mattjw916

Members
 View Profile  See their activity

  • Content

    2,083

  • Joined

  • Last visited

  • Feedback

    0%

Everything posted by mattjw916

  1. mattjw916

    pd pulse

    mattjw916 replied to tb182's topic in Gear and Rigging

    I agree completely. I was disappointed in the Pulse for these exact reasons. My Pulse 170 opened quite quickly though (compared to my Nitrons and Samurai) and always on-heading. Sold it and never looked back. NSCR-2376, SCR-15080
  2. mattjw916
    I don't remember any off-heading issues really. But it was a long time ago. I do remember that I never even remotely considered cutting it away. I don't even think I ever had line twists on my Safire. Also as mentioned due to measuring differences my 189 was really more like a 175 using PD's measuring method. My Safire also had a mod to the control lines that made it even more snively. One of the riggers that's been around a while on here should be able to explain it more completely but I believe a couple of the upper inboard control lines were shortened on mine. NSCR-2376, SCR-15080
  3. mattjw916
    I owned a Safire 1 a long time ago. Semi-elliptical with really, really snivelly openings. Nothing like a Sabre 1 at all. NSCR-2376, SCR-15080
  4. mattjw916
    It happens on the small ones too at lighter loadings. Small ones at high loadings, not so much because of the increased speed of pressurization. From a practical perspective it's not a big deal IMO. NSCR-2376, SCR-15080
  5. mattjw916
    I've had the misfortune of being on various DZs many, many times there were serious injuries or deaths. None of them stopped turning loads. Not sure how shutting down operations would have altered the outcome of any of those events in the slightest. Even saw a medevac helicopter departing a main landing area while simultaneously hearing manifest announcing a 20min call for the next Otter back in the day. Not exaggerating. I personally have been boarding an Otter moments after a fatality was announced (they don't say that exactly, but those of us who have been around know what "main landing area is closed" generally means). Big events like P3 have lots of injuries, mostly landing accidents from what I've personally seen, not a lot of benefit realized in shutting the whole place down IMO. NSCR-2376, SCR-15080
  6. mattjw916
    What I did when I got current: 1. Tunnel, focus on basics even though I had a lot of flight time already. 2. Read and re-read the SIM a few times. 3. Full recurrency/ground school session as required by local DZ. 4. Recurrency jump with instructor. 5. Land safe. 6. Wave good-bye to disposable income, off-DZ friends, and anything not skydiving related! NSCR-2376, SCR-15080
  7. mattjw916
    I think you're overthinking things a bit. Go fly, get video, and a good debrief. Concentrate on basic body position. Narrow arms and legs; mantis position, elbows down. This will let you pressurize the air and add power as you work out your legs. If your knees are too wide for instance your turn will be slow and not very snappy... mushy. Start with long/thin, no legs to turn, just spill air... just do 90s. Then as you get a feel for those start adding legs... drop a knee to initiate, then use the other to counter before you hit a full 180, 360, etc. Break turns down: 360=90+power 180+glide through last 90 to grips. I'm not really sure laying on a bed is the best way to do it... perhaps a low stool so you can move arms/legs and get a core workout in the process. NSCR-2376, SCR-15080
  8. mattjw916
    H as well... even with my limited 4 way experience it seems to work well with a wide variety of skill levels Launching a 14 is fun though. NSCR-2376, SCR-15080
  9. mattjw916
    seconded I wear non-polarized gatorz under my G3 constantly, love it! NSCR-2376, SCR-15080
  10. mattjw916
    Heard nothing but good things about Opts from people who rode them. Apparently they work well in a 2-out scenario as well!!! NSCR-2376, SCR-15080
  11. mattjw916
    There's no way in god's green earth you're going to make that combination work in an M2 sized container. That would be overstuffed quite a bit. NSCR-2376, SCR-15080
  12. mattjw916
    You probably want to narrow the area you are willing to travel to down a bit. There are plenty of year-round DZs in CA, AZ, FL, TX, etc... This time of year Eloy is probably one of the safest bets for nice weather and tons of instructors/loads available. Perris and Elsinore also work but you can probably burn through training jumps a little faster in Eloy. I'd do some tunnel before you go back up though if you've had a long layoff. NSCR-2376, SCR-15080
  13. mattjw916
    if you plan on doing RW, might as well just get a properly fitting suit with booties and grippers since you actually need those to do non-zooish RW keep your eye on the classifieds here and on facebook to piece a rig together from used parts, no need to go nuts on something that you're going to pound into the dirt as you're learning NSCR-2376, SCR-15080
  14. mattjw916
    seconded NSCR-2376, SCR-15080
  15. mattjw916
    The split dbag was on the older Mirage G4s not the Odyssey. Basically, one side of the dbag is split in two halves to about 2/3rds of the way down and you had to pass the first locking stow through two grommets. Just an unecessary pain IMO. I replaced it with a "standard" updated dbag from Mirage when I had to replace my PC/bridle due to wear. Comfort is subjective so really you should try on a few rigs and see which one feels right on you. There are just too many design factors and differing body types to say definitively which one is better. The Vector wouldn't even be on my radar though with a 40 week (!!!) delivery time. NSCR-2376, SCR-15080
  16. mattjw916
    I always thought all those coach jumps in Eloy's program were a distinct advantage having gone through the program myself over a decade ago. NSCR-2376, SCR-15080
  17. mattjw916
    there's a lot more to it than line length... you'd be changing the geometry of the wing NSCR-2376, SCR-15080
  18. mattjw916
    I can easily achieve a descent rate >45mph with just a 90° front riser turn at around 1.4 on my 135, let alone my 120. I wouldn't want an AAD in "student" mode anywhere near that loading personally. I probably could hit those speeds under my 150 too with a moderately more aggressive turn. My $0.02. NSCR-2376, SCR-15080
  19. mattjw916

    R-Max

    mattjw916 reviewed admin's gear in Reserve Canopies

    Deployed by RSL after breakaway in basically a completely horizontal orientation after a violently spinning mal on my Samurai 120. The R-Max 148 loaded a bit under 1.4:1 opened quick and without any drama. I literally have no complaints about this canopy; it performed exactly as expected. Excellent value for the money.
  20. mattjw916
    I adjusted my Cypres 2 to fire at +200ft permanently after it received the software update. Attentive people occasionally ask me why my Cypres is always flashing "2" on the display. I don't see any negative reasons for increasing it slightly that aren't an obscure corner-case. It's been set this way for over a year now IIRC. YMMV NSCR-2376, SCR-15080
  21. mattjw916
    rofl, I'm going with asymmetrical leg straps + high wingload due to freefall collision just as I was about to dock on the big way (someone slid under me from behind and the left as I approached, never saw him) vid of that is on my page too, lol... NSCR-2376, SCR-15080
  22. mattjw916
    Yeah, I think the amortization of a Cypres came out to be something like $12/mo over its lifetime including maintenance. People that whine about AAD costs have never had to pay for a funeral. They are significantly more expensive. NSCR-2376, SCR-15080
  23. mattjw916
    Had my first one last weekend too. Spun up quite violently for no apparent reason. Was annoyed more than anything else. http://youtu.be/3yye6PVxya0 NSCR-2376, SCR-15080
  24. mattjw916
    Unfortunately, in the spirit of the Heisenberg Uncertainty Principle, taking a camera on the jump alters the jump you wish to document, i.e. people tend to fly and act different in front of a camera (myself included). NSCR-2376, SCR-15080
  25. mattjw916
    Don't care. Unfortunately a lot of people can't be dealt with in a rational manner because they aren't rational or capable of being rational. NSCR-2376, SCR-15080