SkymonkeyONE

apres = "after"

Jim, that would sort of put them out of the realm of what they are there to do then. You see, Dave Brown and the Freefly Training Center pay to be the sole "contract" freefly training vendor, just as Packin Cathy (at least in the past) pays to be "the" contract packing concession and those guys from Hinkley (I think) are the only ones who can do AFF there. If Anomoly/Guano are doing one on one, then they better not get caught doing it with an organizer hat on.

I can't see ever replacing a Sigma main with anything other than a Sigma main under normal circumstances, but we have had TWO 370's at Raeford lose their deployment systems because of failure of the bridle attachment point. Both were on brand new rigs. I would not hesitate to put a better main (like a Firebolt 350 or a Sigma 370 or an Icarus) in an older Vector, Eclipse, or certainly a Strong. There is no reason in the world to be jumping shitty mains these days. The requirement to keep your rigs "all one manufacturer" died when the exemption did.

BASE versions actually inflate much better (on your belly) in my experience. You can tell them apart very simply: -BASE versions have one rectangular inlet down on your shin and two inlets up near your crotch. They also come up higher on your waist. Most BASE versions are black. -Freefly versions have inlets on the front and rear of the lower leg which run diagonally. They ride low on your hips. edited to add that no, the BASE version will not inflate if you are on your back.

Max and Dave do paid coaching at the convention as vendors. The WFFC sponsored freefly guys (I guess Anomoly and Guano this year) do not do one-on-one at the convention.

No, you simply have to fly cleanly through the course (no blade strikes, no running it out) three times in a row. Here is a tip for you guys who have been swooping five footers, though you have no reason to be doing so: Do not get down low in the course and think you are going to be able to carve around the corner without hitting blades. I sat and watched at CrossKeys as three of my Raeford peeps failed the qualifier because they were either too low, vertical, or hitting blades and wiping out. Another tip: do NOT get out there and "claim" your first swoops. Don't do it, no matter how good you think you are. Practice running the course until you can make it through three times cleanly in a row, and THEN start claiming your runs. You only get three opportunities to get three in a row, so don't fuck up and fail to qualify because of machismo. If you have not practiced on a ten foot tall carving course, then you had better get your shit straight before wasting attempts while you should be learning. Once again, this is the entrance level. Not to be crass, but the judges don't care how many jumps you have and how many times you have swooped five foot gates. Before you can compete with five foot gates in the open, PRO category , you must first qualify and compete as an advanced (intermediate) through ten footers. The flying style is completely different through ten footers, so you should take the time neccessary to get accustomed to the course prior to challenging it for certification. Please save yourself some heartache and take my advice. Chuck

I have one Pro Dytter which began giving me the "low battery" tone about 100 jumps ago. I am continuing to use it until it actually dies to see if it's just a problem with the voltage calibration. I know one person who jumped theirs for over a year with the low battery tone. As they had just replaced the batteries, they were pretty sure that was not the case. At some point I may send mine back, but as I am not device dependant I am just going to see how long the thing will really go.

I think PD used to have a small pic of one on their website. As to removable sliders, I can say that my canopy does fly a bit different with it off. It's really odd being able to see totally around you under canopy. Plus, there is less resistance to harness steer than with your slider pulled down and secured tightly behind your head. Joe Bennet made my removable slider at MEL's shop in Chester, SC. Both MEL and Joe now make them. There are at least five different configurations of removable sliders on the PST tour. Also, like Ray said, having your RDS attached to a removable slider makes the "reeling in" phase of stowage much easier. Opposite of Ray, on "regular" jumps, I keep my deployment system on top of my main and just remove my slider. It takes me about four minutes to convert to total-removal as I keep my RDS lines s-folded in the mudflap pocket on my Wings.

the apres skydiving pics are brilliant. Were the parties epic or what?

skydiving related or not, this does not involve the physical act of jumping out of an airplane, thus the move to Bonfire.

Nick, if you don't ship me one of those shirts I am going to murder you! Very, very nice.

If you can teach people to skydive at 16, which we have been doing since I was born, then it's ridiculous to not be able to take them on a tandem. Once again, I can promise you that our dropzone will immediately start doing so once all the gates are cleared. Also, I, as an independant contractor, will not hesitate to do so with my Racer once the word is given. If you live your life in fear of being sued, then you might as well just not ever get any sort of instructional rating or start any skydiving-related business. I don't have such fears.

www.cpafl.org

If you run into Nigel and Ed there, tell them I said "hello." Same for Helen. Chuck

I watched the event live on the TV in my grandmother's house. I remember it very clearly.

Also, the EXT version is great for shorter people who have massive SkyFlyer 3 wings to reach around on every jump. My wingsuit rig is a Wings W1-2 EXT. The slightly longer configuration makes the hackey much easier for me to reach. Chuck

Joe Bennet very nearly jumped one at Wildwood instead of his Velo. Actually, the one he wanted to jump was still in the hands of Howard, who refuses to give it back to Red! Anyway, the canopy still has it's differences/limitations to to "other" braced mains, but it has tremendous lift. He even has a name for it, but I won't post it for fear of someone else snagging it and using it. If I recall correctly, that's exactly what happened to Brian Germain when he mentioned what he was going to call his crossbrace. PdF promptly took the name "Ninja" and slapped it on their braced canopy (which didn't get much ex posure).

Just found out this weekend that Gus Marinho at Rigging Solutions located at Skydive Carolina in Chester, SC makes his own as well. Mark Lancaster, better known simply as "MEL", makes them there as well. I forget the prices, but I am sure Blair or someone can pipe in and say. Chuckie

That's right! I had forgotten about that. Both of them had a blast on their flights.

True, Howard works as a test jumper and tandem examiner for Jumpshack, but he also does a lot of design/test jumping for Red and whoever else will pay him. His real job is as a high-rise building window caulker if you can believe that. Howard is the shiznit.

Dave Lund's truck is FAR from big.

where you can both find gainful employment as well as skydive year round? Florida, Arizona, southern California. You can live for much cheaper in Florida and Arizona than you can in California though.

We will ABSOLUTELY use it at Raeford as well as my dad's dropzone in Alabama. It is ridiculous that we have been training 16 year-olds to skydive since I was a toddler, yet have not been able to take 16 year olds on much-safer tandems. edited to add that I will not hesitate to take any 16 year old on a tandem with my own rig either. Chuck

The most accomplished, Pro-rated canopy pilot to spend any time at all under one was Eric Butts. I do not think he is flying one now though, but I may be mistaken. I know he was looking for another sponsor earlier this year. Conversely, like I have mentioned before, Flight Concepts has actually made more than four "better" Onyx-like prototypes and they have been extensively jumped by both PST Pro Joe Bennet and canopy designer Howard Adams. I have been told that both of the last prototypes fly incredibly well and have a much longer recovery arc than the Atair version of this concept. Chuck

This isn't really an incident, is it? More of a Gear and Rigging problem in my opinion.