brits17

hey ramen (noodle), as most have agreed, and given your options, it was my initial insinuation that a pocket slider is your best bet. if you want to talk more about it, you know where i am. see you at the dz (or zen's) soon. _______________________ aerialkinetics.com

Major prayers for Tommy, what a good guy... _______________________ aerialkinetics.com

chemistry _______________________ aerialkinetics.com

hookitt just mentioned my fav trick above... makes life a lot easier. Throughout the pack job, I'm always making sure I've created the nice set 'hole' for the pilot chute to sit on. After folding the bridle when all flaps are 'closed' I'll take a packing paddle in the center of the folded bridle and basically 'set' the remaining bridle into the created hole. I do this by taking the small end of the paddle and pushing the bridle down in the center. I've heard a couple gasps when I do this, however try it. The bridle unfolds and stretches without any force. This is difficult to describe in words without video or diagrams, but I tried _______________________ aerialkinetics.com

Same jump, just geekin the cam _______________________ aerialkinetics.com

I voted no... keep it a choice. Like the masses have said, recommended but not required

Sabre 120, 1:1, used. _______________________ aerialkinetics.com

Just arrived in Atlanta carrying on my rig, no problems. Lately it seems they'll check and see what it is, then have no further questions. No biggie. _______________________ aerialkinetics.com

Rigging and skydiving are barely getting me through college right now. And all I have to support is myself. I enjoy it as a part-time deal, but can't see myself doing it full time. Its a tideover until I get my degree so I can FUN jump and not HAVE to jump to support myself. I'm afraid of burnout and well the politics, sheesh, I can barely handle that part-time... Don't get me wrong, I love skydiving and always will, but there's a whole nother world out there too. _______________________ aerialkinetics.com

ditto, don't have documentation, yet it seems to be the general consensus. could someone perhaps post the manual's method of using a 5 lb weight 6 inches from the torque wrench? (if its not too long) _______________________ aerialkinetics.com

Here we go again... First disloction came upon me bout 2 1/2 years ago, climbing out on the strut of a cessna, swung underneath it, and pop goes my right shoulder, backwards. i let go of the strut and it came back in place. since, i didn't have much problems but a year later, the loose shoulder came back to haunt me. a couple more dislocations, 1 in freefall and the other doing simple pull-ups in the army. it had weakened and loosened to the point where no matter how much PT i did, no matter how strong i got it, it was beyond self-repair. it dislocated 3 more times in freefall and once under canopy and i finally quit jumping, saw a doctor and got the MRI. 2 large ligament tears, posterior rotator cuff. i had no other options but surgery if i wanted to continue jumping or playing any sport again. i got the surgery 8 months ago, am airborne again and now my shoulder is stronger than it has ever been. moral of the story, get it checked ASAP and since its only dislocated once, i would start therapy on it right away. do as much PT and exercises as you can handle and get your rotater strong to prevent future reoccurances. good luck! _______________________ aerialkinetics.com

*raises hand* gotta love that good ol country sound _______________________ aerialkinetics.com

You have an entrancing kiss~ the kind that leaves your partner bedazzled and maybe even feeling he/she is dreaming. Quite effective; the kiss that never lessens and always blows your partner away like the first time heh, i knew it _______________________ aerialkinetics.com

likewise _______________________ aerialkinetics.com

kinda bummin too, just don't have the $$$ this year. ah well, like bytch said, 8 more months till rantoul _______________________ aerialkinetics.com

I wish i could cast 2 votes but could only make one. I say do about 100 belly then go FF... I agree you'll appreciate the belly experience later on. Its good also not to completely forget about the belly dives too. Sunset if the RW'ers are organizing something fun, hop on the load and have a good time with the old farts Its good to be an all around flyer, although I will admit, my belly skills are not as up to par as I would like, spending too much time upside down and inside out these days... _______________________ aerialkinetics.com

When I gave ya'll a ride from the airport to AOT I wasn't jumping coming off shoulder surgery. If I told you already forgive me, but it had come out of socket backwards (rare scenario) grand total of bout 6 times in freefall, and once under canopy at 1500 feet. I got it back in at 1K in enough time to carve and land. Scary. That was my last jump before I decided its definately not worth the risk. It was the right arm. In fact, Levins got video of us and we're docked headdown, I go into a linked transition into a sit and you can see my arm just dislocate during the transition (its a very disgusting sight). Moral of story, don't BS with it, seriously. Its not worth the risk. Get it fixed or stronger to the point where you're not going to be paranoid about it in the air yo. Best wishes

merry christmas to you too!!! i hung out with an old army friend last night i hadn't seen in a year 1/2. he'd spent some months in iraq (he's a rigger in the 82nd) and had some interesting stories to tell. you rock my man, keep up the good work and God bless. _______________________ aerialkinetics.com

cool follow up bryan, thanks

So I consider last night my first 'real' solo, with no ground crew except for phone crew. Driving alone, operating the elevator alone (I brought a couple phone books to stand on since I couldn't reach all the switches). Climb up the ladder to the elevator, unplug, shut the door, ready to roll. The elevator starts to creek as it begins to liftoff, adding to my nervousness. Cool, I get to sit down, its so roomy without sharing the space. Man, 600 feet sure came fast. Open the door, stand out in the open now. Whoooosh, the winds were absolutely hauling. I give a wee side smile as reality sets in. Tiptoeing out to the rail, I shed my little paper and check the wind direction. Couldn't be better. Southside, my favorite, although the landing area is pitch black. Ah well, conditions are perfect. Sure is eerie though being out here all alone. Step back into the elevator, pull my pilot chute out, take my time routing the bridle making sure its in my hand perfectly. I must have checked the bridle literally 30 times before exit. Deep breaths, I'm good. Step out to the exit point, over the rails, hang on enjoying the view for a second or 2 as always. Couple more deep breaths before I start my aloud count, 3 (holy shit), 2 (can't back down now), 1 (commit), c ya! Good 3 seconds and pitch. Aaaaah, perfect opening and wow, short canopy ride. Good landing and a big "wahooo!" for no one to hear. Gather up my parachute and head back to my truck. Left everything as I found it and headed out all smiles. I feel much better now. That was my lowest jump to date by 200 feet and I just had to share the experience. _______________________ aerialkinetics.com

Guess I'm one of the weirdos who likes packing Racers. I don't think they're more difficult, just different. Its the itty bitty Mirages (like my container) that frustrate me. Oh well, to each his own

good read, creative mind. thanks _______________________ aerialkinetics.com

Anything I consider unairworthy or I would not jump myself (because of safety issues), anything I'm not rated for unless under the supervision of someone who is (ie: seat, chest rig) or anything I don't know how to pack competently or confidently on my own. _______________________ aerialkinetics.com

I'm here for the knowledge and information gained from Gear and Rigging and The Base Zone... and the laughs I get from TalkBalk. _______________________ aerialkinetics.com

Eric's video is classic... I believe it was a line over as well, collapsing 1/3 of the canopy on the right/left side (can't remember). I have not seen any others in action. _______________________ aerialkinetics.com