davelepka

Hook your Nitro back up, and learn how to use your harness for input. No matter what Xbrace canopy you buy, the riser pressure will build with speed, and you'll need to start using harness input anyway.

That may be true, but I wouldn't place the blame for that incident on the qualifying process, but the individual jumper and possibly the meet organizer. The individual jumper, of course, should have used common sense and taken ques from the other jumpers involved in the competition, and had more regard for her own personal safety. Possibly the meet organizers for not halting the competition activites due to the conditions. Just because conditions are such that they are within the confines of the local wind limit regualtions doesn't mean they are acceptable for holding a swoop competitons. As an example, I've made many jumps with winds above 20 mph, and they were all paid video jumps where the DZO and TIs wanted to get the tandems out. These conditions are well within my comfort zone, but I was not throwing aggressive 450s on landing. Add to that the fact that many swoop comps are held on ponds where you can only go two directions, and you can see that competition wind limits need to be lower than general skydiving wind limits. Using a qualifier to vet potential competitors is not fool proof. The bulk of the responsibility for any skydive is still planted firmly on the shoulders of the individual jumper. You can never remove the human element from jumping, but a qualifier which begins with easy, non-scored swoops will at least remove the pressure of tyring to perform and earn a score from a jumper who is new to competition.

Yeah, that's what I suggested in the next paragraph. By tracking the density altitude and your own swooping data on those days, you can go into a comp. at any DZ at any density altitude with a fair idea of what to expect. Even if you have never been as far up as MileHi, just the act tracking and working with density altitude will ensure that you are familiar with it and it's effects.

I'm not even sure if I'm playing devil's advocate or not, but couldn't you say the same thing about other changes to environmental factors? You mentioned Spaceland as a venue. That's got to be close to sea level, what about the competitors who come from DZ situated at 3000ft msl? Now they have to lower their initiation altitude to make up for the loss in LZ eleveation. Are you better off at a high DZ telling the jumpers to turn high, or a low DZ telling them to turn low? You could say the same thing about temps. Spaceland in the summer has got to be blazing. You mentioned SDC, and a mid-Nov comp. on a cold year might be looking at temps on the ground around 40. If you factor in the different altitude and temp ranges as DZs across the world (literally), you can see that you could chase the 'perfect' venue all over the place just based on the time of year. That's why I can't see using density altitude as a metric for choosing comp locations. What wouldn't be a bad idea for competitive (or asipring) swoopers would be to calculate and monitor the density alititude anytime you're going to be swooping. If you compare that to your swoops for the day in terms of initiation altitude, and overall performance, each swooper could begin to develop a 'feel' for the differences. You could even calculate the DA at a new-to-you DZ, and have a good idea how your canopy will perform before you make jump 1. Let's face it, aerodynamics and density altitude play a huge roll in swooping, and I don't think it's too much to expect from a competition level swooper that they understand those areas. In terms of vetting who gets to compete and who doesn't, if your home country wants to send you, you either need some type of verifiable competiton experience, or you have to pass some sort of 'qualifier'. Maybe 3 or 4 jumps, the first two just basic 'through the gates' swoops, and maybe a curved course run or two. They wouldn't be scored, you just have to hit the gates, and demonstrate a basic level of skill.

Dude, what's with your hard-on for the JVX? You don't even jump an x-braced canopy, but you seem sure that the JVX is the holy grail, and the Velo is the big imposter. Just get it over with and spend the night with a JVX. Towel it off with a damp cloth in the morning, and get back to living your life.

Yeah, I don't mean you personally. In terms of the selection process, I would think that some sort of variety would be a factor too, If the meet is for competitors all over the world, you would need to move it around to be fair. If you had evey comp in Europe, it's unfair to the Africans and the South Americans, and so on. Has the world cup ever been in the US? It would seem that with the USPA, and ass-load of DZs, the last thing we need is another swoop comp. On top of that, it requires the whole world to come to the US, which is a hike for a lot of people. There's no doubt that the US has the most DZ capable of hosting with the lowest jump prices anywhere in the world, but that might be the very thing that keeps these comps out of the US. In terms of safety, I sort of look at it this way - I've seen some freestyle motocross comps held indoors, and those guys had ZERO room for error left/right and very little run-off space after the jump. Regardless, nobody had a problem with any of that, because the competitors were appropriately skilled to be in that competition. I'm sure there are less skilled competitors and less demanding venues for a comp, and that's exactly where those guys should be. Once you get your shit together, and are ready for the big time, you can do your superman seat grab indoors in front of 5000 screaming fans.

I couldn't even begin to tell you how they choose a location for a meet. It's hard to ignore the numbers posted at MileHi, and everyone wants their meet to be the one in the record books, but I would have to think that's only a part of the equation. There has to be some sort of bidding system, buddy system or plain old bribery at work as well. Either way, if you plan to attend a world cup level event, it's your responsibility to have your shit together before the meet. You should be experienced in competition swooping, which is not to say that you need to attend 20 comps before the world cup, but that you have progressed through learning how swoop into learning competition swooping. You should have set up entry gates at your home DZ, and got those dialed in. You should move on to set up the different courses beyond the gates, and flown those until you had a good handle on it. If you want to go to the world cup, you should be current. It takes a concentrated effort, but you should try to crank out 20 jumps in the week before the comp. Not everyone can afford to show up a week ahead of time to acclimate, but anyone looking to compete on the world level should be factoring in at least a couple days and a couple dozen jumps beofre the comp. Even if the comp was at sea level, you need to get into the grove of the new DZ. Even RW guys, for whom the air is the same everywhere, know about the need to spend a couple days 'warming up' and getting your game face on. Competition swooping is just like any other kind of swooping in that it takes a great amount of training and dedication. Not everyone is cut out for it, and not everyone is ready for it. You need to be realistic about your abilities and skill level before attending such a meet. If you are truely ready for that level of competiiton, than the only 'new' thing for you would be the alititude, and you're capable of making that adjustment in short order.

According to post #63, it's sounds like the DZO might have been a participant and not just an observer.

Trying to conceal the videos would imply that they thought they were doing something wrong. It's clear that they thought everything was 'A-OK', and had no problem sending the proof home with the customers. They knew it was against the regs., but they proceeded to engage in such behavoir over a long period of time, with no attempt to conceal it. For some reason they believed that the rule was not meant for them, and that's the real problem.

Agreed. That's always good to see. I think the problem is how that became a policy in the first place. Tandem crew was outlawed long before any of those videos were shot, and just judging by the variety of videos showing that, it was a regular practice at the DZ for at least a year. I'm glad they stopped, but I'd be interested to hear their defense for allowing a clear safety violation to go on for so long.

I don't know man, that one vid cleary states '5-22-09', and I notice they're jumping a Pac. Weren't they running an Otter from Spaceland in '08, the supposed last year of the shenanigans in question? I'm pretty sure I saw the Pac in other videos including shenanigans, but I never thought to check the dates. I'm all for self policing, and I never suggested anyone lose their ratings over this. Maybe they stopped doing that stuff on 5-23-09? Either way, let's just hope that it's all in the past as of now. Nobody got hurt, and in their defence, if they end all of it now, they did prove that they coudl get away with it without incident. Of course if they keep it up, the jury is still out on the 'without incident' part.

Like this? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u875UoZHEaw

That sounds pretty good then. Nice drop in fall rate. and you got yourself pretty far out. I'm sure you can tweak your body position and get even better results, just stick with it. Good job on spotting and staying safe. Talk to the instructors anyway, and ask them what you can do to keep tracking for the whole jump. There are a couple of different schools of thought, all involve flying out and back in one way or another. See which one works best at your DZ.

It really depends on how much you weigh. If your more a bowling ball, than 106 isn't a bad number. If you're closer to a broom stick, than that 106 should probably be lower. Another thing to look at is your fall rate during a regualr RW jump. If it's faster than 106/117, then you know you're slowing down during your track (which is good). Like others mentioned, a slow fall rate is good because it gives you more time to track, but you still have get good forward speed to make use of that time. One thing that stands out to me is that you tracked for 7k feet, then fell straight down and opened at 4k, and still made it to the DZ (you did make it back, right?). If you had good forward speed, 7k ft of tracking should have flown you far away from the DZ, and you probably wouldn't have made it back. I'm assuming that you're tracking off the flight line, away from the DZ. If you don't know what I mean, do not do any more tracking dives until you have discussed jumprun, and which direction you should be tracking with an instructor from the DZ you're jumping at. Failure to do so can create a dangerous situation, and this process needs to be repeated at any new DZ you go to because procedures will vary from place to place. That said, kudos for taking the time to learn how to track. It will take a few dedicated jumps, but you will eventually get the hang of falling slow and going far. You'll be able to see the fall rate on your Protrack, and during the jump you will be able to visually see your movement across the ground. When you feel like you have a good handle on it, ask around at the DZ who is the hotshot tracker, and try a two way tracking jump with them. Not so they can blow your doors off and show off their skills, but so they can keep up with you and debrief you on your skills after the jump.

Try making 4000 video jumps. You develop a pretty good eye for what real life will look like on video, and what video looked like in real life. But really, when the leading edge fo your canopy is in the hands of a student, what about that are you having trouble judging? How much of the canopy is in their hands? The truth is that any amount of canopy is too much, and anything within 15 or 20ft. of a tandem canopy is too close. Were you aware that the manufacturers of tandem equipment have banned any type of tandem crew? If so, why would you advocate these 'professionals' breaking the rules? What other rules would you be willing to excuse them from? How would you feel if they were breaking rules with your family member as a passenger? Maybe you were not aware that this was against the rules, if that was the case, how do you feel about the situation now that you do know? I can see that you jump at Twin Cities, are you aware that one dead tandem student can shut down the DZ? Well, it's actually the lawyer for that student's familty that will drain the assets of the DZ with a lawsuit, but the end result is no more DZ. Would still support the rule breakers if they cause the DZ to go out of business? With video proof of their negligence, and the testimony of an 'expert witness' who can confirm that this behavoir is in violation of the tandem mfg regulations, the waiver won't last one day in court. The DZ could easily be looking at a judgment against them in excess of $1,000,000. Now that you are aware of the risk these jumpers are introducing to your home DZ, does your opinion change any?

Are you really going from a 190 main with a 200+ reserve to a 150 main a sub-150 reserve? If the numbers in your profile are correct that pust you at 1.33 on the main and 1.4 on your resreve. These are both very aggressive choices, and most would reccomend closer to 300 jumps for the wing loading on a 150. Proceed with caution. I'm sure that everyone around you told you it would fine and great and OK, but keep in mind that they are not the ones who have to jump it, and that you're dealing with a very small cross section of jumpers at your DZ. The ideas surrounding wing loading and canopy sizing were obtained looking at jumpers all over the country for about a 10 year period.

I'll give you .50 on the dollar cash money for them, today only. If you promise to make a skydive in 2010, I'll make it .51

The only way you get 6 hours of freefall from 360 jumps is if each and every jump is from 13.5k+ with and opening at or lower than 2.5k. That requires a turbine aircraft, good weather and a good spot for every jump. No freeflying either, that goes too fast. The 6 hour requirement has beeen around for a long time, long enough that when it was made not everyone has access to a turbine aircraft and good weather for every jump. If you take that number to a Cessna DZ where they exit at 10.5k, you're looking at more like 500 jumps. Factor in some low clouds and hop n pops, and the jump number goes up. The other thing to remember is that 6 horus was also established when the AFF course was a lot harder to pass. You could show up with 360 jumps, but you wouldn't make it through the first 3 jumps. I think 6 hours needs to be ditched in favor of a min. jump number requirement, and I think it should be higher than 500. Probably closer to 750.

Check with Randy Allison, he's got a 182 with a 3 blade prop and I think he's flown the same plane with a 2 blade as well. He's a Regoinal Director (or something) for the USPA, so his contact info is in Parachutist, or on the website. It's a nice 182 and it climbs quick (for a 182).

That same story was referenced in an earlier post responding to my comment. In that post, it was mentioned that the passenger was reaching back to grab a toggle when the handle was pulled. In this video, it appears that the TI did not introduce the possibility of grabbing the toggles, or reaching back to grab anything. As such, the likelyhood of the student grabbing a handle on this jump wouldn't be any higher than on any other jump, and it might actually be lower as the student is never invited to reach back and grab anything. Like I mentioned earlier, the student has no idea what the handles are or how to use them. There is no reason to suspect that in an emergency (real or imagined) that the student would reach for them. They are just as likely to reach for anything within their grasp, or nothing at all. This is a tandem student with tandem student training. They know nothing of malfunctions or emergency procedures and would not act like a skydiver in a similar situation. Additionally, I would hope that the TI would be keep a close eye on the student in general, given the nature of the jump.

Oh yeah, that guy. When I first read through this thread, I didn't even click on those links because it said a JVX at +4.0, and I figured it was Luigi on his 30-whatever he jumps. After your comment, I did have a look. He used to post on here as 'Steele', or something like that, and got hell for jumping that VX-55 at 4.0+. Everyone said it was stupid, and just beyond the point of anything that made sense, but he argued that it was fine and he liked the performance. As you can easily see in the second link, the last jump he put on the 55, that he was nowhere near maxing the canopy out, and looked like he just barely survived the swoop. Of course we see in the first link that he has now downsized, and continues to look like he's barely surviving the swoop. I'll give him points for making it this long on those tiny canopies, but it still doesn't make any sense. You can't jump them in traffic, you can't get out more than 1/4 mile from the DZ, and you can't really fly with anyone except a light weight, expert wingsuit pilot. Stupid? Yes. A desperate cry for attention? Probably. Success in jumping tiny canopies for several years? Amazingly, also a yes.

With very limited experience in filming freestyle, I will say that it's similar to filming skysurfing in that there's a fair amount of belly flying and freeflying mixed together. Of course you'll need to get your freefly skills in order, and while you practice that be sure to include transitions from belly to freefly and back because you'll need them. The big thing to keep in mind is that you need a routine for every jump you do. Nobobdy can go up there and stick with a freestylist or skysurfer if they don't know what the plan is. If you don't know that a major speed change is about to happen, you'll never be able to stay tight through the changes. Even for basic practice dives, have a plan in place so you can be 1/2 step ahead of the flyer, and already be halfway through your transition when they make their next move. Overall, just remember that this is a far cry from RW video, and it will take awhile to get good consistant footage. Be sure to debrief both of your performances after each dive, but do it one at a time. Focus on the flyer first, than start over from the beginning and break down what you did.

The cost of the haircut pays for a haircut. The tip pays for any effort beyond the standard haircut. The tip also covers your end of the 'social contract'. It's no secret in this country that a barber is a tipped position. If you see the same barber on a regular basis, and have developed a relationship with them and you do not tip, you are not holding up your end of the social contract, and you end up looking like (and probably being trated like) an ass. Whatever business case you want to make for a tip is irrelevant. The standard has already been set that a barber gets a tip. You can always go to a different shop each time, or go to one of those 'supercuts' type location, and in those cases you can not tip, and not feel the effects of doing so. If you never see the same barber twice, then the person cutting your hair doesn't know that you're not going to tip. Like I said, if you frequent a certain shop or barber, they'll remember you and treat you accordingly on future visits. I don't mind tipping a barber/stylist. I could never do their job, standing there all day making small talk with a string of people you see every month or so. More power to them, and few extra bucks out of my pocket isn't going to break me.

What? Financially irresponsible Americans living beyond their means? Surely you jest....

Like I said above, because of the tips, restaurants are allowed to pay the wait staff something like $3 an hour. The rest of their income (aka all of it) comes from tips. $3 an hour is the same for every restaurant, regardless of the cost of the food. Here's another thing to think about - waiters/waitresses get tips two ways, cash or added on to a credit card bill. When they get cash, it's theirs to keep, but they are supposed to report their earnings to the government and pay taxes on that income. Each waiter/waitress will report as much or as little of that cash as they want, and pay taxes on that amount. When you add a tip to the credit card, the restaurant collects all of the money from the credit card company, and gives the waiter/waitress the cash amount of the tip. That income is now on record, and since the restaurant was involved in the process (with written records of it all), the restaurant will often times report that income and withold the taxes from the waiters next paycheck. So the $3 an hour gets used up paying taxes, and often times the 'paycheck' from the restautant is almost zero.