hkf

I Pitty The Fool, who does this in England with our weather at the moment, he'll freeze his bollocks off!! Borrow or buy a Neptune or Sunto (digital altis) and play up high, look at it before and after each manouvre. Just make sure you don't get to fixated on it and miss other traffic.

Keep an eye on any twists in your brake lines, Katana seems really sensitive to this. My openings seemed to really improve once I started checking them after every jump. It was also round about the time I started trying to fly the openings a bit more, so can't really say what cured them, but it may be worth looking at!

Think this ones like the openings really, if you think it's worth it you adapt. I really noticed it at first, but don't even notice it now. Must be stopping on heading totally sub-consciously becouse if I sit here and think about it I don't know how I stop it. Think it's mostly harness!

Thanks for confirming that for me, thought I might be going mad. Would just like to say to all that responded (softopenings aside) that I found this a really useful and productive thread, and I will be practicing these techniques up high. Winter seems to have hit us in the UK now so our currency does suffer, I will practice these drills throughout the winter, and once next season has kicked off and after I get really current again I will start gettting instruction on bringing this technique into my swoop.

Thanks. I appreciate that my canopy will return to it's normal flight, but still need some convincing that it will achieve level flight.

shit, just read through all your other posts, can't believe I bothered responding to you. In one of your earlier posts you are calling somebody gay based on the fact that they don't swoop.

I disagree! All I have said here is that after diving my canopy, some input is required to achieve level flight. I made this statement based on my experience of flying my canopy. If you read Brian Germains book, there is a large section on recovery arcs and nothing he says contradicts my statement. I would appreciate comments from any highly experienced people as to what if anything they think is wrong with my statement. If this was the case then no I shouldn't. If you had read the thread you would see that my question was about specific drills I can try up high I know there are, I have had lots of canopy coaching, both on courses and informal. All the coaching has been from people who finished in the top 20 of last years World cup of canopy piloting (Chris Lynch, Cisco & JC) Strange, but their response to my statement about my canopy needing some input to achieve level flight was somewhat different to yours, but perhaps you know better than them. I have not given any opinion whatsoever, I'M THE ONE ASKING THE QUESTION. I have only asked a question and given some information about my canopy at my wingloading to help others be able to answer my question. I agree that sometimes there are people in this forum who are not in any way qualified to give advice on swooping, and I include myself. When it comes to swooping I am a student. I also think there are some very experienced people with a lot of information that is worth sharing. Certain aspects of swooping are definatley unsafe to learn in a forum, I have already been on a number of courses, and was merley asking if anybody knew of any good drills to practice up high for rear risers. Even if I had been on a thousand courses I would still be open to ideas from experienced canopy pilots. Thanks for the personal attack

I've only tried a Velocity a few times, and it certainly is an awesome canopy, if you are looking for something to get great swoops from, and to use as a working canopy then don't rule out the Katana, especially if you are gonna demo from PD. Just give it a try, you may be very suprised. Also read Katanas flight charecteristics on PDs site.

Yeah Right Hey Paul it's James from Headcorn, looking good dude. Gonna be back in Florida Feb/March, hopefully see you then

My canopy at my wing loading does not achieve level flight on it's own after the dive, it always takes just a touch on the toggles to pitch it up into level flight, so I guess it'll be just a little pinch on the rears to plain it out. I know the sight picture real good for the recovery arc on this canopy, and will only use rears when I know it's all good. That said I'm gonna be doing at least 100 more jumps on it using the rears up high before I bring it down to ground level. Thanks for all the input on this thread, I've found it very useful.

I was kinda trying to make the same point as you, probably didn't word it correctly. Everyone should understand that electronic devices can fail and should be responsible for their own altitude awareness. If they don't accept this then they shouldn't use it for swooping

Any Neptune owners wanting the swoop mode can either contact their DZ rep, current reps can be found at http://www.alti-2.com/field_support_locator.htm who can update the software or send it back to alti-2

So the winds have dropped then!! I was there for long weekend, but only did 3 on Friday before wind came in. I'm using Neptune swoop mode, and think it's awesome, I set it for 1,000, 750 and 500 to do a 180 on my Katana at about 1.6. I know if I start the turn on the last beep I can be really slow and carvy in the turn, and if I leave it up to 3 seconds after the last beep I can whip it round a bit faster and still not be low. I think this is a great enhancement to the Neptune, and if used properley (i.e. as an aid to altitude awareness) will help many become better, safer swoopers.

expected to get quite a few opinions on this one which is great, thanks for your ideas this is exactly the sort of stuff I'm looking for

I've been getting really consistant results with my swooping using a long carving front riser turn, and then using toggles only to plane out. I want to start preparing for the next stage, which is to use the rears for landing. What I'm looking for is specific drills I can try up high over the next 50 jumps or so to get a real good feel for the rears and how to transition to them.

Happy birthday mate, we'll do one for u at the weekend!!!

1) Chris Lynch 2) Headcorn 3) About 12000 4) Free Fly Training Centre in sebastian Florida 5) At Headcorn between May and November 6) [email protected] 7) Slot + £15 (I think) 8) Yes 9) Sunpath, PD, L&B, Altimaster, Toni + others I can't think of.

Almost didn't post this as it's a bit embarassing!!! I always make a point of keeping hold of my toggles until they are stowed again, but somehow a good few twists had gotten into my brake lines. Canopy is now back to as new condition, did a 270 way high on purpose then rode it on loads of double fronts and it was sweet as anything. Openings have also become awesome. soft and on-heading. Jumped a xf2 99 at the weekend, seemed like a bigger lower performance canopy than the Katana 107. Don't wanna say to much about it as I only put a couple of jumps on it and may not have given it a fair chance.

1.Freejive 2.Space 3.Bullet Freefly 4.Euphoria 5.Toxic Green Freejive had some good competition from Space, but won fairly comfortably in the end. Also got a new National record in one of their free rounds, think it was 8.3.

Yep, I'm sure it's not a fault of the canopy, more turn type and conditions. Gonna do a few high hop n pops and have a good play with it and try to figure out how and why it happens!

Think it's the same. Saturday was the first time it did it in the turn (which was a slow carvy one), normally when it does it, it's becouse I've turned high and gone on to double fronts. Thought I may have been using to much double fronts becouse of the relativley light riser pressure.

Really enjoying it, have had a bit of wierdness with it latley. It occasionally snatches the front riser back from me, when it did it this weekend somebody on the ground said they heard it make a loud cracking noise. I hurt my shoulder a while ago and went back to a larger sabre till my shoulder got better. I'm thinking that becouse the riser pressure on the sabre is so much greater than the katana that I may now be inadvertantley pulling to far down on the front riser and the canopy is biting back! Any thoughts on this would be greatley appreciated.

I wrote a song, posted it in the bonfire a while ago, but here it is, it's a re-write of Hakunamatata from the Lion King; Hookin the katana what a wonderful phrase Hookin the katana aint no passing craze it means long swoops for the rest of your days it's a crossbrace free Velocity Hookin the katana.....

Just noticed my experience is under opposite circumstances to yours, I will also add that all the jumps where I experienced it where in the last week at the same dropzone and it was always at about 100-200 ft coming over a little ditch which could have been setting up some turbulence. I did not experience it at all on any of the previous 150 jumps or so on the canopy

I've noticed that recently, never noticed it at first but went back to sabre for a while after a shoulder dislocation. When I came back to the katana I noticed the bucking (almost like it's trying to pull the risers back). I noticed it more in double fronts at the end of a high turn, but also towards the end of a long carving turn. I think it's the ultra light front riser pressure which meant I was using more front riser than usual. I have reduced the amount of front riser, and increased the amount of harness input which seems to have solved it. http://pages.prodigy.com/briarrose/hakunama.wav