Spizzzarko

There's a very easy way to allieviate that problem. Bump up your pull altitude, and your decision altitude. I don't like to be in freefall below 3.5, and my decision altitud is about 2.0. If I were jumping bigger more docile equipment, then maybee I would lower those altitudes, but how much stuff really happens in freefall below 4.0, so maybee, I wouldn't lower those altitudes. Tthose who do not get to do practice flares bring it on themselves. So to hear people crying on DZ.com, about how they didn't have time to make prcatice flares, is just assignine. As far as tempo's and PD's go, like I said earlier, I have landed both and I like the PD's better. Look at this thread even... Look how many people are talking about tempo's stalling, having a built in turn, and what not. You really don't hear about to many PD Reservse blowing up like Ravens do. You don't hear about to many PD-R's stalling on landing. You don't hear about to many PD-R's requiring a grip of toggle input to just fly straight. All of these traits are UN-ACCEPTABLE! A reserve should fly straight, and not stall above your shoulders. If you had a main that stalled with your toggle inputs above your shoulders, would you land it? If you had a main that had a built in turn that required more than 50% toggle input to keep it flying straight, would you land it? I wouldn't land either of those, so, is it to much to ask of canopy manufactures to build a product that fly's correctly? The people out there that continue to purchase these inferrior products are condoning this practice of manufactures making & selling shitty products, just to make a buck. All in all it's your life, and what you wear on your back is your choice, and I really don't care if you live or die, but I have made the choice to jump with quality products. In this sport you get what you pay for, so if you'r looking to save a few buck's then your going to pay for it elsewhere.

Tell'em Rusty!!! Grant

What is this e-mail ting you speak of?

"I'm feeling a little feklempt... Talk amongst yourselves..." From Coffe Talk SNL

I loaded my tempo's significantly higher than his 1.15 when I landed mine. We all have to make the decision of what we want on our backs, and I have decided to go with the PD's for the reasons listed above. Have fun, and hopefully you will not have to land under any reserve.

Also the PD will probably have a better resale value when you downsize.

I've landed two tempo's, and they both sucked. A 170 and a 150. Now I wasn't the best canopy pilot at the time, but they still sucked. I have also landed a raven, and it sucked too. The smallest reserve I have landed was a pd-126r. It was an awesome landing. I loaded it at about 1.8, and I landed it at 5500msl, on a 95 degree day. The Density altitude was over 9,000', and there was no wind. In my experience the best landing reserve is a PD reserve. I have seen many other people land different reserves, and the PD has looked the best. I have seen people get hurt landing their reserves too, and it can happen on any reserve, but I think a lot of people will tell you, that you get what you pay for in this sport. So don't skimp on your last line of defense when it comes to you and the ground.

He has gotten good. The last time I saw him was at NSL swoop comp a year and a half ago. I had a budy of mine from Canon tell me that they saw him at Z-hills the other weekend. I was at the swoop comp where he got that picture taken of him on the pond at Perris, that graced the back cover of skydiving mag for the longest time for GO FAST. That's when i met him. I was talking Ryan T into competeing for the CPC this year. I think he could be fairly competetive, if he stays consistant. I'm having positive thoughts allready, about the WX. All of this talking about the cpc makes me want to go out and jump. Doing about 10-15 hop and pops wouldn't hurt me, as I don't feel ultra current this season yet.

It sure is long... The pond that is haha. If the WX is bad on Sat then I'll come up on Sun.

I would place a bet, and it probably wont be on me, but I would place money on you though. I'll be up on Sat. What's the WX supposed to be?

The instructors usually stink.

The only other thing I have to say is "BRING IT" I'm looking forward to flying with you all on the water. Grant

I think it's probably the points in steve's case. I mean look at the dude, if you where a chick would you go after that?

why do you think the Air Force paints all of their jets grey? Why do you think that the military parachutes are grey? Grey or silver is the best camoflage in the sky. If it's not moving against an off color, then it's very difficult to see.

Nevermind the obvious answer about being a "sky ninja" on sunset loads with other canopies in the air what do you mean by that?

On night jumps, you shouldn't be looking for some ones canopy or rig in the sky. All of the jumpers should be well illuminated. Night jumps have an increased risk of incident, as your visibility is greatly increased. There are rules and regulations set out for a reason. Being the sky nija at night and not having the proper illumination is not a cool thing.

Also those FXC's are the best maintained FXC's in the world. I trusted them to work, but it's getting to be more cost effective to go with thte CYpri!!! So what are you doing in the AF now? I got out and I'm now a civilian down at peterson. Are you still jumping a lot?

I gave up on the non winnable fight. It would be cool and all for it to happen, but for the reasons stated, I doubt it would happen. Now if a few people left or retired, then there may be a better chance. But there are some civilians so entrenched in their old ways, that it wont happen untill they go away.

I wonder how Slash's cigarrette stsyed lit in freefall. That dude always has a cig.

"Other unrelated topic: how's AM490 going? that program scares me, and should scare any skydiver. (for everyone else, it's a first jump course for cadets where you do 5 jumps, all 10 second solo freefalls from 4500) " Scott, If there was any incling that 490 was unsafe in any standpoint, do you think that Upper level leadership would let the program continue? Have you thought about the static line progression that several civilian DZ's use? Compare them, and you will find a lot of similarities. I challenge any civilian DZ to compare safety records with USAFA. I think that almost all of the civilian DZ's would fall short. Just because you went throught the program doesn't mean you really know that much about the program. So instead of talking out of your ass, why don't you research a subject prior to comenting about it. Do you honestly think that we as Staff members would let a cadet anywhere near an airplane if we felt that we did not arm them with the knowledge of how to save their own life? Look back at the training you recieved and compare it to any first jump course in the world. Can you tell me that any of those FJC's are as comprehensive, or as rigorous as that of the academy? If a cadet didn't pass the evaluation on a block of instruction, then that person was retrained, and if they still didn't comprehend the subject, then they got to do other things while their friends jumped. So you say 490 scares you and should scare anyother skydiver. I say most civilian DZ's training programs are inadiquate, and "SCARY". Do you want to compare the equipment there at the academy to any other civilian dz, or shall we move on? As far as the freeflying stuff goes, think about the big picture of what the Academy Parachute team does. The entire reason they are around is to run 490 as a leadership laboratory. The focus on 4-way, style , acc, and freefly is just a fring benefit. How has doing freefly helped you out as a carreer Air Force Officer? Neither would 4-way, style, acc, or doing Airshows help you out in that respect in your carreer. Let's focus on the freefly issue at hand. Freefly is a "Trial Event" at the US Collegiate Nationals" The only medals that count are the 4-way, style, acc, and 2 way. Now put yourself in the 98th commanders shoes. Medals are good things to show your boss, as he goes and tells his boss that the people below him are "Dominating the collegiate parachuting nationals", and it goes up the chain so on and so forth. Why should the CC take focus away from the medaling events, where the Army is giving the AF a run for their money, and expend unnecesary energy on something that get's him no reward? Now lets take a look at the safety factor of why we do not have freeflying at USAFA. We take cadets with approx 50-150 jumps and put them in collegiate comp. Some of these cadets can barely do 4-way with out one person backsliding the entire dive, another person having fall rate issues, and a third person making hard docks causing the entire formation to funnle. Now do you think that it's a smart idea to try and teach them to fly on their heads, and asses, and increase their vertical decent rate to speeds of 150+. This would make an allready short skydive in Colorado that much shorter, decreasing their working time in the air, and possibly throwing off their internal clock. The last thing the commander needs is to report to his boss that "We have had a 78% increase in AAD fires because we are freeflying." Malfunctions just don't stay in house. A report is generated, and is sent to the pentagon. Every year a Malfuntion Review Board is formed at the pentagon and all of the malfunctions are examined. Now how do you think Senior level leadership is going to react when they see the Academy having a skyrocketing malfunction rate. "Why are we spending millions of dollars a year, when there is a war going on, on a character development program where our future leaders are trying to kill themselves?" That's exactly what they are going to think. So you see Freeflying at the Academy has no relavence to anything that goes on there. Now if it became a medaling event at collegiates, then they may weight the risks and rewards against their Operational Risk Matrix, and make a decision from there. You are familiar with the AF's love of ORM aren't you? Now I hope you are slightly more informed about the program that you only saw a small part of.

The Ambigously Gay 4-Wayz

I'm glad to hear that. The american legal system is set up the way it is, because we make it that way. The great thing about our society, is that we can change things. So if you want to change the punishments for sex laws then take a stance on it and talk to your senators. Harrasing some dude because he broke a law in the past is no way to go about it.

No that's not what I'm implying. What mary is saying is harrasment plain and simple. How would you feel if people harrased you and made a public spectacle about the skeletons in your closet?

Are you so innocent that you can cast the first stone?

Subaru Impreza R.S. It's allwhell drive and starts around 19.