Passing the Knowledge

By Jesse Hall

By KAVU

September 20^th, 2022

It’s one thing to travel around the world jumping off cliffs for the thrill of flight and adventure..... and a whole other thing to pass that knowledge along. To teach others about safest practice and to share this passion has added a whole new facet to this lucky life.

I recently spent two weeks in Italy taking students on their first big wall BASE jumps, as well as meeting up with good friends from around the world, for coaching on more advanced jumps.

If you start talking with a BASE jumper, you’ll probably hear them say "it’s more frightening to watch a jump then it is to make the jump yourself." That might not make much sense at first.... and may never make much sense..... but when I'm not in control of another jumper's situation, I can at least give them advice based on my knowledge of their skill set and background. But, when it's time to jump, it’s up to them to put it all together and make it happen.

When making first big wall jumps, the larger the wall, the safer and the larger the landing area.... the safer the jump is overall. To stack all the variables in your favor is definitely advantageous. A large cliff makes for long freefall times which gives a jumper more time to adjust their body in flight. And, a large landing area gives that jumper more room-for-error while piloting their canopy safely to the ground.

My first week with students was at one of the best locations for learning; a nice, big cliff ,with a nice big landing area! My students were ecstatic to make their first big wall jumps!

They had put so much time, training and thought towards this goal for so long and it was super exciting to see them rewarded after all of their dedication and hard work.

The second week, I met up with some more advanced jumpers. Most were friends on their second trip to Europe so, they felt ready to venture deeper into the mountains and into more precarious terrain. The cliff faces were less forgiving, but the skill sets and knowledge of the group were stronger. The landing areas were also fairly tight and technical, but their canopy piloting skill collectively was well rehearsed.

They were prepared for some serious KAVU Days!

The longer you are in this sport, the more your experience accrues with a wider range of jumps you can accomplish. Experience allows you to jump more places and to consider more types of jumps with potentially new and exciting kinds of rewarding experiences.

People say: "Any jump you walk away from is a good jump" but after you soar from the top of one of the Dolomites... through the clouds, down massive mountains, and land in grassy, green fields in the sunshine with your friends, you realize.....