NWFlyer

So you have a container that fits well and is apparently in good shape, so that's a good thing. Now it's time to sell the Jedei and buy a more appropriate main. "There is only one basic human right, the right to do as you damn well please. And with it comes the only basic human duty, the duty to take the consequences." -P.J. O'Rourke

At most dropzones, ground school is a 4-7 hour affair (time can vary based on the number of students in the class and how quickly they are picking up the information). Assuming perfect weather on a long summer day with class starting at 8 a.m., that means students wouldn't even be able to start jumping any earlier than early afternoon... getting in 7 student jumps between 2 p.m. and 8 p.m. seems aggressive even if you're the only student on the dropzone and have the necessary instructors at your beck and call working only with you. "There is only one basic human right, the right to do as you damn well please. And with it comes the only basic human duty, the duty to take the consequences." -P.J. O'Rourke

Dead Guy in Training "There is only one basic human right, the right to do as you damn well please. And with it comes the only basic human duty, the duty to take the consequences." -P.J. O'Rourke

Wasn't me, wasn't my friend - that was a different poster who shared that story. But you'd better get used to talking about/around death if you plan to stick around this sport for a while. Most of us get pretty good at dispassionate analysis of the chain of events that leads to incidents. Even when it's our friend. And sometimes the conclusion is what one of my favorite crusty old timers said "You are not now, nor will you ever be good enough not to die in this sport." The best we can all do is stack the odds in our favor. Those odds have been tested by many before you and will be tested by many after you. You can learn from the guys who came before you, or you can provide more sample data for the later oddsmakers. Up to you. "There is only one basic human right, the right to do as you damn well please. And with it comes the only basic human duty, the duty to take the consequences." -P.J. O'Rourke

Last post you said that "What hoped to accomplish with this post is that simply saying wait till 200 is not the best way to do it. Setting guidelines or a progression is a much better option." Now you say you aren't concerned with the 200 jump recommendation. Sounds like you're easily distracted from your main line of argument. Maybe you should keep a camera off your head for a while. "There is only one basic human right, the right to do as you damn well please. And with it comes the only basic human duty, the duty to take the consequences." -P.J. O'Rourke

Here's an idea. Put together a proposal for guidelines and a progression. If you're savvy about it, you'll get the support of some long-time, well-respected experts who've been around skydiving for a while and can help to give your proposal the credibility that comes with the support of trusted sources. Bring the propsoal to your USPA Regional Director for discussion. See if he or she will bring it to the Safety & Training committee for a discussion. Go to the USPA meeting to support your presentation. Or just whine about it on the internets if the above sounds like too much work. (Edit to add this assumes you're a USPA member and the 200 jump recommendation that USPA has in the SIM is what you're concerned about. If not, then substitute appropriate governing body process above). "There is only one basic human right, the right to do as you damn well please. And with it comes the only basic human duty, the duty to take the consequences." -P.J. O'Rourke

I've jumped with a couch before. They don't do shit in freefall except flail around unpredictably. And they really suck at signing you off on anything. "There is only one basic human right, the right to do as you damn well please. And with it comes the only basic human duty, the duty to take the consequences." -P.J. O'Rourke

The longer I'm in the sport, the more I want to tell people to just keep your POV camera off your head because for the love of all things good in the world, your footage sucks. Fuck safety, 99% of POV footage is boring, repetitive, derivative, and just flat out lame. Now, you kids get off my lawn. "There is only one basic human right, the right to do as you damn well please. And with it comes the only basic human duty, the duty to take the consequences." -P.J. O'Rourke

Eh, both are still in common usage. The official term for the competitive discipline is now FS, but there's no terminology police out there who will tell you that you can't say RW any more. I feel like both have their place in helping people understand what "it" is. "There is only one basic human right, the right to do as you damn well please. And with it comes the only basic human duty, the duty to take the consequences." -P.J. O'Rourke

I think this is the best advice in the thread. I've jumped an Altitrack for the past few years (but I waited till I found a good deal on a used one), which of course is a "digital analog"... the analog face / dial appeals to my analog brain, but it also has good digital features as well. However, my trusted Alti-2 Galaxy is always in my gear bag if I let the battery on the digital run out, or if someone needs to borrow an altimeter, or if the Altitrack gets buggy (which it has in the past). Find and buy a good used altimeter - even if you switch later, you'll always appreciate having it. "There is only one basic human right, the right to do as you damn well please. And with it comes the only basic human duty, the duty to take the consequences." -P.J. O'Rourke

Are you looking for research on the industry? The people? The gear? The sciency stuff behind it? "Research on skydiving" is a pretty broad descriptor. http://www.pcprg.com/ Some nerdy aerodynamics stuff here. One of the researchers posts on this site as peek and would probably be happy to help further. "There is only one basic human right, the right to do as you damn well please. And with it comes the only basic human duty, the duty to take the consequences." -P.J. O'Rourke

In the US, I'd vote for Skydive Arizona for having your best shot at reliable weather. It might get chilly (especially in the mornings) but it seems to have a better track record of clear days than some of the other warm-weather destinations. Good facilities, making it a comfortable place to spend a whole month. Jumping every day, good organizing and coaching available, etc. "There is only one basic human right, the right to do as you damn well please. And with it comes the only basic human duty, the duty to take the consequences." -P.J. O'Rourke

Somewhere around 400 or so jumps on the one I got in late 2011 and it's holding up beautifully. And it's COMFY! Go for it. "There is only one basic human right, the right to do as you damn well please. And with it comes the only basic human duty, the duty to take the consequences." -P.J. O'Rourke

Yep, that sounds about the right ballpark to budget. But remember that's just the beginning - you'll spend at least that much again (and most likely more) to get your first set of gear. The "startup" costs in this sport are quite high, though they can eventually settle out to a more manageable amount (depending, of course, on what type of a skydiver/gear junkie you become ). "There is only one basic human right, the right to do as you damn well please. And with it comes the only basic human duty, the duty to take the consequences." -P.J. O'Rourke

Agreed, but in this case they're not censoring (censoring would be to leave that particular short out of the full collection, or at least the scenes with the maid), they're just alerting so people can choose not to watch it, or watch it with an eye to the stereotypes and (potentially) make them a learning opportunity. I think that's the same as the idea (which I support) that you keep Huck Finn as it was written, but use the language as a talking point / teaching point to discuss race, racism, how we've changed as a society, how we haven't, etc. "There is only one basic human right, the right to do as you damn well please. And with it comes the only basic human duty, the duty to take the consequences." -P.J. O'Rourke

This shit is hard. You've only been in actual freefall for what, an hour or a bit more? How many new things have you picked up in your life that quickly? Gosls are good. I'm not knocking on goals, because they really do help us to progress. But I think you're being way too hard on yourself if you didn't hit those this season. So go for them this next year, or set different goals. This sport, like many others, is rarely a nice straight line upward with constant forward progress. You'll nail something one time, then the next time you try it you might be flailing around like you've never done it before. That's life, that's the reality of this endeavor. If that kind of non-linear learning process isn't going to work for you, well, this might be a tough sport because the reality of how often and how much we get to do this (for most of us, anyway, based on limits of time, weather, and budget) means you're going to have setbacks, and that's okay. "There is only one basic human right, the right to do as you damn well please. And with it comes the only basic human duty, the duty to take the consequences." -P.J. O'Rourke

So why don't you ask your friend where he/she acquired the mount? "There is only one basic human right, the right to do as you damn well please. And with it comes the only basic human duty, the duty to take the consequences." -P.J. O'Rourke

Fuck, can't we keep the casual sexism out of the topical forums at least? "There is only one basic human right, the right to do as you damn well please. And with it comes the only basic human duty, the duty to take the consequences." -P.J. O'Rourke

Things seem to be settling down. Emailed my scanned renewal form on 9/23. Received an email confirming receipt on 9/24, with the note that it would be processed in 7-10 business days. Received a confirmation email that the renewal was processed and I was current on 9/29... so it took 3 business days to process (I still don't have the card itself, but assuming 3 days to get across the U.S. it'll probably show up today or tomorrow. I'm less concerned about the card itself since I know my membership is current and could be verified online if need be. Not that I'm jumping this weekend anyway ). Not lightning fast, but not bad. Now if only we could figure out a way to process rating renewals online. It'd be nice if I could fill out my part, and have it sent electronically to the person I would have sign it, and they'd do some sort of digital verification and it'd be done. But I imagine the cost/hassle factor of getting that working might not be worth it for the relatively small proportion of members who are also rating holders. "There is only one basic human right, the right to do as you damn well please. And with it comes the only basic human duty, the duty to take the consequences." -P.J. O'Rourke

https://images.search.yahoo.com/images/view;_ylt=AwrB8qDQUSxUkyIAykGJzbkF;_ylu=X3oDMTIzczk4MW1tBHNlYwNzcgRzbGsDaW1nBG9pZANhOTI1Y2ViYzhmNjY2MGYyNTY3YzA5YTdjMWIyYTVkMgRncG9zAzE3BGl0A2Jpbmc-?back=https%3A%2F%2Fimages.search.yahoo.com%2Fsearch%2Fimages%3F_adv_prop%3Dimage%26va%3Dskydive%2Bhelmets%26fr%3Dyfp-t-901%26tab%3Dorganic%26ri%3D17&w=630&h=545&imgurl=www.hemispheresmagazine.com%2Fimages%2F2010%2Ffeb%2F4.jpg&rurl=http%3A%2F%2Fhelmets.necklar.com%2Fskydiving-helmets%2F&size=85.8KB&name=%3Cb%3ESkydiving%3C%2Fb%3E+%3Cb%3EHelmets%3C%2Fb%3E&p=skydive+helmets&oid=a925cebc8f6660f2567c09a7c1b2a5d2&fr2=&fr=yfp-t-901&tt=%3Cb%3ESkydiving%3C%2Fb%3E+%3Cb%3EHelmets%3C%2Fb%3E&b=0&ni=200&no=17&ts=&tab=organic&sigr=11dc7a7bi&sigb=13f127ccp&sigi=11hl9ne9i&sigt=10v89qcp9&sign=10v89qcp9&.crumb=LVZNyaF3efX&fr=yfp-t-901 Hint: click the little url button on the bottom of the post window before and after you put in a link. Especially when it's a ridiculously long URL like this one. "There is only one basic human right, the right to do as you damn well please. And with it comes the only basic human duty, the duty to take the consequences." -P.J. O'Rourke

Beautiful! Was that over your neck of the woods? I'll be super jealous if you say you got to see those live! "There is only one basic human right, the right to do as you damn well please. And with it comes the only basic human duty, the duty to take the consequences." -P.J. O'Rourke

You're missing Pecos Parachute School in Texas. In Washington, you could also list Blue Skies in Bremerton, WA. "There is only one basic human right, the right to do as you damn well please. And with it comes the only basic human duty, the duty to take the consequences." -P.J. O'Rourke

Do you wear the helmet for the whole ride up? I find that (especially when it's colder or the air is more humid) this greatly increases the chance of fogging (at least on my G2, I can't speak for a Phantom specifically). I will wear my helmet till seatbelts are off, then hold onto it till I start doing my final prep and gear checks, then I put it back on, and leave the visor open till the last practical moment before I get ready to exit. This generally means that if the visor does fog, it'll be mild and usually very late in the skydive so that I can solve the problem by opening the visor under canopy. "There is only one basic human right, the right to do as you damn well please. And with it comes the only basic human duty, the duty to take the consequences." -P.J. O'Rourke

It's definitely an important thing to think about when you're planning to drop an object on a jump. Stuff like this video, or the occasional altimeter or camera going flying (or even a helmet that's being cutaway), I'd put more into the "small stuff shit happens" category. But with larger items that could interfere with jump operations or airport operations, or which could cause damage to people or property if they were to land in the wrong place - you definitely want to plan ahead. Some local jumpers did a couple of watermelon jumps this summer and planned their jump so that they exited over a wide open alternate landing area away from the airport. That way, the watermelon's final resting spot would be in a field, not a building or a car or a parked airplane. "There is only one basic human right, the right to do as you damn well please. And with it comes the only basic human duty, the duty to take the consequences." -P.J. O'Rourke

Are you blaming the closure of Chicago ATC facility on the student? Or the instructor? "There is only one basic human right, the right to do as you damn well please. And with it comes the only basic human duty, the duty to take the consequences." -P.J. O'Rourke