davelepka

The product doesn't exist because it won't really help you. If your camera is not taking pics, what are you going to do? Stop the jump and start over? Maybe with a digital camera, where you could could waste a frame or two in the plane to check the light, you might be able to do something, but again, are you donning your helmet early enough to check your camera, see a problem, get the helmet off, fix the problem and be ready to go when the door opens?

This, often times without the benefit (I use that term loosely) of any jumps on an F-111 canopy, save some possible jumps on a 280 sq ft student canopy. I second your hah. Hah!

With Aerodyne having this problem as well, is there a chance they have changed the cutting fluid they use? Is there a solvent or cleaning procedure the mfgs could use before installation? It would certainly be easier and open to wider range of cleaners as there would be no risk of damaging the container (as when you try to clean them after the fact). I don't think I've looked at a public phone in years anyway.

In most cases that may be so. Due to some technical mumbo jumbo (TSO-something or other), the PDR 281 is actually rated to 300 lbs, up from the 254 lbs. of the PDR 253.

The question here is the ability of your reserve. 1.3 on a PD-99R is 103 lbs. A 103 lb jumper will be doing approx. 95 mph at terminal. The reserve will have no problem holding together at that speed. Your speed at terminal is likely to be much higher. With an exit weight of 270 lbs, it's not unreasonable to expect you to be in excess of 130 of 140 mph and opening a reserve. How do you feel your canopy plioting skills will hold up with a blown cell, or a several broken lines? In truth, even if your reserve holds up, I think you'll be surprised at the lack of performance your Cricket will offer you at 1.3. None of this is even considering the possibility of a premature reserve deployment during freeflying or swooping to a formation where you will grossly exceed the limitations of your reserve. Scary stuff.

Holy shit, this thread is out of control. Here's the bottom line, if you want to skydive for a long time, and not get busted up, you need to watch out for yourself. The more times you inrtoduce 'unknown' factors to your jumps, the more you risk an incident. How does this relate? The unknown factor in a tandem is the student. Nobody, the student included, knows what they will do once they leave the plane. In fact, students can cause all kinds of havok even before they leave the plane. Back to the story, the time between the exit and drouge toss is the most crucial time for all involved. For the TM ans student, it's the time where things can really go wrong. Student body position, type of AC, TM skill, and luck all factor in to get the TM an oppertunity to get a clean drouge toss. Any video guy can attest to seeing many tandems who took an extra roll, or had a drouge bounce off of a foot on a seemingly normal exit. The video guy is also workig his hardest at this point. While the trajectory is roughly the same, the presentation, as well as the duration of freefall (before the drouge toss) both conspire to hide the passenger from the video, or leave the video guy in the dust. This is where the video guy earns his money. Once the drouge is out, the tandem is a sitting duck, and a retarded monkey could film them. So what about the grips? All of the unknown factors in the first part of the jump are why you need to keep your hands to yourself. You seem to think that you can just 'let go' if things go wrong. Sure, you could, but this is where your flying skills will be needed. The same skills that would let you get the same shot without the grip are needed to stay clear of whatever is going wrong. If you have the skills, why take the added risk of the dock? Stay clear, and let the Tm do his job, and let the student do whatever stupid thing they are going to do. Once the drouge is out? Assuming you are not directly above or below the tandem, the gloves are off. Do what ever the TM is comfortable with. Shit, even if the TM doesn't like it, they can't really stop you at that point (of course they may kick your ass once you all land). As far as your experience is concerned, you have alot to learn. Your tunnel time, and military experience will not help you with tandem video. Tnadem video experience will help you with tandem videos. Yes, I really am that much better than I was 8 years ago, and was shooting decent video eight years ago. Ask any of the true high time video guys, Rickster, McGowan, etc., and they will tell you how much they learned on jumps 5000 thru 10,000. It never ends. Well, for them it never ends, which is why they are where they are. Those who think differently are the ones who never get anywhere. If you think you've got it down at 300 jumps, congrats, that as good as you'll ever get. If you open up your mind, and shut your piehole, you'll continue to learn thru jump 3000 and jump 13000.

Sweet. Be sure to post the video when the student freaks and takes a death grip on your head. Thats quite the conclusion Einstien. Seeing as TM's are as mobile as a fish out of water, I should hope you can outfly them. Actually, they should hope you can outfly them, as it's your job. Again, the real point here is that is you have the skills, you should be able to fly your slot without the grip. If you need to hold on to stay tight, you shouldn't be that close anyway. Here's your problem, you don't know shit. With 280-some jumps, how many tandem videos could you possibly have? 180? 200 tops? How many DZ's have you worked at? How many TM's have you jumped with? How many different tandem systems have you filmed (yes, they are different)? I'm glad you know so much so soon. You won't be jumping that long anyway, so it's good you got the 411 so quickly.

You've got quite the attitude jackass. If you or your buddy had any skills, you wouldn't need a link. Taking grips is for guys who can't fly their slot. Get a clue.

Thats one thing. Others were talking about instructing them beacuse they would do the jumps anyway, and they'd be better off with the help. This is what I disagree with. I understand that at some point, all skydiving activites come down to the individual jumper (tandems aside). However, unlike swooping, birdman, or even freefly, shooting video involves jumping with others who are not paying attention to what you are doing, or are unable to do anything about it anyway (such as tandems, beacuse once the drouge is out, all those guys can do is pull a handle). I'll take a newbie up to freefly with me anytime. I got my eye on him the whole time, and I'm in control of the situation. Having a newbie film a four way I'm on? Not gonna happen. I'm focused on the four way, and who knows what the noob is doing out there.

Are you serious? A main deployment system needs to be easy to repack, and is designed to be used in a specific situation (as in belly to the wind, at about terminal velocity). The reserve deployment system does not need to be easy to repack, and is designed to be functional in a variety of situations. Two different applications, two different solutions.

My reply to this begins with this : All of the confidence and good intentions you may have, and all of the confidence and good intentions of whom ever is coaching you means nothing when you climb out of the plane. YOU are getting yourself into a situaiton that may go bad. YOU are the only one who can help yourself at that point. Rickster, Norm Kent, and Gus Wing combined cannot save your ass if you blow it. OK, now take your mental state and your maturity, ands add it to your confidence and good intentions from above. They will not help you when the shit hits the fan. This is not a popularity contest, nor is Miss America because being congeneal will not help you. Shooting video is a skill. Either you have the experience and mental accumen to do it or you don't. I don't care who you are or what kind of person you are, you need several hundred jumps to develop the skills you need to focus your attention on a job, and continue skydiving safely at the same time. The trick is that the people who do have th ebest attitudes are the ones who are conservative about it, and usually want to wait longer than suggested. Just by trying to push the limits, a jumper has already made his attitude and intentions known.

Shooting video is hard to do without subjects. If everyone would use their heads, and not allow such jumpers to film them, the problem would be solved. As it is, there are more than enough people who are happy to let anyone with a camera film them. You have your actor, and your enablers, it's a complete package. All I can do is make sure I'm not an enabler, and sit back and watch the fur fly. By assisting in any way, I am only adding to the problem. Remember what I said about your coach not being able to save your ass when you blow it? How about if I was the coach, under the premise of 'He'll do it anyway, so I'd better help', and the guy blows it big time, and hurts himself as well as others? What do I say to the innocent bystanders? How do I answer their question when they ask "Why would you let him shoot video? You've got all that experience, so we thought you knew what you were doing coaching him to film. Meanwhile this guy crashes into the formation, and almost killed me".

So a guy who doesn't have the good sense to listen to the general consensus regarding jump numbers is magically going to gain that sense when you put a camera on his head, and put him in the sky with other jumpers? It would seem to me that the attitude that got him 'ready' to jump camera before others though he was ready, is the same attitude I'm going to look at when I decide to to send him packing when he wants advice. Here's a point that I made in another post: All of the confidence and good intentions you may have, and all of the confidence and good intentions of whom ever is coaching you means nothing when you climb out of the plane. YOU are getting yourself into a situaiton that may go bad. YOU are the only one who can help yourself at that point. Rickster, Norm Kent, and Gus Wing combined cannot save your ass if you blow it.

Just to be clear, I was refering to a high fall rate tandem, that the newbie video guy was struggling to stay with. All it would take is any physical reaction from the camera flyer to the TI's going in for the pull. Even an attempt to back up when you are at 101% of your fall rate will produce some float. Given it's a newbie, I could see that float being accompanied by some forward drive, and there you have the camera flyer in the lines. I agree that it is stupid for the TI to dump with someone above him, HOWEVER, of the few tandems I have done, none were with video, but I can say that I felt as if I had several blind spots above me. I can also say that at pull time, I wanted to pull, and if I had lost my video guy, a quick scan of what I could see is all I would give before releasing the drouge. That being said, if a skydiver cannot commit to being able to abide by the safety requirements of shooting video 100% OF THE TIME, WITH NO EXCEPTIONS, they should not be jumping with any tandems in any situation. Period.

A) I'd like to think that the sink rate of your F-111 main compared ot that of your new ZP model comprised the bulk of the difference. B) Under canopy, it's all about time, not speed. The longer you have to set-up, or think, or choose, or decide the better.

Lets not forget your Wl on those canpoies. Lets also not forget your higher than average upper body strength. Your level of command over the situation will extend well past that of a mere mortal (like skinny guys and girls).

And there you have it. If everyone (including the 50 jump wonder) had the same attitude, they would be watching out for themselves, as opposed to hanging under canopy wiping the drool from their chins. Too many people think that they are beginners, or low time jumpers, and that things are different for them. When it comes to how many points they can turn, or how far they can swoop, yes, things are different. But the fact remains that you are risking your life just like me, and need to have a basic level of awareness and responsibility for yourself. If you can't handle that, stop jumping. Please. (Not you Dave)

Don't slow canopies spend more time in the air, thus opening them up to more options? Are we expecting too much from jumpers to be aware of their surroundings? My guess is that he's not talking about student jumpers, so is it really too much to expect that after 50 or 60 jumps, the concept of where you are and what you're doing is apparent to every jumper? I'm sure that none of these jumpers opened up and said "I gonna hose that swooper, and block the swoop lane", they just ended up there. I'm sure they would have prefered to not be in the way, but the fact that they were shows a complete lack of awareness. Wake up people, you just jumped out of a plane, and are still thousands of feet up. Your life depends on your actions for the next few minutes, start acting like it.

Have ever seen your father swoop a canopy? Have ever seen him swoop that canopy? Have you ever seen him do it with rear risers? I haven't. Maybe lay off the swooping in general for few more jumps. You are loading that canopy up a little, so balance that out by holding off on the swooping a little longer. It will pay off in the end.

Often times this advice is being given in regards to canopies with a higher WL than what you are working with. You are currently jumping at 1.1 and looking to move up to 1.23. Even if you consider the smaller size of the canopies, the range is still on the low side of what many swooping WL discussions have been about. Here's why I think that doing a 270 on a canopy at 1.1 to 1 is not the best idea: - The turn recovery of the canopy is so fast, that you will have to initiate your turn at a low altitude. While this is true with any turn, the 270 is more complex and requires a higher commitment to the trun (both bad at a low altitiude). - The riser pressure on a canopy 1.1 will build very quickly through the turn. Should you loose your strength, the let the riser pull out of your hands, you will have a problem because.... - A canopy at 1.1 does not provide sufficient response from a harness turn to effectively control or complete a turn. If I do a 270, for example, I'll start my turn at 600ish feet. My canopy has enough harness response that I could fly the entire turn without a riser. Once the turn is complete, I have a long dive to ride out while I eyeball the ground. After the first third of this dive, I can assume control of the canopy, and stop the dive fairly quickly. These are all safegaurds that I have in place when I swoop. The physics of a canopy with a lower WL will negate these safegaurds. Provided that you progress in slow and methodical manner, the 120 would be a fine canopy to progress to. Even doing the 180's on your 135 might be slightly pushing the limits if it's practicality. Of course, others seems to think otherwise. Please consult the best canopy pilot you know who has seen you fly, and carefully consider all opinions.

If you have the Minolta release, you can cut the wire, and take the connector end, and solder it onto a bite switch.

Oh, I thought of another one! Look for a thread called, 'The Best Instructor I Have Ever Seen'. It's about this guy Bram, who has every rating under the sun. Anyway, I filmed him for a couple seasons, and when I started working with him I had several thousand video jumps to my credit. Over the course of two years, I learned buckets of stuff from him. Stuff that never occured to me before, but there it was. Buckets of stuff. Do you even have a half-bucket of knowledge? How about a Super Gulp full of knowledge? How much do you think you know? Really? Edit: Keep in mind that your DZO wants to help you. and I'm sure he will help to the fullest extent of his ability UNTIL you climb out of the plane. From that point on you are on your own, and all the confidence the rest of the world has in you is useless.

'They' and 'you' make it seem like it's his and only his problem. When he's filming a tandem on a Vector tandem, it's a fat guy who he has trouble staying down with, and he gets just a touch high at pull time, and viola, the trapdoor sucks him into the lines. Now it's everyone's problem (everyone on the jump).

No, but you sound like an honest fella. You admitted to having 60-some jumps, and I beleive you. What I have done is flown camera for thousands of jumps over the past eight years. If I combine that with what I do know about you, I can reach a pretty fair conclusion. Do you think you're the first guy who wanted to get an early start? The first guy who showed some promise, and a DZO pushed into an open slot in the staff? The first guy who thought they knew it all? I'm not sure what you think, but what I think is that you're going to do whatever you want to anyway. So why don't you let me poke fun at you and your situation, and you can get busy with you're video career. Oh, don't forget about the magic camera factor. It seems that when you get a camera on your head, your brain works better, and in addition to flying video, you also turn into an ace canopy pilot. Lets cut that 190 in half, so you can get to work (you can use the other half in a back-up rig).

Thats funny, thats what I was going to say, expect without the look, and the arch is optional. What else is funny is that this guy says that he knows the dangers of video, and can 'handle himself'. Well, for at least a handful (say 10% of jumps) he needed to be handled by a TM, AFF-I, or an eight foot rope. When your numbers are so low that subtracting your student jumps makes a big difference, you need to slow it down, and re-think your situation. Just becasue his DZO needs a camera guy, doesn't mean that it's a good idea. I'm sure that everything will be 'fine', but if it's not, it's going to be really, really bad for at least one and maybe up to three people.