DocPop

You're missing a clicky. "The ground does not care who you are. It will always be tougher than the human behind the controls." ~ CanuckInUSA

Huh, interesting! There must be other variables, because it doesn't happen with all hybrid canopies (e.g. Navigator, Pulse). I would have thought that increasing the bottom skin porosity would cause a faster opening - but apparently not. "The ground does not care who you are. It will always be tougher than the human behind the controls." ~ CanuckInUSA

You think your insurance company is going to pay out when they find out you have no driver's license? Because I don't. Grow the fuck up and take some responsibility for yourself. "The ground does not care who you are. It will always be tougher than the human behind the controls." ~ CanuckInUSA

Could you explain the mechanism by which that would slow down the openings? "The ground does not care who you are. It will always be tougher than the human behind the controls." ~ CanuckInUSA

I have never been a fan of off-colour binding tape. There are too many colours on this rig for my taste. "The ground does not care who you are. It will always be tougher than the human behind the controls." ~ CanuckInUSA

So are you measuring from the point of release of the front risers to the plane out? "The ground does not care who you are. It will always be tougher than the human behind the controls." ~ CanuckInUSA

Those are all flat trimmed canopies, Excuse me? It's going to be hard to find anything much steeper trimmed than those two. "The ground does not care who you are. It will always be tougher than the human behind the controls." ~ CanuckInUSA

This is where the points on the ground need to be adjusted. The shape of the pattern will change according to wind conditions. A very square pattern in no wind conditions going to a very long and thin pattern in high winds. In your example above, the 900ft point should be moved upwind to a point where the 600ft point is reached level with, or just a little past the landing target (depending on how much penetration you expect on final). The problem with your method of starting the downwind in the same place but much lower in windier conditions is that you have a very short time flying downwind to assess and make corrections. "The ground does not care who you are. It will always be tougher than the human behind the controls." ~ CanuckInUSA

It is going to be nearer to the 10s to get you to true full flight after a turn. You can fly your downwind and base in 1/4 brakes and then go to full flight after your turn to final. I'd say yes, provided that last 200ft turn gives you 10 seconds of full flight before you land (see above) You're asking great questions, and you seem to understand the basics. Well done! "The ground does not care who you are. It will always be tougher than the human behind the controls." ~ CanuckInUSA

I agree. It's a refreshing change. Thanks for your detailed reply. I now have a better understanding of what you meant. "The ground does not care who you are. It will always be tougher than the human behind the controls." ~ CanuckInUSA

I still don't think I am clear on your method (although I am fairly clear that I must have misunderstood it!). Are you saying DO have checkpoints, but don't worry about what altitude you hit them at? All I will say is that your reference to accuracy competitors goes against Germain, Flight-1 and other canopy control courses, and those accuracy folks are using some fairly atypical canopies for the average jumper these days. Pro-swoopers use (and teach) altitude checkpoints for accuracy and that's good enough for me. "The ground does not care who you are. It will always be tougher than the human behind the controls." ~ CanuckInUSA

Compared to what? Compared to a Velo/Katana - yes, it's shorter. Compared to a Pulse, Stiletto, Heatwave etc, etc - it's longer. Also, what exactly are you measuring at 150ft? "The ground does not care who you are. It will always be tougher than the human behind the controls." ~ CanuckInUSA

I didn't mention a two day course??? "The ground does not care who you are. It will always be tougher than the human behind the controls." ~ CanuckInUSA

I totally agree that you need to be able to adapt your plan according to conditions/events as they happen - including landing off if necessary, but Andy appeared to me to be advocating not having a plan at all: Using altitude checkpoint method this analysis would have been done on the ground, and the planned pattern shifted prior to boarding not under canopy. "The ground does not care who you are. It will always be tougher than the human behind the controls." ~ CanuckInUSA

A XF2 (which is what the OP is jumping) is not a canopy with a short recovery arc. I don't think anyone is suggesting learning on a Katana or a Velo. Those are canopies for those who already have mastered the basics of HP canopy flight with a more forgiving canopy. "The ground does not care who you are. It will always be tougher than the human behind the controls." ~ CanuckInUSA

[reply Andy is Popsjumper right? Do you mean this: "Get yourself away from that dependence on altitudes and references as quickly as you can. Develop your judgement using your eyes." How exactly do I do that? Is there a structured method involved or is it just trial and error and a shit load of (potentially dangerous) mistakes? I agree with you. Telling people to just eyeball it goes against all the canopy courses I have taken. It essentially means you can't plan your pattern, you can't quantitatively assess your performance and you can't learn from what you did - because you just pulled it out of your ass. That may have been the old school way to fly a canopy, but things have moved on. Brian Germain even suggested 4 altitude checkpoints instead of the more common three (his article is called the D point, or something similar). Use your instruments, plan your pattern and then fly the plan. "Just eyeball it" it plain bad advice. "The ground does not care who you are. It will always be tougher than the human behind the controls." ~ CanuckInUSA

Here is an approach you can use to build up your pattern from the ground up. 1. Up high - clear your airspace and then note your altitude (use a digital alti) and make the same 90 degree turn you would in the pattern. 2. Count for ten seconds (1-one thousand, 2- one thousand, 3-one thousand etc...) while flying with your hands completely up and then note your altitude loss. This gives you the minimum height you should make your turn to final to allow any flight cycles to diminish and return you to full flight. 3. Let's say the exercise above tells you that you need to make your turn to final at or above 280'. You might round that up to 300' and then set all the legs of your pattern to 300'. Why? Because that way each leg will take the same amount of time to fly and your brain will become calibrated to the cadence of your pattern. 4. Your three altitude checkpoints are now 900', 600' and 300'. All you have to do now is move these three checkpoints over the ground to allow for wind and landing target. 5. Practice this by making a plan before you board the aircraft, and flying it as accurately as you can. When you land, assess the accuracy of your landing and the wind conditions and adjust your next plan as necessary. Good luck! "The ground does not care who you are. It will always be tougher than the human behind the controls." ~ CanuckInUSA

+1 Getting a controlled release of the fronts made a big difference to my plane-out and the speed of my swoops. Also meant I had to start my turn higher to allow for the increased dive. "The ground does not care who you are. It will always be tougher than the human behind the controls." ~ CanuckInUSA

It's only a Google search away. "The ground does not care who you are. It will always be tougher than the human behind the controls." ~ CanuckInUSA

Not if they are sized correctly for the individual. And it's not like the Optimum is an aggressive elliptical. Would you agree that the flare is more powerful on modern canopies than those of yesteryear, particularly when the loading exceeds 1:1? "The ground does not care who you are. It will always be tougher than the human behind the controls." ~ CanuckInUSA

I know! It was sarcasm. "The ground does not care who you are. It will always be tougher than the human behind the controls." ~ CanuckInUSA

Closed. "The ground does not care who you are. It will always be tougher than the human behind the controls." ~ CanuckInUSA

Haha! That's very amusing! It's like you're saying he is going to hurt himself but using a clever form of words which sounds like it's a game! Hysterical! "The ground does not care who you are. It will always be tougher than the human behind the controls." ~ CanuckInUSA

Looks fairly visible to me (see attachment). "The ground does not care who you are. It will always be tougher than the human behind the controls." ~ CanuckInUSA

VSE told me that the new black stainless option (they only black hardware they are doing now) is black all the way through so even if it gets scratched it will stay black. I have it coming on my new one, but I won't know for about a month.... "The ground does not care who you are. It will always be tougher than the human behind the controls." ~ CanuckInUSA