Skydivesg

OK guys I'm new to shooting video. I've used a friend's PC9 left side mount. Does the HC3 mount on the side or only the top? What are the differences in the two? Picture quality etc.?? Be the canopy pilot you want that other guy to be.

I'd vote for you Kurt!!!

Butters, I think you need to talk with John, Kerry, Mark or Miles about your AAD statement and your hard deck of 2750 feet for some clarification. I'm not sure about the student rules for STC but that's a very high reserve hard deck. Please check it out and have a thorough conversation with those guys. Sandy

This is a good site. It gives a blow by blow account everyday. And Omniskore is the scoring system used in the US meets (and I think the World Meet as well??). www.omniskore.com Be the canopy pilot you want that other guy to be.

If you don't mind jumping Cessnas then Skydive Iowa is a great place. Private airport used for skydiving only except one guy who ocassionslly flies his ultralight. Great bonfire everynight. Game room/ movie room for nights. Free camping and showers. Cookouts on the deck. Very friendly people and great atmosphere. Located at Brooklyn, Iowa * about one hour east of Des Moines just north of I-80 * Exit 197 then north about five miles to Highway 6 * East on 6 about 2 miles and it's literrally just off the south side of the Highway. www.SkydiveIA.com Be the canopy pilot you want that other guy to be.

While doing your research be certain to ask the Drop Zone where they are physically located. There are several on line "Virtual Drop Zones" that don't actually exist. The web site leads you to think you are booking your jump with the actual DZ only to find out, after giving them your credit card information, that they simply sold you a certificate for a jump. They then provide a list of Drop Zones that supposedly will accept the certificate. Many times people find out that they must drive past several reputable DZs to find one that will accept the certificate. They often also discover that the DZ normally provides the same services for much less than the online booking service. Don't get sucked into that game. Ask a lot of questions and get names, phone numbers and physical address locations of the Drop Zones with whom you talk. Most people in our sport really care about the first time jumper. After you do your research and choose a DZ.................. smile and enjoy the wild blue yonder.

Joe, CO = Colorado DA = Density Altitude 10K = is the last three of an airplane's N number: One Zero Kilo (please tell me you don't believe this last one) C'ya Friday

As tempting as it is for young and new jumpers, it's imperative you not learn to depend on any electronic or mechanical device, including radios, to take the place of sound training, repetitive practice, good judgement and experience. Relying on an audible altimeter to tell you when to flair would never work simply because your flair point will change as conditions, such as wind and turbulence, change. You must train yourself and your eyes. The best thing to do is seek out a course dedicated to canopy flight. There are several. I personally think the one by Scott Miller is the best. He has two; one for "Essential Skills" and one for "Performance Landings". I have gone through both in the last five years and my son went through the Essential when he had 15 jumps. For the last several years at our DZ we've been watching and cringing when we see the landings some people were making. Because people always seem to have an excuse as to why they can't attend a professional canopy course we decided to conduct our own. We developed and wrote a curriculum very much like Scott Miller's. We conducted two courses so far this year. To alleviate the excuse of "can't afford it" there was no charge for the course. The only cost was five hop and pops and a comittment to attend the entire all day course. (don't expect this to happen because it's a huge time commitment on the part of the instructors) By the end of the day, and since, we've had the pleasure of watching these once kamikaze pilots fly their parachutes with sensible controlled patterns, flairs and finishes to some very nice landings. For the last decade we in our sport have neglected canopy flight training and have not kept up with the advances of our parachutes. Looking at the accident reports tells us what we need to do. Local instructors either don't have the time or don't take the time to focus on this area of development; possibly because of adding yet another level of cost to the newer jumper. While the cost may be considered expensive by some it's cheeper than the deductible and co-insurance you'll have to pay for your ride to the emergency room. Seek out a canopy course! Good luck and Be Safe BTW This is not an ad for my services. I don't conduct courses outside our DZ and I don't charge.

I actually still have one. In fact I just went down to my basement and tried it on. Man is that a lot of fabric. It's also very heavy material, much like canvas. They came out right at the end of the "wing wars". Thank God that era ended. I don't think I actually ever jumped mine because I didn't like the big suits anyway. I've always been about flying your body instead of a suit. Today's new rigs would constrict the fabric under the arms because our laterals ride up higher than in the old days due to the smaller rigs and canopies we now jump, but our old Wonderhogs worked great because the main lift webs were longer due to bigger main and reserve canopies. Our rigs would ride very low on our backs. The suit has built in swoop cords that are permantly attached to the wrist cuff which is held closed and adjusted with velcro. (Oh did we have lots of velcro in those days) Just before exiting the plane we would say to the guy who just gave us a pin check "Hog me" which meant pull out as much fabric as possible from under our arms. I wish we had a way of measuring our fall rate in those days but it had to be well under a hundred. It's a good thing Bill came out with the throw out pilot chute because I don't think we could have ever cleared those pilot chute hesitations. Yoowza

Aggie Dave has some good points. I could be wrong (so Dave please take no offense) however, it seems that he is assuming you are an AFF student in an Otter or other turbine aircraft. Things are different if you're at a Cessna DZ. Regardless of where you sit in a Cessna 182 or 206 you are always close enough to the door for a pilot chute to get out of an open door. It's very possible you would be on the floor right next to the door. If a pilot chute were to come out and get out the door you are going to follow it no matter how hard you try not to. This is why people are saying they would push you out. The action of pushing the person out the door in this situation is meant to save your life as opposed to have you extracted through the wall of the plane. The pictures they talk of are real. I had a freind get pulled out of a C182. He was very lucky as he was on his knees jumpmastering a S/L student and leaning out the door when it happened. His right hip busted the door frame but did not completey tear the frame out so the controls were still usable albeit a very rough couple of minutes for the pilot to land the plane. My freind survived with a very soar black and blue right hip and leg. The plane landed but was totaled. It even had an entire row of rivets popped on the top of the right wing. Now even though this was a very scary event you must know that it happened in the late 70s when the student gear was surplus military gear and even the experienced gear was bulky and cumbersome. The likely hood of this happening now has been greatly reduced but not eliminated. If you are careful with getting in, moving around and climbing out of a plane * and you get a pin check before getting in and again on jump run * and you protect your handles while in a plane, especially while the door is open you can, and likely will, prevent this from ever happening to you. The fact that you are thinking about it and asking questions now is a good sign that you are concerned for safety. A healthy concern for safety will keep you and your freinds alive and jumping for a long time to come. Blue Skies and Be Safe Sandy

OOOOO a bit testy aren't we Why.... I.. oghtta.................

If you would just do like your Dad has always told you and keep track of your crap you wouldn't have to come on line looking for help.

Make 10-12 jumps on Saturday and 10-12 on Sunday and then come back on here and tell us how you slept.

Every DZ has some kind of very prominent landmarks such as an interstate or major highway, lake, river, forest, mountains, large buildings, housing complex, towers......something, even if it's just the next town. These things could be as far away as 5 to 10 miles and you can still see them from canopy. (now I know some of you are going to say that you've jumped at DZs that don't have any and to that I would simply say: BS) It's your job to know what direction the surface winds are blowing and where the DZ is in relation to the major land marks. You should also know the location of the intended spot. You can use the sun which is also very helpful. Don't depend on someone else to volunteer the information, find it out for your self. Be observant and ask questions. You also have the choice of laying back and taking a little nap or looking out the window on the climb to altitude. You should do this for every new DZ at which you jump until you feel confident that you know and recognize the landmarks. If you know the landmarks and you know the wind direction you'll know which way to land when landing off field. Knowledge is power. Be Safe Sandy

I kicked and ran and swam till I had 11 jumps. Don't know why............ guess it just seemed like the thing to do at the time. If you hang in there long enough it'll get better. It also seems to help if you arch from the hips a bit more instead of the stomach and chest. To do that you can't have your legs too far apart. Might want to run that by your instructor. Be the canopy pilot you want that other guy to be.

I just talked to the balloon pilot. He will be there Saturday evening and Sunday morning. He can haul four to five jumpers and plans on two to three loads each day. I also tested several items at the Xaos Grille and they were very good. They have an excellent breakfast sandwich like Z-hills use to serve back in the 80s. You'll love it (not like the standard Mickydees) also pancakes, bisquits and gravy all kinds of great stuff and great prices too. Red Bull will be providing free Red Bull all day. They are also providing their famous attack Humvee which doubles as their DJ setup for rockin tunes by the fire pit. The Otter will be there ready to fly at 11:00 am Friday and there is a 4 way camp by the NSL director Kurt Gaebel. This should be a good one.

I just read the menu from the Xaos Grille which is the new restaurant at the DZ and it looks great. Very reasonably priced too.

The current US National Champions in freestyle "Team FluID", Karl and Merriah Eakins will also be on hand to organize Freeflyers, tube jumps, pylon races and anything else you want. They always come up with some fun and challenging skydives. They're a lot of fun and bring some great energy and vibes. Also the new Xaos Grille will be open all weekend providing breakfast, lunch and dinner. And of course Red Bull providing energy drinks. It just keep getting better. Be the canopy pilot you want that other guy to be.

Tdog has made some very good points. One example is my son who is just 20 years old. If he were to see someone having trouble with or making a mistake while packing and goes to offer some advice, the person might look at his age and think "what could he possibly know?" and dismiss him out of hand. Without asking something like "how did you come up with that idea?" or "how did you learn that method?' that person would not know that my son grew up on a DZ and traveled the country with me visiting all the major DZ's and boogies. They woudn't know that I taught him how to pack when he was nine years old and that he became our team packer when he was twelve. They wouldn't know that over the years he sat in on and participated in numerous canopy courses and packing seminars by Brian Germain, Scott Miller, Shannon Pilcher, Jay Moledski among others and has more than 5000 pack jobs with no malfunctions. They wouldn't know that he graduated AFF in a day and a half at age 17 and got his A license a week later and now has almost 800 jumps. They wouldn't know that he has 6-7 hours of coached tunnel time by world class coaches and is an avid 4-way competitor. They wouldn't know that he has witnessed more than his share of serious skydiving accidents and because of his extensive exposure to the sport is mature beyond his age. They wouldn't know that like his dad he has a burning desire to share his knowledge with those who appear to be struggling. Instead they'd look at his pimples and his peach fuzz that he shaves every couple of days and think to themselves "Who the hell does he think he is?" I've taught him that people will always be a bit reluctant to take advice from someone so young and he understands and accepts that reality. It was interesting to witness him when he was just 14 giving packing advice to a 20 year veteran who was having terrible off heading and hard openings at Eloy. The guy was very nice but just looked down at him and said "how do you know all this?" My son explained his backround. Not knowing what to say the guy then looked at his jumping buddy who happened to know me and our history. He just looked back at his buddy and said "I'd listen to him if I were you." His openings improved dramatically. I've taught my son that we have an obligation to share our knowledge with others for the sake of our sport. I've also taught him to be very respectful of peoples' feelings and have cautioned him on coming across as arrogant. And I've taught him that no matter how much you have to offer, some people's egos just won't allow them to accept advice regardless of your age or knowledge. On the other hand I've taught him to be receptive to other peoples advice and then decide for himself on what to do with it. I encourage everyone to be receptive to new and different information. Then decide how, if at all, to use that information. If your not sure, discuss it with someone with whom you would trust your life. People don't care how much you know till they know how much you care. Be safe Sandy

Those of us who really care about sharing our experiences and knowledge won't be offended when someone we're trying to help asks us about our credentials. You not only have the right, you have the responsibility to know from whom you're getting and taking advise. If the guy's feathers get ruffled then he was more interested in his own ego than actually helping you. The rest of us won't mind. Just ask. Sandy

Get in touch with Garrett Shaw better known as "Snake". He lives in Eustis and should be in the book. He's been jumping for 40 years and is a very nice guy as is his wife Jade. Explain your situation and ask if he could introduce you to the right people. At the very least he can give you some insight on the various DZ's in the area. Tell him Sandy from Iowa told you to call. Once you experience flight you will forever walk the earth with your eyes looking skyward........ for there you have been and there you long to return.

LSPC (Lincoln Sport Parachute Club) is definetly a good place to jump. Two Cessnas and great people. Weeping Water is as close to Omaha as Lincoln. Hear is some contact info: Mark (402) 553-4095 Dave (402) 499-5867 www.skydivelspc.com Good luck BE SAFE Sandy Be the canopy pilot you want that other guy to be.

Are you Marty D? The one I was jumping with at the new DZ? Don't you wonder what makes some people so bitter? Sandy Be the canopy pilot you want that other guy to be.

It sounds like the balloon can be there for Saturday morning and Saturday evening. He has to work Sunday. Be the canopy pilot you want that other guy to be.

I just talked to the ballon pilot and he is checking that date. He's pretty sure he can do it. He also said he just got a new balloon. He will be able to haul 4-5 jumpers. Yahoo Be the canopy pilot you want that other guy to be.