Introduction to Skydiving!
Why would you even jump from a perfectly good airplane anyway? Once it was said that if going on a boat isn’t swimming then traveling on an airplane is not flying. You must get out of the vehicle to truly feel!
(look at my friend's face (white jumpsuit) while exiting the airplane on top, he is truly feeling the air. lol)
Remember that any activity involving high speeds and heights (aerial sport in general) has an intrinsic risk, and each participant, independent of their level of experience is the sole and ultimate responsible for their own safety; it is their duty to obtain as much information as possible regarding the skydiving drop zone, and these drop zones also have to provide information regarding their education systems, the level of experience of their staff, show the special equipment used for teaching, safety regulations and current and other regulations issued by the corresponding authorities in each country. If skydiving were really such a dangerous sport I would have ever jumped. 1136 jumps and counting.
The idea is always to minimize the risks and enjoy the experience. High risk activities cannot be left open and free for interpretations as this can lead to undesirable consequences. An instruction manual gives the guidelines and specific criteria to be able to carry out the activity of high risk minimizing them as much as possible. In the United States the USPA regulates this activity and in their website you can download all manuals available.
Another important fact to mention is that if rules only remain in words it is probable that the student will forget part of them. It is important to have the information handy and written. The risk of forgetting content depends on the rule. This situation happens with licenced skydiver who have not jumped for a while or who have not gone through uncommon situations where they have to remember what they were taught. There is danger in forgetting basic theoretical concepts.
The Skydiving Information Manual (SIM) serves students to review rules set by instructors and other professionals of the discipline. Skydivers can periodically review to consult when doubts appear. Finally, it is also important for the instructors to have the SIM handy to offer it to their students; this would be an excellent pedagogical initiative. In addition all instructors must teach the SIM so that there are no ambiguous or different indications.
I am positive that if you are interested in skydiving; go to a drop zone and ask about the information that I have presented here. The information will enlighten you and you will be jumping out of the plane safely.
On my next post I will be explaining why it is important to skydive!