How much tunneltime did you need to learn headdown?

[Fall0ut 3]

How much tunneltime did you need until you took off the net headdown and more or less stable without an instructor holding on to you?

I'm not talking total tunneltime but just for learning headdown from the start. I am aware that it depends on talent and current level, but I am interested how long it took YOU

[TangBu 1]

9.5 hours total tunnel time, and I've only been released for 10-15 seconds at a time so far. Dunno how much time I've spent just practicing HD, but probably 4-5 hours. Yep, I'm a slow learner, but it's still been fun.

...Blair.

[smurfmws 0]

From the first time i grabed the net till the first time i took off about 2hrs then till i could do it every time about 3 then till i was able to do a back flip to my HD like 6 1/2hrs. I just takes time.

[BigBUG 0]

Generally couple of hours from initial net headstand.

It depends of yours previous experience in the air (it could be both positive and negative) and the position you are comfortable in.

For example I could not fly 'mantiss' unitl I done it in the sky but learmed 'romeo' pretty fast and it was much easier for me. My buddy has exactly opposite experience.

Plus you'll need to learn layouts.

You could not just take 'total tunneltime' out of equation - recovery skills are essential and you'll need to be very comfortable and solid in sitfly and backfly to try HD safely.

[JumpeRod 0]

It depends on how quickly your coaches will allow you to get on your head... currency, skill, weight, size, etc. If you bail with enough skill that you won't atmonauti in to the wall, then I bet you will progress a lot faster than someone who is about to track themselves in to a coma.

There is an art, or rather, a knack to flying. The knack lies in learning to throw yourself at the ground and miss. Pick a nice day and try it.
-- Douglas Adams

[Squeak 17]

we'll see how I go, I did 8 hours in Eloy in December and by 8 hours I was Self releasing off of the net, and tentatively slying back and forth.
I've just booked 4 hours in iFly Singapore, so hopefully I'll improve on where i left off.


Anyone from iFly SF, know Tommy?. He's my HD coach.

You are not now, nor will you ever be, good enough to not die in this sport (Sparky)
My Life ROCKS!
How's yours doing?

[BigBUG 0]

Exactly! And to convince the coach to let you on your head you need to show him that you could control any un-stability. This is where total tunnel time hours came back to the game - or you'll need to find an instructor who just don't care :)

Funny thing, but it could really help (it happens to me when I switched from over-controlling coach to the guy who let me do mistakes and learn from them).

[BigBUG 0]

iFly Singapore looks great on Youtube videos! Happy flying :)

Could not wait when they complete a big (Bottrop-type) tunnel here in Saint-Petersburg - should be this summer.

[Fall0ut 3]

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From the first time i grabed the net till the first time i took off about 2hrs then till i could do it every time about 3 then till i was able to do a back flip to my HD like 6 1/2hrs. I just takes time.

D'oh.. the time would not be a problem.. the money for more than 10hrs tunneltime sure is

[smurfmws 0]

Now just so you know i went fast mostly because i had pend about 20 more hrs flying in sit before i stared HD.

[ebusto 0]

I know Tommy, he's awesome.

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Anyone from iFly SF, know Tommy?. He's my HD coach.

[monkycndo 0]

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I know Tommy, he's awesome.

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Anyone from iFly SF, know Tommy?. He's my HD coach.

Tommy is fab-u-lous.

Tell him Monkey says he needs a haircut....... and a shave.

50 donations so far. Give it a try.

You know you want to spank it
Jump an Infinity

[Fall0ut 3]

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Now just so you know i went fast mostly because i had pend about 20 more hrs flying in sit before i stared HD.

Woah.. sounds like all headdown freeflyers earn quite a penny in their jobs.. or did you guys all sell your house or car to learn headdown?

I just can't afford to blow more than 10000$ literally in the air for that Maybe I should apply for a part-time job at a tunnel in order to get free airtime

[DrewEckhardt 0]

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Now just so you know i went fast mostly because i had pend about 20 more hrs flying in sit before i stared HD.

Woah.. sounds like all headdown freeflyers earn quite a penny in their jobs.. or did you guys all sell your house or car to learn headdown?

I just can't afford to blow more than 10000$ literally in the air for that Maybe I should apply for a part-time job at a tunnel in order to get free airtime

It's a lot less expensive than the old way. I think I had about 1000 jumps when I built my first successful 4-way vertical round (2 head-up, 2 head-down) which would be over $20,000 for my share of lift tickets. The newest guy might have had 500 jumps with the others somewhere between so as a group we'd spent better than $60,000 to get that not bad.

[Fall0ut 3]

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It's a lot less expensive than the old way. I think I had about 1000 jumps when I built my first successful 4-way vertical round (2 head-up, 2 head-down) which would be over $20,000 for my share of lift tickets. The newest guy had 700 jumps so as a group we'd spent better than $60,000 to get that not bad.

Yeah okay, you are right. It just came to my mind because it's very easy to spend 10000 bucks in the tunnel in a very short period of time - on the other hand, cranking out 1000 jumps in the sky would take an average jumper about 4 years (and me at least 8 )
I probably should stop thinking of the tunnel as only a "workhorse" to aquire skills and believing the real fun only takes place in the sky and get to the attitude that building up 10hrs tunneltime over the years is okay, too.

[Joellercoaster 6]

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I probably should stop thinking of the tunnel as only a "workhorse" to aquire skills and believing the real fun only takes place in the sky and get to the attitude that building up 10hrs tunneltime over the years is okay, too.

Most definitely!

(Disclaimer, I am so far purely a belly flyer, maybe the freefly experience is different.) I, and a fair few people I know, have maybe five times as much tunnel time as actual freefall time, and it's been consistent over hundreds or in some cases thousands of jumps. It's not that we don't skydive, it's just that the need/want for tunnel never really stops.

Tunnel is great fun in its own right.

Also, the goalposts move... once you've done enough tunnel that you can confidently get head down, you'll suddenly find you are really dissatisfied with your grip-taking, or your translations, or your transitions, and the addiction has set in - you know you could probably learn these things by going and jumping, but you've just seen the most effective way to get from A to B (or now, B to C), skill-wise.

Tunnel is fun, but tunnel training is a drug!

--
"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?

[mchamp 1]

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we'll see how I go, I did 8 hours in Eloy in December and by 8 hours I was Self releasing off of the net, and tentatively slying back and forth.
I've just booked 4 hours in iFly Singapore, so hopefully I'll improve on where i left off.


Anyone from iFly SF, know Tommy?. He's my HD coach.

Tommy this guy? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2v-mzgHmFj0

Also when did ya book? Im looking at booking some soon!

For info regarding lift ticket prices all around the world check out
http://www.jumpticketprices.com/dropzones.asp

[hookitt 1]

Hey I have a couple cameos in that video! I believe you're looking at TJ. He's a tunnel flyer and skydiver and coaches in both arenas. He's great at both.

Tommy doesn't skydive, he's a tunnel instructor with true Mad Skills.

Squeak, Tommy is great. I'm a bit Jealous :) You get to fly with Tommy AND fly in the Singapore tunnel. Every year he goes to Montana and joins in on a cattle drive so he's a real cowboy too. Country Music and all.

My grammar sometimes resembles that of magnetic refrigerator poetry... Ghetto

[Austintxflight 0]

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It's a lot less expensive than the old way. I think I had about 1000 jumps when I built my first successful 4-way vertical round (2 head-up, 2 head-down) which would be over $20,000 for my share of lift tickets. The newest guy had 700 jumps so as a group we'd spent better than $60,000 to get that not bad.

Yeah okay, you are right. It just came to my mind because it's very easy to spend 10000 bucks in the tunnel in a very short period of time - on the other hand, cranking out 1000 jumps in the sky would take an average jumper about 4 years (and me at least 8 )
I probably should stop thinking of the tunnel as only a "workhorse" to aquire skills and believing the real fun only takes place in the sky and get to the attitude that building up 10hrs tunneltime over the years is okay, too.

And remember to have fun, try not to look at it as HD is the only goal, every orientation has so much that is fun about, tunnel or sky, you should also have fun.