Orange1

Picking up from a thread in incidents debating about being in a spin after cutting away from a spinning main before deploying reserve and resultant line twists. How important is size (wingloading) vs type of canopy a factor in how dangerous line twists can be? I'm assuming that it is easier to kick out of line twists on a reserve vs a same size elliptical - is this correct? If so is there any wingloading for which line twists on a reserve could become a serious issue? Skydiving: wasting fossil fuels just for fun.

What size canopies (WL) would you typically use on these jumps? And out of interest, do any military SL jumpers still jump rounds these days or is everyone on squares now? Skydiving: wasting fossil fuels just for fun.

This is off the main topic, but interested me in that it implies you would have had the experienced jumper follow you out. I did AFF in a 182, and anytime an experienced jumper came up with us, they had to get out at 9000' while we went up to 11000'. I guess the logic being AFF students can end up tumbling all over the sky. Just out of interest, what type of jump was he doing and what kind of separation would he have been told to give you, or would he have been on a second jump run? Skydiving: wasting fossil fuels just for fun.

2 months is very short to get cleared after a break. You must be very young I presume he'll check the xrays before giving you the final go-ahead? Skydiving: wasting fossil fuels just for fun.

yeah, some of the posts in that thread mention something i was also thinking about: that people so many other people do X and are fine, that they assume they will be too. Skydiving: wasting fossil fuels just for fun.

There have been some posts and sadly incidents that have made me wonder if we as skydivers really think through all the consequences of what we do as we progress through the sport. Two things in particular I am thinking of: 1. camera flying (piisfish's post as well as some of the posts in the general discussion a while back about doing everything right and still dying). I know so many people who just seem to look at camera as a natural next step once they reach 200 jumps. 2. the fact that high performance canopies seem able to malfunction badly enough to prevent some people performing EPs in time. Dave's excellent post on pulling handles also applies here. You can practise EPs all you want, but if you can't find your handles... I have spent some time in the past few days visualising what it must be like to think you are about to die (I probably should add this has also been due to the tragic passing of a pilot I knew in a light aircraft crash yesterday, it's not just about skydiving but aviation in general). It's not a pleasant thing to think about. What do you guys think? Does the "average" skydiver progressing from say 200 through 1000+ jump really, properly think through all the consequences of the next step (camera, wingsuit, downsizing, elliptical etc) or is it just seen as the next thing to move on to? (I realise that some of these do have their own EPs so there must be some thinking about the extra hazards involved). Sometimes you can do everything right and still die once IN a situation, but maybe would not BE in that situation if all the consequences had been properly thought through beforehand. Thoughts? Skydiving: wasting fossil fuels just for fun.

Yossarian is from the UK where they don't have to have lead seals.... i'm sure we've had this discussion before... Skydiving: wasting fossil fuels just for fun.

hey, i dig the "catwoman" jumpsuit any idea who made it?? Skydiving: wasting fossil fuels just for fun.

Kathleen, apart from the suggestions about jumpsuits and weight belts which are spot on (in my floaty experience), are you flying advanced body position yet or still boxman? Reason for asking is that (ungripped) your fall rate is faster than a box so you don't tend to float as much and it's easier to match fall rate. I did a jump with someone when I still jumped boxman & kept on tending to float above her, jumped with her again a couple of months later and that time she was the one who tended to float! But getting levels right can also be fun if it's not too frustrating Have fun, sounds like you enjoy RW as much as I do

Hi Kathleen, when i jump with more experienced jumpers, someone takes a second or two before we start turning points to give me any body position corrections if necessary (using the AFF signals) - it's also usually a legs straighter signal! - maybe you can ask for that next time? Did the people you were jumping with mention anything after the jump about what they thought of your body position, if they had to compensate for you in any way, etc? Skydiving: wasting fossil fuels just for fun.

Just to chuck in a contrary opinion, I am a slow faller and a custom fit tight suit made a significant difference to my fall rate - can focus a bit on flying your body rather than just arching as hard as you can to keep up, or wearing a ton of weights... and i love my booties Skydiving: wasting fossil fuels just for fun.

me too...... resulted in a duplicate post too (mod kindly deleted) which usually the system won't let you do? edited to add: HAHA did it for this post too!! Skydiving: wasting fossil fuels just for fun.

me too. no matter what i search for, i even tried "skydive" to check... just get "Error: Non-existent table specified " Skydiving: wasting fossil fuels just for fun.

I had a chat to a TM (also one of my coaches) who had tried to clear a lineover then chopped, about this - he said to me "at your level, just chop"... but I know others have been taught to try clear it by flaring first. Isn't the important thing to stick with what you've been taught and know what your own procedures are - rather than wasting time in the air trying to decide what to do? Skydiving: wasting fossil fuels just for fun.

Well, the "years in sport" is a bit subjective, it doesn't say "years of jumping".... so someone who has been packing for years and jumping for one may have say 5 years in sport in their profile even though they have only jumped for 1..., others may think it is reasonable to put time in sport as since they began jumping. Should Canadians who take 6 months off every year due to weather halve their "years in sport" for example....?? Skydiving: wasting fossil fuels just for fun.

"little action toy" speaking I did SL till first freefall then switched to AFF, cos I was impatient. I reckon that if you really know you want to do this, which you obviously do, switch to AFF. You have an advantage over a first timer having already done 8 exits and landings on your own, now go (decent) freefall and find out what it's really all about Skydiving: wasting fossil fuels just for fun.

Isn't this what happened here http://www.dropzone.com/fatalities/Detailed/167.shtml Skydiving: wasting fossil fuels just for fun.

Thanks... I don't like PVC handles because (as i have posted here before) i once got my finger caught inside on the throw. The rig I bought has a puff and I was considering changing to a hacky because i prefer the "grip"...now i'm not so sure that is a good idea...? Skydiving: wasting fossil fuels just for fun.

I understood hanging off the strut as a poised exit? >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> Errant freeflyers - especially young errant freeflyers - wander into everybody's airspace. Maybe the errant freeflyer exited another airplane, flying higher ... Anything is possible .... I assumed (maybe incorrectly) he was talking about "freefall" rather than under canopy (given that this is a discussion about AADs)... an IAD is like an SL jump right? Skydiving: wasting fossil fuels just for fun.

Thanks Amy.. any comment re hacky vs PVC? I was taught to do this, but until I read piisfish's thread I never really understood why... Skydiving: wasting fossil fuels just for fun.

the first I can understand, although the poised exit should prevent that. How could an errant freeflyer could get in one's airspace on an IAD jump?? Skydiving: wasting fossil fuels just for fun.

Newbie question... This discussion seems all about wingsuits so far, would the same problem potentially happen on a normal rig or is it a function of the longer bridle for wingsuits? In general, is a PVC pipe better than a hackey then? Skydiving: wasting fossil fuels just for fun.

The reason AADs scare(d) you is because you didn't understand how they work - i.e. you thought it would cut the main away. You need to learn how the gear all works and as has been said there is a lot you need to trust - not just backup devices but things that will make the difference between life and death. You need to trust your gear. This is almost the first thing we were told on FJC. The primary reason for this is that they don't want you under a malfunction hesitating to pull your reserve in case you get a mal on that too... but we know that can happen. ...but you need to rely on others, like the rigger who packs your reserve. And for your first few jumps at least you will be jumping parachutes that someone else has packed. Are you happy with that? Skydiving: wasting fossil fuels just for fun.

Just thought that bore repeating... Skydiving: wasting fossil fuels just for fun.

Congrats, nice feeling to lose the umbilical huh? Skydiving: wasting fossil fuels just for fun.