ZigZagMarquis

I think the rule is 10% of the new rig's purchase price should then be spent on beer... otherwise, the beer Gods will be angry and you'll suffer hard openings and biffed landings.

[joke] Do it naked! It will take you mind off jumping into the water with a rig on. [/joke]

Interesting comments by FFJ and Matt... FFJ... does the canopy really only have 100 jumps on it? I'd guess there should still be some bow left in the steering lines and they shouldn't have shrunk that much in just 100 jumps if that's all the line-set really has on it... ummm... we are talking Spectra here, right? I wonder if the steering lines were really tied off at the correct place (mark) when installed. I thought the same thing when reading Matt's post. My experience with PD has been when one of their canopies / line-sets is new, if the toggles are tied off at the factory mark on the steering lines, then there is PLENTY of bow in the steering lines. Odd that there wouldn't be, makes me wonder if they weren't tied off at the right spot in the first place???

Congrats... and... BEER!!!!

Well, good luck to you. Hope you can work it out so you can complete your water training and get your B-License.

Well, how are you with water and pools and such without having a rig on? i.e. Are you able to get into a pool regular like and swim and not be panic'ed by the thought / act? How about trying a dry run... err... wet run in the shallower end of the pool first, say where the water isn't over your head, say about chest deap, you can jump in with the rig on, have enough water to not have to touch bottom, do your thing getting out of your harness and swimming out from under the canopy / lines, etc., but if all else fails, just "stand-up".

Jesus, you're a difficult fucker to please aren't you Not really... just don't bitch about the spot...

[sarcasm]... jumping on them and giving them grief for a bad spot!!??! bet he's never once complimented them on their many good spots!! ... what a butt-hole!! [/sarcasam]

Amen brother! Anyway... the more I think about it... the more I feel the un-written Official Line on Spotting which lurks in the back of every DZOs mind is... "I don't want to F*ckin' hear about what jump run or where the spot is as long as it doen't cost me money." ... dang, forgot that [sarcasm]... [/sarcasm] tags again...

"Perfect spot" not withstanding... nor should the first group be expected to take a spot so short they can't make it back either... and the last groups not checking the spot before getting out is them hosing themselves regardless of how much blame spewed towards the first group... but... oh... wait... DOH!... I forgot to put the [sarcasm]... [/sarcasm] tags on my orig...

Yes... its good to ask questions... especially when you're new... even so, never think you know enough or know everything you need to know about gear and skydiving. Hopefully the original poster also talked to his rigger about this and asked the same questions... hopefully the rigger gladly explained things to him or her... if not, finding another rigger might be in order. I've seen similar reserve rip-cords post-cut away... its from the RSL. From just the pictures enclosed up post, IMO, it looks like the reserve rip-cord is still servicable, but I'll caveate that with its just from the pictures... I cannot feel or examine more closely to see if its more damaged than it appears... i.e. broken strands of wire. I have seen reserve rip-cords kinked or damaged so badly post cut-away that the rigger deemed it in need of replacement. *cough* http://www.dropzone.com/cgi-bin/forum/gforum.cgi?post=1448166;sb=post_latest_reply;so=ASC;forum_view=forum_view_collapsed;;page=unread#unread

*bump*

Yeah, I've seen similar things happen at Cal City where Van still does it the "old fashioned way" and ya get a bunch of non-local-GPS-cripple-green-light-lemmings on the plane from out of town... ... anyway The UN-official Line on Spotting: 1. Spotting is a thankless job. 2. Spotting is as much of an "art" involving voodoo, chicken bones and dried frogs & a rabbits foot as it is a science. 3. You're only as good as your last spot. 4. You'll never get thanks for the 100s of good spots you may call, but you'll hear about the odd bad ones until the day you die. 7. Those who complain often and most about "your bad spot" will never come spot the next load themselves. 6. You (1A) can spot a stick of jumpers out an Otter... with groups all the way through 1F... each group after you can take 30+ seconds in the door... and somehow its still your fault that groups 1E & 1F all landed out because somehow you got back into the plane, prevented them from looking down, the airplane would have exploded if they called for a go-around and you made them jump out even after you were long gone... (see all the above).

It's more than that. After our DZO saw the Frankie video from the ranch (you can watch his slider coming down in his shadow on the ground) the only turbine dropzone within a four hour round trip of where I lived required all free fliers to have AADs. Since moving, I've found that the only year round turbine DZ within a four hour round trip claims to require AADs on their web-site. LOL Just the free fliers are required to have AADs??!? Really!!!???? ... but seriously, what DZ (or DZs) are we talking about here, specifically.

... anyway... for experienced skydivers, isn't still that there are only 2 Drop Zones in the U.S. that require AADs for experienced jumpers... or did I miss something... again...

Good words Yossarian... and as strongly as you feel that jumping with an AAD is essential and that you would choose not to jump if you didn't have one... try to understand (whether you agree or disagree) that there are those that feel equally as strong the other way; that they want to be able to retain that as a choice for them and not be told that they have to have an AAD. As someone pointed out up-thread... it is an interesting mind-set that some folks believe it DANGEROUS to skydive without an AAD. Sure, its a tough argument... tough discussion... what ever words you'd choose, but generally speaking, skydiving is probably not anymore dangerous without an AAD then with... however... certainly specifically speaking, if you're knocked-out in freefall or horse-shoe your main pilot chute around your arm and try to spend the rest of your life trying to clear it... then, you're better off having an AAD. The sport ceratinly would be different if Airtec & Cypres didn't come along. I doubt you'd see many up jumpers with old FXCs or Sentinals... ... I know I wouldn't... You sometimes see similar attitudes from folks "newer" to the sport... that say have never jumped from anything less then 12,500'... when you talk about taking 15 seconds from say 4 grand... or jumping without and audible altimeter... or jumping an F111 canopy all the time... oooohhh, that's dangerous! ... didn't someone some time say something like, "hey all you rock-n-rollers, better watch out, one day your gonna get older"... ... rest assured... go out today and buy the most high tech, in fashion, free-fly-friendly, wing-suit-ready, all the bells and whistles, rig, main, reserve & AAD money can buy, damn the price... put it on your shelf in the back of your dark and climet controlled closset... put it out 25 years from now still in perfect condition (just needs a repack and some new AAD batteries... )... and you'll have someone tell you its DANGEROUS... or at least look at you with that "look"... like you actually jumped stuff like that... and/or start in with 101 reasons why things like that aren't any good anymore. Yossarian... I don't think its that the more experienced folk around are trying to tell you that you shouldn't jump without an AAD or that its okay to jump without an AAD... I doubt you'll get a real arguement from someone who's been around awhile that AADs can't significantly reduce the risks inherient with skydiving if certain things go wrong... I think all they're saying is jumping without an AAD isn't all as Black Deathy as y'all may think it is and we'd like to retain the choice to jump without an AAD regardless of whether we have one or not... we've seen Black Death, and jumping without an AAD isn't it. Sure I've got a Cypres in both my rigs, I've got em' for the knocked out in freefall scenario, other then that -- my plan -- see my sig line -- but, all that being said, still, IMO jumping without an AAD isn't Black Death. ... hey, just my 2 cents.

... start with a large fortune.

Ah... the bounce and blend look!

Hey! Maybe we ought to bring back POBs!!! ... oh... wait... Strong is already doing that on the reserve pack tray, errr... flaps... on the Quasair...

You still owe the bottle to your rigger who just saved your life AND it was your first reserve ride!!??! Its bad karma to keep your rigger waiting... Anyway, good job, you're still walking and breathing, so, no second guesses... but, after this experience, do you think you'd mess with a spinning mal for as long as you did or go for your handles sooner or not?

... actually, "frape" hats... its a French thing... Anyway, check Para Gear... http://www.paragear.com/searchresult.asp?searchstring=L3109&submit1=Go%21 Item # L3109

... careful there pissfish... remember, he who lives by the pie, dies by the pie...

... so to speak.

Porn + Skydiving... Kinda brings new meaning to "blowing an exit"!

Well, that is a truthful answer... ... also sounds like something I'd say...