Ron

I prefer DGIT. "No free man shall ever be debarred the use of arms." -- Thomas Jefferson, Thomas Jefferson Papers, 334

It did not look the same to a CYPRES. So, it can also NOT look the same. To ME when two devices are put into the same *false* situation... The one that reacts incorrectly has a problem. Yep and that ALSO was a bad thing. It has now been addressed. Unless you think that it was a bad thing they invented the swoop CYPRES? If you think an AAD firing due to a door opening is fine.... Please don't get on the same plane as me. "No free man shall ever be debarred the use of arms." -- Thomas Jefferson, Thomas Jefferson Papers, 334

Firing because the door opened is not the same as a low chop or a bailout. Low chop... You were in freefall Bailout... You are in freefall. Door opening could result in losing a whole plane full of people. Why? I am not in the market to make an AAD and there are units that already work fine with parameters that not only sound good, but have been proven over the years. I don't have to create a new wheel design to make the statement that a square wheel is not a good idea. 1. It has happened more than once. 2. If you can't see how a reserve being fired just due to the door opening is a danger... You didn't pay attention in your FJC. "No free man shall ever be debarred the use of arms." -- Thomas Jefferson, Thomas Jefferson Papers, 334

This just proves you have not been reading anything. No, it is all you keep hearing. Because it is all you want to hear. There is no debate on how it performs... The debate is if it is suitable for a low time jumper. And if that low time jumper is really qualified to make that decision. No, I know your TYPE and I know your experience level. I have seen thousands of guys with your experience, seen hundreds with your attitude. No, I assume you are a guy that only listens to advice that supports what he wants. It has been proven by you quoting Brian, but then ignoring how he say's elliptical's are NOT ALLOWED until after 300 jumps. Here it is again: http://www.bigairsportz.com/pdf/bas-sizingchart.pdf So again you have shown you only hear what you want to hear. That just proves my assumption (along with a whole bunch of other things you have posted). Unfortunately, experience allows me to see the same ego filled personalities in new people year after year. It is pretty clear that you do... since you keep trying to prove you are correct and keep posting even after you have claimed several times that you were done. Seriously.... How many times do you think in 16+ years I have been jumping that I have seen guys acting EXACTLY like you? "No free man shall ever be debarred the use of arms." -- Thomas Jefferson, Thomas Jefferson Papers, 334

Oh the irony: "No free man shall ever be debarred the use of arms." -- Thomas Jefferson, Thomas Jefferson Papers, 334

The Super Cup used to be held every year, but it disappeared a few years ago..... It's back! The details: 1st place AAA 1,000.00 1st place AA 500.00 1st place A 300.00 All places have medals or plaques. Straight up score, no handicap. Registration: 40.00 a team. 6 rounds, Sat only. 4 classes (AAA, AA, A, rookie). This will be the NSL selection event for Texas. There will be free coaching. We will be helping to put together teams if you are interested. Hit me up here via PM, or email for more info. I will post more info as I get it. "No free man shall ever be debarred the use of arms." -- Thomas Jefferson, Thomas Jefferson Papers, 334

Seen it several times over the years. Then at least they bounce at a different DZ. Low pulls, low turns, attitude. In some cases yes... Others no. "No free man shall ever be debarred the use of arms." -- Thomas Jefferson, Thomas Jefferson Papers, 334

I have had many people in my 16 years in this sport come to me later and apologize for being a dooffus. Almost everyone thought they were above average and the rules should not apply to them. Some got hurt, some saw someone get hurt, others just dropped the ego and realized that no one is after them. I saved some of the PM's and emails.... Funny to read years later when another guy goes off and claims I have no idea what I am talking about. I just think.... Here we go AGAIN "No free man shall ever be debarred the use of arms." -- Thomas Jefferson, Thomas Jefferson Papers, 334

And, IMO, it is a bad design if it can fire due to only the door opening. "No free man shall ever be debarred the use of arms." -- Thomas Jefferson, Thomas Jefferson Papers, 334

FAIL!!!! Sorry, you sure did mention collisions. You shot yourself in the foot, accept it and move on. It is relevant when you make a statement about people flying right not needing to do an avoidance maneuver. Again, accept it and move along. "No free man shall ever be debarred the use of arms." -- Thomas Jefferson, Thomas Jefferson Papers, 334

Your logic is flawed. You are claiming that you can "fly right" and be able to avoid having to do a turn to avoid a collision. BUT you are claiming that you can "fly right" and not be able to avoid a collision. When, in fact, the person who tries to avoid was more aware than the guy that just got hit. "No free man shall ever be debarred the use of arms." -- Thomas Jefferson, Thomas Jefferson Papers, 334

Key word there: "experienced". Then quit trying to justify it. Make the statement that you are better than we think and we don't know anything and move on with your life. I hope you don't get hurt. But I have seen this play out over and over. "No free man shall ever be debarred the use of arms." -- Thomas Jefferson, Thomas Jefferson Papers, 334

The problem is you may have too big of an ego for your skill set. Dave said it best..... Most are smart enough to know that skills from one area of life does not translate to another. I am not sure you are able to do that, and your postings don't seem to support that. I had a buddy... Infantryman, Cop, GREAT soccer player, and a tunnel rat that had some amazing air skills (better than me). Notice I said "had"? He was a bad ass in so many areas... Till he had his first mal around 1k jumps and rode it to the ground. I had another buddy.... Airline captain that could fly a 747 around the world (and had). He got a new canopy and twisted it up at about 600 feet and died. This one bothered me since I was doing CPR on him when the medics pulled me off to state he was gone. I could go on..... It is not your canopy selection... It is the attitude that you are supporting your selection with. The fact you are ignoring PD (120 pound jumper INT exp) and Brian (no ellipticals with less than 300 jumps) makes it hard for me to believe you are really listening to anyone. Or more accurately that you are only listening when someone tells you what you want to hear. BillV had a list of traits that people that got hurt under canopy all had.... You seem to be using it as a checklist. I hope I am wrong... I have seen enough people carted off the DZ. I have attended enough funerals due to ego. I hope you don't get hurt. "No free man shall ever be debarred the use of arms." -- Thomas Jefferson, Thomas Jefferson Papers, 334

I know established ideas are hard to accept. It's okay. It will really be okay. You can be in denial all you want, but if you think a jumper with your experience could possibly fly a Stiletto 190 at 1.1 safely then your ego is bigger than it should be, and I seriously doubt your experience on that canopy with that wingloading. We have now reached the "grasping at straws" section of the program. Skygod is an attitude that you know better than everyone else..... You are showing that attitude more than anyone else here. And you are too stubborn to realize that no one is out to get you and we have heard this same spiel from other 100 jump wonders. They too thought they were better than their jump numbers indicated. I have personally held several of them together while we waited for the ambulance to take them away. Funny thing is.... If you last in this sport, one day you will find a 100 jump wonder totally ignoring your advice. He will have a big attitude and claim to know better than you and insult you. Then you will find all this funny. You ignored PD, you have ignored Brian's recommendations.... Yes, you are gonna claim Brian said you would be fine. That is only because Brian is trying to get you to listen a little and if he tells you that you will be fine *IF*, he is hoping you will listen to the IF. And he knows a guy like you will ignore anyone that does not coddle you and stroke your ego. But his written recommendations clearly spell out no fully ellipticals till 300 jumps and you have ignored that. I hope you don't get hurt. I also hope you drop the attitude and the ego. "No free man shall ever be debarred the use of arms." -- Thomas Jefferson, Thomas Jefferson Papers, 334

Actually... No... you only read what you wanted to read and ignored the part I bolded. Here is is again: http://www.bigairsportz.com/pdf/bas-sizingchart.pdf Here is the point you ignored last time again : "Fully Elliptical Canopies are not permitted for jumpers with less than 300 jumps" Like I said, you are ignoring anything that does not support your position, just so you can feel better about your selection. You have said you are above average over and over.... You even used those EXACT words: "I guess I am better than average." If you think you are above average... Then man up and say you think you are above average and therefore should have a separate set of rules apply to you and your mad skillz. If you think "Mutually exclusive" is a big word,.... I don't know what to tell you. Of course he has more experience than you.... That is the very definition of experience. Now we could break it down in to relevant experience, but a guy with twice your number of jumps has twice your experience. And yes, I believe in currency. Do you believe in experience and currency? If so, I have made 109 jumps in one week... That's almost the total number of jumps you have. And I would bet I am also more current than you. So, what makes you think that with 41 times the experience you have, AND being more current than you... that somehow you know more than me? You keep saying that.... But the problem is, you keep saying that. "No free man shall ever be debarred the use of arms." -- Thomas Jefferson, Thomas Jefferson Papers, 334

And here is the one guy that the young guy looks for for verification and validation of his less than smart acts. In school... the same place you need to go to learn to read. If you go to PD's website, it lists what sizes and wingloadings are appropriate for the Stiletto. They don't recommend the Stiletto 190 until *INT* experience and then only with an exit weight of 152 pounds. Exit weight of 152 pounds with 30 pounds of gear and clothes = 122 pounds for the jumper. See if you take 152 - 30 you get 122. Now I said "about 120 pounds"... But I did say "about", when I could have said 122 pounds exactly. So go read it again..... "No free man shall ever be debarred the use of arms." -- Thomas Jefferson, Thomas Jefferson Papers, 334

You talk a lot about Brian and his recommendations... But, you don't seem to follow them either. http://www.bigairsportz.com/pdf/bas-sizingchart.pdf So you don't seem to listen to him either. "No free man shall ever be debarred the use of arms." -- Thomas Jefferson, Thomas Jefferson Papers, 334

Only you can control that. But they are reading what you type. See how you are upset at people who are making conclusions off very little information and you claim they don't know what they are talking about.... That is just like you thinking you know a Stiletto off of only 25 jumps. Funny huh? You never answered my question: How many people that died under canopy... Thought they could handle that canopy? This is funny: Then you say: So which is it: 1. You don't think you are above average. or 2. You are learning things most people don't know until hundreds of jumps later and you are better than guys with twice your jump numbers? Cause they are mutually exclusive. That's not true. Shows you don't really know all you think you know. You might have just chopped a canopy you could have landed. It is MUCH more than 'just chop it'.... You have to know the TYPE of spin, and your altitude loss. I am willing to bet that I know Brian much better than you.... I have known him since 1995. Again, how many dead skydivers thought the EXACT same way? "No free man shall ever be debarred the use of arms." -- Thomas Jefferson, Thomas Jefferson Papers, 334

If you know how to fly them, they have great openings. They have great glide ratios and can get you back from a bad spot. They can be landed in really short areas if you have to do it. But physics has not changed.... They still are as high performance as they were the day they were introduced. Yes, other canopy's have become higher performance, but that does not remove any performance from the Stiletto. "No free man shall ever be debarred the use of arms." -- Thomas Jefferson, Thomas Jefferson Papers, 334

Huh, my sources said Billy RAISED his rates thinking that since he was 1/3rd owner that the DZ was required to use only his airplanes. I have also been told that they are paying the SAME amount they were paying Billy. And I can tell you as a jumper at Zhills.... The service has gotten better. I can remember watching the Otter taxi out on a Sunday morning as people were showing up to jump to fly off to the Ranch. The DZ lost a days revenue that day, and I seem to remember that happening more than once. Long story short is two business's had a disagreement and have parted ways. The DZO's have found another vendor and the service at the DZ has gotten better, IMO. How much they pay for that service is none of my business.... But I have zero issue jumping DeLands planes at the Hills and several other people don't seem to mind either. "No free man shall ever be debarred the use of arms." -- Thomas Jefferson, Thomas Jefferson Papers, 334

And remember, Billy let TK fly his Otters. "No free man shall ever be debarred the use of arms." -- Thomas Jefferson, Thomas Jefferson Papers, 334

#1 who pissed in your cornflakes? "Claim" is another way of saying you "said", or you "state".... please see 3B http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/claim A data point of one is exactly that..... One. And to claim it will *never* spin based on a data point of one incident out of a base of 25 is not a very good argument. Nope, but that does not change the facts about how the canopy flies and your inexperience with it and in general. I have flown canopies as big as 420sqft and as small as 69sqft. I have landed rounds, 7 cells, and 9 cells in various planeforms. I have jumped elliptical canopies at 1.1 as well as almost 2.0. And I stand by 17 years in the sport, almost 5k jumps, and seeing guys that think they are better than they are being carried off the field broken time after time.... everyone thinks they are *special*.... Yet *Physics does not change* based on how nice you are, or how skilled you are.... or think you are. Not where I am coming from... you are just so quick to defend your actions that you don't bother to listen to what has been said. But I have seen SO many people that thought they were better skilled than average get broken... and here is a hint, most people think they are better than average, and mathematically that is not possible. Everyone cannot be better than average. Regrettably we often find out who was not by a thread in the incident reports section. Ask yourself this.... Out of ALL of the people that have died under canopy. How many of them thought they were over their heads, and how many thought they were skilled enough to fly the canopy they died under? I have seen instructors sell equipment to students that they were not ready for just to sell it. More importantly, I have seen students "shop" for someone that will tell them what they want to hear. They have been on WL from under 1/1 to as high as over 2.0. Some have been tandems, some have been way sub 100 canopy's. The Stilettos I have had to chop were 1.4-1.7/1 Sure it makes it MORE, but that does not mean a light WL does not have the same traits. You seem to think a light WL removes the ability of a ST to spin up, and you base that on 25 jumps on a ST. That is not a logical conclusion based on all the available data, just on the tiny sample you have. No one argued that... you just seem to think we did. What you are ignoring is that a light WL does not remove the possibility.... And that makes no sense and you base it all on 25 jumps. Perception is not reality.... It is only perception. Go call PD and tell them that you think the Storm is more dangerous than a Stiletto and let us know what they say. Again, you seem to think we are "out to get you" and "trying to hold your mad skills back".... But you want to ignore that fact that many of use have TONS more experience than you.... And that includes doing, watching, teaching, AND screwing up. Lets see.... you have 115 jumps, I have ~4800. So that's 41.7 times the experience. Or, 41 jumps for every single jump you have ever made. I don't know about you.... But if a guy with 41.7 times the experience than me (200,347 jumps) started talking to me... I would listen... I defiantly would not be talking down to him. "No free man shall ever be debarred the use of arms." -- Thomas Jefferson, Thomas Jefferson Papers, 334

You claim to have 25 jumps on it..... How do you know it will not spin up on the next jump? Just because it has not yet? I go about 500 jumps between malfunctions... But that does not mean it will take 500 jumps for it to do it. Yes, but the same website also shows that they don't recommend the Stiletto 190 until *INT* experience and then only with an exit weight of 152 pounds. So unless you weigh about 120 pounds you are not following their advice. Glad you are not dead, but one persons opinion with only 25 jumps is just that... One opinion with limited exp. "No free man shall ever be debarred the use of arms." -- Thomas Jefferson, Thomas Jefferson Papers, 334

While I think TK screwed up.... He just didn't have the rating. He has a Muti engine Commercial, but does not have *single* engine commercial. So he was considered competent to fly a multi engine otter for commercial reasons. He just did not have a rating. He was competent to fly the Cessna... Just not legal. BTW I consider that a REALLY stupid rule. so I can fly a Twin Otter for commercial reasons, but I can't fly a Cessna????? Makes zero sense. He admitted his mistake and will accept the punishment. But there was no extra danger. TK and I fight like dogs over politics.... I'd let him fly me anytime. "No free man shall ever be debarred the use of arms." -- Thomas Jefferson, Thomas Jefferson Papers, 334

There were 22 4 way teams there last weekend. I would not call that 'dead' in any stretch. What happened is Billy has lost his monopoly and was reminded that being 1/3 owner does not equal you are the only vendor in town. Him going off and trying to sue is not helping his case. As it stands he has a cool hanger in a place he does not fly and needs to find a new place to winter his planes. I am sure he will not have any trouble finding a place. The owners are looking at buying aircraft, but Bob Hallett is more than willing to help out till SDC is back on its own feet. Bob was even flying the PAC in Zhills this weekend.... Not exactly a confrontational situation when you have another DZO *flying* at your DZ to help you out. "No free man shall ever be debarred the use of arms." -- Thomas Jefferson, Thomas Jefferson Papers, 334