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dantidote

Reserve too small?

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Hi all,

I'm finally looking at purchasing gear! There's a rig available that would fit me perfectly, and has the right sized main (170). My only concern is the reserve is pretty small (143). I'm 140lb, and have low jump numbers at the moment. Everything I read says keeping the main and reserve close to the same size would be beneficial, as the flight characteristics would be similar.

I really like the rig, but if it's a terrible idea, I'd like to know. :)

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dantidote

Hi all,

I'm finally looking at purchasing gear! There's a rig available that would fit me perfectly, and has the right sized main (170). My only concern is the reserve is pretty small (143). I'm 140lb, and have low jump numbers at the moment. Everything I read says keeping the main and reserve close to the same size would be beneficial, as the flight characteristics would be similar.

I really like the rig, but if it's a terrible idea, I'd like to know. :)



It's a terrible idea. You don't want to be landing out in a backyard, after a cutaway adrenaline pumping, on the smallest canopy you've ever landed.
"What if there were no hypothetical questions?"

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Quote

Before following this advice, make sure that an Optimum 176 would actually FIT in this rig, along with a 170 main



That and if a rigger tells you, that the reserve you are jumping is too small for your fat ass, then listen to them or end up like my friend Jay, who did not heed such advice and rode a blown up reserve in to his death.

Quote

Camera flyer died in Colorado

http://www.skyxtreme.com/archive/sept99/safety.html

Late Friday afternoon, on August 27, Jay Engle died on a camera jump at The Front Range Skydivers in Calhan, CO. He had some type of problem with his main and after executing EP's, had a very hard opening on his reserve. The opening shock snapped a couple of lines and the resulting hard landing under a partial canopy took his life.



I was jumping at a dz that Jay started to learn at, I was one of his instructors and one of his riggers. I was also selling gear at the time. Jay came to me and priced a bunch of shit, I kept on telling him NO, bad choice etc. Jay was loaded with cash, and like a lot of rich people he liked to throw his cash around having fun and spending to get new toys was not an issue for him. One day he shows up with all these new rigs, like three of them! He at one point talked to me about this gear he got, and the very rig he went in on!

I flat out told him he was heavy for that reserve and he was overloading it beyond the TSO..... well you got the have the smallest and coolest fashions to parade around, cool over function was the rule of the day and well, now you know the rest of the story.

RIP Jay.
you can't pay for kids schoolin' with love of skydiving! ~ Airtwardo

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Everyone's comments are certainly confirming my suspicions, 143 would've been stupid. Yeah, I could've got an optimum 160 in there, but it sounds like more fabric is better. So, I've passed up the rig entirely and have reserved a stock wings rig (40% off woo). It'll fit me and I can get a 176 reserve in it comfortably.

Blue skies!

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You'll be glad you did.

There's not a lot of talk about it, but if you buy an AAD, it's because you're planning for one of two things: Poor judgement or unconsciousness. If its the latter over the former, there's a fair chance you won't be awake to navigate or flare. Think about what kind of parachute you'd like to land with no input. Probably not something smaller than what you're working with now.

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dantidote

Everyone's comments are certainly confirming my suspicions, 143 would've been stupid. Yeah, I could've got an optimum 160 in there, but it sounds like more fabric is better. So, I've passed up the rig entirely and have reserved a stock wings rig (40% off woo). It'll fit me and I can get a 176 reserve in it comfortably.

Blue skies!



Smart man!
"The restraining order says you're only allowed to touch me in freefall"
=P

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Unscheduled down-sizing just doesn't sound like a good thing.
I know it just wouldnt be right to kill all the stupid people that we meet..

But do you think it would be appropriate to just remove all of the warning labels and let nature take its course.

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I think that the reserve should always be the biggest possible, keep always the smallest W/L possible. Where you are going to need it, something already screwed up, so your judgment will be altered after it's used.

Why do the reserve and main always have to be about the same size anyway? Wouldn't it just be good sense always have a 200 sq. ft. reserve, regardless of the size of the main?

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mrkeske



Why do the reserve and main always have to be about the same size anyway? Wouldn't it just be good sense always have a 200 sq. ft. reserve, regardless of the size of the main?



They do not have to be the same size, although most containers are sized for similar mains and reserve sizes. Some manufacturer's will make containers for smaller mains and larger reserves.
"What if there were no hypothetical questions?"

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Where did the trend come from, where containers are manufactured such that reserve and mains are similar size. This leads to pretty high wing loadings on certain containers that house high performance canopies.

How come container manufacturers didn't like have a standard size for the reserve and design the containers around that?

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Ya, we plan using a reserve and AAD for worst case scenario hence, unconscious. Any canopy loaded 1.8 or higher from 135 sq f under is going to dive you to the ground killing you either way.

Unless you can guaranteed that when you are unconscious you are symmetrical, I don't think having a small reserve is to different from not having an AAD.

The chances of having 2 outs is pretty slim and on how canopy behave now days. Lets say you have a Velo 89 and a reserve of same size or even a bit bigger they are not going to like each other because of how different both wings are, I think... (Please correct of I am wrong on that assumption, that thought just pooped in my head and decided to share it)

Excuse my grammar

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Not true, things like AAD also work in weird scenarios like the guy who got into a spin on his wingsuit and couldn't deploy his reserve, saw the vid on youtube but not sure how to find it again.

Having a small reserve, while not ideal, still helps in certain scenarios, like if you crash into trees or wake up under canopy, it's no excuse not to have a reserve.

What I don't understand is why containers are made such that your reserve and main both must be under 100 sq ft. Why not make a container that can have both a high performance canopy and a student size reserve. Maybe a rigger can weigh in?

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We saw a massive increase in "two out" malfunctions after electronic AADs became fashionable about 20 years ago (mid 1990s).
Guys had been "sucking down" for a long time. Most sky-gods refused to wear FXC 12000 AADs because everyone knew that FXCs were imprecise and frequently miss-fired below 3,000 feet.
I watched one FXC 12000 miss-fire at 7,000 feet. All the rest of the FXC miss-fires occurred below 2,000 feet.
Why was any licensed skydiver still free-falling below 2,000 feet?

Then Cypres came along with far more precise electronic altitude measurement methods. So skydivers started complaining that Cypri malfunctioned between 1,000 feet and their official activation altitude of 750 feet.
Why is any skydiver still free-falling below 1,000 feet?
S&TAs tended to ground those (Cypres-equipped) whiners until their AADs returned from the factory with fresh cutters.

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... Lets say you have a Velo 89 and a reserve of same size or even a bit bigger they are not going to like each other because of how different both wings are ...

............................................................................

Agreed!
Since most many modern skydivers have never jumped a medium-sized, 7-cell main, they are silly to wear tiny, 7-cell reserves.

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ianyapxw

Sorry, I'm quite lost. Are we actually seeing an increase in "two-outs" especially since your post indicates AADs have gotten better and better.



.................................................................................

I was being sarcastic about the 30-year trend.
Before Cypres, hardly any licensed skydivers wore AADs and 2-out malfunctions were rare.
We saw a dramatic increase in 2-outs when Cypres was introduced (early 1990s).
However, 2-outs have decreased as skydivers have become more altitude-aware.

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Thanks for the explanation.

Since 2 outs are getting more rare, do you think it makes sense to have a reserve so small still and risk getting badly injured when landing, or do you think reserves should be larger?

Also, is a 2 out so likely that container manufacturers make such small containers?

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ianyapxw



What I don't understand is why containers are made such that your reserve and main both must be under 100 sq ft. Why not make a container that can have both a high performance canopy and a student size reserve. Maybe a rigger can weigh in?



Nothing to do w/ rigging. Or logic (as riggerrob points out) It is simply market demand, IMHO.
"What if there were no hypothetical questions?"

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Well, my logic, if eventually I downsize to a canopy that will require a smaller container, I certainly am going to see that I'm still able to pack my Optimum 176 (WL ~1.4 for me) in it, regardless if my smaller main will be a Crossfire-139 or a Velo-97. It's just good sense giving more importance to your security when you need a reserve than to your "looks" or how "fat" your container is. If your unconscious and the AAD fires (several examples here: http://www.dropzone.com/safety/General_Safety/Implications_of_Recent_Tracking_Tracing_and_Wingsuit_Incidents_938.html) you will be glad that the reserve was large enough for you no to die, or get maimed on a ground impact! .

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