NWFlyer

Some of what I wish I'd done is things that you can learn "in theory" but the reality of it sometimes doesn't hit home unless you have experience. You can understand the risks of a particular way to injure or kill yourself in this sport, but it's often not until you see that scenario play out (or see a close call) that it really hits home. A lot of learning is recognizing how very little you know at every stage of the game. Right now you're pretty cognizant of that, but 100 or 200 jumps from now, you'll start to feel like you know a lot. And, relative to you now, you do know a lot. But relative to those who've been around a while and seen the myriad ways there are to hurt or kill yourself, you don't know squat. I've been around just over 7 years and I'm just starting to have a sense of how much there is that I don't know, and that increases my respect for the risks I take. Unlike others, I'm actually happy I started when I did. I started at an age where I was over my impressionable days, where I was confident in myself and in my ability to make the right decisions for me, and not give in to peer pressure just to feel part of the crowd. And I started at a time when I was established in my career so not only can I afford this sport, I have important things like health insurance and disability insurance in case things go wrong. Things I wish I'd done: Joined a team earlier. I learned SO much training and competing in 2010, and hope to do it again next year (2011 I started the year with an injury and ended up taking a pretty slack year, which was also nice, but I'm looking forward to getting back into it again). Really understood flying in traffic earlier. I thought I understood it, but when I think back, oh wow. I thought I had my head on a swivel, but in reality (at least relative to how I am now) back then I was a fairly myopic flyer, focused on my pattern to the detriment of focusing on traffic. The "big sky" theory kept me safe, but it's not something to rely on when you're landing with 20+ other people into a crowded landing area. The more I jump, the more likely I am to land far away from other people, and the more likely I am to presume every other canopy in the sky could kill me. Things I'm happy I did: took a canopy control class early (at just over 100 jumps), and I've taken two more since then (one at around 200 jumps, one at around 500 jumps). Great refreshers every time, and I always learn at least one new thing, too. Listened to the old farts guys. One of my very early mentors is a guy who started his skydiving and rigging career before I was born. He helped me get through some tough student times, and I've always valued that. Helped me realize early on that there's a lot of wisdom to be tapped in the jumpers of his generation. Didn't substantially downsize. I realized early on that I'm not a naturally gifted canopy pilot. No Mad Skillz here. So I've done what I can to improve my skills and force what doesn't come naturally, but I've also stayed on a conservative wing and conservative wingloading. I know for a fact that's made the difference between a dirty jumpsuit and a bloody one, between a minor injury and a major one. Decided to own my identity as a conservative skydiver. It means that I know my limits and I enforce them despite any peer pressure. I'm okay not being one of the cool kids with big cojones. I know where my line is and I'm willing to say "no." That knowledge takes a while to develop, but while you're developing it, one way to decide if something is a good idea is to look who's doing it. For example, jumping in high or gusty winds. If the only people jumping are tandems and guys with under 100 jumps, that's a pretty good indication that you probably want to sit down. If the DZ has put out a student wind hold, even after you have your license, that's probably a good indication to sit your ass down too. Ask a lot of questions, especially when you're trying something new. If you're going to have to buy beer for what you're doing, figure there's probably something you don't know you don't know, so ask questions before you do it. Even if you don't know what questions to ask you can ask "what's different about this type of jump?" or "Is there anything about this new piece of equipment I need to think about?" "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

Mad skillz, that's why. "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

Similar glide (very flat). Pulse openings are not nearly as snively as the Pilot and (on average) are more on-heading, not that the Pilot was particularly prone to off-headings. Pulse flare point is higher than the Pilot; the Pilot flare is all in the bottom end; on the Pulse it starts higher up in the stroke. I now have about 350 jumps on the Pulse and just bought a second one. It's the right canopy for me, but as always, I encourage you to try it to see if it's the right one for 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

Actually, no, if you're paying retro to the date that your coverage ended, you CAN use those six weeks, and you will be covered. As I said, you may have to pay out of pocket and get reimbursed once the paperwork is done, but you WILL be covered as long as you meet your end of the bargain and complete the paperwork/payment within 60 days. I agree that one should be proactive and document things carefully (particularly given that the HR rep seemed to think he wouldn't be eligible), but it's also too early to trash the employer completely as it's only been two business days since he left. Mistakes do get made, of course. I was on COBRA coverage for about 6 months in 2008 between jobs, and the insurance company made an administrative error in trying to switch me from the employees group to the COBRA group, then they blamed the error on my employer (saying it was they who had canceled my coverage, though I was up to date on my COBRA Payments). I immediately contacted my employer as well as continuing to follow up with the insurance company - within 2 days the insurance company admitted that it was its error, not my employer's and the mistake was corrected. I've worked in the industry long enough to know that Hanlon's razor holds true "Never attribute to malice that which is adequately explained by stupidity." Not to say that insurance companies are inherently stupid, but that they are large, overly-complex organizations that are often using overly-complex, out-of-date systems* that are used and supported by fallible humans, and mistakes do get made. And while some may be evil, the ones I've been employed by (both not-for-profits) are generally organizations that try to do right by their customers, though they may not always succeed, it's not for lack of trying. *Why do I know all this? Because the presence of those overly-complex, out-of-date systems and overly complex business processes keep me employed. "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

A question about that. Have you ever known an insurer to take premiums in arrears? Seems that if I paid for coverage I should receive it, regardless of my termination date. Also, just the fact that she told me I didn't qualify for COBRA because I quit tells me she might not be as familiar with the system as she needs to be. I'm not exactly sure about that - whether billing is typically a month ahead or for the previous month - I believe it's typically a month ahead. I'm assuming when you ask about what you paid in - you're asking about your share of the coverage? If you think about it, you probably started paying for insurance on your first day that you were eligible for coverage. So let's say you started work on May 1 (and were eligible for coverage then). Your first payment would be applied to June's coverage. The cost for your May coverage would be be billed in arrears because the insurance company didn't know about you when they sent out May bills) but your employer probably covered that in full, with you contributing towards your premiums on a go-forward basis. So I think it's likely that it works out even. And yeah, she's wrong about the COBRA eligibility thing. "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... here's how COBRA works. Assuming you work for a company that is required to offer COBRA (from your link "The law generally covers health plans maintained by private-sector employers with 20 or more employees, employee organizations, or state or local governments."), you will then have to enroll in COBRA coverage. You have 60 days to do that, retroactive back to the day that you left the company (or the day your insurance ended - sometimes companies will let you go through the end of the month in which you left). This is the critical part from the link you posted. The "Qualifying event" in this case was you leaving the job. Once you enroll, YOU are responsible for paying the full amount of the insurance coverage, plus a small admin fee. It says "may" but most companies do not pay for COBRA coverage (though sometimes they will pay it for X months as part of a severance package in the case of a layoff - my previous employer did that for me). So it sounds to me like you're fine and they're within the letter of the law (and as a practical matter, it's only been a couple days - they will need to process the COBRA paperwork (the election notice mentioned above) and get it to you, then you fill it out and send your check and you're covered again, retro back to your termination date. What does that mean if you need care between now and when that process is completed? You may need to pay out of pocket and submit claims later. It's a hassle, but it sounds to me like no one's done anything against the law yet. Oh, and as for the "paid in arrears" part, your ex-employer and the insurance company will settle that up if they did pay in advance, so that's really not a relevant piece of information here. (BTW I've worked in the industry for the better part of 20 years, so I know maybe a hair more than someone who stayed at a Holiday Inn Express last night). "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

Linus Torvalds is from Finland, but is ethnically Swedish. Although I doubt you even know who he is. Did he invent Linux? I thought he was Lucy's little brother in Peanuts. "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

That's an interesting idea, but that does go against the general principle that has been in operation that you earn the license based on the standards that are in place at the time you earned the license. Back (just before my time) when the D license requirement was bumped up to 500 jumps there were a lot of folks scrambling to get it under the old standard (that's why from time to time you'll see someone with a D license but

I've never tried them. But I would - I'll try almost anything once. And the rest of your menu sounds phenomenal. I just tried wild boar for the first time recently (in sausage form) and it was good. Time to find a source for more of it. Probably the same shop where I got the sausage can get it for me - they're a new shop in the old butcher stop style - they can tell you in detail how all their meat is sourced and they spend the time to find high quality stuff. Too rare in the U.S. these days. "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

Men are such babies when they're sick. Better to get out of the house so they're not embarrassed a couple days later that you saw how un-manly they were behaving. Go. Enjoy. If you want to earn a few extra points pick up some extra-spicy pho or hot & sour soup on your way home. "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 wondered that, too. Otherwise, conceivably, a person could evade this requirement simply by skipping the B license and just moving on to the C or D once he's otherwise eligible. (Right?) No. In order to get a higher license one also has to meet all the requirements for the lower licenses. I "skipped" B but documented all the requirements when I applied for my C (thus I only had to pay for the C, though I earned both). "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 wouldn't stress too much about; the photo you sent wasn't wildly inappropriate, just sort of random. It happens. "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

Oops, yes, forgot to mention the olive oil. Hey, maybe Shah should check out Olive Oyl. She sure was a skinny one! And she liked bald guys. Though you could argue Popeye was kinda whipped. "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 we really need to bring root vegetables into this? I LOVE roasted beets!

Do we really need to bring root vegetables into this? "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 figure it all comes back to me one way or another. I'd rather do the right thing. So far I haven't had to make any decisions to give back major chunks of money (like bank bags full!), but I'd like to think the decision-making process wouldn't be any different if it's $10 or $10,000. I've returned (to the cashier) a wallet that I've found in a gas station bathroom, and turned in other found items before. Just this past weekend after going out to lunch with my parents, I noticed that they only charged us for two meals instead of three, and I encouraged my dad (who had paid) to go back in and correct it. (He made the attempt and the restaurant said "don't worry about it," but we all felt better for having done that. As my mother put it, we wouldn't hesitate to bring it to the restaurant's attention if we were overcharged, so why would we act any differently if we're undercharged?). I figure it comes back to me when other people also do the right thing. I left my purse outside the company cafeteria a few weeks ago, and in the 10 minutes or so before I realized it was gone, a kind soul had picked it up and brought it into the cafeteria cashiers for safekeeping, all contents intact. "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

Yeah, absolutely, it really *should* reflect that. That seller might get that price, but most people who are taking an informed look will probably come to the same conclusion you have, which is that for a slight increase in price, you can get brand new. The canopies I've bought in the 100-200 jump range have reflected a more significant (400-500ish) discount off of current new prices. That's worth it to me. "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

Because the person that put 200 jumps on that canopy broke it in for you? I agree that a canopy that's nearly-new that's priced close to new price means you might as well get new, but a canopy with 200 jumps should probably have more of a discount to it (but maybe the seller can afford to wait and see if they can get that price. More power to them). Maybe I've just had fortunate timing, but I've never had trouble finding fair deals on used gear, and I've even happened upon one truly amazing one (but that wasn't on the classifieds, it was just a random conversation on the DZ on a day when I just happened to have my checkbook with me so I could say "I'll write you a check NOW" to lock in the killer deal). In putting together my original rig, the only thing I bought new was the AAD and I got a good price for the other three components given their age and condition. The pieces that I've since sold and replaced (the main and reserve) have held their value quite well. I don't think that would have been the case if I'd bought them new, because there's that immediate "new car depreciation." "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 don't have a shitty job, I actually have a pretty good one, with great pay and great benefits and pretty good work-life balance. All the problems I have are "first world problems" and pretty fucking minor ones at that. Life is good. "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

Of what? "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 don't know anything about the specific components you've chosen since, other than the Cypres2, they're not commonly jumped in the U.S. I'll defer to folks who know that manufacturer for more specific comment. But... I do want to ask about your choice of main and reserve sizes. What made you choose those sizes? Here's why I ask. At 80 kg, you're at about 176 lbs. Add another 25 lbs for gear, so let's say 200 lbs out the door. That puts you at a 1.11:1 wingloading on the 180 main. Possibly not too bad a wingloading, though many folks recommend going no higher than 1:1 as a new jumper. That puts you at 1.33:1 on your reserve. Think long and hard about this. Do you really want to be jumping a canopy that's 30 square feet smaller than anything you've ever jumped before when you are also likely to be pumped with adrenaline, open at a lower altitude than you've ever opened, and possibly dealing with a landing away from the dropzone? "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'd say move on - that's not your deal. Let someone else deal with this person. I've been really fortunate - in all the transactions (both large and small) that I've made over several years in the sport, I've not ever had one go south, either as a seller or a buyer. I've never had someone back out on an agreement. I've never had someone send me an item that wasn't exactly as advertised (okay, there was the guy that sold me a Dytter and said "all it needs is a fresh set of batteries" but when I got it, I found it also needed a fresh set of the worlds tiniest springs, but that was easily remedied. ). "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 can't believe that every time this type of thread comes up (sorry kid, you're not the first and you won't be the last person in this sport to ask (essentially) "how can I get something for significantly less than the market rate without making any compromises?", everyone misses the most obvious answer, which is "skip the whole dropzone thing." Find yourself a friend who is training to be a pilot (or maybe already has a license), who is looking to build hours. If you and your friends are willing to chip in some of the cost of that flight time, your pilot friend should be eager to take you up, especially with the added challenge of dropping skydivers. Can't be that hard, can it? Just open up the door and let them climb out in flight, right? Same goes for learning to skydive. First, read a few articles on dropzone.com and watch some youtube videos to learn the basics. Your friends already know how - I'm sure they could show you what you need to know and get you ready to jump a wingsuit in a few weeks. Cheap and easy! (Don't worry, those instructional ratings that the USPA issues are for chumps - your friends don't need those). Please note this approach is not recommended for anyone who has even half a clue that you get what you pay for and that skydiving is dangerous (e.g., there's no reset button when you die in this game). "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

And here I thought we were talking about Liberty & Peace, those good-for-nothing turkeys that got pardoned today. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IU97nISuwRM "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 don't know that it's a regulation, but it's policy on several airlines (apparently including US Airways, according to the article). Southwest (which I fly most of the time) has a policy requiring folks to buy two seats. What's nice about the way they implement it is that if the flight isn't sold out and the larger passenger is able to get an empty seat next to them without purchasing one, they will refund the cost of the second ticket. Southwest defines it as "customers who are unable to lower both armrests and/or who encroach upon any portion of the adjacent seat." Now, I've definitely been on flights with people who can put down the armrests but still encroach - think very muscular guys with broad shoulders and slim waist/hips. It's always a judgment call on the part of the staff, of course, and (as shown by this article) they screw up from time to time. I fit in airplane seats now, but I've been the person encroaching when I was at a much heavier weight than I am now, and it sucks. For longer trips like that, I would do my best to get a first class upgrade (I was traveling enough that it was often possible) but if I couldn't... ugh. I felt horrible. I'm sure the people next to me felt horrible. My MO was always to get an aisle seat and lean as far out as possible. If I could get the aisle seats where the armrest on the aisle side went up, I'd pull that up to give a little more wiggle room. But it's pretty much a horrific experience for everyone involved, especially when you're pretty sure you're sitting next to someone who believes you're a lower form of life for daring to be that weight. "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