JohanW

At 6000', I would exit on my main. I have a cut-off altitude for exiting on my reserve instead of my main, but that's a personal decision that would be different for everyone, depending on factors like gear and experience. There might be reasons to take a freefall, but I default to hop&pop, any altitude. Johan. I am. I think.

What do you do, fly an A380? Not just the screens, all the dials too .. At work, 1. At home, three on one computer and one on the other. Johan. I am. I think.

Dutch. Mis me wanneer ik er niet meer ben. or Mis me als ik er niet ben. Ware liefde. There are some subtleties; translation is different if you'd be dead and gone or just temporarily gone (above first would be for dead and gone, second for absent). Johan. I am. I think.

And you really don't want them to get stolen, too, do you? Does anyone have an opinion on the visibility of the rainbow pattern the Triathlon used to have? Johan. I am. I think.

Not about to tell you what to do to improve the strength in your right arm - because I'm not a doctor. But I share your worry. It may not be a good idea at all for you to fly this canopy.You are handicapped, let's face it. Looking far ahead of you, definitely not down, while landing, and keeping the canopy flying straight and level, while braking (not flaring) not more than necessary to achieve just that, will give a decent flare. Near the end of the flare, when reaching the stall point, completing the flare might make for tippy-toe landings. This takes practice, nobody does that on the first try. But if you really have trouble spending the force to achieve level flight n that canopy, it might not be for you. But don't give up too soon! Get coaching, live and in person, from someone who really knows what to do, how to teach that and willing to work with you specifically. Get mentoring actually, because it's going to take a while in your case. Accept that you will need to work harder for not even the same results others are getting (you might be used to that already, possible projection here). Go slow and keep large margins, because you need them more than others, but your mentor should be the one telling you this. Practice, practice, practice. You may very wellhave enough strength once you've gotten accustomed to the new canopy, I would not at all be surprised by that. But it might take you longer than others to find out. I don't think very many people have learned to flare well on the Internet. This goes double for you. Get mentoring. Johan. I am. I think.

You might need lead then. I've been in formations doing 110, but also ones that did 130. Dress for success. Johan. I am. I think.

Mainly, don't give up, don't worry and practice, practice, practice. It will become easier, it will become neater, and it *wants* to open. I must have been doing something wrong with the greed method, because I got harder openings from it. Must have been doing something wrong with controlling the slider. I went back to the classic propack. Johan. I am. I think.

So if I forget my altimeter for a jump and decide to make it anyway, it can't count towards a requirement? (assuming there is a BSR that says you have to have an altimeter) If I forget to turn on my AAD? (assuming a functioning, turned on AAD would be mandatory, as it is in France) Bizarre. But at least it's clear. (What if you break local rules but not USPA rules? ) Note to self: shut up and jump. Rules are a necessary evil, written in blood but made to be broken. But I always like to know what rules I am breaking. Johan. I am. I think.

Well, he will be when the BSRs lower minimum container openings to 800 feet. [Wink] I live under different rules, but would you imply that I can't log the jumps I made under American rules, where it's legal to pull at 2000', towards Dutch requirements, where it's illegal to pull under 2500' ? Maybe just those where I pulled above 2500' ? If I pull low, can't I count the jump? Should I not log it at all, maybe? (This might actually be the smart choice. Or I could just lie about opening altitude.) Minimum opening altitude has been upped from 2300' to 2500' 'round here at some time in the not too distant past. Oops .. It says jumps. Arguably from an aircraft, according to the definitions. Does it specify under whose rules they have to be made? Does it have to be a powered aircraft too? If you really, really, really badly wanted to log that BASE jump where you held the paper glider on exit, I'd let you. Good thing I'm not an instructor. My opinion is that S/L, IAD and freefalls, however short, count, (it's just a deployment method) and tandems do not (it's just a ride), though a point can be made about working tandems, as a student instead of a passenger, and the rules should reflect this, and it sounds like they even do. My other opinion is it's nothing that a thousand jumps won't fix. In the long run, it's moot. Get over it. Agree with the instructor you have at hand. Oh, for the guy who has 14 IADs, I had 19 S/Ls before I started freefalling. And 11 since, the last one as my 1311th jump. I like them. I've done one instead of my 1000th freefall (and then went and made my 1000th freefall). I've done CRW and PA from a S/L. In the same jump. In competition. I personally know someone with hundreds (literally) of S/Ls. She was doing CRW with her Lightning 160 (I think). It's just a deployment system. (For her, it wasn't moot by the way, but rabid CRWdogs have problems meeting requirements anyway.) Why oh why do we insist parachutists have to be skydivers? Johan. I am. I think.

Diving exits. I would dive out the right side door stably and make a nice, controlled, 180° right turn and be facing the aircraft again. Trying to do the turn to the left didn't help, I'd still right turn back to the aircraft. I just kept jumping and the problem went away by itself after a couple dozen jumps. I guess I learned to fly better. It wasn't really a problem anyway because I was never unstable, so I could afford not to let it bother me. Johan. I am. I think.

I own and use a Z1 (going on 8 years, I think) and my glasses don't fit under the visor. My glasses aren't even that big; my head mostly fills the shell though, I use XL padding; your head may leave more room for glasses. I've tried a Freezr but found it too big, it didn't feel solid or comfortable, it felt too big really. Never worn an Oxygn, sorry. (You know how most fullface helmets are the same shell for all sizes and have different paddings for differently sized heads, don't you?) I strongly advise you to try on any helmet you're thinking of buying for fit; this need not be the specific helmet you're buying but should be the exact make and model (and preferably not with a 10 year-old liner in it); you may be able to borrow a friends' for a jump or two. If and when you know *exactly* what you want, just order it from any webstore in the States and pay in cheap US dollars. Johan. I am. I think.

Does location matter? Where do you want her to be? Do they have to be goodlooking? What are the pictures for otherwise? I know a few .. in Europe. Johan. I am. I think.

BM S3S. No need to upgrade .. yet. Johan. I am. I think.

The cutaway DNB Nord canopy has been found BTW, and flocking today produced some nice instances of more-than-two docked formations. If the weather holds, more of that tomorrow, sadly without me - previous engagements - but it was a great success. Prizes have been given and, as expected, FLB won the SkyJester Dodo Award. Congratulations to all winners, and a big thanks to judges and, especially, organisers. Johan. I am. I think.

What wingload? What degree of turn? What initiation altitude? What do you consider a decent swoop? I have a grand total of 5 jumps on a Katana 120 @ 1.8, and I could make it swoop so far I had to carve it away from a parked helicopter I didn't think I'd have a snowball's chance in Hell of reaching. No gates, but call it between 200 and 300 feet (before first touchdown, that is). I (heart) the Ka120. My technique is slightly different; I used single fronts only, 270 degree turn from 800+ foot up. Not a snap turn, but not a wide carving turn either, just turn it, line up using harness input and let the dive recover on its own. No rear risers, no toggles, let it go. The frontriser pressure on a Katana is ridiculously light, esp. compared to a Velo, which does empathically not make it the best step up to a Velo, it's way too easy to learn bad habits. In my experience, in the stories I've heard and from what I've seen, many people try to force their canopy to recover too fast and too hard in the dive. Take it up a little (to a lot, even) higher and allow for more time for it to recover on its own. If it doesn't, you're not ready to go to rear risers and you don't want to go to toggles too much, you might experiment with letting up the frontrisers a little more sharply, this has much the same effect and jumpstarts the recovery some. Or get smaller, pull up your knees, you'll have less body air resistance and will pendulum under the canopy that much faster. All of these have subtle effects and are no replacement for being ready to stab out of the corner fast and early. All of the above is worth what you paid for it, not recommended for beginners or even advanced fliers if you feel you don't already understand exactly what I'm trying to say, my opinion only (and I'm not the greatest swooper and/or canopy coach myself) and don't try this at home kids. Johan. I am. I think.

3500 2500 1500 Johan. I am. I think.

Do you think the funnel @ 2:34 in this video would qualify? Last weekend, Henny and me, video Saskia. SkyJester, that was in training for the competition. Can we submit that or do we really have to do it again during competition? Maybe we can just edit it into a competition round judging video? Johan. I am. I think.

Bill, I think you're talking about some other kind of airspeed than the one a layman would think of first. There's indicated airspeed and the other one which I can't remember right now, and I'm not the correct person to explain anyway. But could some pilot, or anyone else that knows what airspeeds I'm talking about, and does know the difference, please explain? I think it's pertinent to the discussion. And it's rather counterintuitive (to me at least). Johan. I am. I think.

I prefer orange juice. And water. And coffee. Don't forget to eat every now and then as well. Johan. I am. I think.

Ill bet thats because the twisting the risers hasn't been used thousands of times. Also, what could go wrong with this method? You're inducing twists in the risers, and your hand(s) might get stuck in there. Yes yes, yours won't. And you can always take off the gloves. But not every first jump student wears gloves and is not overloaded enough already not to let his hands get caught. Johan. I am. I think.

But it would have been less likely, because bigger chutes have longer lines. WL 1.3 on a 210 is very much not the same as WL 1.3 on a 120. Also, air molecules do not get smaller when you downsize. OTOH, a person half my weight has spun up a Silhouette 170 (at a safe altitude), which I have never managed to do (on that, or any, canopy). Maybe line tension comes into play as well, or she just has bigger balls than I do. Dares to pull strings harder .. Johan. I am. I think.

You mean you guys can't do 20 points in round 1 ?!? Johan. I am. I think.

I do. Canopy flight, under pretty much any canopy, is fun, a Foil is a high performance canopy (in its very own way), there are no less-than-high performance canopies under about 220 ft² (there are extreme performance canopies), and it's always the pilot. These are my opinions, I voice them at the dropzone and occasionally, people hear them and listen. Yes, I jump accuracy under a Foil and recreational CRW under a Manta. Because it's fun (to me), and because it might make people think. Occasionally, it does. Sometimes, they're truly amazed what you can do with a boat. Which, again, is fun (to me). Johan. I am. I think.

that would be me you don't need to be an american to be so THIS IS THE PROFILE POLICE! Really, you should learn to pack. This thread now officially approaching deportation to the Bonfire

It looks wonderful - and I can't understand a d*mn word of it. But it's pretty .. a bit like what's-her-name in that movie .. Johan. I am. I think.