Wing Loading & Downsizing

Affects of downsizing and questions to ask…

NB EDIT –

Note: 1.2+ is considered a high-performance canopy (not necessarily pro)

Summary

Once you are a licensed skydiver, it’s encouraged to start experimenting with different sizes of canopies. But, it is important to always jump canopies that are within your ability to fly.

If you can answer “YES” to those 4 questions then you may consider downsizing:

Can you consistently fly to AND land your canopy in the designated landing area, within 10-20 meters of the target center?
Can you consistently land standing up?
Can you achieve the same results even with varying wind conditions?
Can you land in a cross-wind condition if necessary?

THE BIG QUESTION…

Perhaps a very important question to ask yourself is “Why do I want to downsize?” …

By Catherine Bernier, Skydive Vibes

Check out Catherine’s YouTube Channel, Skydive Vibes, for more videos

Meet: Catherine Bernier

Catherine Bernier is a young, passionate skydiver who has run her own YouTube channel almost from when she started skydiving. Her fresh approach, enthusiasm and understanding of how it feels to be a new jumper make her videos super-watchable and easy to understand for the early skydiver.

Catherine is sponsored by Rigging Innovations, who manufacture the Curv and by Cookie helmets. It's a testament to the quality of her work to achieve sponsorship at a very early stage in her skydiving career.