Vertical formation skydiving (VFS) is the art of building formations in free-fall

Free-fall

Free fall is any motion of a body where gravity is the only force acting upon it, at least initially. These conditions produce an inertial trajectory so long as gravity remains the only force. Since this definition does not specify velocity, it also applies to objects initially moving upward...

 with multiple people gripping each others' limbs or specially built "grippers" on their jumpsuits (like formation skydiving

Formation skydiving

Formation skydiving is the art of building formations in free-fall with multiple people gripping each others' limbs or specially built "grippers" on their jumpsuits....

), while using high-speed body positions normally associated with freeflying

Freeflying

Freeflying is a skydiving discipline which began in 1990 when Olav Zipser began experimenting with non-traditional forms of body flight. Zipser formed the Freefly Clowns as a two person competitive team with Mike Vail in 1992, and was joined by Omar Alhegelan, Charles Bryan, and Stefania...

. Also called "vertical relative work" or simply "VRW".

The Fédération Aéronautique Internationale

Fédération Aéronautique Internationale

The Fédération Aéronautique Internationale is the world governing body for air sports and aeronautics and astronautics world records. Its head office is in Lausanne, Switzerland. This includes man-carrying aerospace vehicles from balloons to spacecraft, and unmanned aerial vehicles...

 (FAI) world record for the largest VFS free-fall

Free-fall

Free fall is any motion of a body where gravity is the only force acting upon it, at least initially. These conditions produce an inertial trajectory so long as gravity remains the only force. Since this definition does not specify velocity, it also applies to objects initially moving upward...

 formation is a 108-way, set on July 31, 2009 over Chicago

Chicago

Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...

, Illinois

Illinois

Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...

, USA. http://blueskiesmag.com/2009/08/01/new-freefly-world-record-108-way/

Project Horizon, the Lodi Sequentials, VFS Arizona and several other yearly invitational skydiving events are centered around pushing the boundaries of VFS.

Competition

There is only one category of official VRW competition, that being VRW 4-way, which is part of the United States Parachute Association

United States Parachute Association

thumb|180px|right|USPA logoThe United States Parachute Association is a self-governing body for the sport of skydiving. Its headquarters are located in Fredericksburg, Virginia parallel to I-95...

Skydiving Nationals. The first official VRW 4-Way US Nationals Competition was held on October 27, 2006, in Eloy, Arizona. Nine teams (45 skydivers) competed.

VRW 4-way has been adopted as an addition to future FAI world competitions (as VFS 4-way), the first being the FAI World Cup in Eloy, AZ, in October 2008.

External links

• VRW Information from DZsocial.com
• vrw4way.com Information on the VRW 4-Way
• USPA The United States Parachute Association – The governing body for sport skydiving in the U.S.
• FAI The Federation Aeronautique Internationale – The international governing body for all airborne sports, including skydiving.