CanuckInUSA

Happy Birthday Carl. I'm not sure I'll even recognize Katee since she's spread her wings in this sport these last few years. But I'm looking forward to seeing what this sport has done to her when we do cross paths again. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

As much as I don't want to lose gear, losing it is the least of my worries in an emergency. So my current mindset remains. I will (hopefully) go for my reserve if/when I find myself below 2k (not counting planned low jumps where a docile main is used). Plus lets not forget that several years ago I joined the Cypres club when mine fired at the very tail end of my main canopy's snivel. I was totally at fault for my temporary loss of AA coming off of a head down jump and while I have video to show myself initiating my pull ever so slightly above 2k, it wasn't enough to prevent the Cypres from firing. And what happened to me can happen to anyone regardless of how many jumps they've made. Our gear, the sort of jumps we do, the variable WX conditions we fly it in couldn't careless about how many jumps you've made in your career. If you're traveling fast, or are in thin air, or are not in the classic belly to earth orientation, yes there is a good chance your (if you jump one) Cypres will fire before the advertized 750 foot altitude. PS: my testy'ness towards possible SGs are not directed at you Ian. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

I can't speak for others, but I know I've done plenty of clear and pulls from low as well as high altitudes and wouldn't be worried about knowing how to exit stable. But I'd like to know what handle people are planning to pull when they exit the aircraft at 2k or below? We know there are plenty of skygods around here who claim it will never happen to them because they've successfully gone to their mains after all these jumps. But if I'm in a disabled airplane and I need to exit it at 2k or below, rest assured I'll be going for my reserve handle. Then again I'm not as cool as some of these skygods. And to the skygods out there who still think 2k freaks me out. Why don't you come join me and some friends at our local 180 foot span and/or local 300 foot cliff. You may see some fear in my eyes, but if the weather conditions are right, I'll still jump. Fear is a good thing in our sport(s). It helps prevent us from becoming too complacent. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

Let's also not forget that I'm only 25 or so jumps into jumping Mark's old 87 and that canopy is currently plenty fast enough with me just doing my good ole 270s. I tell you guys that I want to be doing 450s but I'll be still doing 270s while I'm learning the 87. Plus my inevitable lack of currency a few months from now will not help. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

I started my download last night and as of this morning, I've received a whole 7% of the video. So I'll let you know how it looks a few days from now. But thanks must go out to Dan for putting this video together. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

Hey Zen there is a big difference between having to jump out at 2k or less due to an emergency (using one's reserve) and voluntarily jumping out. If you're jumping a docile enough main canopy that doesn't snivel forever, then yes 2k jumps are not to be feared. But I'm just rolling the dice if I think I'm in no danger at all jumping out at 2k with a high performance canopy on my back. It doesn't take that many spinning rotations and even less time for me to lose 1000 feet if I get an unfavorable deployment. We shouldn't be confusing an emergency exit with shit the clouds are low and I'm bored let's go do a jump. It's also funny to listen to some people call me a chicken because I'm not a fan of hucking myself out with the canopies I jump at 2k. Yet if I offered to take them to the local 180 foot span, I'm the one who's all of a sudden the crazy one. Well yes jumping from a 180 foot span is NOT sane, but it goes back to that "use the right tools for the job and if you want to pull low take up BASE jumping" attitude. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

Yes currency can be an issue. I'm reasonably current at the moment. But talk to me in a few months. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

I've been wanting to get into 450s for a while now, but just haven't felt that this season was the right time. But I like this analogy. It makes total sense for why you would want to do the big turn. There's work to be done ... less talking and more training. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

It happens. Just be ready to deal with it by steering with your rear risers. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

You've got enough jumps where I'm assuming you know what you're getting into when you exit the airplane at 2k. Sure 99% of the time things will work (building the sense of security and invincibility). But all it takes is that one time to be under a violently spinning main which eats up tons of altitude and the next thing you know (within seconds) you're less than one thousand feet and now what are you going to do? You may still be able to cutaway and deploy your reserve. Or you may have already gone too low. I've exited the airplane at 2k before and back then I had the same attitude you have now. But things change and you won't see me exit the aircraft that low any more. The infamous "Ron" in the incidents thread has already insinuated that I'm chicken for my current attitude and that's okay. Having some fear in this sport is good. It helps keep complacency away and we should all know that complacency kills. So in summary, yes I believe that you have enough experience in this sport to make your own decisions and you still feel that exiting the aircraft at low altitude is okay. But for the others with not enough experience, they really should take a second to think about "what if" before they follow their friends out the door. If people are into the ground rush of pulling low, take up BASE jumping. The gear is designed to open faster and more reliable than skydiving gear. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

Sorry Joe my comments about an RDS weren't directed at the originator of this thread. It was to the person I was replying to. My bad. But you know what? I'd be willing to bet that within a few years from now, removable sliders will be a lot more common amoung you're average skydiver. And why not? The systems are getting better and it takes less time to take one's slider off than it does collapsing and stowing it. Plus we know the benefits to the canopy of flying with no slider. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

Did I miss something. I thought we were already at war in Iraq and Afghanistan (Lebanon as well?). Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

Taking one's slider off is a beautify thing. I've got an RDS for my JVX. Now I just need to shell out the dough for one for my Velo. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

Cool ... I kind of wish I was there as it was at the Wildwood Swoop comp 2 years ago (I wasn't competiting just fun jumping at the beech boogie) which kind of set the wheels in motion for where I find myself today and hopefully tomorrow on the competitive swooping circuit(s). Wildwood is an awesome place to be jumping for those of you who may not know this. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

Don't forget that as of this season, new weight restriction rules came into effect and none of us bigger guys (I'm not small but far from big ... big) are allowed to wear weights. It's only the small/medium sized swoopers who are allowed to load up. So swooping with weights is slowly (at least for now) becoming a thing of the past. But to get to your original question, coming in at around 80 or so MPH, taking my hands off of my risers/toggles to drop the lead is pretty much the last thing going on in my mind. If people jump with weight, it's a good thing to think about having a cut away system (Marianne Kramer might still be alive if she could cut her weight belt away). But cutting away a weight belt as you level off just doesn't seem like the right thing to be doing. But what do I know ... I haven't been doing this stuff (competitive swooping) for all that long. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

Here's a somewhat simplistic way to look at the issue. If you've got a strong'ish wind at your back you'll usually do well flying in brakes since flying in brakes slows you down horizontally while slowing your descent rate and it allows the wind to push you for a longer time period. But in neutral, cross and/or headwind conditions, there is a good chance you'll do better on your rears. But every jump is different and you've really got to figure out what works best on the actual jump with the canopy you're using. If you dedicate jumps towards canopy control to learn your canopy, then when a bad/unfamiliar spot presents itself you'll be less surprised since you're ahead of the 8-ball knowing what your canopy can and can't do. Pull high and play a little. Learn the range of your canopy flying in all directions using multiple flight control techniques. PS: Brakes is absolutely the wrong tool to use if you're downwind of the landing area with a strong'ish headwind and the spot is not good. Think about it, flying in brakes is really going to hurt your penetration since the wing is slowed down flying into the winds. You're just going to sink while making poor forward progress. Rears and even full flight (no rears) is the better tool if your spot is long with a headwind. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

Are you sure about that? Let me rephrase the question. What percentage of Mother's are genetic females? Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

What percentage of Mother's are female? Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

They wanted to pop my reserve as well. Bastards!!! Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

Here's my attempt at a water displacement jump from the same event in CO two weeks ago. MX is supposed to have some pics which really show the true story of this chow. But these pics are still pretty cool (mainly because I landed in the water as opposed to landing on the hard ground). Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

I think I'm going to have to establish myself more on the competitive swooping circuit before I start kicking guys like Chris Hayes in the balls. But my wing loading will be much higher next season now that I'm on Shimell's old rag and I likely won't need to worry about being last out on a pass next season. I sold my JVX 96 so that I could buy Shimell's JVX 87 and it's been tons of fun so far (I've only got 8 jumps on it, 2 of those in Colorado a couple of weekends ago). But I will definitely be holding on to the my Velo 103 (your old canopy) for the time being as I doubt the JVX 87 is the best choice for zone acc and I'm thinking it may be too small for being in traffic on normal fun jump loads (I am a tad leary about premature cypres fires with the 87 on normal jumps). But time will tell ... but if I do hold on to the Velo, I'll be wanting an RDS for it and if the ParaConcepts people don't make one for the Velo, then I will either talk to Mel/Joe and/or get in touch with Jeff Bell (I think that's his name) out of Kapowsin as his system is also supposed to be very well made. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

As I mentioned, I prefer to take a 4-5 second delay before I deploy my RDS. But when the competitor in front of you dumps out the door and then proceeds to fly in deep brakes once they are all sorted out, then you're pretty much going to need to dump out the door as well. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

I'm jumping an RDS from the ParaConcepts people out of Chicago and I've had no issues so far (knock on wood) with their RDS whether I'm dumping out the door, taking a 4-5 second delay (my preferred method) or dumping terminal. I like their system for my JVX so much that when I have the money I'm thinking of ordering one from them for my Velo (assuming they make one for Velos). It's one of the pricier systems out there, but it is very well made and has worked like a charm for me so far. I only jump my full RDS when I know I'm pulling high or am on a dedicated hop n' pop. But like what Monkey-man said, I'm a convert to taking off my slider on all my jumps. Sure it takes longer to hook up (a couple of minutes) but it's really fast to take the slider off and it's so nice not to have a slider on my canopy after it's open. Now to answer your question, I can't really fathom why I wouldn't be able to land with my full RDS system still hooked up to my slider (I likely would come in straight though if I ever found myself in that boat). But full RDS systems really shouldn't be used for normal freefall jumps where your opening altitudes could be low. Do you really want to be dealing with realing in your RDS when you should be flying your approach and/or avoiding other traffic? Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

We were all new at some point in time. I remember about 3 summers ago a friend videoed a few of my early swoops (under a Sabre2 170) and I was so happy with them. Of course now I look back at laugh at the whole deal. But we were all new at some point in time and Sabre(s) are good canopies to be learning with. Just know that there are no short cuts to swooping. If you're dedicated and focused, you can get there quicker than if you were just a weekend freefall warrior. But still there are no shorts cuts. Swooping takes hundreds if not thousands of jumps and you never stop learning. Good luck, be smart and don't be afraid to chase your dreams. Just make sure you don't cut corners. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

Cool ... so when is America planning on starting yet another war? It's good to know that America holds the moral ground on the entire world and that they can invade any country whenever they wish for whatever reason they come up with. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over