mattjw916

lol, I always thought the "closing loop retainer" was the knot in the bottom of it below the grommet. or maybe the plastic stiffener covering that... NSCR-2376, SCR-15080

B-17 or other aircraft of historical significance would be really cool and worth the extra money IMHO. I never got to jump from a C-130 in the military so that would be pretty sweet... aside from those other antique planes would be interesting. Maybe they could actally get a PAC to show up next year, that'd be nice... Too bad we can't borrow opfor planes from the military, they have some really interesting eastern-bloc cold-war era stuff around. NSCR-2376, SCR-15080

WTF dude, if you don't want to wear a "loud" jumpsuit, then don't. My gear/jumpsuits are all mellow colors (which is pretty rare for a freeflyer). My canopies are obnoxiously bright so people can see me in the sky and hopefully not run into me... One more thing, newsflash most people are self-centered... if we weren't, we'd all be out volunteering at the local soup-kitchen or teaching inner-city kids how to read on the weekends instead of skydiving and burning mass quantities of fossil fuels. NSCR-2376, SCR-15080

Personally I'd wait on buying anything except maybe goggles until you get more jumps. Not that there is anything wrong with buying the stuff you mentioned but here are a couple of things to consider: If you buy a new jumpsuit, you will probably beat the crap out of it as you get the hang of landing. Just about everyone will slide, PLF, or just plain screw up during student jumps. Get some cheapo surplus pants or something in the meantime that you won't care about ripping up. You don't really need a Pro-Track, spend the money on jumps and coaching instead (you'll thank me later). You probably won't be able to use the audible feature (the best part IMO) until are off student status anyway. Mindwarps are decent enough helmets though, but once again, you might want to hold off because you may decide you want to do more RW stuff and want a full-face... same thing goes with the jumpsuit. It's hard to pick out the right one if you don't know how fast/slow you fall, whether you want to freefly or flatfly, and most importantly it might not match the colors of your rig when you buy one. Overall the decision is yours and listen to your intructors... these are just some things to consider. NSCR-2376, SCR-15080

Sweet, it's been a while since a random person told me I was going to bounce. Awesome, thanks!!! That's right, it's a free country, so try to not screw it up for everyone else that still values personal freedom even though you obviously don't. NSCR-2376, SCR-15080

I wear a seatbelt religiously... I wear a helmet religiously (skydiving and motorcycling)... I don't get flu shots... I don't use an RSL... Why no flu shot? Because they only protect you from a few common strains which are usually picked out as an educated guess by vacine proveders. Why no RSL? They add complication to a relatively straight forward process. Does this mean I am "not safe". Nope, it means I educated myself to the pros and cons of each item and made an informed decision. People should be free to make these decisions according to their own priorities. While I support and endorse the use of seat belts and helmet, they also do have drawbacks beyond the scope of this thread and I would not presume to label someone as "unsafe" because their decision process led them to another conclusion than mine. NSCR-2376, SCR-15080

pffft... just say "no" to the red handle... NSCR-2376, SCR-15080

This whole thread is lame... The OP makes it seem like this is a common problem and people are falling out of rigs left and right. While the accident that took place is tragic, I find the knee jerk reactions to them comical at best. I can only recall one other case of someone falling out of their rig and going in using modern sport gear and it had to do with the chest strap separating from the MLW. The amount of fear-mongering that goes on in this forum is positively staggering. You have the vocal minority (many of which don't even skydive very often) perpetuating myths that Stilettos are black-death canopies for anyone under 500 jumps, your AAD can fire at any time while swooping, and now you can fall out of your rig. While there are isolated incidents of people getting killed as a result of these obscure occurences, they certainly are not the "big killers" people make them out to be. Perhaps if the fear-mongerers spent more time highlighting the hazards of not knowing how AADs and RSLs operate, why you should take a few minutes and ensure you and your buddy's gear is safe to freefly in, not jumping while drunk or on drugs, and perhaps learning to fly that "hot" canopy instead of PFL'ing it in on every jump we'd have less time to split hairs over something that really isn't a problem. The law of unintended consequences will ruin this sport if everytime someone goes in we try and force a gear change or try to add a new BSR. NSCR-2376, SCR-15080

Well it's probably a 143 not a 132 since there is no such thing... at least it's a PD at that loading. Now... now... let's stay on topic here... NSCR-2376, SCR-15080

It's not the canopy, it's the pilot, that is responsible for how well a canopy lands and it is up to the pilot to figure out where the "sweet spot" is and the speed and duration of flare. Don't blame the canopy... If you want sporty turns, make a couple hundred more jumps then buy a Stiletto. NSCR-2376, SCR-15080

werd NSCR-2376, SCR-15080

those are "trim levels" not models NSCR-2376, SCR-15080

I wouldn't even do that, it won't help. A lot of "adult" things happen at dropzones, things they might not approve of if they are conservative. What do you think they would say if someone hooked it in and broke a femur while they were watching? I've landed next to ambulances on the landing area twice in my short time in sport. If they want to come I say fine, but I wouldn't invite them unless they ask. NSCR-2376, SCR-15080

That's silly. You can hook all day long up high, above 2 grand or so, for practice. That's how you figure out how much altitude you canopy loses in a 90, 180, or 270° front riser turn, etc, etc. Granted you want to make sure your airspace is clear and all that other good stuff but telling someone to "don't do it" is lame, esp since last time I checked front riser turns and maximum performance toggle turns are on the A license card. NSCR-2376, SCR-15080

Q: What is a hook turn? A: Any turn that someone doesn't like. NSCR-2376, SCR-15080

I agree, the US puts satellites up constantly and most of them last a long, looong time without scheduled maintenance. Granted there is a lot redundancy built into them but the fact still remains that they have some over 20 years old. Do they still work? Yes. Are they as good as the new ones? Nope. You don't have to do periodic maintenance on today's air bag systems in cars either. If they don't pass their self-test and the light comes on, you take it in for diagnosis/repairs. No biggie. I really don't see the Vigil being any different. Before someone says I think that old Cypreses are junk due to some misconstrued comments by select individuals in another thread, I have a Cypres 1, and it's not exactly brand new either. NSCR-2376, SCR-15080

I'd say it already is, in the states at least. As more and more Cypres AADs hit their EOL, I'm guessing we'll see a lot more of them. NSCR-2376, SCR-15080

My advice, take that spiffy new AAD you have, sell it, and buy a better container. Esp since there is a greater chance that your gear will kill you, than a no-pull... /joking I was a poor soldier once too, so I can relate... good luck with the mod and keep that velcro in good shape! NSCR-2376, SCR-15080

Yeah... every AAD will have teething issues. I don't base my potential decision to buy one on whether or not some random gov't agency (read politicians) in a foreign country "approves" it for use. Having taken a close look at the Vigil and talked extensively to people in the know about them, they appear very impressive. My next AAD will be a Vigil. NSCR-2376, SCR-15080

Aerostore... http://www.aerostore.com/shopping/Items.asp?OPEN=YES&ACTION=DISPLAY&Category=36&SubCategory=147 NSCR-2376, SCR-15080

Care to share them? NSCR-2376, SCR-15080

there are no Caravans in CO... NSCR-2376, SCR-15080

I'd jump it! NSCR-2376, SCR-15080

I don't have anything against PD, like I said earlier, I have jumped more PD canopies than any other manufacturer's. Think about it like this instead. You have a Talon 2, probably a good rig in its day, but not as suitable to the multi-orientation high-speed manuevers often associated with modern skydiving. As such, I would not freefly in a Talon 2, since there are better rigs (Talon FS or Voodoo) out there. Do I think that RI was out to hurt anyone or purposely released an inferior product? Absolutely not! The sport changed, the gear changed along with it. Some people are stuck in the mud when it comes to canopies and rigs and refuse to believe that some of the new designs will flat out smoke the old ones. As such I'm sure the Jalapeno was a fine canopy for its day, but I'd rather jump a Nitron. NSCR-2376, SCR-15080

Muddy the waters all you like... it won't help your, or anyone else's, canopy open any softer. Stilettos have been around for a long time and are flown by top RW teams like Air Speed for thousands of jumps per year. How many times have they been injured by their Stilettos on opening? With as many training jumps as they make, if they opened hard with any frequency, do you think they would jump them? They still make the Stiletto after almost a decade and don't make the Sabre what does that say? People getting hurt under a Sabre isn't some statistical anomaly. Cheap gear is cheap for a reason. Everybody thinks they have the best/safest canopy/rig/AAD etc. In reality, a lot of those people are wrong. Some learn, some not in time though. NSCR-2376, SCR-15080