wet rigs

[rendezvous 0]

Was seeing the Swoop video the other day and I wanted to know
how is the rig dried once it get's all wet. Just open it all up and leave it out to dry is the way it's done or is there something special that needs to be done ? Does it involve repacking the reserve everytime.

[freeflir29 0]

Yep...needs to be repacked. If any water gets inside it can rot the reserve material giving you a nasty suprise when it opens. Just hang the rig up IN THE SHADE!!!! Don't put it in direct sunlight of course and leave it for a day or so before it gets packed back up.
"I only have 125 jumps, so I don't know shit..right?"-Clay

[riggerrob 561]

Drying time is directly related to dunking time.
If it is just a quick dip and you stand up IMMEDIATELY, then it only has to drip dry - in the shade.
If you fully submerge the reserve, then it has to be opened, hung overnight to dry, thoroughly inspected and repacked.
Fresh water is unlikely to damage nylon, though it may dissolve some of the more exotic UV coatings, and you will lose fashion points for the way colors across white reinforcing tapes.
You will only experience rot inside your container if it already contains organic material, ie. grass from your last biff.
The other long term consequence of water landings is rusty hardware. The hardware is unlikely to rust badly enough to break, but rough, rusty edges chew on webbing. The best cure is to dry off hardware and apply a little clear nail polish to replace the missing cadmium plating.
Water landigs get really expensive when you wear a Cypres. Remove the batteries from your Cypres IMMEDIATELY after a water landing, then ship it back to the factory for overhaul. Remember to include a large cheque when you ship your Cypres.
Fortunately there is a waterproof version of the Cypres, but it ain't cheap and it ain't compact and you still have to replace the water filter after ever water landing.

[SkymonkeyONE 3]

Quote

Was seeing the Swoop video the other day and I wanted to know
how is the rig dried once it get's all wet. Just open it all up and leave it out to dry is the way it's done or is there something special that needs to be done ? Does it involve repacking the reserve everytime.

OK, here is the deal: Yes, we obviously have to fire our reserve after the meet. No, we do not fire it during the meet just because our container gets wet.
My rig has been subsurface several times during different meets. Did I sweat it and stop jumping? Uh, no, I did not. Generally, if your main is swamped, you have to deal with it, as you may NOT swap mains out during the same event in competition. If your shit is swamped due to your botched swoop, you have to shake the water out, wipe it off as fast as you can, dry it for as long as you can, then pack it up for the next round. At the Perris PPPB meet last June, I surfed in a deadman during one round of Accuracy because I knew I was not going to make the shore; better to get the 50 water points. I got out of the drink and had a whopping 20 minutes to get it back in the container for the next round. It was a mess, but I stuck that bad oscar in the bag and sucked it up. Yes, sometimes your main will snivel and sometimes it will smack open after being chowed, but I don't know anyone who had to chop because of a wet main.
Generally, if you swamp your rig BAD, then you will fire, dry, then repack your reserve if you still have enough heat left in the day. If it's late, most of us just suck it up and jump the next day as is. After getting done with the PPPB meet in June last year, I flew all the way back to NC and didn't repack my shit till a week later. It stunk like hell, but I washed the whole mess and flew the reserve dry outside the loft. The freebag is permanently stained, but I don't give a shit; at least it smells good now.
After the last round of The Ranch Pond Swoop Nationals, I cut my main away and let it dry in the sun, fired my reserve and flew it dry, and let the bridle and freebag dry on top of the truck. I packed it all back up when I got home two days later.
Chuck
Combat Dive Supervisor
My webpage HERE

[AndyMan 7]

Chuck - please define "fire the reserve"
_Am

[SkymonkeyONE 3]

I mean "deploy" the reserve. After I am done with a competition in which I was not able to dry my rig, I cut away the main and dry it, then deploy the reserve on the ground. I then fly it like a kite in the breeze until it is perfectly dry. RARELY does that take more than a couple of minutes. At The Ranch, my rig was completely subsurface for about 20 seconds after the last round. When I deployed the reserve, the freebag was pretty soaked, but the reserve itself was barely wet at all. I packed it all back up the next day.
My webpage HERE