Paraglider Vs Parachute

[DSE 3]

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Wow, that's incredible. There's got to be a con though, or someone would've copied or scaled it by now... how was the opening?

Very soft, due to a unique diaper system. In high winds with lift, it can easily allow for hour-long flights.
I have a video from sitting on the edge of a cloud where it seems to not move vertically at all.
With a little experience, a little lift area, and trimmed out properly, it flies very nicely (assuming your butt and legs don't mind the seat and straps of the container system.

[herc 0]

i am paraglider pilot that just recently started to learn skydiving.

i am quite impressed by those pro - skydivers with their "downsized" canopies with their impressive, breath taking (and obviously dangerous if timed wrong...) high speed looong swoop landing.. the hissing noise alone is mind sweeping :-)

but i would like to strive in the opposite direction. i really would like to enjoy the flying and thermalling, the very same i do when paragliding. the hunt for the next thermal, soaring together with the birds is some magical experience for me.

what a waste, releasing the canopy at 1500 meters right below the cumulus clouds and not using those smooth updrafts..
next time i jump i will take my vario with me. at least i want to try (and fail) soaring those student canopies. i am also curious what the sink rate will be at different brake levels.

that said i heard that a big crossfire is soarable to some extend. any opinion on that ?
another question: how many jumps / experience do one need to jump such high performance canopies at the lowest possible wing loading (i.e. taking the biggest one they sell)?

is there any downside of flying a big but high perf canopy except head wind penetration ?

[DrewEckhardt 0]

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another question: how many jumps / experience do one need to jump such high performance canopies at the lowest possible wing loading (i.e. taking the biggest one they sell)?

300

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is there any downside of flying a big but high perf canopy except head wind penetration ?

More tapered/elliptical planforms are more sensitive to control input whether intended or not. Plenty of people die after accidentally pointing them at the ground trying to turn into the wind at a relatively low altitude.

Here's a guy who killed himself under a Stiletto 150 with a 1.2 wing loading and 480 jumps

http://www.dropzone.com/cgi-bin/forum/gforum.cgi?post=3709212

Control sensitivity also makes spinning malfunctions more likely, although that's less likely to kill you.

Many are also trimmed steeper than less aggressive canopies which helps them stay in a speed building dive longer.

[piisfish 135]

don't forget that you are nort alone in the sky, and that other jumpers might want to jump on top of where you are

wanna check a RevoFly canopy ? couple of videos and pictures here
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JbQMn-9Kihw
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b6rxHDjf9Ts&feature=relmfu

scissors beat paper, paper beat rock, rock beat wingsuit - KarlM

[Deyan 31]

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that said i heard that a big crossfire is soarable to some extend. any opinion on that ?
another question: how many jumps / experience do one need to jump such high performance canopies at the lowest possible wing loading (i.e. taking the biggest one they sell)?

Keep it in mind that Icarus recommends minimal 1.4 WL for the Crossfire.

"My belief is that once the doctor whacks you on the butt, all guarantees are off" Jerry Baumchen

[herc 0]

@piisfish: thank you very much for the hint to the revofly canopies ! This is very amazing !

strangely / sadly the website is offline: http://revo-fly.com/
but there is an image in the webarchive:
http://web.archive.org/web/20101016064059/http://www.revo-fly.com/accueil.php

is the company already dead ? that would be too sad.
the videos look so promising ! could be the combination of both sports i am dreaming of.

@Deyan: what could be the consequences of "too low" wing loading, other than those i know from paragliding:
1) more prone to smaller collapses - but those collapses are softer and with less energy
2) less agile handling
3) lower airspeed hence less head wind penetration

[pchapman 261]

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@Deyan: what could be the consequences of "too low" wing loading,

You're right about the consequences, which a paraglider pilot will understand. But in skydiving we don't have specific certifications of maneuvers in certain weight ranges, unlike for paragliders. So if a company suggests a certain minimum loading, there's not telling what that means specifically -- it can be anything from "you're wasting your money on this fancy canopy at such a low loading" to "it might get dangerous in turbulence". We don't have any required testing for collapses and reinflation; relying more on designs for collapse resistance and the concept that on flyable days you don't expect collapses at all. Speculation is that more advanced canopies with smaller inlets will do more poorly at reinflation after a partial collapse, one reason not to lightly load the more high performance canopies (while other designs can be sized for students and used at very light loadings).

[piisfish 135]

I just asked on the french forum www.wuza.org if anyone knows what is going on with the Revoline project. Hope to be able to give you an answer soon

scissors beat paper, paper beat rock, rock beat wingsuit - KarlM

[fly67 0]

Find out anything yet?

[herc 0]

fresh from the tube:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RP4q4hrqybg

(jump to 1:40 min for the exit)

the first plane exit using a stock acro paraglider with custom built slider and d-bag.

[piisfish 135]

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the first plane exit using a stock acro paraglider with custom built slider and d-bag.

definitely not a 1st..., but great adventure anyways

scissors beat paper, paper beat rock, rock beat wingsuit - KarlM