bdazel

That doesn't surprise me. Just because facebook adds terms to its agreement saying they have rights your work doesn't give them a legal right. Contracts, especially clicky internet contracts, have been held unenforceable in courts across the country for various reasons. CR law gives authors many exclusive rights in their works, and, I suspect from a legal standpoint that more would be required to transfer those rights than simply changing the terms and agreements page.

How accessible is the underside of the mounting platform? Is it difficult to get through the padding? I ask because I opt for a lower profile by mounting cameras directly to the helmet using thumb screws. I don't see a need for a quick release because I jump the same setup all day. I'll need to be able to get inside the helmet a several times a day to mount/dismount the cameras, also to store extra memory cards/lens cloth/etc for the ride up. Thanks!

This is a great thread. I keep admiring all the pictures, and I guess I should contribute. This is a pic of an AFF Cat A from 8/2008. Taken with an XSI and 17mm Tokina lens.

Thanks for the info. Looks like a good setup. I mistakenly said "HC" when I meant cx, but it's good to know that there is room on the helmet for either. :)

Has anyone attempted to mount a 580 flash on top of this helmet along with an xti/xsi and HC series Sony camera? I'm curious whether there is enough space to do so with the xsi in landscape orientation. Yes, if the HC is side-mounted, but what about putting all three on top with the flash laying on it's side between the two cameras, or maybe side mounting the flash? Any thoughts? I've been waiting for a bug-free HD/flash memory video camera to upgrade from my Rawa/pc109 setup, and it seems the cx100 might be the answer. But I hesitate to side-mount it, and I don't want to lug around a FTP. This helmet seems like a good alternative.

Does this mean that an external mic will be required to get any sound for skydiving purposes? or just that if an external mic is preferred, the HypEye will be required in order to enable the external mike to function? I.E. - Can the camera record sound through it's on-board mic while the LCD is closed and while being controlled via the HypEye with no external mic? Thanks.

The guys youtube profile shows he's from Great Britain. Go figure. Maybe that's the guy they call "spotted dick". Sangi, is that you?

This discussion has nothing to do with sport rigs. Sangi - It was already discussed. Re-read the thread. I won't repeat myself.

Again, it is about the student, not about the TI or how good his freeflying skills are. We will have to agree to disagree on this point. Kudos to you for wanting to improve yourself and push your limits. I do the same on every jump. It's that mentality helps us evolve. But with a Tandem, your efforts should be toward improving your skills that will help save your's and your student's life someday. In my opinion, any skillbuilding outside that scope (like tracking) is likely just selfish and irresponsible.

niteko: You're upset. Why? You presented two main arguments in support of Modern Tandem Fly: 1. Advance Tandem rig has new innovations, making it safer to freefly with. - That contention is incorrect. 2. Tracking with a tandem student is more stable, thus safer. - That contention also has no merit. Both your arguments are bunk. So, can you present a viable justification for Modern Tandem Fly other than that it's more exciting for you because you're bored with falling straight down with a tandem? If so, I really want to hear it - God knows I spend a lot of time bored under a drogue, and would love for a good excuse to change that. But I won't start going drogueless and tracking with the student simply to further my own selfish ends.

Now we do more jumps in a day, from bigger airplanes and higher altitudes at larger dropzones that provide more amenities. Basically, we're spoiled compared the early days. We've evolved, and we can't go it alone anymore. I can imagine a time when the bonds with your fellow jumpers were tighter, the value of each skydive was much greater, and the overall feel of the sport was warmer. I humbly suggest that maybe these are some of the qualities you've seen slide along the way. Sounds like a great thing to me, but do you really think there's any way to go back?

Ah, I see. You and I will never be able to agree because we have fundamentally different visions of skydiving. The only sport I've known was fueled by tandems. From your perspective, I can see how you would want Tandems to go away, allowing the sport to devolve into what it was years ago. That might be a good thing; I do hear many engaging stories about the good 'ol days. Personally, I hope the sport keeps evolving, and I believe it will. As you said, the train is rolling. But in order to do so, the industry needs a strong tandem operation. That is the single piece that should not be messed with. Don't attack the trunk of your tree if you want the branches to keep spreading.

My concern is the perception of the misinformed individual and the loss of their money that might have been spent on a future skydive absent negative media coverage of a tandem rig-related incident. We need first-timers to trust that they will be taken care of and kept safe both by their instructor and the gear that is used. My concerns are not directed toward any governing body, as I agree it will not be confused by any details of the incident.

NickDG, While I respect your wisdom and experience in this sport, I hope that your post does not cause readers of this thread to casually dismiss the issues discussed herein as just more growing pains on the evolutionary path of skydiving. I do not disagree with anything you said in principle, but I must insist that tandem operations of today’s skydiving world present a unique scenario, one distinct and of far greater importance than that which you describe. First, tandem operations have become an essential part of today’s skydiving industry. The days of small 182, club type, non-profitmaking dropzones have been largely replaced by commercial operations that employ full-time skydivers and expensive turbine-engine aircraft. Today’s skydivers are able to enjoy the benefits of faster climb rates to higher altitudes. These advantages allow the envelope-pushers to go out and find ways to make this thing evolve. Tandems keep those airplanes flying and dropzones in business all over the world. I posit that if tandems went away, our skydiving world as we know it or envision it would disappear. Tandems are the life blood of the sport. Second, more and more people rely on skydving, specifically tandem operations, for their livelihood. It is not just a hobby or a fun past-time anymore. It pays the bills, keeping people fed and sheltered. I think that much of the emotion seen in this thread is due to people reacting to a perceived threat to their livelihood. Because of the unique and essential role that tandems play in skydiving today, tandems should not be a part of the natural evolution of this sport, which seems to push the envelope to find ways to add excitement once the current practice becomes routine. Every time someone dies and a tandem rig is involved, it affects the public’s perception of how safe our sport is. The ripples are felt across the world. It seems to me foolish, arrogant, and selfish to experiment with a tandem rig in a way that adds unnecessary risk. (Note that I haven’t touched on the issues of how this applies with a first-time student, because that is a separate issue.) I know that I am still very naïve about many things in this sport, and can never have the advantage of your hindsight, but I do feel your post is irresponsible, and serves only to pat yourself on the back while you point, laugh, and say “I told you so.” If I’m wrong, I ask you to please show me the light. But I feel this needs to be put out there.

Oh god Look at this video: http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=nrKDAdXc4bU&feature=related It's great footage of showing flight, the student looks absolutely awesome there. It's HELL OF A LOT more interesting to watch the student this way than watch his zoomed in face for 30 seconds and not see anything else. Sangi: By your blatant ignorance and lack of experience you have made yourself irrelevant to this discussion. I only respond to you because I think this point is relevant to the overall discussion. The youtube video is STILL very poor video from a tandem student's perspective. I understand that it may be exciting for you to watch because you can appreciate what you are seeing. You have experience that gives the video context. A first time tandem student will not see the video in the same context. Whether you think it’s boring or not, facetime is what the student wants and pays for. However, I can envision a student who may be excited that so many skydivers wanted to jump with her (as in the youtube video), and that it may outweigh the poor quality of the video. But this is a rare occasion. Most often it is only the student, instructor, and videographer participating in the skydive.

I agree. Sounds like TM's who want to be able to freefly on tandem jumps and are desperately trying to justify it by saying that it is safer and more stable. I'm not convinced - not even close. Stability problems on tandems are a non-issue for me - I can fly myself and the student just fine, ESPECIALLY after exit (which is the time that niteko says he changes the student's body position). In my opinion, a TM who has stability issues while trying to fall straight down does not have skill enough to be in the air doing tandems with first time jumpers. But I see another problem, what about the student's video? I hope that sample at autmonauti.com is not representative of the quality of freefall footage that a tandem student pays for. It is poor quality video from the student's perspective. It does nothing to further a prospective first-time jumper's interest in making a skydive.

Sigma eliminates the possibility of that scenario. If the main pin is dislodged, the drogue is automatically released. RW makes a smaller Sigma container (I think its called Micro) for the instructor who wants only to jump a 330. I'm not saying anything about your desire to freefly with tandem students, but your argument about gear superiority is bunk- you need a new argument. But here's my two cents on the issue of pushing the envelope with tandem rigs if anyone's interested: It's playing with fire. The Skydiving industry is supported by first-time Tandem students, who are generally clueless about what goes on in the sky and don't know enough to care a bit about their instructor's freeflying skills. Leave Tandem operations alone, even when a student is not involved, because any incidents that happen with tandems or with students get spread through the media, causing more people to choose not to spend their money on a perceived dangerous skydive. I fully understand that skydiving owes its existence and current safety record to those who have endeavored to push the envelope, and I'm thankful to them, because I can enjoy a relatively safe sport because of their sacrifices. But the current state of the skydiving industry is dependent on those first-timers coming out and spending money. Tandem operations should be treated with care, and placed in a bubble - effectively isolated from the envelope-pushing nature that helps our sport evolve (that includes riskier tandem skydives where the passenger is NOT a student). Any changes in Tandem operations should be in the direction of safer measures, rather than introducing new risk.

You should become better informed before jumping to broad conclusions. Icarus Tandem mains are relatively common in the US - I jump them regularly, for one. There is no velcro on a Sigma - as much as you may wish to insist otherwise, you are mistaken on this point. After browsing the manual for the Advance Tandem rig, I fail to see any justification for your air of superiority regarding this rig. It looks reminiscent of the older Vector tandem rigs that pre-dated the Sigma, meaning for one, that it has the same problem with out of sequence deployments as the older Vector tandem rigs. Unless I am mistaken, with the Advance Tandem rig works this way (now follow closely, and read carefully): 1. AFTER the drogue is set... 2. Imagine the main container pin(s) is(are) dislodged before any drogue release OR cutaway handle is pulled; 3. The main container opens and the d-bag is released; 4. However, the drogue is still attached to the three ring because both drogue release cables are still fully seated. 5. Now you're having a bad day. Am I mistaken? If not, this is WAY behind the technological advances of the Sigma. The ONLY relative advantage I can see with your Advance Tandem rig is that the lower connector attaches in line with the students leg strap, rather than at the hip point, as on the sigma rig. I can imagine how this could provide good control of the student's body during freefall by providing more stability for the student's hips. Otherwise, the Advance Tandem rig is a mix of several older tandem rig designs - that still has the problems of those older designs.

If the school doesn't require HD, wait to drop a load of money on an HD MiniDV camera. Flash memory will be the future in HD anyway, and I believe those are still buggy in freefall. If top-mount, you can forego the box, so you won't need to worry about having to switch boxes down the road. You can get a solid MiniDV camera for less than $200 (I just purchased a second PC9 for $140, a great skydiving camera).

From a packer's standpoint, if one wants the excess stowed, they stow it themselves. So I never worried about it. Many jumpers just prefer not to stow the excess probably because it is not really necessary, at least on some rigs (my current setup excluded ) I learned to pack on student gear; at that time I stowed the excess, and still do, just not generally on sport rigs I guess. Anyway, once I get the longer risers I won't stow it unless I have another brake fire, at which point I'll keep changing things up to figure out what the real problem is.

You know, that would be the easy fix. It's been so long since I stowed brake lines, that I didn't even think of that. Thanks for the advice. I'll give that a go until I get the new risers.

http://www.lifepursuitvideo.net/asppublic/Video47240.aspx?VID=10325&VF=blahblah_081608-1953.flv[url] 1000 jumps with 24in risers on my Crossfire in a Mirage G3 and I never had a brake fire. Third jump on this rig and I have a brake fire. I've packed 30-50k+ rigs, so I'm confident it wasn't a packing error. Maybe I need new risers? These are 20in. I plan to get 24 in risers. With 24s I expect the excess brake line will sit in the main pack tray rather than against the riser covers; reducing the chance that it will snag the riser covers. Anyone have a similar experience, and how did you correct it?

Thnks all. But what is a louieloop? I assume it's a type of dive loop?

I'm curious to hear from experienced Velocity pilots what riser length you prefer. Also, in your opinion how does riser length affect your canopy's performance? And is wing loading a factor when you choose your riser length? thanks all

Yes, he had quick ejectors on all three straps. None of the webbing was tacked down that I noticed.