pilotdave

Umm, if you get a ride in an L-39 for your money, what do you care where it goes? Dave

Damn.... "only" getting 6267.3 Kbps here. Dave

Remember cable is shared. Then never guarantee a speed. DSL sometimes will, but cable speed depends on how many other people are downloading at the same time. Dave

Only used one to fill out some forms when I was president of a collegiate skydiving club (booking rooms for meetings and stuff). I actually enjoyed it. You could type wherever you wanted! That's so cool. Doing the same thing with a computer woulda taken forever. Course there's no reason to fill out a paper form when you can just keep all the data on the computer in the first place. For one semester, they'd just put the data into the computer. But I guess that was too hard, so they went back to typewriters... which they then retype into a computer. Dave

Hmm... with a skyhook, wouldn't just cutting away be a lot safer than attempting a canopy transfer? Or would you just not trust the skyhook to work? Dave

Just curious... why narrow leg straps? Dave

http://www.mozilla.org/firefox Firefox really kicks ass. You can (very easily) install "extensions" which add functionality to the browser. Just installed one that takes any web address on a page and turns it into a link... aka automatic clicky! Has tons of other really nice features, and hundreds more features you can download as you wish. Been using IE so long, it's hard to switch. But I'm getting used to it, and I'm loving it! Dave

Might work great for people of average size. But to find multiple demos from different manufacturers with the same canopy sized you want to buy, and with harnesses of the same size is probably impossible for many people. I'd say it makes a lot more sense to ask someone like you what containers work best for the body size/canopy sizes that the person wants. And what makes you believe all containers are equally safe? The vector3 has quite a few safety features not found on other rigs. Maybe things like the right side RSL, skyhook, collins lanyard, secondary riser covers, etc aren't necessary, but I believe that each of those features mitigates a possible hazard. Together, I believe they make the vector3 safer than any other container on the market. I'm not saying any other rig is unsafe, but the vector3 was designed with safety in mind, not comfort, price, or looks... in my opinion. And I'm not saying it isn't comfortable, I'm just saying it doesn't have all the latest comfort features available from other manufacturers. And skydude... you can learn to hook the canopies up yourself. It's really not very hard... you just have to make sure to do a good line check afterwards to make sure you got it right. Dave

Just my opinion here... I dont personally think demoing containers is particularly useful. All it will tell you is how comfortable that particular container is. But comfort depends on so many different factors, including how well that particular demo fits you. So, I'd personally say forget about demoing a container. Pick it based on what's important to you (ie get a Vector3 if you're into safety, a purple mirage if you're metrosexual, or a javelin if you like to wait long periods of time for something pretty average ). Choose main and reserve canopy sizes with the help of your instructors. Then, and this is only my crazy idea, buy the container and reserve, and DEMO some mains. Then you'll be able to figure out what main you want, while having your own left hand deploy container to try it in. Dave

I also love my sabre2, although my landings aren't quite as exciting. I'm curious though... anyone ever have problems with turbulence? I haven't noticed anything, but i keep hearing negative comments at the DZ about the Sabre2's behavior in turbulence. The spectre gets recommended to EVERYBODY (probably at least half the canopies on the DZ are spectres), but i've never heard anyone recommend the sabre2. But I've never read anything bad about the sabre2 in turbulence. Anyone ever heard that nasty rumor or is it just a local urban legend? Dave

On the order form, you can just list the canopies you have and RWS will choose an appropriate container size. Dave

Javelins are borderline metrosexual. I mean for a new one you're waiting like 6 months cause they look pretty. Reflex is definitely not metrosexual. I still have a black/pink reflex in my closet (in a garbage bag that hasn't been opened since I got my vector3). But a purple mirage... that's just the ultimate. Dave

Buy a matching mirage container to go with it. Purple is the best color for you metrosexual types. Dave

First jump: PD170 (~.76) 2 - 40: PD230 (~.58) other than a couple manta 288 rentals (~.47) 40-140: PD150 (~.87) 140-now (315): Sabre2 135 ( 1.03-1.09 depending on whether or not i have weights on) Going by some of the rules of thumb for wingloading, I could be jumping at 1.3. That would put me under a 107 main. That sounds like a baaad idea to me. No interest in downsizing from my 135 yet. Dave

It's a little tough to pick a rig based on the comfort of a demo. I mean, it won't be sized specifically for you, and probably won't be packed with the same size canopies you will be using. If one demo fits you a little better than another, you might falsely think that container is more comfortable than the other. One demo might have a deluxe backpad, and another might have a standard back pad. Can't directly compare em. Containers can get more comfortable as they get worn in too, so a brand new container might not be as comfortable as an older one. Also hip rings, chest rings, blah blah blah... When I was picking a rig, comfort was definitely second to safety in my selection process. From your list, one clearly stands out safety-wise. Comfort-wise, well, depends on who you ask. You will always find people that think every rig is the most comfortable, and just as many that think that one is the least comfortable. I'm sticking with Vectors until a.) RWS comes out with something better, or b.) someone else designs a rig that will pack itself. Dave

Do a search for sabre2 opening. Lots of people (including myself) have had similar problems with the sabre2. Mine doesn't usually turn 360 degrees, but it almost always turns between 90 and 180 degrees. Mine is always straight during the snivel. And right when I'm saying to myself "ahh, finally an on heading opening," it suddenly picks a direction and turns. Occasionally gives me line twists, but not very often. Someone mentioned to keep your legs together during the opening. That's had no effect for me. Only thing I can think of is that my leg straps might not be equally tight. The left one tends to slip a little in the plane. Edit: Openings aren't THAT bad... and I LOVE the landings. Dave

Thank goodness. I do know him, and all this talk of women wanting to make out with him was starting to gross me out (and confuse the heck out of me!) (good thing we moved like 1000 miles from each other or i'd be about to get my ass kicked i think

I'm sure my list was in here already, but here it is again with some additions... Skydive Pepperell (MA) Northampton (MA) Connecticut Parachutists (CT) Boston Providence (RI) Crosskeys (NJ) Delmarva (DE) Ocean City (MD) Williston (FL) Deland (FL) Dave

T-tails have advantages and disadvantages in aircraft design. The biggest problem is structural. The vertical tail has to be a lot stronger to support the horizontal stabilizer loads. That's a weight penalty. Also control cables for the elevators and trim need be routed up through the tail, which is more complex and heavier. Another problem is that the stabilizer/elevators may be less effective at high angles of attack since they might be sitting right in the turbulent wake. This can be a problem for stall/spin recovery. Typically you'll see T-tails on airliners and planes that won't likely be stalled. But like johnmitchell said, piper used T-tails on a bunch of models, including the tomahawk, which is commonly used for stalls and spin training. T-tails are harder to inspect and harder to do maintenance. Some advantages are that the horizontal stabilizers can often be made smaller, since under normal circumstances, they're flying along in cleaner air. That can be a weight savings. Being up so high also means they're less likely to get hit by debris blown back by the prop, such as pebbles and skydivers. There are valid reasons not to use a T-tail. But for a plane supposedly designed specifically for skydiving, a T-tail woulda been nice. Dave

Bobby's video Dave

In case people have missed it, one of them crazy bird people already hit the tail of a PAC750... http://www.dropzone.com/cgi-bin/forum/gforum.cgi?post=1233494#1233494. Video here. I totally agree that the plane wasn't designed from the ground up for skydiving. I'm not exactly sure how similar the airframe is to the Cresco, but I am gonna go on a limb and say it is heavily based on it, which was not designed specifically for skydiving. Sure, the PAC750 was designed with skydiving in mind, but the airframe was not designed specifically to make a good skydiving aircraft. But comparing it to a twin otter is comparing apples and oranges. Dave

Yeah, but this time it was true! That thing had a total. Dave

I was actually talking to one of the packers on Monday. The canopy was made by Pioneer Aerospace. Can't remember the exact numbers he gave me, but the canopy was something in the area of 250 square feet, wingloading around 2:1. It was nylon reinforced with kevlar to prevent being ripped by the hook. It was packed, sealed up, and baked in an autoclave or something to kill anything alive on it (as if a couple years in space wouldn't do the trick

That was kinda cool. It forgot to pull. DOH! Ok, the helicopter thing woulda been cooler. Dave

I know I've seen a video of it. Eating bananas while doing a horny gorilla. Can't find the video right now. Anyone know which one that is? Dave