betzilla

It's a good idea. After a few jumps with them in right position, they will take a "set" that way.

Sprained my ankle once skiiming my feet across the grass on landing. Broke my leg badly when my tandem student took me out on landing. It was pretty much a freak accident.

You know, right when I hit post, I thought of that . Sorry...

Hey Jesse, Betsy here. You're getting hosed with that one. We can find you something for $3000 that you can jump without putting another cent into it. $2500 would be a better deal, but you'll spend 2-300 on the parts you need. Get the guy to send it to us so Kirk can look it over before you commit (that's not a strange request -- people have done that quite often.() Good luck!

I've got a Sabre 170 that's black, royal blue and magenta, for $800. It's got 600 jumps on it (easy to pack) and a new lineset. PM me if you're interested.

AS far as I know (I'm not a rigger yet, but get this question and similar ones a lot in the gear store where I work), there's no safety issue there, but it will be a bitch to pack...

www.printedribbon.com

my ProTrack doesn't even register that I made a jump when I do a clear and pull. Which is normal, from what I hear. It's when your unit acts funny on a freefall jump that you should be worried.

And check that rigger's work too. In our loft, we've seen them hooked up incorrectly on people's RESERVES too. Can a rigger make mistakes? Of course! When your reserve needs a repack, it couldn't hurt to take a look at those reserve slinks YOURSELF. Because nobody loves you and wants you to live as much as you do, right?

From what I understand, dealers will have those interface things. SO if your rigger won't so it, you can send it to the dealer for whatever you need. We're thinking about becoming a dealer at my store. It sounds like a pretty good piece of equipment, (I just sold my Cypres to somebody who couldn't afford $1225 for a new Cypres II, and may replace it with Vigil when they become available) but as with anything, it will take use in the field to get real data on the Vigil. In the meantime, it's just a question of people deciding to take on a new AAD, and the risk involved with that.

My Mom would be absolutely delighted if i gave up jumping. She was good with it until I broke my leg. The prospect of my having a permanent limp (she called it "crippled for life") was too much for her. However, I have no limp, and am largely back to normal, so i'm hopeful she'll be supportive again someday.... *not holding breath*

I just ordered a SkyHook RSL for my Micron. I wouldn't use a regular RSL, for all the reasons you hear from other jumpers. But the SkyHook negates those reasons, and it still can be disconnected on a jump by jump basis. I'm no the type to get disoriented or lose track of altitude in a malfunction, and in my 520 jumps, I've only had linetwists maybe 20 times, but if a SkyHook will give me a greater chance of living through an ugly situation, I want it.

Back then there was an idea that if you couldn't see your handle you couldn't pull it. Now we know that's not an issue, and the BOC location is the most secure for two reasons: it doesn't move in relation to your body (ever have your legstrap slide down in freefall? If your handle is on it, that handle can move around quite a bit), and you can't give yourself a mal by twisting your legstrap when you put on your gear (sounds stupid, but happened a lot). All bets are off in a horseshoe situation, but you can prevent them by maintaining and checking your gear religiously.

Aww, thanks y'all. I wrote that tune on Sunday, sitting out at a picnic table. I wanted something that would allow everyone to feel their grief, but not be overwhelmed by it. I'm happy with the way it turned out. Roger was always trying to get me to sing, and I usually had some sorry excuse for why I couldn't.... The thing that struck me about the whole weekend, and especially Monday, was this: Roger would have loved to see so many people at SDC sharing stories, and seeing each other for the first time in years. It was a great an awful weekend -- awful to say a last goodbye to someone who meant so much to so many, but wonderful to have each other for support. I'm proud to have been a part of it. -B

I have just started working on my senior rigger's ticket. So far I've learned that doing a packjob that will open is easy -- making it look good isn't!

THat's great Gary! I just started myself. I need to drop the 40 pounds gained during recovery from an injury. I've never been this fat, or this unfit. But now that I'm physically able to run again, I'm out there trying to work up to a quarter mile. It's embarrassing, but I have to start somewhere, right? Keep us posted on your progress! edit to add: BFL is incredible -- I lost just over 20 pounds in 2002 that way, and I ate everything in sight on my free day . I was in the best shape of my life then. Good tiimes... -betsy

My advice (2 jumps short of the rating): Know where your student's feet are on lnading -- if those feet should be up, but aren't, kick 'em in the calves until they pick them up, or be prepared to surf your student. I didn't, and ended up with a broken leg, external fixator, and 9 months laying on the couch with my leg on a pillow . Enjoy the Sigmas -- I would never jump any other tandem rig. And Good Luck!

Ask yourself that question, dude.

Send a public invite, so if he turns it down, he's revealed for the cowardly ass he apparently is.

The first waiver I ever filled out scared the bejeezus out of me. Now I get butterflies, but I enjoy them, because I know if I'm signing one, I'm about to jump. WooHOO!

You're so right, Maura.

I hear ya Bo. My mom told me on Sunday night (when I called her for some comfort) that she, my brother and sister think I'm crazy. Then she called Monday morning to apologize for that, saying that actually, my brother and sister never said that... Gee thanks Mom, I feel so much better now. People who listen to that kind of talk radio listen to it just to hear that kind of thing, an I doubt most people take it seriously. Somebody who actually uses that crap to form their opinions probably shouldn't be Skydiving anyway, IMO.

All this negative media crap will die down quickly, since it's no fun to attack someone who doesn't fight back. We just need to wait it out, and support each other. Roger was the most safety conscious skydiver I've ever known.

I love MexiMelts. They're SOOooo white trash.....

That poem is perfect James. Thanks for posting it.