JohnMitchell

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Everything posted by JohnMitchell

  1. Yeah, I think the "no shit" is pretty mandatory when you're holding a beer around the bonfire, telling your tale, right?
  2. Thanks for the input. I have to know . . . Did you flare the front canopy for landing?
  3. Thanks for that. And yes, they show landing the biplane, not chopping the biplane. Very good. I always like to emphasize the reason for NOT chopping the biplane when I teach these procedures.
  4. This is very BAD advice. I hope you misheard, rather than he misspoke. If you're in a biplane situation, with the main canopy in front, chopping the main canopy will send your lines and risers back into the lines of your reserve. This has a good chance of causing an entanglement of the two canopies. The best option is to release the brakes and steer the front canopy. As it turns, its trailing edge will push on the nose of the trailing canopy, making it turn also. I've done CRW biplanes where we spiraled like mad. The biplane stayed stable the whole time. Look, no one wants to have two canopies out at once (although it's better than NO canopies out), but if you have a stable biplane, just fly it. Don't chop it. Landing biplanes has a high success rate. Chopping them doesn't.
  5. I'll see your crazy, and raise you. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cnVjkE87FDY
  6. I've seen people chop at 1,000' and make it. I'd do it if necessary. I've got an RSL and a metal D-ring reserve handle. I'm pretty confident I can get it deployed. The question you ask has no easy answer. Some people are looking for perfect safety in our sport; no low openings, no busting hard decks, no collisions. That's an admirable goal, but I feel if you jump long enough, you just may find yourself outside of "safety" and into the "survival zone". It's not a fun place to be. You may have to make choices you don't want to make. So think about how long it really takes to get your reserve out. Keep track of your altitude under canopy. Realize that the closer the ground gets, the faster you need to decide and commit to any course of action. And keep that RSL hooked up, IMO. I think they save lives.
  7. Absolutely. I work on my track every jump. I notice not many people really track as well as they could.
  8. Everything that he said.. Also, have someone video your track. From 5K I can get an easy 10 seconds of tracking, which should get you clear of everything. Problems could be diving too steeply when you track. Good job watching for traffic. It's not good to be opening low all the time, but it's safer than a freefall collision. If you work hard on tracking more efficiently, you'll be able to outfly others and take evasive action more quickly. You could also wear a chest mount or mudflap mounted altimeter, similar to wing suiters. We used to all jump chest mount altimeters back in the day, and they were very easy to read while tracking.
  9. Good advice. I prefer using positive visualization, running thru the jump over and over in my head, going perfectly, while riding to altitude. I encourage my students to do the same thing.
  10. Insurance? Sure, make sure you have medical insurance. It's very easy to get a minor sprain along the way, maybe a broken bone. Not likely, really, but possible. Life insurance? If you have people that count on you financially, you should already have life insurance. Make sure it covers you for skydiving and flying in "non-scheduled" jump planes. Some policies do (mine does), some don't.
  11. Suck up! Just 'cause my wife flies better than I do doesn't make them ALL better.
  12. How much tunnel time? As much as you can afford. I like the 15 minute idea. You learn less as you become tired. There's no better way to become a better flyer than the wind tunnel, IMHO. Even with thousands of jumps before my first tunnel flight, it was great to work with an instructor to clean up decades of bad flying habits.
  13. That manufacturer has approved the installation of a single-sided RSL and new rigs are shipping with that as well as the Dual-sided if requested. Up to the jumper to make their own decision. That's good to hear. I've owned several of "those rigs" in the past, long before RSLs were standard, and always thought they were well designed and made. I just didn't like the dual RSL system.
  14. I wonder if they had a similar sign. "Do not use while aircraft is is on tarmac" Yeah, wouldn't that be embarrassing? I remember those signs on some Italian trains even 12-13 years ago.
  15. Only if you run out of time, I would say. I'm not a rigger, though. Anyone else have an opinion on this one? Depends on the cause of the PCIT. Sometimes after the reserve deployment the main container will open and the canopy will come out. Then there is a danger of the departing canopy interfering with the reserve and the RSL just makes the whole thing longer. Many people would say that in a PCIT situation it is better to not cutaway. But that is a whole other discussion. I personally would not fuss with an RSL release while dealing with a high speed malfunction. They clearly are not designed for that. This thread is actually about two outs, not PCITs. I agree with what you say. He asked "any problem?" My reply was about running out of time. And I agree with you on the "2 ways to deal with PCIT", cutting away or not. Even the SIM recognizes both ways are valid arguments.
  16. Only if you run out of time, I would say. I'm not a rigger, though. Anyone else have an opinion on this one?
  17. Lift is any aerodynamic force created at an angle to the airflow. A physicist will tell you it is indeed "Lift". But the human body is NOT as efficient, obviously, as a regular wing. The lift vector that drives us across the sky also slows our rate of descent.
  18. Yep, those were from slow leaks of malfunctioning holding tank drain valves. At altitude, the blue water would freeze in the breeze like a giant, windblown icicle, until it got heavy enough to break off and fall to earth. Many, many years ago, the Ford Trimotor had a bathroom that emptied straight down to the sky, just like the old school train toilets.
  19. Wow, sounds more like "Well Fed Warrior." My hat's off to you. I wouldn't have taken him.
  20. When you track, you're developing lift. If you do that well enough, you'll develop enough lift to slow your rate of descent, as well as move horizontally across the sky. I've heard of some trackers in RW suits, nothing special, log descent speeds in the mid-80s while tracking. Prof. Kallend comes to mind. I'm a bit proud to say I had a friend express amazement after one jump of how I "flew up and disappeared" when I tracked on breakoff.
  21. Thanks for bringing this up to everyone's attention. Voters in the U.S., let's not let this happen. Call or email your Congressperson and both Senators to let them know you oppose privatization of what should be a government function. Other countries have privatized their ATC and there's been a lot of dissatisfaction from the users afterwards. Any pilot who remembers when the government privatized the Flight Service Station function can tell you that "Service" went right out the window. It was pitiful. I'd hate to see that happen to the entire air traffic system in the USA. Think of this analogy. What if the trucking companies ran the freeways, and set all the user fees and access rights? How convenient would our highways be after that?
  22. I don't believe they can dump their tanks in flight. Anyone know differently for sure? Yep, SFO to Lihue is about 6 hours. I don't see the sense in going back if you're really "3 hours out".
  23. Had your office staff actually taken his money already and told him he'd jump. Then one of THEM should have to take him.. I'm done with taking HUGE people. No more.