mr2mk1g

Guillotine? Pah - that's for those cheese eating surrender monkeys. We use a good old fashioned AXE when we slot our monarchs!

The point is, this guy did something that was about to hit the wallet of the DZO. Try doing that at your home DZ and see what happens. The Qatari teams are spending big money at the moment. Tough choice - tell them to suck it up cupcake and they'll just go down the road and spend big money with your competitor instead. Or, pander to them, get them all the freaking blue M&M's they want and keep your business afloat. I posted in the general skydiving thread in similar terms - we see it all the time in different ways. It's the little guy (solo visiting jumper with a couple of hundred jumps) who is most vulnerable out. They're always the least important as they spend the least, least likely to come back anyway, least likely to still be in the sport in 5 years time, least likely to have friends put off by your behaviour etc etc etc. This is not really a story about freedom of speech, Qatar, Muslims, tattoos or anything else. This is the age old story of a newish licensed jumpers experiencing shoddy customer service. No wonder we loose so many before they hit 500 jumps. Either that or they get used to the behaviour, get on with it and make it past 500 despite their treatment. By that point they start to be important enough to matter anyway so the behaviour diminishes.

"What kind of America do we live in where"... the kind where the $$$ rules. There was a team training spending a shed load of $$$. They were pissed by something. The DZO bent over backwards to keep them happy. Putting aside what they were pissed about and whether or not that was reasonable - how many times have we seen that behaviour before? Whose been bumped off a load for someone more 'important' (read is worth more $$$ to the DZ) before? Or found the entire lift manifested up next, that you've been waiting out weather hold for, is suddenly 2 loads back because the DZ can fill the first couple off the hold with the tandems? Anyone else been kicked off a 6am balloon because the team who arrive late just have to get on this one because team training starts at 7am and you'll just have to get the next one, oh the winds are up for that one, so sad. Plenty of examples of this attitude can be found without the religious context that could get this thread in the SC. DZ's are businesses. DZ's don't tend to make that much directly from our slots. Individual jumpers are the little guy and in the scheme of things often viewed as not particularly important. Visiting jumpers are the most vulnerable to this behaviour. We do fill loads however, create the atmosphere, pack, end up as staff and instructors. Without us there would be no DZ, just as much as there would be no DZ without the tandem or team cash cow. There needs to be balance and visiting jumpers who don't come back and don't send their friends there should not be overlooked. If a business wants to succeed, it should be after everyone's money, not just the high roller's money.

I ask myself that regularly. She moved back again. Then again, I found out she was bi...

hahahahha Ok, so "the redhead" is a longstanding joke in our relationship. No, she's blonde, sadly.... (sshhh). In the first weeks of our relationship, I had a date planned with a redhead which I wondered whether I should go on as we were starting to get serious. I actually posted on here as to whether I should even go on the redhead date at all. [wow - interesting what the search feature throws up: http://www.dropzone.com/cgi-bin/forum/gforum.cgi?post=3308921#3308921] I ended up going on the date (which was crap) then afterwards meeting up with the current girlfriend anyway for a rather more amusing evening. Years later I confessed to the current girlfriend about the earlier date. Coupled with my admitted proclivity for redheads it's turned into a long-standing joke that if I'm not with her it's because I'm off with the redhead.

No one likes a bragger. Interesting though isn't it. Couple of guys like to suck dick and it's "won't somebody think of the children". Next up, a girl enjoys threesomes and suddenly it's bragging. How gay is too gay? Seriously.

Nope, sorry Remy, you'll have to look elsewhere. Just her. Genuinely interested though. He started the thread with quite an extreme example. This is quite a mild example. Is it a shades of grey thing or an all or nothing problem? How much gay is too much gay? Are there points? Do we get to collect stickers/patches?

Seriously though, what about my girlfriend and I. We don't need to adopt or use IVF, we can chuck out all the kids we want. Do you have a problem with her being bi and having kids? Is the situation not 'gay enough' so you don't have a difficulty with it?

My GF's bi. Should we be 'allowed' to have kids?

Toast and marmite + a large glass of ice cold milk. Breakfast of champions. Plus I fart like a trooper exactly 8 hours post consumption. Could set your watch by it. You don't know what you're missing.

I tried doing some digging on this out of curiosity. Found shed loads of variant calendars and dates... none give 1399 that I could find. The Iranian/Afghan calendar (Solar Hijri) tallies with what she says in that the first day of the year is 21st March this year, tied to the spring equinox... but you're right, it's 1392 there, not 1399, to tie in with the calendar starting from Mohammed's migration to Medina. Maybe she's just wrong?

Cheers for the comments all - many theories to work on. I think there's another packing class this thurs evening so I'll have a proper look at the rig then. Only managed a quick look last week as things were wrapping up at the time I found the damage. Tying down one theory over another is going to be interesting as the rig is jumped by a wide number of individuals within the club. Figuring out exactly what's happening therefore can't simply be done by asking 'the guy' how he packs as it's probably quite a few people over the years, many of whom will have been shown different techniques to those which I teach.

Not when I'm watching they don't or they get a thick ear. I'd guessed that might be part of it so reminded them of what I'd said about it in their first lesson.

That was my first thought - only spotted this as the group was closing up the rig for the night as I'd been working with others on another rig. I'll see if I can't take another look next week and maybe some more snaps. It's a Wings system but I'm figuring this has to be misuse/poor packing practice by someone rather than the design. Maybe someone's been standing on the bridle when cocking the PC rather than the d-bag?

I was helping out my local university skydiving club last night with a packing course and found odd wear to the main bridle on one of their sets of club kit thus: http://i16.photobucket.com/albums/b16/mr2mk1g/20130314_204101.jpg http://i16.photobucket.com/albums/b16/mr2mk1g/20130314_204207.jpg http://i16.photobucket.com/albums/b16/mr2mk1g/20130314_204426.jpg Gave advice to speak with their rigger generally, about pin-entrapment about potentially getting some additional tape on the bridle near the pin to help protect them from locking off against the pin. Didn't go into Brian's bridle routing method as I don't want to confuse people new to packing but it may be something to look into in the future. At this stage there's no hole close enough to the pin for the two to become involved. My main concern for the moment is as to how the wear is occuring. Maybe something to do with the way someone is cocking the PC? With such regular wear points it looks like it's associated with having the bridle sinched up when the PC's collapsed... Anyone able to comment or give suggestions as to how to avoid the problem getting worse? The rig's fairly well looked after and while it's a few years old it doesn't exactly have a whole heap of jumps on it.

So... Knights demos were what, free? How come they don't turn a profit out of them? If profitable, surely they should do more rather than scale back? Why should tax payers pay for a jump into NASCAR? Sure it's "advertising" the military etc but why the hell not simply charge a profitable (and no doubt therefore the going - ie, not undercutting civ teams) rate. Screw it - get twardo to do em.

I'll give you my gun when you pry it from my cold, dead....

And the drop bears - don't forget the drop bears. Scary shit!

The topic is, frankly, too big to be answered in posts. Firstly, in case you were intending this - don't buy gear for your AFF. You'll be provided appropriate gear and will not be ready for your own until some way past your graduation. For then, here are some terms you can read up about to further your knowledge. Reading up on them yourself in your own time will give you a far greater knowledge depth than simply having them explained in any event. wing loading elliptical vs semi-elliptical vs. "square" F111 vs ZP (zero porosity) vs hybrid hard housing riser inserts metal D-ring reserve handle vs soft "freefly handle" fully/partially articulated harness collapsible pilot chute RSL (reserve static line) AAD (automatic activation device) That's a very much non-exhaustive list of things off the top of my head that might be good to look into to start building general gear knowledge. The best thing to do however is a first jump course followed by the rest of your AFF and generally hanging round with your instructors talking about gear. You probably shouldn't consider spending north of $3k without help until you've built a good broad base of knowledge. There is a small number of big name manufacturers in the parachute market, each making a number of different models which themselves come in different sizes. Different models can have very different flight characteristics and some are highly unsuited to new jumpers. As in, you will kill yourself with it. For parachute size - read up on wing loading, as listed above, it's important and closely linked to risk. There's a smaller number of reserve models available and historically at least, not all reserves are equal. The most modern designs have perhaps less between them though there are still distinctions to be drawn. Equally, there are a small number of big name container manufacturers who produce, often, a number of different models, again in different sizes to match your canopy size choices. Drilling down further, they offer oodles of different options (sometimes bling/comfort related rather than safety, but not always). Most makes have their fans and detractors. Of the most modern designs, there is often little between them from a safety point of view, though again they are not indistinguishable. Some will say that it can come down to features/options/comfort once you've settled on a few key required points to narrow the field. The harness portion of containers tend to be built to measure so either to your measurements or to the original owners measurements if you're buying second hand. Fit is important, within certain tolerances. There's a very small pool of AAD options and as above they are not always mandatory for qualified skydivers but are highly recommended, especially for newer jumpers. Some DZ's and indeed countries do mandate their use, at least for certain experience levels. I would repeat though, reading can only take you so far. Understanding will usually only come from being round experienced jumpers and taking in the sport first hand and can take time. I'm always a fan of people reading generally into something they're passionate about though so welcome and happy researching!

While watching I wondered if you think you might have had enough airspeed to simply let the canopy do its own thing and "fly" your body out of the twists. You looked like you were going pretty fast - with the altitude you had I wonder if maybe by going big on one side you could have used your airspeed to rotate your body round the line twists? I guess it's a thought experiment only really as most openings aren't going to have the altitude to consider such fanciful things, especially if doing the speed at which it might work.

We're in the middle of a revolution of no less significance than either the industrial revolution or the agricultural revolution that came before it. Historians of the future will look back on this time and it will be taught as a topic in school. The Silicone Revolution 101 Things are changing so fast that the world today would hardly be recognised by the world of only 30 years ago, never mind the turn of the century. Your colleague says consider the start and end of the 20th century - hell, consider the change between now and the start of the 21st! In 2000 if I wanted to know something obscure I had to walk to the library, order in a book, which was posted to the library, then I'd go back the library a week later to check it out and dig through it for the info. Today, I speak to my phone which pulls the info from the web and delivers it to the screen in seconds. The silicone/digital revolution IS the major breakthrough that will be looked back on as epoch making.

Treat it more like buying an expensive, used car. It's less about whether you have a valid drivers licence and more about whether you know shit about cars. 1) You're a keen motorist, enjoy tinkering and know the car make inside-out including the model, sub-model and options packages, know common its faults and how to spot them and are confident going through the service history with a fine-toothed comb. You're reasonably competent to view and buy yourself without much risk. 2) You know squat about cars in general or about this model and its features or known issues. You can't spot the subtle signs the engine's about to blow. You don't really know if it's the right car for your needs. You're therefore entirely in the dark about whether or not it's a good car to buy. You can deal with this by: 2a) You go to a dealer you trust who can help you find the right model and car for you. 2b) You take along someone to do a pre-purchase inspection, either a friend who falls in to 1) or a mechanic offering this service . 2c) Work hard at getting into 1). This may take months or years and hour after hour of reading, researching and talking to people. Be ware of thinking you fall into 1) earlier than you actually do. 2d) You risk your money on a purchase that may turn out to be a complete waste as it's either un-roadworthy or completely inappropriate for you. If you don't know how to pack I suspect you know very little about used gear in general. You probably don't therefore fall into option 1. You fall into one of the other options. 2a) might mean buying from somewhere like square1, chutingstar or similar. 2b) might involve sending the rig into a rigger for an inspection. 2c) may well start with learning to pack and is likely to take some time can can't be overly hurried by reading on places like here. Attempting to short cut matters by researching only things that crop up in adverts is dangerous as you don't know what you don't know and you can't judge things without general background knowledge. It's possible, but takes time. I'd avoid 2d) but it's your money.

Whose facts though? Prosecution say there was shouting coming from the address. Turns out their witness was 600m away. Prosecution say he put his prosthetics on and then shot her and that angle of bullets demonstrates this. This is what they hang the premeditation on. Defence denies putting on legs before shooting but forensics may cast doubt if the prosecution can get it right. Given the errors so far, that may be an issue. Prosecution say they found testosterone and needles. They later concede they haven't actually tested it and defence says it's not testosterone but a herbal supplement he's allowed to take. Prosecution say they found .38 cal rounds in his safe for which he didn't have a licence. So fucking what says the defence (though it may be relevant to the bail hearing which is all this is at the moment). Prosecution confirm GF has an empty bladder which tallies with the defence assertion she'd gone to the loo. So what if she locked the door - I still take the mick out of my GF for doing so in our place that we share alone. She does it out of force of habit. Prosecution confirm no defensive wounds and that bat used only to break down door - though there's nothing to say there wasn't a shouting match only. Pistorius has given a version of events which, while a bit of a long shot, is at least possible. He explains why he thought GF was in bed and not the loo. He explains why his misses the fact she's not in bed. He explains why he held fears over intruders and that toilet window was unsecure. His version involves him shouting - possibly tallying with the prosecution's somewhat undermined evidence of the same. It's borderline plausible at best, sure, but there are no gaping holes in it so far. If believed (and it's up to the prosecution to prove he's lying) he shot in self defence. I don't know what SA law is on self defence but over here (UK) it's an absolute defence - ie it doesn't reduce murder to manslaughter but results in an acquittal. From what I know of SA culture and violence issues, I very much doubt SA law has more stringent rules on self defence. My biggest concern out of everything I've heard so far is that the police only found out yesterday that their investigating officer is having the 2-year old suspended charges re-opened. That smacks of someone in power pulling strings... though it could be selective police briefing to make it look just like that.

Not sure exactly what you're looking to research but opinions on Felix within the skydiving community before his jump last year were... shall we say, "mixed". Immediately afterwards all appeared to have been forgiven. Then the documentary came out and I think the love kinda wore off a little again. I don't think the jump itself is likely to have much effect on what energy drink skydivers drink, if any. Felix having an association with Red Bull may even have a negative impact on skydivers desire to buy Red Bull. Skydivers may see such stunts in association with the back story which the rest of the non-jumping community are unlikely to be aware of.

I jump a wings pud and notice no real difference when back to backing with another wings wet up with a hackey. There was always a split second bum pucker factor when my hand found something other than I was used to but there was no real difference in the pull itself IIRC. I know its common to teach a pull down/in then out motion for puds which is what I drilled when first jumping the rig but frankly I find I just pull like any other throw away deployment setup. Mine has just the one tab of folded cordura making up the tab which tucks under the right hand closing flap by the entrance to the spandex BOC. I've seen others (can't remember if later wings or other manufacturers) with other designs which may mean your experience is different to mine. I wouldn't suggest simply let the pud float free - that to me seems inviting a premi. A free-floating pud would oscillate in the wind in my mind and could work the PC out. Maybe if the mouth of the boc is tight enough you could stow it there but I'd say swapping to a hackey would be better long term if you're not getting on with the pud.