Ron

I actually already stated what should happen. Drop the GM program and have the USPA represent the individual members instead of UPT, PD etc. But the USPA will not drop the GM program because it FORCES individuals to join the USPA. Uh, the USPA has ZERO power to do anything. A GM DZ signs a "pledge" to follow the BSR's and that is it. Period. No one from the USPA ever audits the GM DZ's. EVER. I think it happened once in the 90's and the DZO laughed at the USPA. You are mistakenly thinking the USPA has any power. And you just proved my point, "Even USPA affiliated DZs often do unsafe stuff"..."I still see people do unsafe things".... OK a great opportunity here. Go ahead and contact the USPA about this violation. Then report back on the results and what the USPA does. I'll use my prognostic abilities here... The USPA will do exactly... Nothing. Maybe call the DZ, but all that is going to do is out YOU as a troublemaker. But PLEASE, go ahead and contact the USPA and let us know what they do. Nothing will change. I have jumped at GM DZ's that were dangerous as hell and non-GM DZ's that had great safety records. It is up to the DZO how that DZ operates, not the USPA. And the proof is you admit the GM DZ's do dangerous stuff. But again, PLEASE contact the USPA and voice your concern. A perfect situation for a demonstration. "No free man shall ever be debarred the use of arms." -- Thomas Jefferson, Thomas Jefferson Papers, 334

Then they should have a group... Maybe call it PIA or something? The fact is that the USPA should represent the jumpers, not the industry. The USPA should drop the group member program, but they will not because they KNOW they would lose individuals. "No free man shall ever be debarred the use of arms." -- Thomas Jefferson, Thomas Jefferson Papers, 334

Nothing, but some DZ's may require a "C" for certain jumps. I knew one DZ that required a "C" for balloon jumps and another that required it for beach jumps (The only reason I got a "C", I skipped A and B). "No free man shall ever be debarred the use of arms." -- Thomas Jefferson, Thomas Jefferson Papers, 334

I noticed you didn't refute anything I brought, just came with an attempt to insult me. (BTW, for your attempt to insult me to work.... I'd have to care about your opinion of me.) "No free man shall ever be debarred the use of arms." -- Thomas Jefferson, Thomas Jefferson Papers, 334

Again, I am just shocked people really care. I am going to bet that with the exception of canopy pilots and Crew dogs (I have done both) anyone that meets the other requirements will have the new ones. And I admit that the fact AFF counts is just stupid. You need to read the CHARTER of the USPA. You can read the Constitution here: https://uspa.org/Portals/0/files/Man_GovMan.pdf It specifically mentions competitions. So like it or not, competitions are part of the USPA. I am going to break it to you. The USPA does not care about you. Not one damn bit. It is not a feeling you are getting, it is a fact that they have shown over and over again. Rig manufacturers make "freefly" friendly rigs that now don't open in time according to the STC... USPA does nothing about it. AAD makers complain that the pull altitude is too low to allow them to set the AAD's to fire higher, USPA jumps and raises the min pull altitudes so the AAD makers can cover up for the rig makers no longer meeting TSO standards. In every case where it is skydiving company vs individual members... You are GOING to be ignored. Look at the USPA website, they claim this is a volunteer organization... But then they require group members to only let members jump. What do YOU as a member get by a DZ being a group member? Jack shit. The USPA gave a "safety" award to a guy that was fined over and over for not doing the maintenance on his planes. What does happen is the USPA gets to play both sides. See they make the DZ join as a group member for basically, advertising. The group member DZ gets to say they are members of the USPA and the USPA will direct people interested in skydiving to the DZ. Look on the first page of the USPA website: "Learn about the methods to make a first jump and find USPA Group Member Dropzones near you." Ah, then the USPA makes the Group member DZ's sign a pledge. Part of that pledge is that they will only let USPA members jump there! They have created their own monopoly. Sure, you can not join the USPA, but then you now can't jump at most DZ's The Group member program is the BIGGEST line of crap ever. The individual member gets exactly NOTHING from the program and it makes you join if you want to jump at most DZ's... But the USPA KNOWS that if they drop the requirement that most individuals will drop their USPA membership. Long story short, unless you are a student, instructor, or a competitor, the USPA is worthless for you, and the USPA KNOWS it. So they make you join to be able to jump. So yeah, it is true, the USPA does not care about you, the individual member. They just gave 125K dollars to a museum no one really wants, while crying they don't have any money. "No free man shall ever be debarred the use of arms." -- Thomas Jefferson, Thomas Jefferson Papers, 334

I am amazed people are upset at the RW requirements. I don't have a real opinion other than being amazed. Seems like a little thing. As for why the USPA cares about international competition. Well, the USPA charter says it will support international competition. In fact, and it has been a few years since I read it, it does not mention "Govt representation" at all which is what most people think it does.... And is kinda what they try to sell you. But it does specifically spell out international competitions. I am MUCH more upset by the USPA giving 125K dollars to some museum. They claim to be broke all the damn time, a few years ago they tried to create a demo team to compete against their own members for demos so they could raise funds.... And now they have money to just throw around to a project that I flat out guarantee 90% of USPA members will never set foot in and most non-jumpers don't give a damn about. "No free man shall ever be debarred the use of arms." -- Thomas Jefferson, Thomas Jefferson Papers, 334

I have participated and run several tunnel to AFF programs. The military has been doing something like this for decades. I'd much rather do an L4 with someone with 10 mins tunnel than an AFF 1 any day. "No free man shall ever be debarred the use of arms." -- Thomas Jefferson, Thomas Jefferson Papers, 334

I have a rig set up with lead and foam to make it the same size and weight as a rig. My whole team used to have rigs set up this way. "No free man shall ever be debarred the use of arms." -- Thomas Jefferson, Thomas Jefferson Papers, 334

Find the coach and then the location is easy. As locations go.... Any big DZ will work. "No free man shall ever be debarred the use of arms." -- Thomas Jefferson, Thomas Jefferson Papers, 334

Lots of 4way was done in the 12 foot tunnels. A few blocks you can't do in a 12 footer... But there is plenty of training that can be done. And honestly, if I had 10 hours of tunnel for a team..... Most of it would be two way drills building basic skills. If you can move, stop, turn in place, and pick up grips.... It will translate into you being able to turn a donut into a meker. If you can't move, stop, turn in place, and pick up grips... All the time trying to build a 4way donut to meker will be wasted. But teams want to do 4way in the tunnel and they waste so much time trying. "No free man shall ever be debarred the use of arms." -- Thomas Jefferson, Thomas Jefferson Papers, 334

Just go to Spaceland Dallas. Wind is an issue at almost any DZ. "No free man shall ever be debarred the use of arms." -- Thomas Jefferson, Thomas Jefferson Papers, 334

Everything else was spot on - This once was a bit off. Simply put, a block is when there is a mandatory transition between two or more points. Look at blocks 7, 9, 14, and 15 in the 4 way dive pool... http://www.rhythmskydiving.com/files/7414/8824/6607/4way_continuity_one_page-blocks_only.pdf They all have all 4 people moving. So simply put, a block is when there is a mandatory transition between points. In the old days, 8 way had three point blocks. "No free man shall ever be debarred the use of arms." -- Thomas Jefferson, Thomas Jefferson Papers, 334

You are not dead - You did fine. Don't over think it. When you have more experience you MIGHT have done something different, maybe not. But when you have more experience, you will still question your choices like this. "No free man shall ever be debarred the use of arms." -- Thomas Jefferson, Thomas Jefferson Papers, 334

Vented booties will slow you down. Do I think they help? Not really. Do I think they hurt? Not really. "No free man shall ever be debarred the use of arms." -- Thomas Jefferson, Thomas Jefferson Papers, 334

I think it would be easier than if they didn't have the rig (personal opinion). But the part about flying in the tunnel is still in play. You drop 6" in the tunnel and you know it instantly. You will not notice that in freefall. Flying in the tunnel is different. I can't help but feel the major difference is the rig. Tunnel sit fliers seem to sit back quite a bit that I don't see in freefall. When I was taught to flip from back to belly I was told to pinch my shoulder blades together.... If I were wearing a rig, that would do almost nothing. The major factors between having a rig and not should really boil down to the rig and the margins... Also, most tunnel fliers are flying slower in the tunnel than FF. They learn to fly slower than a person would fall... Taking 20# off of them is one reason. "No free man shall ever be debarred the use of arms." -- Thomas Jefferson, Thomas Jefferson Papers, 334

Well, you are just trying to ignore the rig and the effects of the rig. 1. A rig limits your movement. 2. A rig hides some control surface a tunnel flier uses. 3. A rig is going to deflect air and put in an input. 4. The weight of a rig changes the "CG" of the jumper. So take a freeflier in a head down flight without a rig when they are used to a rig. They have more ability to move than normal. They have to use their back as a flight surface and they are not normally doing that because the rig hides their back. The rig normally is a wedge that is trying to push them forward. And they don't have the weight on their back. And then add in that small mistakes in position are much easier to see in the tunnel when the wall is less than 7feet from you that the open sky. Even flying flat in the tunnel I notice a significant difference when I wear a rig. I can't arch as much, my upper body is lower when I have the rig (less head high, can't see as well), I can't move as fast because I have extra weight, and I even notice the weight on my back putting roll inputs in for side slides. I am MUCH faster on my moves without the rig and with the extra movement available. "No free man shall ever be debarred the use of arms." -- Thomas Jefferson, Thomas Jefferson Papers, 334

It is still stupid the USPA requires a third class. The FAA does not require it for skydiving. The FAA does not require it to be an LSA instructor, Glider instructor, or Balloon instructor. It is 100% the USPA bowing down to UPT. "No free man shall ever be debarred the use of arms." -- Thomas Jefferson, Thomas Jefferson Papers, 334

Well, I have seen more than one person carted off because they didn't know something like that the 135 they were jumping was actually a 119. So you can hate it all you want.... And you can claim I am not *experienced* if you like... But I have experienced watching some hot shot hammer in on a canopy they had no business jumping because well intended but clueless people told them the size they were jumping was "aggressive", but not insane. "No free man shall ever be debarred the use of arms." -- Thomas Jefferson, Thomas Jefferson Papers, 334

I know a difficult question to ask, but on average how long do you think rubber bands would last? "No free man shall ever be debarred the use of arms." -- Thomas Jefferson, Thomas Jefferson Papers, 334

We had someone who had quit jumping one of their old rigs. It was a Swift packed into a Javelin (Serial number in the mid 300 range). The rig had not been packed since 2002. The question was... Would it have opened? I think yes. The pilot chute had a good launch and there were no significant other reasons why it would not have opened. I could have made some money on the Swift cell count. Most jumpers today have never seen a five cell canopy. We used to have a guy that jumped one as a main when I started. https://youtu.be/zq9fG-OpF1A "No free man shall ever be debarred the use of arms." -- Thomas Jefferson, Thomas Jefferson Papers, 334

Video of the new toy in action..... In other news, I had to dead stick the Pitts because of an engine out and am now looking for a shop for an overhaul. https://youtu.be/jEMe1Dk8klg "No free man shall ever be debarred the use of arms." -- Thomas Jefferson, Thomas Jefferson Papers, 334

Video from the SeaRay https://youtu.be/jEMe1Dk8klg "No free man shall ever be debarred the use of arms." -- Thomas Jefferson, Thomas Jefferson Papers, 334

LSA does not automatically equal experimental. LSA just means light sport (1320 pounds or less (1430 for amphibious), slow stall speed, max cruise speed). But you can have an LSA certified under several different ways S-LSA A factory built, E-LSA an experimental built by someone else, or just under standard experimental. Each has benefits and drawbacks... For example you can legally rent out an S-LSA, but not an E-LSA or Experimental (unless you have an LOA from the FAA allowing it). I don't know a bunch about E-LSA, but Experimental has the Operations letter. So it might actually be legal to jump an S-LSA with no issue. Mine is experimental and the OL letter clearly says it can't be jumped. As for your experience... It might have been an S-LSA and that would make it legal. They might have made sure the OL letter didn't ban jumping. Or they might have just done it illegally. I have a commercial license, so I will not be doing anything illegally.... I know a wet blanket. Besides, if anyone was going to jump my plane... It would be ME and who would be flying my plane? "No free man shall ever be debarred the use of arms." -- Thomas Jefferson, Thomas Jefferson Papers, 334

Yes, but a different process. The Pitts at the WFFC and Mullins has a Pitts that he lets people jump are both certified aerobatic category aircraft, not certified under "experimental". So the process is different. For Experimental you need to have skydiving listed in the operational limitations letter, and that is not going to be easy to do. For other certified (standard, aerobatic, transport, normal), you can get an STC that is also not easy to do, but people have done them and you can buy their STC. For example, to fly with the door removed on a Cessna 182 you have to buy the STC that allows you to configure the plane for jumping... The USPA can sell it to you. http://www.uspa.org/FAA-USPA/Aircraft-Modifications Cabanas jumped through all the hoops the get an STC to allow people to jump his Pitts. So if you had a certified 2 seat Pitts you could buy the STC and it would be legal. If you had an experimental certified Pitts, you could buy the STC, but you could not legally fly jumpers unless you had the operational limitations letter changed.... And the FSO is not going to do it easily. Getting the STC for the first time is going to be a pain. Tech drawings, stress analysis... Etc. Might cost you thousands of dollars and hundreds or hours of work. But once it is done, you can just buy the STC, do the mods, and it would be legal. Mullins at WTS has a Pitts S2A with the STC to allow jumpers. So you can still jump a Pitts "No free man shall ever be debarred the use of arms." -- Thomas Jefferson, Thomas Jefferson Papers, 334

TLDR: FAA says no, not worth the trouble to get them to say yes. Experimental aircraft have a set of operational limitations that they have to abide by and every experimental aircraft OL letter I have seen bars jumping and banner towing. I have had three, now four experimental aircraft and they all banned "Parachute operations." So while the plane would actually be pretty easy to exit, the FAA would frown on it.... And I have a commercial certificate and...Yeah, not gonna happen illegally. To make it legal, I'd have to contact the FSDO (now just FSO) and petition for a new set of operational limitations and answer bunch of stupid questions from people that don't understand skydiving at all and in the end most likely still be told no because, "I wanna" is not going to be seen as a good enough reason. "No free man shall ever be debarred the use of arms." -- Thomas Jefferson, Thomas Jefferson Papers, 334