xpug

Incident thread Original version on SDM where those jokers have lifted it from...

Anyone have any luck finding reasonable cover for life insurance for anything other than death? I've just had a quote from Legal & General. The premium (for both Critical Illness and LA) jumped from £27 pcm to £120 pcm after I completed their 'dangerous activities' questionnaire. And that was only an average of 250 jumps a year, unbelievable! I really wonder how they come to the risk assessment. Fortunately, I've no dependents yet, but when I do marry it looks like I'll have to compromise on something - less jumping or no cover...hmmm

I'm with you on that - almost every day over these winter months. Used to enjoy my job until I took up skydiving; now it's unfortunately becoming more like a means to an end. Love to be in Florida or California, but finding work on a DZ is tough by all accounts I've heard. Thinking about it, the realistic option is to find another job, move over there, get luxurious house for a song, work 3 or 4 days a week and skydive the rest because the weather is so much more consistent than here. That's the main problem here. Either that or do contract work like a mofo during the 6 out-of-season summer months in Florida and skydive over the 'winter'. Till then, the closest I can get is spending my yearly 5 weeks holiday skydiving abroad. Off to Lillo this Saturday, hope it's stopped snowing by then (currently 2 degrees! )

I've only 50 jumps on it, but I love the Crossfire. I agree with AggieDave on the front riser pressure (demo'd a CF 2 150 and compared to my Stiletto 150 on 90-360 degree turns). I also prefer the Crossfire's more gentle opening characteristics. Ref pack volume; the Icarus charts say the Crossfire 139 pack volume is 386 cubic inches. The PIA chart for the Stiletto 150 is 364. However, I went from a Stiletto 150 to a Crossfire 2 139 in the same container. The Crossfire pack size is roughly the same as, and certainly no bigger, than the Stiletto. So, based on that, a CF 129 should pack perhaps a little bigger than a Stiletto 135. Hope that helps, you could always order a 124 to be sure!

I witnessed one situation where an unsuccessful cutaway was compounded by reverse risers. The person cutaway their main but failed to extract the full length of the cutaway cables (short arms). The right riser released but the left stayed put. The reserve was deployed almost instantly after the cutaway (no RSL). The main was then trailing behind as the reserve risers came out. They butted up against the left main riser (which was being pulled backwards against the reserve riser), somewhat 'locking' the three rings in place as Scott hints at. That turned into a reserve with line twists and a main dragging behind, which led to an uncontrollable descent. Miraculously, they escaped with only bruises. Since then I have modified my EP's to ensure that my main risers have detached before deploying the reserve. Knowing what I do now, I'm also sure that the risers would release should I have two-out. The main issue in this situation was not cutting away properly, but the reverse risers compounded it. I thought about switching, but after consulting with a rigger and watching a re-enactment in a suspended harness, I am sure they are safe, given the correct EP's. There have been no other reported incidents of this type that we could find or that had been bought to the attention of PdF. However, please be aware of this specific situation if you do have reverse risers.

The only one I've seen is available at the Sunshine Factory in ZHillls - blue hardback with gold 'Parachutists Log Book' on front. Has 10 jumps to a page, one line each, about 300 jumps per book ~$5... I'm sure Dave can send you some - www.sunshine-factory.com

Yes, and it is very good - been jumping there most of the summer. Very friendly and well run by the Silver Stars parachute team. Prices - £17 to 13K or £16 if you buy blocks of 10. On Fridays, it's military rates - £11. Sat - 10am - 7pm Sun - 10am - 6pm Shuts down one weekend a month for the neighbours. If you are turning up, make sure you bring photo ID as it is a military base. If you've got APA (Nethers), that is good enough. We've have been averaging 5-7 a day at the weekends without rushing. Sometimes, a whole lift is full of tandems if it's exceptionally busy, but then the next is always an experienced lift. I've never had a problem with this though. It's mostly RW jumpers, but more freaks are moving there - one team and 4 or 5 of us casual freeflyers. No bunkhouse, but you can camp. There is a snack bar that does toasties, sandwiches, drinks etc. BBQ after jumping on Saturdays + bar. mr2mk1g - you mean the collegiates are coming? I witnessed the aftermath in Elsinore last year...god help us! Laters...

OOI, a friends Javelin Odyssey has leg strap buckles from PdF - same as my Atom Legend, but they have been reversed so the stamped logo is not visible! I think Wings uses them as well.

For the vid check the first post in this thread The avatar is a tracking dive (taken from the ground with a bloody huge lens). The rabbit and two followers had smoke canisters. I'm the speck just below the rabbit... Check here for some stills. If you want, I'll send you the ground shots - PM me your email address.

No, this is me Although my Kurupee suit came 3 weeks late (and to the wrong country!), it is OK. On mine, a lot of the seams on the wrist and ankle cuffs are frayed - no finishing done by the looks of it. Plus the quilted collar is coming undone, but I can fix that. Mine was the worst of the 4 we ordered. Dissapointing, coz I love the cool design (the red one some chicks are modellig on the home page) Laters, Stu

I've put 350 on an Electra 170 (loaded at 1.25) and have 10 jumps on a friends Sabre 2 170 to compare them. I prefer the Electra - it feels much more responsive. The toggle stroke to turn is much less, the turn is initiated faster, it dives faster (lost more altitude than the Sabre 2 170 on a 360 say) but seemed to recover more quickly. On front riser turns, the pressure builds up more quickly and the recovery arc is shorter, but it is an intermediate canopy. For instance, I found it very difficultly to hold double front risers for more than 150 feet even when hanging off the dive loops. I'm not sure how this characteristic changes at higher wing loadings though. There was less flare 'power' at the bottom end of the toggle range than the Sabre 2, but that's not to say there isn't enough. I have managed to get some very nice mini swoops out of it. Regards pack size, it is considerably smaller than an equivalent 170 ZP. The top skin of the Electra is ZP but the bottom is F111 which also makes it easier to pack. Like skyd and BenW I also suspect it is smaller than PD's 170. BTW, I recently demo'd a Safire 2 150 and I was surprised that it didn't feel much different to the Electra on turns with toggles. Front riser pressure was a lot less and it dived quicker. But that is more likely a consequence of higher wing loading. I'm just about to swap it for a Stiletto 150, but I will miss it!

FWIW, I put some jumps on a Safire 2 yesterday and afterwards remarked on it's long snivel. To speed it up, I was advised to leave the nose out and only put one roll in the tail. Point is, I was pushing the nose in and rolling the tail pretty tight (10 or more times) before pro packing it normally. This gave me some long snivels. HTH.

I think you will need an 0 as well. My Electra 170 packs a lot smaller than the Spectre 170 (386 cu inches vs 455), and my Atom 0 still isn't exactly flush when its packed. For further reference, the My-SkyWorld online shop has canopy and container sizing charts. It shows that that the Spectre 170 has a pack volume of 455 cubic inches, but the Atom 00 can only take up to 360. Container sizes Canopy sizes Going on Gus' comment, these do seem pretty accurate - the Spectre 150 (370 cu in) sounds like a similar fit in an 0 as my Electra.

I'll be in Elsinore next month and have a related question that should be of interest. I will be doing some coached jumps and would like the instructors footage on DV - so, can I firewire footage from his NTSC Sony to my PAL PC105E? I wonder if ends up being 'recorded' in PAL or remains in NTSC format? Cheers! [Edit] Answered a few days ago... See http://www.dropzone.com/cgi-bin/forum/gforum.cgi?post=701357#701357

1.2ish

Asked my rigger yesterday - there is no real reason - as with all canopies, this sometimes happens. E.g. if the end cells are a bit mushy on opening, then there is not sufficient force to spread the lines and push it down. It is just one of those 'nuisance factors'...use rear risers to free it!

Feb 2003, 130 jumps

I've got an Electra 170 (130 jumps) and it happens occasionally. Since a few tugs on the rear risers brings it down, I've never thought anything of it, but I'm sure it sticks more often on very soft openings... I'm having my reserve repacked next week, so I'll ask my rigger about it...let you know if he has any answers.