dterrick

THANK YOU Thank you ... says the old style Racer owner. New velcro picks up crap like nobody's business and still sticks. Old velcro picks up stuff and DOESN'T stick anymore. This trick ranks right up there with using a pullup cord to remove broken stow bands. I forget who that one goes out to but it was a dropzone.com thing ('carefully' saw back and forth with a pullup under the broken band and it will disintegrate and/or pop off) -Dave Life is very short and there's no time for fussing and fighting my friend (Lennon/McCartney)

Heya Sushine! It's hard to believe anyone could be angry towards YOU - ever the smily cheery person you are. without reading further into it, your 'other party' had an asshat kinda reaction to the situation. ABSOLUTELY this should have been discussed - in the landing area and once clear of the target area - beyond that, any griping is just perpetuating ass-hattedness. I'd like to think that ALL skydivers are rational and level headded about all things but we've all come from different places and been through differnet situations. We react differently to the same situations because of this. Still, if this person is not prepared to enter a rational dialogue after the fact then I think you have (or should) reduce the pool of jumpers you share air with by one... at least for a while. Now smile, dammit

Welll, it's Hitchhiker's of course... I'm actually in the middle of a reread. Can't quite place where in the tome it lies but I do remember the line - on the art of flying the Guide says... "the art, or rathe the knack, of flying is to hurl yourself at the ground and miss" -Dave Life is very short and there's no time for fussing and fighting my friend (Lennon/McCartney)

Welcome, Hope. I'm killin a bottle of Sekszardi Voros 'Kekfrankos' (Cabernet Franc from Hungaria) ...as Mr. Gates Microsoft products finish what's left of my brain off. I'm in the middle of a windows XP reinstall and it's pretty mind-nuimbing when you're sober. I wasn't virus'd or worm'd, at least not according to my daily Norton update. Buttttt, when Internet Explorer started having mals and Mozilla didn't help I figured it was cancer and went at it. Eh, time for a good system purge anyway. ...it's not like I want to be atthe DZ early on a weekend or anything -Dave Life is very short and there's no time for fussing and fighting my friend (Lennon/McCartney)

...so Rene Descartes wanders into his local watering hole one evening. The bartender calls out to him 'Hey Rene, you want your usual tonight?' "I think not" he replied and POOF he suddenly disappeared Smile dammit -Dave Life is very short and there's no time for fussing and fighting my friend (Lennon/McCartney)

Hi Larry, and welcome back. I just read kallend's reply and I'd not considered it to be riser slap because the tension on the risers starts at the 3 ring junction - which should be well inboard of your biceps. I'll admit I've watched very few deployments in slo-mo but I'm thinking it may have been from a poor fit of the main lift web / yoke too wide. My reasong follows the logic that, all during snatch and inflation, the main lift webs are being pulled 'up' off your shoulders. The MLW is bulky and stiff and it would take much less for it to hit you hard enough to bruise than a little piece of seatbelt webbing we call a riser. The closer to your shoulder socket the bruises are the more I'd suspect that the harness was just that much too large that it moved 'up and out' on you during deployment - especially if the rig has a low chest strap. I've had similar bruises when I've been in gear that's a bit too big/wide for me, be they student gear or borrowed. Funky deployments on large gear almost certainly caused me bruises early on. Of course, that's what you get for unstable paper pulls -Dave Life is very short and there's no time for fussing and fighting my friend (Lennon/McCartney)

l'ordinateur svp. Or better yet, l' @#$@# %$^$67 5656 espece de..." and another neat little page I once encountered... http://www.fourmilab.to/francais/gender.html -Dave Life is very short and there's no time for fussing and fighting my friend (Lennon/McCartney)

Canada's nice at this time of year.... We fly little planes over big parcels of realtively uninhabited land. Your dollars will go 40% farther. We're friendly, too.

Hi Bob! By your profile I'm about 150 jumps ahead of you, and still flying a Raven 2 (220) 7 cell as a main... my BEER rig. From your words, I suspect we share a love of canopy sillyness and you and I will either ultimately wind up in CREW teams or on a swoop tour (...years from now). I have only induced line twists under my Raven .. once ... and it was a hard spiral with a toggle snap to the opposite direction in 'choppy wind that did it. I'm not familliar with a Navigator but I suspect it is fairly docile and you;re loading it at 1:1 or thereabouts? If so, your BEST bet IS to seek out canopy drills for risers, etc. I have found my Raven flies better with rear riser input than it does under toggles (faster input, more radical spirals), and with dive loops on the fronts I have learned the rudiments of carving and (now) riser my approach pattern. I won't offer encouragement to do silly stuff at your jump numbers (I had my only chop at #20 and remember my skill level of that time quite well because of it) but trust me - there are a LOT of things you can do - and should eventually do - under that canopy beyond snappy toggle turns. Remember this if it helps... would you EVER just 'let go' of the steering wheel of your car in a high speed corner when it's time to straighten out? Of course not. "Wail away" but always go up with a plan you've discussed with a coach ...preferably someone known as for their canopy piloting skills. Have fun ... -Dave Life is very short and there's no time for fussing and fighting my friend (Lennon/McCartney)

Hi Laura: Strangely I HOPED I'd get that queasy stomach feeling ... but it has happened only once with any intensity. That was the first time I took a it exit off a Cessna step and I watched the tail of the plane fly over me. Those who have said stuff about acceleration, etc., are likely right but I also think it has something to do with depth perception and relative landmarks. "They" say we have no depth perception beyond about 4-500 ft and any skydive exit happens above that. Once under canopy there is little change of speed to deal with - but I bet I could seriously scare myself riding the wall of a hook turn under a high perfromance canopy. An analogy might be standing by a freeway versus driving in that traffic. In traffic, 90 mph is 'standing still' but if you stood by the side of the road it would be frightening. Hope that helps - has worked for me as an explanation to a few whuffos. -Dave PS: congrats on your impending graduation. ... ... ... beer is brewing? Life is very short and there's no time for fussing and fighting my friend (Lennon/McCartney)

Hey Carth! congrats on the decision to finally go ...I raced cars a track adjacent to a DZ for over 10 years before I even considered it. It was not that I didn;t want to, I just never thought of it as something "I could do". If you're a 'car guy' type that likes G forces and stuff, you'll love the canopy part of the experience and definately will want to choose AFF over tandem. In fact, you might also want to consider the traditional static line (also known as / similar to Instructor Assisted deployment). In this progression you first learn only about stable exits and parachute opening. Freefall is only introduced after you master the basics an in increasingly long delays. All during the progression, though, you get a parachute opening, flight, and landing on every outing. THAT is the big plus for SL/IAD. don;t let anyone ever tell you that freefall is "more important" - you still need to land and you get the most of that by starting low and slow. As detailed in anonther post, the ultimate lcost of an A license is only marginally different between the programs. Remember, it's all good so enjoy it no matter what you decide. And do please let us know how it goes (...like you wouldn't?) -Dave Life is very short and there's no time for fussing and fighting my friend (Lennon/McCartney)

you too? 1 (sleepless weekend) 2:1 ...well maybe 2 I got the gang interested in night jumps two weeks ago. There was skepticism it would go off since there had been NO night jumps at WSC since the operation moved to Gimli six years ago. Thirteen jumping participants was an INCREDIBLE turnout - seven of us owed beer. Since the moon didn't rise till after eleven we didn;t get finished our jump rotation until about 2. By the time we'd cracked a case or 2 open it was three. Also officiating at a sports car race (duties start at 8 ayem), Dumbass here decided to stay up all night - like I'd have been able to sleep after the rush of my first 'real' night jump. Boy was I in bad shape by mid Sunday afternon. *** I suppose I should pay Beer for my first crash and burn rear riser landing. I had to do a warm up jump under my Raven and decided I'd best know its limits in this high 90's heatwave. Clear and pull from 3000 followed by a thousand feet of intentional trash. Riser flares, toggle stall and recoveries, flew it backwards (wow what a strange sight to see a fully inflated pilot chute over the NOSE of the canopy). then I tried to land it with rear risers ... seing I had a good shot at the peas and I'm about due for new steering lines (...well, a whole new canoy, actually). My feet missed the bowl by about three feet. My ass missed it by about 6 . "We all know" about the stall characteristics of a Raven, right? It is, of course, even more sudden on risers. Sore butt, bruised elbow, bruised ego. Kids don;t try this at home . Not a bad weekend for just 2 jumps. -Dave Life is very short and there's no time for fussing and fighting my friend (Lennon/McCartney)

The FIRST Night Jumps held at Winnipeg Skydiving Centre tomorrow night. We've collectively decided chip-inskis on a keg would be the best bet. A small DZ st the best of times, onlly a very few of our senior seniors have done night jumps due to a 6 month season and no requirement for those jumps for higher licenses. The glowsticks have been bought. My little flashlight has fresh batteries. I even found my strobe lights (used in a past life for winter night cycling). The Weather Network says mid 30's ('bout 90) by day, little wind and no cloud by night. Now all that's needed is the will to hold Beer light till after midnight on the dog Days of summer . Oh well, for the pleasure of 'legally' plummeting whilst viewing the local lights, I think I can manage it. Video on Monday (ha ha) -Dave Life is very short and there's no time for fussing and fighting my friend (Lennon/McCartney)

...before the flames for using Sir William's offering get out of hand, (if someone can suggest a direct patchover including whatever cookies, pw's etc I need): This morning my browser has been stubborn at displaying images - it stated here on dropzone.com when I couldn't see avitars or the 'smart folders' on the forums menu page. Some websites seem to be OK but most just leave me with the little "x" in the corner of the window where a GIF or jpeg would be. I ran my up to date Norton scan and it found nothing. I'm upto date on my XP critical updates including the latest for the latest nasty. I've rstored to defaults under tools, internet options, advanced... all to no avail. Bueller?... Bueller?....anyone? This has not been one of my better 'geek days'. Not only did I get little sleep due to seasonal allergies (that may threaten my ability to do my BEER! night jumps this weekend) but my computer is rejecting me. Arrrrrrgh! -Dave Life is very short and there's no time for fussing and fighting my friend (Lennon/McCartney)

but why... I mean, 134 candidates including a porn star, a sumo wrestler, and an actor - what's to translate except the "culture" Seriously, if Floridians had trouble with THEIR ballots in the last Presidential race can you IMAGINE the issues with 124 dangling "Chads" ... -Dave Life is very short and there's no time for fussing and fighting my friend (Lennon/McCartney)

et pourquoi?? On aurais eu Sebazz1 aussi comme cnadidat mais 3,500$ vaut 175 jumptix chez H-town Seulment en amerique Life is very short and there's no time for fussing and fighting my friend (Lennon/McCartney)

"Argy Bargy" ... growled the captain . His Misadventure included spending 6 months in a leaky boat, but he refused to talk of such piracy - Too much information was running through his head -Dave Life is very short and there's no time for fussing and fighting my friend (Lennon/McCartney)

HEY!! You're damaging a perfectly jumpable round!! (...swimming pool, that is) We played with a paracommander and a creeper on the tarmac ...once.... someone managed to flatspot all 5 wheels and I haven't seen it done since. -Dave Life is very short and there's no time for fussing and fighting my friend (Lennon/McCartney)

...and of course the Whuffo audience would pick that one up and protest immediately despite the fact that 99.999% of all gear has a RHS activation... ...and as I watched XXX for the first time last night (yes, I had a beer) I noticed something odd during the Beech 18 (??) scene where Xander gets into the 'turbulence' of the mountains and goes unstable on his skyboard. He appears to chop it, but I can't quite figure out where he gets his 'reserve board' from ... Hmmmmm, methinks tinseltown needs to spend a few more buckolas on skydiving consultants -Dave Life is very short and there's no time for fussing and fighting my friend (Lennon/McCartney)

Lummy I believe that the SB's were for the "Dash-M" series of Ravens only ... a reserve identified as a "Raven II" or "Raven 2" is the original style dating back to the 80's. As far as I know, nothing was mandated on those reserves anytime in recent memory and mine i sure "original" ... -Dave PS: have you heard anything good or bad about Dash-M's lately? It seems nobody talks about anything other than their PD's ... Life is very short and there's no time for fussing and fighting my friend (Lennon/McCartney)

Hey Chris: So far, I've put 'about' 100 jumps on my Raven 2 ... yes, I jump a reserve as a main. Better yet, it had several, several hundred on it before I bought it (I had THAT much money to spend on gear, y'know). My actual reserve is a Stellar 160 with 1 sub-T jump. In all my ariel stupidity I've had "zero" trouble with my Raven as a main ... except being tired and loaded at 1:1 it has a tendency to thump me on landings (it's getting porus) unless I "carve it in and run it out". Openings are, um, brisk but in as many as I've had I think I've had line twists twice... Stalling one side of the canopy in aggressive spirals and then snapping out of them I've only been able to spin it up once - and even then I was able to easily kick out of them... Somehow I doubt 2 jumps will be a problem so long as you're not loading it much more than 1:1 ... search the forums for those who feel that Ravens have shitty flare power much above that ... that's their "rated" weight anyway . Now and again I joke with those who fly Raven 2 reserves that I'd like to borrow their rig and have a mal so I'd know how mine is SUPPOSED to fly -Dave PS: the next ride will likely be a Sabre 2 170 Life is very short and there's no time for fussing and fighting my friend (Lennon/McCartney)

I beceame the owner of one of THESE this weekend at a garage sale at the beach. Yes, I was granted parole from DZ... afte 20 years of enjoyment, the deck attached to our cottage needed some TLC and Dad needed my help. Of couse, being a garage sale junkie he just HAD to stop in and the dude had two for sale. Now, not only does Dad have one for his collection (he started work as a clerk in the investment department of a major mutual fund company in 1957 and it brought back memories) but he's also taught me how to use the damn thing. Now, thanks to him, I can calculate hpw much money I don't have for jump tickets in the dark AND during a power outage ... hmmm. or I could use a teensy tinsy $2 solar calc and a flashlight... naaaah, this is waay cooler Anyone remember these? I remember punch cards ... -Dave Life is very short and there's no time for fussing and fighting my friend (Lennon/McCartney)

Hi Andy: I've recently had demos on Spectre and Sabre2 170's. I agree the opening seems like 1,000 ft and it likely "is" if you account for altitude lost on a "slow-ish pull". The three portions of a deployment are snatch force, snivel, and inflation. It would help to describe where the problem seems to be. I think your issue is with the snivel part of the opening, ie: you're already snatched upright at line stretch but the slider is not yet traveling down the lines. IF it was a slow snatch force, that' likely a pilot chute issue. I've read the 3 replies offered so far and I can suggest one or 2 things to try ... these suggestions are the REVERSE of what I've been taught to do to slow own the openings on my Raven 2. Granted mine is a reserve design intended to open fast but hey, they might work for you... ask your rigger before you go making any major changes : Agreed with others, don't roll or stuff the nose back into the pack job. Messy generally = soft opening. Be meticulous in pleating the fabric after you;ve picked the nose - no 'trash packing' When cloverleafing the slider bias the position toward the tail, not the nose - less air will be 'stolen' from the nose openings (....maybe) Tug EVENLY on the rear risers during the snivel. Finally, pull several hundred feet higher and enjoy the Cadillac ride. -Dave Life is very short and there's no time for fussing and fighting my friend (Lennon/McCartney)

Is THAT why they call it the 'nuthouse'??? Yikes!! "I'm a lumberjack and I'm OK..." -Dave Life is very short and there's no time for fussing and fighting my friend (Lennon/McCartney)

[monty python] African or European? [/monty python] Seriously, terminal or not? Under canopy, even a bad spinner (no experience there, thankfully) you're not doing 174 ft/sec so 1/2 second difference in chop time will be, perhaps, 50 feet? At terminal you're talking about 70-90 ft. of difference at best and maybe 350 ft. in total from decision to reserve deployment. That sets you up for a streamer at 1500 and a good reserve by just under a grand either way. An RSL is virtually instantaneous ... and you know what kinds of debates THAT has caused on these forums before... sadly sometimes people chop so low that even an RSL doesn't save them. THAT would be the thing to avoid... -Dave (1 chop) Life is very short and there's no time for fussing and fighting my friend (Lennon/McCartney)