freakydiver

http://www.canada.com/national/nationalpost/news/story.html?id=f1e13fd2-77bd-4cb3-b512-38a95cb090af I've seen four people swoop in - none of them hit the ground as hard as Steve Moore did. Anyone and everyone - please give good vibes to Steve. He was trying to be the man and skate away from the fight and got bitched up from behind, not once but twice. After he got blind side cold cocked - his head got driven forward into the ice. Honestly - what the fuck is the world coming to. Sorry, I'm a huge avs fan, and Steve Moore is one of the nicer guys around - never goes out to hurt anyone. Here's to you Steve. -- (N.DG) "If all else fails – at least try and look under control." --

Right on! I am based in Denver and have been wanting to flock for a good couple of years now... It looks like I no longer have an excuse! -- (N.DG) "If all else fails – at least try and look under control." --

Hah as did I, I don't really think the new version is any better at all... Transitions blah blah blah... -- (N.DG) "If all else fails – at least try and look under control." --

You wanna bet? I have video of a student leaving no more than 3 seconds after the last experienced 4 way sit. I'm the video for the sit dive, I look up at the plane and sure enough, there someone exiting the plane. -- (N.DG) "If all else fails – at least try and look under control." --

You should make this a sticky at the top of this forum Bill. -- (N.DG) "If all else fails – at least try and look under control." --

The Internet has TONS of tutorials. I suggest a search on google or something along those lines. Amazon has great tutorial books as well. Goodluck. -- (N.DG) "If all else fails – at least try and look under control." --

Because I've found it doesn't matter how much I rant and rave, people still find ways to get what they want, smaller and faster canopies. Hell, I did. -- (N.DG) "If all else fails – at least try and look under control." --

Tell that to all of the ads in our beloved safety oriented USPA publication . I'm not trying to encourage noobs. I'm playing a bit of the devil's advocate here and pointing out what can be done, imho - safely, with proper oversight. -- (N.DG) "If all else fails – at least try and look under control." --

I hear yah and fully agree with you. I guess I'm irritated by the automatic sign off on 1.3 and 100 jumps as being oh so dangerous... Great comments and thoughts all... -- (N.DG) "If all else fails – at least try and look under control." --

Like when you don't have a 200 foot plus runway to put the thing down? That is on the opposite side of the spectrum for say a Sabre 2 loaded at 1.3. I could sink that in anywhere as most competent canopy pilots should be able to. -- (N.DG) "If all else fails – at least try and look under control." --

I never said it was about guts. Don't put words into my keyboard. Thanks for the heads up Bill, but again, I fully believe 1.3 is doable for some people around 100 jumps if they are smart and DESIRE to learn correctly. There are numerous examples of it out there - it exemplifies what correct and diligent education can do to expedite a learning process. I learned brake turns early, I learned the importance of setting up my landing pattern with some forethought, I learned to have my head on a swivel. -- (N.DG) "If all else fails – at least try and look under control." --

"Comments like yours will just encourage more people to do things that they think they are ready for." Yah okay, my comment is going to drive people to downsize, uh huh. Hot shots on DZs and in magazine ads are MUCH more likely to get someone downsizing. Some people can handle it and some cannot. A canopy loaded at 1.3 isn't automatically a death trap if in the hands of a head's up person. I personally have seen NUMEROUS people on canopy loadings of 1.2 - 1.4 early in their careers. Granted, I do agree there is a larger window of oppurtunity for screwing up, but only if that particular individual is hung out to dry from the get go. I wasn't. YOU are missing the point - I'm pointing out the lack of proper education. Read some of my old posts before jumping the gun. Oh yah, and thanks for pointing out what other people mean in their threads. Also - you should ask someone are the under an elliptical (such as yourself) or a square-semi ellip (such as me). I'm just curious, how much do you weigh? How many jumps do you do a year under your elliptical crossfire?? -- (N.DG) "If all else fails – at least try and look under control." --

You're not kiddin... -- (N.DG) "If all else fails – at least try and look under control." --

I was at 1.4+ at 80 jumps. It can be done if the student knows whats up and has good instruction available. -- (N.DG) "If all else fails – at least try and look under control." --

Do a search - Quade has great info on setting up a sight. I don't personally use a sight and get above average results. -- (N.DG) "If all else fails – at least try and look under control." --

Sweeeeeeeet! -- (N.DG) "If all else fails – at least try and look under control." --

How about an x-ray? -- (N.DG) "If all else fails – at least try and look under control." --

No - there are reasons certain good and bad flying positions have developed. As "freefly" has progressed over the past ten years, people have figured out what basic positions allow for the best maneuverability. It's just like how 4 and 8 way have progressed and found other ways to turn points quicker based on certain skills. Just because you learn certain foundational skills for sit, stand, and headdown, doesn't mean you can't fly in any orientation possible. -- (N.DG) "If all else fails – at least try and look under control." --

"Basically the rule is something like > 7 secs separation on the Caravan and > 5 secs on the King Air." People - there is no hard a fast BASIC rule for seperation. Every single year I see more and more close calls because of the 45 degree friggin MYTH and people never adjusting their exits based on uppers. If your DZ told you 5 seconds on the King Air and never ever varied from that 5 seconds, find another DZ with experienced LOs. pccoder, you really should put a great deal of thought into this because it really affects not only you, but the group exiting before you. There really should be an on-board calculator becuase as I've stated, I've seen more and more close calls every single year in this sport due to shitty generalizations on how to achieve proper seperation. THIS IS NOT A TOPIC TO GET LAZY ON. -- (N.DG) "If all else fails – at least try and look under control." --

That's a pretty balsy assumption - one I sure as hell wouldn't want to make. -- (N.DG) "If all else fails – at least try and look under control." --

I've seen this happen to numerous people - some experienced some not. A couple of times, the drag started so fast that it wouldn't have mattered what they were doing with their toggles and risers - they simply didn't have enough time to react to the situation. -- (N.DG) "If all else fails – at least try and look under control." --

Get the G5 workstation for upgradability, not to mention the fukker screams. -- (N.DG) "If all else fails – at least try and look under control." --

"And the importance of team vibe cannot be overstated." LMFAO - don't forget to BREEEEEEEEEEEATHE. Uh, what about nailing the exit boss? Forget the exit, just breeeeeeeeathe. -- (N.DG) "If all else fails – at least try and look under control." --

WHAT? -- (N.DG) "If all else fails – at least try and look under control." --

I've pondered this quite a bit lately and come to the conclusion that with proper spotting prior to leaving the aircraft, I can reduce the times I would need to pull a bit higher. Granted, this works for me at my DZs, but each DZ has their own issues to deal with. My philosophy is now and forever will be, look before you jump and if necessary, don't jump if you are going to be way long. Any reputible pilot will most likely understand as ultimately it is better to be safe then sorry. -- (N.DG) "If all else fails – at least try and look under control." --