Slow it down....

[Freakflyer804 0]

I've got about 20-25 jumps on my new Gti and I can't seem to get the speed any slower than around 60mph.... and am averaging about 90-100 secs of flight from about 13,500 .... any sugestions on body postions... wing tension??

The harder I try to go slower... the faster I go... and relaxed goes slower.... but not slower than sixty!!!

Anything offered would be appreciated

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What doesn't kill you... only requires brief hospitalization!!

[ManBird 0]

Start by getting as big as possible. Knees locked, toes pointed, and arms all the way out. Put in a slight d-arch and move your shoulders forward a bit. Make sure your hands are directly out to your sides -- not too far behind or in front of you. Tweak it from there. Note that if you can nail a good forward speed and your pitch is flat, a low fall rate will ensue.

Basic principle: get big.

"¯"`-._.-¯) ManBird (¯-._.-´"¯"

Click

[TomAiello 26]

Why do you want to slow down?

-- Tom Aiello

Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com
SnakeRiverBASE.com

[VectorBoy 0]

I bet if post a pic or vid we could help. I bet if you just see a vid or pic of yourself you will know already how to get into a better position. Sometimes its just nice to have someone to fly along side and give hand signals.

[mccordia 74]

I was averiging around 90 seconds from 12000 ft to 300ft (in a classic II), and no matter what I tried, I just couldn't slow it down.

But I was actualy stretching the wing soo hard, that I almost kept all the cells closed.

Rolling my shoulders forward, bending my arms inward a bit and pushing my elbows forward helped A LOT!! Just watch other good flyers and ask them.

I'm still nowhere near the times and distance other folks are getting, but a few pointers, tips and examples from other folks decreased my avg. fallrate from about 75 mph down to the high 50's in just one week. Having a dozen talented folks around to show you realy makes a difference...

There's probably a thousand tips everyone can give you, but I gues the best thing is to not try to hard, and just keep tweaking your body position.
When you hit a good position you will definately feel everything slow down. I was flying realy cramped/stiff, and just having a more relaxed body position realy worked..

JC
FlyLikeBrick
I'm an Athlete?

[leroydb 0]

300? eh so when did you start using a base canopy?

Leroy


..I knew I was an unwanted baby when I saw my bath toys were a toaster and a radio...

[mccordia 74]

Oops...how one silly typo can make turn a person from 'sensible' into 'freak'

I ment 3000 ft ofcource (or 900 meters...as those silly Swedish folks altimeters say?)

JC
FlyLikeBrick
I'm an Athlete?

[leroydb 0]

:-) OF COURSE YOU MEANT 3K LOL

Leroy


..I knew I was an unwanted baby when I saw my bath toys were a toaster and a radio...

[ManBird 0]

Quote

Why do you want to slow down?

It seems that almost everyone (including myself at one point) goes through this "low score" stage. Get the low number to show up on the ProTrack. For some, a peaceful, quiet freefall is actually what they want from a wingsuit.

The incredible glide you can get from these suits doesn't mean much to those who genuinely want to just slow down their freefall -- float. I think it's a nice skill to add to one's repertoire, but focusing on it for too long gets dull. I figure the sooner someone gets their fix the sooner they'll move onto business. Besides, 100 flights in, almost everyone stops going for the low score.

"¯"`-._.-¯) ManBird (¯-._.-´"¯"

Click

[flyinfishman 0]

Quote

Besides, 100 flights in, almost everyone stops going for the low score

Me too... I'm over it now Like the older birds here have said, focus on flying and the fall rates will come down on their own.
I struggled in the mid 50's trying to float, then gave up on that and started to go for better glide and came down to the mid 40's.
Stretch out the body and get that leg wing taught.
The super slow fall rates on my Gti don't last once the forward speed bleeds off. There's a balance there, it takes time to find.

Spotting myself out 2 - 3 miles taught me how to fly much more efficiently, but start out gradually and always know what the uppers are doing and where the canopy traffic is.
By the time I wait a couple of minutes to get way out, then over a couple minutes in the air, the tandems have usually landed already as I'm deploying.
Flying a straight line without any turns will help at learning your glide.

[Freakflyer804 0]

Well I wish I had other people at my DZ that I could go and fly with... but unfortunately I am the only one... I have been on a few flocks with SM1.. but I was just learning how to go straight. I was too far away to observe the way he and everyone else flew.

I am a decent tracker without the suit... but when trying to apply those skills to the suit I fall faster

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What doesn't kill you... only requires brief hospitalization!!

[pbla4024 0]

Cause time is easy to measure.

Fido

[TomAiello 26]

Quote

I am a decent tracker without the suit... but when trying to apply those skills to the suit I fall faster

Are you going forward faster at the same time as falling faster?

In my opinion (just my opinion), it's harder (and more fun) to achieve a better glide angle than to just slow down the fall rate. Obviously, it's very useful to learn to control _all_ the parameters of your flight (like fall rate) to the greatest degree you can.

-- Tom Aiello

Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com
SnakeRiverBASE.com

[ManBird 0]

Jim, I did notice that you were getting a really nice glide while jumping with you down here. Your fall rate was low, especially for a GTi, but you didn't seem to be sacrificing much forward speed at all. If anything, you had room to drive forward without dropping. You're gonna rock the S3 if you keep flying like that. Speaking of which, did you only get to do one S3 flight down here?

"¯"`-._.-¯) ManBird (¯-._.-´"¯"

Click

[flyinfishman 0]

Damn, that weekend was hot. I felt like a tired old dog. Thanks for the jumps!

Yep, just did the one flight with Kirk's S3 (which fit perfectly, thanks Kirk!)
Felt rock solid right out the door, spent 15 sec. sub 40, flew it down to 31, then made a banking turn toward the DZ (doh! not that low fall rate trap again )
The forward speed was noticeable right away and had me turning back sooner than I expected.

I borrowed an S3 this past weekend, which was a bit too small, so I had to "shrink" myself a little, but still managed over 2.5 mi in 2:20 from 13'3 dumping at 4. Need a good fitting suit and more practice.

My dinero for the PF is already set aside!
I'll keep the Gti forever though...I love it.

(congrats on your recent jumps!)

JIM

[petetheladd 0]

If you work on achieving distance more than slow fall rates, the speed will come down on its own.

Some tips :

1) Your legs are most likely not straight - even if you think they are.
When flying, look down your chest to your feet and knees and check them out - now straighten them out.
This will usually make you feel like you are tipping headdown ( now than you are using all of your leg wing )
you should notice an increase in speed.

2) Punch on the arms to stretch them out. forget the rolling cupping of the shoulders, make the wing flat in profile and dont have it ballooning up in a semi-circle - this should level you out from the tipping over from point 1 above

my 2 cents on a GTI

No, Not without incident

[ManBird 0]

Quote

forget the rolling cupping of the shoulders

Well, there's a right way and a wrong way to roll your shoulders (at least on the BirdMan suits). Whenever I tell first flight students "roll your shoulders", they ALWAYS do it the wrong way. That is, when they roll their shoulders, the rest of the arms goes along with them, so now they're reaching out in front of them.

Push your SHOULDERS forwards, not your arms. If we're in flight and I look at you from the side, your hands should be directly out to your sides and your shoulders should be lower than your hands. Look at the wings on a low-wing aircraft. Note where they're attached to the fuselage -- on the bottom. Then look at the end of the wing and se where that is in regards to the fuselage -- it's almost in the middle. Do the same thing with your arms.

The d-arch should be very slight... just enough to not have your chest or belly burbling your leg wing. Knees must be LOCKED and toes pointed. Your leg should be able to bend the wrong way just a hair when your knees are locked.

Think of it this way: Every limb should be at it's fullest extension and the lowest points of your body should be your toes and shoulders. That's a good place to start.

"¯"`-._.-¯) ManBird (¯-._.-´"¯"

Click