skycat

Hmmm.....I was thinking more about the creative stuff you made with BASE straps and stuff Fly it like you stole it!

I know, I can't beleive how innocent I am, I'm soooo not your everyday skydiver. Fly it like you stole it!

hehe...this is funny about an hr after posting this today the guy who wanted me to get a group from the office together to make a jump came up to me and said "Well it's to bad the season is over, guess I'll have to wait till next year" He didn't like my answer of "Season's over? We jump all year"..... Fly it like you stole it!

So Bill when do we get to see pictures of your toys Fly it like you stole it!

Well hook is currently in lovely Napa, CA and should be visiting a Northern CA DZ this weekend.....could be yours....so treat him right, and don't even bother running out to the landing area to video him landing the 60, it really is pretty boring....whistle, whoosh, done. Of course I'll be a little angel here in Denver by myself. A few jumps out of the casa this weekend then strait home...no partying for me. Really....I swear..... Fly it like you stole it!

Hmmm...I know Derek is suppose to be doing a weekend boogie rep thing at elsinore for icarus some weekend. I wonder if it is that one? I hope not since we are suppose to be in NM doing the state record that weekend. Fly it like you stole it!

hehehe...thats and easy one....hook doesn't drink Fly it like you stole it!

Oh yes they can .....Mmmmm....rigger toys. Ohhh...and after BASE jump sex is definately the best Fly it like you stole it!

Actually the Vecor 3 does, just in a different way. Instead of tucking into a slot it folds under and tucks under the side flaps. Derek has a micron and it's reserve flap is just as secure if not more so than the one on my mirage. I have seen though where on both rigs if the reserve is to big or even on the larger containers where the bottom of the flaps don't stay tucked. Fly it like you stole it!

When I moved to Denver a bunch of people heard that I skydived and wanted to try it. When they asked me to get a group together to do it I immediately said no. I know how people are about showing up and told them to get the group together and I would take care of getting their deposits and the scheduling. One of the guys even said that he had tried to go with a group of friends before, but they all backed out at the last min so he didn't want to get stuck having to go alone. Of course I told him that since I would be out there that that was no excuse and if he ended up out there alone I could work it out so Derek was his TM and I would be able to lurk. So far no one has coughed up the $50 and I'm not expecting them to. Fly it like you stole it!

I might, haven't decided yet. Kind of depends on how cold it is, since we are suppose to have some front come threw today Fly it like you stole it!

Yeah, he wasn't doing so well last time I saw him when I went to pick up my canopy. Gained alot of weight, if I remember right he was loading his FX99 heavier than Derek loads his 60. Kept trying to get him to come out to Skydive Houston but he would just never show up. *shrug* Fly it like you stole it!

ummm....wingie I'm pretty sure that the elevation is lower than Calhan. Fly it like you stole it!

I was thinking it sounded more like Kyle Marple. Mike L lives in Houston last I heard which was almost a year ago so that could have changed. I do know that he hadn't jumped in almost a year the last time I talked to him. Fly it like you stole it!

0:0:1 No jumping this weekend for me cause I climbed my 1st 14er. Grays Peak....trail is only about 3 miles long but it is pretty much strait up over 3000ft. Elevation 14,270' Yep that is right for all of you jumping yesterday I would have been looking down on your plane. We were going to do Torreys peak at the same time which is right next to it across the saddle, but once at the top of Grays we know Fox and several of the other people we were with wouldn't make it plus it was windy as hell up there. So we hiked on down with a mountain goat looking at us like we lost our minds being up that high. So no jumping for me since I'm covering for someone at work today. Fly it like you stole it!

I had the same problem, I learned on a 215 F-111 with a WL of maybe .5 I was 95 lbs with clothes on at the time. I couldn't stand it up for anything, the biggest problem was flaring, the toggle pressure was so high that when I flared I lifted myself in the harness. I also got really good a PLFing while going backwards. Of course those were the least of my problems, I had my rig slip off my shoulders in Freefall, once only one shoulder and the 2nd time both shoulders when I went to track for the 1st time. Needless to say I'm a HUGE advocate for at least 1 smaller rig for small jumpers with a main that will be closer to in WL as what the rest of the jumpers learn on. I know one local DZ that it doesn't matter what size you are the 1st canopy that you jump will be a 288. For me that would have been a .4 WL I strongly believe that that WL can be just as dangerous as putting a student on to high of a WL just for different reasons. (ie. Backing up, keeping the canopy inflated, toggle pressure, lack of response to toggle input) On top of it, a 288 only goes in a very large rig cause that means it has a very large reserve....do you really think a container that large would stay on someone that small?? Let me answer that....NO. We ended up having to duct tape the rig to me in hopes of it staying on threw my student status, I was the only jump allowed to jump their own gear by jump 10 due to the student gear being more dangerous than personal gear with a much smaller 150 main (still a .8WL). Fly it like you stole it!

Look up the quote if you fall down it doesn't count.....then you will see a great debate on that line you just posted. Fly it like you stole it!

Derek had already emailed y'all about it and it looks like a no go since he has every tandem rating but strong's.

Hey how did you guys get tequilagirl to flash for you Fly it like you stole it!

Well I can't get you a pic of a FX69, but if you want one of a VX60 just holler...I've got tons of those. Fly it like you stole it!

Well I know the pin can be bent, cause when I first got my reflex (bought used) it had a slight bend in it that the rigger straitened out. Every rigger I have ever had pack my reflex has used a temp-pin for tightening the pop-top down except for the last few little tugs to snug it down. Everyone of them has said that reflex pins were softer than pins on other rigs and could bend. On a side note, before my last repack we tightened my pop-top down before popping the reserve for a repack. After snugging it down the pull force was still only 14lbs. Fly it like you stole it!

When I got my new container last year I did the same thing, except I was at the office wearing it around. I'm sure everyone thought I was nuts, but since they knew I skydived I'm sure they thought it was just par for the course..... congrats on the new rig Fly it like you stole it!

You know that is kind of funny, my first bike was a FXZ600R. Could barely touch the ground and was scared of dropping it every time I came to a red light cause I knew I couldn't pick it back up. My next bike if I ever quit buying skydiving toys and get a different toy will be a ninga 250, why?? Cause I want to be able to touch the ground and well be able to pick it up when it falls over. As a side note I weight 105 with clothes on so there is more than enought power with the 250 and my weight. Which if you think about it is the same thing as me right now under my crossfire 104. the WL might only be 1.2 but as small as I am and the canopy is it is just as fast and has just as much power as me driving the 250 vs someone 170 lbs driving the 600 or flying a 135 and that isn't even adding in the fact that I jump at 5k ft Fly it like you stole it!

Exactly, Chuck said it better than I ever could, every canopy is different every pilot is different and every day is different. Even Derek flies every canopy he jumps differently it just so happens he snap hooks his 60, but that is only 1 canopy he jumps. He tries different techniques on the different canopies that he jumps, then goes with the one that works the best for that canopy for him. Such as the Crossfire2 89 and the Samurai 95 he said those are carving canopies, made to be smoothly carved and had beautiful accurate swoops on both of them. He has his reasons for snapping his 60 and alot has to do with the set up and the speed of the canopy. He has tried carves with the 60 and decided that it was not what worked best for him mostly due to the much higher set up that was needed. So don't pidgeon hole him into one kind of canopy pilot, he is much more well rounded than that. Also don't forget that not every canopy pilot wants the same things out of their canopies, Derek has the 60 for speed pure and simple, nothing more nothing less. He has already said that his next canopy will be bigger and is excited to try Big Air Sportz new crossbrased especially since after only 500 jumps his VX is about to be turned into a kite for me. That kind of WL is very hard on the canopy. btw...he actually has to start his hook by about 1000ft now due to the higher elevation and how much faster the canopies fly up here. Fly it like you stole it!

Have you ever or ever had a packer close your flaps in the wrong order? Grommets can easily nick eachother. I have a picture of the grommets from the reserve container were the reserve closing loop broke. The grommet in question was like the 2nd one down so a pin check would not have shown the damage to the closing loop or the grommet. As for background on this, *shrug* I don't know the rigger he is some guy from OK, so I have no idea of the closing loop was replaced after every repack or what. This is one of the many pics out of Derek's book of the rigger's hall of shame. Fly it like you stole it!