ianmdrennan

Miss a chance to hang out with you and Joe? No way

My wife and I will be there too. Blue skies Ian Performance Designs Factory Team

Well...F*ck me. He's even more crazy than I originally thought

I'm gonna guess he was using a wingsuit. The decent rate looks too slow to be anything else. If so, I think I may have seen outside vid of this somewhere (or something similar) - it's just insane. Blue skies Ian Performance Designs Factory Team

That's some serious "pucker factor" going on there. Impressive to watch - but I think that's where I'll leave it

I've often wondered if excessive slider flapping can cause canopy stability problems. I've always felt like I'm going over speed bumps if mine pop'ed out. Is it more my imagination or can it be detrimental to stability on canopies that are designed to have them collapsed? Blue skies Ian Performance Designs Factory Team

Maybe PD's prices went up, but I'm pretty sure they still offer demos for 2 weeks. Dunno about the others though. Blue skies Ian Performance Designs Factory Team

Yeah it's a good thing to know about. You can apply it to later canopies that you'll fly as well. Tell me about it...isn't it just great

I'd agree but he asked

No problem, we're just saying that increased speed changes your flare height, so without the higher decent rate your flare could be too high if that's what you're used to. Video will help figure this one out (or just an experienced person watching). I find that *most* times people complain that there is too much line slack, it's because they have lazy flares - so make sure you're doing a full flare all the way down (Not saying you aren't, just saying it's a common thing). To check brake line slack - If the lines are too short when pulling down on a front riser (in clear airspace up high) there will be deflection of the tail. There should be a reasonable amount of slack line, but not excessive. A very slight bow in the brake lines will do. Way to check if the brakes are set too long (in clear airspace up high) - slowly apply the brakes until you cannot go any further (careful about stalling). If the canopy is nowhere near stalling (not saying it should stall, but it should start to get "mushy") they're probably too long...that said I know of at least 1 person who needs to take more than 1 wrap to stall the canopy (sabre2 135) and can still land just fine in no winds so it's what you feel comfortable with. Finally, remember this is a demo. I don't think PD want you fiddling too much with the break settings, but I really don't know their policy on this. Call and find out before making a change to their gear that could affect someone else. Hope this helps. Blue skies, Ian Performance Designs Factory Team

don't forget the black goggles Performance Designs Factory Team

ahhh got it. Knew they'd moved somewhere recently. Thanks for the correction. Blue skies Ian Performance Designs Factory Team

Skydive Elsinore has the Icarus Evolution guys (I think) and Perris has the Team Extreme guys. Dunno Cali enough to know how close they are, but I'd look at those 2 offerings in that area. Blue skies Ian Performance Designs Factory Team

I've never really liked the idea of teaching a 2 stage flare (I understand it's necessity). I prefer a smoother approach throughout the entire flare, from start to finish. You should be able to comfortably land that canopy with no additional speed enhancing maneuvers. My guess is that you either started the flare too high and lacked sufficient forward speed at an above normal height to soften the landing or that you flared late, had to power on the flare, and killed a lot of your available lift. My guess goes with a higher flare seeing as you talk about normally using fronts (so generally the flare will start a little higher). Get someone to video the landing, a lot can often be learned about how the canopy is reacting and how you're actually flaring it (including height). I can land straight in and still get a great landing, no reason (other than technique) you couldn't get the same under the sabre2. Forget about introducing speed for the first couple of landings (especially on a new canopy), get them pegged first, then add the speed afterwards. For every canopy I've owned, I've "started" my flight progression from the beginning (flat turns, straight in approaches, rear risers up high, etc). It's a recipe for success in my opinion. Jump it more, learn more about it, stay safe and it'll treat you well. Blue skies Ian Performance Designs Factory Team

Sounds like you've found a home Mark? Will definately come up a couple of times this year and check it out. Good luck guys. Blue skies Ian Performance Designs Factory Team

I think one of the best things you could do is call a reputable manufacturer and explain your needs for freeflying. They'll be able to tell you how freefly suits are changing and what would be best suited for your flying needs. I'm with JP on this one, I don't believe "baggier is better" and personally think tighter suits are often a better choice (Material can make a difference). Take a look at Alchemy, Dave Brown, etc. All their suits have tightened up a LOT and I'd expect over the years to see them tighten up more. Same progression as RW went through. Time will tell though Blue skies Ian Performance Designs Factory Team

Baggier suits don't necessarily mean slower fall rates. The more drag the harder it is to get your legs wide enough to control fallrate nicely. My next suit, I'm tightening the legs up a bit. Blue skies Ian Performance Designs Factory Team

I'll be down in Deland in May, I'll have to try hook up with him then. Thanks man, Blue skies Ian Performance Designs Factory Team

I stopped regularly using packers when they went up to $6 bucks at my old dz. I do 18-20 loads a weekend on a good weekend, so start adding that up over the course of a season and it gets really high. My feelings are - take the $5 you would have made from me or I'll pack it myself (which I do now anyway so I guess it's a non issue). More money for me to jump with

The construction complexity of a X-braced + airlocked canopy has to be tremendous. That'd be my bet. Blue skies Ian Performance Designs Factory Team

Well if you're going to print the entire thread out..... YOU BOTH SUCK!!! Just kidding bro, see you soon

Yeah, and tell Jim to contact me through dz.com. Know if he's come through GA yet on his travels? Blue skies Ian Performance Designs Factory Team

Not that I have a problem with the dz doing this, I think it's cool, but you cannot compare ladies night (ONE night) to an entire season of "ladies night". There is a difference

You stole that from PJ and I you dirty little whore!!! Admit it!!!

You're so lucky I didn't have my camera on when you tried to mow the grass in Sebastian with your teeth