FlyingRhenquest

Most of the time I couldn't tell if they were talking to me or someone else on the radio. You quickly learn to use your own judgment. The nice thing about flaring late is it really doesn't take many of those to learn not to do that. I saw one of the AFF guys flare at about 30 feet the other day, though. I have a lot of faith in the PLF, but I'm not sure I'd want to push it as high as he did. He did execute a VERY nice PLF though. My particular problem with landing during AFF was I always wanted to do my approach with some brakes on. The big canopy already really didn't want to flare, and then I was robbing it of all the momentum it needed, even if I could coax one out of it. The guy teaching the canopy course spotted that right away and told me to quit it, but it still took some time to break the habit. I had a brain fart once since then, was coming down and looking for other canopies and not realizing I was in about 1/3rd brakes until I was about 20 feet off the ground and by then it was much too late to save the landing, but I knew the moment I realized what I was doing that I had to PLF. I have a 200 foot checklist now that goes "Ok, am I not in brakes, and are my legs still there? No brakes... check... legs... check..." I still don't know exactly HOW I know when to flare. Now the ground just looks right, at the right time. I'm on a canopy that's right for my size now, and I can actually feel it respond when I tell it to flare. It takes a while to get a feel for how the canopy handles. If you're not comfortable with it yet, ask your instructor about canopy-handling exercises you can do above your decision altitude to get a better feel for it. Also discuss your landings with that person to see if you can get a better feel for when to trust your instincts and when not to. Though you may find you already know what's "too low". The trick I suppose is not going too far in the other direction when compensating for that. I'm trying to teach myself how to set things on fire with my mind. Hey... is it hot in here?

I dunno, I'm pretty sure I could keep up with a lot of freefliers on my belly. I want to try that with a small group one of these days when they're not being all hoity-toidy about being affected by gravity better than you. Ok really they're never actually like that, but it's a funny thought. I'm trying to teach myself how to set things on fire with my mind. Hey... is it hot in here?

Was that first jump out of the airplane as scary as climbing that ladder? The distance on that first skydive was so incomprehensibly large to me that it almost didn't feel real. I'm trying to teach myself how to set things on fire with my mind. Hey... is it hot in here?

No... that's not why... Now that we're talking about it though, I have a quick question: Frank Zappa's "He's So Gay": offensive, or funny? I'm trying to teach myself how to set things on fire with my mind. Hey... is it hot in here?

Ok it's all charged up and I'm learning a bit more about it. It can track your jumps with GPS and print it out on a map either on their web site or presumably through their mobile app (I haven't checked out the mobile app yet.) A fellow over in the wingsuit forum has already worked out their file format, so it'd be easy enough to suck it in and barf out a KML file suitable for Google Earth. It arrived showing an altitude for here that was a bit low. Looks like you can adjust the altitude up or down with the remote that comes with the device. Three feet or 1 meter at a time. It also sounds like the device resets the altitude if left alone for a few hours. Hopefully they sort that out quickly, since adjusting the altitude from a mile above sea level every time I want to go jumping with it would be a massive pain in the ass. There's no other way to manipulate the device (Unless the mobile app will) other than the remote that comes with it. I suspect that if you take the remote with you on a jump, the big buttons on it will be far too easy to press in mid-flight, too. I don't know if they have an interface lock-in like my Neptune does, but I'd actually be kind of surprised if they do. Some smarts of the sort that goes into the Neptune and an actual way to zero out the altitude (Or a Neptune-style method that detects when you take off in the plane) are key features I'd want to consider the device even remotely usable for skydiving. These could be easily added with firmware updates, though. The screen updates once per second, so even if the GPS is super-accurate you could be a couple hundred feet from where you think you are. This also makes the interface with the remote feel a bit sluggish at times. I don't know if they can mess with the refresh rate. If they can set it, I'd set the refresh rate down to 200 milliseconds within a second of when the remote was last used and when the device detects you're travelling at over 100mph. That would keep power drain low when you're on the ground but give you better interface responsiveness when you need it. For the portions of your jump where you're falling at less than a diagonal speed of 100 mph, slower updates would probably be reasonably not-dangerous. Making the threshold speed adjustable in the settings would solve the problem if you think it is. The Uvex goggles themselves are big and bulky and cut way too much out of my field of vision. I'm actually a bit surprised anyone would even ski with these things. The electronics of the HUD could easily be removed from the goggle and moved to a better enclosure, though. Perhaps you could 3D print a custom pair of goggles that house most of the device outside your field of vision. Something like that with replaceable lenses would be pretty spiffy. If you had a full-faced helmet, you might be able to figure out how to mount it so it doesn't overly obstruct your vision, too. The package as shipped, though, personally I would not jump with. At least not until they work out some details of their software. Eliminating the need for the remote and making sure the HUD portion of the setup behaves in a non-nonsense manner while in flight would go a long way toward alleviating my concerns. I'll run it by the instructors and more experienced skydivers next time I'm at my dropzone. It ought to make for some interesting discussion. I might also ping the Recon guys and ask about writing software for it. If it's feasible with a standard Android SDK, I could possibly just write my own damn interface to it. I'm trying to teach myself how to set things on fire with my mind. Hey... is it hot in here?

That's not as bad but there's still some loss there. I always have to look down to see my handles anyway. They're definitely not going to replace my everyday goggles. I might potentially see using them on a slow day when the Cessna's flying and there are only 4 or 5 other people in the air. They don't seem like the sort of thing that you'd want to wear on any group jump. Their software is pretty nifty though, and will let you plot your runs out on a map and stuff. They could potentially market that for android phones if it were able to operate with any GPS receiver. I'm trying to teach myself how to set things on fire with my mind. Hey... is it hot in here?

I like using the Gimp to work on my images. It's not particularly intuitive, but it is free. You can download the installer from their windows version page assuming you use Windows. They have Mac and Linux versions too. A couple of things affect image size. That's image resolution (horizontal x vertical pixels) and compression. Be sure to make a copy of your image before you start working on it, so you don't accidentally overwrite it. You can modify the resolution by going to the image option on the menu and selecting "Scale". It wants to keep the image proportional, so if you type a number in one of the input boxes and then click on the other one, that number should change so they remain proportional. Given the size allowed by this site, I usually go for either 640 horizontal pixels or 320. 320's about the size of a postage stamp on my monitor. Once you get it scaled, you can export the image to a compressible format. Go over to "file->export to" and save it as a jpg image. IIRC you can just type filename.jpg (or filename_smaller.jpg if it's already a jpg.) I usually crank the quality down to around 80, which is about as low as I can go without seeing a difference in image quality. IIRC the max size allowed here is 200KB, so check if the image size is below that and if it is, you should be good to go. I cropped my image and went with a pretty small resolution for the picture of my balls in that other thread, and the image was 26KB, well under the limit, despite its original size of 2MB. There's a lot of other stuff you can do with the Gimp. It's still not a professional-quality replacement for Photoshop, but it is pretty amazingly powerful for a free piece of software. I'm trying to teach myself how to set things on fire with my mind. Hey... is it hot in here?

Yeah. I do notice a blind spot where the display is (It's not an actual HUD, since you have to glance down to see the display) but worse than that I'm losing a pretty hefty chunk of my usual field of vision (I'd guess between 10 and 20 degrees to my left and right.) That's enough of a problem that I may not ever actually jump with them. It might be possible to fit the display into some skydiver goggles though, and wouldn't be entirely surprised if an option became available. I'm still happy to support a first generation device but I'd need to see some pretty big improvements to consider buying a second or third generation of it. Assuming they got enough of a response to develop a second or third generation of it. I'm trying to teach myself how to set things on fire with my mind. Hey... is it hot in here?

Don't yell "AIM FOR THE TREE" at the AFF students. They actually will aim for the tree. I'm trying to teach myself how to set things on fire with my mind. Hey... is it hot in here?

I was an air force brat and was always drawn to flying. I messed around with hang gliding a bit in the 90's but when I moved out here life kind of preoccupied me for a few years. I had a week of vacation time come up last year and absolutely nothing to do in it. So I decided to give it a try. I wasn't even sure I'd like it before my first jump, but was pretty much hooked from the moment I got out the door. I went straight into AFF -- Didn't really want to jump while strapped to someone else. It worked out well because ground school was the Saturday that my vacation started. That first jump was pretty scary -- I didn't feel that scared but I saw the video later and I looked terrified. I wonder if my instructor still has it around. It'd be pretty cool to show how far I've come. I got the video for my AFF 4 and 5 jumps and posted them up on youtube, but I was already pretty much over my door fear by that point. I'm trying to teach myself how to set things on fire with my mind. Hey... is it hot in here?

Just got the Fedex package for my Recon Flight HUD. Initial Impression: OMG it's HUGE! Looks like it'll just barely fit under my helmet. It's charging up now. I'm trying to teach myself how to set things on fire with my mind. Hey... is it hot in here?

Someone should have asked this question sooner. Bah! Marketing isn't about what your company DOES! It's about making your company SEXEH! And... they had me at "IP Law Firm" *squee* I'm trying to teach myself how to set things on fire with my mind. Hey... is it hot in here?

There'd probably be some money to be made for a person who can cut through that crap. I can do it quite well when I have to deal with technical support because I worked that job in the early 90's. The trick to technical support is that the first person you talk to is completely useless. Their job is not to help you but to feed you some crap to see if you'll go away before you engage the expensive employees. Since support organizations are customer-facing, their business processes are more rigid than internal groups, so you just need to take the first excuse you can get to demand to talk to their manager. At that point you can actually start getting results. It's better just to never talk to technical support, but sometimes it can't be avoided. It does kind of throw me for a loop when the first guy I talk to actually knows what he's doing, though. I had to readjust my strategy while Speakeasy was my internet provider, because I could actually talk networking and routing (On Linux, no less!) to the guy who answered the phone. I stayed with the company a lot longer than I would have because of that, though eventually I couldn't resist the lure of faster internet elsewhere. I still miss their support organization though. I'm trying to teach myself how to set things on fire with my mind. Hey... is it hot in here?

I mostly keep myself to three (I can do 4 briefly but it's dangerous with 1 pound steel ball bearings heh heh.) I mostly use for for the twirling thing in that video. I have a feeling 4 pounds of steel will tire me out a good bit faster than the old balls did! I'm trying to teach myself how to set things on fire with my mind. Hey... is it hot in here?

Tennis balls are actually a bit too light. They're good for starting out (Though I prefer beanbags) but eventually you want more of a challenge! I also have some contact juggling stuff I do that doesn't work too well with tennis balls. I'm not anywhere close to as good as this guy, but I can kind of do some of that stuff. I'm trying to teach myself how to set things on fire with my mind. Hey... is it hot in here?

Just get into freeflying and sit fly while everyone else is on their belly! I'm trying to teach myself how to set things on fire with my mind. Hey... is it hot in here?

Now I'll have something to play with tonight! They're 2" of chrome steel and weigh about a pound each! I use them for juggling (Do not try this at home, that man is a trained professional.) I do have to be a bit careful not to sling them across the room, but they're pretty well behaved because they're so heavy. Lighter balls are difficult to put where you want them to go. I got the last two at the amazon store I ordered them from, so I'm going to have to find a couple more matching balls. Then finally I'll have enough balls! I'm trying to teach myself how to set things on fire with my mind. Hey... is it hot in here?

I assume it's like an electric knife. Kind of a mini chainsaw that I only ever bust out for carving turkeys, but whoah does it carve the hell out of a turkey. It's also handy for disassembling artichokes and pot roasts. I imagine it'd do a pretty good job on foam too (Just wash it before Thanksgiving rolls around.) I'm trying to teach myself how to set things on fire with my mind. Hey... is it hot in here?

I imagine the company logo on the bottom side of a parachute canopy would probably get you more attention than pretty much anything else you could drop 10 grand on. They're clearly visible from the ground for several minutes on each jump. Putting a patch on someone's jumpsuit or sticker on their helmet would be a lot less expensive but would only be seen by your fellow skydivers, typically. I'm trying to teach myself how to set things on fire with my mind. Hey... is it hot in here?

If I were going to live on that coast, it'd probably be somewhere around Corvallis. I visited there a few years ago for work. Don't forget, the Rogue Brewery is not too far from there, either! I drove from Denver and it does feel kind of odd driving through hundreds of miles of land that doesn't seem to be populated at all to get somewhere (Seattle's the same way) but it's pretty nice once you get there. What are the winters like there? Seattle's pretty nice too -- fantastic sushi there, but the traffic would drive me insane within a matter of days. They always say it's the weather that'll get you in Seattle but it's been sunny and blue every time I've visited, which makes me wonder if the locals don't exaggerate it to keep outsiders from thinking of settling. They're always like "No really, this is the first sunny day we've had in weeks!" I'm trying to teach myself how to set things on fire with my mind. Hey... is it hot in here?

Truly I feel enlightened by the wisdom of our elders! I'm trying to teach myself how to set things on fire with my mind. Hey... is it hot in here?

This has always kind of been my response. Though the Penny Arcade guys may be coming around on Football... I'm trying to teach myself how to set things on fire with my mind. Hey... is it hot in here?

I think most whuffos would consider it at least a little "extreme", at least at the altitudes we do it from! Heh heh heh. Whenever I mention it I always get "Ooh! I always wanted to do that!" and then some excuse as to why they haven't, yet. At that point I just usually point 'em toward the vertical wind tunnel, which is a little less scary. At least I can talk a few people into considering trying that. I'm trying to teach myself how to set things on fire with my mind. Hey... is it hot in here?

I think by now the damage is already done with my Ipod earbuds. It seems the human machine was just not built to last this long, and we're not quite to the point where I can replace all the shit that's going bad with glowing Terminator parts. I can't even find a smiley face with glowing Terminator parts. I'm trying to teach myself how to set things on fire with my mind. Hey... is it hot in here?

In the 206b we just use the guy behind us. I'm trying to teach myself how to set things on fire with my mind. Hey... is it hot in here?