No booties to Megabooties? Anyone tried this?

[Namowal 0]

A few experienced jumpers have suggested I order my jumpsuit with mega-sized booties. I am interested in formation skydiving... ...but aren't the megas supposed to be for the experts? I'm rather new and haven't jumped with any booties.
This seems to be a departure from the "don't try [anything fancy] until you've had 200 jumps" mantra that I normally hear.

1.Have any of you gone from no booties at all to the big ones?
2. If so, how difficult were they to master?

My blog with the skydiving duck cartoons.

[GLIDEANGLE 1]

200 jump threshold does not apply here.

I went from no booties to big booties (size 13 shoes). No problems at all. I am a klutz... If I can do it, you can do it.

The choices we make have consequences, for us & for others!

[hillson 0]

I did...two weeks ago. I, too, am interested in rw and as I wanted to get a suit that I'd have for a while I went with the big booties. Not the Airspeed style but I think tony suit calls them megaxl or something. Was also recommended by my instructor when I asked.

Big difference flying. Had some fun potato chipping my first few. Put 3 jumps on it solo because I was all over the place, managed to snag tunnel time that night, and was back in the sky in groups the next day. Tunnel certainly not required, of course, it was just lucky timing. But be prepared to move a bit different than you're used to. That's all.

Get them...you won't regret it.

[NWFlyer 2]

I say go for it. Try them for the first time on a small jump or in the tunnel; if you don't feel ready for them, you can always tuck them under and try again a few jumps later.

"There is only one basic human right, the right to do as you damn well please. And with it comes the only basic human duty, the duty to take the consequences." -P.J. O'Rourke

[theplummeter 15]

I went from no booties to mega booties on a tony suit. Easy transition, if I jump in a different suit I feel like my feet don't do anything.

[Andy9o8 2]

You should be familiar with them. They're similar to These.

[billvon 3,120]

>...but aren't the megas supposed to be for the experts?

Not really. They take a little time to learn to fly well, but it's not going to be a whole new way of flying.

If you do decide to get them I'd strongly suggest to spend a little tunnel time with a coach working on your body position. Small problems now are easy to fix - they're a lot harder to fix after doing it that way over the course of 400 jumps, after it's become a habit.

One thing you might want to consider is that if you are light. megabooties might require you to add a bit more lead.

>This seems to be a departure from the "don't try [anything fancy] until you've had
>200 jumps" mantra that I normally hear.

That's good advice, but small vs large booties aren't really all that "fancy" a change.

Edited to add - if it's Tony suits you are talking about, they offer Airspeed booties which are sort of a step between small and mega booties.

[Namowal 0]

Quote

You should be familiar with them. They're similar to These.

Good one.

My blog with the skydiving duck cartoons.

[jumpwally 0]

...and then again you see guys like Roger Ponce with no booties...

smile, be nice, enjoy life
FB # - 1083

[Ron 10]

Get them, they will not be a big deal. Yes they are more powerful, but not something that is impossible to learn.

Just do two and three ways till you get used to them.

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