LawnDart21

As we are taxing for take off in an Otter....... Tandem Student: "Why does everyone on the plane look so worried?" Tandem Master (me): "This airplane is 35 years old. Our pilot is only 32 years old. Do the math....Plus, when we take off, we will be travelling down the runway at 90+mph, towards a 50 foot stone wall at the end of the runway. If we don't clear the wall, well......" Tandem Student: "What everyone doing now?" Tandem Master (me): "Thinking light." HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!!!!!!!!!!! -- My other ride is a RESERVE.

I hear ya loud and clear, my 1998 Honda CBR 900RR turned into a video helmet, DV cam, 35 mm camera, wing suit, 2 ellipticals, a Mirage G3, and most of my fun jumps this past season............ :-( -- My other ride is a RESERVE.

For those honest law abiding folks that couldn't bring themselves to boost a pair of bowling shoes and still look at themselves in the mirror the next morning.......lol The "bowling shoe effect" can be created on just about any pair of sneakers (even Tevas speaking from experience) if you put them on, hop on a motorcycle and then drag your feet a few miles on the pavement to melt the soles. They become nice and smooth and will slide over anything!!! -- My other ride is a RESERVE.

Damn. Pic size too big.......oh well. Sorry! -- My other ride is a RESERVE.

Thanks Michelle, I totally appreciate the back up on this one! To be honest I went to Evolution with one primary purpose; to learn to swoop long and safe. I already arrived their with a good sense of how to fly in bad winds, and applied my focus %100 to swooping safely. So, in that respect, the "bad winds" part of the course dialect wasn't of as a big of an importance to me as say, how to bail out of the corner if your turn is too low, things like that. As I mentioned earlier, tehy tailor the course individually, even in a large class, to meet the individual needs of the students. In my case it was swooping. As for the pride thing, in being taught by these guys, Alan is definitely right, in that, having had the opportunity to learn from and just hang out with Clint and Jim at Perris and talk about everything from cross braces to Skydive Walterboro, my opinion of these guys couldn't be higher, they are genuinely decent people and I'm glad I had the opportunity to meet them and learn from them. (Being the best canopy pilots on the planet didn't hurt any either....lol) Oh, if I had to dig for one last excuse on not remembering the "turbulence thing"....I was also a little jet lagged as I flew in from Boston the day before....lol. Alan: No worries mate! It's all good, we are all on this board to gain some sembalance of understanding of this weird sport we all live for. No two people are gonna ever exactly agree (except maybe me & Michele!) on things, but as long it's all said and done with positive energy with a goal of mutual understanding, it's all good to me. I didn't feel picked on, but thanks for the preface in the post! (unrelated pic: a tandem student emailed me this pic the other day of a jump we did and it looks pretty cool I think......lol) -- My other ride is a RESERVE.

While I can't recall with any degree of certainty what was covered in the course regarding landins in turbulent winds, my personal, non-instructor opinion, is that flying a canopy at 1/4 or 1/2 brakes is a way bad idea in turbulent conditions. Anyone that has ever been hung under a hyperventilating canopy (ie, breathing rapidly) at a low altitude knows that's a bad place to be. I always tell people "If you feel some bumps, and look up and see your canopy frowning back at you, your probably gonna end up frowning too if your not careful.....") Anyways, I digress....I've always been told (and believe to be true) that we stay in the air (lift) under canopy because of two things: 1) The pressurization of the cells and 2) the wind flowing over the wing. By flying in 1/4 or 1/2 brakes, you are potentially lessening both the pressurization of the cells and lessening the air over the wing by slowing it down in brakes. (For the physics gurus out there, I know there a tons of other factors at play in keeping up above the earth under canopy....lol, these are just the two big ones I personally focus on). By letting the canopy fly in full flight, even in turbulence, you are getting maximum cell pressurization and maximum wind over your wing. It just makes sense to me anyways, that that is the safest way to fly in turbulence. Let the canopy fly. Just my .02. -- My other ride is a RESERVE.

If memory serves me right, I think I called them 2 weeks ahead to see if they would be in town the weekend I was going to be there. It took a few days to get a call back becuase they were on tour when I called. Call manifest at Perris, they can tell you if/when they will be at the DZ and if they are on the road or not. Thanks Michele! Good luck with the class! -- My other ride is a RESERVE.

Muchos Gracias Amigo! -- My other ride is a RESERVE.

HI Michele, I took the Evolution canopy flight course in May 2002, this past spring. It was without a doubt the best money I have ever spent in this sport. Whether I'm landing a tandem 400 sq foot canopy, or a 105 sq foot elliptial (loaded 2.0), the principles in the course and the techniques are applicable for any jumper in any wingloading situation. They tailor the course to your jump numbers, wingloading, canopy experience and what you are looking t oaccomplish. The ground school portion is generic, in that they use the Bryan Burke's canopy flight essays (available to all on skydive arizona's website) as the basis for the fundementals of canopy flight. But it's Jim's explanation of the material and his real world applications of the information, like how to correctly develope a "sight picture" of your approach, that really make the ground school worth while. Then you jump.....and jump....and jump.....The basic course is 5 jumps, either Clint, Jim or JC will jump with you on some of them, flying around you observing your technicque and canopy control from altitude. They then spiral down and video your landing and debrief it. After the course, you can buy single coach jumps for $35 a piece, I did 8 jumps in total with Evolution, and it was worth every penny I paid. I plan on going back next spring and getting more coaching from them. The thing is, there are a lot of canopy schools/courses out there, most are great. But with Evolution, you literally are taught the "do's and don'ts" of canopy flight from the best canopy pilots in the world, on a one on one basis. They are all very approachable and most importantly, you can tell Jim went out of his way to create a course syllabus and training method that is just as beneficial to the novice jumper as it is to the aspiring PPPB swooper. If anyone has any specific questions I can answer, please feel free to send me an instant message. Blue Skies and long swoops........Tom (disclaimer, I went out there with 400ish jumps, jumping a 120 loaded 1.8 at the time to specifically learn to swoop safer and longer. The biggest asset I took home from the course was changing my canopies "angle of incidence" during the actual swoop that increased my swoop distance considerably. I'm no good at posting links, but the canopy flight essays are at http://www.skydiveaz.com/resource.htm -- My other ride is a RESERVE.

-- My other ride is a RESERVE.

I've only made a handful of board jumps this season, but we have 2 (including myself) jumpetrs at Pepperell currently jumping boards. Ironically we are both named Tom. -- My other ride is a RESERVE.

"I don't see how landing a Tandem can really translate over to a 85 Crossbraced canopy. Am I missing something that tandem masters learn while on jumps? " Get the rating, jump a cross brace, then maybe you'll "see it" -- My other ride is a RESERVE.

I can only assume that this thread was directed at my "700 jumps" as an "experience indicator" of my jumping versus my ability to land a sub-100 main. All I can say is this, I have just over 100 tandem jumps to date, prior to that my last 400 jumps (all withiin the last 20 months) have been on ellipticals, the last 200 of which were on ellipticals loaded 1.8-2.0. As for tandem jumps and how they translate, well, a tandems wingloading changes every jump as the weight of the student changes, so subtle flying variances in the canopies are always happening, which teaches good sitaution assessment skills.. Accuracy and good canopy flying skills translate on any canopy. And yes, tandems will surf on no wind days if you are toting a heavy person as well. As a foot note, I stopped posting on this forum for awhile because of posts like this. Some people just seem to always have a stick up thier >>> in thier posts having to out smart the person posting. Yeah, I only have 700 jumps, what does that say about my jumping? Does it say I am an expert? does it say I am a newbie? It says neither, it only says that I've been in the sport long enough to know how to make an educated decision. Nothing more, nothing less. -- My other ride is a RESERVE.

FX-99 -- My other ride is a RESERVE.

Well we had a canopy demo this past weekend at my DZ, and despite hanging from a drogue most of the time, I managed to make two jumps on a demo 99 cross brace. It was loaded at around 2.2, my normal wing loading is around 2.0. When I deployed the first one, I looked up and I swear, it looked like a pillow case at the end of the suspension lines. My first thought was "Okay, where is the rest of it.....". Anyways, after playing with it up high and getting a feel for the turns, dive, flare, etc. I came in on a straight in approached (no wind day) on double fronts, and had one of the longest surfs to date. I stood it up (much to the joking predictions of my friends) and walked away with a huge smile, from ear to ear. Second jump, same thing, except I added a carving 90 degree turn. Same landing, long and sweet, with little to no run out needed. I saw the video of both landings after the fact and I gotta say, I've seen my swoops on video before, but not like this, I was coming in FAST. What an experience. Despite the urge to downsize again to a sub 100 cross brace full time, at 700 jumps, I'm gonna file that thought away for another season or two... But it is nice to know I can land/surf a 99, and an even nicer feeling of having stood them up. Okay, back to work for me. Later! -- My other ride is a RESERVE.

My exit weight is about 225lbs, and my avergae speed is 140mph when I deploy, sometimes, if its hot out, I may fall a bit faster, if its cold a bit slower. I started with a Sabre 150 and got slammed regularly. My Cobalt 135 opens best. I just roll the tail, and keep rolling it and keep rolling it.....usually 10-14 times as far as i can get it without screwing up the cone/lines inside. My Vengeance 120 was also a nice open with my board, but it was more apt to go off heading than my Cobalt, so I stick to my Cobalt for jumping my board. Hope that helps. Tom -- My other ride is a RESERVE.

Well, I just got my TM rating and only have 60-65 tandems total to date, but I already had my first "pass out" under canopy. I tell all my students on the ground prior to jumping that "the leg straps need to be snug, but not too tight, we don't want to cut off circulation to the legs". On this one jump, with a 200lb passenger, we had a normal freefall, and then under canopy things appeared fine. At 4000ft, I was pointing out the scenery to him, when his head just slumped over. I called out to him and gently raised his head up, but got nothing. He was out cold. I reached down and felt his leg straps, and they were very tight, so I loosened then an inch or so, and kept talking to him. At about 3400ft, his head popped up and he said "whoa, what happened?" I told him he took a 30 second nap, but appeared A-Okay to me. He chuckled, and said he was nausious, a bit dizzy and his vision was blurred. I had him put his feet on top of mine and wiggle himslef in the harness like a swing, to take the pressure off his legs. I had him keep his feet on top of mine until we landed, so that if he went out again, I'd know by his feet sliding off mine. He stayed awake the rest of the way, we slid in on our butts and he was fine. That was probably my 40th paid tandem. A good learning experience for me as a TM. -- My other ride is a RESERVE.

If you ever listened to Alanis Morisette's song "Ironic" and mused to yourself that none of the situations in the song were in fact "ironic", then maybe you'll appreciate the irony in my 1st unintentional cutaway that occured two weeks ago. While videoing a tandem, I deploy my main, and WHAM! - spinning line twists. I end up pinned on my back, with the canopy diving to the ground. (It was loaded 2.0, so I was moving fast). The moment I saw it, I knew I wasn't landing under it, so I reached for "PROBLEM" (my cutaway handle) and pulled. "PROBLEM SOLVER" (my reserve pillow), followed shortly there after, and I was under a nice bright yellow PD143 flying back to the DZ with both handles and big smile on my face. Okay, now the ironic part. 13 days earlier I actually paid to do an intentional cutaway for my tandem rating. At the time of the intentional cutaway I had 590+ jumps without a problem. 13 days after my intentional cutaway, I have my first real one. Isn't it ironic, don't ya think? -- My other ride is a RESERVE.

Hi All, I was writing a speech last night for a September 11th ceremony next week and while researching the speech, I came across a very fitting quote, made 137 years ago, that I thought I'd share. "With malice toward none, with charity for all, with firmness in the right as God gives us to see the right, let us strive on to finish the work we are in; to bind up the nation's wounds; to care for him who shall have borne the battle, and for his widow and his orphan - to do all which may achieve and cherish a just and lasting peace, among ourselves, and with all nations." -Abraham Lincoln, March 4, 1865, His Second Inaugural Address The more things change, the more they stay the same. Blue Skies to all and to all a good flight. -Tom

Thanks Dan, will do. They are 1/2 inch dowls, I'll hammer them into the ground and start withonly 6 inches above ground and see if that work, and only raise an inch or so as needed to keep the majority of the dowl under ground. -- My other ride is a RESERVE.

The boogie kicked off with a bang last night with two loads of night jumps, a live band and free pizza. (Damn my diet!) The weekend is shaping up to be a great one! See you all there! -- My other ride is a RESERVE.

oops, my bad, the website is www.airadventuresskydiving.com -- My other ride is a RESERVE.

The only way to legally jump on to Nantucket is as Bill Von indicated, by filig a NOTAM. Unfortuanetly you won't be able to find a jump modified plane to jump out of, as there are only a hand full of jump Cessnas in New England that could be used. you'd have to contact a local DZ (Skydive Pepperell, Boston Providence, SD New England, or Jumptown perhaps.) Assuming you could file a Notam in time, get approval from the islanders, and find a plane, then you would also have to pay for tac time, etc, for the plane. It's a very involved process. I assume the question was posed asking essentially if there was any DZ type operation on or near the island, and much to our disappointment up here, there isn't. Believe me we would LOVE to be able to jump in there! As someone mentioned ACK is a very busy airport, and I doubt the islanders would be too accepting of us dropping in unexpectedly. If you do manage to find a way to jump, treat it like a base jump, as in once you land, RUN and HIDE. LOL In all seriousness though, if you have a legitamet interest in jumping into Nantucket, go to www.airadventures.com. They are a demo team here in New England and have done demos on to the island every year or so for July 4th, etc. Email Tommy LaRochelle (email on website) and he can give you the exact answer that you are looking for as far as "how to" get in the air over Nantucket. Best of luck, hope that helps. -- My other ride is a RESERVE.

Thanks for all the input. I sold my idea to the DZO and was given her okay to go ahead with it. I just got back from my lunch break and Home Depot, and bought six 4ft dowlings, cut them into now twelve 2ft dowlings, to use as stakes in the field. I figure that way, only 1ft of dowling will be above ground (like an airblade stake), and the noodle has a hole running through it that fits snug around the dowling. I figure this way if someone does take a noodle to the chest as Phree mentioned.....lol, then it would just come off the dowling. All said, I spent $40 for 12 noodles and $8 for the dowlings, so my six gate swoop course cost me a total of $48. -- My other ride is a RESERVE.

Hello all fellow swoopers, I have a question for you guys/girls I wanted to run by you. Being on a limited budget, and seeing as how expensive air blades are, I thought about setting up foam "noodles", those long foam flation devices used in backyard swimming pools. My question is has anyone done this yet and what type of results, safety issues, etc have you discoverd. My idea/plan, is to set up 6 "gates" with twelve noodles" (far away from the main landing area of course), and use them as "poor man's" gates. Looking for input from others! Thanks, and as always, stay safe! -- My other ride is a RESERVE.