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DrSher

I want a reliable 7-cell new main. Something wrong with me?

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The best USPA Group Member drop zones designate a separate "swoop lane" for small, fast canopies.
They also enforce separate landing patterns for the "swoop lane" and pea gravel bowl. For example, a dz might designate only left-hand patterns for the "swoop lane" while students, tandems and sport jumpers all fly right-hand patterns. The two separate landing patterns should never cross.

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*Does the type of canopy influence how forgiving WL is?



Are there "forgiving WL" exists in reality? There are some examples how people died on student's canopies loaded below 1 because of their actions under totally working canopy. There are some video on youtube, how someone got paralysis after low turn on Safire-2 on 1.3. On WL 1.3, my ass! I even did not realize that Safire may dive this way being loaded so lightly.

I'm trying to say, that the size of canopy itself is not a thing that guaranty anything. My point is: rent some canopies, learn to pilot them, then decide what canopy to buy. You may be surprised that somehow better flying better flaring modern 9-cell or Storm is much more conformable and safer than some clunky old huge 7-cell.

Think if buying a huge CRW canopy is a really good idea? CRW canopies are known for their poor flare, and CRW rigs may be recognized on DZ by their dirty legstraps (and dirty pants of their pilots).

But flare is important. Everyone needs a hell lot of flare, because this saves the bones.

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I am looking for a new main canopy...........



If wanting a reliable 7 cell, I would recommend a Icarus Omega loaded at 1.2-1.4. It is more like a Triathlon with better openings and more flare power. It is probably the most overlooked canopy out there.

MEL
Skyworks Parachute Service, LLC
www.Skyworksparachuteservice.com

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Yes, you can die or get hurt at any wing loading. It's just a lot easier, with a much narrower band of acceptable behavior, at a higher wingloading.

Wendy P.
There is nothing more dangerous than breaking a basic safety rule and getting away with it. It removes fear of the consequences and builds false confidence. (tbrown)

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Returning to some of the comments by the original poster. Your wanting some thing that will come in slow and land softly. I've seen this before back in the 90's when we were making the transition from the older generation of F111 canopies to ZP canopies.

An older jumper wanted me to take in his break lines so that his PD nine cell, f111 canopy, would come in slower and he thought land better. What had actually happened was the break lines had shrunk and he was already approaching in partial breaks. The canopy was also aging, but that's another matter. His response was to come in in a bit more breaks to reduce the decent rate but his landing kept getting worse. It took a lot to convince him to let me let out his break lines so the canopy would be in full flight so that he could have enough flare authority to land.

It's a mind set from that generation when people actually learned to shoot accuracy and land in the peas. Who even thinks about landing in the peas any more? It's also a product of the generation of canopy at the time. The old school answer was to land better go larger. Today the quality of your landing is more about the amount of flare authority you have. And the landing can be much nicer and more consistent. It's a fundamental paragon shift in both technology and mind set.

Having said that you are not going to get acceptable landings out of any modern canopy, short of a student canopy, till you understand this. So my advice to you is don't get hung up on whether it's a seven cell or a nine cell. That's not what you should be focused on. There are advantages to them but they are not necessarily the ones you are thinking of.

You're actually being given some fairly good advice but ultimately the quality of your landings will depend on your ability to learn to convert forward speed into lift to kill your decent rate. That's it. Period dot. You can land any canopy of any size if you can learn to zero out it's decent rate. You're going to learn that the speed of the canopy is your friend in this. On some canopies, in order to have enough margin for error, many people like to have extra speed to make their flare envelope more forgiving. This is where front risering and turning on landing come in. You probable wont be in that range.

I think you would ultimately be happy with almost any of the canopies suggested to you. Personally I would recommend some thing like a Pulse. It's relatively flat trimmed and packs up smaller then some other canopies. I think you would prefer it's flatter approach over other canopies that are more ground hungry. As to the size, it's not a question of how well you want to land, it's a question of how fast you are will to have to run. People land really small canopies just fine but they run or slide really fast on landing. I think you would prefer some thing fairly large in the 190 to 210 range in any canopy you choose. And that meshes well with the performance range of the Pulse.

I'd also encourage you to bite the bullet and buy a new modern reserve. One of the new low bulk ones. It will let you jump a larger reserve canopy and some day you may appreciate that. Read that, not die. Not dyeing is good. And when you land off you don't want a canopy that needs a runway. And rigger like to pack them. They will smile when you walk through the door of the loft.

I hate to tell people to spend a lot of money but just go and do it.

Lee
Lee
[email protected]
www.velocitysportswear.com

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