des

saipan, a small tropical island,{us protectorate}is by far the most beautiful spot i have jumped at. contrasting colours from the waters on the reef , and pure white sands , are amazing. tinian , rota, and guam are also visible from height

i agree with u 100%. they annoy me , after hearing them all , nearly everyday for 10 years, but i try to keep my thoughts to myself, and do my own thing to make my students feel comfortable

hi mark, i was 43 when i started skydiving,it really gave me a new lease on life, i was overweight, a heavy drinker, and going nowhere. i immediately dropped 15kgs, moderated my drinking, and started a whole new life. i have now taken all my kids for a tandem, met hundreds of new friends, and seen many countries , i would probably have never seen. it is a great sport with great people, definately give it a go! i am not sure what the dz's are like near u , the one i started at was a great family dz, but it is not too difficult to manage ur time between family and dz.

stock answer #1. it's better than jumping from a crap one. #2. dont knock it , till you've tried it

yep , the crossbraced is made by the same people who make the HOP

after 8000 tandems. i have to say the HOP is easily the best tandem canopy i have jumped, i occasionally jump an icarus at another dz, and it really feels like an old truck after the HOP.we have a cross braced 270(or something) now, and after initial opening problems , is now opening, flaring ,and landing beautifully.but this isnt a canopy i would choose for tight landing areas. where will it end?

all u say is not without merit. but sometimes a surge or straight in landing is not the best option.i have worked in a place where most days the turbulence was so severe, that hook turning was compulsory. because the wind direction varied so much, it was almost impossible to set up into wind, so we had to split the variance, and land with as much speed as possible.

i didnt read the article , but for interests sake, peter fries is not a whuffo, i did his aff course

my aff1, exit 10000', 1st awareness check due at 9000'. i remember looking at my alti, after throwing jm2, and he had rejoined and seeing 8000'.i thought ,"oh good, still got 1000' to go to 9000'!, it took until 6000' to realise my calculations were in error, just in time to do final awareness and pull. (threw away r/c of course).the very kind instructor passed me for aff2

yes. i had a tandem passenger shit herself in freefall, luckily we land on the beach, so she just went for a swim.....

you will be alright poulty, remember wayno broke his femur a while back, was jumping again after about 6 weeks,and as u know is doing tandems , no problems. take care mate, see u soon

i know exactly how u feel about this, i felt the same way,when i 1st got my tandem rating,i didn't want to be like those guys that didnt fun jump. now after 12 yrs as a fulltime inst , the last 6 yrs at tandem only dz's,i dont get to fun jump anymore. the main reason for that is lack of opportunity and money. but like slotperfect after 7000+ tandems i just love doing them. only half of the tm's i work with fun jump,those that dont have the same reasons as me. if i could earn enough money in 5 days , i would fun jump every weekend,but that just doesnt happen. at least i still get to jump everyday,and thank god for that. i have never owned my own rig, and hope to hell i am not grumpy.

one of the instuctors here, stands up 100%, (he posted in canopy comparison thread), the rest of us stand up in the 90%'s. but we do land on the beach, with smooth steady winds, and we do use the HOP canopies. in normal dropzone conditions , i thinka 50% stand up ratio would be pretty good

"deal with it"

malaysia or palau?big difference. there are no dzs on palau,however scuba is excellent,specially the blue corner. closest is guam,but tandem only. sorry dunno about malaysia,but a long way from palau. palau has 2 seasons,wet and very wet,but can be a fun place.

sort thru all the advice,and do what works for you at that time and situation.i have 7000 tandems,and still change technique quite often,as i am still learning,dont be afraid to try something new ,and dont be afraid to discard advice from someone you respect that doesnt work for you. always follow a routine and always do all your checks before and during droguefall.remember complacency kills. enjoy your tandems,they should be fun for both of you

you got mostof the ron.i've done 7000 tandems all on strongs,every country and dz i've jumped with strong have the rsl permanently disconnected,which i totally agree with.i've had 20 cutaways of various types annd would neer jump a strong with a rsl.

20/6500, all but 3 on strong 425's,glad they're dead and gone. had a coupla step thru's, but they're quite landable.

yeah,jumped in nz a bit. the tandem scene in nz is very vibrant,specially at taupo and queenstown.,and thre are quiteafew aussis working over there. they have a huge backpacker market,and are very professional in marketing and operations. it would definitely be an option,and as you know australians don't need a visa to work there,

it's a great way to earn a living,and not at all hard on the body. i am 57 and do tandems 7 days a week,done over 6500 tandems now,and love every one of them. where i work there are 3 tm's over 60,altough only one works everyday. there are many tandem operations in australia,(esp qld),which means lots of jobs,but a reduction in earnings,lower numbersand restricted pay rates,so it is getting more difficult to make a good living,and nearly all places require handcam skills as well.unfortunately the tandem cameraman is slowly becoming extinct in oz. your 45 year old comment made me laugh ,as i started skydiving at 43. earnings can vary . i have made us$40000 one year,(not in oz) but last year only 26000 australian,and it aint getting any better. but it's a great lifestyle as long as you don't want to earn big money. the thought of a real job really scares me now . i don't think the future is very bright for a new tm,but best of luck anyway. des

probably the guy who on exit went foetal,no problem,but had 1 arm crossed and 1 out,put me in my only sidespin in 6500 tandems,his reasoning was ,he wanted to be at least 1/2 right. most tandem passengers have my utmost respect,and admiration,i am ever amazed at how most deal with their venture into the complete unknown.

QuoteUSA IS THE BEST PLACE TO JUMP AND THE CHEAPEST!!! oh boy! typical! i'm sure you've done a lot of research here.

recent quote from 200+ jumper "i didn't know about the 'hill'.i just thought the 1st 1000' was rough,then you got stable"

9500;19 all tandems