pilotdave

Easiest way: CLICK HERE then drag the video in. It should upload it for ya. The file won't be accessible right away. I'll move it to another folder after the upload is done. Lemme know if ya need more help. Dave

I weigh just a little less than you and did my first jump on a PD170. I ended up buying a PD150 for my first canopy. If the canopy is in good shape and all that, it's probably a good choice. F111 canopies aren't very popular but I have plenty of fun with my 150. I was very pleasantly surprised to find how much quicker and more responsive it is than the larger ones (I did most of my student jumps on PD230s). You're probably going to get a lot of advice to get a ZP canopy. I am very happy with my choice of F111. It's easy to fly, easy to land, and easy to pack. Out of curiosity, how much is the canopy selling for? Just be careful not to overpay. Dave

Never tried a factory diver so I don't know anything about em.... but I know my Z1 almost always fogs up under canopy to some degree (the colder the weather the worse it fogs) so I always open it under canopy. Also I don't like landing with it closed... kinda messes with my depth perception I think. Do factory divers allow a lot of wind through? They look like they have a big opening up front. Dave

I have had 2 pilot chutes in tow that both ended with the main opening just fine. I'm still not sure of the cause but I think it was a combination of a shrunken kill line and a tight container. The first time, I don't know why, but without even thinking about it I reached back, grabbed my bridle, and gave it a tug. It all happened really fast in one motion. It fixed the PC in tow, but it also flipped me over and my dbag bounced right over my side. Canopy opened fine with a couple linetwists. The second time, my hands went right to the cutaway handle. As soon as I touched it the main opened. Whew. So I'm not saying what the right thing to do is. I'm just saying what I instinctively did when I was in that position. No idea where I got the instinct to pull the bridle... I really only realized I had done it after it was done. Dave

I believe the light visible for 3 miles is only needed under canopy, not freefall (so you can hang a strobe under you after opening if you want). Glow sticks are not visible for 3 miles. Dave

Just got my bachelors degree in aerospace engineering (actually got the diploma framed a few weeks ago). Starting to consider either an MBA or a masters degree in engineering. Either way it's payed for 100% by the company I work for. That includes everything from application fees to books. Not only is it free, but I get $10,000 in stock when I graduate. The thought of more school and homework sounds awful right now, but I just cant give up the opportunity. I'm even considering a dual MBA/MS that would be completely online. No idea how that really works but it sounds better than going to school at night. Dave

Well, cyberskydive has surprised me again. He's got the beginnings of a totally web based skydivingmovies.com up and running: http://www.skydivingmovies.com/movies.php. Woohoo! Thanks Cyber! Dave

I'm also very light. I have a Bev competition suit, nylon front, spandex back and arms, lower leg zippers to keep the legs tight. Combined with 6 or 8 lbs of weight, my fall rate problems are pretty much solved. No problems with the suit. Chances are my next suit will be a Bev...whenever that is. Dave

Us mere mortals may stow our sliders. But when you're god of the skies, you just cut it in half and replace it after the jump. I mean he might have gotten that canopy dirty (not to mention the cut suspension line), so he probably just threw it away. Seriously, isn't that just a split slider? Dave

A few videos of the jump (from the news) are available at skydivingmovies.com in the /from_TV/ folder. 2 BBC reports and one from ITV. They're the ones that begin with Felix... Dave

There are ways around that

Ok, tomorrow try this one out: ftp://videos.umdskydiving.com. It won't work right away because the DNS server needs some time to update. It currently points to the old server. Dave

Did they just block that site, or all ftp servers? If it's just that site, well, sucks. But I feel special. Contributing to work not getting done. WOOHOO! But hang on. I might be able to set up a different domain name, just for you. Till they block that one too. Hang on. Dave

God if I needed a blood test every 3 years I think I'd give up flying. It's bad enough that I need to "turn my head and cough." I'm all for medical self certification for private pilots. For skydivers, that seems like a LOT of overkill. I don't get it. $100 would be amazingly cheap here for all that. My medicals run at about $80 or $85 and there's very little to them. Eye test, hearing test, color blindness, and all the usual stuff a doctor does at a regular checkup. The whole thing is over in about 10 or 15 minutes. Painless and quick. Dave

I looked into this for my rig a long time ago andcouldn't find anything other than having the manufacturer do it which was going to cost a fortune and a half. I'm finally getting ready to buy a new rig. Dave

Here's a bunch of really cool optical illusions all related to lightness. Very very strange. Dave

Just a guess here... when you're holding your breath, oxygen keeps getting absorbed into your blood until there's none left in the air in your lungs. But when you're breathing at 40,000 feet your lungs are never getting enough oxygen into your blood. How long would it take to pass out if you breathed out before holding your breath? Well, it's still probably more than 15 seconds but I'm guessing we arent capable of exhaling all the oxygen in our lungs. Dave

...under /landing/brolls Dave

99 in 5 years. Sad, I know. Jumping a lot more lately though. Dave

Thats the scary thing about hypoxia. It makes you think everything is alright. Pilots are taught that when you're flying up high, if life just seems to be perfect and you're feeling great, it's time to come on down. Not being light headed does NOT mean you aren't suffering from hypoxia. It's true that it will affect different people at different altitudes. Thats what pisses me off about that question on the B license test. It's just not accurate. I read an article a couple years ago in some flying magazine. They hooked up a portable pulse oximeter (is that the correct terminology for the thingy that clips onto your finger and measures the oxygen in your blood?) to a pilot while flying at 9000 feet msl. The idea was to test an emergency oxygen bottle. At that altitude the oxygen in the blood would drop off to a dangerous level. Every 10 minutes or so the pilot would take a puff of oxygen and he'd be fine for a while. He couldn't feel the difference, but the instrument told him he needed the oxygen and that it worked. Dave

I have verizon. When I was picking (about a year ago) I looked at all the coverage maps and verizon was the only one that really covers most of the country. Maybe the others have caught up a little since then but some of them were pretty ridiculous. Check the coverage maps (CAFEFULLY) and if everywhere you tend to go is covered, then it doesn't matter which you go with. Verizon has been great for me. Also I found out a few weeks ago that I get 15% off verizon through work. I also get $25 on my account if I sign anyone up through a particular verizon sales rep. If you want verizon and want me to get $25, PM me and I'll give you her email. Dave

1 more jump till I hit 100:4:0 Woulda done my hundredth today but the weather was no good. Oh well, it's taken me 5 years to reach 99... I can wait another week. Dave

No idea what pic you're talking about but here's one I made a long time ago. Dave

Well, its all about relaxing, right? It must be much more relaxing to jump out of a burning plane than an AFF jump with 2 instructors watching your every move.

18 then, 23 now. Dave