mdrejhon

You beat me to this suggestion (I just made that suggestion to myself in my last post) Everyone is right that test jumping a PD Reserve demo is a lot simpler progression -- demoing the reserve as a main, before demoing it via an intentional cutaway (if I ever need to do one for a specific license). One step at a time, that is -- the instruction I've been taught, agrees with this methodolgy. It bears worth noting that I didn't have all the proper information on the Raven Micro 150 at the time I purchased my gear. (I take the blame.)

Good point -- I mean, specifically when loaded at my levels (1.25 wingloading). That's what makes me uncomfortable - my reserve wasn't designed to fly at these wingloadings. No, but that's a big reason why I want to test jump so I can be sufficiently familiar with landing my reserve safely. I have only flown F111 9-cell (Manta 288). However, I have flown well-worn F111 student canopies with weak flares, and also flown various sizes 288 F111, 230 ZP, 190 ZP, and 170 ZP, old brakes and new brakes, well-jumped 170 and lightly used 170, and they have all flown very differently and know that I need to do a bunch of test flares up high (check tail deflection, check stall point, slow flare, medium speed flare, fast flare, etc). I feel this has now prepared me sufficiently for testing the PD143R -- I know my exciting landing experiences when my brakes got replaced and got 7 inches of loose brake lines to screw up my flaring for about 10 jumps (a few exciting unsteady flares, mostly standups, some slides, just not the nice turf-surf I was used to) before I finally figured out to inspect tail deflection, and that fixed my flaring ability when I made sure to pre-position my hands seven inches further down, to the tail deflection point, not all the way up to the loops. When I make a preplanned test jump of any new canopy, I will be doing a minimum pull altitude of 5000 feet and will make sure that my spot is good before I exit the door. I feel comfortable trying the PD143R or other very good reserve (Smart 150) in a well preplanned test jump -- best thing short of the optimal solution of replacing my entire container. (Unless somebody at my dropzone has pointed out some good reasons). But a good point - I may test a PD160R or larger reserve for a couple jumps (if I can get those to fit in the main D-bag) - depending on how uncurrent I am after the winter - how my landings are on the main after winter. Yep. That's a requirement under pretty much any parachuting assocication rules (CSPA, USPA). (Assuming I do an intentional cutaway instead of demo jump as main)

I realize the 143R is a fair bit smaller -- Although it should fly like a 155 sq feet because of the way PD is conservative. My 75 jumps on a Sabre 170 makes me feel ready to downsize to a 150 (rentals at jump 57, my own rig at jump 59, and I'm now at 132 jumps -- making it a total of 76 jumps actually). It's starting to feel pretty slow and docile, and I continue to push its limits gradually (I did one slow flat turn 90 degrees at 100 feet, and one flare turn 10 degrees already -- not quite Billyvon specs, but getting there) However, first, I want to be able to do all of Bill Von's / Brian Germain checklist of canopy abilities before I downsize my main. Those rules should be the same for the reserve but the fact is, I'm stuck with a Raven Micro 150. Therefore, I do feel I should get rid of the Raven Micro. I don't have fear of trying a good quality 143-150 size reserve in a preplanned jump in a traditional straight-in landing approach, but the bad things I have been hearing about Raven Micro 150 from everywhere online and offline has definitely given me a little fear of it. It won't stop me from cutting away as I know it will still save my life. However, for a test jump -- I would be comfortable test jumping a PD143R -- but nervous of doing it on a Raven Micro 150.

My dropzone has PD demos - I'll probably ask for a PD143R to test-jump sometime next spring. Skydiving season is now almost over in Canada.

I have already intentionally stalled my Sabre's to a bowtie (At high altitude of course, during my 9000+ feet high altitude flights). So I know how scary a stall is, and the need to recover gradually from a stall. I have done more minor stalls on more than 10 different occasions (i.e. recovery before bowtieing and corners touched), in order for me to become familiar with stall behaviour and recovery. A stall on a F111 7-cell is probably somewhat different, but I don't think it's vastly different from what I've already experienced?

Agreed, but this isn't really the concern at the moment. My concern is the Raven Micro 150 being a known "dangerous" reserve -- whether I do an intentional cutaway or fly it as a temporary main. Raven Micro Dangerously Stalls -- Thread #1 Raven Micro Dangerously Stalls - Thread #2 Raven Micro Dangerously Stalls - Thread #3 And this isn't just online. Offline sources suggest that Raven Micro is an older reserve that's not very forgiving. In fact, PD126R (yes, 126R) may be safer to land (fully conscious) than a Raven 150 because of the problems attributed to a somewhat overloaded Raven Micro. This is really my main concern -- the use of an old Raven Micro model with a known dangerous tendancy to stall unexpectedly when pulling toggles to shoulder height or slightly below shoulder height.

Tell that to a Canadian skydiver who's going to become grounded for the winter.

Doubtful -- PD143R, according to a couple of well known riggers, has slightly bigger pack volume than a Raven 150, and the Raven 150 is already pretty tight. But as I feel better about almost any good reserve (including Smart) than a Raven Micro, I'll ask around at the DZ about these various choices. Smart 150, however, is a good choice (if I am not willing to replace my container). I believe pack volume is similiar to PD143R so that may actually fit my rig better. I'm kind of biased towards PD reserves at the moment, but I'm willing to consider various options... I have all winter to research anyway and talk to various trusted contacts;

Hi, This may be a little controversial (I know). Apologies in advance, but let's be civil. I have already talked to two people at my dropzone about this already. (I will be talking some more next time I go back to Gananoque) This is still at the back of mind after travelling to Lake Wales and one of the organizers of an event having a cutaway, I'm now more interested in doing an intentional cutaway so I am familiar with my reserve capabilities. This brings up a subject that I'm a little embarassed to talk about -- my reserve is somewhat smaller than my main. And yes, I know about my wingloading on my reserve is somewhat aggressive. My understanding is that when flying a Raven Micro 150 at a wingload of 1.25, I have to remember the following to fly this parachute: - Slightly overloaded Raven Micro's are known to stall "instantly" when you pull brakes down too far. - Flare range ends extremely early on all Raven Micro's that are overloaded (expected to stall at approximately slightly below shoulder level at wingload of 1.25), so don't flare much beyond this level. - Do test flares to find flare band and flare behaviour if I have the altitude to do so (easier in an intentional cutaway). This will maximize my flare when I land. - Assume PLF position while flaring, just in case. However, I'd clearly feel much safer under a PD143R because of its much better flare. (Interestingly, it is actually bigger than a Raven Micro 150 -- Actual size is roughly 155 square feet because of PD measurements). The vastly superior flare of a PD reserve to a Raven Micro would be much more forgiving. A PD160R (my first choice) unfortunately won't fit into my rig, so it's either a PD143R or keeping my existing Raven Micro 150, or getting rid of my container. Most of you will agree that replacing my rig to accomodate a bigger reserve is the wisest choice. However, I did buy this rig knowing the reserve was 150 and both myself, instructors and DZO were okay with that size. It was my decision to get the rig. What I didn't realize back then was how terrible the older Raven Micro's were, though I have strived to research its flare band (from tail deflection to stall point) and have rough expectations on how to fly it now. However, I do not want to hurt myself in an intentional cutaway. I know my experiences with my Sabre 170 when the brakes got replaced -- and the learning curve of a new flare band. (Lesson learned: Always, always check for tail deflection point to determine start of flare band - I apparently had to pull 7 inches of loose, nonresponsive brakes before flare worked its magic.) I am planning to stay with 170 for my main for a while (probably to jump #300 or so), but I do feel comfortable flying a 150 in a one-time pre-planned conservative approach for an intentional cutaway -- however, knowing how "bad" (subjective) the Raven Micro is reported to fly, this is my main concern... There are several arguments. - Replacing my rig to accomodate a PD160R (wisest choice) - Test jumping a PD143R (my preferred compromise) - Test jumping my Raven 150 (still thinking about it; but unsure.) Upgrading my rig to accomodate a PD160R sounds like the obvious choice ("It's my life", after all -- most will clearly say). On the other hand, landing a PD143R (more like a 155, as mentioned) is likely really no big deal after having already had 75 jumps on my Sabre 170 (1.1WL) with a near 100% standup landing success rate (the occasional slide landings during early low wind and zero wind landings, especially after the brakes were changed -- which frustrated me before I figured out tail deflection -- but for the last 55 or so jumps were all standups and I have landed zero winders very reliably). The PD143R would be a reserve size (PD143R) that I want to keep even when I gradually downsize to a 150 and a 135 by my 1000th jump -- since I want the reserve to be reasonably survivable while landing unconscious even when my main becomes smaller than my reserve. So the PD143R is a very attractive option since it probably seems to be the smallest reserve I want to stick with for the rest of my skydiving career -- somewhat aggressive now but clearly much safer than a Raven Micro 150 by all online and offline sources, but within my current skill range. Being panicky after cutting away from a mal that occured at low altitude, and landing a resreve inside a backyard is an entirely different story, but until I went to Lake Wales, there has never been backyards to worry about at my home dropzone (it's all surrounded by farmland several miles in every direction of the compass). Yes, I know this post is somewhat controversial. I realize what I am getting into. My concern is chiefly that Micro's are not very safe reserve parachutes -- more than the size of the reserve. Now, some daring people even suggest I test jump the Raven Micro. People who have advance knowledge of its narrow flare band (at 1.2 to 1.3 wingloading), have been able to do standup landings under a Raven Micro, and avoiding falling on their backs. But, still -- I am tempted to sell this to a much ligher jumper and swap to a PD143R which, while somewhat aggressive, would have a vastly safer and more forgiving flare capability compared to a Raven Micro 150, while also being slightly bigger than the Raven Micro. Then I'm totally happy to do a preplanned test jump a PD143R at my home dropzone, pending dropzone approval. I thought long and hard about not making this post because I am already talking to people at my dropzone -- but I thought I might as well cover all bases. I won't be doing the intentional cutaway until an upcoming reserve repack - and after I've made sure I'm current again after a Canadian winter layoff where my jumping will be relatively infrequent (apart from the occasional trip south and a few snow jumps)

Deja Vu. When I was going for my first tandem in 1997 (yes, FIRST tandem), I rented a car to go to the dropzone. Guess what? Car ahead of me ran over a piece of metal, which flew and then promptly shattered my rental car's windshield - impact point RIGHT IN FRONT OF MY FACE. Fortunately, the shattered windshield held in place. I was really freaked and swerved 4 lanes to the shoulder (I was in the fast lane of a 8-lane freeway) to an immediate stop. Something must have been trying to prevent me going skydiving that day. Needless to say, that tandem became an expensive trip since I had to pay a $500 deductible.

I think this actually happened at the Chinese-Russian military exercises recently. I am not 100% sure if it was a terminal Mr. Bill, but it was a life saved via a Mr. Bill mid-air rescue: http://www.mosnews.com/news/2005/08/29/paratrooper.shtml Details are sketchy, though.

Or a weight vest.

Wingload calculations is based on exit weight (wearing all gear, including helmet, altimeter, rig, etc). I am 163lbs naked but am 191lbs exit weight. You'd be 215-220 lbs exit weight, which warrants a 210 or 220 canopy. This would be the recommendation of most pople. Most recommend 1 pound for every square feet of canopy, a 1:1 wingload, as the first canopy. Wing load is calculated by total exit weight divided by the size of your canopy. Math indicates you will be a 1.3 wingload at 190 without gear which means 215-220 exit weight with all gear. It does vary a bit - a 1.1 WL under a heavy jumper on a big canopy is reported to be safer than 0.9 WL on a light jumper under a tiny canopy, so there's a bit of fudge there, but 1.3 is an advanced wingloading that often leads to severe injuries. (If you HAD to be aggressive, 190 might be okay if you jumped rental canopies for several dozens of jumps first -- that's still a wingload of 1.15 and plenty exciting much like my Sabre 170 at 1.1 wingload -- and I considered that aggressive for myself at 59 jumps) Now, my advice may be total crapshoot, but you should talk to your instructors, and more than one. Take the most conservative recommendation. I know some instructors wrongly recommend wingload 1.3, I wouldn't start that aggressive... I'm just an intermediate jumper, not an instructor, not a coach, but 1.3 is really aggressive...

I did the same (288 going to 170). Take the advice and transition 288->230->190->170 like I did. (Assuming you are about 170ish pounds exit weight or lighter that is) I've been on 170 for the last 77 jumps now and going to keep doing it for at least another hundred or so. A 170 can spin dangerously into linetwists if you yank a toggle suddenly. I was easily able to spin my 190 into linetwists once just by yanking toggles. Be careful. Listen to your instructors. Edit: I noticed you'd be 1.3 wingload.... Who recommended the 170 to you? If it was your instructor that is advising 170 being okay for you, I'd suggest asking for a safer recommendation and going 210 instead which would be more in your territory.

It wears off at the 100th jump or so. I am actually looking forward to getting back to skiing (and learning snowboard), and hitting more difficult slopes this time around Of course, when March comes, I'll be quite anxious to get back into skydiving. I'm all geared up and the reserve doesn't need to be repacked until April (Canada 180 day repack cycle). And I'll probably make one or two snow jumps at Mile High Parachuting

Nudge, nudge! Get a move on that! I want to see my profile up there.

I didn't even rent a car. Yes, I thought about asking someone to drive me. But we were all so busy, that by the time of the 3rd-4th day, and after my fun and successful night jump, I wasn't going to bother... Granted, after my 4th and 5th nights, I was starting to be a little grumpy, having failed to be part of the record. But ah well -- live and learn! After spending a low 5 figures CDN for skydiving in 2005 (gear costs, travel costs included), budget does get tight for optional luxuries like car and motel/hotel Next year, I'll likely spend only one third the amount for the same number of jumps, since I'm now all geared up and with all the necessary licenses to continue my field of interest.

Excellent idea. But, at this stage, I want to travel more locally (within Canada) to smaller 20-way camps until I am experienced enough for a 60-to-100way camp -- then I will be happy to travel all the way to Perris! Too expensive to fly that far for a year or so (~$700) Or instead, I could be a jack-of-all-trades and start freefly, swooping, wingsuit, etc. Perhaps I will... But, I might as well try to become a good bellyflyer, and I'd like to eventually become a capable bigway flyer. Man, being a part of the more complicated logistics for a 20-way 'world record event' sure make me appreciate how challenging it is for a LO for that successful 357-way event. Hiro Masuda, showed me helmet cam video of him, from the camera of the bellyflyer behind him (Hiro), and I saw him fly all the way from the airplane to his slot in the 357-way from the C-130 Hercules. Quite awesome and inspiring. At the time of the record, I believe he said he had 990 jumps and 20 hours of tunnel time. (One can dream about being in a 425-way world record in the year 2012...) (Reminder to myself: ;-) Next time I travel and camp in a tent, I'll remember to bring an air mattress. I was tired and sometimes frustrated by the 4th and 5th day sleeping in a sleeping bag in a tent on hard ground! And I pitched that tent in a hard rain on the first day. No fun.

Yes, L&B was excellent to provide 10 demo units for the event. The clear LCD one works okay if you have it in front of one of your eyes (it darkens and brightens your vision, essentially). But if I bought one, I will be getting the LED instead. It fit my Paratec FREEZR helmet very well, even though it wasn't designed to hold an audible very well. The LED cable routed behind the padding very easily. Please don't forget to send an email to Larson & Brusgaaud at http://www.l-and-b.dk to thank them for the demos, and to ask how much it would cost to buy. They may give you a discount because we were essentially testers for these deaf-friendly 'flashing' audible altimeters. Remember, these audibles are a last resort (mentioning this, because some of us have never used an audible before) -- don't use them as a substitute for breakoff. Many dropzones requires these audibles if you start to freefly for example. If I get one of these, I plan to configure these in a "you screwed up" configuration (Instead of setting them at breakoff, I'll be setting them something like 250-500 feet below breakoff -- to tell me I messed up a breakoff. Haven't yet, but this is how I want to use an audible, as an 'idiot reminder'...) Same here too! A bit dissapointed I wasn't part of the record, but it's nice to know all the planning that goes into a big way event with people from all over the world flying in for one event. Next goal for me: Canadian National Big-Way record? (I know, I'll have to keep praticing -- I've got to pratice in a lot more 15-ways and 20-ways first. Perhaps at places like Skydive Burnaby, Nouvel Air, and Gananoque Twin Otter weekends next year...).

They'll likely put up some information and pictures on the website at www.deafskydivers.org. I believe that BBC will broadcast a piece of it sometime later on (I'm not sure of exact details, but we had one person from BBC visiting with us) Being one of the lowest-number jumper in the formation... We tried a few more times but unfortunately, we ran out of attempts to break the record with all thew low jumpers added back into the formation (myself included). We kept building 10-ways and 11-ways, sometimes with me in it and sometimes without me in it. Damn! We were all very tired and sore by the last day. Kind of dissapointed at that, but needless to say, it was exciting to be flying with 20 others. I learned a lot - I can free belly fly to my quadrant relatively quickly (side sliding around to the other side if necessary), but when close to my slot, catching up with the base was often fiendishly difficult, and I sometimes got unstable as I got close or taking a grip. Burbles and drifts. (Thankfully, I never wrecked the formation). Getting low. Turning 90 degrees, getting away from formation, and trying to cup like hell. (succeeded sometimes). My new jumpsuit and helmet takes some time getting used to. The formation kept getting rearranged. The base fell faster in later attempts. Quite a learning experience. And man, tracking to save my life can be an exciting moment (and occasionally scary). Two stage breakoff. Glad I praticed those 6 tracking solos and the 3-way scrambles competition before I went. Tracking like hell. A couple of times, somebody flew faster underneath me and I had to make a quick track-turn correction and intentionally go all the way down to 2500 feet twice (lowest pulls for me during this trip). On one time, I had somebody above me too that caused me to turn and track further, wait for clear air (pull 2500-3000). And waving/pulling so immediately after tracking and looking up to clear air, is a very brisk canopy opening (ooooooof!). Although I wasn't the best tracker, I certainly wasn't the worst... Nobody has complained to me about my tracking and had plenty of separation. Sometimes I was the guy to open the farthest away (I think - I was pretty far from a cluster canopies that appeared closer together than I was to them). The highlight of this trip would definitely be the night jump and the high altitude canopy flights (three flights at 13000 feet and above). The 18/20 way attempts were fun too (especially the low pressure practice jumps), except for a couple of them, more especially when some of us were tired and frustrated. I guess I'll have to wait till 2007 or 2008 for the next Deaf World Record attempt. By then, I hope I'll have done the Canadian National Record formation skydive. Knock on wood! All year long I was looking forward to being part of the record, but at the very least I was there and learned a lot. Next year, I got to find some RW camps (including 20-ways) that's not too far from home. Some of the people in the formations were very experienced, including one that was part of the 357-way world record (And I think there are at least one other, at least the 300-way world record or the 246-way). Lesson learned: Bring more money for tunnel time. 15 minutes wasn't nearly enough!

Newsflash! (Wireless hotspot here at Lake Wales by laptop) 16-way all-deaf formation skydive successful earlier today! I wasn't on this load (they had to reduce the number of participants temporarily), but 16 deaf skydivers made history at Lake Wales beating the record for the biggest all-deaf formation skydive. The formation held for an amazing 20 seconds till breakoff altitude! Not all was lost for me -- I had two firsts (BEER!) I also did first no-contact CRW. (Almost contact -- 1 feet from bump end cells -- close but not quite. Two hop and pops at 14500 feet in one day. Very tiring since I was holding variable brakes most of the way down!) And my first night jump. (That expensiive $45 Luxeon LED headlamp I bought before coming here, really helped. About 100 feet range and a nice soft night straight-in turf surf as a result! Had the lightsticks and strobe too.) Not night RW like the others did, but I was on the same load but on a separate jump run pass. After I landed, I gave my lightsticks to some little kids and parents who were watching the night jumpers land! This must be what demo jumping feel like...) I will now be on the next loads tomorrow, where we will try to beat the record with up to a 20-way. Wish me luck. I'm possibly the least experienced jumper (127 jumps since I started this year), and have to fly to my slot. Wish me luck. I only have a 1 out of 3 success in "flying to my slot" in a biggish-way (Almost 3 out of 3, on the other two, I briefly docked but screwed up and went unstable and flew low (thankfully not wrecking anybody's existing slot). Then I got moved to the base, and my linked CASA exits were all good, but a few others also screwed up, so they reduced the group size temporarily. Now it's the same formation again but with the rest of the jumpers being added to the existing formation. 20 seconds should be plenty of time for me to dock leisurely... (The 16-way held for 20 seconds)

(writing from WiFi hotspot at Florida Skydive Center) A 9 volt battery is nothing. Try 10 flashlight "D" batteries connected in series. I even accidentally shortcircuited some approximately 20 gauge wire, and 12 inches of it glowed red hot, making an awful smell as the plastic melted off it. Burnt myself a little too, trying to defuse this by removing a battery -- even the battery holders were starting to get hot and started smoking a little at the plastic ends near the contacts. Ouch! Multimeter exceeded 10 amps (beyond range), so that was something like a 100+ watt short circuit. I have seen more than 20 amperes of power come from a single D cell (1.2V per NiCd), so this could have easily been over 200 watts - the red glow hot occured less than a second after short circuit. The battery holders were also upgraded with thicker contacts for lower resistance, and even those got warm, and the plastic case of the holder started smoking from the overheated contacts between the cells. I yelped since I was still holding one end of the wire, and right after that, removing a battery was the safest way to stop this accidental short circuit and I still burnt myself a second time doing that. Needless to say, I was much more careful proceeding with my project. I were using Radio Shack "D" Cell High Capacity Rechargeables (The expensive $12.99 per battery stuff from the late 80s and early 90s), they really packed a big punch of amperes output in a short circuit, being able to give short surges of current more than alkaline, sometimes exceeding 20 amperes!... And yes, I paid over 100 dollars for 10 of these batteries as a 14-year old Electronics whiz... The battery pack was for a high voltage inverter circuit I was designing... Although I don't have the hobby anymore, I sure spent a lot of time with the soldering iron and ammonium persuphate (circuit board etching chemical)... If I can make 12 inches of 20 gauge copper wire glow immediately (That's thicker than telephone wire!) from a battery pack of 10 expensive flashlight D batteries, imagine what happened to the steel wool when a short circuit that powerful runs through it!

We are under the same wingloading at not too different sizes (yours is bigger), so that may be true (caution, caution), it depends on canopy. I know my former 230 was a big boat enough for me that hard turns didn't cause problems on that... But under a 190 (bigger than my current 710), I spun myself into linetwists (minor ones, but...) just simply by turning 90 right... then turning 90 left in the opposite direction too quickly. Now if I am doing abrupt S-turning tests at high altitude, I monitor line tension. I think I could probably easily spin myself into linetwists just by yankng a toggle down then letting it up suddenly. Never tried so dramatically under my 170, but I did get the line tension down dramatically a few times (not slack, but almost...) in intentional aggressive turn tests at play altitude, no linetwists, and the canopy was still above me, but that definitely taught me at least a thing or two about the limits of my canopy...

Hmm, I do that... I think I'm gonna have to go up and do some intentional attempted turning stalls of my canopy to see how it reacts to this stuff... I've done the normal stalls, know what that limit is, but never thought of turning stalls.. I dont know that I have much risk of a 90 deg. stall though, since I've done multiple 360s pretty hard on the toggles with no problems.. If you do, monitor your line tension! Do it incrementally, gradually, and at high altitude. Of course, clear everything with your proper dropzone contacts too.

Ditto. 25% of gross income here. That's before-tax income, not after-tax income. Of course, I did sell some belongings (such as $1000 worth of Star Trek DVD's - boxsets, boxsets, etc). Next year, I expect to spend only 5-10% though, since I plan to do no more gear upgrades for a while...