ZigZagMarquis

Yeah! Right!! Jump tickets are running in the 20-something dollars and NOW we're expected to tip the manifest bitch too!!! Fuck That!!!

Spot on Gary. I'm bummed it wasn't published in Skydiving.

Just because Sparky's picture is on the wall at the Post Office doesn't make him "famous"...

Yeah, I'll pile on that... Poorly fitting gear, like Grape originally described, is a bad bad (Black Death) thing that needs to bad addressed ASAP. A 110lb person w/ 30 some jumps using a 230sq ft canopy isn't really that bad a thing. Remember, at that (in) experience level, minor mistakes likely to be made by in-experienced canopy pilot are more likely to result in minor bumps and bruises if that 110lb person is under a 230 rather then say a 150 or 135... or 120... and this is not a bad thing. You have the rest of your life to downsize... but maybe only if the rest of your life is a long time.

... for the most part, I don't give a shit... TMs bitchin' about room to hook-up their students is like folks bitchin' about the spot... its one of those things that will go on in skydiving until the end of time... you can get all pissed off about it back at them, or you can shine it on and snicker to yourself when ever you see a TM get puked on, have to haul some 7' tall basket ball player type, or haul some 40 - 50ish some year old desperate housewife that's wider then she is tall and has spent the last 20+ years sittin' on the couch eatting bon-bons and thus now feels she's prepared to go try the most extreme sport around... anyway... I suppose you could put tandems out first safely, but if I were next after them, I'd suppose my first blush would be to give them some extra time since they open higher. Also, I thought part of the "theory" of tandems going last was not only because they open higher, but because their minimum bail-out altitude was higher? The last thing I'd want to be in is an Otter at 3K with an engine on fire and the pilot saying everyone out with two or three TMs, tandem students & video folks between me and the door.

looked like a Batista Bomb if you ask me. I was thinking more like a tombstone pile driver gone wrong...

As it is now, with tandems traditionally up at the front of the plane, TMs start bitching at around 9K until they get like half the plane to hook-up their students and then its not like they let folks move back forward once they get em hooked up... If tandems went first... I wonder how that would change TMs bitchin' about needing "extra room" to hook up their students...

... are you sure it wasn't professional wrestling where you got this new move?

DOH! I knew that... a long day to the end of a long week yesterday & too many beers while surfin' DZ.com. Anyway, Sparky sent me this too... AS8015-b 4.3.6 Functional Test (Normal Pack All Types): For all 4.3.6 tests the maximum allowable opening time for parachute canopies with a maximum operating weight of 250 lb (113.4 kg) or less, is 3 s from the moment of pack opening. For parachutes with a maximum operating weight of greater than 250 lb (113.4 kg) the maximum allowable opening time shall be increased by 0.01 s for every pound of maximum operating weight in excess of 250 lb (113.4 kg). 4.3.6 (Continued): Alternatively altitude loss instead of time may be measured and the maximum allowable altitude loss may be calculated as follows. For all 4.3.6 tests the maximum allowable altitude loss for parachutes with a maximum operating weight of 250 lb (113.4 kg) or less is 300 ft (91.5 m) from the altitude at pack opening. For parachutes with a maximum operating weight of greater than 250 lb (113.4 kg) the maximum allowable altitude loss shall be increased by 1 ft for every pound of maximum operating weight in excess of 250 lb (113.4 kg). NOTE: Altitude loss measurements must be measured along a vertical trajectory only. However, the deviation from the vertical produced by a gliding main parachute descending with a vertical velocity of less than 20 FPS (6.1 m/s) shall be acceptable. 4.3.6.1 Direct Drop Tests: There shall be a minimum of 48 drops with a weight not more than the maximum operating weight. There shall be a minimum of 6 dummy drops at the maximum operating weight. The airspeed at the time of pack opening shall be as outlined in the test table. The airspeeds are in KEAS (km/h). The parachute canopy must be functionally open within the time obtained in 4.3.6 from the time of pack opening. 4.3.6.2 Breakaway Drop Tests: Eight drops shall be made by a person weighing not more than the maximum operating weight by breaking away from an open and normally functioning main parachute canopy with a vertical velocity of less than 20 FPS (6.1 m/s) at the time of breakaway and actuating the reserve pack within 2 s of the breakaway. If a reserve static line is part of the assembly, no less than 4 of the breakaway drops shall be made with the reserve static line actuating the reserve pack.The parachute canopy must be functionally open within the time +2 s, or altitude, obtained in 4.3.6 from the time of breakaway. ----------------- No, no Miami, the "theory" behind those types of "huge beefy springs" on some systems is not to launch the pilotchute away from the jumper, its to launch the jumper away from the pilotchute / bag... Just Kidding!

Ummm... where's Sparky when you need him... or CMan... or MRigger... anyway... I've had way too many beers right now to go diggin' through the TSOs... while I don't disagree that all rigs out there HAVE passed the TSOs... I'm not sure if there is or isn't a, "The reserve gotta open in a certain amount of time" spec in the TSOs or not... someone please enliten me if there is or isn't. Ummm... okay, corner case I know, but there are military systems that will, under certain conditions, but that, as they say, is a different story.

Yes... it is a combination of Shoulder Pork + Ham...

Actually, a ShotGun would be a better choice...

Agree... somewhat... Et all, maybe consider not giving canopy advice to folks who don't fill out their profile?

[sarcasm] Yeah! And the guy changes the name of his company / companies every few years too!! [/sarcasm]

I won't give you the satisfaction.

SPAM Rocks! Fried hard with lots of Katsup! mmmmmmmm

CS01... if its a Glock .40 you refer to, go down to the Gun Store RIGHT NOW and trade it in on a .45 1911A1... Friends Don't Let Friends buy Glocks!

... a buddy of mine once used the lame excuse for being late to the formation by saying he iced up on exit...

Wasn't there some military experiment gone awry back in the late 80s where they were trying to create a skydiver fem-bot... maybe all these "1000s of Kim Sutton's" are really escapie-androids... ... oh wait... never mind, I'm thinking of that bad Sci-Fi movie, Cherri 2000...

Maybe a harness without the chest rings would be a better choice for some as it may leave more room on the MLW to adjust cheststrap and handle placement?

Maybe any old Kim Sutton would do for him?

Et All... check THIS Funny how there's been a lot of talk about two... err... three of our favorite topics... Boobs + Skydiving.

Smart man; don't listen to these crazies; skydiving is about having fun, not freezing. Hey! Things are warmin' up here in SoCal... its 20deg F this morning... as opposed to yesterday morning when it was 9deg F when I got up! I bet y'all can't wait for it to be 6 months from now so you can bitch about it being hot!

Too cold!??! Why?? I've jumped in -20deg F... at altitude... SUCK IT UP! Just kidding!!! Anyway, did y'all decide it was too cold or some wuss TM didn't want to go. Just kidding about the wuss TM part... Better luck next weekend!

HIL, What Bill said... WORD! Et all, Can I get $20 on HookItLow?!!