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archi77 0
QuoteHint: Bill Von published a list of canopy tasks you should master (on your current canopy) before contemplating downsizing.
(for those of us that are newbies) I did a quick search but couldn't find it. Any chance someone has it saved somewhere, or knows a better way to search for it?
"Once you have tasted flight, you will forever walk the earth with your eyes turned skyward, for there you have been and there you long to return." Da Vinci
DeNReN 0
http://www.dropzone.com/cgi-bin/safety/detail_page.cgi?ID=47
have a look in the safety section....oodles of good information
have a look in the safety section....oodles of good information
councilman24 36
Read the other stuff.
It isn't until you can land a 190 smoothly. It's until you can land a 190 in all conditions and circumstances and walk away. Off field, down wind, no wind, relatively small and large areas. Until you can do what you need to do to survive when necessary, and look good most of the time when things go right.
It's easy to get away with downsizing for awhile. Until things aren't perfect.
It isn't until you can land a 190 smoothly. It's until you can land a 190 in all conditions and circumstances and walk away. Off field, down wind, no wind, relatively small and large areas. Until you can do what you need to do to survive when necessary, and look good most of the time when things go right.
It's easy to get away with downsizing for awhile. Until things aren't perfect.
I'm old for my age.
Terry Urban
D-8631
FAA DPRE
Terry Urban
D-8631
FAA DPRE
spindlee 0
I think i will maybe need a smaller canopy because i'm only 18 and quite skinny. Will that be harder for me to fly or just the same as a larger person flying a larger canopy?
If in doubt, whip it out...
QuoteI think i will maybe need a smaller canopy because i'm only 18 and quite skinny. Will that be harder for me to fly or just the same as a larger person flying a larger canopy?
Since the lines are proportionally shorter and you don't have as far to move, a smaller parachute is more sensitive to control input and therefore more difficult to fly than a larger one whether your suspended weight is 150 or 300 pounds. This is why we put 100 pound people under 170 square foot canopies as their first parachute with wingloadings well under 1 pound per square foot. The jumper totaling 300 pounds will just be going 40% faster and have twice the kinetic energy to deal with when something goes wrong. The increased speed and control sensitivity that goes with it is what places the lower bound on safe canopy size for larger people.
In a steady-state situation, the sum of the forces on all of the line groups (break, rear riser, front riser) must add up to your suspended weight. Under the same type of canopy your control forces will effectively be the same whether you're jumping a 150 square foot parachute or 250 square foot example of the same model. Physically, it will be a lot easier for you to pull on the brake lines and risers than a larger person.
Some canopies have heavier control pressure than others, but that comes from the design and not the size.
spindlee 0
cool, thanks for your info. It'll be a couple of weeks yet before i look at getting a canopy, the instructors at the dz said they would help me so i should be fine. Can't wait to order my first rig!
If in doubt, whip it out...
Quote.
Hint: Bill Von published a list of canopy tasks you should master (on your current canopy) before contemplating downsizing. Ask a local instructor to brief you on those exercises, then critique your performance, etc.
I read that article recently. Until I read it, I was ready to downsize to a 170. Since reading it, I've realised I've got at least another 100 jumps on my 190.
And that's despite the fact that I normally jump the 190 at sea level and recently put 20 jumps on it at 5000ft above sea level (and landed the last 18 standing up)!
An idea would be to look for a 190 you can jump in your rig. You may be able to find a local jumper who is trying to sell one, or maybe doesn't jump that often and you can see if you can offer them a few bucks to borrow it for a bit. Just agree on a value before you start jumping it, and be ready to pay if you lose it in a cutaway. It will save you money on renting gear, and get you jumping your own containter sooner.
Given that your instructors think you have good canopy control, you may only need another 15 or 20 jumps to be ready (keep in mind that 20 jumps to you is a full 50% of your total experience).
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