Skydiving

No a bag is not a good parachute especially a paper bag

the way i see it is that if parachuting is an extreme sport that they would announce it on the radio or tv so your answer is no it is not i've went before though its fun

I wouldn't say there are any actual "stages." The general outline of a jump; plan the jump and practice on the ground, climb to altitude, exit, do whatever was planned, breakoff (get separated), open, land.

There are a lot of different things to do in skydiving, so that outline can change plenty.

• The more friction you have the more grip your parachute has in the air. This is most apparent in the type of fabric used in the construction of parachutes. There are 2 basic types - F111 (which is porous) and Zero Porosity (which is a lacquered material). Zero Porosity or ZP type parachutes tend to fly faster through the air.
• In swooping competition parachutes, the thinner the suspension lines, the faster you can fly also. This has is directly related to friction, drag and overall weight.
• Parachuting discusses an open parachute. Skydiving is the element where you are free falling with a packed parachute on your back. Most skydivers wear a full-body jumpsuit. The rougher the material, the slower you fall. Often in the case of larger heavier skydivers, their suits are made of cordura to slow them down. Ripstop nylon is used for lighter weight skydivers.

Skydiving with dentures will not affect the skydive in any way. However, it is possible to lose your dentures on a skydive. There are multiple videos on youtube depicting people losing their dentures on a skydive. So while it will not affect your skydive, you may want to leave them on the ground so you do not lose them.
Put simply, the answer is yes. They must be well fitted however so as not to come loose during freefall. Tell your dropzone when you are booking so that they know.

PROskydiving reimburses DZs via ACH transaction every Monday at a rate of 85% their normal rate assuming they link back to PROskydiving. Without a link, they get 80%.

usually drop zones highest drop height is 14000ft but some go up to 16500ft like one in New Zealand named Skydive Abel Tasman

This question is the one most frequently asked of dive-training agency PADI (the Professional Association of Diving Instructors). The truth is, nobody knows for sure. There are several diver certification agencies in the US, and more in other countries. Until recently these agencies didn't share certification data. Then there's the question of how one defines "diver". Does this refer to "certified" divers or "active" divers. It's true that nearly all divers are certified divers, but only a small percentage of people with a diving certification make more than five divers per year.

The topic was explored at some length by Ben Davison in the May 2007 issue of his dive-industry magazine "Undercurrent". While PADI and other agencies often suggest the number is "2.5 to 3 million", Davison believes that this number is significantly inflated. Most of us who have spent some time in the diving industry agree. Davison's best guess is there are probably about 1.2 million "active" divers in the United States, where "active" is defined as making at least 5 divers per year.

Generally at any drop zone in your state. Although if you want to go tandem, ( attached to a pro, definatley reccomended for a first time) then you have to wait until your 18. 16 You have to do a static line ( look it up) or go to Canada or Russia you can do it any age over there!

Of course. for example, "I went skydiving on saturday" or "I take skydiving lessons"

Skydiving is popular in many countries. I will list some countries that have skydiving and make some comment about the type of skydiving offered.

I think it is a fair bet to say that if a country has a military, it probably has at least military skydiving.

New Zealand has military and sport jumping. The views are spectacular with the beautiful Bay of Islands in the North with ocean and island scenery, to the lakes and mountains of Queenstown and Glenorchy in the South.

Australia has military and sports skydiving with spectacular views of coral reefs from the air to barren desert.

Fiji has sports jumping to my knowledge with the emphasis on tandem. Skydiving is very big in the US and probably has the most jumping. Not so big in the United Kingdom with the weather issues but still is on offer. France Germany Spain, (very popular) Italy Hungary Russia, there is probably not many countries in Europe that don't have some skydiving.

The United Arab Emirates are mad on skydiving and with the financial backing available have been able to finance world record formation jumps successfully.

To be frank, perhaps it would be easier to list countries that don't have skydiving. People have even jumped at the North Pole and above Everest.

I would welcome comment on this. Perhaps your country hasn't been mentioned and you are a jumper.

A parachute must have suspended weight in order to open. If you have no weight loading the parachute will fail.

A parachute will slow down a free-fall by catching the air rushing past you. It's large, bag-like shape greatly contributes to the air resistance working against the gravitational pull, and so slows your fall down a point that it is no longer dangerous.

Paratroopers roll to dissipate the kinetic energy associated with the fall. As the ground is, for all intents and purposes, an immovable object, landing directly on your feet would bring you to an immediate stop, and as the body has no way to naturally counteract the energy which has nowhere to go, severe injury would be likely.

If you live in New Zealand or are a visitor, the answer is yes. You need the written permission on a parent or guardian and must be able to fit into the harness.

This is a unique situation and as far as I know, the age limit for a TANDEM skydive is higher at least 16 and often 18 yrs of age.

You would not be able to do a solo skydive at 11, even in NZ.

It is a common sense issue, few 11 year olds would have the ability to act appropriately in an emmergency and would most likely panic. It would also be difficult to modify a skydive rig to fit the small body of an average 11 year old, though there are probably a few MacDonalds fans out there for whom this would not be a problem.

gravity

The United States Parachute Association reports about 30 fatalities a year, out of an estimated 3 million jumps. Figures from other countries are less reliable due to the lower numbers involved.

You'll get to the drop zone and talk to someone in the office (known to skydivers as manifest), who will get you started on some paperwork. There will be a lengthy waiver that you have to sign before you can jump, which reminds you that skydiving is an extreme sport and is not a terribly safe activity, so the drop zone is not liable if you get hurt or killed during your skydive. While you're looking over this reassuring bit of paperwork, you'll probably notice all the people around you--experienced skydivers and first-time tandem jumpers alike. If you take a minute to really look, you'll likely notice that they all seem to be wearing huge smiles. This will make sense to you in a little while.

After you sign the paperwork and watch a short introductory video, you'll meet your instructor and your videographer, if you opted to get video of your jump (it's expensive, but if this is your first time, you will absolutely kick yourself later if you choose not to get video). Your instructor is your best friend for the next few hours. He will give you a short safety briefing and explain to you what to do during the skydive. It's in your best interest to listen to him--it's his job to save your life, and you have the potential to really mess him up if you don't do what you're told.

After all that is done, it's time to get suited up. You'll wear a specially made harness that straps to your instructor's parachute harness. You'll also wear a pair of goggles to keep the wind out of your eyes, and, depending on the temperature, you may wear a jumpsuit. After your gear has been checked out, you'll head toward the plane. If your nerves haven't kicked in yet, get ready, because they're about to. If you're expecting a fancy first-class seat on an airliner, prepare to be disappointed. Most jump planes are tiny, cramped, and uncomfortable. You'll probably be sitting on the floor, in your instructor's lap, with somebody else sitting in your lap. If you're lucky, you may be in a larger plane with actual seats, or benches. If you're unlucky, you'll be crammed into a tiny Cessna with 4 other people and barely enough room to scratch your nose. Either way, the plane ride is a necessary evil, but it's worth it. You'll see.

After everybody's strapped in, the plane will taxi to the runway. It's normal to be scared at this point. You'll begin your climb to altitude, which can take anywhere from fifteen minutes to a half hour. On the way up, your instructor will go over some more things with you, and will probably joke around to try to loosen you up, if he can tell you're nervous (and let's face it--who wouldn't be? You're about to jump out of an airplane!). If you're jumping in the summer, the jumpmaster will usually open the door for a few minutes on the way to altitude, just to cool everybody off (there's no air conditioning on a jump plane). This is an interesting experience in itself, and can be a bit scary if you're near the door. But don't worry, you won't fall out--at least, not until you're ready to!

So after a long, uncomfortable ride to altitude, you'll feel the plane level off. Someone will yell "Door!", and the door will open. The sound of the wind rushing by at 100mph is deafening, even from inside the plane. Your instructor will get you up and slide you closer to the door. The adrenaline will have your heart racing in a mixture of fear and excitement. The anticipation grows as you move closer to the door, and watch other jumpers exit the plane. By the time you get to the door, you'll be able to see the ground below you. The view from up here is spectacular. You're way too high to see people, or cars, or even houses, and you can clearly see the curvature of the earth. Your instructor will position you in the door, and at this point, it's do or die. No going back now. Your videographer will step outside and hold on from outside the door to get a good view as you get ready to go. Your instructor will give the signal... and then you're flying.

There are no words to describe the feeling of freefall. It's absolute freedom. There is no sensation of falling; it's much more like flying. It's an experience like nothing else in the world. Your senses may feel overloaded; it is really a lot to take in, especially on your first time. But for most people, by the time they exit the plane, the fear is gone. It's replaced by a feeling of ecstasy that the majority of the population will never dream of. You'll fly for about a minute, until it's time to deploy the parachute. At about 5000 feet above the ground, your instructor will pull the ripcord and your parachute will open, slowing you from 120mph to about 15mph in around 5 seconds.

Once your parachute is open, you'll be able to talk to your instructor (the wind is much too loud to talk in freefall). It's also your chance to enjoy the scenery, and really relax and take in the experience. It's very quiet under canopy, especially compared to the deafening wind noise of freefall. Your instructor may let you steer the canopy. After about a five minute canopy ride, you'll come in for your landing. Your instructor will flare the canopy, and you'll either land standing up, or come sliding in on your butt. Once you reach the ground and fully realize what you've just done, you'll understand all those grins on the faces of the other skydivers, and probably have one of your own.

Skydiving has its risks, and can result in injury or death, even if you do everything right. It's rare, but it happens. If you're okay with this, and you still choose to do it, it can be an absolutely life-changing experience. A word of warning, though--this sport is highly addictive, and I think Leonardo da Vinci said it best: "When once you have tasted flight, you will forever walk the earth with your eyes turned skyward, for there you have been, and there you will long to return."

The velocity of a skydiver is largely governed by weightand drag. Obviously both can vary quite a bit. The typical skydiver flying in "belly" or prone position reaches the terminal velocity of about 110mph to 130mph (typically 120mph) after about 1000ft of freefall. This equates to a rate of approximately 1000ft for every 5.5 seconds. Tandems would fall at 150 to 180 mph if it wasn't for a drogue chute that is deployed by the tandem instructor shortly after leaving the aircraft to increase the drag on the tandem pair. This is needed because there is about twice the weight and essentially the same drag because the student is laying directly below the instructor. If you double the weight without increasing the surface area the fall rate will increase by a factor of the square root of 2. So, about 170 mph for an average tandem pair with no drogue. Similarly to the situation with an individual skydiver, tandem freefall rates can vary quite a bit. Many camera fliers wear small wings under their arms to allow them a higher range of adjustability in their fall rates.

Not necessarily. In many countries such as the UK, you can skydive from the age of 16 onwards with parental consent. Once you reach the age of 18, you can self certify.

There is no law in the US regarding the minimum age to skydive, so it would be legal to take a four year old on a tandem skydive. Realistically though, the United States Parachute Association issues the licenses to skydivers, and if a USPA instructor is found to have taken a child on a skydive then he's subject to disciplinary action. Additionally, the fact that we are a litigious society requires all skydiving businesses to operate under a waiver system, where the participant is required to sign a Participation Agreement, essentially forfeiting his right to sue, and waiving all liability. That being the case you must be of Legal Age of Majority in order to enter into that contract, that age is 18 in most states, but 19 in a few. Also, legal precedent has held that a parent or guardian can not waive liability on behalf of a minor.

Both. Diving is a sport in the Olympics, and people can dive in the pool or wherever they want. But it can be a professional sport purely based on the various techniques such as flips and spins while diving into the pool. It is a sport, like many others, that take years and years of practice before perfection.