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It is quite unlikely that someone is "bone skinny" and 225 (unless they were 8' tall...which would present fit problems anyway). I know lots who are 200-220 nekid, and jump little-bitty stuff. I know some closer to 260 and jumping great big stuff (230-260). I have heard of people jumping modified tandem gear, but have never seen it. Troy I am now free to exercise my downward mobility.

Pay a packer! That is a big canopy to pack, and will take lots of space. It is too big to PRO pack from the shoulder effectively (especially if you're new to packing). You will have to flatpack it. Paying is still the best way in my opinion, and stimulates the DZ economy. Troy I am now free to exercise my downward mobility.

SkydiveChicago is now recommending 100 belly jumps before going to freeflying. Many have gone straight to freeflying, where organizing is not such an issue, and jumping by yourself is much more challenging/entertaining. These folks only turn to their belly at pull-time, which is a shame. Belly jumps can be fun and quite challenging, SDC has a renewed effort to show this aspect of the sport to recent graduates. Troy I am now free to exercise my downward mobility.

I have had a PD126R and cypres in my NJ I also have had the following mains: Samurai 120 Jedei 120 Samurai 105 Xaos-21 98 Velocity 96 IMO it will fit up to 126 reserve w/ cypres and up to 135 non-airlocked, non-cross-braced ZP main. It will fit up to 103 cross-braced (21 cell) Good luck Troy I am now free to exercise my downward mobility.

That is going to be fun, but it is likely only for Summerfest. A new attitude Troy I am now free to exercise my downward mobility.

Quit your job, not skydiving. That's what I'm doing for at least this summer. I plan to do 600-800 jumps this summer. It's gonna be great, April 21 is my last workday. Troy I am now free to exercise my downward mobility.

I decided to get my AFF rating to guage my skills, not really to teach. Boy, I was wrong, the teaching aspect is the best. I decided to get my rigger rating to know as much as I can about the gear I jump, plus to teach. It helps others not to guess about functions of the rig and its individual components. Now, if something happens to me, it is likely I am the only one to blame. NO LAWSUITS!!! Troy I am now free to exercise my downward mobility.

The other fellow that left from 570 before me was doing his virgin jump. We are all pretty solid skydivers, and one of the jumpers has over 700 base jumps. We did misjudge the sunrise (actually cloud cover and morning haze slowed the light coming), but a night jump is no big deal, we had about 3/4 moon, and a clear view. We just didn't feel like sitting up there for 20-30 more minutes just to get a little more light. It did f up the video though. Even the first timer had a rock-solid exit, very nice. I took a 2-2.5, just an easy jump. Thanks for the support, it was quite fun. Troy I am now free to exercise my downward mobility.

After 32 jumps off two different bridges, I did my first A this morning. Two of us went from 570, one went from 680. We misjudged sunrise, and ended up jumping in the dark, but it still counts. looking for B and E sometime this season. Troy I am now free to exercise my downward mobility.

I wish we had more specific info, but if they are doing what is suggested/alleged, enforce it. I would like to see minutes to see what evidence was presented, and whether or not there is an appeal process for fairness. Troy I am now free to exercise my downward mobility.

I do it all the time. I made my own tip, and a couple tricks are to wrap the canopy tight before you lay it down (creates a seal), and to get the tip in between the slider grommets. I has no negative effect on openings, and does not affect the material or canopy negatively. I have been doing it for 4 years now (when I don't pay for packing). It is just removing the air a different way. My brand new VE 96 goes in the bag with great control and little effort. It is infact "vacuum packed" I learned it from Farmer, (as did most others from Morris). I usually have people standing around watching (hoping it doesn't work so they can say "I told you so," but they don't get much opportunity). I am also a rigger (as if that matters). I'll make and sell you a vacuum with tip for $80 if you want to buy a "canopy vacuum packing machine." Troy I am now free to exercise my downward mobility.

I can pack, but I hate it. When I have to, I usually use my vacuum (cause I always have new mains), a technique I learned from Jim (Farmer) Johnson. Some people think it is a waste of time until they see me with a new velocity in the bag in 45 seconds from laydown, nice and neat (vacuum packed). It works! I haven't figured out how to apply it to my reserves yet, but I may. Troy I am now free to exercise my downward mobility.

[Note: I am not a dealer] It is not entirely the dealer's responsibility to sell the proper canopy. Many deals these days are not done face-to-face. I feel it is the responsibility of a jumper's peers (and instructors), if anyone's responsibility at all (other than the jumper). I will query and disuade folks making what I think are bad choices. I will even support (and suggest)grounding if they are totally inappropriate. This is a sport of freedom, freedom to choose. It is highly unfortunate that in this case, someone's choice can affect all of us. I think we need to teach better (myself included), and provide good examples. We need to show a progression to smaller canopies if that is what a given jumper wants (and not all do). This is what is being worked on throughout the industry. Summary control is not the answer. I am on a main that constantly challenges my skill/experience level. It is a choice I have made, and I do my best to fly it responsibly. I like that freedom of choice. Troy I am now free to exercise my downward mobility.

My base instructor had 750+ base jumps and 11000+ skydives. I was in good hands (and still am). Troy I am now free to exercise my downward mobility.

Everyone has to be careful. I just found an A&P that had the cypres s/n right, but dom was listed on the datacard as 07/00, when actually it was 12/96. I know the rigger, and we straightened it out. He is very thorough and experienced, it was just a paperwork error. I am a new rigger (just over a year). Anyone is at risk of human error. Rig like their life depends on it (really?). Troy I am now free to exercise my downward mobility.

I will definitely land off with folks if it is way off. It is right next to the airport, I'll go to the landing area. I am loaded 2.1:1, and I make it back more than most. If there is a mal, I will do my best to help out by getting the freebag, or main, or help the jumper. Taken one step further, on occasion I have been with a group of newer that could not make it back. I will then pick a good landing area and land early to show the newer folks a safe place to land. Usually if they see me landing, they'll land by me. Troy I am now free to exercise my downward mobility.

Ryan, PD makes the best, tested and trusted. You can load them up, they still perform (many actually feel the more you load them, the better). The smart, raven, techno, tempo, airforce, etc.. are all good reserves if they meet the standard (although some don't fly straight), but they are not the best. PD also is the only reserve that has any sort of resale value (something to think about if you plan to downsize in the future). As for ISO 9001, achieving that certification is just a matter of money. It is an international standard that test a quality system against known parameters (basically ISO does not set out what your quality program has to be, just that you are following what you have documented). I used to audit for ISO/QS qualifications, and it is just a matter of money. Just because one manufacturer has ISO cert. and another doesn't means nothing. If you have an ISO rating, you may get more corporate business. PD packs bigger, and flys better. PD has the best resale (among reserves, but all reserves have pisspoor resale values due to superstition and ignorance). Good luck! Troy I am now free to exercise my downward mobility.

Do you recieve subscription updates, like as manuals change you don't have to part with big bucks? Poynters manuals should also be included. I'd pay $100 if all that was the case. Troy I am now free to exercise my downward mobility.

I just received my new (used) infinity container. I bought it on dz.com from someone who hasn't used it due to team affiliations. The container has a DOM of 1/2001. I am quite taken with the quality of the container, and I will be assembling it tonight. The only hokey thing is the cutaway handle mounting, which is behind two layers of type 7, which are not sewn together other than the velcro holding them. This I'll probably change and capture the cutaway between the two webs. I would imagine they have changed this already. It will provide good service until my two new G4s come in, but now seeing the quality, maybe I should have bought two new Infinity containers. Great job Velocity Sports! Troy I am now free to exercise my downward mobility.

The Holiday motel is a drive away, on the north side, but is cheap and negotiable. We paid $120 for the whole week. The owner does go through the rooms though (we thought). Oh yeah, the towels are kinda crappy, so I brought my own. This is also where Tom stays (the famous retired person) who jumps the bridge 3-4 times each day during the season. Good luck and have fun Troy I am now free to exercise my downward mobility.

For argument's sake, I say trees. Really though, I don't think you have time to really go for anything. In my case, by the time I am under my reserve, it is 1500', and then it is malfunctioning? I am fighting it to get it as stable as possible. By the time it is somewhat stable (assuming that is possible), that may be 500', not very much altitude to get somewhere under a 7 cell F111 loaded at 1.6. I'm going down, not over. A muddy ditch would also be a good choice if you had time and possibility of steering/flying. Troy I am now free to exercise my downward mobility.

I have had an M1 G3, and there is no way a 170 will fit. I had a 135 Samurai in it, and I feel you could get a 150 non-airlocked zp 9 cell in it, but a 170 would be too much. Now, a 170 F111 or a 7 cell may happen, but it'll still be super-duper tight. Troy I am now free to exercise my downward mobility.

NeedToJump's response is appropriate. 15 lbs IS A LOT! You will fall very fast whether RW/Freefly if you wear that kind of weight (relative to your previous fall rate). It will also hurt more when you biff in for messing up your landing. Talk to the folks who know you and how you fly. You can learn to swoop that canopy without weights. Troy I am now free to exercise my downward mobility.

At SkydiveChicago, we go very indepth with regards to canopy basics. We cover, and have the student practice all types of inputs (8), and challenge the student with goals. I feel students coming out of the AFP program have similar canopy skills as those with 50 or more jumps. SDC also offers canopy control courses taught by the likes of Scott Miller. I think two courses are planned for this season. I think there is also a crew course planned, along with a crew competition. As with most student programs, it is up to the student to concentrate on development of skills. We are attempting to provide the base skillset from which to fly safely and provide a foundation to learn from. If students are not progressing with proper canopy control, they can be given extra hop-n-pops or haho jumps to do. They can also be held back for not developing the minimum skills. Troy I am now free to exercise my downward mobility.

set all the altitudes to 0, but you have to do it in order from lowest to highest (takes 3 cycles through the menu) because it won't let you set the first or second alarm less than the third (flatline) alarm. Set the lowest alarm to zero, then cycle through the menu, set the middle alarm to zero, then cycle through one last time to set the high alarm to zero. It then will not sound. You could set all three to 500 also, as long as you don't dive below that, then it would let you know you're going in. I have my protrack on my ankle, just for logging, and all alarms are at 0. Troy I am now free to exercise my downward mobility.