| If you have a hard time understanding exactly what | | | | their lifetimes. |
| people mean when they talk about "skydiving", here | | | | Both parachuting and skydiving are fairly expensive |
| are some simple explanations that will help you. There | | | | sports, so there is not a lot of difference between the |
| are a number of extreme sports that involve jumping | | | | two when it comes to the investment involved. They |
| from a plane, such as base jumping, parachuting and | | | | both involve buying specialized (and expensive) |
| skydiving. Is there a difference between them? | | | | equipment, unless you opt to rent in the beginning. This |
| Parachuting and skydiving both mean that the person | | | | would involve goggles, a helmet and a specially fitted |
| who jumps from the airplane (from thousands of feet | | | | jumpsuit. And of course, they both involve hiring a |
| in the sky) with a deployed parachute that allows them | | | | plane and pilot to take you up into the wild blue yonder. |
| to slow their descent and land on the ground safely. | | | | You will also need to hire an instructor from a |
| The sport of parachuting, however, is designed so that | | | | skydiving school until you have learned to jump by |
| the parachute opens almost immediately after the | | | | yourself. |
| jumper leaves the plane, so that the entire descent is a | | | | Learning skydiving with an instructor is very important, |
| gradual drift downwards with the parachute slowing | | | | and no skydiving school would ever allow a new diver |
| the descent. | | | | to take the plunge on his own. Besides making the |
| Skydiving is different in that the jumper leaves the | | | | experience safer, they will make it more enjoyable by |
| plane and goes into a free fall for a while before | | | | taking many of the elements of risk away that make |
| deploying the parachute. This is more exciting than | | | | many people nervous to try this sport. First time |
| slowly drifting down, and this excitement is what | | | | instruction usually involves tandem jumping with an |
| attracts many people to the sport. | | | | instructor to learn the ropes. |
| Hearing this description would make people think that | | | | After you have done a tandem jump with an instructor |
| skydiving is more dangerous than parachuting, but this | | | | and gotten over the initial fright, you will find skydiving |
| is not necessarily so. There are many safety | | | | one of the most fun and exciting sports you have |
| measures in place that make sure that the parachute | | | | ever encountered. There is no doubt that you will get |
| will open for skydivers when the time is right, so there | | | | hooked and find out for yourself what skydiving is all |
| is no more danger than there is in parachuting. Many | | | | about. |
| people make hundreds of jumps in both sports over | | | | |