canopywhore

In the past I never got gear checks. I have probably made over 500 jumps that way. I have recently started jumping at Eloy more. It seems that everyone gets pin checks in the plane. I don't like the feeling of someone messing with my gear when I can't see what they are doing, but I am slowly getting used to it. My friends and I have started doing checks before we load the tram. As for experience people doing it, I was on a couple loads with Airspeed and some other top teams, they do pin checks every time! For me its just a comfort zone. I don't like walking to the door wondering if someone has moved something, so for me I have to trust other people on the plane.

I sorry about your loss. Hopefully it will turn up. See ya tomorrow, I hope.

I love my Javelin and my girlfriend loves her's too. I had to wait awhile but I haven't regreted it one minute. I would have bought a Voodoo but they didn't have the reserve/main combo I was looking for. The smaller Voodoos look awesome, some of the bigger one were just average. I was thinking about getting a pull-out also, when I consulted a couple of riggers they said they loved them. They said they were worth a couple of reserve rides a year. Depending on your experience thats a choice only you can make. Another thing to think about is if anyone else ever packs your rig it is another potential problem. Most of the people I know that have pull-outs are very picky about their pack jobs. The only thing I can say about the Mirage is I didn't have enough money to get one. I know two friends of mine swear by their comfort and reliability. Good luck.

Not only did your team look good, you guys rocked on the creeper comp. Nice job Andi

My only reserve ride has been on a Tempo 150. It treated me to a soft opening and a tiptoe landing. I bought my girlfriend one for her rig. I admit that price was probably what influenced my decision. I didn't buy a Strong reserve because they were having the recall issue. I have heard good things about all of them. I wouldn't be afraid of jumping any of them. I've never heard anybody complain about the performance of a PD reserve(except for price). In case you didn't know, you can demo reserves to try them out as mains to see if you like them.

I would say it all depends on how well you know the person. If it is someone you know well I would wait until after you packed and your adrenaline has subsided a little bit. I find that debriefs at the pit can get a little hot. On the other hand if you have talked to him about it before I might not wait till later. I also go over and talk to someone if I feel I cut them off or took away their out. Sometimes I end up jumping with a guy that doesn't give enough separation on exit and low pulls. I make sure everybody on the DZ knows about it so he won't hurt them someday.

I won't sit here and say I would never jump something too small, but on the other hand give this guy my number. I will be more than glad to share my experience with my femur. I can tell him all about the procedure, the hospital stay, and how I needed help to the bathroom for almost 2 weeks. Maybe you should ask him if he can afford the time off work. I ended up using 12 weeks of sick leave. I'll also admit that nobody could have talked me out of what I was doing. Nice job of standing your ground.

The wingloading rule doesn't prevent accidents. I was in Chicagoland last year and broke my femur. I was loaded at 2 to 1. When I got home, the Dzo gave me a lecture about my wingloading being to high and nobody should ever jump a canopy loaded that high. He forgot to tell me that while I was in Chicago, a student with 5 or 6 jumps broke her femur, same leg, same break, under a manta 288 at home. Make the right mistake under any canopy and something is going to hurt.

Your right you can't prepare yourself for 100+ dives by doing 4-way, but I think the post started with someone being worried about weing cut on a 12way or something close to that. I thought it was about a LO that jumps with all skill levels at once. I think that is great to jump with all levels. All I'm saying is that if you put a low time jumper on a jump like a 12way they might not learn how to fly their slot as quickly. I think they worry about all of the people around them. They feel more pressure of making a mistake. They may get pulled out in a chunk it flies great and then they key the next point. That person usually forgets about things like flying their slot and fallrate. I was just saying that low time jumers should start out small and get a solid skill set. Just my opinion, it all good.

I just got my new Merlin suit last thursday. It only took 3-4weeks for delivery. It flies great and the booties felt like afterburners for the first couple of jumps. I could not believe the difference from my Tony suit. You guys are starting to worry me though. I have put 10 jumps on it. I starting to wonder if in a couple of weeks it will fall apart. I do know it fits and flies great.

I am planning on being there with my team

DOH! I knew it was somewhere

There is an article from Airspeed in here somewhere(I don't know how to do links). My opinion would be to find people that can commit time and you get along with.

I was in Eloy this weekend and I didn't see anyone cut from any of the loads. I also think that 2,3,or 4 ways are a better way to improve you skills.

I broke my leg(femur) in July at Chicagoland. I waited five months to the day to jump again. I did everything the doctor said to do, right up to the minute before I jumped. By the time I jumped I had been released to work out in the gym. I was able to leg press more than my body weight so I decided that I was able to jump. I also increased my canopy size from a 135 to a 190. I have made more than 60 jumps since I broke my leg, and I may have stood up 10 landings. I use to stand everything up, but now I tell everybody I checked my pride in at the ER.Yes I have worn out my jumpsuit but I don't care as long as I can jump. In the end its your decision and only you can say if your in physical condition to jump.

I wouldn't trade my javelin Odyssey for any of the above. I don't know the pricing for the Wings but I'm sure it can't be that much different. It was definately worth every penny to have a rig that fits, works, and looks perfect. I should confess I haven't tried a Mirage, but I don't plan on doing so anytime soon!

I am getting ready to order a new RW suit. I was wanting some opinions on a couple of things. Should i get front and back arm grips? I was thinking of getting inside leg grips, is this a waste of money? I was going to order another Tonysuit is there any reason to buy a different suit? I appreciate the help.

Well I guess if I took a wrong turn on the discussion the answer would be I would like a very well lit(stadium comes to mind) Dz, but I've never had the chance to jump at a place with that much light.

I looked up your bio and it says you jump at El Paso. I jumped with Mike and Josh all weekend. See if you can hook up with these guys. I've been at a couple boogies with Mike and he shows a lot of patience when working with low-timers. Of course you couldn't of jumped with them this weekend unless you went with them to Az. I have jumped with many of the jumpers from El Paso and they all seem to be very welcoming. Make sure and say hi to Mr. Kerns.

I've done night jumps and I agree with you. Sometimes those late sunset loads are challenging. I think some people that haven't made a night jump aren't prepared for them. I've done Night Jumps at 3 diff DZ's, all of them had some sort of lights. Eloy has the best night briefings I've been to so far. Coolidge had the best lit Dz and Marana did the runway thing with green on one end and red on the other, I didn't like that too much but it was my 1st and now it wouldn't be a big deal. I think that D-license should require night jumps. The D should be more challenging to obtain, it should represent someone who has completed some challenging tasks and is able to do them again if needed and or advise other jumpers on those situations. Of course I femured in broad daylight so my view is a little different.

I really owe Dan a big thanks. Dan helped our team at the SSL meet. Thanks Dan you really helped us out.

thanks for the input everybody, I was only thinking of using them on exits and I wanted to confirm that it was ok

I notice that some teams have a handle or loop sewn on their legstraps for a grip. I was wondering if this is a legal move for competition. Is this recommended for novice teams or is it more appropriate for Open teams with polished skills. I was thinking about adding some to my rig, our point is fairly small and this might help with some grips on exit?

just in case anybody talks you into running, Ill vote for you.

Every jump and most of the time more than once. When I gear up, before I load the plane, and once or twice on jump run