AndyMan

Do you really need the PC1000? I'd be taking a hard look at the HC3 right now.

A snag on a finger will literally tear your finger off. It will be gone, and you'll be hemoraging in freefall. See any of the posted pics in this thread as example. A snag on your wrist alti will be painfull. _Am __ You put the fun in "funnel" - craichead.

That's an interesting analysis, and presents some aspects I haven't thought about. Thanks! For me, though - I'm not worried about the weight while in a deployment position, (ie, looking at the ground) - but the position I'm in when the slider comes down. I worry about the position when I've already been stood up, and that last slam comes as the canopy fully opens. The forces are straight down your spine. That means that I want the weight centered directly ontop of the spine, which I've always figured having both on top accomplishes. Your pictures illustrate this nicely. With a downward force, having a front mounted still would strain the muscles in the back of your neck and may dip your chin forward, a position I understand to be one of weakness. _Am (not an MD, PT, or really anything relevant...) __ You put the fun in "funnel" - craichead.

At 900 jumps and your neck is already a wreck... I would take a serious look at rethinking your activities. Physical Therapists are golden. Find one. Me, I happened to marry one.... Chiropracters are good, too. Chiropracters make the pain go away, physical therapists help keep the pain away. But most important is preventing the injury in the first place. Jump a canopy that never slams. I was shocked at how slowly a demo Katana 135 opened. I've never been slammed by my Samurai. Topmounting is the best for preventing injury as long as you keep the weight up on top. That means top mounting - not front mounting. I have both stills and videos topmounted on my flat-top-pro, and it works well. I'm still a young guy, and the thought of living the next 30 years in pain keeps me respectful of what we're doing here. I hope that if I find myself risking serious neck injury I would stop before it gets too late... _Am __ You put the fun in "funnel" - craichead.

A great article, and thanks for writing it. One more question, though. How would a videographer skilled in 4way and freeflying make the transition to working in the industry? Ever take interns? _Am __ You put the fun in "funnel" - craichead.

Well, I ignored all this good advice and did it Saturday. We spent most of the last few weekends practicing. The jump went off without a hitch, I flew a 4-stack in, which broke to two 2-stacks, then we broke those and all landed right by 2st base. What a rush! The spot wasn't perfect, and we ended up breaking the 4-stack before I could get the shot I wanted. Too bad, but we still managed a great professional show. A few pictures attached. _Am __ You put the fun in "funnel" - craichead.

I liv in Gary's region, and I think he could do a better job of getting around to the different DZ's he represents, but that' my only complaint. I've never heard any story worth mentioning. _Am __ You put the fun in "funnel" - craichead.

For the record, I never suggested just turning your old top so that it would be wider. I had Bonehead custom make me a new top that was an inch and a half wider. In 500 jumps, I've never had any problems with it. _Am __ You put the fun in "funnel" - craichead.

You could also go a step further and use an RDS - basicaly atach the bag to the slider. I saw that up here a few weeks ago. To get this back on track, the original poster should contact PD and arrange a demo. _Am __ You put the fun in "funnel" - craichead.

There's no reason why you can't fall at "normal" speeds, even without a custom made jumpsuit. I'm a LOT heavier than you and have no problems. Getting a good jumpsuit will help, but your first priority should be to ask this question to your instructors. As you do more jumps and get more comfortable you'll be learning new ways to fly your body that won't focus on arching so much. The key part here is to work with your instructor - that's what they're here for. _Am __ You put the fun in "funnel" - craichead.

Good post, but I disagree on one point. ProTec makes a line of very cool skateboarding and snowboarding helmets, that DO win many style points. I wear one, and get comments about how cool it is usually once a day. $50 at the local sports MegaMart. _Am __ You put the fun in "funnel" - craichead.

Do you mean like it did for the owners of Skydive Illinois in Morris, or like it did for the owners of Millenium Skydiving in Kankakee? _Am __ You put the fun in "funnel" - craichead.

I did a search, and I read about him cancelling because his balloon was destroyed, and because a partner had a heart attack, which both seem like pretty good reasons to cancel. What makes you say it's a scam? _Am __ You put the fun in "funnel" - craichead.

My wife and I both leave our rings on the ground when we jump. We do it partly because we'd hate to lose our rings, but much more importantly we leave our rings on the ground because we'd hate to lose our fingers. Gloves do not protect fingers from snags, there's countless examples of industrial incidents where people have lost fingers while wearing rings, even while wearing gloves. Snagging on the bar or door during exit, or on lines during deployment are all possibilities that can literally tear fingers off - even while wearing gloves. _Am __ You put the fun in "funnel" - craichead.

That's odd. I was thinking the exact opposite, that this year seems to be better than most. _Am __ You put the fun in "funnel" - craichead.

That's exactly what I was hoping. I've got an email in to Aerodyne but so far no answer. My rigger is willing as long as she has good instructions, but so far she doesn't know whats involved. To anyone who's looking to part ways with their hybrid, I'd need a 190, and it must be the stock rainbow color pattern. _Am __ You put the fun in "funnel" - craichead.

Is it possible / difficult to add a retractable pilot chute to a standard Triathlon? Is it a lot of work to add one? Thanks, _Am __ You put the fun in "funnel" - craichead.

I had a bad experience with Epson, my 1280 broke and I found it impossible to get it repaired. Seriously, Epson really don't have any post sales customer service. I've since made the switch to Canon, and am using a multifunction Epson MP950 at home and am very happy with it. I plan on buying a less expensive Epson for the trailer at some point. It seems that as Ink Jet based printers continue to improve, there's less reason every day to deal with dye-subs. _A __ You put the fun in "funnel" - craichead.

My entire life I've known one person killed driving, and another killed riding his bike in traffic. In the last 4 years I've personally known 3 killed skydiving, and a handfull with serious life threatening injuries. _Am __ You put the fun in "funnel" - craichead.

You didn't explain your question very well. My home DZ has a very active student program. People who go through the student program have the opportunity to have photos and video of their dive. They pay the DZ a fee, the DZ takes a profit, then assigns one of their staff videographers to do the work. The videographer/photographer gets maybe 50% of what the student pays, after you subtract out the cost of the photographers slot and some profit for the DZ. My home DZ also has a very active "experienced" jumper group. These are people who have completed their student jumps and enjoy doing formations and stuff. They often want pictures of themselves, their formations, and video for training purposes. This is where I do most of my business. Here, they either buy my still pictures, pay for my slot, or just pay me straight out. The only cash I pay to the DZ is in the form of the my slot on the plane. In the first case - yes, it's quite common for a DZ to make a profit off of the video concession. In the second case? Absolutely not. In fact, the opposite - I usually get discounted jumps and the DZO acknowledges that having people like me around helps to retain his customers. _Am __ You put the fun in "funnel" - craichead.

Picture here: http://www.dropzone.com/cgi-bin/forum/gforum.cgi?do=post_attachment;postatt_id=45844; The key part was having Bonehead make a wider top-plate. _Am __ You put the fun in "funnel" - craichead.

My wife and I both leave our rings on the ground when we jump. _Am __ You put the fun in "funnel" - craichead.

Yikes! Didn't know she was hurting. Good news though, glad she came out. Hope she enjoys the drugs. _Am __ You put the fun in "funnel" - craichead.

Thanks for the explanation. I've always known (sorta) what the White Balance did, but I never knew why I'd want to futz with it. Let the futzing begin.

Personally, I would not consider the R-Max because of their previous customer service issues. I would consider the Smart and PD Reserve. _Am __ You put the fun in "funnel" - craichead.