Joellercoaster

Here if you have an AAD in your right, it is required to be airworthy (ie., not timed out). Places that require one all additionally require it to be active. Can we give the clever 'just don't turn it on' posts a rest? -- "I'll tell you how all skydivers are judged, . They are judged by the laws of physics." - kkeenan "You jump out, pull the string and either live or die. What's there to be good at?

Forum search is your friend [edit: this user has many posts.] -- "I'll tell you how all skydivers are judged, . They are judged by the laws of physics." - kkeenan "You jump out, pull the string and either live or die. What's there to be good at?

Headcorn is the most accessible via public transport, as there is a train station in the nearby village. Other than that it's pretty likely you'll be able to get some help with a lift from the London Skydivers Facebook group :-) -- "I'll tell you how all skydivers are judged, . They are judged by the laws of physics." - kkeenan "You jump out, pull the string and either live or die. What's there to be good at?

Learning curve has nothing to do with it being a good idea. I'm glad it worked out for you so far though. -- "I'll tell you how all skydivers are judged, . They are judged by the laws of physics." - kkeenan "You jump out, pull the string and either live or die. What's there to be good at?

Hey, if the 100 jumps in your profile are correct, the Hurricane is probably not a great plan for a little while, though as you say it is quick on toggles and has great flare. Safire2 is a brilliant canopy though, if a deal on one came along in my size I would grab it. I haven't jumped Mirages (and only a few on a VortexII that didn't fit me well) so can't comment on the container choices. -- "I'll tell you how all skydivers are judged, . They are judged by the laws of physics." - kkeenan "You jump out, pull the string and either live or die. What's there to be good at?

M is surprisingly difficult to get working reliably for some teams. I'd put it further down the list, as Rookies. A and E are also candidates - E because you can use it as the source of a lot of useful grip switches, although it has a tendency to rotate. A is not that useful, but is surprisingly easy to launch, looks badass, and is a good source of confidence as a result. I'd put them in this order: H - Bow (gives you G, N, C) P - Sidebody (gives you F, N) E - Meeker (gives you G, K, D) B - Stairstep Diamond A - Unipod M - Star PS: A few years ago, a team won Silver at the UK nationals launching nothing but H. I think there was a Gold shortly afterwards with only a couple of exits (and a lot of tunnel time :P). Knowing a lot of launches matters later, but for Rookies you can get away with concentrating on getting good at the flying part! [ETA: H. H is a great exit, because it is easy, stable, good for recovering partial funnels, and also teaches good exit timing for the various slots in a straightforward way.] -- "I'll tell you how all skydivers are judged, . They are judged by the laws of physics." - kkeenan "You jump out, pull the string and either live or die. What's there to be good at?

"It can't be bargained with. It can't be reasoned with. It doesn't feel pity, or remorse, or fear. And it absolutely will not stop, ever" -- "I'll tell you how all skydivers are judged, . They are judged by the laws of physics." - kkeenan "You jump out, pull the string and either live or die. What's there to be good at?

I've only been to a couple. But! I spend my tunnel hours mostly doing 4-way with the same team and coach over a season. Tunnel camps are great; a change of pace and direction, break down your technique and maybe do some one on one. Not to mention hang out and fly with a whole range of different people at different levels. You always learn something unexpected. The trick is getting a slot! There's a certain set of camps in the UK that seem to sell out in about eight seconds flat -- "I'll tell you how all skydivers are judged, . They are judged by the laws of physics." - kkeenan "You jump out, pull the string and either live or die. What's there to be good at?

Trev: I'm about your size, have jumped the exact canopies you are proposing, and what the two very experienced people above have said is the truth. Don't size your reserve with "only going to have to land it occasionally" in mind. Size it with "when I have to land it, I'm going to be high on adrenaline, low, off the dropzone in poor visibility and under an unfamiliar canopy" in mind. I weigh the same as you (maybe a few kilos more, I was 227 geared up last time I weighed myself (do this, it's an eye opener)), have a reasonable number more jumps, and my reserve is only one size down from what you're proposing... and my next rig will have the same size reserve as well. For a big lad, 175 is aggressive even a couple of hundred jumps from now! Good luck with your gear choices... I love my Vector, but waiting six months for the next one is simply not going to happen -- "I'll tell you how all skydivers are judged, . They are judged by the laws of physics." - kkeenan "You jump out, pull the string and either live or die. What's there to be good at?

I don't have one to hand, but I think I remember seeing an Icon manual that had a frowning main pin. Don't know whether this was coincidence or Aerodyne expressing an opinion on pin orientation, though. -- "I'll tell you how all skydivers are judged, . They are judged by the laws of physics." - kkeenan "You jump out, pull the string and either live or die. What's there to be good at?

Totally disagree with this! I made a couple of dozen jumps each on a Sabre1 150 and a Pilot 150 close together a few years ago. The Pilot opened beautifully and was much more agile on toggles, though it remained extremely well behaved; going back to the Sabre felt sluggish by comparison. 'Semi-elliptical' is a marketing term and you should take that for what it's worth, but purely going by shape - the Sabre1 is rectangular; the Pilot tapers at the ends. Demo demo demo. -- "I'll tell you how all skydivers are judged, . They are judged by the laws of physics." - kkeenan "You jump out, pull the string and either live or die. What's there to be good at?

Brian Cox? [edit: http://www.youtube.com/watch?hl=en-GB&v=Dl-ai9HuR60&gl=GB] -- "I'll tell you how all skydivers are judged, . They are judged by the laws of physics." - kkeenan "You jump out, pull the string and either live or die. What's there to be good at?

Not so rare as you think. I can send you more videos if you wish. Indeed. I realise the plural of 'anecdote' is not 'evidence', but since everyone else here has provided little of either: my only Skyhook cutaway resulted in a disconnection and ordinary RSL deployment. It was nothing extreme, just asymmetric twists on a semi-elliptical loaded about 1.7. I've watched at least one other very similar chop with the same result. Make of this what you will. I still think the Skyhook and Collins lanyard are impressive innovations, but implying that anyone who's not sure they're a good deal foolish is wrong. -- "I'll tell you how all skydivers are judged, . They are judged by the laws of physics." - kkeenan "You jump out, pull the string and either live or die. What's there to be good at?

That's actually a fair question (especially the last implied one). So... I'm pro-RSL because I think the getting a reserve pilot chute out as soon as the main is cut away is more useful than being able to time your reserve deployment after cutaway, for most of us. CRW (voluntary or otherwise) aside, it just doesn't seem helpful. Whereas trying and failing for stability, losing alti awareness, dislodging or being unable to grasp the reserve handle, are all things that have happened to otherwise pretty together people. If you have a big snaggy camera mount, I can see the point. If you have a canopy where malfunctions are going to be radical, then that's just not something I know that much about. But for most of us, the balance of probability seems to side with it being a good idea. Conflict about MARDs is just to do with benefit. They cost a bunch of money, they give riggers and container manufacturers more opportunity to make mistakes, they force design changes in rigs to accommodate them, and they make people feel safer than maybe they are. In return, they get a reserve out slightly quicker, maybe in a better orientation... sometimes. On balance I think my Skyhook makes me safer, probably. Now that I've shelled out for it. But I'm just less convinced it was a no-brainer than I am about the plain ol' RSL on my previous rig. -- "I'll tell you how all skydivers are judged, . They are judged by the laws of physics." - kkeenan "You jump out, pull the string and either live or die. What's there to be good at?

Same here. Went from a Pilot 168 at 1.35 to a Vision 150 at 1.5, having been jumping a Pilot 150 a bit in the meantime and figuring I'd probably be fine. First jump on it. Still on my back kicking out twists with my hard deck alarm going off. Scared? Oh yes. Fine? Not really. (In retrospect, I would describe any time you hear the phrase you'll probably be fine in skydiving as a massive red flag, and an indication that you should do the other thing.) -- "I'll tell you how all skydivers are judged, . They are judged by the laws of physics." - kkeenan "You jump out, pull the string and either live or die. What's there to be good at?

This is about how I feel about it - my current rig has a Skyhook, but it's a pretty even decision either way and I wake up feeling differently about it about once a week. I am very pro-RSL, but a bit conflicted nowadays about the MARD part. One thing that nobody here has mentioned yet though is the Collins lanyard built into the Skyhook. Extra complexity for sure, but it certainly feels like an important safety feature if you're going to have an RSL at all. (Also, to newer jumpers who watch that Petra mal video and suddenly realise they want a Skyhook - are you jumping a tiny experimental canopy and doing massive turns into the gates? Then maybe not so useful as an example. Note this goes for me too ) -- "I'll tell you how all skydivers are judged, . They are judged by the laws of physics." - kkeenan "You jump out, pull the string and either live or die. What's there to be good at?

What is going on in the 2-way CF?! -- "I'll tell you how all skydivers are judged, . They are judged by the laws of physics." - kkeenan "You jump out, pull the string and either live or die. What's there to be good at?

Yes, yes it does. Although you will at least be able to find second-hand containers, a custom jumpsuit definitely sounds like it's in your near future. Tunnel is one thing, and by all means buy a suit for the tunnel if you're doing a lot of that (your questions can be answered by your local dealer, who will also measure you (do NOT do this yourself) and the tunnel will hopefully be able to point you in the direction of one). But for AFF, it's likely they'll have a student-specific suit they will want you to wear. So depending on how much you intend to fly in the tunnel between now and then, it's potentially less important. As for shoes, no particular kind as long as they're comfortable and will stay on (and don't have hooks to snag on). Flat-soled skate shoes are popular and work well, but that's mostly just fashion. (Although as you will discover, fashion is really important ) -- "I'll tell you how all skydivers are judged, . They are judged by the laws of physics." - kkeenan "You jump out, pull the string and either live or die. What's there to be good at?

Disclaimer: I am not a bigway person. Nor am I a long-term skydiver, I've only been in the sport about 7 years (so the 300-way is before my time). But, even from the outside, it seemed that the policy of having very strong people on the bench and using them to shore up weakness, possibly by paying their slots, was an obvious one and seemed to be in place at the bigways I heard about. Having the bench be the "nearly" jumpers just never seemed like something you would do, if you wanted your big jumps to work. -- "I'll tell you how all skydivers are judged, . They are judged by the laws of physics." - kkeenan "You jump out, pull the string and either live or die. What's there to be good at?

Take back your take-back! It was totally appropriate. -- "I'll tell you how all skydivers are judged, . They are judged by the laws of physics." - kkeenan "You jump out, pull the string and either live or die. What's there to be good at?

1.3 wingload at under a hundred jumps. I don't know you, you might be amazing, but I don't think that sounds very good. And even if (purely for argument's sake) you are fine on it, this is terrible advice to give someone else. -- "I'll tell you how all skydivers are judged, . They are judged by the laws of physics." - kkeenan "You jump out, pull the string and either live or die. What's there to be good at?

This. Post upthread about instructional ratings, team coaching etc is different - those are potentially relevant, (weirdly, especially in more gung-ho corporate settings). But having a Personal Interests section is a mistake, as is mentioning casual skydiving IMO. -- "I'll tell you how all skydivers are judged, . They are judged by the laws of physics." - kkeenan "You jump out, pull the string and either live or die. What's there to be good at?

My girlfriend got told that she had scored higher on an intake evaluation for something because she'd represented her country at something. The fact that it was skydiving wasn't important, but for whatever reason, it moved her up the list. -- "I'll tell you how all skydivers are judged, . They are judged by the laws of physics." - kkeenan "You jump out, pull the string and either live or die. What's there to be good at?

Let me preface what I am about to say with the assertion that I heart Skydive Radio. I started listening when I started getting into skydiving; the show and I started roughly the same time, give or take. I listen to each episode as soon as it comes out, I look forward to it when it's late, and I think of the SDR crew as friends I haven't met yet. So I say this with love: The conversation about whether or not wingsuit time counts as 'real' freefall was the single most boring ten minutes of the show's entire history. And I know, because I have listened to every second of it. Seriously... even listening to it at 2x speed. Fortunately, Moe Viletto in an actual cave, and Steve Lefkowitz getting turned down by randoms made up for it -- "I'll tell you how all skydivers are judged, . They are judged by the laws of physics." - kkeenan "You jump out, pull the string and either live or die. What's there to be good at?

Why is that something that should concern me when buying an AAD? I'm a pretty good dancer but I don't feel the need to throw shapes when I'm offering my services as a computer programmer. -- "I'll tell you how all skydivers are judged, . They are judged by the laws of physics." - kkeenan "You jump out, pull the string and either live or die. What's there to be good at?