GLIDEANGLE

Are you referring to the "sleeves" on the risers which hold the free ends of the cut-away cables? The choices we make have consequences, for us & for others!

Here are a few rigging price lists to give you a start. http://www.chutingstar.com/riggingServices.html http://www.para-concepts.com/Rigging/PCRigServ.pdf http://www.varigging.com/services/prices.shtml The choices we make have consequences, for us & for others!

Good Luck on your check jump!!!! The choices we make have consequences, for us & for others!

Try this comparison by a Master Rigger / DPRE. http://www.chutingstar.com/archives/00000128.html The choices we make have consequences, for us & for others!

The document at this link is large and rather technical. However, chapter 2 is exactly what you are looking for. Avoid the other chapters for a while... they will turn your brain to overcooked oatmeal. http://www.faa.gov/library/manuals/aircraft/media/FAA-H-8083-17.pdf The choices we make have consequences, for us & for others!

1. Smile, Breathe, Relax. 2. See above advice. 3. Remember that most student rigs are rather tolerant of small errors that high performance canopies may tolerate poorly. 4. Remember that if you really screw up... you get a reserve ride. The reserve is designed and packed with reliabilty as the top priority... pretty damned reliable. 5. If you are REALLY worried, see if you can arrange to pull higher than usual. (Be sure to check with your instructors if there is any question about how best to arrange that.) Pulling higher will give you more time to deal with any canopy issues that you have. Planning to pull high may help your anticipatory anxiety too! 6. Smile, Breathe, Relax. The choices we make have consequences, for us & for others!

SMILE, BREATHE, RELAX. The choices we make have consequences, for us & for others!

Congratulations. Welcome aboard.

Generally I find that quality feedback and coaching is more readily available for freefall than for canopy flight. As a result, I think FF skills progress more quickly for most folks. To a large degree canopy flight skill development is up to the individual. Since FF skills affect the success of group dives, new jumpers are more likely to get feedback from the folks that they jump with about their FF performance. FF is more likey to be videoed than landing... thus more opportunites for feedback about FF than landing. The choices we make have consequences, for us & for others!

I have made that repair and it is a BITCH. It is a LOT more work than it appears to be. All the local riggers that I have discussed this with agree that replacement of the PC is cost-neutral or cheaper. Certianly it is possible that they simply hate doing the repair and choose to charge so much that replacement is cheaper. The choices we make have consequences, for us & for others!

As a student I had lots of door distress. Now I often am the guy sitting in the open door as we climb. I am often the guy opening the door at altitude. I love sticking my head out to check the spot. Today I often feel a bit of performance anxiety... "Gotta nail the exit...don't let the team down." I love floating before exit. As a big guy I get that opportunity a lot (having big guys as front float makes a nice "hole" or windshadow/burble for others to climb out). As a result, I spend a lot more time "in the door" than most. I am the first guy to move out the door on my team, so I am there the longest. In good weather that is fun... in cold weather, I freeze longer than anyone else (but I never notice the cold temp in freefall). The door is my friend, but hasn't always been. The choices we make have consequences, for us & for others!

An additonal cost that I suspect is buried in a harness/container and reserve canopy is the TESTING for TSO certification. It is an expensive proposition. Another cost that I suspect is in the gear price is the cost of litigation. Deaths and injuries probably generate a significant number of claims. Even if cases get thrown out of court because of a waiver, there is significant legal cost cost to get that done. The choices we make have consequences, for us & for others!

Why I am a fan of AADs: 1. It is only because I use an AAD that my wife tolerates my skydiving. 2. I have a dear friend... Double Hard Pull... only reason that she is alive is that the AAD cut the reserve closing loop. 3. I know four skydiviers jumping together almost exactly a year ago who had all four AADs fire. One or two of them had a two out, the others had only the reserves. Would have been a stunningly bad day if not for those AADs. Two cute little girls would have no momma. 4. I have seen video of freefall collisions that are truly scary. One of them is of a jump that a buddy was on. Often one of the two involved is totally innocent and couldn't have prevented the collision no matter how smart, quick, or skilled they were. An AAD means that the innocents don't have to die if incapable of deploying (due to unconsciousness or other injury). May NONE of us ever need our AAD... The choices we make have consequences, for us & for others!

One disadvantage of doing all your jumps in a short burst has to do with weather. If the burst is timed to take advantage of good weather so that you won't be delayed by weather holds.... you will miss the experience of dealing with other kinds of weather. --- Experience with unfavorable winds when flying your pattern and landing is a very good thing. --- Experience dealing with cloud proximity (and "industrial haze") is a good thing. --- Experience learning which weather is gonna get worse ... once took off in "PERFECT" conditions... by the time we landed we had high/scary winds and general terror... all due to the "outflow" from a thunderstorm that "missed" us. --- Experience with the effect of hot/humid weather on canopy performance is quite useful. --- Experiencing cold weather at altitude & learning how to dress for it.... since wingsuiters spend more time up high. In addition, if you are piling up the jumps really fast, you will miss many opportunities to hang out and learn from the old dogs by osmosis. 200 jumps in 20 days is only two or three Saturday evenings at the DZ...not much time to learn about the things that you haven't yet experienced. The choices we make have consequences, for us & for others!

That is the whole point... plus some really good visuals! The choices we make have consequences, for us & for others!

2 page proficency card is for DZs that use curricula OTHER than the ISP. The choices we make have consequences, for us & for others!

Love H&Ps! Low or high is fine with me. Sunset load full altitude H&P is a great way to close out a hectic day of RW. One of my most memorable H&Ps was full altitude SUNRISE flag jump on Memorial Day 2009. The rest of the day was a bit anti-climactic after this jump. Be sure that the pilot knows what you are planning... sometimes you will get a different spot than the freefallers if going all the way up. Hint: If doing a full altitude H&P in summer after a long hot sweaty day.... wear a DRY shirt. It can be a long chilly jump in the cooler air if wearing a sweat soaked shirt. After you have solid canopy flight skills, full altitude H&P cross country jumps on days with strong upper winds are DA BOMB. (Take your cell phone and $20 cash in case you land out....in an adjacent county!) The ultimate H&P fun is canopy relative wortk (CReW). Of course for all of the above seek and heed the advice of the S&TA! The choices we make have consequences, for us & for others!

Phreezone's answer is excellent. Here is a great intro to wingloading: http://www.uspa.org/SIM/Read/Section4/CategoryC/tabid/239/Default.aspx#921 The choices we make have consequences, for us & for others!

What you "think" is safe is completely irrelevant. Nobody jumps a canopy that they think is going to kill them. Lots and lots of folks have been injured or killed jumping canopies that they "thought" were safe for them despite the opinions of experts. Here is a little reading on this topic for you: This one is GREAT because it simply asks you to DEMONSTRATE your readiness for a small canopy. http://www.dropzone.com/cgi-bin/safety/detail_page.cgi?ID=47 This one is excellent as well: http://www.bigairsportz.com/pdf/bas-sizingchart.pdf The choices we make have consequences, for us & for others!

This firm has had study materials for rigging for a while now: http://www.dauntless-soft.com/products/groundschool/rigger.asp The choices we make have consequences, for us & for others!

What you don't want to hear: If doing a bit of on-line research about your desired career, is too "crappy" for you, you aren't cut out to be a pharmacist. Based on the many pharmacists I have dealt with over the last 27 years as a nurse, I would say that almost all are: -- Detail obsessed -- Very bright -- Inquisitive -- Very well prepared -- Self starters If you can't figure out how to find this info, or are too lazy to find it for yourself.... the odds of you getting into, and graduating from, pharmacy school are VERY remote. Be honest with yourself, it will save you and your family LOTS of time and $$$. The choices we make have consequences, for us & for others!

Interesting info about FAA policy for pilots. Unfortuanely, I cannot find the primary source. http://www.leftseat.com/blood.htm Any of the following will impair your tolerance of full altitude jumps following blood donation: -- Smoking (disables some of your remaining hemoglobin) -- Pulmonary disease that impairs oxygenation of blood. (emphysema, COPD) -- Known poor tolerance of full altitude (those jumpers who know that they don't like to linger at >13k.) I know some very experienced jumpers who HATE delays at full altitude due to their poor tolerance of the low oygen tension at that altitude. If you are worried... make it a weekend of low altitude H&Ps and work on canopy flight/landing. Rarely is that time and money which is wasted! The choices we make have consequences, for us & for others!

1. Gloves. This will is very helpful for diminishing scrapes/scratches/imbedded gravel from lousy landings. 2. Keep your hands in close to you when flaring. Many folks reccommend keeping hands in front of crotch when finishing the flare. That keeps hands from being likley points of impact if you roll out the landing. 3. Beware of the door on an Otter. There is a wicked pinch point between the bar at the top of the door and the metal reinforcing strips on the inside of the plexiglass. If a hand is around the bar when the door is opening or closing....OUCH!!! The choices we make have consequences, for us & for others!

Remarkably... damned few. The choices we make have consequences, for us & for others!