Dionysus

Another option, as good as Brians is, is a "shark fin" keeper. Mirage offers them as an option. I had them put on my risers and they work well and are very clean in appearance. They could probably add them to any risers, but I don't know that for a fact.

Well let's see. Comp jumps at nationals in intermediate 4way. Couple high pulls to demo a canopy. Training jumps for nationals. Some awesome bootie and sitfly jumps. I think, now that nationals is over, I might do some freeflying over the next few weekends.

Dionysus Steve Mile Hi Club Mile Hi 4way From 9/2 to 9/8

I think one of the reasons we are able to suppress our instincts is because we see other people successfully doing what we desire to do. Can you imagine how much more nervous you would have been in the airplane on your first jump if you had never seen a skydive before, either from the ground or on video? There is a big difference with your analogy of putting the gun to your head and flying a canopy. In our minds no matter how much talent and experience with firearms you have if you put a loaded gun to your head and fire it the outcome will be bad. With regards to canopies the outcome may not be bad, depending on your abilities. I don't see it so much as the suppression of a survival instinct but, rather, as the overestimation of our skills. A lack of knowledge also plays a part in this. Many of the aspiring swoopers out there, not all mind you, do not realize all of the dynamics involved and how to recognize them and what their effects can be. We are not afraid of what we don't know.

I think as long as you realize your own limitations you should do fine. For example I'm an RW guy so if a newer jumper were to approach me about FF I would introduce them to one of my DZs' FF coaches. Unfortunately I have seen coaches try to teach something that they themselves barely understand. Coaches are also great sounding boards, if you will, for students. If a student feels like they have more people at a DZ they can approach with questions the more likely they will do so. As for the coach rating itself it was not what I expected. The flying is the easy part, it's the ground prep that was the most difficult for me.

That is freakin' great! I laugh because I'm only in my second season of 4way myself. I, like you it sounds, have realized the importance of keeping the training fun. Cheers

Hi all I have been enjoying this site for some time and I thought I might start to participate. I have met a number of you folks in person and always enjoyed it. Anyway, my compliments to all of you running this site, it is excellent. Cheers, Steve

I have owned a Sabre 2 230, Lotus 190, Vengeance 170, and just received a Samurai 170. I would say the difference in pack volume is not very noticeable with the larger sizes. I have been told you do notice it more with the smaller canopys. With mine I have just noticed a bit more bulk to the nose. I purchased my Lotus from a local dealer and the service was excellent. As you probably know the canopys are built by PD. Since Big Air has this relationship with PD the quality is excellent and the build times are, relatively speaking, very reasonable. Brian did offer the Signature Series of the Lotus and Samurai that he built himself but I believe he is no longer offering them. They do have a dealer list on their website. As mentioned earlier you could also send Brian a pm with any questions you have. I have always found Brian to be very friendly and enjoyable to talk about canopies with. As for impressions I really like the more rigid feel that airlocks give a canopy. My Lotus was a very solid canopy that was predictable but still very fun to fly. It is in the same class as the Sabre 2, Safire 2 and Pilot.