JohanW

That would be a PD Optimum, right? Johan. I am. I think.

A is the correct answer if the first glider is overtaking the second. B is the correct answer if they are colliding, but the heavier, slower glider's speed should have been given as -0.2m/s. Conservation of momentum (P (I think) = m × v): end speed is ((0.24×0.6)+(0.26×0.2))/(0.24+0.26). Johan. I am. I think.

"Due to copyright and other legal reasons, South Park video content cannot be viewed outside the United States." Johan. I am. I think.

This had a better view. Johan. I am. I think.

On the road, I have no interest in speeding. Or in hugging the left lane. Or in being tailgated. I fly a 1.8 wingload. Currently demoing a 2.0. Believe me, I know the difference. If I flew that 111 like you drive your car, yes, we would meet in Incidents. The space I want in front of me while flying that pocket rocket, I want behind me in my car. Sometimes there just are even bigger morons than me I need to pass before you can blaze past. I don't hate them, I pass them. If that means you have to raise that lead foot for twenty seconds and be home with the wife and kids twenty seconds later and can't deal with that, why didn't you leave earlier? Johan. I am. I think.

Why is my being in the left lane at the posted speed limit more of an offence than your breaking the posted speed limit? If you speed, preferably while tailgating, and cause a crash, how is that better? (Please note I'm in the Netherlands; traffic and laws may be different here. And sometimes I can't get back to the right lane immediately. And hogs do cross motorways. ) Johan. I am. I think.

Really? I think you may need a lesson in aerodynamics as well Mr. Billvon. Your statement would only be true in a vacuum. Wingsuiting in a vacuum? Now that sounds impossible as well as unhealthy. Can we get back to the accident now? Maybe I'll start a poll in GSD to see who needs the lesson in aerodynamics .. Johan. I am. I think.

But a smaller one would have shorter lines, so the drag penalty would not be as high .. colour me stupid, but I don't get it. Does this assume equal wingloads or equal suspended weights? Johan. I am. I think.

Just so I know...what features are on student rigs that aren't usually found on sports gear? The student gear at our DZ and my rig are identical in terms of "features", just wondering if I'm missing something... Longer steering lines so the canopy can't be stalled. A student model AAD. Non-collapsible pilot. Johan. I am. I think.

Calling John Kallend, calling John Kallend .. I'm not getting through here. Canopies do not know which way the wind blows relative to the ground. They drift in a moving column of air and experience relative wind only. They appear to exhibit this behaviour because everybody always aims into the wind and can only be blown offcourse towards downwind, but this is an effect of your steering only. Maybe we can get back to the actual incident and take this discussion to the existing thread? I definitely remember this being discussed before. Johan. I am. I think.

Canopies do *NOT* steer downwind relative to the ground without control inputs. They don't know about the ground. They go anywhere. Johan. I am. I think.

The advantages of Spectra and HMA over Dacron are not things you would notice. Dacron takes the edge off harder openings, goes out of trim slower, and lasts longer. It packs a little larger though, because the lines are fatter. If it's lined with Spectra now and packs tight, get a rigger's opinion. If it's lined with Spectra now and doesn't need a reline, don't not buy it because it's not Dacron. But if you have the choice, go with Dacron (don't pay extra for it though). Johan. I am. I think.

Not a current one, that's for sure. What do you want to hear? Johan. I am. I think.

I NEVER want to be stuck behind you! You won't be. I know to keep right.

Why shoot myself? I have a good canopy overhead this time; I have a spare if I can't land the first one. But if I can land the first one, there's no need to roll the dice again. It's only a parachute, it can fail. I'll give you that estimating the descent speed of a damaged main may be difficult to do, but this is where experience comes in, too. If the wind is blowing harder than normal, I think I might notice. Johan. I am. I think.

In the Netherlands, you're actually settling if you pay the fine. So there's no conviction. We seem to have a point system, but it's only for new drivers, and I have no idea how it really works. If it really works. Get into felony driving convictions, and your premiums do go up, but you have to seriously speed for that. Up to at least 30 kmph, it's an administrative misdemeanor, charged to your registration, not to you, and there is nothing for the insurer to even know. I'm no saint, but the cruise control gets set 5kmph below the speed limit. And I don't drink when I know I'm driving. It's not worth it - my time is not that expensive. Johan. I am. I think.

Demo, demo, demo. And talk to your instructors. OTOH, you could just opt for a Velocity. Johan. I am. I think.

A static lined round would be more appropriate than a second hand stiletto. But an unsteerable round would give him a better chance than 0%, and in certain situations definitely better than staying put and possibly burning unpleasantly. Consider how many you're getting though. And don't forget the option of going to the roof and ordering a helicopter then and there by cellphone. Take a look at the roof, make sure there's a place to land. Beforehand. Have the phone number and the GPS coordinates prepared. Hey, it's an alternative. Johan. I am. I think.

Just how I was taught. Think the idea was to prevent it from being a snag hazard when your main gets cut. Maybe that's not something to worry about. I was taught the same, with the same reasoning, explicitly. No need to keep an extra foot and a half of snag hazard around, it won't be doing you any good in that situation. Johan. I am. I think.

No reason to stop at hands and knees. Use elbows, feet, upper legs, chest, chin, I've even seen someone use her teeth while packing. How this would apply to a woman .. Johan. I am. I think.

After wrapping the tail around it, lay it on the ground while continuing to hold the rolled tail on the underside of the package. Only then let that hand go. Control both sides of the package with both hands while lieing on it, and lie on it until the air is not just compressed in the package, but out of the package. Dress, repeat. Then fold. Practice, practice, practice. And have someone give you some tips in person. Works better than over the Internet. Yes, it'll take half an hour. But hey, it's winter, there's time. (Oh wait, you're in Ireland. If it's not winter, it's raining. You always have time for packing classes! Love the country though. Nice and green ..

A Diablo glides a *lot* less than a Stiletto. Wendy (I think) had a sweet story about a Diablo and a rock, but I can't seem to find it. And the flare on a Diablo is somewhat less powerful than on a Stiletto. Other than that, they're both an absolute blast to fly. Johan. I am. I think.

I answered your other questionnaire as well, I see you're asking different questions here and, though I'm not an instructor, I'm taking this quiz as well. 27 18000' That's an answer to a meaningless question, really. It's not about how high you go, it's what you make of it. N/A. But very, very few people can scrape together a living on skydiving, let alone achieving financial security. N/A. Tandem instructors tend to make many more jumps than fun jumpers, but tandem jumping is very different from other disciplines. Keep in mind the skills and responsibilities of tandem instructors, AFF instructors, S/L instructors and "ground" instructors are very different. From an instructor's perspective, it's an advanced discipline which touches on skydiving but has its own additional hazards and skill-sets. There has recently been talk among wingsuiters (not all of them instructors) that wingsuiting is more different from other skydiving disciplines than any other discipline, and I think that idea has merit. Tracking and Atmonauti (angled flying) tend towards wingsuit flying more than towards other disciplines in this respect, though, though without the additional difficulties of a wingsuit. Yes. On a scale of 1 to 10, where crossing a busy street is a 4, skydiving is a 6 and quarrelling with the wife is 11, about a 7. Not while jumping, I was too busy solving my immediate problems. With hindsight, yes. Focus. Or maybe Flow. (In the Zen enlightenment sense of the word. See my other post. But in one word, that's a necessarily limited answer. It's much, much more than that. It's nowhere near as lonely as it suggests.) Johan. I am. I think.

A very experienced jumper and Wingsuit Instructor at one of the dropzones I call home gently eased me into it. One afternoon, he gave me a suit and told me to rig it up, and we'd go fly. I did. We did. I already had 500 jumps and 5 years in the sport then. Wingsuiting has developed tremendously since I started six and a half year ago. So yes, my view has changed, but then, the whole sport has changed. Until this time last year, nobody thought a 71-way formation was possible, including me, and I was in it. Until then, big formations were zoos. Aerobatics and artistics have come a long way too in that short time. It's not a mature discipline, but it's definitely past its adolescence (though you wouldn't always think that when witnessing the brand wars here). BTW, your five minutes are up. But I'll keep at it. Fear, no. Apprehension, when I haven't jumped for two weeks, before the first jump in the morning, yes. Not more or less for a wingsuit jump than for a regular skydive though. So, fear before wingsuiting, no. No. Education helps. Also, a healthy insight into taking risks as a matter of life helps. Riding motorcycles is a risk to be managed. Crossing the street is a risk to be managed. Hell, ballroom dancing is a risk to be managed (talk to my sis-in-law. she broke a leg). Risks are there to be managed, not avoided, or you couldn't get out of bed. There is risk in skydiving, there is risk in wingsuiting, but there is risk in living. A life without risks is not being lived. I haven't told my sister-in-law I'm now jumping a 2.0 wingload though. I'm not hooked to the rush, I never was really. Skydiving, like playing bridge, to me is something to be done well. They are social activities first, coaching is very satisfying and a jump or a play that goes well is very rewarding. I started on the static line, and a jump on a big canopy is actually relaxing. I have considered BASE jumping, but I've been postponing that for years now. I still want to get my motorcycle license (I can ride, but I suck at exams). I want to learn Italian someday and read Umberto Eco in the original. To me, that's pretty crazy. Yes. In the long run, it made me a bit more careful in my risk management, but overall, it really did not affect me deeply. It did make me realise the importance of luck and skill, my own and others's, though. Education is important, you never know enough, and it's important to know your limitations. You can work on your skills, work to create that extra bit of margin you didn't have before and then choose whether to keep it as margin or use it up to up the stakes a little. The more you up the stakes, the more margin for error you need.

http://www.dropzone.com/cgi-bin/forum/gforum.cgi?post=3709844;#3709844 Johan. I am. I think.