Which parachutes are best for swooping?

Some people end up skydiving with the same parachute, or the same type of parachute for their entire skydiving careers. However, that is not always the case, and in fact, it is probably a good idea for skydivers to change their parachute types from time to time depending on what type of skydiving they’re thinking of doing.

A smaller parachute

Most people who get into swooping find that it is easier to swoop if they have a smaller sized parachute. The reason for this is that the smaller parachute doesn’t drag as much in the air. As a result, the swooper will be able to reach higher speeds than he or she would be able to reach otherwise.

Skydiver in the air - red parachute.

However, smaller is not always the most important thing to look at when you’re trying to find the best swooping parachute. You should also look at several other factors. Finally, the best parachute for swooping will inevitably be the parachute that you are the most comfortable with in general. Therefore, if you’re going to start swooping for the first time, then you might find it useful to start out with a parachute that you are already used to.

You should also make sure that when you do buy a new parachute that the first jumps you do with it are not particularly difficult. Even if you are one of the most experience sky divers/swoopers around, you should always do a few easy jumps with your new parachute to get used to the way it handles. Then you can work on doing your more difficult jumps.

Safety first

Finally, no matter what type of jumping you’re going to be doing with your parachute, there are certain parachutes that will always be safer than others. In other words, you should find out which parachutes are recommended for people your size, and try that first. It never hurts to ask somebody who is more experienced in the sport before you make an expensive mistake with the wrong parachute.

As long as you know to look for a high quality parachute, and understand what it will be like to jump with the size of parachute you’re looking for, you shouldn’t have too much trouble finding a good parachute to go swooping with.