tso-d_chris

Try this. For Great Deals on Gear

I'm not trying to argue that square canopies aren't technologically superior to rounds. They are. I don't think that that makes rounds unsafe. They have the benefit of being pretty idiot proof once open. Feet and knees together, PLF. The jumper is a passenger instead of a pilot. They can do less to make things worse for themselves. A soft square landing is better than a soft round landing. But a hard square landing can easily be worse than a hard round landing. You are right, there is no excuse for preventive maintenance to be overlooked, especially on student gear. For Great Deals on Gear

My post assumed a bad spot would not give a bad landing area. If a student has a high likelihood of landing in an undesireable landing area, rounds are a poor choice in comparison to a square. I should have made this point more clearly in my post. Quotedo you know of a situation where this sort of equipment is a good choice??? can you give us an example???Quote Two out scenario. Non responsive students. For Great Deals on Gear

Umm, democracy is a form of government. Socialism is a type of economy. They can coexist or not, but are not opposing philosophies.

You do realize you could switch to Reds and kill yourself for half the price! For Great Deals on Gear

Climb in, fasten seat belt, turn on AAD, monitor self check sequence, check handles, straps, etc, wait for takeoff. It was never an issue, and I was not pressed for time. For Great Deals on Gear

What makes a ram air canopy superior to a round in a student canopy, assuming there is not a high probability of an off field landing in an inappropriate area, such as a swamp or forest? I'm not saying rounds are superior to Ram Airs. I just don't see how one is absolutely superior to the other. Different scenarios require different preparation and gear. For Great Deals on Gear

The fact that it should not have been switched on in the air notwithstanding, why was he unable to turn it on himself? All the Astras I have used or seen have been mounted visibly, within easy reach of the jumper with the gear on. I used to wait until I was in the plane to turn mine on each jump when I jumped one. (For those unfamiliar with Astras, they are powered up before each jump, and powered down afterwards. There is no auto off, and a a self test is performed prior to each jump.) For Great Deals on Gear

At one time I was jumping an Icarus Omega 115, and also utilizing an Omega 170 (1:1) for short calls. Consistently the 170 openings were much softer than the 115's. For Great Deals on Gear

You're in Texas, Dave. One of the few places where you can actually buy the land, as well! For Great Deals on Gear

While it may not be ideal, I have recovered contacts from inside my goggle many times. Rewet, repack, redisinfect, reinstall, remanifest. For Great Deals on Gear

Fortunately, the planet is large and easily seen from the air! For Great Deals on Gear

No. Not all stall points are in the same place relative to arm position. For that matter there can be a pretty large difference in toggle position at full arm extension between two jumpers, even of the same weight. Arm position at stall point is a very poor way, IMO, of comparing two different canopies' landing characteristics. For Great Deals on Gear

I used to jump at a DZ where the DZO would not allow tandem passengers, only tandem students that had sat participated in an IAF ( Instructor Assisted Freefall or tandem to AFF progression) first jump course. His reasoning was that it seemed the people who thought skydiving was something they merely wanted to try once were more likely to stick around than those who were sure they wanted to get a license before they even tried it. I don't know the accuracy of his system, but I do know that his first jump students came away with a much better understanding of the sport and the equipment than do most tandem "passengers" I've encountered. For Great Deals on Gear

(Well controlled)Forward speed prior to your flare is your friend. The more you have, the more extra lift your canopy can potentially produce to soften your landing during your flare. From half brakes, your flare will not be as powerful. The general rule is this: You can trade altitude for speed, and you can trade speed for lift. The less forward speed you have, the less lift your canopy can produce. If the canopy speed at full flight is too fast for you to be comfortable with, you should talk to your instructors/S&TA to find a more appropriately sized canopy that you can confidently fly at full flight when you are making your final approach. For Great Deals on Gear

Thanks for that. It is quite informative. On a lighter, yet related note: There was a rumor floating around WFFC in Quincy one year during the late nineties, when the exit order stategy was first being reconsidered due to substanstial differences in freefall speeds between RW and freefly groups. It involved a cocky freefly group, and Mike Mullins. Apparently the FF group felt it was important to exit before the RW groups for good vertical seperation. Mike told them that freeflyers should board first so they could exit last. He was told something to the effect of, "You just fly the plane and let us take care of the skydiving!" So Mullins lets the FF group board last, and at altitude, gave them a green light, and they jumped first. Then the green light was replaced by a red light, jumpers were given instructions to close the door, and M. Mullins proceeded to fly back across the state line from Missouri to Illinois, where the rest of the load exited over Baldwin Field, in Quincy! I don't know if it is true or not, but it does offer another alternative to obtain sufficient horizontal seperation when some jumpers refuse to recognize that the laws of physics apply to them, as well. For the record, I really don't advocate pilots spotting jumpers in the wrong state! For Great Deals on Gear

I wear contacts, and I have had one come out many times, and both come out at least once. I seem to have the best luck with the cheapest plastic goggles, like FlexZ or Kroops. I've tried cooler looking, more comfortable, more expensive models, and they don't seem to work as well with respect to keeping my contacts in. However, I've never tried rewetting my eyes before exit; that may be helpful. For Great Deals on Gear

Many instructors teach a two handed cutaway along with a two handed reserve pull. If you cutaway with both hands, and immediately need to pull your reserve with those hands, it is very easy to throw a handle away, as well as fairly probable. Also, when one finds themselves low after a reserve deployment, it can be pretty easy to lose track of trivial items like handles, even when they won't seem so trivial when you are trying to get your rig repacked later. For Great Deals on Gear

1.2:1 is an agressive loading for a current jumper at 100 jumps. After a two year layoff, it is probably not the wisest loading for your return to the sport. For Great Deals on Gear

More pics at http://community.citytv.com/cgi-bin/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic;f=17;t=012729 For Great Deals on Gear

All of them! Thanks!! That sure cleared things up for me That was only about half joke. Which settings depends on what shot you are trying to get. If you limit yourself to one or two settings, you are limiting yourself and the kinds of shots you can get. There is no one size fits all setting (or lens) for skydiving. Play with them all, in the air and on the ground, and learn how each setting affects your video. Then, you will have a much better idea which setting is best for your purposes on any particular jump. For Great Deals on Gear

Phyllis Diller (sp?) was just talking about that joke on weekend edition - Saturday on NPR this weekend! For Great Deals on Gear

I'm not so sure. I've had a Jack Russell Terrier living with me for about a year now. Extremely smart dog, but fearless (except for thunder). There is no way a bit of pain is going to deter him from anything. He has been bred (not trained) that way, with a "get pain, give pain" mentality. He won't back down from anything, for better or worse. For Great Deals on Gear

All of them! For Great Deals on Gear

I'm guessing that "Safety Meeting" means different things at different DZs. For Great Deals on Gear