Having the right equipment is important in a sport, and most skydivers agree that it is just as important to have the right skydiving suit as it is to have the right parachute. Everyone is different, so each of us needs a suit that is custom tailored for our own unique build and size. If your suit does not fit properly, your free fall may be seriously impaired.
Because of the individuality of each diver, you should not buy a skydiving suit from a mass marketer, but rather have a local supplier fabricate the suit specifically for you. You can even, if you skydive in warm weather, order a skydiving t-shirt. You want to make sure that the suit fits you absolutely perfectly.
There are different materials used for skydiving suits. Which material you decide upon will be determined by the kind of jumping you plan to do. The reason for this is because the different types of diving create different types of drag, and different materials will react differently. The materials that are most commonly used for skydiving suits are cotton, polyester, spandex and nylon.
The two basic types of suits are formation flying suits and free flying suits. The free flying suits are for highly experienced jumpers who may be doing acrobatics in the air, or other stunts such as sit flying (appearing to sit crossed legged in the air) or pointing head down. Recreational divers and competition jumpers normally wear a different style because they spend more time flying on their bellies than free flying.
The free flying suits therefore are made of lighter materials so that there is less drag while permitting maximum movement. The materials used for these are most often cotton or polyester blends. Formation flying suits are of thicker fabrics, such as spandex or nylon, which give more drag and lift as needed, and also can support attached grips.
So don't try to follow a one solution fits all approach when it comes to your skydiving suit. You must know what kind of diving you are going to be doing and pick the one that suits it best, and make sure you have a suit that fits you perfectly. Wearing the wrong diving suit can be extremely dangerous. You will probably check with the experts to find out the best parachute for you; you should do the same thing for your diving suit.
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