“Is swooping more dangerous than other types of skydiving?” That was the question put to me by a reporter. I was stumped for the right answer. “Uh, well, sort of. Sometimes it is. Depends who is doing it….” None of these answers were going to work for a response.
As a DZO you have to be careful how you answer a reporter’s question. You can’t dodge their question because the last thing you want to do is let them answer it for themselves. But you also need to be as clear and precise as possible because often the answer you give them isn’t what gets printed. And the last thing I wanted to do was throw Canopy Piloting as a sport under the bus. Thinking, thinking, thinking…..I got it!
I told them the safest way to jump out of an airplane is doing a static line with a round parachute. The parachute is almost guaranteed to be deployed and open at the selected altitude. It descends at a consistent and relatively slow speed. You can’t hook it. A canopy collision is almost impossible and if you do run into someone you jump bump off of each other. There would be more busted ankles but that would pretty much be the worst of the injuries. Yup, if the goal is to jump out of an airplane in the safest way possible than static line round is definitely the way to go. But, how much fun is that? Not much. The last time I checked having fun was the only reason to do something as crazy as jumping out of an airplane. Who would be a skydiver if doing static round jumps was all we did?
Any kind of skydiving other than static line round increases the risk factor. Freefall is more dangerous than static line. A 2-way is more dangerous than a solo. An 8-way more dangerous than a 2-way. A square parachute is higher risk than a round. A small square parachute more dangerous than a big one. Flying close to other parachutes is more dangerous than flying further away. Docking with other canopies more dangerous than flying close to them. Jumping with a wingsuit is more dangerous than jumping without one. Jumping a camera is more dangerous than jumping without one. Doing a demo is more dangerous than jumping at the DZ. And on and on and on. Every jump is a calculated risk.
One of the fantastic things about skydiving is that there are so many ways to play. We choose how we want to fly based on our perception of the fun versus risk factor. Dave Hebert is a member of the SoCal Evolution canopy piloting team based at Skydive Perris. I was walking over to dirt dive a 16-way CReW jump as Dave was getting ready to go swoop. I reminded him (as I often do) to be careful with that swooping stuff. He responded “Shut the hell up, you’re going to do CReW!” I think the fun factor of doing CReW with 15 or my friends is way worth the risk, but flying my canopy at high speeds close to the ground is crazy. Dave wouldn’t even consider doing CReW but he thinks diving his canopy at the dirt is a blast.
On another day at Skydive Perris Taya Weiss was organizing the Wingsuit 100-way World Record. I saw Jeb Corliss on the DZ training for some way too close to the earth terrain flying. I asked him if he was going to join the record jumps and he said “No way! That’s far too dangerous.” Flying a few feet from the earth is okay but flying in the wide open sky with lots of friends isn’t?
All of the skydiving disciplines have inherent risks. But it has been proven again and again that all of them can be done safely when approached with the proper training, experience, equipment and common sense. No matter how you choose to play, find a qualified person that can advise you. Use the right equipment. Don’t overestimate your abilities. Pick the games that look like the most fun to you. Understand the real risks involved and how to minimize them. If the fun outweighs the risk then have at it.
But don’t screw it up. It ruins everyone’s day when you hurt yourself. Takes all the fun out of it.
Get personalized newsletters tailored to your interests! Choose from tandem skydiving, indoor skydiving, fun jumper events, or happenings at the Bombshelter Restaurant and Bar.
We use cookies to enhance your browsing experience. Please be aware that certain website features, including video playback, may not function as intended if you choose not to accept all cookies. By clicking 'Accept,' you consent to all cookies. You can also manage your Cookie Settings for controlled consent. Read MoreReject AllManage SettingsAccept
Consent Preferences
Privacy Overview
This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these cookies, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may have an effect on your browsing experience.
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. These cookies ensure basic functionalities and security features of the website, anonymously.
Cookie
Duration
Description
AWSALBCORS
7 days
Amazon Web Services set this cookie for load balancing.
cookielawinfo-checkbox-advertisement
1 year
Set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin, this cookie records the user consent for the cookies in the "Advertisement" category.
cookielawinfo-checkbox-analytics
11 months
This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-functional
11 months
The cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Functional".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-necessary
11 months
This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookies is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Necessary".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-others
11 months
This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Other.
cookielawinfo-checkbox-performance
11 months
This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Performance".
CookieLawInfoConsent
1 year
CookieYes sets this cookie to record the default button state of the corresponding category and the status of CCPA. It works only in coordination with the primary cookie.
PHPSESSID
session
This cookie is native to PHP applications. The cookie stores and identifies a user's unique session ID to manage user sessions on the website. The cookie is a session cookie and will be deleted when all the browser windows are closed.
viewed_cookie_policy
11 months
The cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. It does not store any personal data.
YII_CSRF_TOKEN
session
This cookie is used a unique token that used in securing forms and other website inputs against XSS attacks.
__cf_bm
1 hour
This cookie, set by Cloudflare, is used to support Cloudflare Bot Management.
Functional cookies help to perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collect feedbacks, and other third-party features.
Cookie
Duration
Description
currency
session
This cookie is used to store the currency preference of the user.
lang
session
LinkedIn sets this cookie to remember a user's language setting.
Performance cookies are used to understand and analyze the key performance indexes of the website which helps in delivering a better user experience for the visitors.
Cookie
Duration
Description
AWSALB
7 days
AWSALB is an application load balancer cookie set by Amazon Web Services to map the session to the target.
Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. These cookies help provide information on metrics the number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic source, etc.
Cookie
Duration
Description
ahoy_visit
4 hours
This cookie is set by Powr for analytics measurement.
ahoy_visitor
1 year 1 month 4 days
This cookie is set by Powr for analytics measurement.
CONSENT
2 years
YouTube sets this cookie via embedded YouTube videos and registers anonymous statistical data.
vuid
1 year 1 month 4 days
Vimeo installs this cookie to collect tracking information by setting a unique ID to embed videos on the website.
_fbp
3 months
Facebook sets this cookie to display advertisements when either on Facebook or on a digital platform powered by Facebook advertising after visiting the website.
_ga
1 year 1 month 4 days
Google Analytics sets this cookie to calculate visitor, session and campaign data and track site usage for the site's analytics report. The cookie stores information anonymously and assigns a randomly generated number to recognise unique visitors.
_gat_UA-*
1 minute
Google Analytics sets this cookie for user behaviour tracking.
_ga_*
1 year 1 month 4 days
Google Analytics sets this cookie to store and count page views.
_gcl_au
3 months
Google Tag Manager sets the cookie to experiment advertisement efficiency of websites using their services.
_gid
1 day
Google Analytics sets this cookie to store information on how visitors use a website while also creating an analytics report of the website's performance. Some of the collected data includes the number of visitors, their source, and the pages they visit anonymously.
Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with relevant ads and marketing campaigns. These cookies track visitors across websites and collect information to provide customized ads.
Cookie
Duration
Description
fr
3 months
Facebook sets this cookie to show relevant advertisements by tracking user behaviour across the web, on sites with Facebook pixel or Facebook social plugin.
IDE
1 year 24 days
Google DoubleClick IDE cookies store information about how the user uses the website to present them with relevant ads according to the user profile.
test_cookie
15 minutes
doubleclick.net sets this cookie to determine if the user's browser supports cookies.
VISITOR_INFO1_LIVE
6 months
YouTube sets this cookie to measure bandwidth, determining whether the user gets the new or old player interface.
YSC
session
Youtube sets this cookie to track the views of embedded videos on Youtube pages.
yt-remote-connected-devices
never
YouTube sets this cookie to store the user's video preferences using embedded YouTube videos.
yt-remote-device-id
never
YouTube sets this cookie to store the user's video preferences using embedded YouTube videos.
yt.innertube::nextId
never
YouTube sets this cookie to register a unique ID to store data on what videos from YouTube the user has seen.
yt.innertube::requests
never
YouTube sets this cookie to register a unique ID to store data on what videos from YouTube the user has seen.