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Please educate me on the proper/preferred body position for the first 3 seconds after launch. No wingsuit or tracking gear. Done quite a few and my tendency is to go head low.

Head high! If you are going head low then you need to go back and practice your exits in a safe environment. Practice launching as hard as you can, to gain as much distance from the object as you possibly can, without upsetting your balance. You may have to start off not pushing your hardest, but with practice, you should be able to launch the hardest you can and still maintain that head high exit. After 3 seconds you will naturally settle into a flatter position.

at 3 seconds, i personally like to be in a 45 degree head low position...
i have found that this helps with additional separation between 3-8 seconds.
of course a strong launch is advisable

I personally was overly-concerned with
going head-low and would sometimes
screw the exit over this (yeah haters,
many times, on video, yeah, yeah)
anyways, once I got to do some long
delays, like from 1600' antenna and
later from ITW it finally clicked for me.

I can hop off and start flying flat and
in a good solid track without worrries
because a pinch head low is not bad
if you KNOW you can take 7+ seconds.

Lonnie's advice for a good push, etc.
sounds right, I like & respect him but
for most slider-UP jumps head-low is
not the black-death I thought it was.

i feel like i should explain my logic a little more.
if one is to be 'flat' at 3 seconds, the jumper would be exposing the most surface area to the relative wind, but not in an appropriate manner for maximum separation.
thus, if said jumper were at a 45 degree head low position at the same 3s mark, the relative wind from below would 'push' the angled body of jumper further from object.
when you think of a jumper in full track position at terminal, jumper is indeed about 35 degrees headlow, and most definitely not flat, which would pretty much be a 'stall' meaning minimal forward movement.
of course, in the moments leading up to 3s mark, the jumper would be in a transition from 45 degree head high at moment of exit, to aforementioned head low angle.
maybe this is understandable, maybe not, this is just my experience in over 150 slider up jumps where terminal/ subterminal tracking is used.
hope it helps!!

I've had 1 or 2 students go off head-low
for low S/L and PCA jumps where I was
full On cringing watching their lines pay
out of the tail pocket within inches of
their precarioulsy positioned boots

Also saw it happen once from a jumper
with very 15 years experienced, 250+
jumps from a 240' A with real spicy LZ.

We all fuck up once in a while, even DW
slipped and fell off a sub-300 B per my
mentor, but how we deal with the shitty
seperates the posters from the bereaved.

IS it me or do I write better after a jump
and a dozen beers? Fuck all ya

well of course head low on slider off stuff isnt good at all...
but how does this pertain to the topic of body position right before tracking away from an object?

first 3 seconds is all your actual exit. i prefer to exit relaxed but with arms at my side, ready to punch in the track as soon as the airspeed picks up, and if anything slightly head low for smooth transition into track position.

if you exit head high then you waste energy transitioning to a head low AoA for good tracking.

just my opinion but i am not an expert. video of what i mean.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mWNg7lpqgSQ

My bad! I was thinking the OP was asking about slider off jumps and only up to 3secs, which is why I said head high.

If you're going to be tracking then it's different, and slightly head down is fine

This is what I am trying to get at...where do you put your arms, what do you do with your legs, etc.

I've seen video of people exiting with arms streched above their head initially. Seen video exactly the opposite. I'm trying to determine the best/most effective way to go from zero to track.

Thanks guys

generally right at first, arms in front, legs shoulder width apart at launch.
as 1s, i sweep arms back, mebe widen legs a bit, to help pitch me more headlow. then i just try to stay in that position relaxed until commencement of tracking.
https://vimeo.com/50788877 check out 1m25s

I launch in between the normal slider down head high position, and a head low position.. About 45 degrees. I found that exiting like a normal slider off exit causes you to start slower because its more of a stalled "flat track" that skydivers refer to. its not a fast track, its just to move across the sky. If you are too head low, you can come out of it with a really good track, but i feel you loose too much altitude too quickly. I am not the best tracker in the world, but do a lot of sub terminal tracking.. I found the best is 45 degrees head low, but what really starts a great track is to be in a cupping position during that time to really push the air from your chest down through your legs which is where the power of your track comes from. I also pretty much exit with my hands at my side through the exit. I then relax into a more proper tracking position once im moving. There is a significant difference between just going into a tracking position off the exit, and a cupping position within the first 3 seconds..
Just my 2 cents.

Everybody has their own technique which works for them. I think you should focus more on being stable than what you do with your arms in first second. And if you focus on first 3 seconds, a good push will give you 100 times more distance than a worlds best tracking position, even if you jump on your back or with your pinky in your bum.

Game on! Launch with your chest first. poke a finger hard into your solar plexus (power point), Launch this pt to the horizon. If you have big boobs/balls this point may be different, so move it up. Launch with your chest. Not head. Aim it at the horizon. one beer please.
I have some experience as a instructor/mentor.
take care,
space

Also, Make sure your toggles aren't crossed...Write an L on the left toggle, and an R on the right for safety. This will help with tracking. Thanks to space again!

Ya know? You gotta stop that boxman crossed hands crap. That crap is for caves or holes.......churches...
Take care,
space

 

different shit works for different folks.. for static line/go & throw I launch head high but everything else i pick a spot about 30-45 degrees below the horizon and dive at it. legs power on straight away cus thats where the power for your subterminal comes from, but keep your arms up high for the first few seconds so you dont go too head low, then bring them back as i feel the air at about 3-3.5 seconds

In the first 3 seconds, there isn't any relative wind - so talk of deflecting air is erroneous - it's from about 5/6 seconds that aerodynamic effects truly begin to kick in.

Just after exit, your body position will be determined more by your CofG; if you're exiting for a tracking jump, why not just keep looking at the horizon and, just after exit, keep your legs extended and bring your arms by your side? Exiting with your heels touching your posterior in the absence of airflow will only contribute to a head-low exit.