what is the best position for canopy foward motion?

[andy2 0]

Of course toggles all the way up, but what about the rest of your body, try to distribute your weight foward if you can, i.e. raised knees? Does it matter that much? I mainly want to know for the final leg of a landing, or going into the wind, as it doesn't seem to be that hard to get good foward motion with the wind

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let my inspiration flow,
in token rhyme suggesting rhythm...

[Tasadin 0]

I was talking to one of the british army CRW guys and he told me this whixh seems to work, sorry if teaching to suck eggs but I'm still relatively new here.

If you find yourself down wind and not making much progress u release the toggles and grab a handful of front riser to get the canopy to cut through. If your way upwind leave the breaks stowed and rear riser the canopy, he said the idea of leaving the breaks stowed gave you more surface area at the back of the canopy for the wind to catch. He never mentioned anything about body position so sorry cant help there

"If everything seems under control, you're just not going fast enough."

[dreamsville 0]

If you're getting back from a long spot, legs up for less wind drag. If you're in half brakes (not just short of a stall, though, or you'll sink more than fly). Some people loosen their chest straps after under canopy.
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I don't drink during the day, so I don't know what it is about this airline. I keep falling out the door of the plane.

Harry, FB #4143

[quade 4]

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Of course toggles all the way up, . . .

It depends on which canopy you're flying and what exactly you mean by "forward motion".

Some (I'd even wager a guess to say most) canopys at full flight (toggles all the way up) are trimmed at a speed slightly faster than the "best glide airspeed" (aka Vg). That is to say that while the canopy may be going slightly faster, it is not going quite as far as it could. Vg is the speed which, under no wind conditions, would give you the farthest glide distance. The most efficient way to get to Vg on your canopy will probably be to pull down slightly on the rear risers.

Glider pilots (and we are also glider pilots if you think about it) have a term called "speed to fly" which in its simplist terms means that the most efficient speed depends on where you are in relationship to where you want to be and what the winds (and thermal lift) are doing along that path. For a detailed explaination of how this works, you might want to check out THIS web site.

Generally speaking, you'll want to fly faster than Vg into the wind and slower than Vg with the wind. How much faster or slower depends on the strength of the wind and the Vg of the canopy, which also changes with weight.

quade -
The World's Most Boring Skydiver

[stylin 1]

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and what the winds (and thermal lift) are doing along that path.

Thermal lift, ooo yes, remember that from the old days when I used to fly Cessnas. I forgot about that. Cant that affect the way a chute flies on a hot summer day or does it not? What about air pockets, any affect on the way a parachute flies? Turbulence? I remember this only happens at low altitudes, when you get up to 2000 ft it all becomes pretty calm. Havent noticed turbulence in the Cessna rides out at Marana, so if I ever parachuted in turbulent conditions then I hadnt noticed any difference.

My guess is it only applies mainly to airplanes.

[quade 4]

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My guess is it only applies mainly to airplanes.

Not just "no", but "HELL NO!"

Thermals can have a huge effect on your ability to get back from a long spot. A little can be a good thing, a lot can be horrible. They can create wicked turbulence that nobody really wants to fly in and dust devils that can take down canopies or airplanes.

Like everything, ya gotta know your limits and how to deal with what nature presents each day.

quade -
The World's Most Boring Skydiver

[nightjumps 1]

Hand on hackey at "Pull Time."

...Bigun

[dreamsville 0]

Last point, somewhat related. If you see dust devils (as at Eloy, sometimes) repeatedly with squirrely winds, stay on the ground.

I don't drink during the day, so I don't know what it is about this airline. I keep falling out the door of the plane.

Harry, FB #4143

[indyz 1]

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Thermal lift, ooo yes, remember that from the old days when I used to fly Cessnas. I forgot about that. Cant that affect the way a chute flies on a hot summer day or does it not? What about air pockets, any affect on the way a parachute flies? Turbulence? I remember this only happens at low altitudes, when you get up to 2000 ft it all becomes pretty calm. Havent noticed turbulence in the Cessna rides out at Marana, so if I ever parachuted in turbulent conditions then I hadnt noticed any difference.

My guess is it only applies mainly to airplanes.

Parachutes can ride thermals. Not as effectively as a paraglider or sailplane, but it can slow your rate of descent. Last summer I was flying back from a long spot on a Casa load. I didn't seem to be losing altitude very fast, so I set up a huge landing pattern. Turns out I was flying almost straight down a road on my long downwind leg, and had been flying in the thermal generated by the pavement. I wasn't gaining altitude, but I definately had a slower descent rate than normal. When I turned and stopped flying over the road, I left the thermal and ended up landing out, because my little adventure had left me too far downwind.

[riggerrob 643]

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I was talking to one of the british army CRW guys and he told me this whixh seems to work, sorry if teaching to suck eggs but I'm still relatively new here.

If you find yourself down wind and not making much progress, release the toggles and grab a handful of front riser to get the canopy to cut through. If your way upwind leave the breaks stowed and rear riser the canopy, he said the idea of leaving the breaks stowed gave you more surface area at the back of the canopy for the wind to catch. He never mentioned anything about body position so sorry cant help there

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That Brit gave you the correct advice, but his theory was flawed.If you open too far upwind of the target - when winds are strong -, you want to expose your canopy to the winds aloft for as many minutes as possible. This means opening higher than normal and flying in half or 3/4 brakes to slow your rate of descent. Whether you fly in set brakes, 1/2 brakes or 3/4 brakes varies from canopy to canopy and will have to be determined by experimentation. Some canopies float best when you release the brakes, then pull down 3 inches on the rear risers, again this is best learned by experimentation.

Loosening your chest strap and pulling you slider down to your shoulders also slows descent rate a little.

Pulling your knees up to your chin helps reduce drag, but few of us have enough muscle to keep our knees up for three or four minutes at a time.

On the other hand, if you open too far downwind of the target, you want to reduce the number of minutes that your canopy is exposed to the strong winds aloft. Start by releasing your brakes, then pull down on front risers to increase rate of descent.
While spirals will further increase rate of descent, any time spent facing down wind will only blow you farther from the target.
Also remember that winds usually reduce as you descend, so what looks like too far downwind when you are at 3,000' may be "just doable" from 1,000'. Mind you keep a closer alternate in mind and stick to your decision altitude.

[quade 4]

Even more information about Dust Devils HERE.

quade -
The World's Most Boring Skydiver

[markbaur 0]

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pull down on front risers to increase rate of descent

Practice by doing chin-ups or pull-ups until you are able to hold yourself in the up position for 2 or 3 minutes at a time.
Mark

[dreamsville 0]

I'm sorry but I can't resist this any longer. The best position for canopy forward motion is to have it hooked up correctly. There is an experienced jumper at Sebastian whose rig was packed by someone else, and it opened flying backwards because maybe the main had been reconnected while it remained in the D-Bag. Anything else make sense? Yes, he cut it away, since he was not satisfied with the frame of reference into which he had been cast.
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I don't drink during the day, so I don't know what it is about this airline. I keep falling out the door of the plane.

Harry, FB #4143

[covey 0]

Did he have any early opening? I was watching someones video online the other night and it looked like his was backwards. He road it down for a while and then cutaway.

Believe those who are seeking truth. Doubt those who find it. -Andre Gide

[dreamsville 0]

Nope. It was hooked up backwards. No one ever fessed up. He said, "I think we shan't be seeing that again.".
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I don't drink during the day, so I don't know what it is about this airline. I keep falling out the door of the plane.

Harry, FB #4143

[indyz 1]

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Did he have any early opening? I was watching someones video online the other night and it looked like his was backwards. He road it down for a while and then cutaway.

That was Kevin's cutaway at the Mardi Gras boogie, I think (lots of swearing, landing right by the hangar at the end?). If I recall correctly, it was a demo main, and the representative from Performance Designs was the one that hooked it up backwards.

[covey 0]

Yep I think thats the one. I was wondering how the hell it got backwards. I was going to ask around the DZ this weekend. Thought perhaps I missed something in packing class.

Believe those who are seeking truth. Doubt those who find it. -Andre Gide

[dreamsville 0]

I know next to nothing about flat packing. However, if I am pro-packing, my guess would be that a backwards hook-up would be hard to miss.
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I don't drink during the day, so I don't know what it is about this airline. I keep falling out the door of the plane.

Harry, FB #4143