rhys

only having done camera on rw, freestyle, freefly, crw oh and yes lots of tandems i do have a really pointed view don't i. i did 5 skydives today 4 yersterday 42 to date this month i'm off to skysisters boogie with my girlfriend so we can get coaching as a freestyle team and learn about atmonauti etc. and utilise free 1 on 1 coaching we're doing 50 jumps in 9 days if we can. then we're off to thailand for 15 days. all of this paid for by the last 2 months yes two months skydiving (274) tandem video's. you shouldn't assume. assumption is the mother of all fuck ups. i had no money when i started skydiving now i do, because i skydive. i have the same amount of jumps as you in less than half the time. this is because i did a skydive diploma got 96% and applied myserlf intensely for the last 3 years on call 364 day of each year. but because i do 'only' camera i guess that is all i know about eh. "When the power of love overcomes the love of power, then the world will see peace." - 'Jimi' Hendrix

at last a reply i was looking for. thank you. i was told that to begin a parrelell stance is perferred and on a short board because you can go into an arch? if so then why couldn't i just begin to, as you put it, revolutionise skysurfing from the beginning. i don't think this is what it is though. i think it would be another discipline all together. skysurfing has made it's mark in time and deserves its place as it is. i dream of doing the manoevers i can just imagine on a snowboard in the sky. i don't think it is impossible. any thoughts negative and positive are just getting me closer to that dream. if you want to discuss my jump numbers then pm me. "When the power of love overcomes the love of power, then the world will see peace." - 'Jimi' Hendrix

QuoteWho knows if his profile is accurate. But 2000 jumps in 3 years is doable for the one lucky enough to have the time and money. Isn't there a fellow in Raeford (Matt I believe is his first name) who's pounded out about 2000 jumps in 3 years? Plus since the DZ.COM profile won't let us enter fractions, maybe he's closer to 4 years than 3 years. I know I'm closer to being in the sport 3 years than I am 2 years, but I don't want to enter 3 years yet. once again i did a diploma in commercial skydiving to get whare i am. i worked my butt off to get where i am. i had not a cent to my name when i was accepted into the course i worked in a camp in a national park to save a couple of grand to buy a dodgy old racer a maveric 200 and second hand dytter and alti. i jumped this gear for 900 jumps until i could afford to get something decent. this thread is not about me and my jump numbers and if you don't believe them I DON'T CARE back to the subject. oh wait. i did my first jump in april 2002 so i have been in it 3 years just "When the power of love overcomes the love of power, then the world will see peace." - 'Jimi' Hendrix

QuoteSkysurfing: aerodynamics Skateboarding: momentum A "grab" is impressive when the guy has like 2 seconds to do it before slamming into the ground. I don't think it'd look so cool when he's 8000 feet in the air. as many rotations as you can do looks impressive when you have like 2 seconds to do it, and do it with style. i don't think is is so impressive when he/she's 8000' in the air no grab no tweak. boarding is about style. if you jump over an 80 ft gap then it is harder to do a 180deg rotaion than a 360! you put some style into it with a grab and a tweak and you get respect. if yop huck a 720 with no grab no tweak then you look like a muppet. sky surfing is about aerodynamics but that is not to say these manoevers are not possible. "When the power of love overcomes the love of power, then the world will see peace." - 'Jimi' Hendrix

er i havn't updated my profile for a while i have 2200 jumps now. i do my logbook monthly as our 'very busy' dropzone has evrything on computer. do you think i'm lying? what do you mean i was getting railed. when people have a difference of opinion they can do so. this is what these fourums are for. i did a 'diploma in commercial skydiving', hence the large amount of camera jumps. while most are sitting behind a desk i am jumping out of planes. "When the power of love overcomes the love of power, then the world will see peace." - 'Jimi' Hendrix

i seached skysurfing and discovered most discussions on the topic have been made here in the bonfire? i am a skateboarder(as long as i can remember 25+ years) and a snowboarder(10 years) i am wondering why manoevers in sky'surfing' aren't anything to do with surfing? i understand it was invented by a skier? i am not dissing skysurfing as it is very calculated, difficult and graceful. but why aren't there any 'methods','indy's', 'stalefish' etc? if you don't know boardsports then you will not know what the hell i am talking about but if you do you will. there are names for the positions you make by 'grabbing' various parts of the board and different tweaks and rotations on 'many' axis.these manovers are carried through all the different board sports even skiing uses the names of the certain grabs etc. skysurfing doesn't seem to use much if at all. i've seen a couple of grabs but very simple and no tweaks or boneouts. the main reason (i think) that skysurfing does not use these many many graceful manoevers is beacause the stance is so whack. with this configuration you are limited to 1 direction and it would be impossible to put yourself into the crossbone position(my favorate manoever). the axis used in surfing, snowboardingand skateboarding utilise 45deg axis. i havn't seen in skysurfing these are known as misty flips, rodeo flips and underflips etc. where are all these wonderful manoevers? when i first started skydiving i asked if you could take a snowboard up. i was laughed at. "no you can't"they said. well i have seen footage of skysurfers on what looks to me like a snowboard just the stance is whack and the bindings are made of webbing with far too much heel lift. i have tracked down a board that is used to demo snowboard bindings and boots. it is 1.2 m long stiff and as wide as a shoe is long. it has mounting threads for snowboard bindings. i plan on adapting some k2 clicker bindings to a pair of shoes and installing a cutaway system to it. has anyone ever tried doing the manoevers that the sport of 'surfing' has gifted us through its offspring of skateboarding and snowboarding or did the name sky'surfing' just sound cool at the time? any thoughts "When the power of love overcomes the love of power, then the world will see peace." - 'Jimi' Hendrix

worked up? no. just puzzled as to how something that is harder could be the same as something that is easy? "When the power of love overcomes the love of power, then the world will see peace." - 'Jimi' Hendrix

dude you don't make sense. hydrogen yeah we can all see feel and ingest that and realise it.not. the metric system makes plenty of sense the imperial system does not. tradition is the only reasson the imperial system is still around. common sense is the reason the metric system was invented. is it not? you obviously do not understand the metric system? "When the power of love overcomes the love of power, then the world will see peace." - 'Jimi' Hendrix

QuoteFeet versus meters - same. It's pretty rare that the things you measure in this you want to use the bigger units for. Kilograms versus pounds. Though it's much easier to convert between volume of liquids to mass/weight for water like substances, not all that useful to most. this is what i'm wondering. if you have driven half a mile how many feet is that? 1/2 km = 500m half of that again is 250m easy right how many feet in a mile exactly? the point i am getting at is that it must be hard to fathom the size and volume of things of you cant break the volumes down to something you can understand. example: if someone says there are 120 cubic metres of water in that swimming pool then i instantly know there are 120 tonnes of water in that swimming pool.(handy if you are an archetect) i want to know if you use the imperial system all your life can you make these sort of calculations without using a calculator? also i thoght the metre is from water as 'well' (no pun intended). 1cubic cm= 1 gram of water etc. where does the earths circumfrence come into it? that interests me "When the power of love overcomes the love of power, then the world will see peace." - 'Jimi' Hendrix

Quote (except altitude is still in feet right?!?!) yeh we use feet here in new zealand, euro's use metric though. i wish i had been taught metric. so i could fathom the distance. nauticle miles? they are the exception? is there a metric eqivilant? i guess i need to get a book on the subject "When the power of love overcomes the love of power, then the world will see peace." - 'Jimi' Hendrix

do those who use the impereal system think it is easy to use? i can work out/fathom thing in metric beacause the metric system seems to be based on water, 0 degrees, water freezes 100degrees, water boils 1 tonne = a cubic metre of water 1 gram= 1 cubic centemetre etc. with the imperial system there doesn't seem to be any trends, maybe there are and i just don't know about them? do you have to remember the % of each individual factor to get the product? like the difference between a foot and a mile. seems like hard work to me. "When the power of love overcomes the love of power, then the world will see peace." - 'Jimi' Hendrix

that is a snowboard on your(?) feet is is not? "When the power of love overcomes the love of power, then the world will see peace." - 'Jimi' Hendrix

Again If someone doesn't have the ability or skills to maintain alititude awareness &/or stay out of the way and be safe while doing video maybe they should not have a camera on just yet. so you look at your alti while you are shooting video? or you had the built in height awarness when you started? and those who don't shouldn't bother starting? i agree they should be safe able to stay out of the way if need be. but come on man you gotta start somewhere. "When the power of love overcomes the love of power, then the world will see peace." - 'Jimi' Hendrix

QuoteGotta call Bull Sh.. on this one. What's the TI to do, wait until when 3000' - 2000' in hopes that the person will get out of the way or back in view? You can wave to signal "somethings about to happen" but beyond that, he needs to get a parachute out. wel i gotta call bull shit on your call. yes the tandem master should go lower if someone is in thier blind spot(beside the drouge) tandem canopies are huge, people have pulled lower than 5000' without incident huge amounts of times. if you have a newbie with you (i'll say it again incase you didn't get it the first time) IT IS THE TANDEM MASTERS RESPONSABILITY to brief the newbie what to do and WHAT NOT TO DO! a tandem pair and a photographer together are a team. you all work together the t.i. and the photographer SHOULD talk with the customer make them feel as if they are part of the jump (not just tagging along, who's paying for it remember) it shouldn't be, 'the tandem master' gotta get my $40 i hope the camera guy doesn't get in the way. i'm scared. 'the photographer' gotta get the shot and keep the framing. what are those shots the t.m. is too scared of me doing again. 'the customer' gee these guys take this so seriously i wonder if they have fun anymore? lighten up. have faith in your equipment and let the photographer get the shot they want. trust them. if you can't, tell them. if they are a newbie HELP them by telling them what is safe and what isn't if you are a t.m. don't under any circumstances release the drouge if there is sombody right beside it. you will be responsable for the collision and will probably die as well. think of the different options there are to dumping because it is 5000' "When the power of love overcomes the love of power, then the world will see peace." - 'Jimi' Hendrix

QuoteNEVER... AND I MEAN F**KING NEVER... UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES BE ABOVE A TANDEM AFTER THEY EXIT TILL THEY LAND. NO EXCEPTIONS IF I SEE IT (and I do all the editing so I will) YOU ARE DONE. NO QUESTIONS ASKED so when you say above do you mean directly above in the burble or above and to the side? i do a high (and underneath) orbit on every jump i get above the drouge (and to the side) and the photo/video is absolutly amazing as we have an amazing veiw. your customers do not get the product they could get because you uys are scared of an incident that may happen. 5t is up to the tandem master to decide whether somebody can jump with them and if they think they may not be up to scratch then they can decide to tell them they cannot jump with them. if the decide they can and the jumper is not very experienced then IT IS UP TO THE TANDEM MASTER to breif the person in question what to do. floating is what happens to most newbies including me when i started. there could have been many ways out of this situation. the best i believe is have the dytter set at 6500' as i do always (so i can freefly on photo only jumps to 15000' ) i bet you guys get boring shot of sitting in front of the tandem pair because camera flyers would be scared to piss you off. thats not fair to your good paying customers. "When the power of love overcomes the love of power, then the world will see peace." - 'Jimi' Hendrix

they were from a few different schools from the north east. and to reply to others who think having a degree to look good on the c.v.? i you have a degree and don't use it does that not tell a potential employer you don't know what you want to do? do we live our live for ourselves or potential employers? these students who were tandem punters were telling us we had the best job in the world and we are very lucky. i agree we have the best job in the world and luck has a little to do with it but i knew before i did my very first jump that i wanted to be a commercial skydiver! these students could hjave the same job if they 'really' wanted it. to study for somthing you are not passionate about is a waste of time. instead spend you time and money travelling around to discover your passion then you will know what you want to do. "When the power of love overcomes the love of power, then the world will see peace." - 'Jimi' Hendrix

500 jumps is still too little in my mind. i have heard some mention you cant even start filming tandems until you have 500 jumps now how can filming a tandem be anywhere as dangerous as taking one? "When the power of love overcomes the love of power, then the world will see peace." - 'Jimi' Hendrix

is the katana not just a stiletto that doesn't send you to physio? check the nose of a katana and then the crossfire. you will see who has been advancing parachute technology. p.d. is simply playing catch up. "When the power of love overcomes the love of power, then the world will see peace." - 'Jimi' Hendrix

what jump number did you start camera, what is the requirement at your d.z., and what do you think it should be? there seems to be a huge difference wherever you go i started filming skydives at 100 jumps i started filming tandems at 200 jumps and doing them commercialy at 270 jumps. also do you think 500 jumps is enough to start doing tandems? i personally do not. i have filmed people starting tandems who are very good all round skydivers and they had trouble. the requirement here in new zealand is 1000 jumps and two years jumping minimum. "When the power of love overcomes the love of power, then the world will see peace." - 'Jimi' Hendrix

well daves post about the tandem deploying while the camera man is up by the canopy reminds me of a similar situation(without incident) that happened at a d.z. down the road from here the inexperienced camera flyer was up near the canopy when the tandem master deployed the canopy. well who is a fault? in my mind the tandem master. in the situation i know of the tandem deployed at 5000' without even looking to see where the camera man (my buddy) was. the tandem master had over 8000 jumps the camera flyer had little more than 200. camera people geneally don't look at an altimeter untill the tandem deploys. and usually(i hope) have two audibles. what the fuck is a tandem master doing deploying a canopy while somebody is beside/above it? what is in the first stage of your skydiving lessons? GENERAL AWARENESS if you ask me the tandem master is responsablr fopr that poor mothers death. and this is a bad example. would you deploy your canopy if there was somebody beside it? would it not be safer to go a bit lower and try to wave the person away. if they are filming they would be LOOKING at the tandem pair. 100 jumps is plenty to start filming. 200 jumps is enough to start filming tandems. 500 jumps is not enough to start doing tandems why do most countries allow people to start at this # this is dangerous. "When the power of love overcomes the love of power, then the world will see peace." - 'Jimi' Hendrix

the imperial system is far from precise. if you want precise go metric and you can then forget about remainders. "When the power of love overcomes the love of power, then the world will see peace." - 'Jimi' Hendrix

are these tentioners an easily accesable item or were they made at the time? i want some. "When the power of love overcomes the love of power, then the world will see peace." - 'Jimi' Hendrix

i jumped a heatwave for 1000 jumps and i jump with a top mount camera helmet most time i got slammed a few times an have learned to pack that thing to open very slow. what i do is roll the four outer cells int the centre cell at the nose ensuring the centre cell is not rolled at all with good tight rolls then the tail gets tucked neatly between the b's and c's this also helps the prevention of a lineover. now the important factor i discovered made a big difference is tucking the first section of the stabilisers between the slider and a's and b's(under the grommets)and back out the section of stabiliser between the b's and c's. symmetry is very important, and roll the tail around neatly and not too tight. you may experience a little end cell closure with a slow turn but that just pops open when you release the brakes and hold them at half for a touch. i had to go to physio a few times because of this canopy but now it opens consistantly slow and on heading(ish) it opens even slower than my crossfire. give it a crack (pun intended) "When the power of love overcomes the love of power, then the world will see peace." - 'Jimi' Hendrix

mine has about 1500 jumps on it. but is still in great condition. i had problems with the main riser covers too, untill i stopped hanging it on a rack. i stash the excess into the pads with a keeper i dont fold anything. the rings are stainless but the legstrap buckles atr not. the rig is an ex u.s. national team rig so it is very nice. what do you think about adding an extra layer of thiner webbing to the legstraps? "When the power of love overcomes the love of power, then the world will see peace." - 'Jimi' Hendrix

next to my house is a paragliding training hill. i have tried a couple of times. i am by no means any good at it but you have to have a good feel for your rear risers and swapping to your toggles finding a good site is probably the hardest thing to do. n.z. aerosports has a ground launching canopy my friend has one he is about 80kg and his is a 130. let us know how you go it is so much fun and you will get very fit running back up the hill. "When the power of love overcomes the love of power, then the world will see peace." - 'Jimi' Hendrix