ianmdrennan

Settle down and discuss this civilly please - everyone. Performance Designs Factory Team

Rigless, Please stop trying to start a brand war. Not sure why you have such a large chip on your shoulder but every post you make is along the same lines. Appreciate your cooperation here. We're all canopy pilots having a good time - if you spent any significant amount time around the competition arena you'd realize this. Ian Performance Designs Factory Team

I'm not sure what the wind was on that run, but it was within limits. I think we were hovering around 5 mps most of the time on day 1 and 2. Ian Performance Designs Factory Team

You mean it will boost PD to come up with something similar? Cause I bet it's not the most fun times in PD HQ right now after seeing Nick perform with Petra like this.. I know you're really, really, really LIKE to believe this but it's just not true. It's a great thing for pilots, from all brands, that the Petra is performing so well. Ian Performance Designs Factory Team

http://www.dropzone.com/cgi-bin/forum/gforum.cgi?do=post_view&post=4165505 Post with a video of the 220 meter run in it. Contrary to a few "vendor wars" folks belief, it was AWESOME seeing the old record get smashed by so much. Can't wait to see what the future holds for the sport. Onward and upward! Performance Designs Factory Team

I know it's not the record run, but I think we can settle for a "2 meter shy" version Thanks to Steve for the upload. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_mfgBDWukoA&feature=player_embedded Performance Designs Factory Team

There are probably a million other things to focus on, if performance is your concern, before a RDS. Ian Performance Designs Factory Team

No video, but it's hardly a secret Performance Designs Factory Team

It was a crazy long swoop. JT beat the standing record with a 194 meter swoop, then Nick came through and crushed everybody with 222. It was incredible to see. The speed record still stands, we've have a couple of 2.1 and 2.2's (and 2 runs that were 1 and 2 tens of a second off the record). It's close to going down. Performance Designs Factory Team

It's been called off. My razor is blunt from shaving your mom..... Performance Designs Factory Team

with his tights too...... and his short, shorts...... Performance Designs Factory Team

PBKAC. Problem between the keyboard and chair. As an IT guy, I'd say my life is pretty damn good. Except when I have to deal with some of the more stupid users..... Performance Designs Factory Team

Fortunately not. There was no skill involved in getting out of that mistake. Pure luck, nothing else. I didn't listen to my inner voice, and pushed a situation I knew wasn't good. Thankfully I lucked out and am still here (so people hiding behind anonymous profiles can take shots ) I'm pretty comfortable owning up to my mistakes, they are what they are. Edit: btw - since you can't accept PM's I'll have to do this in public. Your signature is inappropriate for any posts outside of the speakers forum. You have until tomorrow to change it before I ban you from this forum and hide your posts. Ian Performance Designs Factory Team

Ok, that's about enough of that. Thread locked. Op - this is your one and only warning. No PA's. Argue with Dave all you want, but if it comes down to name calling (like it has) - I'll have to give you a time out. Now, to answer your question: Get coaching, yes I know it's expensive, but hospital bills are more so. The reality is, that if you want to go about this 'the right way' then you're going to have to get input. The earlier the better. And, if you're serious about getting better, you'll find a way to make it work. Done. Ian Performance Designs Factory Team

That's strange. I didn't think having a dedicated swoop pond/student area/experienced jumpers/round/balloon/pink colored canopy landing area superceeded low man right of way. Are you saying that swooper couldnt see perfectly and clear his airspace? Interesting... It's very simple Remi. Hp areas should be treated with the same caution as hazards. They are. Enter at your own risk. Ian Performance Designs Factory Team

My experiences have been the exact opposite. Almost all the close calls I've seen (particularly in the last 2 months) have involved "docile" canopies in the regular landing area. That is NOT to say Hp doesn't suffer the same problems, it most definitely does. Bottom line - don't be complacent, no matter where you're landing. That sucks. It reminds me how lucky we are at The Farm. Hop n pops are welcomed, and if someone chooses to go to altitude, there are two VERY large landing areas (one for swoopers, one for standard approaches). Personally, I rarely go to altitude (unless it's a pull from 13,000 ft). I don't like traffic and prefer having my playground as uncluttered as it can possibly be

I disagree. There's little point to separating landing areas if people are going to say "it's ok,". No, it's not ok. Of course, that doesn't mean that it's not GOING to happen, of course it is, people make mistakes. But it's definitely not ok and should be treated just as seriously as a knuckle head swooping in the regular pattern. If I go blasting down the highway, the wrong way, 1 day after I get my driving permit - the cop's aren't going to say "It's ok, he's just a student". Ian Performance Designs Factory Team

Lets keep this stuff out of the condolences thread, and in Safety and Training. Blues, Ian Performance Designs Factory Team

What is it with you, and some others, using drunk driving analogies when discussing high performance landings? I can only assume it's to get an emotional response from people. Perhaps, a better analogy (and a less emotional one) may be to use a discipline that actually takes practice, skill, and hard work to achieve any sort of proficient status in. Cj brought up a valid point. Like it or not, people who've dedicated a significant portion of their skydiving career to just understanding parachute flight are going to be better equipped than people who haven't (and that's the majority). This is true for almost all things in, and outside of skydiving. Ian Performance Designs Factory Team

I disagree. Think you are mistaking the luck you had with skill. Performance Designs Factory Team

Wow - they pulled it off. Surprisingly good. I really enjoyed it, particularly Loki's performance. Performance Designs Factory Team

Vladi Pesa used to jump a KA at 2.5 and loved it, I believe. Personally, I found that I far preferred the velo once I hit the 2.0 loading range. Performance Designs Factory Team

Those people are part of the problem too. I watched 2 of the closest calls for canopy collisions I've seen in a long time this weekend. BOTH involved skydivers doing 'regular' patterns, under large docile canopies. The only reason they didn't hit was luck. in one of the cases, the pilots never even knew they had a close call..... I've been working on an article (if nothing than for my own desire to see this problem minimized) but quickly realized how hard it was to write. There are so many variables and intersections that pilots are unaware of that it's hard to put it all in a cohesive document without oversimplifying the problem (which on the surface seems simple itself). Couple that with the fact that 99% of them fly with exactly the mentality mentioned above when in reality they *should* be flying like a motorcyclist rides - constantly evaluating, predicting, reacting, and reevaluating. It should feel like a full time job from the second you open because, simply stated, it is. Now, HP pilots SHOULDN'T be a problem if your dz is following the group pledge. If they aren't that's a separate issue. But as the system stands now, there should not be any 'mixed' landing areas. If there are, then I'd start by addressing that at your DZ. Blues, Ian Performance Designs Factory Team

Nah, I doubt it's anything that nefarious. It's business. They want to know where you are, what you're doing, so they can market to you and sell more stuff. Pretty much it. Ian Performance Designs Factory Team

Again, misdirection. I'm starting to think it's intentional, Bill. Pilots in the standard pattern (90 degrees or less) are going to make turns - and people are still going to collide with the current mindset. Pilots in the HP pattern (>90 degrees) are going to make turns - and people are still going to collide with the current mindset. I don't know Bill, maybe in the end we really are saying the same thing, and I'm just misunderstanding you. I found this post by Nathan, and I thought it pretty much summed up the problem, and my concern with the current mindset. http://www.dropzone.com/cgi-bin/forum/gforum.cgi?post=4103094;#4103094 Performance Designs Factory Team