SkydiveNFlorida

You do, i don't. All people have different opinions. It's really no different than saying "don't rush putting your rig on and running to the plane." I don't think it's smart to do that, but other people see no problem with it. Not everyone has to be the same ya know. Different opinions aside, the post made a good point. Just because you landed safely rushing things and skipping steps one time (or many), doesn't mean it won't bite you in the ass another. Anyone can make a mistake when trying too hard to rush so his advice regardless of his time in the sport should be taken seriously. Complacency kills. -A

I can respect that. Unfortunately, though, when you provide that type of stuff online of course not everyone who uses it is going to buy from you. I asked on here where I could find a coloring program and was told that I could find it there. It ended up in the running in places to buy from, but I had to go with the best price and that came from someone i'd ordered from in the past so I went with them. Regardless, though, when something frusterates you (like someone uses a program, or inquires something of you that they don't buy) you should still leave with your head up, no need to say things that leave them feeling insulted and with a bad taste in their mouth. Oh, and I was writing from my tablet pc before, which is why the typos (handwriting recognition is bad for people with poor writing skills.) Anyhow, we'll leave it at that. I had a bad experience with just one sales rep, not the company as a whole and I didn't get anything so no bad product or anything. -a

Wow, the attitude is very tense are disbelieving here. If I water to go thru the whole story, I would have.

I also had problems with the customer service @ square 1. Was basically insulted because I used their coloring program (free online) but ordered elsewhere (for a better price, sorry I'm not rich!) Glad it worked out for, good customer service means good for everyone. A company must be looked at for the bad feedback, not for only the good.

coming: alanab Anvil ballsack brianfry713 CCQ Chaoskitty chopchop CieloDiosa Clownburner Cornholio! Deuce Elisha Evelyn D22369 ****nany nany poopoo...I got my ticket Feeblemind FIREFLYR Absolutely,possibly Frenchy fueler GiaKrembs Girlfalldown JankyBob gjhdiver gravitygirl jdobleman Jsaxton Leah livendive mathias mcneill79 mfrese monkycndo nuntiux NWFlyer photofly plaything, maybe tied up and kicking and screaming.. Rookie120 Rosebud SeaKev Sebazz1 Shawndiver skybytch (and some swooper guy) Skydivexxl with da beer! Smilie tallguy Thanatos340 vdschoor Breathing hard: Amazon genoyamamoto Almost sure: skydivenflorida Kaerock

Probably is assuming that because parapak is slippier than cordura it may be difficult to grip... that might be the case in some gloves, I don't know. I owned a parapak rig for a couple hundred jumps, did have a cutaway and used my pillow cutaway and pillow reserves just fine with my bare hands and they weren't even the really good reinforced stiffener ones. But, if it were madness, and I had slippery gloves, things might have been different, dunno. I liked the parapak on my rig, it looks much brighter and newer in general. But, that said, I ordered cordura on my second rig in order to avoid scrapes and such from slide in swoops. Although, my first one held up very well; I purchased and sold it used and it looked just as good after the 200+ jumps I put on it. -A

I saw your post on landings but don't remember how accurate you said you were. Accuracy is VERY important for some beaches. I know when I went to the Key's Boogie we were only supposed to land on a small portion of the beach that was blocked off for us so as not to hit people, trees, etc. It looks small from the air with compare to the water, and it IS small, don't let anyone fool you by saying it isn't. If you are not accurate, just wait on the beach landings. But, to comment, beach swoops rock! -A

How did that happen, Mar? You thought he was looking at you, his head was turned your way and he wasn't and he was coming forward but you thought he'd stop, or what? -- I wear sunglasses in freefall, under canopy, outside, in my car, etc. It is important to protect yourself from UV rays whether that be with sunglasses or UV tinted goggles. Plus, because I wear sunglasses so often, my eyes are not accustomed to such bright light and I tend to tear in freefall if I have to look in the direction of the sun w/o sunglasses. But, I have no problems when i'm wearing them. I'd prefer not to have my eyes tearing or to be squinting, one less thing to worry about. -- To the question, how do you wear them in freefall. Buy a pair that fits your face well and seals from (most of) the wind. I actually found a pair of knock offs at the mall that fit my face pretty well. I have the rubber sealed safety necklace that holds them on (don't know the technical term for it.) I rarely have any problems, but if I don't tighten them enough i've had problems with too much wind. I refuse to spend 100+$ on a pair of sunglasses that I will abuse at the dropzone. -A

Yes! My favorite is this one Ok, i'll leave it. thx. -A

Who were you? -A

Would you? When I started on here, I didn't intend to post here often, and I wasn't even sure i'd be jumping this long. I was in Florida, so the name seemed fitting as I thought i'd get more responses from those in Florida which is what I was looking for at the time (and I did.) Well, now i'm leaving Florida not to return. I frequently get pm's from newer jumpers asking about dzs in Florida, or to meet up, etc, due to my username. Would it be feasible to change it at this point, or am I going to confuse everyone? -A

i thought this was good advice.. take it or leave it. Exactly, there was good advice in this thread, unfortunately you had to sift through some rather pointless posts to find it. But, if you are not willing to make a small effort to find the good information then you will have a rough time in this sport and life in general. I understand you are upset about some of the abuse you dealt with in this thread, but don't let it get to you, just sift through it and find what you feel is good advice. If you couldn't find any in this thread you weren't reading. Angela.

Or, alternatively, you might get there and watch him land softly on the parachute. I wouldn't be concerned about his landings when all is going well, it is when faced with an off-dz landing, or someone who cuts him off, or coming in toward an obstacle, etc, that what his next move would be would be a concern (ie, low turn, etc.) However, that would be a consideration on any 120 comparably loaded, not just stiletto i'd think. I would personally choose a larger elliptical to get started on and learn the controls of first before a 120. Another concern is openings, if you give yourself a good amount of time to get stable and pull, might be fine... but, if you are rushed, or pull a little unstable, you could be in a mess that is spinning and diving very fast due to the size and planform. Will you handle it well? Who knows, maybe, maybe not. I can tell you from experience that posts like yours are not bothered with by some of us. I prefer constructive comments, like mine and some others on here who will point out in exactly what situations this canopy might be a problem. Those get someone to actually think about it instead of brush you off because you sound like an ass repeating the same old "you're gonna die" line. jmo, -A

My first canopy was a stiletto 150 at 50 jumps and I weighed about the same as you at the time. I got a lot of crap for it, but I liked the canopy and I flew it conservatively. I think you should have at least flown another 150 before you fly the stiletto, it is not as forgiving of bad body position on opening as another 150 might be. A 120 at your jump numbers is not recommended, and if you buy the 150 you are likely going to have no problem selling it. I put about 80 jumps on mine before I sold it for 100$ less than what I bought it for. Best of luck in your search. Be careful, a 120 may be a bit above your head at your jump numbers, regardless of planform. Talk to your instructors. Maybe a 150 or 135 might be a better choice of canopy. -A

That's a really good question, I wish I had the Physics knowledge to answer it. I am not sure what the difference in the degradation of angular velocity due to drag from size/mass of the parachutist vs the degradation of angular velocity due to change in direction of a parachutist would be. You could probably get an appoximation by considering the parachutist as a pendulum. I know that Kallend and some others (billvon?) are well versed in Physics, but might never look at a thread titled "girl wants to play with the boys." You might want to repost your question and ask about Physics and forces in the title. Or, alternatively, try www.physicsforums.com you will most definitely get a response there. Oh, and just wanted to say, right on about your rant, too! I hope I didn't offend you, I was just answering the other guys question about arc/vs/arch in US. I can see how the whole to-do about it would be offensive, good for you for speaking up especially if you aren't from the US! I think questions like yours trump "I jump a velocity at 80 jumps" any day, but alas, there aren't as many of these type of questions, and not many here are qualified to answer. Take care, and if you repost the question I will definitely be following it on either forum. Angela.

Wow, be careful! Sight is very important for landings. Not standing up was the least of your worries here, really, it could've been worse. The winds were squirley? Did others have problems? Did you land off the windline? Are you sure you are flaring evenly? nonsense, if you think like this you'll soon break something. Get it out of your head that it is all important to stand up. When the winds pick you up and drop you, PLF! Do not try to stand that up! If you are doing a downwind landing, slide it in, do not stand that up! That is never a bad idea, canopy coaching is a great help and it is out there for our benefit so take advantage. There is nothing better than rush of a good landing, it is worth the money to invest in coaching! I saw the post about flaring at 12 feet, I see that I have much less experience than that poster but this would be much too soon for a lot of people. I do not start my flare at 12 feet for a straight in landing, but you need to feel your canopy out and a coach can help you do that! :) Edit to add that spizzarko's info on flaring was really good, if you read it, read it again. There has been some really good info in this thread. Oh, and also to add to do more high pulls, even if you just exit last and pull at 7grand and play with your canopy, turns, flares, flare-turns, flat turns. Really feel it out! :) Good luck and cheer up! Angela.

My thoughts exactly. If I wasn't bored as hell at work I wouldn't be on this site, you'll probably not see me around here as much soon (quitting in a week!) Some things do come up of interest, and the incidents forum seems to be where most of that happens although I try not to post there because I don't want to crowd it with noise (I with others would do the same!) For the most part, yes. But, it gives people somewhere to kill time and talk skydiving. And, sometimes we need to be reminded of things that we already know (sometimes, not 8 times a day!) jmo, -A

Conflicting statements. Spectre is not aggressive at all. If you are looking to go aggressive with your first canopy, though, I can relate. However, rather than loading something highly, you might just want to get something with a little more go than a spectre. A Sabre2 is a nice canopy, it can be flown both conservatively and aggressively, it has a good resale value (which you'll be needing with your first canopy!) and for someone who might want aggressive it would be a much better choice than a spectre (ach!). jmo, though. I just don't like the Spectre, many do, I don't. But, you should try them both for yourself to see what you like because that's what is important. PD does demos like has been said, so i'd definitely go that route before buying. And, as far as a container, any new container is likely to work just fine, everyone has a preference. Look around, ask people at your dz about theirs and see which you like the look of. You do not need a Mirage necessarily, it is nice, but very pricey and there are other rigs available that will work just as well. :) -A

I can relate, I don't know but I haven't thrown it out I don't think. I also need to log my last 50 jumps, lol! -A

No, it is arc here, too. Although, recovering from arching too much generally happens the day after any RW for me As for the physics, i'll leave that to the experts, maybe Kallend or someone. -A

So, you would say 1.8 or so is maybe the point where a cross-brace could start to be a benefit, then? Thanks for all the info. -A

Thanks to everyone for the reviews. I was not looking to get into peoples beliefs on when one is ready to load a canopy, experience necessary, etc. This thread was strictly a comparison of canopies, please treat it as such. The info given has been great! Thanks. Angela.

HA! You just love to poke fun after you ditched us here, doncha Lisa?! I was just saying earlier that I don't understand why hurricanes can't just hold off for 2 more weeks. I wanted to jump this weekend, too, but unless Dennis turns way west it isn't looking good. See ya soon! -A

That was a good review, thanks! Now I have an idea of the actual differences not just the common "katana is almost a velocity." :) -A