Parachuting: The Skydiver's Handbook [ILLUSTRATED] (Paperback)

by Dan Poynter (Author), Mike Turoff (Author) "Jumping is fun!..." (more)
Key Phrases: reserve ripcord handle, basic freefall position, canopy relative work, United States, Skydiver's Information Manual, Steve Snyder (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review
A free-falling parachuter, strapped onto a snowboard with a Cheshire grin and arms spread wide, graces the book's cover (as does his recently departed airplane, pitched at a rather precarious angle). Don't be misled: only a few pages of The Skydiver's Handbook are dedicated to skysurfing, one of the more radical aspects of parachuting. Instead, Dan Poynter and Mike Turoff's parachuting guide is exhaustive, addressing all levels and styles of skydiving, and providing a glut of like resources. The guide opens with a why-do-this analogy: "If riding in an airplane is flying, then riding in a boat is swimming. If you want to experience the element, get out of the vehicle." Novice skydivers will learn the basics, from tarmac preparation to the first static line jump. And yes, experienced jumpmasters will find enough advanced material to hold their interest: free fall and canopy progression, equipment updates, and emergency procedures. All readers will appreciate the glossary and the lists of skydiving centers, parachute equipment dealers, and literary material. --Rob McDonald --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Library Journal
The latest edition of this book since its original 1978 publication. LJ 's review from July of that year said,"A valuable collection of information and a good first look at the sport." A nice touch is the appendix, which lists addresses of many national and international parachuting associations, manufacturers of equipment, and books, newspapers, and magazines on the subject.-- MR
Copyright 1989 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 404 pages
• Publisher: Para Publishing; 8th edition (February 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1568600623
• ISBN-13: 978-1568600628
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.5 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars See all reviews (25 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #357,833 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A "Bible" for the beginning skydiver, January 22, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Parachuting: The Skydiver's Handbook (Paperback)

This book continues in the excellent tradition similar to the "Dummies" books. It might just as well have been called "Skydiving for Dummies." It is especially aimed at the beginning skydiver who wants all the information available for just before, and just after the first few skydives. However, as an experienced skydiver with over 1,300 jumps, I also learned a few things. Humorous little quotations adorn many of the pages, helping to lighten up what could, in areas, become so technical as to be, well, overwhelming for the skydiving neophyte. But, in my experience, beginning jumpers will gobble up all the information available. And this is a complete and healthy meal. The only thing missing is the dessert--that is, the photos and info that show how really COOL and high-tech the sport has become. And the camaraderie that develops among like-minded sport parachutists, who are also called skydivers. It is really a fun and exciting sport for today. If you want to learn all about it, this is the book for you!

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars This is the how-to "Bible" of recreational skydiving., June 4, 2000

By	Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA) - See all my reviews

Now in a completed revised, updated and expanded eighth edition, The Skydiver's Handbook continues to be the "bible" of this dramatic and popular sport. Skydiving is much more than just jumping out of an airplane with a parachute. Skydiving today is as close as a human can come to unencumbered bird-like flight, and with proper aerobatic maneuvering, a skydiver can cover about 1.35 miles on a sixty-second skydive from 12,500 feet, providing 10,000 feet of freefall. Skydiving is aptly described as high-speed vertical aviation, and The Skydiver's Handbook is a reader-friendly, comprehensive, reliable, informative, and complete instruction manual and guide to a safe, exciting, skill-building skydiving experience.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A necessity for any newbie, student or novice skydiver!, December 28, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Parachuting: The Skydiver's Handbook (Paperback)

After reading it and digesting alot of it I have come to quite a few conclusions. This book is an incredible source of knowledge and enlightenment on the fundamentals of skydiving. It is so well written that even the newest student can understand the technical aspects and physics of our sport. It is an awesome plethora of knowledge combined into one little 396 page book and well worth the $$ spent and the time committed to reading it. To all skydivers: A great tool for re-inforcement and reference.