VideoFly

Your post is right on. Concerning camera choices, I agree that we go overboard with our still cameras. It would seem to me that there must be a way to use small 12+ megapixel point and shoot cameras for tandems. I know that there are problems with speed and remote shutter release options, but there have to be practical ways around those problems and we should be exploring them more. Eventually, we will be shooting with tiny digital still and video cameras in one, which will be very helpful. Unfortunately, I started with large hi-eights and film cameras. As far as my neck goes, once again you are right. Preliminary x-rays showed numerous spurs over a half-inch long and wide, which grew in an attempt for my neck, under continuous trauma, to fuse itself. It took years of shooting video for those spurs to grow and for my discs to degenerate. That’s why one of the reasons I posted is to inform others that while they might not know it, they may be doing damage to their necks each time they jump. During my surgery, those spurs needed to be cut and drilled away. As for age adding to problems, I am in my mid-fifties and yes, the body reacts differently to stress with age.

I posted the details of my accident in the incident forum (Injury of Camera Flyer During Deployment; November 12, 2009). I had my 6-week post surgical check-up today and I am pleased that my doctor said that my bones are fusing well and I can expect to have a good recovery and probably jump again in a year. She also recommended that I do not jump with heavy cameras again. After posting in the Incident Forum, I was very surprised to hear from so many others, both within the forum and through PM messages, who had similar accidents and neck problems from jumping with cameras. Therefore, I am concerned that with all of the safety issues regularly discussed in this forum, neck damage seems to get little attention. I am posted this message to remind others to: 1- Choose your parachute carefully. 2- Pay attention to weight and balance when putting a camera helmet together. 2- Pack correctly. 3- Deploy from a stable position at a safe altitude. 4- Protect your neck from long-term and accidental damage (some others wear a cervical collar during camera jumps or adopt protective deployment positions).

Edmund Scientific has them.

1- 1,500 2- 2 3- Brake fire; Line twist

I wish I had read GLIDEANGLE’s post years ago. Due to a skydiving injury (posted in the incident forum, Injury of Camera Flyer During Deployment) I am currently healing from a C5-7 fusion with a hip graft and a titanium plate in place. GLIDEANGLE’s post is right on. By the sound of your problems, you are probably more prone to a problem than are most others. Be careful, the surgical alternatives are a bummer!

It's about time consumers and DZ's got some protection. Great job.

I’ve owned a Sabre 170, 150, and 135. I found that the higher the wing loading, the harder the openings. My 170 was brisk and soft; my 150 was fast, but soft; and my 135 hurt. I’ve known people to use larger sliders or pockets on the sliders with some success. However, I was fine with the right sized canopy and meticulous packing with lots of nose rolling, pushed in before closing, and a well-quartered slider. From my experience, the Sabre I is an excellent square canopy. Also, have your line set checked. Right-sized lines are important.

I read these letters as part of my job. Start the letter with something like “Please accept this letter of interest for the position ……., which was recently advertised in ………. Then, get a copy of the job description and write your qualifications and experience for each of the duties expected in the new job. Keep it simple and brief. Finish off with something like “Thank you for your consideration. I look forward to meeting you.”

So am I.

Do they put the holes in the blade shank so the blades break easier? They never seem to be where the tightening screw lays up against the blade.

Your helmet is beautiful. It is a work of fiberglass art and a primo helmet for a Halloween boogie. I have a few questions about the helmet. First, I was wondering if you are concerned with eliminating facial communication with your subject (TI, AFFI, students) in times when problems may exist (with others or problems with vidiots own gear) and feedback is helpful? Also, do you think the helmet might distract subjects (AFF students and tandem students)? With some subjects (perhaps the elderly), do you think the helmet might scare and/or take the fun and beauty out of a jump? Does the extra material add unnecessary weight to helmet, which in the long run may ruin your neck? Does the helmet limit your range of vision or induce unnecessary fogging? Thanks for your feedback and congratulations on your creation!

I'm no expert, but you might try a ball or marble with layers of bubble wrap and marbles secured with clear packing tape. It would show clear cloud-like layers of a noticeable thickness with electrons embedded within the layers. Otherwise you can hand in an empty jar and tell the teacher that your model is inside and it is actual size.

QuoteHi L Over time you'll notice your cloth's shrinking even if you don't launder them. *** I had a jumpsuit shrink in the belly area only after I turned 50. What's up with that?

When I was married, I enjoyed jumping with my wife. However, I left a lot of the instruction, coaching, and advice to her instructors. Wit our kids in mind, I occasionally worried about an airplane problem with both of us on the same load, but never had a problem. As far as worrying about safety, I think I worry more about my son when he jumps than I did with my wife. Maybe that’s part of the reason we are no longer married.

If it’s not right, send it back. Tony is real good about altering new suits. I’ve sent two back when they weren’t quite right. In one case, they made me a new suit at no charge. The other suit, they made the booties bigger, again at no charge. The only drag is waiting for your suit again, but it worth getting it right. Also, after buying several suits from Tony, I have learned which measurements to add an inch or two for a great fit and the performance I want. Another thing to consider when buying a suit is whether or not you will be jumping in cold weather when you will be adding layers to your clothing. If you are, then definitely oversize certain measurements to work well in both summer and winter. Tony is a great company and they will work with you.

I bought two pieces of leather at Michaels Craft store. They were about a square foot each and about six dollars per piece. I folded them around my sneakers, carefully folding flaps so the leather fit my sneakers snugly. I then cut each fold and laid one part on the sneaker and folded the other part overlapping the first piece. I then contact cemented each fold until the leather fit well around each sneaker. Finally, I cut the height of the leather about one inch up from the sole. Once the leather was finished being prepared, I had my rigger sew the leather to the lower hem of my jumpsuit’s booties. They work great. Another thing I do is coat the leather part of my booties with Shoe Goo. I cover my sneakers with aluminum foil and put the booties on them. I also wear rubber gloves and squeeze about half a tube of goo on each bootie. I then spread the goo evenly and let it dry overnight. The booties last forever with shoe goo on them. You can get Shoe Goo at Wal Mart and Sports Authority.

Several years ago, following an uneventful video jump with a tandem pair, I headed back to the LZ with the tandem above and behind me. At the base of the airport I noticed a helicopter hovering to the side of a field as I began to pass by at a safe distance. At that point, the helicopter rose to my level and positioned himself behind me. I dove left and the helicopter followed close behind me and dropped below me and once again hovered. At that point I was directly above the helicopter and descending. It was at that time that I ever first noted that chopper blades have broad yellow stripes on top, which when turning, appear as a target from less than 100 feet above them. In a state of concern and disbelief that the chopper pilot knew I was above him and while losing altitude fast, I dove in front of his windshield and carved right to avoid him while letting him know that we were sharing airspace. As I dove right, the helicopter closed in behind and dove with me. All I could hear was a loud pulsating ba-ba-ba-ba-ba and I got a little scared that I was going to be chopped up like a salad in a food processor. I dove left and so did the chopper right behind me. The sick thing is that while in that dive I was terrified, but at the same time I remember thinking that I was James Bond and how cool the whole event was. With the ground getting close and the LZ a good distance away, I carved right and he followed. I landed on a field on the other end of the airport as the helicopter hovered low to the ground to my left. After getting a ride back to the DZ, the tandem instructor ran up to me and asked if I was okay. He said that he and his student watched the chase from above in disbelief. He said his student, a nurse, was screaming that the helicopter was going to kill me. A little later on, I traveled to the hangers and had a talk with the helicopter pilot, who said that he saw me and made sure that he maintained enough distance so he would not hit me. He thought it was exciting and I explained how important it was that a similar incident would never happen again.

My standard procedures after putting my goggles and helmet on include popping a thumb up under each lower corner of my goggles until ready to move to the door. This keeps my goggles from fogging up. As for under canopy, if they tend to fog, I just lower and fly without them.

That's funny!

I much prefer to jump with others who wear clear lenses. In addition to having better communication in freefall, I also have an easier time communicating on the plane. I’ve had people wearing dark or mirrored glasses call back to someone on the plane and I didn’t have a clue which person they were talking to. I feel that anything that detracts from good clear communication may compromise safety. However, to each his own. On the other hand, I do look cool in my subject’s mirrored glasses when I’m filming them.

Only send items paid for through PayPal to the confirmed address. You might be okay with this deal, but oftentimes, people make purchases with stolen credit card numbers/PayPal accounts and claim to be making the purchase for a third party as part of a common scam. In many of these scams, you will get your money, however, when the authorized credit card owner gets their bill the next month or so and they dispute the purchase, PayPal can pull the money back out of your account. Be careful with this one. Don’t assume that because you have received payment on a third party sale that the money is yours to keep.

If you pull the back plate and drop the blade assembly, you do not have to remove the blade assembly. That is too much work. There is not a lot of room, but there is enough room to change the drive belt, especially with the back plate off. I’ve been tempted to leave the back plate off, but instead of having another part sitting in the garage, I have a cup of coffee and calm down and then put it back on. The mower is obviously designed to piss home mechanics off and pay repair persons to do routine maintenance.

I believe there are two belts on that mower. One is the drive belt and one for the lower blade drive. They are not expensive and they are probably both ready for replacement. For the lower belt, drop the blades and route the new belt the same way the old one came off or follow the specification diagram. The drive belt is a little more difficult, especially getting behind the large rear pulley under the seat. I find it easier to jack the mower up, remove the rear wheels, then remove the four bolts holding the back cover-plate on and remove the plate to change the drive belt. The large rear pulley is easy to work with when the plate is removed. Clean all of the debris out and pop the new belt on making sure you route it properly around the tension pulley on the front right side. Replace the plate and wheels before removing the jack. Also, while you’re at it, change the oil, spark plugs, and air filter. If the front muffler is rotted out, change that too. One more thing to do is change the blades. They are probably worn short and dull. When you are all done with that, bring it to my house and try it out once a week.

+1 It is difficult for a new camera flyer to understand the extent to which flying a camera may be a distraction at all points during skydiving operations.

Don’t look at it as being a door. Instead, consider it to be a window of opportunity.