Deuce

Thread killer.

You can mount it in front and drill an index hole to shoot either horizontal or vertical. I'm keeping my vertical until I get a cover shot. .

I was referring to generating a swoop with a turn greater than 90 degrees. Swooping is sexy, and big swoops after 180-degree + setups are like porn. You may not approve or want to try it, but it's hard not to watch. I like Bonnies term "Landing Turn". The swoopers at Byron generally set up in brakes and take turns letting their brakes up and initiating their landing turns to swoop. Like when you are under canopy and you want to know if the other pilot can see you, you bicycle your legs, they bicycle back and you know they are aware you are there. Maybe just the swooper clearing their airspace visually, setting up in brakes in cruciform for a moment before initiating their landing turn? Maybe that's the way to let other pilots know the swooper is about to dive out of the pattern on their final landing turn? While I agree that a good swoop can be generated from a 90 degree turn, that simply isn't the goal of most aspiring swoopers. They generally want to do a 270 degree + or a series of 180 degree + turns to swoop. How can we incorporate that into a standard flight pattern that allows for 180 degree+ high performance landing turns?

But Mary, the conversation where my opinion was not wanted was among swoopers who are all eligible to participate at that event. Great guys, creative geniuses, all, but among them, and among most swoopers at that tier, they are not uniform in their approaches, IMO, they are artistic. I really appreciate that genius, and if I had started half my life ago, I would like to think I'd be among them. I just can't take being out of the sport for six months waiting for an ankle or knee to heal up, and unfortunately for me, that's part of my learning curve. The competition at that level is pretty fearsome, and even the top tier people don't agree on uniformity, I suspect rejecting uniformity is part of what has garnered their success. At the competition, they will have the sky each to themselves, if it's like it was at the NorCal Swoop competition, they will hop and pop and then take their turns before cranking and banking their way into the gates. How do swoopers learn to crank and bank when they are in the pattern with the rest of the load? Tell SoCal I said Hi!

But Bill, I think it's agreed that to generate significant velocity, more than a double-fronts has to be used. Any suggestions on how that can be incorporated into one pattern that safely includes everybody?

Bonnie, you left "humble" regarding offering your opinion, way behind, long before I ever met you. Obviously. I really don't have any ideas regarding this. That's why I'm posting the question here. I was referring to dropzones other than Byron that I have jumped at quite a bit, regarding the first pilot down sets the pattern. I think that has been given as a solution to pattern conflict, and I haven't seen that it works. I think the rule that Byron has is the best one I've seen so far, when it is observed. As a "regular" canopy pilot on a Spectre loaded 1.56:1, why is it that traffic problems, just about everywhere in skydiving, are the business of the swoopers? You made my question seem specific to Sunday evening. It's not. It's a discussion that comes up every full day I've skydived this season. I have never heard a systematic answer that more than two people agreed with. Here it is again: Without using separate planes, without banning swooping, or creating a separate swooping area, or prohibiting turns over 90 degrees, how do we safely explain a pattern to an "A" license ticket holder that incorporates what to expect from swoopers. Now, I regret it if jumpers at my DZ take this personally. It's not about Byron. If I didn't think it was my best choice, I wouldn't jump there. I'm actually thinking of me. When I visit dropzones with a single landing area, where I don't know what canopies to look out for, make way for, and avoid, what questions do I need to ask? The kind of swooping that gets a pilot into serious competition seems to prevent a series of three 90 degree turns to landing, right? Qualified pilots who want to take their landing to the next level should be allowed to do so. So when those pilots are ready to take their landings and canopies to the next level, how to they do that safely in the same pattern they observed as students? The easiest one to see coming and teach students about is the big hard-carving 180. It's a downwind to base-final without stops. What I have heard is "the swoopers are down way before the students so the students don't have to worry about it" (not just at Byron) I'm an optimist. I believe it can be done, safely. On the water, it's easy, the more maneuverable craft must make way. So, if my timing is not off so much that I need to be told to fuck off, again, what is a good, simple rule like that that swoopers and non-swoopers can follow to both of their benefit?

Loiter, downwind, base, final. Left turns only. Except for swoopers, and demanded by some canopies, the need for more than a 90 degree turn to final. Not all DZ's have room or money for a separate landing area for swoopers. Last night I tried to join a discussion with some dominant swoopers at my DZ about how to accomodate "regular" pattern jumpers with those that do a 90 right and a 270 (or similar) left to final. Two of the three just walked away and the third just kind of looked at me kind of sad, like I just couldn't understand the concept because I generally don't ever do more than a 90 left to final. I would have posted this in swooping, but it's not really about swooping. It's about going to a dropzone and being told that it's a left hand pattern and expecting to participate in a left hand pattern and being surprised by low level acrobatics. The rule: "First one down sets the pattern" and the first one down rips a 180 at 200 feet when a jumper is set up behind him for a straight in forces that jumper to either rip a 180 too, or divert. Skydivers up high then see canopies landing in different directions and sometimes things really deteriorate into a free-for-all. I have heard swoopers say they get down so much faster than everybody else that they are not a factor, that when they are done with the landing area the "boat" fliers can then go back to their mundane downwind-base-final approaches. Having had the priveledge of watching most of the NorCal Canopy competitions that were held at Byron(congrats Vic!), I was impressed by how each swooper developed a pretty unique approach to generate the velocity necessary to get speed and distance to set new records. What has set me off is this "rolling of the eyes" "you don't get to sit with the grown-ups" attitude I have encountered when trying to discuss this with some swoopers. How to have everybody (AFF, tandems, swoopers, boats, and tandems) safely, out of one plane, into a single landing area. Can't ban swooping, can't just do 90's. Any suggestions?

Hey, thanks! I was also thinking maybe of one with a tandem that said "Don't hook up with an idiot!" Thanks for all the suggestions, and especially the beer hijack. Classy!

OK, I'm a realtor as my day job. The marketing folks all tell me that I need to exploit my skydiverness to get prospects. I always feel wierd while wearing a tie telling people that I am a skydiving instructor. It has almost always been well recieved, though. My most recent listing is from a traditional Muslim family. They fire their first agent, and hire me. In the process I tell them that on the weekends I teach skydiving. Whoops (I think), Abdul (the 70-something patriarch) is going to tell me I have obligations to my family, I should not be taking risks, etc.... Instead, he smiles grandly and tells me he thinks I have it all together. That I have a balance between work, family, and my hobby. I do too, but I was surprised to hear it from this 70 year old professor of agricultural science. What do you think about some slogans for a Realtor who is a skydiving instructor? I was thinking of me attached to a tandem with the slogan: "Don't hook up with an idiot Realtor" but I figure I would get busted by the Realtor Ethics Police. A "real" marketing/PR firm charges on the order of 10 to 20 grand for something like this, but I think you guys can out-do the for bandwidth. Thanks. Here's a couple of possibilities. How would you caption them in a way that would attract people to call me about there real estate needs? I'm completely ready for the crackpot responses, but some real ones would be appreciated.

Why stop there? Could they have reversed your cutaway and reserve handles too? That'd be really cool when you lend it out later! Crap! Total malfunction! I can't find the handle with three sweeps! Deploy reserve! Cutaway main! Never lend that custom rig out. Otherwise it's fairly cool, in a bumblebee kinda way... left hand deployment

"...A one in a million girl!" Very cool! What's the significance of the star embroidery? It's really cool. Did you design that yourself and have Ankie and company do it?

http://aolsvc.news.aol.com/news/article.adp?id=20050316173209990011&ncid=NWS00010000000001 Shows how much I am paying attention.

He's also shot tens of thousands of cheerleaders. I'm betting he'd shoot just about whatever was in front of him. What does the "Team Snatch Force" logo look like, anyway?

It may be cropped and upside down, you'd be better off asking Matthias. He posted the actual exit shot on NCS a while back with the caption "Hota Peh Head Down" and it took a couple days for Genomoto to post back "Holy Shit, that's a Tandem, isn't it!" or something like that. I was laughing once it settled down, cause Matthias was arching like I'd never seen him arch before!

....and going in is not an alternative. Just think of the paperwork involved and the debate on dizzydotcom. Shark, from some of the very sharp criticism, I need to ask you if you are being sarcastic? As I tell my students: If you die, I will probably die with you, so knock that off. I have things to do tonight, so let's get about our skydive and stop talking abouty the end, eh?

Don't drag my non-San-Francisco-inoculated team into this. This is me and you. I'll wear a Lori Thomas thong on the last jump if you go commando. (I'm thinking an all-seeing-eye masonic kind of thingie) So there. (The sound of the gauntlet being thrown to the crickets chirping)

I'm not wearing shorts, I'm wearing baggy pants, but I am wearing a T-shirt. I've got about 400 tandems now, and my suit was not a significant contribution on this one. This chick was just nuts. She seemed to be listening, she was cool as we moved to the door, and then she did the magnificent de-arch. I did not pitch on my back. We were barrel-rolling and moving towards tandem terminal, max load. As we came around to belly to earth, I pitched, we continued to roll as the drogue inflated, we did not get inverted again, but were pulled belly-to earth by the drogue right as that picture was taken. If I had pitched in that position the drogue would not be inflated. I'm not being defensive, I'm explaining. If Mr. Booth want's to chime in on what to do, or somebody else who's opinion I respect because I know them, I'm open to criticism. Sometimes the student does not cooperate, I posted my "no shit there I was" photo to help out other tandem masters and encourage dialogue. Am I ashamed? What a silly question. No. Did this student de-arch and put her hands and legs out in front of herself because it was the first or last thing I told her? No. I was slightly bigger than her. As to the suit I put her in, you simply don't put pudgy, big, middle-aged ladies in skin tight suits. The big ones you want to slow down so the camera flier can keep up. It's the little ones you put in skin tight suits. People, you have to see the video. Would a baggy suit have helped? It wouldn't have hurt, but it would not have made the difference of allowing me to get belly to earth before deploying under tandem terminal. I got her under control when the drogue was out, and that was something in itself. I have seen Master tandem masters have to deploy under droguefall early because the student was just too wiggy. So, what do we tell the students when, and why? As to the "shame on you" nonsense, I'm immune to it, or I wouldn't have posted the picture. If you have something positive to contribute, please do. Learn from my positive experience. Hone it. I don't consider this a screwup on my part. I could have borrowed a baggy suit to jump in, but that would only have made things marginally better. You had to be there. On my tandem system: No Drogue=No Main. If the student is not going to get stable, you have to get it out there. It happens. That's why in my tandem training the instructor on the front on one dive does everything he or she can to prevent you from getting stable and takes you to tandem terminal. If it was so easy to prevent, it would not be part of the lesson plan. Learn from it or not. It happens.

Bitch. I'm going to wear my shoes the whole time I get an excuse to visit your house! I'm broken hearted that you recommended one of your daily friends to them over me. -broken hearted. Lori, yeah we played phone tag a bit. I'm really looking forward to my second Nationals T-shirt. And we'll be the Cinderella story of Nationals!

They are a beautiful couple. Janky Bob is a great guy, and a wonderful match for Shannon. Wierd thing: as soon as she got hooked up, BAM! out of the fantasy library. Anybody else like that? I never fantasize about taken women. Hook up? BANG! no longer in the drawer of fun wonderment.

Sound a bit like you are proud of these pictures! I think you should shame yourself for throwing a droque in this position! Not at all! I'm in no way a daredevil, especially with my tandem students. This was a near-death skydive. She was longer than me, was as heavy as me 200+, and was just nuts. She thrashed and bicycled through the whole thing. I actually considered that I might destroy the drogue and main during terminal deployment with her, and was ready to go right to reserve. When I say "wiggiest" I also mean scariest. We were hauling ass so hard right out the door it was amazing. I trust Matthias implicitly and explicitly with all of our safety. I had to get the drogue out eventually to get to the main, and when I threw it was the best opportunity I had. I agree completely (camera flier as well) that the drogue should not be thrown until stable, but, no drogue-no main. You have to throw it out eventually, and taking 500 pounds to tandem terminal is a bad thing, however much fun it might be for head-down camera fliers. The point of my post was that some people do not have the ability to listen and be taught. Those times you have to make hard decisions. Whether it be Tandem or AFF or Coaching.

Wow! I like it. I'm thinking that good ol' Jack Gramley would have like it alot too. Think Perris would adopt it? ltdiver I don't know. I'd like to think so. Perris preferred landing area is so small that when folks get crossed up it's really scary. As to getting your name on it twice, it's not worth a ticket and hassle of getting to Sweden from the US. Those were boogie rules. I would imagine if somebody managed to get banned from a local DZ, it would be just as painful. The thrill of being an ass under canopy would lose it's thrill really quick, at a local DZ, I think. Telling everybody on board that there's a potential asshat under canopy would reduce ass-hatness, I think. A tradition of asking "Who the FUCK is "whoever (JP Kelly in this case") and having them raise their hand and then have the whole plane chant 'DON'T BE AN ASS!" might reduce under canopy and auger in injuries. Kate Cooper managed to get on that poop list at Herc too. I was in some pretty magnificent company, but all of us took the time to find out what had caused the worry and stopped doing it. Yeah, Lori, I think Perris could do it. I think the judgement of Dan BC, and several other qualified examiners making violations very public would be a good thing

:12 Tandems:1 12 tandems, 4 Saturday, 8 Sunday 1st time chopping for the 4th time a tandem main. I really tried to get a fun jump in Saturday evening, but everybody was pooped. But I got a listing, so it was cool!

I noticed that money help you fit in a lot better. Will there be something on the ground to pack on? Yeah, Rookie, ASH! You'll want some ground tarps as well. I'll provide you all with two big ones. Big blue Costco motherf888ers! I'M HELPING!

I noticed that money help you fit in a lot better. Will there be something on the ground to pack on? Yeah, Rookie, ASH! You'll want some ground tarps as well. I'll provide you all with two big ones. Big blue Costco motherf888ers! I'M HELPING!

Soon as they put that sensor in a Rebel body, I'm on it. I'm just tired of how heavy the 10D is. I am really interested in the XT, but will make the jump when the next generation Rebel comes out. I bet the price on that one will really drop around Christmas present buying time.