AndyMan

I had pretty good luck with my local allstate rep. _Am __ You put the fun in "funnel" - craichead.

Go to this site: http://download.com.com/3000-8022-10214379.html?tag=lst-0-2 And download "ad aware". Run it until it ceases to complain. _Am __ You put the fun in "funnel" - craichead.

There have been WAY too many fatalities from people who thought they had to turn into the wind. I said 500 feet because when we're under our reserve, we're often low and "off". 500 feet may be very conservative. There's countless reasons why you might find yourself at even lower altitudes. 200 feet? Not impossible. We all talk about now its not necesary to land into the wind. The reality is that pretty much people do what they plan for, and if you plan on all your reserve landings being into the wind, then that's probably what you'll do... Even if you're too low to pull it off. Of course. Practice under the best conditions so that you're prepared for the worst conditions. I do get a lot of pushback on this idea. (i also get a lot of kudos) I think that most of the people who object are really just afraid of doing it themselves. A good modern PD reserve flies pretty similarly to a main. I see hotshot swoopers downwinding their mains all the time. What is it about a new modern PD reserve that makes it so much more dangerous then doing the same manuever under a main? I think that if people aren't willing to downwind their reserve EVER, then that's a good sign that they're jumping a reserve thats too small. Secondly, if you are willing to do it in good conditions but not bad, that's a sign that maybe you shouldn't be jumping in those bad conditions. _Am __ You put the fun in "funnel" - craichead.

I'm confused. I don't see anyone drawing conclusions. I only see people reinforcing a "wait and see" approach. That is far from a conclusion. _Am __ You put the fun in "funnel" - craichead.

I thought the inference was clear. My bad. If FXC thinks I'm going to buy an ADD because it comes in stylish colors, then they've clearly got a misunderstanding of what characteristics people look for in an ADD. FXC clearly has their priorities confused with the Astra. IIRC, this has been the case since day 1. _Am __ You put the fun in "funnel" - craichead.

I used to jump a sweethog where the velcro on the reserve closing flap had been replaced with snaps. The snaps continued to pop open in freefall all the time. _Am __ You put the fun in "funnel" - craichead.

The Astra AAD... I was looking at their most recent Ad in parachutist. One of the "benefits" listed is "stylish colors". Astra has a lot more issues then just one misfire. _Am __ You put the fun in "funnel" - craichead.

Bill Booth says that RWS tests show the risers will stretch almost a full inch during a hard deployment. You can also see in their designs how the system is designed to take such a case. This is one of the reasons I retrofit my Javelin risers with RWS. I can clearly see a number of reasons why those are simply the best risers available. Edit to say: I'm still a bit uncertain from the pics posted as to how the stretch will affect the toggle. _Am __ You put the fun in "funnel" - craichead.

I'm still waiting on the Nepture, too. Actually, I'm done waiting. Now I'm just broke. _Am __ You put the fun in "funnel" - craichead.

I would add to that: 5) Risers stretch during a hard opening. Since the snaps don't move, they'll be suseptible to prematurely releasing in a hard opening. I have no doubt that they've worked well for a lot of people. That said, the worst designs out there also "work well" for a lot of people. I prefer good designs, and this doesn't appear to be a "good design". _Am __ You put the fun in "funnel" - craichead.

As comparison, Skydive Chicago's runway is 4522 feet long and 50 feet wide. I understand it was designed with the same criteria you've specified - eg, to be able to handle any jumpship, ever. _Am __ You put the fun in "funnel" - craichead.

What I find amazing is the sheer number of people who've taken a "gotta have it now" approach to a new piece of very complicated electronics. I've been consistenly in the "wait and see" group of by-standers ever since the unit was introduced. I fail to understand why anyone would choose to be an unpaid test-dummy. _Am __ You put the fun in "funnel" - craichead.

That's pretty typical of one of the two reactions I get. No matter what size your reserve, you had better be willing to do a down-wind landing in the worst conditions. Shit happens. I would MUCH rather be prepared, know what I'm capable of, and what my gear is capable of before I end up needing it. 500 feet is not the time were we should be wondering "Hmm. I wonder if I can pull this off....." More importantly, now I have a pretty good idea of how much "runway" I need to pull off that particular manuever. It ended up being quite a bit more then I would have guessed. _Am __ You put the fun in "funnel" - craichead.

Roughly 1.6 I have also landed a demo-version downwind in 20MPH winds, intentionally. I think anyone who loads theirs heavily should do the same. _Am __ You put the fun in "funnel" - craichead.

More pictures and a good description. I thought landing my parachute up a hill could be taxing.... http://www.higher.flyer.co.uk/html/lflj.html _Am __ You put the fun in "funnel" - craichead.

Most homeowners insurance does have a clause that excludes items included in busineses. So... if you're doing tandems for profit, you might have issues claiming homeowners insurance, but if you're doing free or "buck-up" video for formations, then you'll have an easier time. _Am __ You put the fun in "funnel" - craichead.

Me or my packer? I'll pay the full amount. DZ or gear store packer, the DZ or gear store pays full amount. _Am __ You put the fun in "funnel" - craichead.

They told you to do a search, you didn't. Instead you're guessing. You guessed wrong. Nowhere did any post say the power was cut off. In this post, bill booth said it was a short circuit. A short logically could easily cause a misfire. clickey __ You put the fun in "funnel" - craichead.

How are the "rules" for deleting/filing SPAM messagers applied? Don't show the 'newmail' notification if the message is deleted on arrival, or if moved to the trashbin. _Am __ You put the fun in "funnel" - craichead.

My geekdom is failing me. What does "polarized in one direction" mean? For that matter, what does the term "polarized" mean in relation to light? _Am __ You put the fun in "funnel" - craichead.

Absolutely. I use a Kenko .5 I picked up on bhphotovideo.com for under $50. I would never spend more then $50 on a lens for a consumer grade camcorder. _Am __ You put the fun in "funnel" - craichead.

We just saw it... pretty funny. We were amazed at how much control he had on the bike... until he started spinning. The "landing" was interesting.... Seemed an awful lot like he nearly hooked himself in. Craichead sez "why didn't he swoop? A slime rooster-tail woulda been bomb-diggity". Was that really Mat Hoffman? I'm guessing it was a stunt-double... _Am __ You put the fun in "funnel" - craichead.

Roughly 1 in 5 page loads are coming up blank. Hitting reload always fixes the problem, but that usually screws up the 'unread' flags. Not a major problem, but a bug nonethless. I've seen in on Moz1.6, and my wife's seen it under IE6. _Am __ You put the fun in "funnel" - craichead.

Oh really? Please keep us updated as to how well this works for you. Normally I'd avoid Panasonic for jumping, but I'm curious if their higher-end models are more reliable... _Am __ You put the fun in "funnel" - craichead.

Most definately, upgrade from Win98 to 2000 or better yet, XP. You've got enough ram to support XP. Win98 is a crapshoot.... Emphasis on crap. _Am __ You put the fun in "funnel" - craichead.