mattb

The wait sucks but I jumping after a couple week / month layoff is so much fun. Don't get me wrong, I'd rather go every week but last weekend I had a blast after a 6 week layoff. Spring is near, there is hope.

If you are interested in tandem base jumps check out Ted Strong doing one on Bridge Day some time ago. http://members.citynet.net/skydiver/skydiving/NRB.html This may even predate the jump you mention from the BASE video.

"How did they land that bad boy??? Did the instructor regain consciousness???" I saw it on TV to - the instructor was fine once he wasn't being suffocated. Woke up. Probably s*** his jumpsuit and landed.

hmm - each time I go to a dropzone with a review it seems to think there is one more than it displays. (eg. - 2 reviews available, only one shows) example: Skydave Dallas, lists 2 and shows 1 Skydive Chicago, lists 1 and shows none just trying to help

Jen - http://emporium.turnpike.net/~skydiving.mag/index.html Skydiving Magazine comes once a month (almost always 1-2 days after Parachutist) and is well worth it. It covers freefly / RW / competition/ BASE / etc. It is affordable probably because it is on newsprint and only a handful of pages are in color. -mb

I demoed a Wings container last weekend that had velcroless toggles. I liked them - not a big difference to me but it's one less thing that gets dirty. -mb

Gus - I learned on Safires loaded at 1.0:1 to 1.3:1 and this weekend demo'ed a rig that had a Spectre 190 in it loaded at 1.3:1. Safires are a lot of fun to fly and compared to many other canopies a pain to land. I don't think a Safire at 1.3:1 is that aggressive but I have a different perspective from some having jumped Safires from the beginning and having downsized relatively quickly. (average for my dropzone, faster than some other places) I talked to Icarus canopies since they were at Skydive Chicago this weekend and learned a couple of things that may be of interest. Safires are measured differently than PD canopies. 1) A Safire 170 is smaller than a Spectre/Sabre 170. Icarus is changing this because PD has more market share and in the future the sizes will match up. Because of this you may want to jump a Safire 150 before a 130. (This isn't necessairly a "bad" on Icarus. PD gave a presentation and one of the topics was on how difficult it is to fairly/evenly measure canopy size.) 2) Icarus will be modifying the steering lines on the Safire to be more like the configuration on the Crossfire. Many people wrap the steering lines once around their hands because the "sweet spot" is at the very end of the flare. Hope this helps. If you jump a Safire just remember to flare 100% - it's not as forgiving on landings as a Triathalon or Spectre. Matt

I've only had my Alti-III for about 4 months now and it has worked fine. What really impressed me is their service. I bumped into Kathy - the president of Alit-2 at a "conference" last weekend. She was offering free calibration / lens replacement. It was fascinating to see how far the altimeter is off (500 feet @ 15k down to 40 feet @ 3k) and good to know that my altimeter was within the acceptable tolerances. Keep up the great service!

I learned on a Safires and recently purchase one I that I've flown before loaded at 1.3:1. They are a fun canopy to fly and versatile (docile or aggressive - depending how you fly). The only trick is landing them. My advice is to make sure you flare completely in order to find the sweet spot. I was talking to an Icarus rep. last week and found out 2 interesting things: 1) A Safire 170 is smaller than a Spectre/Sabre 170. Icarus is changing this because PD has more market share and in the future the sizes will match up. This isn't necessairly a "bad" on Icarus. PD gave a presentation and one of the topics was on how difficult it is to fairly/evenly measure canopy size. 2) Icarus will be modifying the steering lines on the Safire to be more like the configuration on the Crossfire. Many people wrap the steering lines once around their hands because the "sweet spot" is at the very end of the flare. The Safire is a great first canopy!

I was at a "expo" this weekend with several suit manufacturers. Prices range widely depending on name - one company may charge nearly as much for a pair of freefly pants as another charges for a custom built suit. Zute Suit had several reasonably priced options for freefly and RW. (Reasonable priced = under $200 with a couple of options, not every option offered but not off-the-shelf either) my 2 cents, -mb Edited by mattb on 3/6/01 10:17 AM.

I was just wondering on a nice clear day how many jumps you can get in at your home DZ on an average weekend day? How many jumps on a good day? 1-2 3-4 5-6 7-19 11 or more

OK - Minnesota doesn't totally suck. (I'm from there and felt obliged to throw that in.) However, I think Chicago is rough this time of year and I got 3 jumps out of an Otter in pleasant 45 degree weather this weekend. I'm hoping to get up to visit my parents a couple times this summer and definitely want to check out the area dropzones. Let me know where to go around there . . . -mb

maybe I got to earn interest on my money but now after buying a new rig and paying uncle sam I have no money left. I could dig in the couch for a few jump tickets but there is no way I can fly to someplace warm to jump like I want to . . .

What kind of mother doesn't buy her daughter a cypres? don't take offense - I had to buy my own

Not all of us had ripcords for AFF jumps. No - I didn't hold on to the pilot chute.

There's something wrong with farting in a jump plane? I must have learned wrong . . . .

Merrick, When I jumped a triathalon the opens took so much longer than a Safire that I was concerned the first couple of times. I actually talked to the packer (it was rented gear) about it and she pro-packed it and rolled the nose tight. In my limited experience triathalon's open pretty soft and smooth.

I believe the dytter predated the pro-dytter. It is no longer sold.

cyberskydive, It's hard to add a lot to landmissle's post. He or she summed up the Safire well. I have 40 total jumps, 30 on Safires at wingloadings from .8 to 1.3. I like the Safire more than the one other canopy I jumped (Triathalon) because it is a lot more fun to fly. It can be trickier to land but I think the trick is to make sure the toggles are all the way down - not 70 or 80% down. I like the Safire enough that I recently bought a used one for my first canopy. -mb

Craig I put 10 jumps on rented Triathalons a couple of months ago. The wing loading ranged from .9 to 1.3. At all loadings I found the canopy fairly docile and very easy to land. I caught myself not completely flaring on landings because it feld like I didn't need to. My previous jumps were on a Safire which I enjoyed more due to the quicker turns. However, the Triathalon was definitely the easier canopy to land.

Zennie - I'm just went through the same decision process. I've bought the rig but it still hasn't arrived! :( I talked to several riggers and the got two key pieces of feedback. 1) Assuming you buy new get the container you like the most for comfort. All brands are safe. 2) Buy a PD-Reserve. Not the cheapest but who wants to skimp on the reserve? I went with a Safire for my main because that's what I did my student jumps on and my dropzone was selling the student gear so I could pick up a used main for a good price. my two cents -mb

Would racking up time with a wing suit make you a better jumper without a wing suit? Probably not. Luckily most wing suit jumpers already have plenty of experience and aren't trying to circumvent requirements for a instructor's license. (I hope!)

Congratulations! I wish I had a house that close to a dropzone. 90 minute commutes suck!

Please tell me the way to gain status is not spam!

The old message board had a thread for those who were attending Skydive Chicago's expo this coming weekend. I'll be there Saturday and maybe Sunday. Anybody else going? Want to say hi? for more info. - http://www.paraquip.com