Bokdrol

Have a look at Total Knee Replacement on General Skydiving Discussions - it's a recent thread.

I've got junk knees due to years of consistent athletic abuse. I wear knees braces and jump a large canopy which, touch wood, works nicely. In what I consider fast landing situations I slide in on my butt. Keep my knees working by doing loads of cycling - running is the big knee killer imho. The problem with knee surgery, which I have been offered but declined once I got a (better) second opinion, is that it sometimes just doesn't 'work'. So, no magic answer I'm afraid, just my own situation.

Technique wise I can't help you. However, just stick with it and listen to your instructors, follow their advice and try to relax in the air. I was 59 when I did my AFF with an almost non existent arch and 60 when I got my A licence. I find that doing pull-ups really helps my neck, back and shoulders. I've just done my 760th jump aged 69. I'll never be a great skydiver but I like to think I'm very very safety aware. I love the sport and 99% of the people involved with it. Good luck.

Try IHI Bupa

Flat packing is the method that is done on the ground. Any old school skydiver at your DZ should be able to show how to do it or you may be able to find a video on U-Tube.

There is a FB site, UK Skydiving Gear for Sale (or something along those lines) which, if you join, will list skydiving items such as rigs and helmets etc, that come up for sale. However, before you rush into any purchase you should get proper advice. This would normally come from someone who knows you in skydiving terms, and is qualified to give that advice. For example, the instructor who trained you or the Chief Instructor at the DZ where you jump most frequently. Don't rush in to a purchase. The reason that so much quality stuff comes up for sale is that someone else did exactly that.

Fair point

You are quite right there. An instructor I know estimated that only about 30% of his students were still jumping a year after obtaining their A. However, very few actually drop out of the AFF course itself - probably as few as or even fewer than 1 in 50.

Fair comments from both of you - I'll wind my neck in!!

I won't dispute that some skydivers jumpers start off on RAPS. You will see if you read my first post, that I have quoted feedback I received from the few that I know of - i.e. they consider that they wasted their money doing RAPS. However, as I have said, and I stand by this, RAPS is NOT skydiving, it is parachuting. Other than canopy handling skills, which you get with AFF in any case, you learn virtually zip about freefall doing RAPS. The initial posting said that the poster wanted to get their A Licence but would rather do RAPS due to the cost. Well, they won't get their BPA Skydiver A licence doing RAPS jumps. Blues.

Oh, and remember, RAPS is parachuting, not skydiving. You won't get a BPA 'A' licence by doing RAPS, and neither do RAPS jumps give you any 'credit' towards AFF levels.

I can't answer you on the technical RAPS side of things because I've never done a RAPS jump. However, as far as jumping in the UK getting called off due to the weather is concerned, it's the old 'how long is a piece of string' scenario. The weather here is fickle, to say the least. If we weren't shut down at present, we would have been jumping almost continuously since late March. Prior to that, the 2020 weather was awful for jumping. Having said that, provided you can pick and choose your days off, and the DZ you jump at is open during those days, you should be able to manage your 2-3 days per month without too much problem. The only wisdom I can pass on insofar as RAPS is concerned, is that I've met several jumpers who started off doing RAPS and then converted to AFF. Without exception, they regretted spending their hard earned on RAPS. You should be able to get more technical info from your local DZ regarding currency etc. Note; Not all UK DZ's offer RAPS courses.

Any good tailor worth his salt should be able to adjust your suit. Cost would depend on how slight 'slightly' really is, but £350 seems excessive. I've had adjustments made to both jumpsuit and FF pants at a tailor local to me. For example, I was charged £50.00 to adjust the waist on my FF pants which had inexplicably shrunk over one Xmas and New Year. As an aside, Tony Suits used to offer a free adjustment on any new kit they made provided it was returned to them within X weeks of manufacture and return/delivery cost was a/c purchaser.

If it's for BPA the medical declaration now allows for self-certification, subject to certain conditions which are stipulated on the document. e.g. no surgery in last last xx years. You can view/download from the BPA website. This is of course for fun jumpers only - I'm not sure what type of certificate tandem instructors etc have to provide.

Here are the rules for Skydive Spain in Seville. Not a good photo, sorry, but you should be able to get the gist of it. I guess the fine print would come down to what the CI at the various dropzones will allow.

I've just returned home from 2 weeks in Empuriabrava. I asked a DZ instructor about the WS exit order and was told that they always exit last, notwithstanding the run in. This was also my experience on the lifts that I was on and on which there were also Wingsuiters.

Did my AFF at 59. Still jumping at 68 - most recent jump was yesterday. Yes, I'm not the quickest learner or progressor as compared to the younger jumpers but I really enjoy what I'm doing and as long as I'm safe and don't endanger anyone else, that works for me. I fly a nice 190' Spectre in a Javelin, purchased new (my only concession to perfect/image kit) and which I pack myself. The rest of my kit is second hand. Long may it all last.

I did my AFF at 59 yrs old with Active Skydiving (Scotty Milne ex Parachute Regiment RSM, Red Devils and UK Champion). Had to go to Spain to do it due to BPA regs. Scotty has monthly AFF groups which travel to Seville to train. Just google Active Skydiving or connect with Scotty via Active Skydiving FB page/Messenger and he'll fix you up. Once you have your 'A' licence you are free to jump in the UK. It's just the training element that the BPA won't allow here. I'm still jumping at 68, Did my 698th last week here in the UK.

Of course I meant 'Northern European' skydivers migrate South - apologies to Spain and Portugal who are of course in Europe!. Also re: Castellon - I've heard that it's mainly a weekend operation, other than during boogies. Other than that I've heard that it's a great DZ. I've never jumped there so the Castellon info. is hearsay only and stands to be corrected.

Skydive Empuriabrava on the Bay of Roses is where I sometimes jump in our winter. It's not too far from Girona Airport. It has a Porter, Otter and Beech. A 400 jump limit comes up quite quickly due to the winds, it being coastal, but you won't have any problem with that. Many European skydivers jump in Spain and Portugal during their 'off season' so you should be able to get some first hand recommendations. The weather in Southern Spain and Portugal is invariably decent during the winter hence the European migration.

Got some parallels with you. I am 68 and served for 4 years in what was Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe) 1969-73. 9 years ago, with my kids off my hands, I decided I would like to do just one freefall jump. Signed up for an AFF level 1 in Spain. I must admit that I had sensory overload on the jump. There was a lot of noisy chatter to altitude from the experienced jumpers on the lift, which I found disconcerting. Couldn't understand why my Alti was at 0' (it was actually at 12000') and, I'm told, kept asking my instructor 'what height are we at?'. Got in the door at skydive time - check out....and jumped. Fortunately my primary and secondary instructor anticipated the early exit and stayed with me. Did all the drills. At 6000' I was looking for the toggle on my leg instead of on the container. An inauspicious start to a skydive but I did what I had set out to do, a freefall jump from 12500' and a canopy ride. One thing led to another....I'm still jumping and enjoying every minute of it. I'll never be a Ninja, my freefly sit position is pretty ordinary, and downsizing from my trusty Spectre 190', which I enjoy landing and packing, will never be an option. Hopefully I'll be doing much the same for years to come. All the best to you whatever you decide to do. Blue Skies.

There are only 2 run-in's at Empuriabrava, which is a coastal DZ. One heads inland from the ocean, one heads towards the ocean from inland. I'm assuming that, depending on the run-in and wind strength, normal rules of exit may not apply. Having jumped there (not as a wingsuiter I must add) I've seen tandems, which in the UK at my DZ always exit after fun jumpers, sometimes exit first or even between fun jumpers. When I asked about this the explanation I was given was run in/wind, so perhaps the same applies to WS?

There is a (US based) Korean instructor who runs bespoke AFF courses for Korean students at Skydive Elsinore. Not far from Perris but the views are, IMHO, somewhat better. But I guess you should be concentrating on your drills in freefall and airspace/landing pattern under canopy rather than the view.

Firstly, I would suggest you phone the BPA on 01162785271 and see what the BPA position is on your situation, However, the final decision on anyone jumping in the UK rests with the CI of the DZ you want to jump at. As far as gaining a BPA B licence accreditation when you are FAE rated is concerned, answering that question is a bit above me - sorry. I would add that there are one or two DZ's in the UK that only allow BPA B licence and above jumpers. Many, though, run AFF courses and new A licence skydivers are jumping solo, some after as few as 18 jumps. So if it's just jumps you want, and the CI is happy to let you jump at his/her DZ, you should be OK at many UK DZs.

I did a tandem in 2008 at the age of 57. Liked it. Did another in 2009 and liked it even more. I then started AFF late 2009. Couldn't do AFF in the UK as I was too old. Eventually got my A in 2010 thanks to an excellent Instructor and eventually learning to relax in freefall. Bankrupted myself travelling to Spain and the USA to train due to the BPA's rules on age. Still jumping regularly- did my last 3 jumps for 2018 4 days ago on December 14th.