Why backflip exit from Skyvan?

I was watching old video from WS race and noticed that competitors intentionally do a backflip on exit (1:41 on video)

What's the reason behind that? Is that because for a second you have head-down dive, so flier gets more initial momentum and also suit inflates faster?

Didn't work out so well for Jean Adam

/forums/topic/263050-fatality---skydive-perris-22-jan-2018/?tab=comments#comment-4573896

As the guy above hinted, this is a pretty stupid idea. I have 1200 WS jumps and I wouldent do that. The problem is when you have that many people that close doing intentionally unstable exits, there is a high probability of a collision and collisions in wingsuits, even from close distances, can result in neck breaking forces very easily. The guy in the link above was doing a 4-way exit (normal exit, not backflips like these guys) and he died from a collision on the exit. In general you should not launch more than two wingsuiters at a time in a Skyvan and both should be solid fliers. If someone is new or they are going to do an erratic exit, they should exit first (in the WS group) and alone.

As far as WHY they did it. My guess, show off for the video. There is no performance-related reason to do an exit like that during a race. If you want to exit head down, you can do that from any aircraft without doing a backflip. A head down exit is not actually that hard.

That ain't no backflip, it's a pretty standard back tracking exit where they're trying to get their head into the relative wind and start flying.

If you're racing down a slalom course created by helicopters that suspend the "gates", you have to be able to see the course to spot.  If the skyvan is flying in the same direction you are going to fly your wingsuit, you can't see the approach and you can't spot and you can't exit at the right time.  If the skyvan flies along the course the other way, you can see the entire course before you exit but, a standard wingsuit exit will mean you're flying under the skyvan away from the course...you'd have to turn 180 degrees to approach the course.  This "backflip" exit means your line of flight is opposite the skyvan and appropriately toward the first gate. 

Never personally competed but I believe this is the reasoning.

it's a gainer exit. Advantage is that you stand there and see the dz and fly straight towards it half a second later by doing that gainer. We just did it for fun in the old days. It flips you automatically around so you fly 180 back home. We did it like on the video, multiple guys side by side, plus also multiple rows for a big formation. Of course some got e.g. a foot to the face and a bloody nose and what not... We did not have any severe issues as I recall it, But glad we don't do it anymore

Just because it s the best way to fly quickly in the opposite direction of the plane flight path compare to do a 180°

Interesting.

I used to do the same thing when exiting last on big way CReW formations.

A "normal" opening would have you flying back towards the base immediately.

Plus it was FUN!