ianmdrennan

check out my buddie and I (he's walking across the top skin of the 84 I was jumping - he on the same) at Clicky . Under crew (not really crew) velocrew.wmv Blue skies Ian Performance Designs Factory Team

13500 - I try to do at least 1 every month, preferably more. Of course as it gets colder that will change

Check it out....there's some really nice stuff there. Hopefully these guys will come out with their own vid soon. Clicky. Choose the promo vid from the list and enjoy. Blue skies Ian Performance Designs Factory Team

what do the instructors at your dz say? I think they more than any of us know how you fly and what you are capable of. Blue skies Ian Performance Designs Factory Team

Then give me a xaos for nothing

whoops - all good. Blue skies Ian Performance Designs Factory Team

says I dont have access to that folder? Performance Designs Factory Team

I have some vid of Gary Harbird (flying his 84) walking all over my 96. We had some forward speed issues so we did it on 2 84's (got that on vid 2) and it worked great. Haven't actually hooked in the lines yet.....not sure I want to either

DISCLAIMER ========= I have no idea of your skills so I'm going to answer this based on the assumption that you are ready for something smaller. ========= Given the cost of X-braces I'd suggest buying something like a CF2 120 (I believe they are quite a bit cheaper) because I don't think the performance will be that much more noticable (if any) on a x-braced 120 (at the wingloading you mentioned) and I doubt it would be worth the additional expense. Also, a x-braced "feels" larger than a non x-braced of the same size (I went from a 120 to a 96 and borrow my friends 84 from time to time). I think I'd have to fire out the standard answer "Demo both" and see which feels better for you. If you like the x-braced 120 more than the CF2 120 then cool - it's all about what you want from the canopy so buy what fits your needs and skill level. Good luck, be safe, and demo as many as you can. Remember the dive arc of the CF2 and x-braced canopies is significantly longer (IMHO) than the stilletto. Blue skies Ian Performance Designs Factory Team

One of our jumpers weights about 230 - 240 (and has jumped it with 20 pounds of weights) out the door and jumps a 135. I've seen him get some sick swoops out of the thing and barely needs to take more than a few steps. If it's distance you're looking for there are probably better canopies out there. The person in question swears by it and has no desire to swoop the farthest he can, although he still goes pretty damn far. Hope this helps, Blue skies Ian Performance Designs Factory Team

Glad you're ok, and not to be picky but it is a common misconception that a headwind will keep you in a dive longer. This is just an illusion caused by you covering less ground over a period of time that you're used to, making it seem like you're diving longer, when in fact you're just staying over the same piece of ground longer. i.e. your situation was elevation induced. Scott Miller covers this extensively in his class, so if you ever have an opportunity to attend, I'd highly recommend it. Be safe and thanks for sharing the experience. Blue skies and safe swoops, Ian Performance Designs Factory Team

I had to pop my reserve, let it dry and have it repacked . Yep, if you're not a rigger, swooping ponds can be expensive. Blue skies Ian Performance Designs Factory Team

Bill is bang on the money. Just remember though that it's better to do a half flare (if you're really low when you use this turn technique which is the reason to learn it) than to let the toggles up and surge the canopy into the ground. Of course the amount of surge is dependant on how deep a flat turn you were doing in the first place. Blue skies Ian Performance Designs Factory Team

Here here!!! My wife and I love our Firefly suits. Great service to boot. Excellant job Firefly and especially Sherri. Blue skies Ian Performance Designs Factory Team

It's all good. I just thought I'd throw that in there. As long as we're all being safe I'm a happy camper

Agreed, but we're not talking about experienced flyers here. Rook Nelson once told me - learn all aspects of sit and stand before headdown, it'll make the transition easier. I figure he probably knows more than me

My part never arrived. Good luck - hope you don't need anything from them after you get the rig. blue skies Ian Performance Designs Factory Team

Nope, but I believe their camber is greater than non-x braced. They will however return to their regular decent rate if given enough altitude. blue skies Ian Performance Designs Factory Team

I have very little faith in a company that can't ship me a reserve handle after 3 calls and 3 promises (eventually I got Sunpath to make me one and guess what....I received it within a week and I only had to make one call to place the order). My complaints have nothing to do with waiting periods, but more with follow up service. I got everything just fine, but heaven forbid I should need something else from them after they've got the bulk of my cash. If you think you should have to "follow up" with a manufacturer then you've never experienced good customer service, or at least not what I have come to expect (and received) from other manufacturers. BTW while they are not gear manufacturers L&B should be everyones benchmark (They are nothing short of spectacular), sunpath were awesome with my wifes rig and PD were awesome with my Velocity and her Sabre2. Chute shop cannot hide behind "We're too small/busy" to take care of their existing customers. I will not be replacing my Vortex II with another of their products as there are plenty of other manufacturers out there who do care about customer service. Blue skies Ian Performance Designs Factory Team

I'd have to agree with the above (and I have a Vortex II). Container is great but customer service sucks. Not to mention that I believe the prices are now comparable with US rigs so I'd go to one of those manufacturers for better service. Blue skies Ian Performance Designs Factory Team

It's small, but certainly not tiny, and most jumpers do not weigh less than 150 pounds out the door. In fact I'd bet it's more like 170-190 out the door but I have no data to back that up, it's more of an observation. Odd, out of the light people I know, they typically only have trouble with front risers and thats normally from a full speed approach (So I teach them to use their brakes and then risers). I know NO-ONE that hasn't had the strength to pull down a rear riser on a lightly loaded canopy, but that's just me, I'm not saying your case isn't true...just once again the exception. According to Scott Miller further distance can be achieved using brakes (With the wind behind you than risers). Of course flying into the wind you wouldn't want to be using brakes at all, which would explain why you weren't getting any peneration. Thats cool and pretty responsible, but remember the reason we're discussing these things is because a number of us have proved we're not capable of thinking as rationally and carefully as you demonstrated. That fits in quite nicely with my recomendations. Remember the biggest canopy I had on my list was a 170. Yes but like I said we have to use averages, and even she is below the weight average. I used her as a demonstration that small people can do just fine and learn under a bigger canopy. She is by no means my benchmark. I do, I have yet so see gender play a part in my helping people. Of course this cannot always be said for everyone, but I see plenty of girls getting help that guys aren't simply because the local hotshot is interested in them. My point is that besides the physical traits, I'd like to think that gender is irrelevant when it comes to helping each other out. at least for most of us. Unfortunately you are right here, but thats because there are simply too many dynamics to roll us all into one category. Instead we have to do our best to find out what the norms and averages are. Thanks for the thoughtful post, maybe one day we'll get to discuss these things in person. I find that text doesn't always do an argument justice. Until then, Blue skies Ian Performance Designs Factory Team

eh? Performance Designs Factory Team

Skycat, First, remember these are recomendations. So you're telling me you need to fly something small to learn canopies? I'm sorry but I have to totally disagree with you here. The only thing you gain from smaller canopies is more speed and less room for error, so it's learn or get hurt. Well, to me, that's like saying to a 16 year old here's a mustang 5.0 if you're still alive in 2 years you've learn't everything ok. My wife (130 out the door) spent her first 165 jumps on a 170. She jumped in almost all conditions that I did (I had a 120 at the time) and didn't go backwards, and I see plenty of lighter and smaller people do it all the time. Unless you were jumping some ragged out PD there's no way you should be going backwards in 15 mph winds (maybe not too fast forwards, but enough). The wind argument is one I hear often and my response is almost always this...if it's so windy that you're going backwards, maybe you shouldn't be jumping anyway? I can't tell you the number of times junior jumpers have gone up while the more experienced (not necessarily jumps, but time in the sport) sit on the ground recomending not to go up and wait for the winds to come down or get less squirrly. I've seen enough light people break themselves to know that the above isn't a good idea. Just remember we're trying to come up with recomendations, so if the S&TA feels you can handle your 104 - fine, but the recomendations have to be written for the averages, not the exceptions. For the record I'd rather see education be effective that any sort of regulation/recomendation.....unfortunately it seems most of us (and myself included in my earlier years) are incapable of that as we think of ourselves as indestructable and "it'll never happen to us"....well....it does. Blue skies Ian Performance Designs Factory Team

Thank god someone finally mentioned that again. WL by itself skips over anyone who is a lightweight. I sent this recommendation to my USPA rep: Up to: 100 jumps Max 1.1 Wing load - Min size 170 200 jumps Max 1.2 Wing load - Min size 150 300 jumps Max 1.3 Wing load - Min size 150 400 jumps Max 1.4 Wing load - Min size 135 500 jumps Max 1.5 Wing load - Min size 120 Just my thoughts. Blue skies Ian Ian Performance Designs Factory Team

All the time. Unfortunately 9 times out of ten it's some toggle monkey whipping out turns on their 170 trying to beat down the smaller canopies and succeeding in doing nothing more than cluttering up the landing area (AKA Stilletto kid from Skymonkeys post). That said, our DZ is actively working on solutions to the small/large canopy dilema. Blue skies Ian Performance Designs Factory Team