SkymonkeyONE

I'll tell you what I look for: "smoothness" in a tracking dive. Flailers need not apply a general "heads-up" attitude. other technical skydiving experience.

I always plan on a right 270, but will bail to a left 90 in a heartbeat if traffic sneaks up on me or it's just too congested. Never sacrifice the safety of others for your ten seconds of glory (or faceplant). I don't have any problem seeing all those in the pattern below me when I am setting up for a R270. I throw my turn MUCH higher than the majority of people at my home dropzone (who jump ST's and SA's). You really need to think in 3 dimensions when you are planning your diving turn. Chuck

I am in Z-hills right now fucking off at the pond. I will be at Palatka this weekend, but back in Z all week training for SkyQuest. First round is Friday unless I am mistaken. See you there, if you can get the money together. Chuck

Agreed. this is not talkback, so bag the one-liners.

That is an almost identical copy of the one the "Extremo" guys had at Rantoul. Only difference I see is that they towed theirs with a Semi tractor and I believe their running gear was enclosed a bit more. That is a very loud machine. It was absolutely fast enough that the tunnel rats were flying head-down in it. Chuck

Noice.

Actually, I think he has a good plan, assuming he is going to keep that first rig as his BM rig and is probably going to buy another rig anyway after he gets sufficient experience to downsize. Container systems: there is no drawback whatsoever to having "dynamic" or "open" corners in my opinion, so I would say that the purchase of a Wings, Javelin, or Mirage with the wingsuit option would all be great choices. I jump a Wings EXT with all the wingsuit options now, but have seen and played with both Javs and Mirages with mods. Mains: anything that opens straight. The "squarer" the canopy, the more likely it is to open without spinning (your biggest fear as a wingsuit pilot). This is ESPECIALLY important for people with low jump numbers who are making their first flights. The more experience you have on a canopy, the less an issue this is. I know plenty of people jumping what we as BM-I's would consider very-poor choices as wingsuit mains, but those people get along fine. I know people jumping Vengeances, Velocities (I put 50 flights on a Velo 79 with no problems in my S3), and other HP canopies regularly. That said, a Sabre2, Safire2, or some other semi-elliptical are brilliant choices. Chuck

BWAHAHAHAHAHA!

There are a few BirdMan instructors in Australia. Look up Russel Thornton when you get a little more experience. Chuck

I was not sucking here in Sebastian, Andy.

I will deal with you on Friday, woman!

Andrea, you are SUCH a wussy chimp!

Stacy, you are a bad, bad girl....

Yep, the fly-by was sweet. I wish the weather were more cooperative this weekend, but the jumps I did get in were sweet. Peace, Chuck

It looks just like an Odyssey, except that it has a comfort pad over the webbing. It's very nice.

It's all goody in the hoodie here at Sebastian. More dropzone.com posters met, others ridiculed into oblivion. No excuses. If you said you were coming, you better have your tired asses on the premesis this weekend. Peace, motherfuckers. Chuck

WE are not sucking at Sebastian! Where are you weak-assed monkey-lips at? Don, you are disappointing me greatly. Bring your big ass down here to party. It is GAME ON here. Good day, Chuck

ah....you have heard of last year's debauchery from our british friends then? Brilliant.

The bitch comes when you travel with more than one rig. My rig will actually fit in my Eagle pistol bag, but only a set of goggles and an alti will fit in there with it. I still end up checking another rig and at least three jumpsuits, a helmet, etc. I am fairly certain that Katie and I will be shipping the majority of our shit to Eloy in december. That aside, we are one hour away from departing North Carolina for the warmer climes of Florida. Deland this afternoon and tonight, then arriving in Sebastian mid-day Friday. We OUT! Chuck

Nice to hear from you Kreg, now BEAT IT!

Yo, Sharon, you hit the nail on the head. None of those things has anything to do with whether or not you can skydive, so I, frankly, don't give a shit. Neither your color, your heritage, nor your religion are going to garner you any favor when it comes to who I am going to invite on one of my skydives. If you have airskils and a good personality, then you are in. If you don't have the requisite experience or have a chip on your shoulder you can forget it. There is no room for any such prejudice in this miniscule little sport. Do you still see it? Yes, and it's laughable. Chuck

I totally missed this thread because by all rights it ought to be in "photography and video", but I will interject this: Rob Warner (RiggerRob on here) makes them in Canada if you are not interested in ordering one from Australia. Beezy Shaw at Precision Aerodynamics regularly makes a KILLING using one in his one-man tandem owner/user gig he has at Chris's DZ. I have seen the videos he does and they are brilliant. If you have the right lens (a Diamond .3) and a good technique, then you can do no wrong. Beezy gets everything in his videos and he gets all the money for doing his own stuff. Very, very smart in my opinion. Rob has patterns for PC-9's and IP-5's. Chuck

We have all of our AFF students do the 45 day, $15 dollar, temporary membership. We fax it in just prior to their first jump. When they "know" they are going to keep skydiving, I tell them they might as well go ahead and do the regular membership. Chuck

Jumping a wet canopy is absolutely the fastest and best way to dry it in my opinion. I have done it on several occasions and the canopies I have done it with have not shown any ill effects. It is CERTAINLY preferable to laying it out in the sun. Canopies will either smack open or open slightly more slowly. I have been smacked once and had many "regular" openings. I wouldn't recommend taking a wet canopy to terminal, but I have gotten away with it no problem. The intent is to fly the damn thing dry, so dumping high, or right out the door is the best way to expose it to the air. I don't know a single pond swooper who has not had to do this. As to the "you will ruin your CYPRES" comment: you will only do that if you don't get right up and out of the water. I have a rig with a CYPRES that has been in the pond five times four times with no ill effects. Generally, if you chow and get up reasonably quick, only your reserve PC, freebag and outside tail wrap of your reserve will be wet. My CYPRES got damp on the raft accuracy round of the PSN in 2001, but I just wiped it off and let it sit in the sun for a bit; no problem at all. Actually, I only know one person who's CYPRES has ruined in a pond out of all the times I have seen people chow. Chuck

When I got my first Odyssey it felt kind of funky under canopy, but I learned to ignore that part. My new Wings EXT also has it and fits great as well.