Super Raven

I had my first mal at jump 270. A real spinner. I chopped. And it opened great. Flew like a typical 7 Cell, flared a couple times before I got too low. And then turned into the wind and landed great. Had to resist the urge to pull a front riser to get a little speed to land. nice soft two foot no step landing. I love it.

Opened from terminal (couldn't find hackey) and my opening was as soft as my main (PD210) but without the snivel :) Flare was really nice, couldn't ask for more. (Wing load 1.5 lbs/sq ft)

UPDATE: I jumped a PD 193R in a cutaway. PD 193R had better flare than the Raven II main I test jumped. I think a Raven II will open fine and save your life but a PD 193R makes the landing better. PDs are considerably more expensive than Ravens, even used, so buy the best you can afford.
Ravens aren't junk, they just don't flare as nicely as PDs.

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I have never had a square reserve ride. My only reserve ride was decades ago under a Navy 26 Conical that I paid $25 for while a poor college student. I have two modern rigs now and both have Raven II reserves. I chose the Raven II because it was time tested even though people urged me to get the newer Raven dash M design. Good decsion as it turned out since the Dash M had some early problems. I decided I should jump a Raven as a main to just know what to expect. I rented a rig with a Raven II main and here is what I experienced. Fine opening, decent flight characteristics, but lousy flare. Maybe it was an old canopy, but it did not look worn out at all. Is great flare all that important in a reserve? Perhaps not, but it would be nice to have a reserve that flares as well as my Triathlon. If you want a reliable reserve, the Raven is a great choice and I do not regret having bought two of them. For me a reserve is all about RELIABILITY, not so much about the ride. If you want a reserve with great flare characteristics you might want to check out something else.

I had a cut away last week on my 175th. I just want to say thank you. This was the second time I have flown my raven II. Both times it has opened smoothly, on heading, and it has flown without a flaw. My first cutaway was on my 53rd jump, and as you can imagine, the procedure was scary since it was after a two year vacation from the sport, and I had only made one other jump before the broken lines that made me chop my main. Even though I had a tiptoe landing, and I kept my handles, my teeth marks in the cutaway pad, that are still visible today, remind me of that horrified feeling I had when my tense hands ripped red and pushed silver. When I landed, I bummed a cigarette from my Aff level 1 instructor even though I hadn't smoked for 3 months, and I took to the bar where four tall rum and cokes settled my shaking hands.
I have been packing my own main for about 20 jumps now. You can imagine how bummed I was when I was spinning hard after opening. When I was under my all white raven reserve at 1800 feet, my packing confidence fell away with my main and toppled to the dry dessert grass about a mile from the runway. I found my main, but I didn't know if I could locate the confidence to pack my parachute and be comfortable jumping my next pack job. After landing I checked my main with Greg, a friend and a school packer. One Brake was unstowed. I tried to correct the spin with my rear risers. All I had to do was grab my brakes. That's it!!! The cutaway did not need to happen. My main was trying to save my life, but I stowed my brake wrong and I was in the red. I lived right? ya, but I had to test your product again. Like I said it past with flying colors, but like most skydivers I do not like testing my reserve. Thanks precision aerodynamics for saving an idiot like me.