Malta_Dog

[url "http://www.dropzone.com/dropzone/Europe/France/index.html"]Clicky![/url ] All your dropzone are belong to us!!!!111!

Since I'm off student status, I've used Brian Germain's pilot chute packing method on a rental Performance Variable Omega Student container. Pulling was just a bit harder than the 'conventional' method but didn't gave me any problem. When I received my gear 2 weeks ago, I did some 'packing' training and noticed that the BOC was much tighter than what I was used to. I used Brian Germain's pilot chute packing method and tried to pull WHILE NOT WEARING THE RIG: it was hard but manageable (I now realize that this was a mistake not to do it with the rig on). This saturday I had the opportunity to try my brand new Icon / Pilot. I was the last one to exit the plane as I wanted to dump higher to give me time to try stalls and flares up there. When I pulled the pilot chute stayed in the BOC. I gave it a second (and last) powerful pull and out it came. The pull force was way beyond what I would call a reasonable level though. I find B. Germain's method a clever guard against horseshoe mals, but as I experienced it I doubt that the pull of the D-bag on the bridle would be enough to extract the pilot chute from the BOC. Is this method not compatible with the Icon's BOC or do I have to pack the pilot chute much tighter? Your advices/recommendations are welcome. All your dropzone are belong to us!!!!111!

In that order: -not to kill myself -not to break myself -not to wreck gear -attend a basic RW course -hit the 100 mark before the end of the summer AND, if organized nearby, -attend a canopy control course All your dropzone are belong to us!!!!111!

Clicky! With a little bit more experience I'll just add that the openings will slam you from time to time no matter how you pack it. It barely snivels. I have just tried my new Pilot 188 this WE and after getting used to the violent openings of the Cayenne, I was surprised by the nice soft snivelling... At the same WL, the Pilot seems to fly a bit faster without being more ground-hungry (it's just a first impression after a couple of jumps). But the nice price of the Cayenne makes it a decent deal IMO. All your dropzone are belong to us!!!!111!

So you must have found the Seinfeld 'soup nazi' episode not funny and offending. We need a rolling eyes emoticon here... All your dropzone are belong to us!!!!111!

A complete Aerodyne rig + cypres and an audible. I think that I'm burned for a lot of future X-masses at home... All your dropzone are belong to us!!!!111!

Wow... All your dropzone are belong to us!!!!111!

Funky! All your dropzone are belong to us!!!!111!

My prediction: Clicky! (Caution: only true nerds will get it...) All your dropzone are belong to us!!!!111!

Hehe I've ordered the same setup: Icon I6 + Pilot 188 + Smart 190. Icon and Pilot are completely black. I can't wait to jump my own rig (and to lose some lbs of body fat trying to pack it...). All your dropzone are belong to us!!!!111!

Hehe a couple of 1sts for me too: 1st jump at another DZ (Namur, cool bunch...) 1st jump from a Pilatus (well it's a first but...) 1st monkey hanging exit (now that was FUN!) All your dropzone are belong to us!!!!111!

134 on the ultimate, 130 on the 12 minutes test...but the phone rang dammit!! As the website is charging 60$ to become a member, I wouldn't be astonished that the results are boosted. I was tested around 120 when I was a teen, and i sure don't feel brighter with age All your dropzone are belong to us!!!!111!

Sick... http://www.atcbox.com/Downloads/Movies/Aerobatics/RedBull_Airrace_2004_Budapest.wmv All your dropzone are belong to us!!!!111!

I hate you all... Maybe next year or in 2006... All your dropzone are belong to us!!!!111!

Asexual isn't very PC. You should say 'sexually challenged' All your dropzone are belong to us!!!!111!

Hi all, My father (59) and my wife made their first tandem last saturday. They both encountered health related problems. My father is still in pretty good shape (he did triathlons up to 50) but he has since long ago suffered from a narrow sinus (his words) which caused him in this case intense pain during the 2nd half of the free fall. He liked the canopy ride a lot but he doesn't want to free fall from 13,500 ft ever again. Are there ways or tips to overcome such problems, or would he have to go through surgery (which he understandably won't do just to be able to skydive)? My wife, OTOH, felt air sick as soon as the free fall began. The canopy ride was even worse (the plane ride left her surprisingly unbothered as she's easily motion-sick in a vehicle). Still, she kinda enjoyed it and would like to try the AFF 1 level next spring. However, she's afraid to be sick again. I don't think that there exists any anti-airsickness product which wouldn't fog somewhat her judgement, but I also think that when you are in control, motion sickness tends to disappear (after all, she's never sick when SHE drives... so much for my driving ). Am I right? Thanks for your comments/advices. All your dropzone are belong to us!!!!111!

This looks like the infamous 'Lutz incident'... All your dropzone are belong to us!!!!111!

In this thread, a lot of people claim that they dread the horsehoe malfunction. This month, I've been using Brian Germain's method to pack pilot chutes (Clicky!) to avoid the nasty consequences of a horsehoe (main-reserve entanglement because the main is held by the pilot-chute stuck in the BOC pocket). The short and fat packed pilot-chute holds very nicely into the BOC pocket and the required pull force is now a bit stronger, but I haven't had any trouble so far. I just would like to know if somebody, by using this method, has avoided a horseshoe or, to the contrary, has encountered another kind of problem. I understand that by putting the pilot chute bridle attachment point close to the BOC pocket entry, the bridle should be able to get the pilot chute out and turn a horseshoe into a premature deployment (still hazardous but probably less so). I'm a bit uncomfortable though with the folded bridle being so close to the hackey and I'm always extra careful not to misroute it. Any experiences/advices/opinions? Thanks All your dropzone are belong to us!!!!111!

Mmmmmh...it would be even better to try this with 2 cute female AFF instructors All your dropzone are belong to us!!!!111!

Condolences to the family and friends... All your dropzone are belong to us!!!!111!

Thanks again for another fast answer. It gives me good vibes about the customer service. I'll tell you that I'm almost sold on a complete Aerodyne rig...unless I can get a Vector 3M with skyhook for a good price. Even then, the canopies will be Aerodyne. Thanks again. All your dropzone are belong to us!!!!111!

Nick, thanks for your answer. I hadn't checked the article section on your website ... d'oh! I understand that the ovalized middle ring, by lengthening the lever arm, reduces the load on the loop. What makes me a bit uneasy with the mini-force system is the possibilty that the middle ring, by pivoting 90%, would lock into the big ring. Agreed, I can see on the pictures that the oval ring has been designed to prevent this to happen, but I still wonder how hard a shock on the rings has to be to allow the locking. Has it been tested yet? If only an extremely hard opening/collision (i.e. causing serious injury or death) gives a remote possibilty of a ring lock, then I have no problem with that. But if another diver kicking you in the rings while RWing is enough to jam the system, that would make me really uncomfortable. OTOH, I think that the dirty housings are a non-issue regarding comparison of the pull force needed to liberate the mini-rings and the mini-force rings: 1) dirty housings will significantly increase pull force both on mini-rings and mini-force rings (and normal rings...) 2) dirty housings is a factor upon which we (the end-users) have full control. So if you used high quality mini-rings against your mini-force rings during the test, I really can't fault your comparison protocol at all. All your dropzone are belong to us!!!!111!

ROFLMAO Bigway meatbomb.com? D'OH! I just checked, and it is already registered...but not used yet. lostfemur.com is still available...hurry! All your dropzone are belong to us!!!!111!

I've been thinking about the Aerodyne Icon as a 1st new rig. The only minus for me so far is that I can't have it with normal risers / normal rings. I realize that the rig is TSO certified but still I would like to know: How good is the relatively new Miniforce system? Has any of you experienced or heard of troubles related with this design? Are the oval rings more or less prone to jamming than 1) mini-rings? 2) normal rings? Thanks for your input. All your dropzone are belong to us!!!!111!

It's the same. Those guys are incredible. The jump across a street between two tall brick buildings comes from a BBC ad... I saw it on TV....just once. It was awesome. If I'm right, the BBC pulled it off the air after only a couple of weeks: a brit boy got inspired by it, tried the same kind of stunt and killed himself (actually, he made it once, went to the pub with friends to celebrate his success then tried the jump again later that night while intoxicated...). All your dropzone are belong to us!!!!111!