pilatus_p

The worlds best encyclopedia http://www.google.co.uk/search?hl=en&q=how+a+parachute+works&btnG=Google+Search&meta= And http://hypertextbook.com/facts/JianHuang.shtml Ross http://www.teamtechnology.co.uk/troll.htm

I had the same trouble and kept having to run landings out. Then a tall bloke used the same rig and they extended the straps for him. They werent reset, and so when I pulled I suddenly found I had a chest-strap in my face. However, the extra foot of travel I had in the brake lines gave me a lovely flare, and one of the guys suggested the brake lines needed resetting. Having said all this I think it is more likely you are just a wimpy girly girl (pulls ponytail and runs off) Ross http://www.teamtechnology.co.uk/troll.htm

hahahahaha http://www.teamtechnology.co.uk/troll.htm

Also confused. Is this a baglock? Ross http://www.teamtechnology.co.uk/troll.htm

Hehe you should have seen my spins on level 7. If I'd taken my washing up with me I could have spin dried my smalls in freefall ... Agree with the points above. Your JM was next to you at the time and would be in the best position to answer your questions. My perception is that for the exit spin, your JM just prvided a wee bit of a nudge as he exits with you. Your subsequent spin looks like a leggy issue (same as me), and the other ones seem to coincide with you looking at your alti - maybe a slightly twisted body position? Tunnel time could be useful! The poster above is right - taking advice off people on the internet is not the best plan. I have been wearing the same underwear for three days. It saves on bills but seems to scare small children. Ross http://www.teamtechnology.co.uk/troll.htm

Oxygenated gelatin? Ew. Gooey. I think this thread is the finest use of mis-spent bandwidth I've seen in recent times. How many people are coming up with this stuff at work by the way? You guys are from all over: Maybe we can set a record for global procrastination? Ross http://www.teamtechnology.co.uk/troll.htm

Do you remember what you did? I WISH i could have got that much power into them! Ross http://www.teamtechnology.co.uk/troll.htm

Hmm I didnt manage to go all the way round when I did mine, but remembered that arching hard is the sure fire way to get back on my front. Worked both times I tried it. I would say get lots of power into bringing your knees up to your chest - do it all quickly. That way you might not end up on your back like I did! They are AWESOME fun - that part is a given! Ross http://www.teamtechnology.co.uk/troll.htm

Sounds to me like you are doing really well! Tons of guys on my AFF had to repeat levels. It is a pain in the rear, but it will hopefully translate into greater confidence in the air later down the line. My second jump was definitely my scariest, and I was far from relaxed for the whole jump, so much so that when I tried to extract my PC from my leg strap (I had a BOC ... ) my JM couldnt move my hand due to the adrenaline coarsing through me! Thankfully the following jumps became easier. Is there any way you can get lots of jumps done in a day? This is a MASSIVE help for nervous fliers as the first one alwasy takes the edge off the fear, leaving you freer to think about your dives! Well done for posting, I think its good you are thinking about everything you need to do to improve. Best of luck and little white fluffy ones! Ross EDIT: Oh yes and don't worry so much about twists! They come out pretty easy on a student canopy, just grab the risers, as you rightly say in your post, give a kick and out they come. Its quite a buzz actually. Don't watch those spinning high velocity linetwists on skydivingmovies.com until you've downsized to a little postage stamp parachute . They can be educational, but mostly you'll just scare the tezzers off yourself. http://www.teamtechnology.co.uk/troll.htm

wow! I see you can also jump over the swiss alps. This looks like FUN! Ross http://www.teamtechnology.co.uk/troll.htm

Hehe I like that one! I guess thats what my first static line was like, except the 'no no no NOOOOOOOOO" was all in my head! Thats a funny story, but goes to show how much fun you can have when you make yourself do dumb sh*t! Would be good to know - is he still in the sport? I WISH that was on video Ross http://www.teamtechnology.co.uk/troll.htm

Even though everything you are all coming out with is most likely total and utter sh*te, I have nonetheless filed patents on all of them. That way when someone eventually finds a way to make one of these dumbass things work, I get rich. Mission accomplished $$$$$$ Hm I'll be 102 in 2080. The cash will come in handy. Ross http://www.teamtechnology.co.uk/troll.htm

hahaha who was the cruel bast that waited with a primed camera for him to chuck? Nicely done! Ross http://www.teamtechnology.co.uk/troll.htm

Getting better thanks! freefallunversity - Hope the weather is good in ocana. Say hi to Paula's dog for me. Ross http://www.teamtechnology.co.uk/troll.htm

Hi Scabbage, Sorry dude, I just want to get back in the air - theres only so many videos I can watch. When are you going back out to Spain? Ross http://www.teamtechnology.co.uk/troll.htm

Can I get a group hug? Psychotherapy ain't easy to come by in the UK. And that probably answers a few more questions, too Ross http://www.teamtechnology.co.uk/troll.htm

Nice!! Ross http://www.teamtechnology.co.uk/troll.htm

Hey cheers Dayle You have now put the shits up me about not being able to walk. I will try my best to not think of that next time im on the step at 13,000ft. I thank you for that little tidbit, you morbid bas*ard. Only kidding Ross http://www.teamtechnology.co.uk/troll.htm

Your numbers look about right. You are probably looking at broken bones at most of those g-forces (car crash data would be a useful guideline) and defnitely at 50g. Totally agree with you - from a finance / engineering POV, the parachute would usually be the outcome. I suppose theres always the TRIDEM rig and a big knife to cut away any lines that may have got tangled round you ... just make sure you pull high. There are hundreds of ways of decelerating a body in the way we are imagining - its just the practicality and cost. Lets cover DZ landing areas with 140 feet thick cow manure. Thats nearly as much bullshit as on this thread just kidding ... Ross http://www.teamtechnology.co.uk/troll.htm

Hi lisa Thanks for your points, you are right in all that you say, but I feel I may have come across in a way I didn't intend to. Telling people why I like a sport and what it does for me, i do not see as peer pressure - its sharing an experience. I am agreeing with adventurechick that I would want to explain how the kit works and of course acknowledge that it can fail. I would not, and do not, try to fudge over that. In fact I tell them about my accident which actually if anything would put people off! But I try to explain why it happened and what can be done to avoid it. This thread was about 'encouraging people to jump' - not forcing them to. I bring skydiving up in conversation and talk about it in positive ways. The first thing that always comes up is always the safety stuff. I acknowledge it can be unsafe and explain why - but then I talk about the amazing sensations it gives me and talk about other people's experiences too. I ask if they have experienced anything similar and enjoy relating to those feelings. I don't keep track of whether they do or don't eventually jump - but I enjoying sharing things that make me happy and like to think that others could find it fun too. I told my best friend I was going to do AFF - he said he wanted to as well after I explained AFF to him and showed him some videos. I gave him the website and told him which hotel I was in. I was out there in Spain and talking to him via text, and at no point did I say 'hey you big puss, when are you coming to jump?'. I just chatted to him about, well, stuff. So yes, I have considered the angle you mention. As has been written elsewhere, everyone takes account of their own safety in the sport. If someone joined the sport because my enthusiasm rubbed off on them, they would go through all the same safety training as me and be made aware of the potential for danger. They might decide not to bother then and there. I don't push people into things, and I am not the peer pressure type. I cant see how I would get a free jump either, though it would be nice. I agree with your four points totally - the only difference I would make is that I would probably bring it up in the first place! Ross http://www.teamtechnology.co.uk/troll.htm

I found the sport in the same way you did, Icon. I started back in 2002 with static lines, and then couldnt afford to continue (otherwise I would be at the several hundred jump mark too). I kept reading, kept watching videos. I swore I would do AFF when I had a job and money, so I did, albeit later than I wanted. All I'm trying to get across is - accentuate the positive in skydiving, show how happy it makes you and how happy it could make them. When they see the possible benefits of starting, they may be that much more likely to start. Of course, that depends if you think getting others into skydiving is a good idea or not. I think it is (after all I like meeting lots of new people) but if you don't, don't! Ross http://www.teamtechnology.co.uk/troll.htm

'Counter arguments'. What argument are you countering? Ross http://www.teamtechnology.co.uk/troll.htm

I think we would all do well to listen to adventurechicks example - its clear that she accomplishes something with her approach that many of us don't. Ross http://www.teamtechnology.co.uk/troll.htm

Cool - i missed that one. How was it covered? Did they show the 'fun' aspect of it, or just the 'shi*ting it' aspect? How many episodes did their progression cover, and was it AFF / Static line? Cheers Ross http://www.teamtechnology.co.uk/troll.htm

Hi Ron You make some valid points, though you can also find a turkish bath in the yellow pages. But if you arent LOOKING FOR ONE in the first place, it will never jump out at you. You say this yourself - "When I made the choice to jump". What made you decide? You at least knew you COULD jump, obviously. Then you had to choose to, which thankfully you did. However if people dont even know they CAN, how can they? Businesses that do not advertise may continue to function, but will they grow as much as they really could, or even NEED to? Here I am talking about sport skydiving as a whole, not just any one DZ. If you are happy with the level to which your DZ has grown, then that is good. If you think that growth would truly degrade customer experience to a point where it would damage the way your DZ functions, and perhaps even safety, then that view is paramount. However - there are many posts around that seem to suggest that numbers in the sport are dropping. DZ's seem to be fighting each other for new custom. I think that these two things, and especially the second, are far more likely to damage the future of the sport - which being a newbie I am interested in - than advertising and increasing public awareness of the actual nuts and bolts of skydiving as a hobby. I'm not talking about advertising that says "hey buddy theres a DZ near you". I'm talking about alternative ways of putting skydiving into the minds of the public in a way that is more than just 1) Outrageous stunts ("jesus I could never do that") 2) People doing tandems for charity / one off (how many tandems do you convert to AFF / static line?) 3) News broadcasts of jumpers dying. Its a hobby, sport and viable pasttime, just like all the other sports that involve an element of danger. When you have FS teams that win an event, or you have a big way on your DZ, do you tell the local press? Over here in the UK it makes it into Skydive magazine (the equivalent of Parachutist), but I never see it in the news. I think that television is one of the best mediums we have to do this because of its capacity to change a lot of people's minds at the same time. A programme showing the REALITY of the sport, emphasising the fun and progression aspect of it, would I think be tremendously beneficial. Personally I am going to suggest my reality show idea to the British Parachute Association, and to one of the TV stattions here. It may fall flat on its face (pardon the pun), but it may also work. Another idea - 'dry run' visits to DZ's. Put leaflets out in the local community, or even just a sign on the freeway close to your DZ, inviting people to come and have a look around and find out about parachutes and aircraft, watch some canopies land (preferably solos!! ). Its non commital, makes the sport seem more open, and may just fire more people's enthusiasm. As a side note - has the commercial side of skydiving, as some people claim, really just become Tandems? Yes, you can make £300 in an afternoon from one tandem - thats great for the short term bottom line. But you can also make a similar amount from an AFF level 1. As a DZ owner, I would love to hear you take on this view. Your thoughts are appreciated. Also If there are logistical problems that really prevent you from doing the above, then I would like to know - there may be ways around them, and online we have thousands of the best skydiving minds at our fingertips!! Ross http://www.teamtechnology.co.uk/troll.htm