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The Manta is a 288 sq ft rectangular F-111 9-cell. There was either a hybrid or Zero-P version made at one point as well. Mantas were very common student canopies. There were other sizes that (I believe) were scaled from the same design. Arrive Safely John

Hmmm . . . I beg to differ with you there. Not being part of the problem, in this case, is part of the solution.

Might I suggest that you put this suggestion in a thread in the Suggestions and Feedback Forum? Arrive Safely John

Let's just say I have been known to be a bit "thorough." Arrive Safely John

What you're not getting, Billy, is that that kind of content is not welcome here in this place. I love analogies, so here it goes . . . One day you have this vision of creating a haven for skydivers from anywhere and everywhere, along with those who are interested in exploring the ins and outs of the sport - a house in your neighborhood. You spend a lot of time doing research and study on similar havens that have been created, paying close attention to the community dynamics and what does and doesn't work. Then you look for the perfect house, and find exactly what you were looking for! You spend more time arranging the rooms and furnishings of the house so that everything flows and functions well, and so there is a place where people can talk about nearly anything - skydiving related or not. You post some well thought out house rules - only four simple ones - and open the doors to welcome your new friends. This is your house - you created it, you own it, and your vision is finally becoming a reality. The years go by, and by now you have added on to the house, shifted some furnishings, and made other adjustments to accomodate the now diverse topics of conversation. Included in your house is a special and light-hearted place where people go to share humorous anecdotes, news about their life, birthday wishes, non-skydiving related questions and tips, and a plethora of other off-topic discussions. You haven't been in that room for a while, and you pop in to hear the latest joke or congratulate the birthday folks. You are shocked that the lighthearted humor and birthdays are grossly overshadowed by loud and obnoxious people showing off pictures of their own shit, seeing how many conversations they can start that will offend any and every possible group of people they can think of, passing around pictures of someone's son/brother/father/brother/husband's motorcycle wreck that is now nothing but a hundred little piles of guts spread over a hundred yards of pavement, seeing what combinations of perverse sexual terms will draw the most attention to themselves, and links to things like how to commit suicide or someone eating their shit, an endless string of popups, and other "shocking and sensational" garbage. And for every one of those conversations there are three or four sidekicks that grab the gas can and add fuel to the fire. All of this without any thought as to what possible negative effects this room might be having on all of the others, or why those cool people that hung out here a few years ago have not shown themselves in a long time. One day you realize that you are spending most of your time dealing with the behavior in this particular room - warning folks, removing folks for a time, interrupting the conversations to remind people of the forum rules, and along the way falling victim to the disgusting and offensive content that is causing all of the problems. Sadly, you really don't talk about skydiving with any of your friends anymore because of it. Now, go back and read the first paragraph of my analogy and pretend it was your house - your home - the living room of where you live right now. Would you let these people continue to spew that kind of worthless drivel? After you have warned them four or five times and they keep it up, would they still be welcome in your house? Your answer may be yes - I really don't know. What goes on in your house is really your business and not mine. BUT, this is not your house . . . this is Sangiro's house. He enrolled many of us in his vision for this place many years ago, and we care about it as if it were our own. It wasn't always like this, and reading many of the replies above I can see that there are many of us that feel it can go back to being a community again and not a festering puss pocket. Onward and upward . . . Arrive Safely John

We already have one of those . . . it's called The Recycle Bin. The only difference from your statement is that that is how the Moderators uninstall the biggest offenders. Arrive Safely John

WOW! People actually get it! Two BIG statements in there: 1) the guidelines (Forum Rules and Policies, FAQ, Announcements Forum) are not new . . . they are simply being restated so they are adhered to; 2) a worthwhile online community is what we are supposed to be all about! Arrive Safely John

I have a feeling there are a lot of people trying on the proverbial shoe right now to see if it fits. Arrive Safely John

Back on topic, please. Arrive Safely John

In our area, AT&T (the only current iPhone provider) does not have very good reception (signal strength and coverage). The best coverage in the area, ironically, comes from the smallest and least known company (US Cellular). A colleague of mine got an iPhone for Christmas and took it back after only two weeks because of the poor reception. Arrive Safely John

All of our major rehab stuff and improvement projects happen over the winter. Arrive Safely John

For me, three things in particular make it a great tool: 1) it is more difficult to fly in the tunnel than in actual free fall - training in the more difficult environment makes my performance better when I am in the real environment; 2) it allows for repeated execution of a maneuver to learn it or improve upon it - sharpening it to a well-honed ability; 3) the horizontal spatial reference that provides a need to be balanced and stay in one place - many people believe they are falling "straight down" in free fall when they are not (because they have no spatial reference in the air by themselves. Amen. There are too many elements of the skydive that are missing in the tunnel. Some of them were already mentioned in the other thread - all the way from gearing up to landing. This includes the "big picture" references - the development of that skydiver "sixth sense" that kicks in on occasion and not only keeps us safe but others as well. Whatever the reason(s), personal arguments need to be confined to PMs so forwarding conversations such as this one can continue without being clouded. Arrive Safely John

You're welcome! Have fun and be safe. Arrive Safely John

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Bump! Arrive Safely John

I'm not an engineer, but I got it. I bet the designer of that poster went to Clemson! Arrive Safely John

Anyone in UK familiar with hotels in Oxford please shoot me a PM. Cheers! Arrive Safely John

Raeford Parachute Center uses the USPA ISP. Arrive Safely John

You stand corrected. How you interpreted my reply as defensive, I don't know - it was anything but that. If you really feel that the big mouth is worth your time, I suggest you ask your DZO to look him up in the DZO database. All Group Members have access to it. Arrive Safely John

I can think of a couple of reasons why other skydivers might want the ability to check on other skydivers' rating currency, but I am interested in hearing what yours are. What are they? Arrive Safely John

GREAT rec on the Columbia! Phenomenal food, nice old world atmosphere, flamenco dancers, and the discovery of a new kind of rum that I am in love with! Matusalem Gran Reserva Thanks for the recommendation - it was well worth it. Arrive Safely John

You have a standing invitation to join me whenever you can make it to Raeford. I do tandems with experienced jumpers now and again for various reasons. Rewriting your skydiving past is a perfect reason! Arrive Safely John

Let's keep the thread in G&R going. http://www.dropzone.com/cgi-bin/forum/gforum.cgi?post=3099631;sb=post_latest_reply;so=ASC;forum_view=forum_view_collapsed; Arrive Safely John

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Added Jason Russell (RackJR) from SVCO. Arrive Safely John