fergs

Hi Butters, I have a video of Clem's last jump. fergs

If you have no luck, pop down south to Oz for the weekend and I'll repack for you. Canberra is a lovely town - with DZ's nearby. Blue Skies, fergs

Thanks Jarno and Ed (and others?) for getting us back on track. Let’s stay away from the “my suit’s better than your suit” arguments and comments. The purpose of this thread was not to critique the Blade against other suits – even though I did compare it’s performance with other suits that I have owned and flown previously. The purpose of the pic, Blade side by side with a V-2 was simply for everyone to get a good visual on two top end suits side-by-side. And guess what, one is not flying better that the other. That’s because we are flocking – that is, flying relative to each other in a 2 wingsuit formation. And that’s what a good flock should always do, let a gaggle of wingsuit flyers fly in close proximity, flying at the comfortable-for-all pace that’s been set by the leader. The leader of the flock has responsibilities far beyond simply having others get into formation with him. He SETS THE PACE, such that everyone is comfortably flying. This usually means no-where near his max. Remember – that’s what we used to do in our former lives when we’d do those hot RW dives? The leader must also guide the flock to the correct opening point. This is quite a complex action, critical for the safety of all – especially with other groups in free fall in the same sky and often with cloud around. In fact, in a number of Australian drop zones, it is legal to jump through cloud (with specific strict procedures adhered to) and so we have been known to flock over total cloud. In some instances, this does not pose undue threat, as long as the leader navigates and leads correctly all others flock correctly with him. But in others instances, it is extremely dangerous. So not only is the leader sometimes leading a flock over eight eights cloud, at other times it’s he who must call for the flock to stay in the aircraft. But I stray from the thread myself – back to the thread’s original subject. The Blade. The Blade is a fantastic body-flight vehicle. So are many other wingsuits. I have found that my Blade excels in a number of areas that are important to me. I’ve mentioned these previously. I’m 6’ and close to 240 lbs (110 kgs) exit weight. So I’m nowhere near the ideal physique for wingsuit in the first place. No, I’m not overweight – I’m just 6 inches too short. BUT – my Blade certainly helps me to grow those inches in a very practical way, due to her design and build. The guy flying beside me in the original pic is an ideal WS height and weight (tall, thin and light). He is an extremely talented and highly experienced WS pilot. And if he had wanted to, he may have been able to fly rings around me, maybe not. But he and I don’t play the “my suit’s better” game – we simply fly our own wingsuits to their limits when on our own – but comfortably, relative to each other when flocking. It’s the beauty and serenity of wingsuit flight that is the only thing that matters. Think about it – we are the only ones who really know why the birds are always singing. And we do so in whichever wingsuit we choose to own and fly. For me, that’s my Blade. You? So get out there and spread the love! fergs

OK, I'll put an end to the rig debate - it's a Talon FS, made by Parachutes Australia. They make excellent gear and can be found here fergs

Well after playing with her for a few weeks now, I can say that I truely love my Blade. It not only has tremendous power and lift, but as importantly, it can be flown with a lot less effort than all of my previous wingsuits. That's thanks to the design, especially the shape of the wings. The arm wings, although large, have a scalloped shape, which keeps much of the lifting area closer to the torso. So effort on the arms is less than other suits. Pull time is completely free of wing over hackey, as well. It flies with rock solid and stable tendancies, although the first couple of flights showed an initial twitchiness close to top end of performnce - that needed to be given some care, attention and respect. This isn't a suit for a low time wingsuiter. Quality of build is exceptional - with true craftmanship evident. BirdMan can be proud of this product. Yes, it's toward the top of the list as far as cost is concerned, but for those wanting a top end quality, well designed and exceptional performing wingsuit, the Blade certainly won't disappoint. The attached pic gives a good comparison between the Blade and the V-2. fergs

... still red and white - new wingsuit this time. fergs

Jon, Correct!!!! Sorry to say, mine eventually became totally thread-bare, after too many years of wearing it. Frank would have been proud to see all of us wearing them.....

Yeah, and I the T-shirt said it all - remember what was on the back? Hmmm, seems I have an old pic somewhere around of Frank exiting THE building.

I've been in Antioch (not at a DZ there) but find the pictured landscape odd. Maybe someone will remember what it was like. HW I certainly remember those rolling hills. In 1976 I followed Larry (from memory, sir name started with a K) and his reserve down, thinking he'd be injured landing amongst those rolling hills in the high winds under a 24' flat reserve. I was under a long lined reefed Strato Star. That was the early days of squares and we didn't really know what a gust induced stall was. I guess the high winds as well as the waves coming off the rolling hills set me up to learn. Strato Star shut down at 50 or 60 feet. It put me into the Contra Costa County hospital with a busted femur, shoulder, and lost teeth. All very inconvenient, as I was there on vacation from Papua New Guinea. Ten days at C/Costa Hospital, then was flown to Australia for 4 months in traction, then back to PNG for rehab. Some days we should stay in bed. Oh, and Larry? An uneventful landing under the 24' flat.

...so what medals did you get?

Hey Jimmy T. I broke my right shoulder back in the mid 70’s. In the same injury, I also busted some nerves and so I lost various movements in my right arm / shoulder. The main one of skydiving significance was the “pull BOC” action. At the time it didn’t matter, as we were all still using the good old ripcord. Enter hand deploy. For the early years, we all used belly mount pilot chute pouches, so still no problem. Then in came the deployment fashion of the day, the pull out. Aha, a problem for me – so I simply built a left hand pull system. This did me well for many years and had absolutely no impact on deployment – apart from when I’d loan my gear, when a thorough deployment brief to the user was necessary. For the last 15 years or so, I have gone to today’s standard – a right hand BOC. But it is not a problem, as the wind always helps blow my arm to the right vicinity. Plus it’s possible that I’ve regained some movement back into my right shoulder over the past 30 years. The only real problem I’ve had with a right hand BOC was one day last year – I made 50 jumps on my (50th) birthday and so used a number of borrowed rigs. On the shorter rigs, I took a little longer to locate and reach for the hackey – due to the old shoulder problem. So I’d endorse the suggestion to simply convert to a left hand BOC. Then use your left hand to deploy. But remember to brief anyone you may loan your gear to. Enjoy, fergs

Michelle, Although the attached pics are for the whole-body ashes, it'll give you an idea of how I release ashes as a longer smoke-flare-type of release in a wingsuit flight. Container began life as a copier toner cylinder. It's final use is far better, in my opinion. Anyhow, all the best for releasing some of your mum's ashes. She'll fly free forever. fergs

Greg, I'll help you - PM sent.

Neither - I psycho pack - although I call it the FLOS pack (flaming lazy old skydivers). I prefer FLOS packing for a number of reasons: speed, ease, consistantly nice openings. It's especially a thing of beauty with new ZP canopies - goes into the deploynment bag easily.

Huh, was I supposed to twig to something? Or are your puns branching out too far - proving you have deep rooted problems? Perhaps I'm simply barking up the wrong tree. No matter, it appears you've won, so best you take a bough. f

Welcome Cat, and so now you need to plan to come flocking with us in Australia some time. Blue Skies and long flights, fergs BMCI

Andi, Yeah – I had some similar jumps last year. It was my 50th birthday and so I made 50 jumps (aiming to raise $50,000 for charities). All 50 jumps were hop and pops from 2500. I had a number of rigs, 4 or 5 packers and other support team members. The first load taxied out at 0600, pre dawn. It was a full moon on one horizon and the sun rays just appearing below the other horizon. We took off and the sight below was patches of fog all around the airfield. First exit was into slightly chilly air – very soft opening – then to be presented with the magnificent sight of the moon, the rising sun, the fog, the aircraft descending in front and below me. Faaaantastic. In fact the next 2 or 3 loads were pretty well the same, as I was exiting about every 6 and a half minutes. The attached canopy shot was after the actual sunrise, but you get the idea - especially with the fog still around. So I agree with you – that even solo jumps can be somewhat spiritual under the right circumstances. Blue Skies, Fergs F-383 BMCI

Caspar, I've made a few hundred jumps there over the years - but the last was over 3 years ago. Since then has seen the place operating on and off. But Pete Marsden's regular boogie will be 28 February - 11 March. You may check that out with the BPA magazine. Pete's boogies at UAQ that I've attended have always been lots of fun. Good Luck, fergs

.... paying the bloody jump-bill

Here's mine - in fact after a reasonably long day - it was my 50th birthday and I made 50 jumps on the day, raising over $20,000 for charity.

...and I still have some near identical gear up in my attic. f

... and I went with red and white. fergs

I’ve taken a rig on 70 or 80 flights – both national and international. These have mostly been as checked luggage and a smaller number as carry-on. As checked luggage, I’ve had it in a gear bag, in a backpack as well as in hard moulded suitcases. Have never had any damage. As carry on it goes into a lightweight large day pack style of bag. This makes in “invisible” as well as a good quality set of straps makes it easy to carry around terminals. Damaged luggage is pretty well the same gamble as all else in travel, in my opinion – if it happens to you and your rig it’s simply the roll of the dice on the day. But that’s why you buy travel insurance. Just be careful to read and understand the definition of item and set. Many travel insurance policies limit the maximum value of an item or set. Some then give an option to increase the insured value as an option for high value items. As far as weight goes, I’ve only ever been charged excess baggage costs once – and that was when I was at least 40 kgs over limit. I’m usually at least 10kg over and don’t seem to have problems. Most airlines, in my experience, are actually quite lenient with weight. I guess much of the flight gets on under weight limit of their luggage and only a few (always me!) are overweight. So I don’t lose sleep on the subject of weight. If I get charged next flight, I’m still way ahead of the game. Being polite at check-in as well as not looking like a tramp seems to help. I’m not sure why you’d want to repack your reserve after a flight. If your suitcase has been dropped on the tarmac and a tractor has driven over it, then a reserve repack may be the last thing on your immediate priority list anyhow. Oh, and as mentioned above by another poster, carry your Cypres card. Also carry a copy of the FAA letter (for those in the US) or equivalent available in your country. On my last flight when I took my rig as carry on, it was flagged by the security guys as I went into the departure area. I showed the Cypres card, an FAA letter as well a CASA letter (it was an Australian airport). The 2 letters impressed them the most. But they still fetched their supervisor, who was polite and efficient – giving me the all-clear to pass through. He smiled and was quite pleasant too, making it a good experience. At the end of the day, travelling with your rig is a no nonsense affair. If you are worried about weight, simply take it as carry on. At worst they may insist you put it as checked luggage if the security guys have no humour. If you are worried about losing it or damage, insure it either through your household cover or in a travel insurance policy to cover your trip. Oh, another benefit of travel insurance is the medical expenses cover – but you need to check the wording to ensure activities involving parachutes are not excluded from cover. Skydivers should never travel to the US without medical insurance that covers parachuting!!!! But that’s another subject entirely…… Cheers, fergs

Here's another pic - from one of the many times I was there over the years. Always had a ball - sometimes frustrations from lack of organisation or aircraft problems - but overall usually managed lots of skydives. Most times stayed in one of the cabanas by the lagoon down the end of the airfield - OK food and lots of beer. fergs

Larry, OK by me, fergs