riddler

Still looks more like a racoon to me. Count the number of back teeth. Also, the back teeth are pointed, where John's skull has flat (more or less) back teeth. Trapped on the surface of a sphere. XKCD

$3K for a used Voodoo 2, Lotus 150, CYPRES 1, PD Reserve. All less than two years old, except the 9-year old reserve. This was purchased 2 years ago, and I was specifically looking for this canopy (not necessarily the container, et al). Hook up with a Big Air dealer, and they may be able to get you a better deal. Trapped on the surface of a sphere. XKCD

Not for sale yet, AFAIK. I talked to a guy that is supposed to demo a prototype sometime in the next few months. Trapped on the surface of a sphere. XKCD

Linux pumpkin. Nice Trapped on the surface of a sphere. XKCD

OK, I've read enough. I'm coming

K - it's too late for me to change my guess, and I wasn't even thinking racoon, but I'll buy it. It looks like the same number of teeth. Never seen a racoon skull. Just their footprints after digging through my garbage, and rummaging around the inside of my car. Trapped on the surface of a sphere. XKCD

Yeah, that's true! An Ocelot skull would be a great find! I've never even seen one of those in the wild - they're pretty uncommon. I would have no idea what the skull would look like on that. Let's not forget it could be a common housecat I think the flat rear teeth and rounded skull narrow it down to just one or two possible species. Trapped on the surface of a sphere. XKCD

That's why I said young. It's not a baby, but not an adult either. Many yung'ns die at an early age for various reasons. I'm guessing this one was 10-12 months old. Well enough to have teeth - they can't suckle forever Ferret, Bobcat and Puma are all good guesses. My thinking is that it's not a ferret because the canines are more prominent, and the back teeth are pointed on a ferret. Bobcat is a good guess too, and it may be right. Trapped on the surface of a sphere. XKCD

Jumping from 25K isn't that hard. You just have to get invited on the world-record big-way attempt. No big deal Trapped on the surface of a sphere. XKCD

Oho! Now we're adding tunnel time. Let's see - that would be about 1690 miles for me with tunnel time Still not enough to get an upgraded frequent flyer seat Trapped on the surface of a sphere. XKCD

Young Puma/Mountain Lion. Trapped on the surface of a sphere. XKCD

About 610 miles. Not even enough to get to the coast from Denver. Edit - I think I did it a little shorter than you. I know my freefall time - convert to hours, then multiply by 120 MPH average speed. Trapped on the surface of a sphere. XKCD

rig. Trapped on the surface of a sphere. XKCD

Well, I sit here with my shiny new 2006 IRM in my lap (I notice it's a little thicker than the 2003 model), and I read section 4 of the AFFI section, I notice the header is "Instructor's Duties". Duty isn't quite the same as responsibility, but it's kinda close. I suppose that the real answer to hook's question is the same as so many other answers - RTFM! Responsibilites are outlined there. Not following any of these could incite UPSA to suspend your rating. Man, I'm reading this and the SIM, and I thought I understood the stuff that's in there pretty well, but there's a lot of good information I've forgotten. Trapped on the surface of a sphere. XKCD

No joke. That's why I want to be in the saddle at no lower than 1500. I assume 1,000 feet will activate it. Trapped on the surface of a sphere. XKCD

Tom, you should seriously write the IRM. All you need on that is paragraph numbers, and I don't think I could tell the difference. F. Dropping a student 1. The tandem instructor should be prepared for the event of forgetting to hook up to the student. 2. If a student falls below the Instructor, it will be necessary to reel in one's drogue, then chase the student to try to clip back to them. 3. The effects of flying in a student's burble are: a. You may fall too fast and strike the student at a high speed. Effective use of the drogue may counter the excessive shock. b. It may be necessary to wrap legs around the student, since one arm may be already engaged in holding onto the drogue. c. The optimum connection sequence is top-left, followed by top-right. DOn't even bother with the bottom two. Nah! My spelling and grammar are WAY too good to write this stuff Edit - k, it's back now. Trapped on the surface of a sphere. XKCD

Personally, I consider skydiving a sport because it's possible for any of us to train to the point that we can compete and earn money/glory. I also SCUBA, and I don't consider it a sport - there aren't many scuba competitions; however, freediving I think is a sport because there are competitions. Best definition I've heard: "If you can drink beer while doing it, it's not a sport." I guess by that definition, skydiving is NOT a sport, and scuba diving is Trapped on the surface of a sphere. XKCD

So, theoretically, you could pull main as low as 1800 (or a few feet higher), with a 1000 foot opening, getting you in the saddle by 800. Your profile says you jump CYPRES. Are you worried that 800 feet is pretty close to activation altitude? That's my concern with pulling the main lower than 2000 on 1000 feet of snivel. Well, that and hitting the ground Trapped on the surface of a sphere. XKCD

It's no problem - if I didn't want criticism, I wouldn't post to dz.com I don't have any intention of getting a different main - I just want to know what altitude is good for opening. I plan to see what I can do with the Lotus - it opens long now, but I know we can modify it to open shorter. I think it will help me understand rigging a little better, and I have a lot of confidence in my rigger Actually, I was thinking about getting a Sam 136, but for entirely different reasons, and I have a little more learning to do on the Lotus before I get there. My plan to lower my opening altitude - after modifying some things - maybe canopy, maybe packing techniques, until I have the opening altitude I want. Then start working lower over the course of several jumps until I feel "ok" about pulling at 2. I don't plan to pull there all the time - just once in a while to remind myself that it's OK. Trapped on the surface of a sphere. XKCD

Man, first jump is hard. If they've been on a tandem, at least they have an idea of what to expect. In my case, there were four weeks between my FJC and first jump (due to Sept 11). In that time, I spent every day practicing the entire drill, from exit to landing - three times a day, every day. By the time it came around, I barely had to think about it, so I wasn't nervous. Level 2 made me more nervous Mike Pintamo was my tandem instructor and I asked him to be on my first few AFF jumps as well. He has a great laugh and always makes you feel relaxed and confident with the things he says. Here's a few of the things he told me when he could see that I was frustrated/nervous: "Remember that we do this for fun." "Smile - that's all you need to do. If you smile first, you'll remember everything else." "I've got control of you up there. Relax, and if you forget what to do, look at me and I'll tell you." When I do coach jumps with students that seem nervous, I use a hypnotic technique for talking to them. I talk in a slower (not too slow) measured cadence, taking a pause and an exaggerated belly-breath (not TOO exaggerated) before each statement. It's funny how this works - if they are a sympathetic person, they will subconsciously see your breath and hear your voice cadence, then they will start to mimic you, including taking that first breathe before they say or do anything. It helps them get in a relaxed state of mind and body. When they feel relaxed about the coming jump, they get more confident. Trapped on the surface of a sphere. XKCD

I have been that student. Trapped on the surface of a sphere. XKCD

No comment until I get there. Responsibility: observe and give advice. You might demonstrate a few things, too. Catch something on a gear check and you save a bonus life - 1,000 points. Video helps - just don't upset the Vidiot Union. Trapped on the surface of a sphere. XKCD

Thanks for the good info Rusty - I'm sure you don't remember me, but you were on the plane on my very first skydive, so I remember you. So far, I see AFFIs all over the board, but 5-800 feet seems to make up the bell part of the curve. If I personally say that I'm done with freefall at 2,000 feet (meaning I pull by minimum 2,000 feet in an emergency), and I also say that I am setting my minimum altitude for full deployment at 1,500 (to stay safe above CYPRES level), then I need to have a canopy that opens in 500 feet. That would create a few different scenarios: 1. Typical AFF jump: A. Student pulls at 5K B. I turn and burn for 1K, pulling at 4K. C. Fully deployed 3,500 feet, with adequate separation. ACCEPTABLE. 2. Low pull: A. I tap out or pull student at 4K B. I turn and burn for 1K and pull at 3K. C. Fully deployed at 2,500 feet, with adequate separation. ACCEPTABLE. 3. Emergency scenario: A. I pull for student at 2K.

Where did I ever say I was going below my hard deck? Let me summarize what I believe I said - maybe you can quote me for where I said something errant: 1. My canopy currently takes 1,000 feet to open. 2. I currently work as a coach, and 1,000 foot opening is acceptable to me as a coach, because I always pull at or above above 3K, putting me in the saddle at 2K. 3. I am considering AFFI training. I feel that 1,000 foot opening is too much for an AFFI, because I may have to chase a student lower than 3K. Question: How many feet is an acceptable opening for an AFFI? Edit - OK, I just realized what you mean, and I need to clarify something. My current hard deck as a coach is 3K. I believe that if I want to do AFFI, I need to lower my acceptable hard deck in order to have more of a chance to catch a student. Not right away, but over time. First thing I need to do is change the opening distance of my canopy. Then I need to lower my acceptable opening, over the course of many jumps, to something better for AFFI. Maybe to 2K. Trapped on the surface of a sphere. XKCD

Edit - forget my post - I'm not reading well tonight. Trapped on the surface of a sphere. XKCD