Coming from long spots

[UPS 0]

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Risk is that if you have a malfunction high enough to consider a cut-away, you might need to tighten your chest strap before cutting away. At 80 jumps with a larger canopy, I probably wouldn't try this, talk to your local instructors/riggers about how to safely deal with your slider and chest strap.

Sry dude, it's probably my inexperience talking here, but I can't see how I could get a malfunction under a perfectly inflated canopy?

I was also wondering, when you spread toggles/risers on the sides instead of pulling them down, will the canopy react differently?

[jee 0]

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Other things to eek out the most from your canopy is to get the slider down as far as possible. If you have type 17 risers, pull it down past the toggles. If your comfortable trying this, loosen your chest strap so that the lines can spread out and flatten the canopy. This will give it more lift and better glide ratio. Risk is that if you have a malfunction high enough to consider a cut-away, you might need to tighten your chest strap before cutting away. At 80 jumps with a larger canopy, I probably wouldn't try this, talk to your local instructors/riggers about how to safely deal with your slider and chest strap.

Brian Germain suggests this in his canopy course to everybody including newly licensed skydivers. It really makes a big difference even in a larger canopy. Turns are snappier and the flare is better too.

[jee 0]

Sry dude, it's probably my inexperience talking here, but I can't see how I could get a malfunction under a perfectly inflated canopy?

Ummmmm.......lots of ways. How about bumping into another canopy for one?
So that's something to consider. I doubt you'll have time to tighten your chest strap if you decide you have to cut away. Brian Germain says to not worry about it, you're not going to fall out of the harness with a loose chest strap.

[Spizzzarko 0]

"I can't see how I could get a malfunction under a perfectly inflated canopy?"

Wraps happen

[ianmdrennan 2]

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Wraps happen

You're too fat to fit between the lines

Performance Designs Factory Team

[klafollette 0]

Ahh yes, it's the malfunctions that you can't see that come up and bite you. Under a "perfectly inflated canopy", aggressive toggle turns can result in the canopy spinning up into line twists (and now the low toggle is locked into the twists making it spin faster). You could have a line/toggle/riser/connector link fail under a hard turn. The obvious canopy collision, You could have blown a top seam/panel on opening and not realize it until you make a hard turn and it collapses. There's a million things that could go wrong.

Right, maybe you don't need to tighten the chest strap on a cutaway, but if I had the time, I might try. Handles aren't where you expect them if its let out, and if you haven't had a cutaway before, that wouldn't be the time I'd want to be worrying about where they are. But, it could be just as bad waisting time trying to tighten it.

It's always made me a "little" nervous loosening the chest strap. When the shoulder straps are completely to the outside of my shoulders, I have to imagine there is some spinning/twisting mal that could provide a way for me to come out of the harness, or to be in a funky enough geometry to not be able to reach a handle or cause reserve opening problems.

Anyway, drifting off topic. If Brian says to open up the chest strap for big canopies on low timers, then give it a try up high, and see how differently it flies. That also makes it easier to do harness turns, which are more efficient than toggle turns when trying to get every ounce of drive out of the canopy.

[AFFI 0]

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It's always made me a "little" nervous loosening the chest strap.

If I loosened mine any more than they way I have it when I jump I would have to undo it.

Mykel AFF-I10
Skydiving Priorities: 1) Open Canopy. 2) Land Safely. 3) Don’t hurt anyone. 4) Repeat…

[dharma1976 0]

I once heard from someone somewhere that the chest strap is to keep the harness from coming over the ends of your arms

I think even at fully open chest strap would come close

Dave

http://www.skyjunky.com

CSpenceFLY - I can't believe the number of people willing to bet their life on someone else doing the right thing.

[klafollette 0]

I don't know if performance wise pushing rears to the side makes much difference. It might make a tiny difference since it increases the spread, making canopy flatter, along with pulling the back half down, flattening the angle of incidence. Primarily pushing to the side is easier to do for a longer period of time than pulling down on the risers.

[Spizzzarko 0]

"You're too fat to fit between the lines"

Your hurtfull words are not appreciated. I'm a man not a stone! I have feelings and emotions just like you. If you cut me I bleed!

I'm actually not fat, I just have a lot of energy stored up for sexual activity! My gut is a fuel cell for a sex machine. Now if the girls only didn't become sterile at the sight of me then I could expend some of this fuel! hahahaa



On topic though... Yes a wrap can happen any time or anywhere, but your chances of getting into said wrap are mitigated if you don't fly around under canopy with your eyes closed. Some one mentioned that you can spin yourself up into line twists. I knew a dude who did that with a stilletto 190 at 400'. He cut away and he and his free bag landed about 10' apart. He is not around to do that any more. That situation can be prevented by flying in a coordinated manor and not yanking and banking on the toggles. So the moral of the story is:
Do not fly like a douche (or do not fly like Ian the King Douche!)

BTW CJ liked the pics. You have a new fan! hahaha He asked why we couldn't get pics of Annie holding his award...

[LoudDan 0]

Broken lines happen too....just when everything is flying along great you go to spiral and realize that one of your toggles has amazingly light toggle pressure and that for some friggin' reason the canopy seems to be turning in the opposite direction.

You have already limited your options by stating that you don't want to pull higher, and have been operating under a false sense of security by believing that because the canopy is opened you have no risk of malfunction.

Honestly dude.......seek coaching. There are many very qualified canopy coaches available and if you can't find one just PM me or IAN or (god forgive me) Grant and I'm sure we can get you hooked up with someone in your area. The best way to learn how to get the most efficiency from your chosen wing is to attend a canopy control course like the ones that Scott Miller and Brian G put on. Yes it costs money but you will learn techniques and gain knowledge that you most likely will not figure out yourself.

Coming soon to a bowl of Wheaties near you!!

[UPS 0]

Ok yeah, I admit I did a stupid comment up there, I was at work and didn't have any brain matter left to answer right.

I know shit happens under canopy, I had around 40 when I started collapsing my slider and the second time I did it, I pulled the cords down, not on the side which made the slider move downwards right on my toggles which where still stowed. My right toggle unstowed itself because of the slider and the other was stuck in the grommet of the slider. Canopy started spinning while I was struggling to pop that shit out of there, took around 500 ft/4-5seconds to clear that out while that reserve ride idea was slowly rising in my mind.

That event combined with a long spot gave me again the opportunity to test my landing skills with my ''B'' plan, which looked like a small dry piece of land within a field of flooded mud. Yeah, it looked like it was dry...