Aviatrr

My resolutions........ 1. Dump the girlfriend..... 2. Quit drinking...... 3. Quit skydiving..... Hey, I already did the first one......and the last two.......well, shit.....1 out of 3 isn't bad! Mike

The Nitro is definitely a nice canopy.....but after less than 20 jumps on mine, I realized I should have gone with a 120 instead of a 135.......although, I'm already at the "max recommended" wing loading that Precision lists for the 135....maybe a Xaos is the next step.. I'll put a couple hundred on the 135, then maybe go with a Xaos 118.. Anybody else flying a Nitro feel that they should have gone smaller? Mike

I wear whatever shoes I happen to find first that morning..... I used to wear a pair of oooooooollllllllllldddd Reeboks because I didn't care if I lost 'em or trashed 'em.......good thing, because I ended up losing one of 'em about a month ago at 10,000ft in a CReW wrap at ZHills.......3 people involved in the wrap, no cutaways(pretty wild ride for about 2,000ft though)........but 2 shoes lost! DOH! Mike

What nutball signed Clay off for solo?! I need to go talk to the Atlanta FSDO about that guy! Congrats Clay.....when you get in a long cross country, come on down to Florida....hey, maybe you can even talk the flight school(and Phil, too, I guess) into letting you stay for a day/night and jump with us down here.. If necessary, I can sign off your flight planning for the return trip since it would be on a different day......well, that is assuming that you can ACTUALLY plan! Mike

On my Pro-Track, the break off altitude changes based on the type of jump I'm doing - but generally it's at 4,000 or 4,500 - sometimes 5,000 on bigger ways.. The next is at 3000, and the final warning is at 1800.. I normally pull at 2500-3000(depending on the canopy - 3000 for snively canopies or ellipticals), and very rarely ever hear the flatline at 1800.. Mike

Alan, what are the recommended reline times for HMA lines? I recently got a canopy with HMA(loaded around 1.6) and have heard various ideas about when it should be relined.. It's only got 20 jumps on it right now, so it's not an issue for now.....but I'm not sure how easy it will be to tell when these lines are wearing out.. Spectra is easy.. Vectran is not......how 'bout HMA? My canopy has 346lb continuous HMA lines.. Mike

Well, let's hope you never have to use that skill......this past weekend, on Sat, 15 people went into the water or onto a small island(actually just a small dry spot) in the Indian River just east of Sebastian.. There were 2 CReW groups, a 7 way and a 9 way(8+ video), and only ONE made it back to dry land.. Pay attention to where you are! Mike

Check out this link.. http://www.pia.com/piapubs/archive_documents/tech_stds/PIA TS104-13 Canopy Volume Study .html Mike

I'm not sure where I'm gonna end up for the weekend/holiday, but it may be at one of those two DZ's.....I would definitely like to spend a day or two at Lake Wales with the competition going on.. If you see a Nitro that's overall red with black ribs - that's me....say hi.. Probably the easiest way to spot me aside from the canopy is the bug eyes and the OH SHIT look on my face halfway through a hook.... Mike

Give it to Chuck.....he can do it! Honestly, though.....I've seen somebody LAND in the swoop pond on a PC.....we still don't know if he was trying to swoop it or not.. Mike

Actually, what I was referring to was the brake setting for deployment......NOT the brake line length.. I never had any problem landing the thing - but with the deployment brakes set the thing had serious oversteer.. I didn't need to take a wrap on either the 136 or the 120, but I only landed it straight in once.. Mike

I like the idea of the training that you give in addition to the water training itself, but I feel that 2-3 minutes per person in the water is insufficient. Find somebody local that is - or was previously - a Coast Guard or Navy rescue swimmer. In the absence of that, find a SCUBA shop and somebody that is a Rescue Diver. Learn some basic water rescue techniques and swims and teach those. These are more for an instance where the person you're teaching becomes a rescuer from the shore rather than a victim - or in a case such as the two people that landed in the lake together. For some reason, I think I remember you saying you SCUBA dive....if so, have you gotten your Rescue Diver(or DM in certain certifying organizations) card? It's definitely a good investment. Mike

The first time, nothing.....it all just happened.. The second time.... "WTF?! Damn, this thing is spinning fast....ok, grab the risers....get rid of these line twists........ah, fuck it! I have a reserve!" The third time..... "Son of a bitch! Not again!" Mike

I think he was referring to the fact that maybe the pilot turned on the light(or called for exit) when the GPS showed what he was looking for.....and maybe a waypoint was incorrectly entered....or the guy read the GPS wrong..... Look down before exiting? What a novel idea! Aren't YOU the one that criticized me for saying that NOBODY should exit before verifying the spot, or having somebody they trust(if they cannot see sufficiently to do it themselves, such as a late diver) verify it? IIRC, you said that the jumpers should trust somebody like yourself(an experienced jumper and jump pilot) to judge the spot and turn on the light when it's time to go.....follow the green light in blind faith, right? It'll never do you wrong...... Regardless, I doubt it was a "GPS spot gone bad".....it was likely a decent spot, and with the winds blowing strong, somebody turned downwind and continued to run......but, then again, who knows - none of us were there.. Mike

Found another! http://www.xterror.com/episode3.html Mike

Chuck, you're biased since your in it.. We need an objective opinion.....So if somebody would send me a copy, I would be more than happy to rate it for you.. Mike

Great canopy choice.. The Spectre opens great, flies very nice, and lands well.. Spectre's have pretty low pack volumes, so you can easily get a 210 into a container built for a 190ZP main, probably even one built for a 170ZP main, which will allow you to later downsize mains with the same container.. I have a little over 100 jumps on the Spectre - from wing loadings as low as 0.9:1(only a couple at this loading, though) to as high as 1.65:1.. It flies great at all loadings - but, of course, the higher you load it, the more "sporty" it is.. At lighter loadings, the difference in glide ratio between a Spectre and a comparable 9 cell is barely noticeable, if at all.. At higher loadings, the Spectre glides about as well as an aerodynamic brick.. On the Spectre I owned(which I loaded at 1.5:1) I was ALWAYS on the rear risers unless I pulled right over the peas.. Swoops were great.. Landings were soft and slow.. I have heard others complain that the glide at lower wing loadings was not good, but it seemed ok to me.. Mike

Picked this up from another message board......I like it! 'Twas the night before Ramadan 'Twas the night before Ramadan, and all through the cave Not a creature was stirring; it felt like a grave. The turbans were hung by the fire pit with care, In hopes that the Air Force would not soon be there. The soldiers were restless without any beds, While visions of air strikes flashed in their heads. Osama in his burkha and I in my goatskin cap, Had just settled down for a cold, barren winter's nap, When out on the ledge there arose such a clatter, I grabbed my Kalashnikov to see what was the matter. Away from the racket I ran like a girl, Tripped over a goat; into a ball I did curl. The moon shone down on the new-fallen snow And lit up the valley with an ominous glow, When, what to my one good eye should appear, But a dozen Apaches, and tanks in the rear. And their leader, so fearless, his troops he did push, I knew in an instant it must be George Bush. More rapid than eagles his forces they came, And they whistled, and shouted, and called out our names; "Now Omar! Osama! Muhammad! Abdul! We come for you now; we've taken Kabul! To the top of the cliffs! To the back of their caves! When you chose this war, you dug your own graves!" As the dry leaves that before the assault choppers fly, When they meet with an obstacle, light up the sky. So up to the ledge his forces they flew With full magazines, and flame throwers too. And then, in a twinkling, I heard with a thud The explosions of Tomahawks; not one was a dud. As I chambered my rifle, and was turning around, Osama was there, disguised in a gown. He was dressed all in drag, from his head to his toes, And he said he would flee while I held off his foes; A bundle of money he had stuffed in his pack, He said "I'm going to Baghdad and I'm not looking back!" His eyes were all glassy; he trembled with fear; The American bombs, they rang in his ears. He saddled his goat, then turned tail and fled, But a Marine Corps sniper got him in the head. I watched with cold fear as his body did slump; The goat threw him off; he fell with a thump. And so, there I stood, my plans all destroyed, About to suffer a fate I could not avoid; I dropped to my knees; asked Allah for help, His voice boomed in my ears, "You ignorant whelp! I gave you the Bible, the Torah and Koran, But you were too arrogant to understand, I told you to honor your neighbors and wives; Not to enslave them, or degrade their lives! You invoke my name to sanction your deeds, But you are the last thing that this world needs. And so, I'll send you and bin Laden to Hell." The last words I heard, as the bombs fell, Were from George Bush himself as he mounted the wall, "One nation, under God, with liberty and justice for all!" Mike

I have chased a canopy/freebag once there at Deland - but it was just at the west end of the airport, not off the field.. Another time I was driving westbound down 92, and stopped at the intersection east of the airport with that convenience store on the corner........and to my suprise, I saw this neon green canopy come floating down into the middle of the intersection.. I jumped out, grabbed it, and headed for the DZ.. I saw a guy walking in to the packers area with a Tempo over his shoulder.....asked him what kind of canopy he lost(I knew it was his just by the size of his container, but had to ask anyways)....and when he told me, I went back to my truck and grabbed it.. First jump on his brand new VX64 and he had to chop it.....DOH! Mike

The Safire will fit.. The Tempo will fit if it's not a brand new one.. The newer ones have a larger pack volume......so if it's a few months old or more, it should be fine.. The 170 packs up like a PD143.. Mike

Drop me a line closer to that time....I'll come out those two days and jump with ya.. I have to go to work on Wed for a week, so those 2 days(and the weekend before) are good.. I normally jump a day or two during the week - usually at Deland.. We can do some belly flying.......but too much of it makes me nervous - so I hope you freefly, too.. Mike

Hmmmm.....sounds like a visit with Tommy boy, eh? When you want to find out the real answer to this question.....let me know which 24 hours, and come on over.. Mike

The Samurai is an awesome canopy.. I've got about 15 jumps between the 136 and 120.. The only thing I didn't like is there is LOTS of oversteer when using rear risers and the brakes are set - I think maybe they were set too deep.. Oversteer was significant, but not excessive, during normal turns.......but the thing dives like an SOB on the hook!

I've seen Clay land....trust me, he knows how to fall......not gracefully, but he knows how to fall.. Mike

First you want one in the US....then find out there IS one...now you want it on the east coast?! Will you never be satisfied?! Mike