bwilling

There are lots of factors that affect a canopies ability to land, some of them related to the weather condition you're jumping in (wind amount, density altitude), some of them related to the canopy. Microlined canopies change trim as they age, as result of the lines with the greatest contact with the slider grommets (usually affects the outside lines the most) shrinking due to friction from the slider. It could be that the Spectres you've jumped really do fly differently due to differences in trim... "If all you ever do is all you ever did, then all you'll ever get is all you ever got."

If he had offered up facts like these in his initial post... instead of comments like these... he would have received a better response from the beginning... people here really do want to help, but the trolls wear them thin after a while. And it was hard to tell from his initial post and the lack of facts given whether he really wanted help, or was just trolling. "If all you ever do is all you ever did, then all you'll ever get is all you ever got."

One day... I knew in the first hour that I wasn't going to work there long, and by the end of the day, I was done. I was fortunate at the time to have been fielding a couple of offers before making the wrong choice... so I just went to work for the other place the very next day! "If all you ever do is all you ever did, then all you'll ever get is all you ever got."

You want a suggestion? Talk to the instructors at your DZ who are familiar with your current canopy progression, and have seen you fly your current canopy, and get them to make a suggestion regarding appropriate sizing. Then make a short list of the most likely candidates in that size, and demo them all... then decide which one to buy. No one here can possibly make a valid suggestion when they have no idea what you've been jumping, and they haven't seen how you handle that canopy! Then make a commitment to learn to fly that canopy, and I mean really learn to fly that canopy to it's fullest potential, before you downsize again. Then decide if you want a smaller version of what you're flying. If not, repeat the above process. Yeah, now that's a good plan at 50 jumps! "If all you ever do is all you ever did, then all you'll ever get is all you ever got."

I'll second that, weather from mid/late Sept. to mid/late Dec. is often the best we get in Texas, and if funds are available, you could knock out some jumps in those months before you even have to really worry about the cold! If you wait until spring to start, you'll have to deal with the high winds we tend to get that time of year, so the opportunity for AFF training may actually diminish, instead of increase! And then it will be summer, and it'll just be hotter than hell... but it is Texas. "If all you ever do is all you ever did, then all you'll ever get is all you ever got."

I'd pretend to be a shit hot skydiver, pretend to be witty and smart, and hook up with a hot skychick like Bill's got... "If all you ever do is all you ever did, then all you'll ever get is all you ever got."

Well, good point, but it's not flat shoes for everybody, it's what fits your body style, depending on your natural gait, and whether you're neutral, pronate, or supinate... highly recommended to visit a running store for fitting by a qualified salesman if you're unsure of this... it'll definitely save wear and tear on your body if your shoes fit correctly, and that doesn't just mean size wise! "If all you ever do is all you ever did, then all you'll ever get is all you ever got."

I can't remember that far back, probably courtesy of self induced chemical research, and possibly that nearly life long affinity for hops based beverages... but after all, it was nearly a lifetime (or more for some of you!) ago. I made my first jump in 1978, static line from a C-182, wearing a 35' military surplus T-10 main canopy, and a belly mounted 24' flat four line release reserve. Man, that was some nasty gear! But I survived, and went on to make over 500 jumps before the rest of life got in the way, and I 'retired'... I do remember parts of my re-currency jump though, the one made after some 16 years of inactivity! I had the pleasure and privilege of getting Mandy Schaeffer to do my check out dive... after plans fell through to jump with my old friend Bobby Coker (who I had jumped with extensively 16 years ago!) due to weather moving in the previous weekend. The otter at Skydive Dallas was new to me, having been a cessna jumper in that previously mentioned 'former life'. So we're gonna go how high? Cool! And what the hell is this, bench seats? COOL! Despite the additional creature comforts, the ride up seemed eerily familiar, as I watched out the window as the earth got further and further away, cross referencing visuals to numbers on the alti I wore... then... jump run. I'm a high puller, so we're out nearly last, right before the tandems... and we work our way to the door, and I grab the rail and swing out, into the wind blast. Now that was an 'oh shit' moment. As I clung to the outside of that aircraft, the wind tearing at my body, the earth far, far, below, I had to question the wisdom of my decision to return to the sport of skydiving! But Mandy hits the door, and we GO. I'm familiar with sensory overload, having done a fair bit of training 'back in the day', but it's an entirely different beast when it's you that's overloaded! I don't remember the first few second of that jump, although I'm sure I was there for it, at least physically... then I was fine. Completed all dive objectives, opened the canopy, flew back to the DZ, stood up the landing, and got signed off. It was hella fun. Thanks Mandy! "If all you ever do is all you ever did, then all you'll ever get is all you ever got."

Sleep number bed... I know people that have them and love them, and one of the features is perfect for you and your SO... independently adjustable firmness for each side of the bed! The only downside, the higher end models are really expensive! http://www.selectcomfort.com "If all you ever do is all you ever did, then all you'll ever get is all you ever got."

I know, I wish I could have found one! I don't have the budget for a new canopy now, and Silhouttes are scarce on the used gear market... I figure I'll just jump the PD 260 for a while, and keep a lookout for a good used 230 Silhoutte! "If all you ever do is all you ever did, then all you'll ever get is all you ever got."

I wondered if anybody was even going to suggest an F-111 canopy... F-111, it's like a dirty word these days! I do understand that ZP is superior to F-111 (though technically F-111 was a low porosity fabric developed and sold by Harris Corp., and hasn't actually been manufactured for many years!), and why, but it would would still seem to be a viable choice for someone on a budget (F-111 canopies can be purchased for next to nothing!), or someone with a plan to downsize not wanting to committ big dollars to a canopy they know they won't be jumping very long... That said, it's getting harder and harder to find F-111 canopies that aren't at the end of their life spans, as most canopy mfg's aren't making them anymore, and their life span is considerably shorter than that of their ZP counterparts... but I recently picked up a 2001 PD 260 with 50ish jumps on it for $350! Maybe I'm just old school (well, old too!), I do have over 500 jumps on F-111 canopies, but as long as the stigma of jumping something a little bigger doesn't bother you, they're still a viable option... "If all you ever do is all you ever did, then all you'll ever get is all you ever got."

I've got a few jumps on a Spectre 230 at about the same exit weight as you, and it was a really great canopy overall! Great openings, very good flare, and still responsive enough to be a lot of fun, even at that size... That said, the only way to really know which canopy is best for you is to talk to instructors that know you, and have seen you fly canopies, and let them help you develop a short list of candidates... then demo them all... but honestly, I don't see how you can go wrong with any of the suggestions made so far! "If all you ever do is all you ever did, then all you'll ever get is all you ever got."

From the PD newsletter... "John Storrie, from Storrie Parachute Works, sold our 6,000th Sabre2 to a lucky winner in Texas! Performance Designs celebrated the success of its Sabre2 line of canopies with a special promotion for the lucky person to order serial number 6,000th. Michael Nowatney won the trip of a lifetime when he decided to order his Sabre2 150: * FREE canopy-his Sabre2 canopy at no charge * FREE trip to Deland, FL to visit Performance Designs' facilities. * FREE first jump on his new canopy with John Leblanc, vice-president of Performance Designs and head designer of our products * FREE canopy control class with Scott Miller * FREE case of beer * And of course, tons of pictures and memories of our celebration as we feature him on magazines and websites worldwide! Needless to say - I think 6,000 is Michael's NEW lucky number!" "If all you ever do is all you ever did, then all you'll ever get is all you ever got."

Dude, some people in the skydiving community don't understand why you do what you do, why the hell would you expect different from a whuffo? "If all you ever do is all you ever did, then all you'll ever get is all you ever got."

The moment someone wants to give you more than the agreed upon price for an item, it should send up huge red rocket flares! Legitimate business is just not conducted in this manner! "If all you ever do is all you ever did, then all you'll ever get is all you ever got."

No grief here... but honestly, that rig's gotta be 25 years old! I have some old Parachutist magazines advertising the GQ Security stuff (the X2-10 canopies) from 1982~!!! yikes! I have a rule... I don't jump anything older than my youngest child! "If all you ever do is all you ever did, then all you'll ever get is all you ever got."

You both have bad ass looking rigs! Good job! Now for the long wait... "If all you ever do is all you ever did, then all you'll ever get is all you ever got."

You do realize that you're overloading all your equipment at that weight, don't you? The Wings is rated to 275lbs, the Spectre to 299lbs, and the Smart reserve to 300lbs... While you've chosen gear with some of the highest ratings in the industry, do you really think it's wise to jump them that far over the limit? You're almost 20% over what the harness is rated for, with a built in tendency for higher speeds than the average jumper! Not much safety margin in those numbers! Yikes! "If all you ever do is all you ever did, then all you'll ever get is all you ever got."

That's a huge issue for me, I won't land looking thru any of the relatively poor optical quality lenses that we use to protect our eyes while skydiving! That issue aside, what are you focusing on when landing? Pure mechanics? Or feel? Bill Von wrote a great article on continuity, and it contained this segment regarding canopy control & landing... Is it possible that you're focusing too much on the mechanics of landing, and not enough on feel? When I jump a canopy for the first time, and I'm doing practice flares up high, that's exactly what I try to concentrate on, the feel, because obviously at that point, there's not a good visual reference, I'm too high for that... but on landing, I just try to duplicate that same feel. That said, really hot, humid days still kick my ass! I haven't developed a good feel for landing in those conditions! "If all you ever do is all you ever did, then all you'll ever get is all you ever got."

Here's what PD says about psycho packing, taken directly from their website... "The "psycho pack" is not really an entirely different packing method, it’s just a different bagging method. The first part of a “psycho pack,” the part that is done standing up, is identical to a regular PRO pack. The only difference is the technique used to fold the canopy and put it in the deployment bag. For this reason, “psycho packing,” which we could perhaps call “psycho bagging,” may or may not make a difference in the way your canopy opens. If the first part of the pack job is sloppy, then the opening may not be very good no matter how the canopy is put in the bag. Let’s suppose, however, that you do a good basic PRO pack but tend to lose control while bagging the canopy, and end with a mess by the time you make the first line stows. If “psycho bagging” helps keep your neat PRO pack under control while you put it in the bag, your openings may improve using this technique. We don't recommend the “psycho bagging” technique for a couple of reasons. For one thing, we feel there are easier ways to put the canopy in the bag that work just as well. We also do not think a canopy should be packed with a lot of material in front of the nose, which happens when you psycho pack. We’ve made test jumps on a number of our main canopies using a psycho pack, and the openings were acceptable. We also know of some customers using this method with our canopies who are happy with the results. So, you can use the “psycho bagging” technique with your PD main if you want, but it is not the method we recommend." "If all you ever do is all you ever did, then all you'll ever get is all you ever got."

You know you're old when of the stunt doubles in that movie (Jerry Rouillard) trained you for your first jump! You should hear the stories he tells about the batwing jumps! "If all you ever do is all you ever did, then all you'll ever get is all you ever got."

Actually, I'm fatter too... "If all you ever do is all you ever did, then all you'll ever get is all you ever got."

From way back in the day... you haven't lived until you've jumped a T-10 with a belly wart reserve, or shot downwind accuracy under a PC... "If all you ever do is all you ever did, then all you'll ever get is all you ever got."

Actually 1999 was the first year for the SV650, with little difference in the 1st gen bikes from 1999-2002... they changed a lot in 2003, a new frame design and EFI being a couple of the bigger changes. You may find it cheaper to insure an SV650 than an SV650S (the 'sportier' version of the SV650, quarter fairing, clip on bars, rearsets farther back and up, but same motor), because they usually don't consider the naked a 'sport' bike... it's just a 'standard' motorcycle. "If all you ever do is all you ever did, then all you'll ever get is all you ever got."

I have an SV650, my first bike after a very long layoff... and I LOVE it. That said, I'm not sure I'd recommend it for a true 'beginning' rider. Well, let's put it this way, I wouldn't put any of my kids on it as first bike... althought I think it would make great second bike, I think a smaller, lighter bike would serve better as first bike... But if someone was bound and determined to skip the smaller bike step, the SV wouldn't be bad choice, and they can be picked up used for a decent price (I bought a 'like new' 2000 model for a hair over 3k), and it's really a fun bike to ride... "If all you ever do is all you ever did, then all you'll ever get is all you ever got."