apoil

The way this site is structured, I can't see the justification to ever cross post anything.

The Ground Zero canopies also have non-cascading lines. More lines=more drag=less speed. The original Nitro compensated for this by making the lines shorter. The net effect is dependent on a lot of different factors. Some of them may be based on theory at the time of canopy design, but the designs are surely tweaked based on practical experience during the development process.

No one's trying to change your mind, Rob, but the attitude that "this worked once for me therefore it is the best thing" is, shall we say a bit narrow minded. The pros and cons of soft and hard handles have been pretty much discussed. I decided to get a soft handle on my second rig after 1) a reported fatality from a head down diver having a dock accidently taken on his silver handle (I call this maneuver the "hi ho silver") 2) In a sit fly train my silver handle was knocked loose early in the dive - fortunately no deployment (until 4000 when I foolishly deployed my main - the reserve pin had probably been loosened enough that opening shock was enough to get it out - having anticipated this possibility I immediately chopped the main and had a clean canopy transfer). Since I made that decision I have witnessed a helicopter exit where the reserve handle snagged on the door handle and static lined him. I also met another freeflyer who was the unwitting recipient of a "hi ho silver" from a head down and spent some time in the hospital as a result. Not only was he badly injured, but the webbing on his rig was torn to shit. You don't want a reserve deployment at 175 mph or more. You really don't. But I do agree that it's probably best to make the switch after you've already proven to yourself AT LEAST ONCE that you can deploy your reserve in the event of a malfunction. Same with the decision to remove an RSL. For all the talk about how difficult it might be to pull the soft pad, you have to do it to cut away so it can't be that hard. And with a spinning mal, cutaway forces can be even higher than reserve pull. Also, a ringed harness will flex in such a way that the silver D ring sticks out, rather than laying flat across the rib cage. This increases the risk of a snag. There are some newer shapes to the silver handle that reduce snagability, but none of them eliminate it.

since we're chiming in... I disagree. Sigs are annoying enough as it is. Often they distract when they are larger and more colorful than the original post and since they are used by people who post a lot, you often see the same thing over and over in every thread and it's quite tedious. If we are making them larger, is there anyway to more uniquely identify them in the HTML so that I can filter them out? Something like:

In America, yes. In Singapore and elsewhere, multisystem is the norm. But they all run on 220V power.

In this case it doesn't depend... He asked about a specific model. The PC9. I have done a fair amount of transferring of tapes and cross recording of footage between PC9's of both formats. The problems will arise when you try to play them back on a monitor. Many overseas monitors these days are capable of both PAL and NTSC playback, but monitors in the states are NTSC only, so while your NTSC PC9 will be able to playback a PAL recorded tape on it's own LCD display, you probably wont be able to view it on a pure NTSC monitor.

Far too many people use prayer and religion as a way to dodge personal responsibility. Praying for safety on a dive is pointless, and in my opinion insults the creator. Like I said, he gave you what you need. And if you burn in it isn't "his will" - it's just what happened. But that said, whatever it takes to make you a healthier happier skydiver and a decent person, is fine with me.

Whatever happened to the one true skydiver's prayer: "Dear Lord, Please don't let me FUCK UP this skydive. Amen" The rest of you godheads better watch out. Your survival is in your own hands, please act accordingly. You believe your creator gave you free will and the magnificent opportunity to jump. Your prayers are pointless, he already already gave you everything you need - use it.

Here's an idea. Take a slider sized piece of zp and wave it through the air. The drag is significant. At any wingloading above 1.2 it's really important to collapse the slider, mainly because it flaps around so the induced drag is in all different directions. Not something you really want on landings.

Since both threads were together when I logged on: I'm thankful that clintonradloff can't post.

you can't go wrong with the flyboyz. You will learn a lot and have tons of fun.

So you are saying there's such a thing as DV-PAL and DV-NTSC? It's not just the same as a VCR because a VHS tape is an analog recording of a video signal which is either PAL or NTSC. A DV tape is a direct digital moving image recording. It doesn't have scan lines or refresh rates. The only time PAL or NTSC comes into play is when you output to or input from an analog Vido (a monitor or VHS tape). Why do they sell Sony PC cameras as PAL versions and NTSC versions if they are actually multisystem? Wouldn't they advertise this feature?

Gambling is like a tax on people who don't understand probability.

Hate to say it, but this feature while cute, and kind of cool, encourages exactly this kind of behavior. Usually on USENET, or even here, I will start a response and then think better of it and not bother adding to the noise. Here you've got that extra award of the next title and you might be more likely to post simply for it's own sake. Years ago, on a very very old ISP, the owner used to use the signature: "thank you for not posting" Truer today than ever.

I'm under the impression that whether a camera is NTSC or PAL is irrelevant as far as the tape is concerned. "DV is DV" is what I was told once. A merchant insisted otherwise, however after buying an NTSC PC9 I was able to play DV tapes that were recorded on a PAL panasonic. We believed that this gave us a kind of overpriced NTSC/PAL conversion system and as far as other PAL PC9's it most certainly does. However, when a tape recorded on the NTSC PC9 is inserted into the Panasonic player, the player says invalid format. I'm wondering whether this is because the recorder is NTSC or because the Panasonic just doesn't like the Sony's DV. Does Sony extend or tailor the DV format (kind of like the Microsoft of Digital Video) to an extent that an older player wont be able to handle their DV tapes? Or is the Sony player more sophisticated in that it can actually read DV tapes recorded on a PAL or NTSC machine even though it only has video output capabilities in NTSC. Any info appreciated.

Urban legend... sorry.

I got into a big argument with a non-American USPA rated instructor over that. He couldn't seem to grasp the concept that only the FAA makes regulations. I too thought it was "recommendations" although it didn't sound right. Someone told me it used to be. What it is is a "requirement" in order for you to be a USPA member (even though they can be waived). To an extent it's just semantics. To some folks a rule is a rule no matter who made it. To Americans it can be very important to understand what is a guideline, what is a rule and what is an actual law.

That's not quite the old school, because even then it would be wrong. First off, it's 32 feet per second per second. or feet per second squared. What does that mean? Well you are measuring accelleration which is a change in speed. Speed is in feet per second. So every second, your speed increases by 32 feet per second.. hence 32 (feet per second) per second. Now why is that wrong? Because you don't just suddently stop accellerating when you hit terminal velocity. That would hurt! The reason why you reach terminal velocity in the first place is because your acceleration decreases with wind resistance, which is a function of how fast you're going. Stay with me here, it's not hard even for those of you who hate math and physics. 32f/s/s is the acceleration in a vacuum. No wind. You start out that way, so at the end of the first second, you will be falling at about 32 feet persecond, but after that wind resistance will kick in. It will get stronger the longer you fall, reducing your rate of accelleration until the force of gravity pulling down is equal to the force of wind resistance pushing up. When all forces are in balance you move at a constant speed. Thing is, terminal velocity depends on your weight and shape, hence the wide range of speeds for falling people. But in the basic belly fly position it's roughly between 105 - for a 6'5" guy weighing 140 pounds to around 130 or more - someone 5'8" weighing 230lbs. So you can't calculate exactly what your wind resistance is, and even if you could it would take some pretty advanced math to get it right. And even then, the differences in your calculations would only amount to a few seconds anyway. Just use the rule of thumb - 10-12 seconds to cover the first 1000 feet, assume you are terminal by then and take 5-6 seconds per thousand after that. Or get a protrack.

Skydive Express in York ranks among the best dropzones I've EVER visited. That's out of 28 dropzones in 6 countries.

If someone did that to me, I wouldn't have much to say about it. I'd simply beat the living crap out of them. That's not funny to do to someone with a lot of experience, but folks with 100 jumps are uncomfortable sucking it that low, especially if it's not their personal choice. No compromise. It was dangerously unsafe.

Aw... dude... you fell into the friend pit. You gotta make your intentions clear from the beginning.. Make a move.. do it gracefully, and take your rejection then. Because this is what happens when you don't. Take this as good or bad - eventually you will get burned so many times that you will be able to handle the pain of rejection simply by being used to it.

Jeeze people... it was a joke!

stolen from www.dailyprobe.com a new "onion wannabe". Fundamentalist Jedi Terrorists Destroy Death Star MOS EISLEY (DPI) - A fringe group of radical Jedi fundamentalists continued their campaign of terror Sunday, destroying the Death Star in a horrifying fireball that has shocked the Empire. Hundreds of thousands are believed to have perished in the destruction, which left mountain-sized fragments of the giant space station floating as far as half a galaxy away. The attack is the latest in a series of surgical strikes by the militant Light Side Jedi rebel group which oppose the Empire's control of key Trade Federation routes. "It was horrible, just horrible," said Mrs. Barda Link, who saw the explosion on television from her Bespin home. Link recently sent the second of her two sons into the prestigious Stormtrooper Academy. She is unsure whether her sons were stationed on the Death Star at the time of the blast. "We'll just continue to hope and pray that the horrible monsters that perpetrated this evil, cowardly deed will be brought to justice." Authorities have identified one prime suspect, a robe-clad, Bantha-herding idealist from an obscure desert planet. In the streets of Mos Espa, pro-Light Side youth were seen cheering the attacks, shouting for the liberation of Endor and release of known interplanetary smuggler and cop killer Han Solo from the dragnet of Imperial law enforcement. Lord Vader, who himself narrowly avoided the blast, called for citizens to remain calm yet vigilant. "Now is a time for all of the peoples of this great galaxy to put aside our differences as Gungans, Wookiees, Jawas, Neimoidians and men, and unite behind our noble Emperor. We will win the war against the Forces of Light."

Yes, a sabre would be much easier to fly and land at that wind loading. The consequences of a mistake will be somewhat harder and you'll have to react quickly but more carefully in the event of a problem (impending collision, obtacle, etc). My point is that if you get used to the landing technique of an F111 you'll have to relearn it for ZP, but if you are already risering to pick up speed, you are probably closer to the technique you would eventually need to arrive at. 1.3 on a 190? Damn... you fat bastard. Start with a zp 170, or at least demo the hell out of them before you go zp 150.

Get this straight, kiddo, I'll only say it once: Doesn't matter what kind of man you are, because the beer is not for you. It's for the experienced skydivers who have stood by and guided you along in the achievement of this celebratory milestone. It's like the people who think they don't have to buy beer because they don't drink. No one says they have to drink it.. buying it is sufficient. Budweiser is not acceptable quite simply because it's NOT BEER. It's made with rice ferfucksake! (look at the label if you don't believe me).