Widgeon

Are your problems with the openings subterminal or terminal? Have you tried it with a psycho pack? If so, how did it open?

Easy man, Talonsky is just looking out for you and doesn't want your foot to look like that.

What is the optimal WL on a crossfire? Icarus recommends something like from 1.4-2.2. I get all I want out of my 119 at around 1.65.

I eventually want an FX as well after I'm done with my crossfire, but I'll stick with the crossfire untill I've got it completely dialed in and wrung out. Anyway, just a point you may want to consider, Icarus recommends the psycho pack for their safire, FX and VX. Give it try, it helped out my safire openings ten fold. I don't presume to be smarter than the engineers that designed these canopies so if they recommend it, try it and see for yourself. As far as mods, Precision offers what they call the "X-mod" that gives you their stable rib stabilizers that eliminate the line that gets tacked on at the stabilizer and then to the outer most portion of the end cell. It is supposed to lower drag. You also get an HMA lineset and a different trim. Benefits are supposed to be more manageable front riser pressure and better opening characteristics. A new slider with lighter weight brass grommets finishes out the mod. Your original stabilizers and slider can be returned to you upon request. This mod basically transforms your canopy into a wing very similar to a Xaos 21 so jump one before you drop the $450 on the mod. If you like it, it's not much more than the $268 you'll spend on an Icarus vectran lineset. Have fun with it and the best of luck to you, I hope you get the results you're after.

When ANYTHING doesn't feel right... I hear so many people interested in this discipline refer to "canopy control"(or lack there of) as describing the ability to fly a parachute. That is simply an illusion. We might possess good or bad canopy piloting skills, but ultimately there is no control. We can control when our lines are changed, but we can't control when a steering line snaps on landing. We can do all the preventive maintenance to our equipment that is possible, but all it does is give us better odds. I had an AFF instructor that after opening would start looking around at his gear and start going through scenarios about "what if this broke, or what if the wind picked up and changed below 2000ft and I was already committed to a tight landing area, oblivious aircraft traffic, ect.". Kinda cryptic but I've heard of or seen alot of this shit before. How do we gauge our canopy skills? I think anyone could learn to flat turn or rear riser flare with practice and good instruction as long as these skills were introduced at an early time in one's skydiving career. I parallel canopy flight to a surfer or a skier or one of those bullriders, we just have a different media that requires different skills because of the inherently different danger that we are exposed to. In none of the other "sports" are the participants in complete "control" either. I just hope that everyone recognizes the risks they take and accept them. Swooping and high performance canopy flight should never be about anything other than your own enjoyment. Safe swoops.

Anyone jumped a VX with the X-mod? I know that particular mod almost entirely changes an FX into a Xoas21 but the VX becomes something else... What are the flight characteristics and riser pressures like? EDITED TO ADD: I don't want one anytime soon so I don't want to hear it Mark, I was just curious about the mod.

Benny I've seen you swoop a couple times too...

What an informative thread... By god Mark I think you're learning to spell some of this shit too.

How would you go about building a downplane? Is there more than one way to do it; what's the safest way?

Becuase the CPC has no division specifically for non-crossbraced canopies, where would some one start if they wanted to begin competing on a more even field?

I'm sorry for your loss Jake....I know how you feel and if you need anything let me know.

Hmmmm...

THAT, is an understatement.

This is a very serious matter...

I had a class when I was at FSU with a kid who had racially directed tourette's. Not very PC, but was some funny shit.

I'm not married yet.

I had my first chop this passed weekend at Monroe. The rig was not mine and it was my first jump on the canopy.(Batwing134) I did not pack it and assumed it was going to be OK....first mistake. I had an instant canopy after throwing out, to then discover TWO perfect line overs and the right side risers pinning my head to my shoulder. It was obviously not coming out so I chopped, and got under my reserve after fumbling for my reserve handle for a bit. The raven 150 did its job, but I will be demoing some PD reserves soon because I did not like the way it flew.

Have you tried weights with your current canopy? If not there are tricks to getting a steeper glide out of say a spectre or a triathlon...throw on an extra set of slinks on the rear risers, it'll steepen up then but be carefull.

---150 is the biggest they make...

Well then...do tell all!!! Yippee! Robby and I are no longer the newest couple to do something extremely crazy like moving in together! Shit, must be somethin in the water up there......

You change your name and look, you loose four jumps and your D license number changes...WTF Lee???

Thanks Greg, just wanted to be sure, its rough being "dumb as a bag of rocks"...

I know Greg needs $50 a seat for the transportation costs to fly us there, but does anyone have any info on the actual costs for the boogie? Registration fee? Additional charge for beach jumps? Just want to know how broke I'll be in February....

The keg will be on me as thanks to all of you for being there for me...It was kinda rough for me getting one less call this year on Christmas but in hindsight I lost one hell of a friend in exchange for all my new brothers and sisters. So what'll it be?

ya! you should have seen what happened to those guys!Quote What? They all learned how to spell?