jerry81

Of course! Although technically speaking, that little guy still bounced.

It's a bit illogical, but I have less problems relaxing on low jumps and hop&pops, even from below 3k. Maybe a part of me finds it reassuring to have the ground so close.

Or at least surfed on dz.com to gather a bit of jargon... lol Apparently neither... Perhaps someone should at least point out the connection to them... As for the bottle- it's not about art- it's about a half naked chick and milk. Yeah!

What a waste of perfectly good airplanes...

I thought it was just skydiving babies, but it turns out there's a lot of this lingerie-clad chick in there as well. Is this video perfect or what?

Yup. I assume those guys are pretty good canopy pilots, yet they seem to be wrestling for control a lot of the time. Made me realize just how stupid it was to have bladerunning on my list of "must try soon" things. (now moved to a saner place on "must try sometime" list )

Well, they still seem to be holding on to these values... How about "In G(g)od we trust" on state-issued money?

Well, Snopes says this is the true history of the word; Not entirely unrelated pondering: What would happen if someone was to light a match on a load full of nervous newbies and tandems, say about three minutes before jumprun?

First off, I don't own a Wings. But I've put some 100-odd jumps on one and felt I could share my impressions. Comfort-wise, I can't say much because the harness was fitted for a much smaller person. This meant it was tight, but it never really obstructed my movement in freefall. I also put three jumps on another system made for a jumper who's about my size, and that one felt quite comfortable. (Not as much as a Javelin or a Voodoo, but it was close) The thing that bothered me the most on the rig I jumped (the smaller one) was the reserve handle which was coming unlodged all the time (always during packing and often when getting up from the seat). I'm guessing the really short MLW played a part in this, but it was still something that simply shouldn't be happening. Less bothersome was the downward-tucking tab of the reserve pin cover which would untuck on most every jump. It was obviously too short, although the side tabs held the reserve cover closed without a problem. A few uneven stitches and slightly bunched-up fabric at the bottom of the reserve tray prove that while this rig might get you the best value/price ratio, in the end, you still get what you pay for. Based on my experience, I would have given Wings three and a half stars, but since this option is not available I gave it four (well, it would have been 3.75, really;) The rig that I jumped was manufactured sometime in 2002, and if I understand correctly, they keep improving the design. Unless you think the look of the rig is average or dislike pop-tops, even partially covered, I'd say you can't go wrong with a Wings.

Um, yes, that does hurt. The guy seems to be handling it pretty calmly, though. Me, I've slid down about half the length of an advanced ski slope, sunk some 10 feet after falling from the surfboard and fallen about 100' completely unstable while trying to reset my knee. I've a strong stomach for most injuries, no matter how bloody. But watching that video was almost physically unpleasant.

Recently, a boogie organiser in this part of Europe sent everyone on his mail list an offer for one of those planes along with the dates of the boogies. Unfortunately 460k Euro (about .5 million $) is a tad too much for my pocket The manufacturer was stated as "LET a.s., Kunovice, Czech Republic". It also said that altogether around 1200 were made, which, I assume, means production was discontinued some time ago.

I don't know if this is one of those paintjobs, but you can see how big the doors are in the let410 picture. Other two are the Pilatus Porter and our very own 'Fat Angie' An2- sometimes jumping out of that one is probably the closest you can get to a dead air exit from a powered aircraft.

Yeah, I, too, was under the impression that orbiting is when you circle around each other while desperately trying to close the last few feet for a dock and carving is what you call it when you get to the ground.

Um, no, you're the embodiment of true altruism. Want a list of countries that need your help next?

In my cold, objective opinion, there is little difference between reporters showing American blowing Iraqis up and this reporter showing Iraqis (trying to) blow up this jet. Journalists inform about stuff that happens. You should be more upset when they only show you things you want to see than when they also cover unpleasant and emotionally distressing events.

On second thought; Duh, of course it's bigger than my main! Who'd have thought? I'm still curious how it glides, though.

The thief can be left alone unguarded, but a mother will knock out her son even if they just pass each other while getting on/off the raft? Crazy japanese logic! Nah, I'm a genius as well.

Really cool visuals! I'm placing that link under "things to do when stoned"

Replace "make it back" with "make it down", and the answer might be yes. (Although I just noticed that thing has a wing area of 155 sq. ft. and a stall speed of 40mph. That's bigger than my main and faster than our jump plane, respectively!)

I don't intend to give advice on which canopy you should choose (I don't know you and I don't have enough experience), but I think the above statement should be rephrased, as it makes it sound as if a downsize you're considering will probably put you in hospital; imo, you won't necessary hurt yourself on either a 150 elliptical or 135 square. You will, however, have a canopy that is less forgiving of your mistakes. The tolerance for pilot error goes down as wingloading increases, which is why even the pros sometimes get hurt. You need to ask yourself (and preferrably someone else, too) if your skills and you personally are ready for the increased risk.

I wore Tevas throughout the summer and accumulated a few scrapes just from normal landings (trying to drag a toe on landing is not the smartest thing when said toe is unprotected). I'd imagine you have to be really careful choosing your landing area and prepared to lose some skin if you happen to land on concrete, rough gravel or anything similar. Also, I remember my knees and ankles hurt much more on my old zero-flare canopy when wearing Tevas than when wearing my usual jumping shoes and going barefoot is probably a bit worse still. I'll do it for the experience someday, but I'm not sure I'd even consider making it a habit.

Well f*ck me! I'm dying at 56, most likely from a horrible accident, followed closely by cancer. Homicide, heart attack and alien abduction are all competing for the distant third place. Sounds about right.

Find some hard-packed snow. It doesn't need to be on a slope and just a 6' by 6' patch will suffice for now. Put a chair next to your patch and step on it. Now drop directly onto the snow, making sure you land on your knees. You can stick a hand out to break your fall. If you sprain or break your wrist, you're doing it right. Now turn around and jump again, this time landing on your ass. If you hear a crunch- it's just your tailbone. You weren't needing it anyway. For the next exercise, remove the chair and just drop on your knees from a regular standing pose. However, don't stop your fall there- bring your head forward and bash it vigorously down into the snow. This shouldn't be done as hard as to draw blood- a mild concussion is what you want to achieve. A similar exercise is to fall backwards onto the snow. Don't bend the legs and don't try to catch yourself with your hands (we covered those in ex. 1). Drop like a log and make sure your head makes good hard contact with the snow. The purpose of these exercises is to learn the value of protective headgear and bodywear and to familiarize yourself with the pain learning to snowboard (especially on your own) can cause. Now, as soon as you can stand up straight without feeling dizzy and your wrists heal completely, find a 2' by 1' wooden board and nail an old pair of sneakers to it. Insert feet (can be done before the nailing, if you're more on the hardcore side). Now hop around the house for a few days to get accustomed to the limited mobility. You can also hop around outside the house (going to the store, college...). This will get you used to the weird looks you're likely to get when you come tumbling head over heels down the kiddie slope on your first few rides. After doing all that, you are fit to start the actual training. Find some used gear (I'd say freestyle board, soft bindings and maybe get some new boots. You wouldn't believe what can breed inside them after a few seasons), decide what protection to get and find a good coach. Provided you do things right, your training from here on should be relatively pain-free.

It's been said before, but Twardo, you should write a book! Actually, a lot of this thread could be compiled and printed out (dz.com Publications present; No Shit, There I Was... ) But tell me, do you have any of those nine lives left at all?

Must........not..........touch............that............ugh!! Damn, my head's about to explode!