Best transition canopy?

[Kris 0]

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I'm not wing loading it enough so I HAVE to get speed to get a good landing.

If you believe this, then you've gotten some seriously bad advice about canopy flight. Needing increased speed to properly land under a normal ZP canopy is a fallacy, it's bullshit.

A VX loaded at 3:1 can be landed straight in to a standup landing.

You need a better canopy coach.

Something less aggressive in a 150 would be a much better option.

Sky, Muff Bro, Rodriguez Bro, and
Bastion of Purity and Innocence!™

[mr2mk1g 10]

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I want to go to a stilleto 135 because I'm having bad landing under the diablo. I'm not wing loading it enough so I HAVE to get speed to get a good landing. If I get a stilleto 135 it will have a better glide so I won't have to go as fast. We'll see how I do under it this weekend.

Please please please get some decent canopy advice. You have no idea how retarded what you just said makes you seem. I doubt you actually are retarded though, you have either been given some very bad advice or you have picked up some very very odd ideas. Please talk to someone about your landing theories before you kill yourself.

[teason 0]

Anecdote time!

I knew a girl who counld land a Manta. Some experienced jumpers told her the Manta was simply too big for her (she only weighed 105 ibs). She downsized to a Sabre 150 which she had to fly under radio comand and still landed badly. She was advised to downsize to a smaller canopy two more times. It seemed the consenses was that she wasn't loading it enough to get the proper speed for a good flare.

Last I heard she ended up lying on the runway next to her deflated stilletto 107 with a leg broken in six places.

That is what bad canopy advice can do to you and it sound like your getting some!

Learn from the mistakes of others, you won't live long enough to make them all yourself!

I would rather be a superb meteor, every atom of me in magnificent glow, than a sleepy and permanent planet.

[MarkM 0]

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I'm 135lbs. with gear on. I have 40 jumps. I jumped a 230skymaster(9cell ZP) for 20 jumps, a triathalon 160 for 3 jumps, and a Diablo 135 for 17 jumps. What would be the better transition canopy. these are my immiadiate choices.

Going back to the Triathlon 160 for a hundred jumps, then getting a sabre/pilot 150. The Diablo is a not a beginner's canopy and your landing problems are lack of skill, not wing loading.

[UDSkyJunkie 0]

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How about none of the above?

Saber2 150, Pilot 150, Lotus 150, Safire2 150 would all be reasonable choices if you downsized to them gradually, by going down one size at a time.

They'd also be a hell of a lot of fun.

A 135 is WAY too small for your limited experience. Wingloadings do not scale linearly. While 1.0 is a great first wingloading for a bigger person, it can be quite aggresive for a smaller one.

_Am

Hi Jarrett,

I noted a couple of things in your profile... mostly that you've been born into the sport. I was also, though I didn't get to jump at 9, I had to wait until I was 18.

The above points, while all good canopies, are kind of irrelevant, since you stated ahead of time that they were not options (I'm assuming not options from a financial perspective). Been there... we can't all just go buy whatever is perfect at the time. From the choices you gave, I would say the triathalon 160, at least for 50 more jumps or so, and after that, well, I think you need to evaluate what you're comfortable under, and make your decisions from that.

Saying that a 150 is great if you work down to it, and then turning around and saying that a 135 is WAY too small is, quite frankly, a giant load of crap, especially for someone who would be weighing a 135 at like 0.9 to 1. True, canopies do not scale linearly, but people tend to forget skill, which some people have more of than others... I have no idea what end of that spectrum you happen to be in, but I'll use my experience as an example of something that most people would say was stupid, but was perfect for me.

Disclaimer: I don't recommend this, but I'm illustrating a point.

I weighed 155 lbs out the door. I started w/ 200+ student stuff for 30 jumps. Then I went 5 jumps PD 190, 2 jumps sabre 190, 4 jumps sabre 170, and bought a PD 170. I did a dozen jumps on that, and had some opportunities to try some other canopies... 2 jumps sabre 150, 1 jump sabre 135, 1 jump stiletto 120. that was jump 58. Was I in over my head? Yes. But not until the stiletto... I went back to the 170 I had bought, and jumped it until I had about 95 jumps, and then bought a Sabre 135, which I still own.

Point here is, the above will (and probably should) sound incredibly stupid to most people here on DZ.com, but it wasn't, and here's why: people who are born into the sport are frequently unique... they can learn through osmosis more than most new jumpers do in their first 500 jumps. Were I you, I wouldn't be particularly inclined to take the advice of people you don't know, and instead go with those who watch you, and your own observations. Watch for the warning signs... if you can't hit the spot you want to hit, you're pushing your limits... the same goes if the flare scares you, or you frequently do not stand up landings, or any number of other things. If you find that to be the case, the canopy's too aggressive, so back off. That's what I was doing when i jumped the stiletto... I wanted to keep dropping size until I felt I was over my head.

I had the 135 at less than 100 jumps, and it was PERFECT for me, loaded about 1.2:1. That wouldn't be true for most people, but then most people don't have 19 years of paying attention and they don't weigh 125 lbs.

Anyway, bottom line: find your comfort zone, and stay there. If you're trying a canopy that you think might be pushing it, do a hop'n'pop, so there's no traffic... if you pay attention you'll know if it's past your ability.

I'm sure about 800 people will crucify me for this posting, but I really don't care... I tired of people giving advice based on formulas and standards, so fire away.

"Some people follow their dreams, others hunt them down and beat them mercilessly into submission."

[pilotdave 0]

In what part of

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I'm not wing loading it enough so I HAVE to get speed to get a good landing. If I get a stilleto 135 it will have a better glide so I won't have to go as fast.

do you sense learning by osmosis having taken place?

Dave

[AndyMan 7]

40 jumps!

I dont' care how much he's packed parachutes, you don't learn to fly them by packing.

135 square foot canopies have short lines, which means they turn quick. I'm glad you managed to get through your early days without serious injury, but that does not make your experience a good path.

_Am

__

You put the fun in "funnel" - craichead.

[mjosparky 4]

Ask your dad, he is in the best position to judge what one would be best for you.

Sparky

My idea of a fair fight is clubbing baby seals