pilotdave

I just want to point out that generally, for a wing, an elliptical planform is the most efficient possible wing. This is only true for low speed aircraft of course because shockwaves will form at high speeds. But a tapered wing is simply an approximation to an elliptical wing which is far easier to design and construct. I'm sure this is true for parachutes too. As it turns out, a properly tapered wing is only slightly less efficient than a truly elliptical wing. This is why most general aviation aircraft have tapered wings, but almost none have elliptical wings. So, whether a canopy truly curves in the shape of an ellipse or just tapers doesnt make a whole lot of difference aerodynamically. To really learn about wing planform design and airfoil selection, you really need an aircraft design or aerodynamics book. This stuff gets really mathematical really fast though. By the way I'm a senior in aerospace engineering. Right now I'm taking an aircraft design class. We happened to cover wing taper today. Last friday we studied the aerodynamics of tailgate aircraft, specifically the skyvan. I was so entertained! Turns out keeping it boxy in the back makes it MORE aerodynamic than if it was rounded off. Who knew? (ok, maybe the shorts brothers) Dave

Saw a sign on a bathroom door. Tried it. Liked it. Actually, if you read the article on the main page of dropzone.com about starting a skydiving club, well, thats how I joined. After Lewis (the guy that wrote that article) got the club approved, he put up fliers all over campus, mostly on bathroom doors inside dorms. I saw one, went to the first meeting, and well, now 4 years later I'm the president of the club. Now I'm the one making the fliers. Last weekend we brought about 15 first timers to a CASA boogie. Nice introduction to skydiving huh? Hopefully we got one or 2 of em hooked. Dave http://www.umd.edu/studentorg/cpsc

no no no! It's ESTOY EN FUEGO! Learn your ser/estar.

0:3:probably a couple 3 jumps at a CASA boogie. First one was a simple 2 way which went better than I expected. Second one I got thrown out the back by 2 people. I just layed down on the ramp staring straight down. One person on each side grabbed an arm and leg gripper, picked me up, and tossed me out. At that point I was the "target" for a 9 way speed star. Ended up with a 5 way star. Last jump was the sunset load (although one more load flew after that...). I just did a solo. It was so peaceful. Then today i finished my biennial flight review so I'm cleared to act as pilot in command for my first time in over a year. Taking a friend up for a plane ride on wednesday. What a weekend... Dave

Dunno if this is meaningless or not, but recently I was trying to find some stats on student fatalities (to answer the second most common question I get). Do some searches on http://www.skydivingfatalities.com for people with very low jump numbers. There may be other factors at play, but the number of static line deaths is higher than AFF (or tandem). I have no idea what percentage of students learn by static line nowadays, but I'm thinking its gotta be pretty low. I've never done a static line jump, never seen a static line jump being done (other than paratroopers at airshows), and know very little about it. I started off with AFF1 and I have no regrets. Static line just scares me. Dave

Depends. I'm either driving to the DZ tonight or tomorrow morning depending on a friend of mine. He's planning to do AFF1 tomorrow, so we'd drive down tonight. Problem is he told his mom last night and she, to put it mildly, freaked out. She threatened to stop paying his tuition if he jumps. So now I'm waiting to hear how their second conversation went. If he decides not to jump, I have no idea what I'm doing tonight. Dave

I just posted something about this in another thread, but anyway, today my club handed out somewhere around 1400 fliers and signed over 150 people up for our email list. We ended the day with about 40 website hits (about doube the average, but nothing compared to the number of people that said they were interested) and 2 people signed up. One of them even jumped with us before, so we basically got 1 person out of all of them to sign up (so far anyway). The reason it happens like this isnt a mystery. It's all about money. Few people that are interested but don't actually do it are worried about safety or fear or anything. It's all about money. Today I listed our prices over and over and over and got just about every possible reaction from "never mind" to "wow, that's it? my cousin's friend said he payed $300..." But for most people, especially college students, it's just too expensive. Other factors are that it takes a whole day and requires a 2 hour drive in this area. I believe if the plane was right there ready to go, we'd triple or quadruple the number of people jumping. But when they find out they need to wake up early only to wait around all day, no thanks. Well, I better go to bed. Handing out the rest of my fliers starts tomorrow at 10. Dave

Our school paper (and the Washington Times) has done a few articles about our club. I emailed them a couple days ago and we're arranging for one of their writers to make an AFF jump and write about it. We're gonna make sure they get pics this time (instead of stealing pics off our web page which have been used over and over), even if we have to pay for em. From the one email I got so far they seem really excited about it. Some of the old articles are at http://www.inform.umd.edu/studentorg/cpsc/Articles1.html. Today was the "first look fair" at my school. It's where all the clubs can set up tables on campus and recruit new members. We added 156 or so people to our listserve (now around 1000 addresses on it), and probably handed out nearly 1400 quarter sheet fliers (based on how many we have left). So far 2 people have signed up to jump. Hopefully a few more will sign up for this weekend. We're bringing around 15 first timers to a CASA boogie. Should be a great weekend if the weather holds. Dave

Oh man that subject line just cracked me up before I even opened the post. I learned an interesting fact when I was a freshman in college... the, uhhh, high beams come on when girls hit their funny bone. Wonder why that is. Dave

I think here's where you go after you die in the frisbee religion: http://www.firstcoastnews.com/news/2002-08-15/usw_frisbee.asp Dave

I don't have any idea about this particular plane, but a plane generally wouldn't be allowed by not being FAA certified. It may not be certified because the company never planned to sell them in the US so they didn't bother with the time and expense, or maybe it doesn't meet an FAA requirement. Could be anything from stall speed to the number of emergency exits. But the FAA sets a whole bunch of rules and nobody, especially a tiny little organization like the USPA is gonna get them changed, especially for commercial ops. Also keep in mind the planes need to be maintained. I dunno what kind of engines they use, but are there any mechanics familiar with them in the US? I seriously doubt it would be any cheaper to operate than the planes we already have. Dave

Aww geez, what folder do I move this one to? RW? Landings? It's got it all.... /misc/ it is! Couldnt even borrow a protec for that??? That's just unsafe!

Was it simply tightened following the instructions? No other problems (bent pin or something)? I've only pulled mine once (on the ground) when it was at a normal tightness and it was easy to pull. It was packed as tight as the rigger could get it, so I can't imagine someone packing it so tight the pin couldnt be pulled. I dunno though. I have already decided that whenever I decide to get a new rig it won't be another reflex, but I'm happy with it. I've just let all the unfounded fear many skydivers have about it get to me. (I say unfounded because 99% of the safety issues I've heard about it have never actually happened. Most of them seem to be rumors that have spread.) Dave

Doors add so much difficulty. Gotta get up, get in position, and all that. I'd go with trap doors in the floor. They could be connected to the GPS and just drop everyone right from their seats when the spot is right. Landing gear arrangement (unless its retractible), wing configuration, and the stabilizer wouldnt matter. Seen the show Russian Roulette on the gameshow network? Same idea. Think about it... solves a lot of problems. Center of gravity issues can be managed by having everyone drop in the proper order automatically. Think of all the other uses too! Drug smuggling, 1920's style airmail delivery, propaganda scattering, and more! It's such a great idea I think I better stop now before someone gets too many ideas and copies it. By May I should have a degree in aerospace engineering. I'm gonna design it! Then build it out of macaroni! I'm taking an aircraft design class now. We have to design a jet transport that'll fly around the world nonstop unrefueled. So boring compared to the ideal jumpship.

Since you use it I assume you like it. Is it worth the $20 or so they sell for for someone that doesn't pack 100 rigs a weekend? I really hate closing my container. My hands are usually in pain after just a few pack jobs. Dave

I've had very experienced riggers pack mine and need it retightened, and I had a first time rigger pack it once and it lasted the whole repack cycle nice and tight. Other than riggers that are really reflex experts that always get it right, I think it's a lot of luck.

Yep. Actually a rigger stiched some webbing around the perimeter and diagonally across the back, and added the handles. The banner was made of felt or something which just tore apart almost instantly. They actually had a new banner made on F111 and will jump it whenever they find a chance. Dave

Finally got to watch it. Great job Michele! Dave

Woohoo! All fixed. Long story short, I reinstalled XP with a full install as opposed to the upgrade install. Works fine. Lost some files, but I'll live. Dave

Ok, we have the cable modem connected to a router, which connects to a hub, which connects to the computers. We do not have multiple IPs. We do use DHCP I think. How does that cause a problem? When I was running 98, setup consisted of nothing more than plugging in the ethernet cable. Worked right away. What am I not seeing with XP? Also, what does the repair function do in the XP network connections? It says it fails to update the IP or something. And Kennedy, I'm just a dumb computer geek I guess. Although I've been stumping smart ones with this over and over. I think I'm gonna go buy a new network card just so I have someone to call and yell at. Dave

Any XP experts out there? I installed it 2 days ago and haven't been able to get online since. All settings seem to be correct. I'm on a network in my house and I compared my settings to someone else that has it working fine and everything is identical. I can't really call the cable company for help since they don't appreciate 5 people sharing one cable connection, and MS, well, lets just say tech support didnt come with the copy I got. Anyone know what the problem could be? By the way my friend plugged his laptop into my jack and it worked fine so it's just a software problem. Windows detects the connection and detects when the cable is unplugged. It just won't do anything. HEEEELP! If you have any ideas, please email them to pilotdaveg@yahoo.com since I can check that on my cell phone. I may not make it back here for a while. Dave

OK, WTF IS WITH POSTING PICTURES OF NEKKID FAT UGLY PEOPLE RECENTLY???? STOP IT! Dave

No, this is a clumsy photoshop job... Dave

People people people. It's called Google. Use it!

Wow! I only expect them to be human and do the best they can do on any given day. That is all we can expect from anyone. Cheers! Generally, for all the money the US spends on its military, do you not expect it to be the best military in the world? The Golden Knights may be people trying their best, but they're also payed by me and you. What am I paying for if they aren't the best? My point is, they should be representing our country in world competitions. They are our national team. Why aren't they the best? By the way, I'm just bored. This isnt something I've been thinking a lot about. I don't really care. I just like to jump out of planes.