Basejumper.com - archive

You are presented with a relatively new skydiver interested in getting into BASE. A License, 100-200 jumps, current, friendly, rational, cautious, clean safety record, who appears willing to pay their dues and approach this goal in a rational and measured manner.

They have a budget of $10,000.
They have 3 weeks vacation saved up.
They have a m-f 9 to 5 job, full medical.

What would you tell them?

dont do it! just b/c you have all those attributes does not mean that BASE is for you...

Do you need my routing number? I don't take checks.

Or there are always hookers and blow.

have you lurked here?
(hopefully, yes.)

the Beginners forum should be more helpful than others. it doesn't always work out that way... (if you've lurked, you'd know.)

my best advice, bring a sense of humor and meet actual jumpers. they can evaluate your strengths and weaknesses in ways that can't be done across the internet.

a second option is to sign up for a FJC (if you meet minimums). the instructor(s) frequently try to direct their students to others. many jumpers value the deep friendships available via BASE, so why not start there before dropping all the coin?

BASE demands each individual make their own calls. it might even mean some folks blaze new trails. good luck.

The notion behind the thread was to get different opinions on how to prioritize all the various things you could spend resources on...

More jumps for b-c-d license? tunnel time? hop + pops? accuracy skydive gear? night jumps? water training? rigging courses? FJC? new gear vs. used gear? gymnsatics class? beer?

Yes, I have read a ton of posts here.
There is tons of information here and I do learn new things all the time.

Just thinking there may be very different perspectives on how people would prioritize things if they wanted to build a plan on how to get into the sport.

Put another way...If you had a friend that had the resources and wanted to get into Base what would you tell them use those resources on to get the most benefit...

as much black clothing as money can buy.

HIRE ME TO BE YOUR PERSONAL TUTOR AND MENTOR TO MAKE THE BEST AND SAFEST BASE JUMPS THAT CAN BE EVER HAD. NOT KIDDING. PM ME.

You say resources but you really mean money. In skydiving that's really the only resource you need. In BASE that isnt the case. Will money help speed things up? Sure, but money has also helped people get further earlier than they should then they should have then get jacked up.

• Make friends with experienced jumpers in Cali*
  Get a BASE rig
  Learn how to pack it
  Learn how to land it out of a cessna
  Travel to Twin Falls
  Pay/Hire/Bribe a Teacher/Instructor/Mentor
  Have fun but Progress S L O W L Y
  This game is played for keeps
  

*Cali and Florida both have lots of good WX
hence lots DZ's and BASE jumpers compared
to most other states.

For the record, I 110% agree with you that money does not buy you skills or experience or common sense or a whole host of other things. I am currently and plan in the future to take a very measured and cautious approach to things.

Some examples of the generic question I was hoping to ask with the post was:

1. Water training? Worth doing early or after FJC...
2. Night jumps? After FJC...important early in your career or not...
3. Worth taking a rigging class?
4. Worth buying a tracking suit this early?
5. Worth paying for a used base canopy to jump in your skydiving gear?
6. Better to get 100 more skydives from 13k or better to get 200 hop+pops?
7. Worth seeking out a balloon jump this early?


I'm sure lots of 100-200 jump, really excited about base (i've personally met 2 others in the last month) get that this is a progression and that lots of things are important. What isn't always clear is which of these "candidates" would you rather see at a FJC and which "candidate" would be better prepared:

a. 200 jumps, water training, 2 night jumps, used gear.
b. 350 jumps, 150 of which were on an accuracy canopy, no other training, no gear.
c. 300 jumps, brand spanking new 2 pin rig, successfully packed it 25 times from the packing video.
d. Any host of reasonable paths...

I'm hoping for the "I wish I had taken ___ before my FJC" or "I wish I had done ___ before I did ___"

People also like to think about the "wouldn't it be cool if" kinds of questions like...If I had Richard Branson's millions I would go on a vacation with 9 strippers, 2 coke dealers, and have Jimmy Buffett working the buffet table just because it would be funny.

so much depends on what course you wish to pursue...

"less than legal" jumps? - night skills come in handy
Euro big walls? - mountaineering/survival skills might prove more valuable
wingsuit BASE? - a lot of skydiving experience.

you need to fill your "holes." meeting an actual jumper that can discuss your plans and hopefully jump with you is really the best course. (460 offered to help, and he knows a ton.)

personally, I'd suggest you keep skydiving until you witness how you react when things go wrong. the people who can't handle it skydiving should not attempt BASE!

Choosing between the four choices....." b ".....but while learning / getting instruction on, " how to hit the target every time "....then contact 460.

Its great that you are formulating a plan and are identifying all the different things you can do to prepare for your first BASE jump. I think it important to note that doing things doesn't equate to learning things and thats what you should focus on. Having 100 skydives doesn't mean anything except that you survived 100 skydives. This could mean that:

1. you track down jump run
2. you don't leave adequate separation in the sky and understand the most basic safety issues
3. You open in linetwists
4. you cant fly a simple pattern to the landing area
5. you've spent 100% of your time flying in full flight and still don't know what your canopy feels like right before it stalls

It could mean, however, that:

1. You have basic understanding of your gear including assembling a main, cleaning your cables, a standardized and dilligent process for checking your equipment (container, handles, pilot chute, canopy, lines, three rings, AAD, RSL, reserve pins) both pre and post jump.
2. You are stable at deployment, have awareness of how your canopy is opening, are able to influence its opening, and are on your risers quick for any required obstacle avoidance.
3. You focus on landing in a specific spot rather than an area, and stick with the plan to land there except for obstacle avoidance in the pattern, if necessary.
4. You have landed out and are practiced recognizing obstacles from the air and feel comfortable with your ability to approach tight landing areas with experience in half brakes and deep brakes.
5. You have awareness of the specific dangers of each jump whether they be weather conditions, other jumpers, or gear related and you are in the habit of discussing and mitigating them.

These examples demonstrate why I find your discussion of jumpers A-D to be completely arbitrary and off target. None of your factors determine whether or not someone is a heads-up jumper who has seriously considered and mentally prepared for more complex jumps.

Another thing I notice is that you appear to have a destination orientation. You mention "should I seek out a balloon jump this early" as if jumping a balloon is on a checklist to becoming a BASE jumper. A balloon jump requires more from a jumper than being PCA'd off the Perrine. You have a pilot who knows nothing about skydiving trying to tell you when to get out, you have jumpers around you that may try to jump right on top of you, you have no preplanned pattern for the load, and you havn't walked the landing area. Going to terminal from a zero wind exit from just a couple thousand feet is a goal in itself. My first balloon jump was 10 times more fun than my first BASE jump.

Develop a love of learning and a love of the path and you will be the heads-up jumper you want to be. Goals are a funny thing huh, we live our life striving to achieve something we know absolutely nothing about.

Go find an object that is calling out to you "come jump me" and you find yourself saying "Im gonna jump that", when that happens, STOP! Step back and ask yourself what do I need to do to make this happen. Is it tall enough? Is it tall enough to land over here? How do I get to the exit point? Is there an exit point? What will happen if I get caught? What kind of delay? What size PC? Static line? PCA? Hand held? Stowed? How high do I need to open to land over there? What happens if I have a 90 right? What happens if I have a 90 left? Or a 180? Can I still land there? How many feet does it take for my canopy to open? Slider up? Slider down? Slider off? How do I exit? Can I pull off a good exit on this? Two or three wraps on the rubber band? WLO toggles? Day time? Night time? Any time? Three vents? four vents? five vents? ZP top skin? Velcro? One pin? Two pin? This or that? Ace or FLiK? BJ or Troll? Where are the winds? Where are they going? What happens if I get hurt? Holy shit this could kill me for real! Are my risers on right? did I stow my breaks the same? Will my family be pissed if I die? Will this be worth ruining my life? Video? Stills? Will I freak out when I have line twist? Will I die if I have a line over and a 180? Did I practice those enough out of a plane? Did I really smoke that whole joint? Did I pack right? What could be the worst that could happen?*

When you figure all that out, not only will you be ready to answer that call, you'll be broke!






* This list is not a complete list, and yes, I did smoke that whole joint!

+1000

+1

I remember those thoughts! My first "legitimate" BASE jump I remember thinking "Have I done everything I want to do in life?" as I sat on the rail and contemplated my demise. And I was surprised at the thought. All the lip service I had given to knowing you could die in BASE, and sitting on that rail it became real in an instant.

My advice, spend the $10,000 on hookers and blow. Less addictive and infinitely safer.