BeyondBanality

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Gear

  • Main Canopy Size
    129
  • Reserve Canopy Size
    135
  • AAD
    Cypres 2

Jump Profile

  • Home DZ
    Thai Sky Adventures
  • License
    C
  • License Number
    45329
  • Licensing Organization
    USPA
  • Number of Jumps
    380
  • Years in Sport
    3
  1. I attached a photo of mine in the first post, it's a close up of the risers (imagine that you did a front or back flip between your risers after your canopy deployed and that's a flip through) BTW what do you guys think of the other branch of post-cutaway advice I got - did you try to back/front flip through the risers to clear the step through? Seems like a sure way to get your feet stuck in lines or slider etc but what do I know... http://beyondbanality.wordpress.com/
  2. Not too scary other than the fact that it was my first cutaway. My life didn't flash before my eyes or anything. Even had time to steer over the LZ in the hope that my freebag would fall straight down but there was a cross wind so it drowned in the lake http://beyondbanality.wordpress.com/
  3. Ahhhhh, that's probably what happened. I've found flip throughs 2 or 3x when doing my walk ups (200+ pack jobs) and fixed them, but this time it didn't occur to me at all that something was wrong when I did my walk through. Learning new stuff every day ! thanks! http://beyondbanality.wordpress.com/
  4. Packed myself a step through the other day and cut away without incident (other than losing my free bag). Carelessness on my part for starting my walk through from the soft links instead of the three rings. After I landed a lot of people said that I should have tried to land it and that step throughs are easily landable. Really? I only have 240 jumps and I didn't feel as if I could land something that looked like that. I didn't even unstow the brakes for fear that something would get stuck in the twist and I would start to spin or something. Did do two flares on rears but the canopy felt kinda wobbly and weird so i cut. I'm going to be obsessively careful on future pack jobs but what I want to know is whether a step through really is EASILY landable? should I have tried unstowing the brakes and dug the lines out from the twist? I guess mine is considered just a flip through and not a bad step through (no crossed lines)- see photo! http://beyondbanality.wordpress.com/
  5. Overview- I did 16 fun jumps here over a week (APF C license holder with 160 jumps at time of visit). Very friendly and accommodating folks, unbeatable coastal views. I hate the landing zone though. Photos and details on blog! Process/prices- If you are not under the APF, you have to first pay AUD30 for a temporary APF license which is valid for 1 month (the minimum validity). The DZ safety officer will then look at your logbook etc. and assess your experience for the APF equivalent license. It costs AUD50 per jump (AUD45 if you buy a ten-pack) and equipment rental is AUD30 per jump (capped at AUD100 per day) including pack job. There is no credit card surcharge but AMEX is not accepted. Landing zone (LZ)- Tandems land on the beach and sporties land in a separate LZ further inland. HOWEVER, the LZ is actually some kind of horse paddock so it’s literally full of horse shit. Also some plants with thorny things that cling on to your pilot chute. Note that LZ is 2-3km from DZ office, which requires a shuttle van ride to and fro, making load turnaround rather inefficient. Facilities- Bunkhouse, 3BR apartment, rigger, airconditioned but small packing room, free wifi, clean toilets. There are 10 (? or so) adjustable student rigs for rental ranging from 170-270. Electronic manifest does not have any useful information such as groups, types of jumps, or even whether the load has departed. Plane- Caravan and 206. We mainly used the Caravan, which takes 16 pax per load. Red/amber/green light system for exit, which is on the left side of the plane. Altitude- usually 13000-14000 feet, which is nice. Location- 240km (2.5h) drive from Perth airport (mainly highways). You can rent a car at the airport or in Perth city centre (to save on location surcharge). There is no real need to have your own wheels once you arrive at JBay as the DZ office is within walking distance of accommodation and amenities in town, but since there are no car rental outlets in JBay, there is no option to return your rental car once you get here. Free pickup from Perth city once a week (thursdays) by prior arrangement but this only happens if there are tandems. Accommodation- Cheapest option is to stay at the DZ bunkhouse AUD20/night, but it is pretty grimy. If you have a group, the 3-bedrm (6 beds), 2 bathroom apartment above the DZ office is a superb choice. Otherwise there are a couple of motel and cabin options in town, some are walking distance from the DZ office. The town is fairly small with an IGA supermarket and a number of cafes and restaurants, mostly within walking distance of the DZ office. You can also walk to the beach (350m) from the DZ office.
  6. My husband and I were in Sydney for a holiday and decided to pop by this DZ on a random Friday in June. We were initially apprehensive as we are beginners (first time jumping after getting my USPA "A" license in Thailand), but the process was professional, safe and friendly ! In total we did three jumps each on that day. Process- If you are not under the APF, you have to first pay AUD30 for a temporary APF license. The DZ safety officer will then look at your logbook etc. and assess your experience for the APF equivalent (in my case I was given the APF "A" license). It costs AUD100 per jump incl. equipment hire and pack job (cheaper if you buy a non-transferable pack of ten, or have your own equipment). Bring AUD CASH to avoid credit card surcharge. Facilities- Bunkhouse, cafe (weekends only), rigger (weekends only), large landing area (separate areas for tandem, intermediate and students/beginners), electronic manifest, sheltered packing area, basic but clean roilets. There are 10 (? or so) adjustable student rigs for rental ranging from 170-250. Plane- Caravan and Beaver. We used the Caravan that day (blink and you are at altitude). Very comfortable compared to the Porter that we have so far been using in Thailand. Red/amber/green light system for exit. Exit is on the left side of the plane (we have so far only exited on the right side in Thailand, so not quite used to it!) Altitude- Usually 8000 feet and above depending on air traffic control (they are unable to promise anything beforehand as the situation can change quickly due to weather and proximity to Sydney airport airspace). We had two jumps at 12000 and one at 8000. Location- An easy 70km drive from Sydney airport (mainly highways). You can rent a car at the airport or in Sydney city centre (to save on location surcharge). It is better to have your own wheels if you intend to stay a few days (not sure where you could get food otherwise). Accommodation- Cheapest option is to stay at the DZ bunkhouse which I think is AUD20/night, but we did not stay there as there is no electricity at night (horrors!). Nearest town with accommodation is Picton which is c.10km drive from the DZ. There are a bunch of hotels, motels, restaurants, cafes, supermarket (x2) there, but not a party town of course. Our experience- As we were beginners + it was our first time at this DZ, the DZSO wanted us to do a checkout with an instructor for AUD195 (a B-rels level 1 jump, incl. instructor slot, equipment rental and pack job). After that we were allowed to jump solo. You are not allowed to jump with others at this DZ until you have completed the Australian B-rels (or assessed to have an equivalent license). Not sure how they treat more experienced jumpers, but as beginners we felt very safe at all times. We had good discussions with the DZSO and instructor on emergency procedures, what size rig we should rent, landing pattern, etc. All was done in a professional and friendly manner. I will definitely be back later in the year to do my B-rels!