CanuckInUSA

I've been working in the IT world since '84 (yes I am not a young'un anymore) and the industry has seen many many many changes over the years. When it comes to programmers, in many cases it makes sense to contract out the work since most of the programmers will not be needed once the bulk of the project is complete. But many corporations have also decided to outsource the work to places like India since the only thing that matters to the CEOs and CTOs is the almighty dollar. While it is not thought of as a bad place, I never really considered FL to be a hotbed for software development. In todays world the aspiring IT worker must go where the work is and sometimes that may mean relocation. Of course the IT world is constantly changing and the IT worker must be willing to adapt if they wish to continue working in the industry. There is tons of IT work up here in Oilberta (that would be Alberta Canada, North America's fastest growing economy). But with the work comes many challenges. First off affordable housing is out of control. Here the rich get richer and unless you already have an house purchased years ago before the boom, you pretty much get left behind. They worship the almighty dollar here more than many more traditional capitalistic places and the fancy 100k cars and multi million dollar homes are the norm here for the privilaged (my modest house is worth a 1/2 million in this out of control market). Finally, while there is tons of work here, our weather pretty much sucks ass and the whuffos are very critical of our sport thanks to some negative high profile accidents the media latched on to. Yes you can skydive here from some weekends in May through to some weekends in October. But after that, well you better like hockey, skiing, beer drinking, curling or flaunting your wealth because there is not much else to do once the frozen tundra reclaims the land. Nope while the work is plentiful here, it is not the best place to be if you like jumping out of airplanes. You need to reinvent your IT career if you want to continue to jump in FL. But that is no different than many other places in North America. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

You did the smart thing. If the wind is 4 mph and then 19 mph the next second, that is quite the shift. Sure these people landed safely ... this time. But it only takes one bad moment in time to mess up the rest of your life. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

For most of us it is a dream, for others it can be a reality. They are out there, some even post here (the professional full time skydivers). But rest assured it is a fragile reality where injury and/or sickness can be their demise since in many (not all) cases there is no safety net once the income stops coming in. Questions to ask yourself: - Do you have the financial means to pay for your own jumps to build the appropriate experience? - Do you have the financial means to buy your own gear to build the appropriate experience? - Do you live (or can you relocate) in a climate where you can jump year round? - Do you live (or can you relocate) to a spot where skydiving is in demand. - Can you live on less? Can you live in a small trailer? - Can you handle the physical demands of jumping everyday? - What are your plans if you can't skydive? Do you have other skills to earn a living? - What are your plans for when you get older? These are only a few of the many questions to answer. Many of the world class full time jumpers (not all) started off with money and/or came from affluent families. This is not a cheap sport and it's only going to get more expensive with time. I am jealous of my full-time skydiving brothers and sisters. I got to jump full-time in the summer of 2005 and it was a lot of fun. But there are a lot of wild cards that you must answer. We're all different and some people choose to sacrifice more than others and some are willing to risk more than others to live the dream. Are you made of the right stuff to live the dream? Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

things have changed, there is only 1 shower stall now. I stand corrected. Better put Keith back to work. He can be a slacker. LOL Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

AggieDave Mile-Hi has three shower stalls in the main hangar upstairs and they also have a bathroom with plumbing in the main hangar as well. The shower stalls are not the best, but they are still functional. Not sure if the hangar will be locked at night during this event. Historially the hangars get locked every night, but you may want to get in touch with Justin to find out what is what. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

I know I am NOT cool. I jump a Spectre 150 and it is a great all around canopy and I also jump a JXV 87 for some serious adrenaline pumping swooping action. No I am NOT cool for other reasons. But my lack of coolness has nothing to do with the canopies I fly. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

At the risk of getting into a debate as to what a "carving" turns means, I just want to throw something out on the table here folks. Let's not forget that a slow carving turn burns up more altitude than the faster one and someone could find themselves in the corner because of this if they fail to recognize it. I was taught "Time and Altitude" and how it relates to our turn rates and getting to know the performance envelop of the canopies we fly. When I get to my setup point I glance at my digital visual altimeter and it gives me the info I need to know. What sort of turn must I do. A slower turn (where I can use double fronts) because I have plenty of altitude, or a snapier quicker turn because I have less altitude to spare. Of course once we are in the turn, our visual sight point references take over (at a DZ where I have jumped at this season, I am turning right on top of some power lines which quite the sight, fortunately by the time I come out of the turn and am starting to recover, the power lines are still below and behind me, but you got to see it to know what I speak of ... spooky to be in the turn diving right on down at these power lines). Anway ... The perception of a slow carving turn being safer can turn very nasty if the person is asleep at the wheel. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

How about a Velo 103? The only problem with this Velo 103 I speak of is that nasty nasty nasty person Spizzarko used to jump it back when nickles had pictures of bees on them. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

The reality is because of my canopy choice and the way I choose to fly it, I come in very fast. Because of this, I choose to do these landings in the controlled environments of a hop n' pop (or high pulls) versus doing the same thing on a regular load. Isn't that what people are advocating? That we separate fast and slow canopies? If this is arrogance, well then I guess I need a new dictionary. Canopy piloting is my preferred discipline in this sport. Freefall is cool, but it is the canopy flight that I enjoy the most. I know I am not alone here. However to sound like a broken record by now ... I still agree with Ray Dutch that we wouldn't be having all these canopy collision issues if people would just do a better job NOT all trying to land at the same time. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

OMG ... no wonder people are colliding with each other out there. Is it arrogant to say "competitive swoopers know NOT to land at the same time" and is it arrogant to say "time for everyone else up there to be more proactive in creating separation on landing". Well if this arrogance, then I am an arrogant SOB ... and it's time for the rest of you mother ####ers to become arrogant as well and stop trying to land all at the same time. Isn't this the premise behind Ray's post? WTF? Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

and I sure as hell didn't say that swoopers knew more about canopies. So tell me, where did I say this? Where is the quote in this thread or any other thread? Why are you implying that I said something that I DID NOT SAY and then you turn around in a smug way and say "I can only read what you wrote". What a load of crap. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

Dude you need to go back and read what is written and stopped trying to put things out of context to force your own agenda. I am sorry if it is hard for you to understand this. Competitive swoopers are forced to put separation into our jumps. If a competitive swooper lands out of sequence or does not provide adequate separation, not only do they get a big fat donut for the round but they risk getting a yellow card or worse maybe even a red one. Where is the arrogance in that? It is our reality that compete and train in. Oh and go back and read this thread from beginning to end before you start labelling people as arrogant. If and when you do this, you will see that I AM IN FAVOR OF SEPARATE LANDING AREAS based on time or distance. Do I need to fax you copies of my log books to get it through into your thick skull that the vast majority of my jumps now are hop n' pops and high pulls. Why? Because I come in too fast now to want to deal with anything other than a controlled environment. Maybe you should get to know me before you label me. WTF ... I just happened to agree with Ray when he states "canopy collisions would not happen if people were more proactive in seeking separation". Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

LOL ... that's right I'm 27cell cross-braced and 2.5:1 Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

Please where did I say that it is "not the swoopers problem"? It's everyone's responsibility to create separation. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

Amen ... there would simple be no canopy collisions if we all as jumpers were more proactive in not trying to land all at the same time. We as competitive swoopers Ray know this is a no no ... time for everyone else to start being more proactive in creating separation up there. It's not that hard when you know how to control your canopy, keep your eyes open and use some common sense based on where you are on exit, what altitude you plan on deploying at and what sort of canopy your fly. And before someone thinks I am talking about swooping in traffic, nothing can be further from the truth. The same principle needs to be applied even if fast and slow canopies were segregated from each other. The slow canopies flying traditional patterns can still collide with each other if you try to land all at the same time. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

Many of the things Ray has mentioned I agree with (like the canopy pilot being proactive in creating their own separation), but some of the things I don't necessarily believe is right. But it is not my thread and I will not even attempt to address your concerns since I do believe some of your concerns are valid (I fully support segregated landing areas based on time or distance). Not sure if Ray will even show up here to answer your questions since he's likely off jumping. Who knows ... I just want to take the stance that it is NOT the turn type that is the crux of our problem. It is the attitude of each and every jumper to be more proactive in being as safe as they can possibly be. Be proactive in communicating before we leave the ground, be proactive in creating separation once in the air and be proactive to not be complacent on landing and get out of that "let's just wing it" mindset. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

Well at least they are protected from those aweful sun rays. On a more serious note ... people (who most likely are muslim women) who wear Burkas should not be allowed to wear the Burka while driving a motorized vehicle. Hajabs aren't an issue, but how could anyone support the right to drive while wearing a Burka. It's nothing than FUBAR to allow them while driving. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

It's rather unfortunate that you did NOT read and remember everything that Ray wrote. Let me help you remember (taken from the 5th paragraph of his original post ... go back and read it if you don't believe me): "Large group formations are another instance of this problem, in this instance I fully agree on a rule on landing. If you do 270-degree turns on a 30 way, into the regular landing area, you’re an idiot." - Ray Dutch Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

ROFLMAO ... how true ... Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

Plus (at least IMHO), it is not nearly as accurate when it comes to setting up and being precise. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

Swooping in traffic is rolling the dice and people who insist on doing so put their lives and the lives of others at risk. But I am sorry it is not the turn type that is the problem. It really boils down to the attitude of the people who do not know when to abort their swoop. My only reason to post here is to help educate people who think 180s are safer than 270s. At least in my opinion 180s are not better. They are just as bad if not worse to be doing in traffic. Why do we do 270s in swoop competitions? Sure there is the added time in the turn building more speed, but at least for me that is not the primary reason why I do a 270 over a 180 (I was trained that 180s and 270s turn altitudes start from the same window of opportunity). I prefer 270s because they are way more accurate. When I reach my setup point I glance at my visual digital altimeter and it tells me what sort of turn rate to use (faster turns burn up less altitude than slow turns) and whether or not I should or shouldn't be on double fronts. A competent swooper can be incredibly accurate entering the entry gates doing 270s. It is much harder to be as precise on a 180. So by allowing people to do 180s, what you are doing here is introducing people who will have a much harder time setting up and being precise with where they will enter the swoop entry gates (or lanes if that help clarify things) and the risk of canopy collision because of this lack of precision will still exist. Only this time the collisions will be on the deck (no more, no less dangerous than a collision higher up). I am on your guys side when it comes to segregating fast canopies from slow ones (all I need to do is lean into my harness without touching my risers on a 90 and I am coming in balls to the wall). But to ban 270s while allowing 180s just goes to show how little people have really sat down and really thought about all the issues here. It's not the turn type that is crux of the problem here. It's the attitude of some people. They get to their setup and think: "I want to swoop ... hmmm ... there is a canopy below me ... oh shit I want to swoop ... fuck it ... here goes ... yahoo". To blame canopy collisions on the turn type is like blaming the actual gun for a gun crime. It is the person behind the canopy (or the gun) who makes bad decisions. With all that said ... let's separate the fast canopies from the slow ones by either time or distance. The two do not mix well together. People who fly the slower canopies MUST fly predicatable patterns and people who swooping in the high performance swoop lanes need to communicate with each other before they leave the airplane and come up with a plan of who lands first, second, third, etc, etc, etc and to communicate with each other so they know exactly where the guy/gal before and after them will be coming from and what sort of turn they plan on doing. Winging it in the high performance swoop lanes is just as dangerous as swooping in traffic. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

I got to work with several Iranians in Vancouver BC last year and they were nice, intelligent people and by no means did they come off as fanatics bent on my destruction. So I have come to the conclusion that the average Iranian is a decent human being and by no means should I think that the actions of the Iranian government be a true indication of how the average Iranian person thinks or feels. Now where have I seen that before? Based on the 8 years I lived in the USA, I have come to the conclusion that the average American is a decent human being and by no means should I think that the actions of the American government be a true indication of how the average American person thinks or feels. It's the respective governments of these two nations and not the average citizen who we must worry about. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

At which point you turn away from the pattern, create blind spots where you should be watching, and are (momentarily) flying in the complete opposite direction of other canopies nearby, at a very high rate of speed. You know the same thing happens when people do 180s ... canopies flying complete opposite direction of other canopies nearby, at a very high rate of speed yet the lemmings seem to feel that 180s are now safe because they've suceeded in banning those nasty horrible 270s. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

Like Dave had mentioned canopy piloting is more than just swooping. Pulling high, enjoying the view, flying relative to others, bumping end cells, walking on their top skins. It's more than just swooping. But if you want to know why I swoop (I can't speak for others .... just me). It's simple ... I do it for the ground rush. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

I'm still on the fence. I know from some recent local jumps (at 3000 feet MSL) that I have not lost my spider senses in terms of being dangerous and I can still make the gates. But I am not jumping enough to be good at things like freestyle (LMAO ... like I was ever good at freestyle to begin with) and when I think of the pro-am I pitty the poor person who would be teamed up with me. I wonder if Jim would let me compete in both comps (being a guest or something in the CPC where my final standings doesn't effect the other CPCers). Yeah I met Dave some 4 1/2 years ago. It would be cool to see him again. You need to deport those South Africans. Didn't you know they are terrorist threats just like us Canucks. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over