ManBird

I'm considering a Flik Vtec 265 (I weigh 150 to 165, depending on time of year). Money is a factor. I want a H/C for our lo(w)cal stuff, but would like to travel to do some WS BASE in the future. I'd rather just buy a second H/C that fits my canopy than buy a second canopy. Is this canopy not appropriate for wingsuit flights? Even with a small mesh slider? It sounds like this may be the case if this canopy is pushing the size limit of the container... and I'm a pretty average build. "¯"`-._.-¯) ManBird (¯-._.-´"¯" Click

Thanks, Tom. And to clarify (even though no one mentioned it yet), it's not that I don't care about getting busted, it's that I'm only jumping very low-risk or legal objects. I also sort of cater to the theory that if you get busted, it probably would not have been preventable by your canopy color selection (in most cases). "¯"`-._.-¯) ManBird (¯-._.-´"¯" Click

What would you say is the best color scheme for packing? All my shit's red and black, so the colors are decided. I'm concerned more with packing right than getting busted or looking good. "¯"`-._.-¯) ManBird (¯-._.-´"¯" Click

Yes. Banking turns are indeed a lot of fun. Especially when you get a few Gs pressed up against your back. :) Edited to add: Here's a good video of what I'm talking about: http://www.deepart.org/files/ws_flat_turns.wmv Note that on the left 90, I'm simply raising my right foot a few inches and putting a slight bend in my left elbow. The turn is fast and sharp without much altitude loss. Hope that helps. "¯"`-._.-¯) ManBird (¯-._.-´"¯" Click

More leg and less arm gives you a flatter turn. "¯"`-._.-¯) ManBird (¯-._.-´"¯" Click

Yes, this has gone off topic a bit. I presented a possible solution to the leg strap problem that would, as an aside, also solve a seatbelt issue, and we sort of veered more into the seatbelt side. Also, the jumper's leg straps were not unthreaded, but this solution would allow a check for that, as well. I keep reading, "teach your students to put your leg straps on first" and "always put your leg straps on first". Of course I always do. I also have leg straps in gear checks for my student and myself. Any experienced wingsuit pilot does. In fact, only two (that we know about) have ever forgotten their leg straps, but that's two too many. I guarantee the jumper in this incident was taught properly and it happened anyway. When a non-wingsuited jumper gets on the plane and you notice their chest or leg straps are misrouted, you stop them and have them fix it before they board. In a wingsuit, you are removing others' ability to notice these things. It's like hiding your chest strap on every jump. Think of all the number of things we're all taught not to do that we end out doing anyway, at just about any experience level. Don't hook up your canopy backwards. Don't put your toggle through your excess brake line. Route your chest strap through the friction adapter. Don't forget to cock your kill line PC. People do it anyway. Humans make mistakes, and often times, those mistakes are prevented by others when we notice something wrong. Best practices are made imperfect by human nature. If wingsuit pilots don't get in the habit of allowing people to notice these things for themselves then an easily preventable mistake could make it out the door. If any third-party doesn't have anything to grab their attention, they'll let someone slip on without leg straps. We are all ultimately responsible for ourselves, but think of the tragedies that have been prevented when someone notices, without doing a gear check, that a jumper forgot to cock their PC, forgot to route their chest strap, or even forgot their rig. There's really no compromise on the wingsuit pilot's part to leave a zipper open until they unbuckle. It has two benefits -- the revealing of at least one leg strap, and seatbelt compatibility with any aircraft. If anything, at least ask a wingsuit pilot if they've got their leg straps in order. People jokingly ask me that all the time, but I take it a little more seriously. "¯"`-._.-¯) ManBird (¯-._.-´"¯" Click

http://www.dropzone.com/cgi-bin/forum/gforum.cgi?post=1029408;sb=post_latest_reply;so=ASC;forum_view=forum_view_collapsed;;page=unread#unread "¯"`-._.-¯) ManBird (¯-._.-´"¯" Click

Steve, Jump it ten more times before deciding to switch back to your S1. "¯"`-._.-¯) ManBird (¯-._.-´"¯" Click

I concur. I', 5'10" and about 180 out the door. I consistently average 78 - 80 MPH down with my BASE Pantz, with mid and low 70s held for 15 - 20 seconds stretches on some jumps. Did 99 seconds from 14k in Eloy (deployed at 1,800 feet). Still trying to break 100. I generally wear a longsleeve shirt with a t-shirt over it, so drag is only on the forearms. Works far better for me than a freefly jacket. Flown properly, a Pantz jump feels more like a wingsuit flight than a tracking dive. This applies to the BASE version. I've generally seen people with similar dimensions and a lot of experience with the freefly version stay in the mid 80s to lower 90s. They can be flown with wingsuits rather well: http://www.deepart.org/sight/s3_vs_pantz.avi "¯"`-._.-¯) ManBird (¯-._.-´"¯" Click

Argh. My PC105 came in today. It came with a couple lenses and filters, and they're the wrong size! 37mm! WTF?! I can return them, fortunately. Anywho, the lenses are pretty weak, and I'd rather go with something aftermarket, rather than Sony. Any recommendations for wingsuit filming? "¯"`-._.-¯) ManBird (¯-._.-´"¯" Click

I took a close look at the PC109, amongst others. I ended out buying a PC105. It's a giant pain if you are mounting the camera on a bracket from the bottom. Having everything on the bottom of the PC-109 pretty muches forces you to remove the camera from the helmet anytime you want to do anything. The lens is smaller, as well, and there are (currently) no steppers. Sony makes some lenses for this camera, but they're all 0.6 (a .45 is on the way), and they're very expensive. Great camera in other regards, though. The PC105 and the PC109 both have a one megapixel CCD (700K for video, 1M for stills) and support PRO memory sticks. They're almost the same camera, except that the PC109 weighs 3 ounces less, has marginally lower power consumption, and the I/O is on the bottom. The image stabilization is supposed to be improved, as well. I think the PC109 would be ideal as long as you can mount it without covering up the bottom of the camera. "¯"`-._.-¯) ManBird (¯-._.-´"¯" Click

Two of the proposed designs had BASE jumping on them. At least U-HAUL trucks show it. "¯"`-._.-¯) ManBird (¯-._.-´"¯" Click

Yeah, TJ has this shit dialed. He was pulling off these sort of BlindMan/LazyBoys that were sicker than anything. Though Jim's across the water in this vid is very nice, as well. "¯"`-._.-¯) ManBird (¯-._.-´"¯" Click

I agree. Either that or you're not tightening up your leg straps enough. I also agree that it is correctable by toggle. I had a leg strap slip inside my wingsuit on opening (not worn tightly enough) and it sent me spiraling at first. It was easily corrected and landed by flying uneven toggles. As to the jumper in question, though, his situation appears to have warranted a little less time for a good correction. Sucks. "¯"`-._.-¯) ManBird (¯-._.-´"¯" Click

That's a great shot! To the subject, it's definitely better to keep your arms back when diving, or you'll be out some cash a couple months of flying. "¯"`-._.-¯) ManBird (¯-._.-´"¯" Click

I thought he did 28. Could be wrong. I have the video somewhere, but not really up for timing it. Regardless, 24 is nice. "¯"`-._.-¯) ManBird (¯-._.-´"¯" Click

Yeah, there's not a lot coming out of more than 270. I throw 360s, but mainly because of the orientation of th epond to the DZ. I'm more comfy with right hand turns, but right 270s are tough for me to set up without crossing the runway at 600 feet or so, which is frowned upon. So, 360s I do. I feel that I get more speed out of them, but get a good fifteen feet more out of a 270. For either turn, I do more of a long, carving 180, followed by a brisker 90 or 180. The bigger the turn in that "brisker" part generally produces a lot of speed that expires quickly. "¯"`-._.-¯) ManBird (¯-._.-´"¯" Click

Zaz started a swoop club right at the end of the season last year, so it's kind of on hold until this season gets going. I'm right there with you. I've still been jumping over the winter, and am really waiting for everyone else to come out of hiding. This last Saturday was a fairly good turnout... a lot of people made their first jumps since October, and the pond got a few feet through it. As much as I love flying a wingsuit, I'd love to dedicate a full day of each weekend to hop and pops. It'd be nice to get at least 100 swoops in before summer... so that a canopy upgrade might be a consideration. "¯"`-._.-¯) ManBird (¯-._.-´"¯" Click

I hate that track. But I may as well mention anotehr interesting "video" that used that track. I'm part of a local Flash user group, and we hold these little theme contests. Go here... http://www.deepart.org/afc/2/ ...and click on the "+" next to "Joe Donato" to see an interesting piece. Play with my ("Steve Schieberl") slot machine while you're at it. "¯"`-._.-¯) ManBird (¯-._.-´"¯" Click

I've never seen them or heard them, but I won a Gamecube signed by them. It was a door prize at the Portland Music Industry Holiday Party. I was wearning a Nintendo jacket when I won. Could not have been more perfect. Just need to get some nail polish remover... "¯"`-._.-¯) ManBird (¯-._.-´"¯" Click

The other possibility is that your dog is too light for the type/dosage it received. If you received BioSpot and instructions from a vet, you should definitely take it up with him or her. "¯"`-._.-¯) ManBird (¯-._.-´"¯" Click

Kudos. You've made a wise choice. I'll do rather well. The t-shirts are on the way. The proposed logo for your newest venture is attached. "¯"`-._.-¯) ManBird (¯-._.-´"¯" Click

Two dogs... BioSpot... both sick. A trillion dollars says they licked each other's backs. ANY flea and tick removal such as this is not to be taken orally. It should be applied between the shoulder blades where your pet's mouth cannot reach. If you have more than one pet, you should isolate them for at least 24 hours after application. I use Advantage, not BioSpot, but the same thing would have happened if the animals were not isolated, or it was applied to far past the shoulder blades. Your dogs will get better. I knew a lady who gave a LOT of it to her cat ORALLY (didn't read the directions), and the cat still lived... just had a rough week or so. "¯"`-._.-¯) ManBird (¯-._.-´"¯" Click

I asked to subscribe to his newsletter, if he has one. "¯"`-._.-¯) ManBird (¯-._.-´"¯" Click

Dear Mr. Gun, I've never parachuted before, but I've decided that you will "first jump" instruct me. Upon acceptance of my application, you shall receive several dozen free t-shirts. Please answer quickly, as this is an impulse decision, and I have no desire to continue "parachuting" after my FJC. "¯"`-._.-¯) ManBird (¯-._.-´"¯" Click