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Ironmanjay

Chest strap and canopy flight

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Hey guys I noticed that when I have my chest strap tight, the input when I flare is really really sensitive, almost to where Ill "pop up" a few ft in the air in the first part of my flare.

Then when I loosen my chest strap the sensitivity to the input I give when flaring is significantly less.

I understand how loosening the chest strap widens the lines out which flattens the wing out and gives it a slightly better glide ratio but I dont know how that pertains to controlling the sensitivity to my flare.

Im flying a fusion 190 loaded at about 1.15:1
The reason I ask is because I pounded in pretty hard on saturday when I had my chest strap looser then what Im normally used to

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I prefer my chest strap loosened all the way and my slider pulled down behind my head. It does change the way the canopy feels and flies, but you should adjust your flare so that you don't pop up too much or pound in. Deal with your chest strap and slider and then do lots of practice flares up high. If you don't like the results with the chest strap loosened, then leave it the way you had it until you get a better feel for the canopy.
BASE 1224, Senior Parachute Rigger, CPL ASEL IA, AGI, IGI
USPA Coach & UPT Tandem Instructor, PRO, Altimaster Field Support Representative

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agreed that the flare issues aren't likley related to the cheststrap. probably just caught some "rarified air".;)

Do you pull your slider past the toggles? If not, the cheststrap will have little or no effect anyway, as the slider will prevent the lines from widening.

If anything, the loose cheststrap should provide more flare, not less... but not really much difference on moderate WL/larger canopy anyway. I only noticed a difference when swooping; without that extra speed it was prettymuch the same.

"Some people follow their dreams, others hunt them down and beat them mercilessly into submission."

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Quote

I prefer my chest strap loosened all the way and my slider pulled down behind my head. It does change the way the canopy feels and flies, but you should adjust your flare so that you don't pop up too much or pound in. Deal with your chest strap and slider and then do lots of practice flares up high. If you don't like the results with the chest strap loosened, then leave it the way you had it until you get a better feel for the canopy.



Thanks for the info man. Yeah I guess I was mostly caught off guard by the way my canopy performed with the chest strap all the way loose. I do collapse my slider and pull it behind my head.

I just need to JUMP and PRACTICE ;) more.....too bad its the end of the season

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I hope you're doing alright. I'm going to have to go easy on my broken ankle, especially while the hardware is still in.

For me if feels weird landing, swooping, or flying a normal sport canopy without the slider pulled down and chest strap loosened. It's still doable of course either way. Your primary concerns should still be other traffic and your location right after opening and you determine you have a good canopy.

The season doesn't really end in Nor Cal, it just slows down and you have to pause for bad weather more often. Just give the DZ a call before you drive out and wear gloves.

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