rmsmith

Agreed, since USPA wishes not to clearly explain anything about these outrageous claims from demo jumps gone wrong that the general membership policy has to fund. Why would I care to fund a "blank check" for the next lawyer trick?

Sorry, that's the airplane owner's problem. If I decided that I wanted to drive a Mercedes Benz 560SEL, should everyone increase their liability coverage because I want to drive an expensive car?

I'm already an AOPA member even though I don't currently own a airplane. They are the only aviation organization with effective lobbying power on Capital Hill.

While there are plenty of great deals for used Stilettos, the Sabre2 would be a better choice. The Stiletto is far too twitchy on deployment and toggle inputs for a low-time jumper.

Look at it this way; if your reserve pin breaks off at the shoulder when you "go for the silver" your cypres will cut the loop and deploy your reserve!

A FIRST JUMP IMPRESSION Type of Canopy: Sabre2 210-sqft., a semi-elliptical nine cell zero porosity main canopy by Performance Designs. Wing Loading: I’m loading it at 1.19-lbs/sqft out the door, which comes under the "expert" category according for this canopy wing loading table. Atmospheric Conditions: Pressure 30.06-inches, Temperature 81-degrees (F), Dew Point 57-degrees (F), Field Elevation 1,100-feet, Wind 0-3 knots variable. Packing Style: I used the pro-pack method with the nose left open and split evenly, the slider quartered, and the tail wrapped around the front and rolled. The Opening: I performed a 10-second delay from 5,500-ft before deploying my 28-inch zero porosity pilot chute. The snatch force was low, the canopy sniveled briefly, and then the slider quickly hit the risers. The canopy opened fast surging forward and diving slightly to the right, which was easily corrected with a quick tug on the left rear riser. I wasn’t surprised as this is just typical behavior for an elliptical class nine-cell canopy. The Spectre definitely offers a more predictable and pleasant opening experience. Traffic Maneuver: The USPA-SIM recommends that each party steer to the right in a traffic avoidance situation. With the brakes still set and the slider still open I initiated a deep right rear riser turn, which resulted in a swift 180-degree turn, and a slight tug on the left rear riser quickly neutralized the turn. The rear riser tension was moderate like the Spectre, but the turning response was much faster. Slider and Brakes: The slider was flapping as expected but not excessively indicating a deep brake deployment setting, so it was easy to grab the draw strings and collapse the slider with a firm tug. When the toggles were released the canopy quickly surged forward to full flight speed unlike the Spectre, which is more forgiving and subdued. Front Riser Maneuvers: I made several left and right 180-degree front riser turns, which were easy given that the front riser tension was surprisingly moderate unlike the Spectre, which has a very high front riser tension. This canopy also has a medium to large radius recovery arc, so it continues to dive requiring gentle toggle input to return to level flight. The Spectre has a short recovery arc that quickly returns to level flight without toggle input. Rear Riser Maneuvers: Simulating a long spot I tried achieving a flatter glide using the rear risers, but found that my arms became tired. However, pulling both of the steering toggles to ear level resulted in a similar glide, and required minimal effort. The rear riser tension was moderate like the Spectre. Steering Toggle Maneuvers: This canopy has a light steering toggle tension, even in a long stroke, which I found refreshing. First, I slowed the canopy down until it began to shake as it entered a stall. Then I let up on the steering toggles, but I must have done so unevenly and too fast because the canopy quickly surged forward and began a left diving turn. I tried it again, and I let up more slowly on the steering toggles this time, and the stall recovery was predictable and smooth. This canopy does have some over-steer when executing turns from a full glide, which means that you have to use some opposite toggle input to assume a specific heading. Braked turns were crisp and responsive, and there was no indication of being near the stall. Like the Spectre it would be easy to fly this canopy into a tight landing spot. The Landing: There were zero-wind conditions as I set up for landing, and I hate sliding to a stop on damp grass or having to "run to a stop", so I set up for a comfortable low energy landing. On final approach I eased the toggles down about 6-8-inches to bleed off some speed and slowly flared to chest level during the last several feet gently landing and having only to take a few short steps to stop. I was pleased with the powerful flare coupled with the short toggle stroke. Conclusion: My first jump under the Sabre2 gave me a soft opening, yet it was diving in a slight right turn. This was easily neutralized with a quick tug on the left rear riser, and then the canopy maintained an "on-heading" flight indicating good suspension line trim, so I have to pay more attention to body position when I toss the pilot chute. The riser and toggle inputs have a lower tension and require a much shorter stroke than the Spectre seven-cell canopy. Over the years I have owned many canopies from rounds, squares, and both semi and highly elliptical canopies. My first impression of the Sabre2 is that it might not be forgiving enough for the 75-jump skydivers, and the younger 500-jump skydivers would probably be bored under it, but a sober-minded skydiver who still likes to play will really enjoy it. I’m keeping mine!

No doubt about it...your tax dollars at work!

You are probably right in that your MLW is too short. A typical problem associated with a MLW that is too short is the leg straps constantly becoming loose on the ride to altitude. If your leg straps become loose when you bend over then the MLW is too short, IMHO.

Bill, you should be running for governor, or Arnold should have you for an advisor!

Eventually, the general public will become tired of these medical expenses as many of these younger swoopers don't have medical insurance. Somebody will either tax the sport or regulate it, sort of like the gun industry, because it's always about money!

This would be a poor quality for a swoop canopy.

I prefer the Shadow Racer (all black). I like the ones with the velcro running down the sides of the reserve rather than the 2K3 design because I prefer a flexible container. Nearly all the rigs available today are totally rigid and flat along the back pad when viewed in a profile perspective whereas the Racer conforms to your back. The yoke is also a very important to comfort, and the Racer container has this dialed too; no need for the extra weight of rings. As for aesthetics, I can't help you. I'm a Civil Engineer who doesn't care about looking like a walking commercial.

Lovely...can you say Bag Strip?

Is this a quote by Jean-Bertrand Aristide of Haiti?

Sure, let's see if this URL works... http://member.newsguy.com/~rmsmith/sabre2/sabre2.htm

The free bag's bridle is fairly long, so the pilot chute will never be in the free bag's burble, which means that the pilot chute can exert a lot of pull easily breaking a mil-spec rubber band in the event of a locked line stow, IMHO. Many years ago, I was riding in a van with several skydivers who were making a beer run. One curious soul decided that he wanted to see how much pull his hand deploy piloy chute would exert while traveling at roughly 55-mph. To make sure that he wouldn't lose his grip on the bridle he wrapped it around his wrist several turns leaving about three feet of bridle line available for the pilot chute. With the apex mounted handle in his hand he stuck his arm out the window into the airstream and let go of the handle. Almost instantly, the pilot chute inflated yanking his arm rearward dislocating his shoulder! I heard his arm slap against the side of the van before he cried out in pain, and the driver quickly applied the brakes. The spring loaded pilot chute used in the reserve system applies more pull than your typical hand deploy pilot chute.

It is made for the reserve too; see the photo!

I would re-order a "speed bag" from Jumpshack. It represents a better deployment system than even the bungee stow and line pouch, IMHO.

Think first before you file a claim or telephone your agent about a claim regarding gear loss. Your homeowner policy should only be used for large losses, or you could posion your own address...forever! WHEN A CALL CAN HURT YOUR INSURANCE SCORE By Kenneth R. Harney WASHINGTON -Did you know that an innocent phone call to your insurance agent about the deductible on your homeowner's policy could trigger a loss report on your home to a national database, even if you never file a claim and pay for the repairs yourself? Sound bizarre? Welcome to the emerging Alice-in-Wonderland world of homeowners insurance, where you have a personal risk score and your house has its own electronic dossier accessible by insurance companies nationwide. Depending on what's in that dossier, your house may already be stigmatized as high risk -- rendering it more difficult to sell since insurance may be unavailable or extremely expensive. Worse yet, your ``homeowners insurance score'' could be tainted by the scoring software's heavy reliance on your personal credit file -- information that recent national studies have documented to be too frequently riddled with errors and omissions. The information is available to the insurance industry in a privately run database called the Comprehensive Loss Underwriting Exchange, or CLUE. Insurers who write more than 90 percent of the United States' homeowners policies contribute information to it, covering more than 40 million claims records on homes. Each house has its own file that lists every claim or piece of property damage information supplied by local agents over the past five years. Even if the file indicates that nothing was paid to the homeowner -- where the agent learned of damage below the deductible threshold through an innocent inquiry by the homeowner -- the file may contain a loss notation on the property record. To the insurance industry, CLUE is an invaluable source of risk-prediction information. In the words of Joe Annotti, vice president for public affairs of the National Association of Independent Insurers, CLUE ``is just an automated loss history that speeds up the process of underwriting and pricing insurance.'' It is nothing more sinister than the 200-million-plus credit files maintained by the private national credit repositories -- Equifax, Experian and TransUnion. But CLUE reports and homeowner scores can also be unseen weights on houses and their owners. Houses with just a couple of small claims listed on a report can suddenly be more difficult to sell. A homeowner who filed a damage claim on her last property in one state may find her score too low to qualify for insurance on a new house she wants to buy in another state. Both she and her former house may carry insurance stigmas -- the new scarlet letters of American real estate -- for years. To see a description of the CLUE system and obtain your home's current CLUE report, go to www.choicetrust.com. The cost is $12.95. You can obtain your homeowners insurance score for the same price. The CLUE system -- and rapidly rising homeowners insurance rates nationwide -- have prompted the formation of a task force by the National Association of Realtors. The group is expected to make recommendations for reforms to the 890,000-strong association next month at a meeting in Washington. One of the task force's members, Nick D'Ambrosia of LaPlata, Md., cites what he calls a typical example of how the CLUE database can trigger unexpected problems for homeowners. A report on a house in Upper Marlboro, Md., included two relatively minor insurance claims -- one for a ruptured water heater that spilled onto the basement floor. But, says D'Ambrosia, ``that was enough to stigmatize the property'' and render it difficult to insure by its unsuspecting purchaser. Six major insurers turned down the buyer's applications for insurance. Another member of the Realtors task force, Nick French of Santa Fe, N.M., cites the example of a Florida homeowner who mistakenly phoned his insurance agent to ask about coverage on a fallen tree in the yard. ``The tree didn't hit the house,'' French said. ``There was no claim filed.'' But it was listed as a zero-payout damage report on the home's CLUE file. The Consumer Federation of America's top insurance expert, Bob Hunter, says ``for years we've told people to call your insurance agent and ask questions about your policy. But if questions are going to be used against you, that's ridiculous.'' How should you handle the tricky new realities of homeowners insurance? For starters, order a copy of your home's CLUE report so you know what it contains. If you are buying a home, ask the seller for a copy of the CLUE report as a contract contingency item. And perhaps most important: Be aware that even the most casual inquiry to your agent about property damage could end up as a black mark in your home's electronic dossier. Kenneth R. Harney is a nationally syndicated real estate columnist based in Washington, D.C. You can e-mail him at kharney@winstarmail.com.

The spelling was correct as a warrantee is the person who holds a warranty, i.e., a purchaser of a product that includes a warranty. BTW, "guaranted" is missing an "e".

The gear manufacturers do the best job that the economic conditions of this sport will allow them. If they were to offer guaranteed or warranted gear then the prices we would ultimately pay would be much higher particularly after several years of tort activity. It is cheaper for everyone involved to simply replace the defective parts.

Most parachute gear is hand-made, and to expect a 100% parts replacement warrantee when this gear is deeply discounted is childish. This person should grow up, get out the credit card, and have a new ripcord shipped by fedex overnight--unless of course their life isn't worth $65.00. Products with the sort of warrantee protection this person desires are expensive. For example, automobile prices continue to rise unlike tire prices because the government insists that automobile manufacturers continue product safety research and exercise wide-spread recalls to insure public safety because an increasing number of people aren't well suited to operating automobiles. Skydivers do not pay for these additional costs in their purchases.

When was the last time you bought something in a store, any store, that had a "Made in Israel" label on it?

There were other injuries, and the owner couldn't reach that far down to change the dressing. That's two days worth of infection (over a weekend) because the insurance HMO wouldn't cover a hospital stay or home nursing visits. Needless to say, it was a trip right back to the hospital for a long visit in a sterilized room trying to trim the staph's appetite for warm flesh. Let's hear it for managed care!

You got that right! I snapped the photo, and I told the owner that it looked like something from a John Carpenter movie.