Spectrejumper

Welcome back!!

Unless Skysystems finally wised up, they don't make the Oxygn in XXL. Some bogus XL.5 or somethin. I ended up getting a Factory Diver. The Z1 also will not fit if you truly need a XXL. I had to send mine back, then wait forever for my Factory Diver. It doesn't have the flip up visor, so I took out the lens and I just wear goggles under the helmet. I've found Sorz goggles work the best for doing this. The big plus of the whole deal is that the Factory Diver is a lot cheaper. Good luck finding a brain bucket.

Since nobody else has said it yet, I'll play safety nazi. You might want to think twice before you use anything that attatches your main parachute assembly to you or your rig, other than the three rings. In the event of a cutaway that little velcro loop could retain your main, possibly leading to an entanglement with your reserve. Somethin' to think about. Mike D-23312 "It's such a shame to spend your time away like this...existing." JMH

Maybe I've just been lucky at the DZ's I've been to, but the person checking me in has always given me a briefing on the basic stuff. (e.g. aerial photo, landing rules, etc.) As far as walking the landing area before jumping, I've never done it but it's not a bad idea. I think each person needs to do what it takes to make themselves feel comfortable. In regards to Kelly's post, I think it might give inexperienced jumpers some ideas of questions they should be asking but hadn't thought of. Mike D-23312 "It's such a shame to spend your time away like this...existing." JMH

Yeah, I was kinda bummed when I found that out. I did meet all four people that work at the DZ store though. I also met Quade, though I didn't get to jump with him. He was doing hop-n-pops to practice for his PRO. I did have a great three days at Perris though. I even got to jump out of three different planes, due to some mechanical problems. It's great to have back up aircraft.

I also started on 280+ sq ft canopies (Raven 4's), then put a few jumps on a PD230, then a few on a Griffin 210. At 57 jumps I demoed a Spectre 210 for 4 jumps, then I bought one. I put 410 jumps on my Spectre 210 loaded at 1.19:1, and I loved it. Then 30 jumps on a demo Sabre2 190 convinced me to buy a new canopy. My point here is that if you put a bunch of jumps on canopies sized between 280 and 190, by the time you get to 50 jumps or so you should be ready to handle that 190 at 1.23:1. I also wanted to illustrate that you'll probably be happy at that wingloading for quite some time, I know I was. Mike D-23312 "It's such a shame to spend your time away like this...existing." JMH

It's great news that it wasn't more serious, but I don't think a broken pelvis at 70 years old is exactly a walk in the park. Mike D-23312 "It's such a shame to spend your time away like this...existing." JMH

See, if you lived in NY your friendly neighborhood skydiving auto technician could have fixed it for a lot less. Hope to see you next week when I'm in Perris. Mike D-23312 "It's such a shame to spend your time away like this...existing." JMH

Ahh, such a joy to get good responses. Mike D-23312 "It's such a shame to spend your time away like this...existing." JMH

Not really dissing either. Just trying to illustrate that just because two things meet a minimum federal standard they aren't necessarily equal. Although I'd much rather be in a Volvo, crash situation or not.

I always use my powertool when I pack my rig. I just changed from the closing loop that came with the rig because it was slightly frayed, and I was downsizing so I would have had to shorten it. I have almost 450 jumps on the rig. I've never heard of a closing loop lasting that long when using pull up cords. Of course I still flip the line underneath the pin before I remove it. YMMV Mike D-23312 "It's such a shame to spend your time away like this...existing." JMH

I fold the bridle on the outside of the folded/rolled pilot chute. I like doing it this way because it reduces the chance of a hard pull due to a monkey fist. Mike D-23312 "It's such a shame to spend your time away like this...existing." JMH

There are only three 'times' at a dropzone, and you don't need a watch to figure them out: jumpin time, drinkin time, and sleepin time.

The five center cells of the Sabre 2 have stiffeners on the ribs at the nose of the canopy. I've heard a couple different theories as to their purpose, but I was wondering if anybody had the facts?? Mike D-23312 "It's such a shame to spend your time away like this...existing." JMH

I invested in a Powertool, and I couldn't be happier. Well, if the rig packed itself I'd be happier but we all know that's not gonna happen. I know Paragear sells them, there's also an ad for em in Parachutist every month. They're $15 or $17. It's a piece of Spectra attatched to a stainless steel rod. People will argue that you could make one for a lot less, but I'm lazy. It makes it much easier to close a rig with a tight closing loop, and it seems to help the closing loop last longer. Mike D-23312 "It's such a shame to spend your time away like this...existing." JMH

Well, I'm 5'11", 225 lbs (so about 250 out the door) and I feel more comfortable with Type 8 risers (the big ones), and large three rings. I bought my rig when I had about 65 jumps, I have 515 now. My Javelin is holding up great, no problems at all. I didn't get the articulated harness, but I still find it very comfortable. My DZ has a Cessna 180, so I know all about being crammed into small planes. I had a Spectre 210, which served me very well. Depending on what you've been jumping you might want to stick with the 230, but I'd demo both if possible. I have a Dash M 249 for my reserve. I was going to get a PD, but it was a pack volume issue. I have no personal knowledge of any problems with Tempo reserves, but I didn't want the cheapest thing possible as my last chance. As far as the "they pass the same TSO" argument, Yugo's and Volvo's pass the same FMVSS requirements but that doesn't make them equal in the event of a crash. So this turned into a much longer post than I originally intended, but we're about the same size so I figured I'd let you know what works for me. YMMV. Mike D-23312 "It's such a shame to spend your time away like this...existing." JMH

They help with the wind noise too. 120 mph is freakin loud. Mike D-23312 "It's such a shame to spend your time away like this...existing." JMH

I said this before in a different thread, but I'll say it again here: all the training in the world doesn't make up for lack of experience. Ellipticals are much more dangerous to inexperienced jumpers due to one of their major selling points: their responsiveness. Give a good yank on the toggle and an elliptical TURNS NOW, perhaps even spinning you into line twists. The same input on a pure square or semi-elliptical will not have such dire consequences. To use your aircraft analogy: you start pilots out in Cessna 172's or something similar, not Citabria's or fighter jets. Even the most basic canopy instruction program will tell students not to make radical control inputs close to the ground, but in a moment of panic (getting cut off on final for instance) a low time jumper is more likely to yank down a toggle than a more experienced jumper. Less aggressive canopies=more forgiveness for the inevitable mistakes. Mike D-23312 "It's such a shame to spend your time away like this...existing." JMH

They don't make 'em that big. Mike D-23312 "It's such a shame to spend your time away like this...existing." JMH

Alright, maybe it's just me (it so often seems as though it is), but I have a love/hate relationship with my canopy. I love it in the air, but I hate it on the ground. Packing brand new ZP sucks!!! I just got my reserve repacked, so I had to pack my main this evening. But since it's the middle of winter in the frozen tundra of western NY, I haven't even gotten to jump my new toy yet! So thus far it's all hate and no love. I can't wait til Monday, when I finally get to jump. The weather forecast for Perris sounds good, so I should be able to get a bunch in. Only two more days of work, then I'm free!!!! Mike D-23312 "It's such a shame to spend your time away like this...existing." JMH

Well I can't tell you the last time, but I can tell you we bought eight of them last year at Frontier. They're great student canopies. They are very forgiving of the most common student landing error: flaring too high. I can't tell you how many students I saw get their asses saved last summer. I don't think anyone is advocating a return to round canopies for students. I don't think you'd get too many arguments regarding "semi-ellipticals" either. (e.g. Spectre, Sabre2) But the vast majority of people on here would agree with me that no one anywhere near student status should be jumping a Stiletto. I have my doubts as to whether you should be jumping a Stiletto, but perhaps you've greatly improved since the last time I saw you land a canopy. Maybe the old "500 jump rule" before getting a Stiletto is a bit much, but then again maybe not. New technology is great, but the newest high performance technology is not the best for the most inexperienced. Note that I said inexperienced. All the education and training in the world is no substitute for experience. Mike D-23312 "It's such a shame to spend your time away like this...existing." JMH

You're on! Mike D-23312 "It's such a shame to spend your time away like this...existing." JMH

Wooohooo! One week from today I'll be in Arizona! Two days after that I'll be in Perris Valley, jumpin my ass off!!! Just got my reserve repacked and fresh Cypres batteries installed. Now I just have to maintain my sanity through five more days of work, then I'm free! I'll be in Perris 2/11 thru 2/13, so if any of you can make it out to the DZ on a weekday it'd be great to meet and jump together. Just gotta hope for blue skies. Mike D-23312 "It's such a shame to spend your time away like this...existing." JMH

I'm trying to reply to a PM, but when I hit submit I get an error message saying it can't be sent because there's nothing specified in the "To" field. I'm using Netscape 6.1 if that matters. Anybody have any ideas?? Mike D-23312 "It's such a shame to spend your time away like this...existing." JMH

Thanks for the suggestions. That Greyhound thing would be cool if they had a station in Ontario. The DZ hasn't replied to my e-mail yet. Maybe I'll just rent a car, though I hate the thought of blowing $120 on a car that is mostly going to sit in the DZ parking lot. Mike D-23312 "It's such a shame to spend your time away like this...existing." JMH