Bluhdow

Exactly. I think a Lightning is a perfect WS canopy if your primary objective is shredding all of your suits sliding in landings 5 times a day. Apex BASE #1816

I'm transitioning into a bigger suit this year (this week, actually). I'd be curious to hear what programs you're offering if you end up in SoCal (Oceanside, Perris, San Diego, Elsinore). Rich Grimm, at Tsunami Skydivers in Oceanside, is very open to skills camps. I think it would be worth your time to reach out to him to see if you could organize a weekend-long big suit skills camp there. They are already offering freefly and acro WS camps, so maybe you could follow the same format. Apex BASE #1816

Well, at least Square1 understands their target demographic. I mean, what name would apply to 20-40 males more than "Kiss"? On yeah...pretty much anything. And that lipstick logo? Seriously? I'd never ignore a product due to shitty marketing but holy jebus that's a bad one. Apex BASE #1816

Stop it. Also, you forgot to add "Boobies" as an option so I'm not voting. Apex BASE #1816

Well, considering that there are 4 major players in the market 20% share isn't wildly off of the average. That said, these manufacturers all take turns leapfrogging one another. Once the V-Race and V-Power get out into the world we'll see a ton of them. Then Tony will come up with something new and they'll make their way around. Then Squirrel will update it's lineup and so on and so fourth. The question we keep asking WS manufacturers is, "What have you built for me lately?" I think that PFs big advantage over the competition is how agile all of their suits are (excluding the Viper). To me, agility and precise flying is the number one safety feature on a suit. PF seems to do this better than anyone else. That said, my V-Power lead time is getting longer by the second. Apex BASE #1816

I think another, perhaps cheaper and easier-to-implement solution, would be to have an inventory of "stock" suits. Maybe have 5-10 of the more popular sizes and colors available at a discounted price to normal retail. This would take pressure off of your lead times and also provide customers with a nice alternative to waiting, provided they are built somewhat normally. At 5'10" and 165 pounds, I'd certainly be interested in such an option. Apex BASE #1816

"Description: All black Matter II wing fits 5'7" person, nicily. Biggish leg wing, inflating bum, base pouch. The suit is large on me at 5'5". I typically only get to jump from cessnas and I find it TOO awkward to use." Is that your ad? Nice job selling it! I'd happily pay money for your TOO awkward wingsuit with inflating bum! Apex BASE #1816

If you wait to improve customer service until you NEED to (presumably due to a reduction in orders), then it's already too late. Nip it in the bud now, before a small problem becomes a big problem. Apex BASE #1816

I agree with everything you said. PF (and actually all of the big manufacturers) put out quality stuff and that takes time. I recognize that they have huge demand and that's driving lead times, not vacations and long lunch breaks. That said, long lead times should be a catalyst to expand production. Sponsored athletes don't have a big impact on my impression of a company, but communication and managing my expectations properly does. There's room for improvement here I feel. Maybe your post wasn't directed at me though. I recognize that PF is just having some growing pains. Hopefully they work through it soon. Apex BASE #1816

The net of it is this: Squirrel changed the market. Long lead times and poor communication used to not matter because everyone was operating that way. Not anymore. PF, if it wants to continue to dominate in the way that it has, will have to improve significantly in service, marketing, communication, and manufacturing speeds. There will be some growing pains for sure, but I think they'll get it right. Making amazing suits is no longer good enough. There are a handful of companies making amazing suits. Now the suits have to be amazing AND we need to feel like we're working with a real, organized, professional business. It's a little painful now, but we consumers will be the primary beneficiaries here. I just hope it happens soon, because I love PF suits and want to continue flying them for a long time to come. Apex BASE #1816

I ordered a Power in May and it's coming up on 14 weeks vs. a 12 week lead time. My understanding is that much of the workforce was sick and that pushed out lead times. Not trying to add fuel to any fires here, just helping to dial in your expectations. Apex BASE #1816

I call 'em like I see 'em. If I were the DZO they'd never jump at my DZ again. Apex BASE #1816

Monkeys with parachutes could perform a better skydive than that. On their first attempt. While blindfolded. Apex BASE #1816

The Mirage W Series is a new container designed for legal WS Heli BASE. It's got a sub 100 reserve and a main tray designed to fit a free packed BASE canopy (usually 200-300 sq. ft.). Apex BASE #1816

No dude. That's dumb. You ARE saying that the risk is cumulative. That's exactly what you're implying above. 1. You don't understand statistics. 2. You might not even understand what you just wrote. 3. Skydiving still isn't safe. Apex BASE #1816

Everyone is too damn sensitive. Here's a bunch of other team names that we should change, and why: 1. Cowboys - What, all football players have to be BOYS?!?!?!? 2. Patriots - What, all football players are PROUD TO BE AMERICAN?!?!?! 3. Raiders - What, all pirates RAID?!?!?!? 4. Vikings - What, all players are WHITE AND BLONDE?!?!?!? 5. Saints - What, all players are CATHOLIC?!?!?!?! 6. Texans - What, all players are TEXANS?!?!?!?! 7. Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim - That's just stupid. 8. Cleveland Indians, Atlanta Braves, Washington Redskins, KC Chiefs, Chicago Blackhawks - No talking about NATIVE AMERICANS EVER!!!! 9. LA Kings - Wait, haven't many kings been know to OPPRESS AND STEAL FROM THEIR PEOPLE?!?!?!?! 10. Calgary Flames - WAIT...is this offensive to GAY PEOPLE!?!?!?!?! 11. NJ Devils - I am a Christian, therefore I AM OFFENDED! 12. Carolina Hurricanes - What, so all Carolinas have HURRICANES NOW?!?!?!? You get the idea. Lighten up people. Words only have as much power AS YOU GIVE THEM. Life is too short to sweat the small stuff. Especially on an internet forum. Apex BASE #1816

Holy sh*t. My instinct says to try to cut away the main if/when it creeps away from the reserve. If it's not really moving much, I'd still want to watch it's behavior and try to chop it at it's furthest point. Overall...ugly. Any insight into how this occurred? Low pull w/ Cypres fire? Apex BASE #1816

I'm not sure how this fits into the discussion, but I think it's also worth mentioning that the OSP (a BASE canopy) also has holes which allow air to bleed through the center of the wing. The purpose there is also stability, especially at low airspeeds. Ironically enough, I'm told the Squirrel's new slider down prototypes utilize the same technology, or at least similar. Apex BASE #1816

The best suit is always the one you fly the most. Whatever you get, you'll fly it, like it, and get better in it. Apex BASE #1816

This is how I've always understood (and I use that term loosely) the function of the hole. It allows sharp, banking turns without sliding down the "hill." Some suits feel like you're floating on top of a beach ball and could slide off to either side. The Vampire, to me, flies as comfortably and with as much agility as a Phantom (on its belly). I suspect that the hole has something to do with this. The drawback, though, is reduced glide. While bleeding air through the center of the wing helps with stability it's not great for max glide. So to the point made above, the V-Race and V-Power seem similar in size. One just has a hole (to improve agility) and the other doesn't (to improve glide). Maybe Robi or Jarno could chime in to confirm/discard my thoughts here. *Edited for grammar, twice. Apex BASE #1816

As an update, Robi reached out to me via PM and I think we had a positive discussion. I am very appreciative of that. Like I said, I'm a big PF fan. Love your stuff. As a customer I think there's room for improvement in communication and expectations. I honestly don't mind the long lead times, I just don't like being told to expect something and then not get it. If you think it will be 12 weeks, just tell me 15. Then I'll be pleasantly surprised if you beat that time. I'd actually rather be told 20 and get it in 19, than be told 12 and get it in 13. I know it's tough to predict, but err on the side of caution when quoting lead times. Just a little constructive criticism. I appreciate you guys and what you do, so hopefully you don't take offense to my feedback. Apex BASE #1816

I just got word from my PF dealer that my Power, ordered 12 weeks ago, will be arriving up to 4 weeks late. That's a 4 month lead time. Seriously? Squirrel is 4 WEEKS. As excited as I am for the Power, PF is trying really hard to lose my business. While Squirrel's amazing business model isn't enough to pull me away from PF, PF's amazingly inefficient service model is just about enough to push me away. We keep hearing that PF will be hiring people, updating the website, improving lead times, etc....and all of this is always just a few months away. I sometimes wonder if we are all looking at the same calendar. Seriously PF...I love your shit. All I ask is that you step up your game just a little. It seems like your whole marketing strategy these days is to make excuses and promise to do better next time. Apex BASE #1816

Thanks, that makes sense to me. It's also my current technique...pull from full flight then close wings after PC extraction. I think this should work fine for the new suit as well. If it ever arrives. PF should look to Squirrel as an example for how to communicate, market, and stay true to lead times. I love the suits but damn... Apex BASE #1816

There's science behind it, sure. But the reality is that you're not going to bust out your Texas Instruments calculator on the plane. Talk to the pilot on each load and draw correlations between what the winds are doing be mindful of and how you're impacted. For our purposes, it's more art than science. So again, jump a lot and pay attention. Apex BASE #1816

Jump a lot. Also look around while you're doing it. Apex BASE #1816