Fast

I'm sure this will generate some ... um ... lively discussion here, but to make sure USPA hears your thoughts, comment on the link above as well. My thoughts: 1. I don't know. I think it could help, but I don't think it will sink in for most people. I already feel that people's brains are reeling and trying to catch up with everything that they have learned. I think this is one of the reasons that people get into the dangerous category around 100 jumps. They feel as if they have finally caught up with the information that they learned getting their license, etc. Showing some structured continuing education will help in that regard. 2. I so long as there is no consecutive requirement, I think that this would be a great idea. Someone could just declare every jump though. What I don't think would be good is to encourage someone to go out and do something stupid to not break a streak. 3. I think a canopy proficiency card for a B license or higher is a great idea. I am glad to see that this was an adopted idea as it is one that I was saying before that we really should be promoting. This is continuing education. If you look around, many of the things in the world that are high risk / important to do right / ever changing environments, be it jobs or fun activities, some level of continuing education is required. This is at least a step in that direction. I also feel that at this point someone has had a bit of a breather from the overload of "learning to skydive" information. 4. I don't know that this is going to help. Honestly, the people handing out ratings really should be doing their job and ensuring that those entrusted to teach our students know what the hell they are talking about. I think it's a good idea for people to do this, but I don't think making it a rule is going to help. If a course director wants to do it as their way of being sure that a person knows what they are doing, then I think they should. Course directors should take responsibility for the people they are turning into instructors (and I think many do, but there are those that don't). 5. Just make it the test longer if anything, it's not going to hurt anyone to ask more questions. 6. I think that this could be a good idea. Honestly, we need people to have some sort of structure to things when it comes to teaching. I mean, everyone doesn't know everything. To be able to coach and teach about something, you should really have to either be taught how to teach it or somehow demonstrate that you know how. Coaches are supposed to be mentored by instructors are they not? I think that we need to get things more in line with that program. If the coaches worked more closely with a instructors after becoming coaches, they would be better at teaching these things to students. 7. I dunno on this one. I highly advocate attending a canopy course of some sort, but with nothing really developed, it's hard for me to get behind the idea. The main thing is that a candidate should really demonstrate that they are proficient in teaching these things or at least that they have an understanding of the topic at hand. 8. Dropzones should be doing this already. I am not going to argue for or against, but USPA really doesn't do a great job of ensuring "standards." Everyone is taken at their word. Maybe that should change, maybe it shouldn't, I don't really know where I stand. Hope that this helps. ~D Where troubles melt like lemon drops Away above the chimney tops That's where you'll find me. Swooping is taking one last poke at the bear before escaping it's cave - davelepka

Did you get a license? If not, you shouldn't be buying your own gear. The reality of skydiving is that if you can't afford to stay current in the sport, do tandems. You're substantially more likely to get hurt if you are only jumping one day a month or less. Not trying to crush your dream here, but the impression that I am getting from your post is that you never actually got a license. That would have to be step one before buying any gear. Getting gear would then be greatly easier with the assistance of your local instructors. ~D Where troubles melt like lemon drops Away above the chimney tops That's where you'll find me. Swooping is taking one last poke at the bear before escaping it's cave - davelepka

Generally quite true and useful for students to understand. I'll expand on that to add some "fine print": Nevertheless, one does want to know how to properly get out of the airplane, whether it is a C-182 or Caravan. Improper exits can lead to bruises, getting skinned, losing teeth, breaking bones. So there are a few things to be learned about making sure one gets clear of the airplane instead of smacking into it on the way out. Yeah very true - though outside of the point I was trying to make. Anyways thanks for the "fine print."

Yeah, get over it. Let's face it, you're intending to jump out of the thing, freefall for 5000', then deploy a clever little fabric wing out of your backpack and land safely on the ground, and you're afraid for the climbout on a 182? Come on, there are much bigger things to be afraid of if you're going to be afraid of anything. Just get in, wait 30 min, and get out. Yes, it's windy out there, so buck-up and plant your foot on the step like you mean it. Grab on to the strut and muscle yourself into position, give the count, and make a skydive. There's no way around it. If you want to jump, you need to take that first step and leave the aircraft, plain and simple. Literally millions of jumps have been made from 182s, the climbout is possible, and not that hard once you 'just do it'. So before Nike sues me for copyright infringement, 'just do it'. I mean that literally by the way. Make a point to get back to the Cessna DZ and succeed. Don't hide at the turbine DZ and become a licensed jumper who is secretly afraid of 182s because that would be super lame. All that and... my general advice for people who are afraid of exit is to remember what the whole point is... to go skydiving. No reason to be afraid of leaving the plane, that's when the fun starts. It doesn't matter what kind of plane it is, what's the worst that's gonna happen? You tumble? Well, arch and get stable. Fall off? Isn't that the point? When you think about being afraid, think instead about the relieving feeling of freefall or being back on the ground or whatever it is that you get your kicks from in this sport. Have fun! ~D Where troubles melt like lemon drops Away above the chimney tops That's where you'll find me. Swooping is taking one last poke at the bear before escaping it's cave - davelepka

So basically, we are back in a "Fucked" position where there are no cameras to buy once the market dries up. Fun. ~D Where troubles melt like lemon drops Away above the chimney tops That's where you'll find me. Swooping is taking one last poke at the bear before escaping it's cave - davelepka

http://www.usa.canon.com/cusa/consumer/products/cameras/ef_lens_lineup/ef_70_300mm_f_4_5_6_is_usm http://www.usa.canon.com/cusa/consumer/products/cameras/ef_lens_lineup/ef_70_200mm_f_4l_is_usm http://www.usa.canon.com/cusa/consumer/products/cameras/ef_lens_lineup/ef_70_300mm_f_4_5_6l_is_usm Those go from cheapest to most expensive. All are IS lenses and the last two are L glass. I have the first one cause I couldn't justify the $1500 for the 70-300L I think that getting a lens without image stabilization probably isn't worth it at that zoom range unless you are going to exclusively tripod shoot, which I don't expect you will. The IS makes a crazy difference. ~D Where troubles melt like lemon drops Away above the chimney tops That's where you'll find me. Swooping is taking one last poke at the bear before escaping it's cave - davelepka

The problem isn't capitalism. In theory it works, but human beings are a pretty degenerate group. It's greed. That's the real problem with the world. The sad thing is that it's innate in human nature. ~D Where troubles melt like lemon drops Away above the chimney tops That's where you'll find me. Swooping is taking one last poke at the bear before escaping it's cave - davelepka

Yeah, it's primarily a voting issue. There are also claims of public safety. They don't want those people protesting / quitting / etc. ~D Where troubles melt like lemon drops Away above the chimney tops That's where you'll find me. Swooping is taking one last poke at the bear before escaping it's cave - davelepka

Optimum 126 @ 1.62 ~D Where troubles melt like lemon drops Away above the chimney tops That's where you'll find me. Swooping is taking one last poke at the bear before escaping it's cave - davelepka

I have over 1000 jumps on my Velo 103. I have 20-30 jumps over various periods on a friends Katana 107. The difference to me is that when I'm flying the Velocity it feels like a solid wing and the Katana feels mushy. I wouldn't say that a velocity "fly's big" though. It's similarly responsive and certainly aggressive. Saying the katana feels mushy is a subjective feeling kind of thing. It's just how it "feels" to me when I'm flying it and the same can be said about my XF2 139 ~D Where troubles melt like lemon drops Away above the chimney tops That's where you'll find me. Swooping is taking one last poke at the bear before escaping it's cave - davelepka

Mine tend to turn right, but then again, they are taught to turn right as soon as we let go of them so that probably has something to do with it. Our level 4 is standard alternating turns and we just start out with a simple 90 to face us after release. Gives them something to think about other than the fact that I just let go of them. ~D Where troubles melt like lemon drops Away above the chimney tops That's where you'll find me. Swooping is taking one last poke at the bear before escaping it's cave - davelepka

Can you provide model name and brand name of these ear plugs? http://www.moldex.com/hearing-protection/foam-earplugs/sparkplugs.php Reading some on that page, the color pattern is patented. Which makes me believe that these are the same ones I have used when doing tunnel camps. Single nicest thing I have ever put in my ear. I really like these ear plugs. ~D Where troubles melt like lemon drops Away above the chimney tops That's where you'll find me. Swooping is taking one last poke at the bear before escaping it's cave - davelepka

~D Where troubles melt like lemon drops Away above the chimney tops That's where you'll find me. Swooping is taking one last poke at the bear before escaping it's cave - davelepka

It doesn't work that way. You can't put a student under a 94 sq ft canopy. The line length would increase the response to input, and the canopy would be anything but doclie. Beyond that, you can't half size everything. Hardware components and webbing dimensions are not 'negotiable', and the Cypres is still a Cypres, where does that go? Even a 94 sq ft canopy requires a standard sized PC, where do you fit a full sized BOC pouch on a half sized BOC? You can make some things smaller, but when you try to fit all of the other things that remain full size in the smaller package, it's a no-go. I don't know enough about the person we are talking about specifically here, but just wanted to throw in that, (and im sure 94 is too small) but keep in mind depending how much smaller she actually is, using a full size canopy that requires full sized strokes may be problematic. The increased response of the smaller canopy may actually be a good thing. Not saying anything for sure, just that this is a really tricky situation. I mean, you have to consider what her overall "arm throw" is. I mean, if I (and the average person) have say a 4 foot swing from arms up to arms all the way down, and she has a 2ft swing, that's going to require a drastically different setup to provide something that behaves like we expect it to. Just something to keep in mind. ~D Where troubles melt like lemon drops Away above the chimney tops That's where you'll find me. Swooping is taking one last poke at the bear before escaping it's cave - davelepka

Use your eyes - and don't f*ck up. I agree. I pretty much refuse to swoop by beep. I have canopy alarms set in my audible, but they are primarily for pattern flying. I have beeps at altitudes specific to my DZ so that I know about where I have to be and if I am ahead of or behind what I want. I also have a final alarm set at a point where after that swooping may become dangerous. I do it all by sight and I think it's the most reliable way to deal with things. I also know that there is an argument that "well it doesn't look the same at all dropzones" and that's fine, but if I can't safely swoop w/ my eyes then I'm not willing to risk it on beeps. Only takes a handful of jumps to learn a new sight picture. ~D Where troubles melt like lemon drops Away above the chimney tops That's where you'll find me. Swooping is taking one last poke at the bear before escaping it's cave - davelepka

Funny looking building... what could that be? I think I'll drive by and check it out. If you live there, you're not going to care, but it sticks out to tourists and finding out what it is and getting info about them is super easy. I was tremendously happy that they were able to fit me in the day we called and could go do it. When I got home from my vacation I made a skydive w/in a week. Almost 8 years later, a fiance, a whole shit ton of good times, friends and a couple thousand skydives, I am glad that I saw the place. ~D Where troubles melt like lemon drops Away above the chimney tops That's where you'll find me. Swooping is taking one last poke at the bear before escaping it's cave - davelepka

I liked it overall, but the constant stream of jumpcutting got hard for me to watch after a bit. Needed a few longer sections here and there to break it up. I couldn't watch it full screen on my monitor here was "too much" had to watch is at std youtube window size. Other than that, nice video! ~D Where troubles melt like lemon drops Away above the chimney tops That's where you'll find me. Swooping is taking one last poke at the bear before escaping it's cave - davelepka

My problem with this is that the next time this happens, no one is gonna call for help. They will just get the dude out of the tree on their own, then when someone dies because of this, then somehow that's the skydivers fault for not calling, then it turns into a shit storm. I think that services like this should either be gratis or everyone should be charged. I can understand paying for "on standby" services where you have people on site because it's a more than standard risk event, but the day to day stuff, deal with it. I can also understand requiring payment if assistance has to be called in above and beyond what the locals can provide. I.e. you have to call in a coast gaurd helicopter or something. That's understandable. ~D Where troubles melt like lemon drops Away above the chimney tops That's where you'll find me. Swooping is taking one last poke at the bear before escaping it's cave - davelepka

Wow man, you really need to chill out on the crusade. I don't think most people are being arrogant at all about this subject. It's pretty clear that you're only interested in defending your national diploma training system. What I don't get is why you think that things that apply to people in that program to apply to the skydiver in general. Also, I don't know, 100k is a lot, but like.. honestly the top 10 dz's in the US likely do that when put together. (Based on what I know about some operations). That doesn't even count all the mid-sized and small dropzones. If you want to argue over the fact that your country is better than mine or whatever, I could care less. What I don't like having to read is posts that Average Joe Skydiver should strap on a camera helmet and jump with tandems at 100 jumps. A lot of your posts portray that picture and every time some new skydiver reads that here in the states who doesn't know that you mean that a skydiver going through an advanced training program should do that, some poor schumk aff instructor/S&TA/DZO is gonna have a pissed off newbie or a dead/injured newbie or a dead/injured by-standard. Don't you get that? ~D Where troubles melt like lemon drops Away above the chimney tops That's where you'll find me. Swooping is taking one last poke at the bear before escaping it's cave - davelepka

How was this jump legal? Im talking about both. Everyone understands that you can die skydiving. That is not true understanding though.. I agree, I don't think it's true understanding. Honestly, I don't think most people "get it" till they see someone badly hurt / mangled / killed. I have seen 2 dead skydivers and dealt with the fatality of another and have seen many more ambulance calls than I would have wanted to. The reality of things sets in after that kind of stuff. That's when you start really having a true understanding of what can happen to you, when the guy with 2000 jumps or the kid with 100 gets carted away for doing something stupid. ~D Where troubles melt like lemon drops Away above the chimney tops That's where you'll find me. Swooping is taking one last poke at the bear before escaping it's cave - davelepka

Depends if the operations regulations specifies that the manufacturers recommendations must be met or not. At present this is not the case so it comes down to what the part 149 holder specifies. This year the rules are changing in NZ, but I can imagine it will be similar to what it is now. Who knows what will happen when prt 115 comes in. It's all fun and games till someone show's up at a court hearing and throws you under the bus for being ignorant of manufacturer recommendations. Also, I think that you sure as hell need to qualify your posts on here. I most of the threads that you have been in crusading for people to jump camera's at 100 jumps and jumping with tandems at 200 you haven't even touched on the subject of a highly focused advanced training program. Whether or not it's a quality program and if it makes a difference I'm sure is up for debate based on what DSE has said, but the fact of that matter is that, no one in the US has that experience or level of training. It's not happening here at all. There are clearly differences in different places but even with that I just am not sure that the average person will wrap their head around the dangers of the sport and the implications of what they are doing in such a short period of time. I mean, clearly it's working for you guys in NZ since we don't hear about a ton of problems, but it certainly isn't a model for the average skydiver. ~D Where troubles melt like lemon drops Away above the chimney tops That's where you'll find me. Swooping is taking one last poke at the bear before escaping it's cave - davelepka

I am a big proponent of not doing AFF in a week. I think getting to know the people you are going to be jumping with at your DZ can work to your advantage. I think A in a week programs can work for the right people, but I just feel there is a disconnect when you show up at a DZ and no one knows you and you're a brand new jumper. ~D Where troubles melt like lemon drops Away above the chimney tops That's where you'll find me. Swooping is taking one last poke at the bear before escaping it's cave - davelepka

And here's the thing... Those WILL get to 200 jumps (or whatever #, for whatever discipline you are using) soon / "quick" enough. I really don't see WHAT THE BIG DEAL (i.e. RUSH/HURRY) IS. Seriously. Nobody is holding any of these "mad skillz" set back. I mean, what's the deal? Gotta hurry up and get that camera (or wingsuit, or swoop, or whatever) on RIGHT NOW no matter what?? - Gotta hurry up before you get to jump #199 right - - - after all, you may even just have flat out QUIT and moved on by then. Right? This sh** gets old otherwise, right - after (or any longer than) jump #100 easily. 150 at the latest. Better get ALL OF IT out that you can NOW - before you're ready to just hang it up and move on anyway. I entirely agree with you. That is the exact sentiment that I am most annoyed with. ~D Where troubles melt like lemon drops Away above the chimney tops That's where you'll find me. Swooping is taking one last poke at the bear before escaping it's cave - davelepka

I'm so sick of hearing about this country or that country. I don't care about any of that. I think, 50 jumps is too few to be jumping camera. I think 100 is too few jumps to be coaching another skydiver. At about 200 jumps I'm comfortable with someone introducing one new thing. Pick something: coaching, wingsuits, cameras, swooping, accuracy, freeflying... whatever it is that might trip your trigger and start to learn about that. Get a grasp on what is going on, get some coaching on the subject, learn about it. Once you have a basic grasp on that subject only then should you start to add something else. I'm sick of "I want everything now." There are going to be diamonds in the rough that stand out, but it really is clear when you find one of them. I have seen it. In 7 years of skydiving I have seen only one person that was exceptionally better than everyone else. Only 1 out of all the students including myself that my dropzone has trained. ~D Where troubles melt like lemon drops Away above the chimney tops That's where you'll find me. Swooping is taking one last poke at the bear before escaping it's cave - davelepka

Abandoning SQL is not a good idea. Only if to go to some other relational database product. In any case, you don't have to run jumprun on an "ancient" computer. At my dropzone, the jumprun server sits in a closet on an old office computer and we have 6 different workstations and remote access running for our management staff. I think it's an issue of understand how it all fits together to make the problems go away. Also, DSE, the jumprun client runs on 64-bit windows vista just fine, I don't see why there would be a problem with Windows 7. I'll have to install it and try it. You can't run the SQL server that came with jumprun on that computer though, but we are also runing jumprun with a more current SQL Express version. Few bugs here and there, but mostly working. I'm excited to see where jumprun goes. ~D Where troubles melt like lemon drops Away above the chimney tops That's where you'll find me. Swooping is taking one last poke at the bear before escaping it's cave - davelepka