Gravitymaster 0]

I would say to make it large enough to have fish in it. A few Bass, Catfish etc.. would be kewl so we could fish when on a weather hold.

[Aviatrr 0]

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I would say to make it large enough to have fish in it. A few Bass, Catfish etc.. would be kewl so we could fish when on a weather hold.

Bonus points to any swooper that can snatch a fish out of the water with his feet mid swoop..
Mike

[prost 0]

Unless the fish was a piranha.