chuckakers

Just curious if anyone else has had this problem. I recently bought a new Velo with standard Vectran lines and have noticed the brake lines are wearing VERY prematurely in the area above the toggles that interacts with the risers. I also recently purchased a set of UPT risers that feature shur-lock toggles. I have inspected the areas that could be chewing on the lines and have found nothing unusual. One of the packers thought the wear could be from he excess line stow webbing sewn to the back side of the risers. They are made from thin nylon webbing (like trim tape) that tends to have a "sharper" edge than fatter webbing. The theory was that the edges of the line keepers could be causing a lot of friction on that part of the lines as I release the brakes. Anyone else experience this wear? If so, how did you fix it? Chuck Akers D-10855 Houston, TX

Guess it depends on what you consider "safe enough". Chuck Akers D-10855 Houston, TX

The mod being discussed goes well beyond "attaching" something to the "exterior of the parachute assembly". It fundamentally changes the operation of the emergency handles, which sounds like a "functional design alteration" to me. Chuck Akers D-10855 Houston, TX

Bill, I think it's pretty obvious that if a DZO didn't know the injured jumper went for treatment after leaving the DZ, he/she wouldn't be held responsible for a failure to report. To address the question, IMO, an injury would be anything requiring medical treatment. Chuck Akers D-10855 Houston, TX

So by that logic a BB Gun and a Thermonuclear warhead would be equally safe, no? Again I am not saying that it is a good idea, I was saying that if the decision was already made to fly the suit (not arguing the merits of that) - what would be the best way to go about utilizing the suit with skydiving gear.... Chuck Akers D-10855 Houston, TX

Yes....I agree... But......... Let's assume (just for the sake of discussion) for a moment that people are going to fly these suits with skydiving gear, would this not be safer than having the modded handles? (edited to sound less "snarky") You keep using the word "safer". If option 1 is not safe and option 2 is also not safe, there is no "safer" option. You know, if this discussion was in the "incidents" forum people would be calling the jumper an idiot for jumping using either option. Chuck Akers D-10855 Houston, TX

And? This is the original factory mod to the suit, and how the handles worked in that mod. Perhaps doing away with access altogether is the thought in the instance shown in the OP's question. Or perhaps the designer should re-think the mod entirely. Fixing a bad design with a bad idea is...well...bad. With the tests done by DSE out in Socal, it seems that the safest option on this suit may be to not have the factory mod installed if using it for skydiving. The pull forces that were measured in those tests would more than likely require the mod handles to be abandoned and the suit to be unzipped anyway so that the normal handles could be pulled. If you are going to have to unzip it anyway, may as well get rid of the extra material and rapide links that would be in the way. Not saying it is a good idea to jump the suit with skydiving gear (at least until an acceptable solution is in place) but if you are going to jump it, this would almost seem like the safer option...What do you think DSE? Actually the safest option would be to only jump suits that work properly for the application. Chuck Akers D-10855 Houston, TX

If you use central downtown as a reference point, it's about a 1-hour drive to Skydive Houston, and a 45-minute drive to Spaceland, on a light-traffic weekend morning. Those seem like typical distances for a lot of skydivers to drive to get to a DZ. So I'm not sure what your definition of "quite a way" is... Not sure where you got those numbers, John. According to google maps, Eagle Lake is 68.1 miles from downtown Houston with a drive time of 1 hour 25 minutes, while Rosharon is 31.9 miles with a drive time of 42 minutes. I don't know where google maps gets their numbers. Does it take into account the day of the week and time of day for traffic congestion? Mileage won't change, but driving time sure does. Every mapping software I know of just uses the posted speed limit to makes drive time calculations. Drive times in traffic don't routinely matter, though. The traffic heading to either drop zone would typically be light on weekends, and during the week the outbound traffic heading to these DZ's in the morning is against the majority traffic flow, as is the inbound traffic heading home in the evening. Being a guy who has reported on Houston traffic for 25 years, I can tell you there's very little difference between the Katy Freeway and Highway 288 when it comes to routine traffic delays. It doesn't matter now anyway. If you go to Eagle Lake, take your shotgun because goose hunting is the only recreation you will find. Chuck Akers D-10855 Houston, TX

And? This is the original factory mod to the suit, and how the handles worked in that mod. Perhaps doing away with access altogether is the thought in the instance shown in the OP's question. Or perhaps the designer should re-think the mod entirely. Fixing a bad design with a bad idea is...well...bad. Chuck Akers D-10855 Houston, TX

That's one of the stupidest things I've ever heard (and it apparently never occurred to that DZO that there's a reason we don't jump capewells any more). It may be easy to unzip a jumpsuit under routine conditions, but it may be very difficult or even impossible under a malfunction that might be flinging the jumper around like a rag doll or one that is spinning so rapidly that it's tough to even reach up with an arm. Beyond that, cutaway and reserve handles are EMERGENCY handles. The vast majority of the time, they are needed at the worst possible moment - the bottom of the skydive when the jumper is under the greatest amount of stress and has the least amount of time to take action. It makes ZERO sense to intentionally create a condition under which those handles are more difficult or time-consuming to use. https://vimeo.com/38615978 And? Chuck Akers D-10855 Houston, TX

And on top of all your other madd skilz, you're psychic. That's pretty awesome. "Madd skilz" what are you? 14? I'm trying to be one of the cool kids. I hear they get to hang out with you. Seriously dood, your trolling techniques are old. Bu, bye. Chuck Akers D-10855 Houston, TX

And on top of all your other madd skilz, you're psychic. That's pretty awesome. Chuck Akers D-10855 Houston, TX

What does the canopy being a 7 cell have to do with landing it on rears? Chuck Akers D-10855 Houston, TX

That's one of the stupidest things I've ever heard (and it apparently never occurred to that DZO that there's a reason we don't jump capewells any more). It may be easy to unzip a jumpsuit under routine conditions, but it may be very difficult or even impossible under a malfunction that might be flinging the jumper around like a rag doll or one that is spinning so rapidly that it's tough to even reach up with an arm. Beyond that, cutaway and reserve handles are EMERGENCY handles. The vast majority of the time, they are needed at the worst possible moment - the bottom of the skydive when the jumper is under the greatest amount of stress and has the least amount of time to take action. It makes ZERO sense to intentionally create a condition under which those handles are more difficult or time-consuming to use. Chuck Akers D-10855 Houston, TX

Ron, you are seeing things from staffers perspective and I suppose that's fair. From the perspective of an experienced skydiver with 25 years of active jumping in the Houston market (and a former Houston area DZO), I can say without reservation that Spaceland is delivering the product jumpers want and need hands down better than any Houston area DZ ever has. Multiple Super Otters, Skyvans, a Super Caravan, loads flying 7 days a week, HUGE a/c packing area, great staff, onsite cafe, blah, blah, blah. More important is the vibe. The DZ has evolved over the past few years to become very fun jumper friendly, with organizers every weekend for all disciplines and experience levels, and lots of fun jumper events and activities. For the past year or so, I have been load organizing and producing special events at the DZ and have had nothing but GREAT experiences with management. They have supported and encouraged my efforts, taken financial risks to insure the success of my projects, and afforded me carte blanche in my activities. I don't work for the DZ. I am not on their payroll. My motivation is to do really cool stuff for the skydivers and the sport, and Skydive Spaceland has gone above and beyond in helping me do that - and they have done so without a bunch of bullshit DZ politics. I'm a bit bummed about SDH closing. I was one of the founders of the DZ in the early 1990's, so it's tough for me to see a great DZ go under. However, we reap what we sew, and Karma is always a bitch. RIP, SDH. Chuck Akers D-10855 Houston, TX

If you use central downtown as a reference point, it's about a 1-hour drive to Skydive Houston, and a 45-minute drive to Spaceland, on a light-traffic weekend morning. Those seem like typical distances for a lot of skydivers to drive to get to a DZ. So I'm not sure what your definition of "quite a way" is... Not sure where you got those numbers, John. According to google maps, Eagle Lake is 68.1 miles from downtown Houston with a drive time of 1 hour 25 minutes, while Rosharon is 31.9 miles with a drive time of 42 minutes. That makes Eagle Lake more than twice as far as Rosharon from downtown Houston - and a nearly 45 minute difference in drive time. Not that it matters now. Chuck Akers D-10855 Houston, TX

If Mr. Johnson opens a DZ in the market it will total 2 DZ's in the Houston area, not 3. But you probably already knew that. Chuck Akers D-10855 Houston, TX

If you want to discuss cuts worth making, the Knights are a looooong way from the top of the list. Chuck Akers D-10855 Houston, TX

The Knights aren't going anywhere, nor should they. Their mission goes well beyond recruiting. The Knights are the Army's trophy in the same way the Blue Angels are to the Navy, the T-Birds are to the Air Force, and the elite drill team is to the Marines. Their job is to pursue excellence and represent their military branch with honor. Their budget falls under recruiting, but I think most on the team would tell you that's only a small part of their mission. Chuck Akers D-10855 Houston, TX

The guy in the saddle thought he needed to chop the main. The guy lived. Guess he wasn't wrong. Just for fun, what would you suggest he should have done? Chuck Akers D-10855 Houston, TX

Might want to get with an instructor on this one. Preferably the one that put you out on that jump. Chuck Akers D-10855 Houston, TX

Bravo. Chuck Akers D-10855 Houston, TX

+1 Especially the small rig excuse. Chuck Akers D-10855 Houston, TX

You are misquoting me. I never suggested that anyone has to fly like a bat out of hell, what I said was that BEFORE THEY DOWNSIZE people should fully explore the performance of their current wing, otherwise I agree, there is no need to downsize. Landing on rears is not dangerous, nor is it particularly hard, given the right training and practice and that involves starting with bigger, beginner canopies and not trying it for the first time when you get your first cross-brace. I put it in the same area as practicing downwind and crosswind landings - do it on a larger wing to start with and keep honing that skill with every change in canopy. Saying people don't need to downsize, while true in a lot of cases, doesn't stop them wanting to so lets at least equip them with some skills for when they do. Not needing to downsize is true in almost EVERY case. Actually you said jumpers should fully explore the performance envelope of their canopy before downsizing. Going like a bat outta hell IS part of that envelope, especially considering the motive behind the performance exploration you spoke of is downsizing preparation. You seem to speak from the perspective of someone who flies and advocates canopies on the highest end of the performance spectrum. The vast majority of skydivers will never come close to flying ultra-performance canopies. I do believe people who want to fly hot rods should develop the skills necessary to be safe doing so, but I do not believe honing performance flying skills is needed nor overly helpful to jumpers who prefer slower canopies and docile flying techniques. Not downsizing never hurt anyone. Chuck Akers D-10855 Houston, TX

You mean like PLFs? Or skydiving? It is perfectly possible to practice landing on rears without getting hurt. Would you not agree that someone should fully explore the performance envelope of their canopy before downsizing? Landing on rears is part of that exploration, in my opinion. Chuck Akers D-10855 Houston, TX