notsane

Organizing wingsuit dives actually has more in common with CRW than RW, except that wingsuit flying adds in the "no-contact" element! I've found the larger dives offer lots of opportunities for new folks to build skills by chasing the formation from behind. Large formations set an easy catch fall rate/forward speed that helps them out a lot. More experienced folks come up front while those with less experience are in back. It's pretty easy to pick out folks on the video who are doing well and bring them forward or to find folks who are moving around and move them back where they have more room. This generally comes after we do a few smaller lines and wedge dives with lesser experienced folks to improve their confidence. The 3D stuff is a necessary component of big-ways as they approach 25+. Stacking a diamond, wedge or line over the base offers more opportunities for docking slots and better traffic management with multiple aircraft than a purely flat formation. But, since I'm usually the base and I don't enjoy having people fall on me I usually have more experienced people in the vertical part. The problem with vertical formations is that folks usually let themsleves slide backwards towards the lower person's burble, even though we emphasize that you should be slightly ahead of the person below. Being slightly behind makes it more likely (I've seen it twice) that someone will fall on the lower person. In all this the ability to hold your slot and not zoom around is essential. This isn't as exciting as back-flying and aerobatics, but it sure makes for some incredible pictures and cool video as the camera-person flies around the formation. To help folks out in the larger formations we're planning on having secondary bases so that people can concentrate on flying relative to someone closer to them than the primary base. Sequential is much more difficult and the skill level is higher. Burble avoidance is the key when designing the dives. Flat transistions are fairly easy, but the size of the dive needs to be 9 or 16 maximum. My $0.02 Scott

Barring anything unforeseen those dates are set in stone. The ad and registration should be up before too long. For those of you planning to attend, let's hear your thoughts on what sounds fun ... big ways, vertical formations, aerobatics, sequential ... let me know! Scott

Z-Hills is going to be packed with wingsuit folks over the holidays In fact, the Europeans are already arriving to take advantage of the great exchange rates. Count on good weather and great jumps here.

Tentative dates right now are April 7, 8 and 9. More details soon!

I was on the dive. We all have to remember that the primary thing we need to do after exit is to get back on the ground safely. Landing out can happen anytime and seems to happen more frequently with wingsuits. If you find yourself out after opening pick the largest, safest area to land. We've all seen folks fixate on getting as close as they can to the DZ when there's plently of room to land right under their feet. Walking back beats riding in the ambulance every time. Pick your landing spot high while you have lots of choices, don't wait to see how far you can make it back and find yourself low with few choices. Stress builds too when you layer things on ... big-way, wingsuit, off DZ landing ... suddenly a mistake you never would have made under normal conditions is the one that gets you hurt, or worse. The saying that there are old skydivers and bold skydivers but no old, bold skydivers rings true. Scott

Shouldn't there just be a pool of these we can all draw from? :-)

How about that Chuck? Two guys to tuck you in .. I'd clear that with Katie first! Scott

I'm always basking in the glow of my thought crime. Yep. you can jump it after I get a couple. Scott

This Sunday 10/2 local TV channel 8/Tampa Bay Online will be out at Z-Hills filming wingsuit flyers for a segment on the news. Tandem/AFF are old news apparently and we're the new exciting thing. Of course it helps that we're all good looking. So grab a G or PG rated T-shirt from the clean pile and come on out on Sunday if you want to see your mug on TV (for a good reason). Scott

Wow, that's a LOT more than I needed to know.

Matt, Don't you remember the look on Perry's face when Rosalyn (in a Phantom) SMOKED him in his V-1?

I certainly agree with Scott. Jump as many different suits as you can and pick the best one for you.

No problems at all ... very GTi-like on the pull. Very stable suit and a ball to play around with on your back For anyone interested, I have a small black Phi for sale .. brand new still in the plastic. PM me. Scott

FYI ... I'm selling a small, black Phi ... brand new, still in the plastic. http://www.dropzone.com/cgi-bin/classifieds/detail_page.cgi?ID=26436&d=1 Scott

Tony Uragallo at Air Time Jumpsuits put a 1.25" tuck in the upper part of the bootie for me today and added the snaps for walking too. That should work perfectly. Thanks Tony!

I just got my large Phi yesterday ... the body fits pretty well, but the legs are maybe 2 inches too long (too long for thicker soled shoes to fix). I'm thinking I'll create a fold in the front of the bootie above the toe using a couple of rivets through the hems, then stitch the material. Has anyone else modified their suit?

I doubt it. There is a neoprene-like material in the heel between your foot and the heel piece. It seems to do most of the stretching. The heel piece seems to be more for a lengthwise "hook" on the bottom of your heel. You sure know it's there when you walk in the suit. As your foot moves forward you can feel it stretch the back of the wing. Scott

You're right! I made 2 omissions ... CancerChris, hope you're back on your feet soon. Scary Perry .. damn those shrimp were good! I'm sure that trash can will never be the same! Scott

Thanks to everyone for making it such a fun time. If the haze (very unusual for this time of year) hadn't been so bad I think we'd have gotten a few more jumps. Attendence peaked around 14 with the max on a dive being 13. We did some flat stuff along with some vertical mixes. Most everyone got shuffled around in the dives (except me, the glide-bomb) so everyone got to try different things. People tried out lots of suits ... Acro, Firebird, GS-1, Phantom, V-1 I'd like to thank: Morpheus: putting it together, Phoenix-Fly suits, pizza and beer. Rob and Kathy .. you rock! Skydive City: great lifts and great staff. Thanks to Marco and Dave (the pilots) for accomodating the "people in skirts". Special thanks to TK Hayes. You da man! Nylon City: Great pack jobs in 90+ degree heat. You rule! Birdman: Scott Campos for bringing the Bird-bus down with suits. Come on down anytime! Jii-Wings: for busting your rears to get the GS-1 suit here in time! And the Attendees! Scary Perry, Matt H, Matt W, Nate (all the way from Chicago!), Omar, Scotty B, Todd, Michelle, Rosalyn, Olivia, Annie, Travis, Red-eyes Jeff and Mike M. Stay tuned for an announcement concerning Flock and Dock 2.0 in March 2006!!!! Scott

We got a total of 7 jumps on the GS-1 by three people .. me, Neil and Nate. You guys can add your impressions, please. Nate, who is 6' 2" and 140lbs seemed to have to very best experience. He was able to back-fly it this afternoon. Some extra tail wing would be a benefit (there are zippers to attach additional leg wing), but the forward speed was decent. I'll add more info when I'm less tired. Helluva weekend, guys. Thanks for making 1.5 a success. Be there for 2.0, you guys are welcome anytime. Scott

Yes, Neil was getting the feel for the suit on this first dive. I got 2 jumps on the suit before this. It's definitely a different suit than a S3 or V1. That said I think it'll take more than a jump or two to really get the feel of it. My 2nd jump was a lot better than the first ... I flew base in it for a 5 way wedge. So, right now with a grand total of 2 jumps on it, it certainly seems like a workout to keep the wing fully inflated, but once inflated it feels very stable and solid with decent forward speed. My fall rate was in the 70mph range on both jumps, but Neil (who is 4" taller than me) fell slower than Omar (Mr Lightweight) and me on his first jump. Obviously we need more data and more jumps!

Make sure you pack your sweatshirts and jackets. Daytime temps are sliding down into the low 90's ... BRRR! The demo Jii-Wings GS-1 arrived today and will be available to jump this weekend ... after I get the first one or two jumps myself

I'll be there. Please don't use that "work" word in my presence.

Well, the weather is looking perfect for this weekend and if customs doesn't delay things too much we'll have a wide variety of suits to demo. So dust off your wingsuits and come on down! Scott

I have a long bridle and no mods on my Icon .. that works well for me.