NeedToJump

Huge thanks to Tim, Colleen, Kirk, the Hybrid XP guys, the staff and everyone else for making this happen. When I first started tunnel flying, I never imagined that I'd be part of a 20 way HD formation. This was by far one of the best weekends I've ever had at a wind tunnel and I'm very thankful to have been a part of it all. You guys let me know any time you're having an event like this again and I'll be there for sure! You guys rock!!

Is this a good freefly suit? Wind Tunnel and Skydiving Coach http://www.ariperelman.com

No, definitely not. One should never freefly in an RW suit... Sorry, I had to do it Wind Tunnel and Skydiving Coach http://www.ariperelman.com

My pleasure, I'm glad you found it helpful

I'm in! Wind Tunnel and Skydiving Coach http://www.ariperelman.com

It's seems like a lot of people have a lot of problems with things that have happened at SVO, but don't have any idea what is currently going on there. The new air straightener was put in a few months ago and the air in the tunnel is cleaner and faster than it's ever been. The new staff is doing very well and the place has a really friendly vibe. The owner is currently doing a lot to get skydivers back into the tunnel. "Getting coached sitfly by a SVO employee with only 7 skydives is quite comical BTW." Why is that? There are plenty of incredibly good tunnel coaches with little or no jumps. What does number of skydives have to do with ability to teach body flight? "Yes the air straightner is in only took 9 MONTHS!!!" I believe it took about 4-5 months. "I think the people who are most pissed of are the outside coaches trying to make a living there. Or frequent flyers ( Tunnel rats)" Have you spoken to coaches or frequent flyers who have been there recently? I'm a coach there and have been there almost every day for the past few months. Most of the coaches and flyers I talk to are quite happy. "TRUST me i go .......... All of the staff have said "Marc just doesnt like skydivers"!!!" When did you hear that? As I said, I'm there almost every day and that's just not the case. "As for the new guys, they have no clue!!" The new guys are not as experienced, but no new person ever is. That's why they're called "new". They are all doing very well and have a lot to offer though. They definitely do have a clue. "There is a problem with orlando, just go to any of the local dzs and speak to a team that trains over the winter but no longer uses the tunnel for personal reasons NOT SIZE. " Most of the people I hear bad mouthing SVO are repeating the same things they have heard for months and haven't actually been there to see it for themselves. "Speak to the coachs who coach there!! " I am a coach who is there almost every day. Talk to me. "I know because of friends in Titusville who flew. ( just to make that clear) " So you're repeating what other people have told you but have no first hand experience? Also, I'm not sure why it came up, but I am not a SkyVenture Orlando employee. I am an outside coach. Toobin and Trexy - why don't you fill in your profiles so we know who you are? Wind Tunnel and Skydiving Coach http://www.ariperelman.com

True, but they tend to pick these things up pretty quickly. In general from what I've seen - tunnel fliers have a much easier time adapting to the sky than skydivers do adapting to the tunnel. Wind Tunnel and Skydiving Coach http://www.ariperelman.com

This is pretty easily fixed by cutting the bungee in the back and attaching velcro to both sides. The velcro holds it together so the bungee accomplishes the same purpose of holding the slider down. In the case of a cutaway, the main will pull the bungee and the velcro will separate resulting in a clean cutaway. You just need the right amount of velcro to keep the bungee on during normal use, but still be able to release during a cutaway. Wind Tunnel and Skydiving Coach http://www.ariperelman.com

I kept track up until around 80 hours, but I'd guess I'm around 350-400 hours including time that I'm coaching. Definitely more than 10 hours though. Wind Tunnel and Skydiving Coach http://www.ariperelman.com

You said: To me, this means to turn left you extend your left leg and bring your right knee UP and to out to the side. I'm saying for a left turn, you bring your right knee DOWN and your left leg UP. I also disagree about extending the leg. You want to keep pressure on it, but to me "extending the leg" means pushing it out like a forward motion. If I have mis-interpreted what you wrote, then I apologize. Wind Tunnel and Skydiving Coach http://www.ariperelman.com

To turn left (upper body goes left, lower body goes right) you would bring your right knee down and slightly out and bring your left leg up. The attached picture shows a left turn. Wind Tunnel and Skydiving Coach http://www.ariperelman.com

There are also pictures up in the Skydive Sebastian photo galleries. Go to http://www.skydiveseb.com/ and click on Photo & Video Galleries -> Boogie Photo & Video Albums and click on 2006 - 2008 Skydive Cross Keys & Skydive Chicago Invasion Slideshow & Video Wind Tunnel and Skydiving Coach http://www.ariperelman.com

I was in there last night when the temperature was in the 40s and it was very cold, but not too bad and still extremely fun. I had under armor, a ZP suit, a neck warmer and gloves and was in the airflow for probably around an hour. Cold but not too bad. I definitely recommend some kind of warm clothes under the suit, gloves and a neck warmer. Also be sure to stand under the heaters in between flight rotations. Wind Tunnel and Skydiving Coach http://www.ariperelman.com

Definitely had a great time that night

For me it is definitely tunnel time and coaching Wind Tunnel and Skydiving Coach http://www.ariperelman.com

Thanks Joe! You can definitely see the Joe and Carlos influence in my flying

Congratulations Ian!!

Very sad, Oscar Peterson was one of my favorite musicians. The album "Oscar Peterson Trio Plus One" with Clark Terry is in my top 5 favorite albums. There are very few people as musical or as technically skilled as Oscar Peterson was. Another Fantastic Solo Wind Tunnel and Skydiving Coach http://www.ariperelman.com

I think you are making a good decision by going to the tunnel. If you purchase a 10 minute block, you must use all 10 minutes in a single 30 minute block. Within the 30 minute block, you will fly in 2 minute increments. This should not be a problem at all. I'd suggest either a 10 or 15 minute block. Flying for 15 minutes out of a half hour should not be a problem either. I would highly suggest getting coaching as well. Either call the tunnel, tell them what you are looking to do and get a coaching package or use an outside coach. You will get a lot more out of your tunnel time with a coach since you will get a pre-brief, focused attention while in the tunnel, and a video debrief. Feel free to PM me if you want. Wind Tunnel and Skydiving Coach http://www.ariperelman.com

With all the talk of the new big and fast tunnels, I just wanted to bring up that Orlando is still a fantastic tunnel and is still going strong. With the new air straightener they have, the air is super smooth and faster than before. Here's a video I put together of me flying with Nick from a few days ago: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hueR9fmDM4w Wind Tunnel and Skydiving Coach http://www.ariperelman.com

I can't wait for this!

Military Wind Tunnel and Skydiving Coach http://www.ariperelman.com

IMHO that's not a very reasonable analogy...I smell bitter jealousness. I don't think it's the best analogy, but it still works from the standpoint of the simulator eliminates certain safety concerns which must be considered when doing the real activity. I think that's the point he was trying to make. As I've said, I don't agree with his views based on my experiences over the past few years but the logic still makes sense. I think there are enough good, safety minded people working with the tunnel rats when they start jumping that they don't feel pressured into downsizing too quickly and doing things that aren't safe. Wind Tunnel and Skydiving Coach http://www.ariperelman.com

This is what I was thinking as well. I should have done a better job of expressing that and clarifying what I think is functional instead of just saying "everything". Bill, I agree with your four "functional" points. For the goofy gripper size discussion, the grippers just need to be big enough to easily grab and hold onto. Anything within that size range is personal preference. Wind Tunnel and Skydiving Coach http://www.ariperelman.com

I tried to clarify some of my earlier posts, but I'll address your points. -Because most of you guys are talking fashion instead of function. Big grippers, small grippers, etc. I definitely did not intend it to come off that way. I'm all about function over fashion. Big grippers are much more functional than small grippers. -Because the OP probably hasn't yet gotten a grip (no pun intended) on just what he wants to invest his money in according to his flying style. Getting tunnel coaching and talking to experienced RW people will help someone figure this out very quickly. -Because he may well decide that freeflying is his thing and not RW. He's asking about an RW suit -Because he indicates that he is looking for used and not new...cost may be an issue here. My advise on options is regarding a new suit. Obviously if buying a used suit, you get the suit as is. (Yes, you can modify it) -Because the OP may not have yet figured out what his average fall rate is and how a jumpsuit can help/hinder that. I'd hate to see him shell out all that money only to decide afterwards that it was not what he needed or that it is not best for his flying style and fall rate. I completely agree. That's why I suggest getting tunnel time to learn to fly and control fall rate, etc -Because I give the OP credit for being smart enough NOT to buy something that doesn't fit. Knowing if a suit fits properly or not is not a matter of being smart, it's knowing what parts of the fit are important. As I said above, I do a lot of coaching and I've seen tons of people buy used suits that don't fit properly. They tell me the suit was a good deal and fits well enough. This isn't because they are not smart, it's because they don't realize how the suit should fit to be beneficial. I completely agree with what you said here: Wind Tunnel and Skydiving Coach http://www.ariperelman.com