ManBird

So... the consensus of test pilots is that the recovery arc is longer than that of the Stiletto, but that's not saying much. The Stiletto never had much of a recovery arc. If exact same size WLs and sizes of canopy were compared, then perhaps some sort of ratio could be established (it'd most likely have some curvature to it). For example, "I was losing 350 feet over 4 seconds in my 270s on my Stiletto. I lose y feet over s seconds in a 270 on my Katana." "¯"`-._.-¯) ManBird (¯-._.-´"¯" Click

The trial was not for that, but it didn't help the case any. "¯"`-._.-¯) ManBird (¯-._.-´"¯" Click

Throw on an extra 100 sq ft and take that to Mt. Hood with a snowboard. I'm actually considering a ~100 sq ft kite for snowkiteboarding. I have no skills yet, but I think I'd mostly survive. It'd be fun to have a kite that's bigger than my canopy. "¯"`-._.-¯) ManBird (¯-._.-´"¯" Click

The irony of this post... "¯"`-._.-¯) ManBird (¯-._.-´"¯" Click

Rod Pack pulled this off before this fuck was even born. Shit like this gets me hot... the fucker might finally rid us all of himself once and for all. "¯"`-._.-¯) ManBird (¯-._.-´"¯" Click

Yeah. The video's floating around on the web somewhere. "¯"`-._.-¯) ManBird (¯-._.-´"¯" Click

Holy crap! I had no idea this happened. That's my old DZ. Did what I could afford. I hope that, collectively, it will be enough to get them back on their feet. "¯"`-._.-¯) ManBird (¯-._.-´"¯" Click

Don't use two cables. The basic idea is to take a cutaway cable that is double the length of the tabs, bend it, and put your handle on the elbow of the bend. Using two cables can result it attaching a handle that will slide right off. I think this is what Kim is talking about. "¯"`-._.-¯) ManBird (¯-._.-´"¯" Click

Usually not. The ability to raise my arms above my head in freefall weirds me out. Even then, I try not to get in anything less than a track. That whole freedom of arm movement thing is overrated. "¯"`-._.-¯) ManBird (¯-._.-´"¯" Click

yea what he said! You can take it off? "¯"`-._.-¯) ManBird (¯-._.-´"¯" Click

I'd imagine it's just as hard or easy to spin up as any other canopy. How it flies after it's spun up... different story. Anything that responds radically to harness input (ie, can be spiraled) can result in a spinning malfunction in line twists where the risers are uneven. Even then, the harness itself and how you throw your weight in this situation will play a role in how much hip input you can give to a canopy, and whether or not you'll have spinner or just some twists to undo. "¯"`-._.-¯) ManBird (¯-._.-´"¯" Click

"...that's why everyone does everything--because they're stupid." "I don't think I've ever done anything wrong." - HS "¯"`-._.-¯) ManBird (¯-._.-´"¯" Click

I only saw it once. I may have been tricked by a combination of editing and alcohol. I like the way I remember it better. "¯"`-._.-¯) ManBird (¯-._.-´"¯" Click

1800' A. DW filming in a wingsuit, name-not-mentioned sort of freeflying (DW keeping flying his ass off keeping him in frame), DW breaks off, flies through guy wires, dumps too low to unzip the wings and face plants into a cactus. I never saw "Fistful of F-111", but I think that jump made it in. DW flew through guy wires on at least two occasions, right? The 180' double gainer is definitely up there, but wouldn;t be appreciated by a general audience. "¯"`-._.-¯) ManBird (¯-._.-´"¯" Click

It all depends on the purpose of the pond. Eloy's is definitely made as a toy for those who know what they're doing. The one we have at home doubles as both a playground and a safety net. Eloy's "nasty desert" on either side of the pond makes for some kick ass visuals as you line yourself up between bushes and slip between them. I still have a bad habit of setting up too close, so, um... I got that visual a lot. Er... "¯"`-._.-¯) ManBird (¯-._.-´"¯" Click

I said, "Yeah, I think I'm done here" and got out of the car... while it was moving. We were only going about 25 MPH, and my friends and I used to do it for fun (working up the speed a little at a time). Nothing drives the point home like jumping out a of a moving car. Chicks think they have you trapped when they get you in that passenger seat. Bullshit. "¯"`-._.-¯) ManBird (¯-._.-´"¯" Click

Nice. "¯"`-._.-¯) ManBird (¯-._.-´"¯" Click

Open the picture and note what is missing. "¯"`-._.-¯) ManBird (¯-._.-´"¯" Click

Oh, if only... "¯"`-._.-¯) ManBird (¯-._.-´"¯" Click

Down in Eloy, exiting from 13.5k and dumping at around 2k, I was consistently getting over 90 seconds of freefall (93, 97, 98 x 2, and 99) in an attempt to break 100 seconds in my Pantz (I have the BASE version). I don't fly arms apart at all and don't wear anything excessively baggy on my arms, either. Instead, I just fly a little head high, making the "peak" of my d-arch higher up on my back instead of at the hips. I found that I was falling faster and had far less forward speed with arms out or with a freefly jacket on. I only have a couple of jumps on my smoking suit (pants and jacket). My Pantz fall rate is better and forward speed is significantly better, but I've also taken the time to figure out how to fly them. I also may need to make the cuffs a wee bit tighter on my smoking suit to maintain inflation (though I didn't lose much air to begin with). I'm maintaining about 78 - 82 MPH down in my Pantz vs 84 - 90 in my smoking suit. I think I could get a better fall rate in my smoking suit if I worked at it, but always a better glide ratio in my Pantz. Now if they come out with that jacket... hmmm... "¯"`-._.-¯) ManBird (¯-._.-´"¯" Click

Let's be realistic. I think he's banning any turn to final... toggle or front riser. Straight-in landings only. Put in a pond and make people practice over water. C'mon... it's not like it's a ton of work or money. Oh, wait... "¯"`-._.-¯) ManBird (¯-._.-´"¯" Click

Just played with those things at the boogie (though not nearly as well as some people there). Eloy's ponds are pretty cool. They're about as wide as the middle lane on Skydive Oregon's kickass pond (when lanes are set up), but the way they're laid out is really cool. When landing to the west, set up a little closer, clear the lip, and carve into a second pond. They're shaped like golf course ponds. Just watch out for rotors from that one damn tall bush that's five damn feet away. They need to get rid of that thing. I love our pond at SDO. 200' x 60' and about three - four feet deep (has saved many an ass). Plus there's a ton of big flat grassy ground beyond and to the sides so that you can have uber-long or short-bailed-out swoops without worrying about losing an ankle. "¯"`-._.-¯) ManBird (¯-._.-´"¯" Click

I've got 24s on my Wings and have put about 60 jumps on them. It does make the slider a bit tougher to pull down (a little double front grab gets it sliding down far enough to reach). I'm jumping a Sabre2 107, but the difference between my old 20s and these ones is pretty damn huge. Tons, tons, tons more range. These aren't stock on Wings... I specifically asked for "kickass" risers. I'm flying a Sabre2 107 loaded at 1.7. I do 180s or 270s on final (and a couple of 540s in there), and have found that I have a lot more room and power left after my turn. Up high, I've found it pretty easy to throw even moderately paced 720s (over 5 - 6 seconds) before pressure starts to really build. On my 20s, it was somewhere between 360 and 540 (over 4 - 4.5 seconds) that I started to tug a little more. "¯"`-._.-¯) ManBird (¯-._.-´"¯" Click

My Sabre2 is also loaded at about 1.7, and I have about 150 jumps on it. The consensus for any loading, though, is that the front riser pressure is very light. It is VERY light on mine. Even 720s are a breeze. You're doing something weird if the front riser pressure is high. Are you trying to do a front riser TURN or just do double front risers? While pulling the front riser down on one side is very light and effective, I can do pullups on my front risers if I go for both of them in full flight. Even after a front riser turn, going to double fronts (usually to correct a high turn) can be very tough, but still give you a crapload of speed. "¯"`-._.-¯) ManBird (¯-._.-´"¯" Click

A recent e-mail about this vid had me thinking. The comment was, "Another valuable learning tool from the swooping community." I don't know if this was meant to be taken seriously or not, but it is true. This video is fun to watch, mainly because no one was hurt. But I've actually learned a lot from it. Something else that really hits home for me on this video is the philosophy that you WILL get low some times. The people in this video are pretty dang heads up in general and some of those chows came from people with four digits in jump numbers. It happens. People get low. This video is something I will reference next time I select a canopy or even when setting up from a swoop. I've bailed out of at least a few swoops since (ie, 90 instead of 270, or just flat turned), and on each, this video actually flashed in mind as I did so. It's also a strong affirmation that swooping should be practiced over water... it saved lives that day. Target fixation on the pond contributes to these kind of chows. In this case, though, a another big contributor to the high number of chows in a single round was that the spot on the hop and pop load was a little off... enough to make some people (especially at the back end of the load) a little low by the time they got to their setup point (from what I observed and heard from others... I was there, but not in the plane). Sometimes judgement is replaced by desire. Shit happens, people get low, and a nice deep pond saves their lives. It's saved my legs twice. I also can't help but point out that Grasshopper (second to last in the video), did a great job of landing in the right direction/staying in the flight pattern/traffic, getting some swoop, but also bailing out a bit because he was low. "¯"`-._.-¯) ManBird (¯-._.-´"¯" Click