beezyshaw

Does anybody second that?

Just thought I'd bump the thread so somebody out there will help me on this!

Let's say 10,000 MSL, which would be about the altitude it would reach terminal if exiting at normal jump altitudes.

C'mon, Scott. You look like a pretty smart guy, so give me a number! Yea, give me a number, and while I'm workin' on the number, tell me how fast a bowling ball goes in freefall!

Yep, that's what I said too, but I'm being asked HOW FAST is really freakin' fast?

Thanks for the links to the sites, guys, but I can't make heads or tails out of those formulas! Anybody understand this stuff enough to calculate it?

Alright, all you brainy peeps out there. I'm trying to get the answer to this question and need help. I was asked recently about terminal velocity of different objects. Specifically, I am trying to find what terminal velocity of a bowling ball would be. Of course, density of the air is a big factor, but let's say at normal skydiving altitudes for this question. And of course the weight of the ball is also important, so let's say a 16 lb. ball.

Those pictures are actually of NITRO canopies, taken before Precison began manufacturing their Nitron copy of the NITRO.

The Nitron is a copy of the NITRO. Here are the differences: 1)The NITRO uses Gelvenor ZP fabric, which is preferred over the very slippery fabric the Nitron is built from; the NITRO is much easier to control during packing. 2)The leading edge of the NITRO is attached in a unique way, as a single piece of fabric attached with small tapes to each rib; this leading edge has shown to add stability during the landing flair. 3)The Technora suspension lines on the NITRO are now made with a dramatic improvement over the older HMA still used by the Nitron. The NITRO lines have a much better resistance to UV damage, so the lineset will last considerably longer. As a bonus, this new line used on the NITRO happens to be black(because of the UV protection), which everyone thinks is pretty cool. 4) The spanwise reinforcement tapes used in the NITRO are not used in construction of the Nitron. 5) The NITRO does pack a tiny bit larger than the Nitron, because of the stronger construction materials used in the NITRO. 6) The NITRO has a nice checkerboard pattern on the center cell that isn't available on the Nitron. 7) The retail price of the NITRO is a little less than the Nitron.

And here's our homepage done in "redneck"... http://www.psyclops.com/translator/translator.cgi?url=http%3A%2F%2Fhiperusa.com&mode=redneck But hey, that's the way the page first looked until I paid some high-dollar college graduate-type to rewrite it!

That's pretty good, Aubrey. Did you catch the link at the bottom of the website? The Snoop version is based on this website... http://www.psyclops.com/translator/

A few pictures, taken by Jason Waller, of our skydive on Saturday at Chris' memorial service...

Quote...the Untied States Parachute Association's "Student Information Manual," commonly referred to as the "SIM." Actually the SIM is the Skydiver's Information Manual

Hi, everybody on dz.com. The last week has been very difficult for me. Needless to say, losing your best friend in the world is not something easy to cope with. We had a wonderful memorial service for Chris today at Tennessee Skydiving Center. Both biological and skydiving families were there and we honored him in a way that I know he would have approved of. I was asked to speak at the service and also to participate in the ash dive which followed. My wife Tracie and I would like to thank everyone for the outpouring of love and concern that you all have shown to Chris and his family. As difficult as it was for me, I somehow found the stregth to say this about my friend, companion, brother, earlier today... "I first met Chris in the very early 90’s when I was making test jumps for Precision, and I would come up here to the dz on weekdays to make jumps out of 42 Bravo. As I spent many an afternoon with just him, we got to know each other quite well in a short period of time. What first struck me about Chris was what a smart guy he was. Chris had a very keen wit, and many of the things he would joke about would go right over most people’s heads. As the years went by, my friend began to work with me at Precision. As it was only a handful of guys in a factory full of “the ladies” (as we have always fondly referred to them), we spent our working hours together, ate lunch together, made test jumps after work until dark, then jumped together at the dz on weekends, and spent a lot of time on the road together. Needless to say, when you’re around someone 7 days a week, and sometimes 24 hours a day for several years, you get to know that person quite well. Chris was the kind of person that I could actually still stand to be around even after years of such close contact. The more I was around Chris; the more he rubbed off on me…now that’s a scary thought! We had many conversations about some of the serious sides of life, many of those late at night when Chris was feeling particularly “philosophical”. While Chris is certainly remembered most for his off-the-wall sense of humor, he did have many serious thoughts and views of life. The single most important of those more serious sides of Chris was his devotion to his wife Kristi and his daughters Haley and Annabelle. I can tell you with utmost certainty that nothing meant more to Chris than his family. I’m sure that all of us that were close to Chris already know that, and Kristi you certainly know that, but I feel it important to say it now so that anybody here who may not have realized what a devoted family man Chris was, will come to a better understanding of the “real” Chris Martin. I came to love Chris Martin as my brother and that’s what makes his family forever mine as well. Chris was the kind of guy that didn’t waste time getting to the task at hand. When something needed to be done, he was always first to roll up his sleeves and get with it. He wasn’t afraid to get his hands dirty, whether it be turning wrenches on an airplane, fixing the mechanical or electronic systems at Precision, the sewing machines, whatever… And if he didn’t know what was needed to get something working, he figured it out quickly. I was amazed many times at the stuff he dared to tear apart; and when it went back together, it worked. He was an incredibly smart and talented guy. We ate lunch together every day for a long, long time… just Chris, George, and me. And every day, we would flip coins to see who had the privilege of picking up the tab. Somehow, George seemed to buy more often than either of us. Chris and I were often accused of rigging the coin toss to make sure George bought lunch. Now, really, would we do something like that? Don’t worry Chris, I’ll never tell. Hey George, you want to flip for lunch!! Chris was a unique individual. He was zany, fun loving, witty, and a hell of a good friend and companion. He has left an indelible mark on me, and the fond memories of our years together as friends will never fade. Sometimes I wanted to absolutely choke him; he loved getting my goat and found great delight in “getting under my skin”. One thing he always did that just really got me was this: I celebrate my birthday at the WFFC. My lovely wife Tracie is the best birthday present shopper I’ve ever known. She has always surprised me with great toys for my birthday. And every year, without fail, as I’m opening a wonderful new gift, be it a remote control airplane, a scooter, a PDA, or what-have-you, Chris sneaks in the box while I’m ooo-ing and aah-ing the new gizmo, and takes the manual and won’t let me have it… “Real men don’t need no stinkin’ manual.” I am one of the exceptions, I guess, because I want to read the book! Chris wouldn’t hear of it, and the madder I got at him about it, the funnier he always thought it was. So typical Chris… Some of the memories I have of times spent with Chris are the best times I’ve had in my life. He was always a little envious of some of the darker sides of my younger days, and he loved to get me to tell him stories. But whenever I could see his wheels begin to turn, and he’d say stuff like “so, do you still know any of those people down there” or anything like that, I’d stop him right there and say something like an older brother would say to stop little brother from doing something stupid. Chris had a sense of adventure that few have. Thank goodness for his sake we weren’t friends in the early ‘80’s. We had some great adventures together, traveling to many places together, even road trips as far as the west coast. That can be a long time in the cab of a truck together. I never got tired of being around Chris; my only problem is I couldn’t come close to keeping up with him! If I ever said, “man, I’m tired, I think I’m going to bed. We’ve got a big day tomorrow” or anything like that, then he would somehow have that ability to get me to stay for just “one more” nightcap. And then there was the time we were on our way to the WFFC and Precision’s RV burned to a crisp on the shoulder of I 57- THAT was pretty rich. I can’t go into that story now, but believe me; we had quite an experience on that trip. When Tracie went into labor, he posted on dropzone.com a contest to guess the time of our daughter’s birth to win a free canopy. Tracie got so angry with him for calling telling her to cross her legs, it wasn’t time yet, or “What is she doing? Tell her to hurry up and push. My time is an hour from now.” She wanted to post a contest to see “how many miles will Beezy and Chris get out of Dunlap before breaking down?” Chris didn’t think that was nearly as funny. And speaking of the WFFC, Chris Martin was known throughout the land as the last one to bed and, amazingly, the first one up in the morning, not just once, or twice, but night after night after night. Surely he slept for a couple of days solid when we would get home from the convention. A few of the things Chris said have jumped out at me, as I’ve been thinking about my friend in the last few days. Here’s a good one…he called one night, and when I answered the phone he just said, “what does 2 lines on the EPT mean?” Well, Chris, what it means is, H A L E Y ! Tracie and I have laughed about that phone call many times. Here’s another of Chris’ famous lines that I’m sure many people here know all too well… “No, the weather is clear here, we’re flying loads right now. Get your butt to the drop zone!” I could go on and on with so many stories about my friend that are dear to my heart, and all of the things that made him so special. I know you all could too, and that’s what makes Chris Martin so memorable. So I’m going to close with one of my fondest memories, and one that I know Chris would say himself if he only could be here now; Like I’ve said about what an energetic life-of-the-party guy he could be, every day at a boogie, and I mean EVERY day at a boogie, Chris would come up to me with that familiar twinkle in his eye, that look of child-like mischief, and say kind of quietly, “You know…I hear…tonight’s going to be a party night.”

Manufacturers usually have ample supply of cheese in their facilities...

I've been involved in many, many test jumps to guage the effect of different sized sliders. If a slider is very small, the canopy is restricted in the early stage of deployment and the "snivel" stage is increased. This is because the line groups are held closely together during this stage. But once the canopy begins inflation, that same small slider has little "sail" area, so doesn't offer much resistance to sliding down the lines. So a very fast inflation occurs with a small slider. On the other hand, with a large slider, the line groups are allowed to separate more during the initial phase of deployment, which produces a very short "snivel" time, but the large sail area offers good resistance as the slider is coming down the lines. The problem is that when the slider is too large, the lack of sufficient "snivel" period causes an explosive opening and the large sail area is ineffective to the tremendous forces caused by the first stage of deployment. So, as was said earlier, it is indeed a delicate balance. And what works for one type of canopy doesn't necessarily work for a different canopy. Many people have the false impression that they can fix hard openings by installing a bigger slider. Sometimes it can help, but the best advice is consult your canopy manufacturer; they've tested many slider sizes and can probably give good guidance.

Here's a funny little video about the new voting machine system in Florida... http://www.hiperusa.com/Voting_Machine.wmv

Here's a few...

Quote ...do you mean the canopy was tested with and without them, and they made a big difference... *** In Germany, when the NITRO was being developed, there were canopies built without the winglets. The same airfoil with the winglets show drastic performance increases in the areas I mentioned.

Quote and totally expose your bottom. *** she's going to totally expose her bottom (insert Bevis and Butthead laugh here)

There has been some very good discussion in this thread today about our winglets. To try to comment any further from a purely technological standpoint is way over my head. Although I've been a pilot for 34 years and a skydiver for almost that long, an aeronautical engineer I certainly am not. I'd do well to teach a private pilot ground school class. So I won't try to throw out any fancy terminology. I will say this; in many, many test jumps the winglets proved that they accomplish several things: 1) They allow the parachute to fly to a slower touchdown speed, reducing the necessity to run out landings on no-wind days. 2) They improve the track holding ability of the canopy when landing in a crosswind condition. 3) Winglets give the canopy improved recovery from steep turns. 4) They seem to reduce the diving effect of openings with line twists.

Yes, what she said. It's not rolling, but folding the cocooned canopy in bag-sized "chunks". It usually takes 3 folds. I hold my entire forearm across the canopy as I make my first fold. OK, kids, quiz time...can anyone tell me who was the very first person to jump from a plane using the psycho pack?

QuoteHaving a cypres fire means you failed to open a parachute yourself. You missed the most important issue of the sport Altitude awareness. ***Having a CYPRES fire means nothing of the sort. Certainly if you fail to open a parachute yourself your CYPRES will fire, but it doesn't only occur for this reason. Most CYPRES activations actually occur AFTER the main canopy has been deployed. And in many of these cases the jumper has already gotten a fully deployed canopy before they realize their reserve has opened. Re-read my first post in this thread for my explanation of how mine occured. And, by the way, the old saying about the horses was to make a point, not to compare the two activities.

QuoteDoes anyone know why the winglets are placed a tad inboard, rather than right at the outside edge? ***We can't ask Klaus that question, unfortunately, but I would say it's for construction considerations.

Yes, Ron, that is correct. But to clarify, they reduce "induced" drag (the type of drag that is a by-product of lift itself); winglets do not reduce "parisite" drag, which is what one normally thinks of when referring to "drag"