GraficO

Time to throw another 2 cents in the DZdotcom bucket... I have 2 Samurai canopies and I jump in New Mexico where we have notoriously nasty dust devils. From personal experience (I am living proof) I would rather not jump a canopy that isn't airlocked because of a potentially bad experience with a aforementioned dust devil. Although I do not recommend flying through a dust devil for fun, I was extremely pleased that my canopy held it's shape and only bobbled a bit as I flew through an invisible one at 100 feet. I probably lost approximately 20 feet of altitude but I contend to this day that if I were flying a non-airlocked canopy I would be pushing up the daisys. If you wanted first hand experience in turbulence you have it now... I liked the first one so much I had to get another one for my other rig. GraficO GraficO "A Mind is a terrible thing to taste."

after reading some of the post... I thought I might throw my 2 cents in. After doing some R&D on some of the most popular skydiving helmets for the past few years, I might be able to provide some insight for people to make a educated decision on skydiving helmets to purchase. It is true that no skydiving helmet is specifically designed to protect your head or your neck. No skydiving helmet is DOT or SAE certified... BUT... there are a few things to keep in mind about helmets (hard shell, soft shell, open face, full face, flip up visor, fixed visor, or leather padded) and skydiving: - Yes they allow you a place to put audibles and cameras. - Yes they are not rated specifically to protect you from a serious impact like a motorcycle helmet would. - No they will not absorb ALL of the energy from a serious impact with the aircraft, another skydiver or the ground but will take SOME of the energy out of the impact. - Have there been occurances where a helmeted skydiver survived a serious impact with some sort of object that they probably would not have if they weren't wearing one? YES. - Are there better features between skydiving helmets over others in regards to safety? YES - Why do skydiving helmets manufactuers place that warning sticker in their helmets? Because in our litigious society, everyone wants to blame everyone else but themselves. Skydiving is dangerous... so let's get to the point... you want to skydive, you accept all risks involved... there are absolutely no guarantees that a helmet will or will not protect you regardless of construction or design. No helmet manfacturer or skydiving helmet manfacturer can guarantee that. - Do they look cool? Some do but everyone has their own opinion Overall, a desirable skydiving helmet is designed first and foremost to provide the following things: - good peripheral vision - range of motion and head movement. You don't want to be restrained from being able to see your emergency handles or not be able to check your airspace above you at pull time - Ergonomically designed to fit the bulk of human head sizes and shapes comfortably. Frankly, there are some heads that just won't fit in a skydiving helmet... long foreheads, oblong skulls, wide craniums... etc. Most manufacturers accomodate these people by offering custom liners. Shell sizing on some can be altered but most of the time it's the liner that determines ultimately the final fit. - lightweight construction so that hard openings are not accelerated by extra weight to your head and neck. - Padding construction... what materials and thicknesses will absorb more impact energy - Shell construction... what materials and combinations of materials provide "better" protection than others. - Warmth... temperature at altitude is much lower than at ground elevation especially during the winter - Noise reduction. Prolonged exposure to loud noises can damage your hearing. Overall, skydiving helmets basically cover all of the above... again... some better than others. Research your helmet purchase by contacting a qualified, experienced gear dealer on the features and customer feedback surrounding helmets you have interest in... ot just what's cool or what's more or less expensive. Afterall, the gear dealer is going to hear both the positives and the negatives first regarding any brand or model of helmet becuse if there is a problem, the gear dealer is going to be the first one to get the helmet back! Feel free to email if you have specific questions... I can't publicly recommend or chastize any helmet because of what I do for a living in the industry. In private conversation, I can however give my personal preference on what I fly... camera, RW or freefly. GraficO GraficO "A Mind is a terrible thing to taste."

Hookit, Regardless of whether or not the Nova still exists, regarless of whether or not some were good and some were bad, whether or not the "grounding" has been lifted... please take into account the following: An up an coming jumper by the name of Ron Gross died under a Nova right in front of his father because the borrowed one he was jumping collapsed in even wind at less than 200 feet. I am a direct friend of Ron and his family... that loss was almost more than his brother Gary and his father could bear. Gary used to fly various planes at Xenia and some of you probably know him and the aftermath. You can jump anything you want, load a canopy to the hilt as much as you want and claim to be an expert pilot on any of the super-turbo-postage stamps available out there... but do you really feel the need to tempt fate that badly for the hell of it? I have seen enough people go in or get seriously injured over my skydiving career... but jumping a Nova regardless is just plain asking for it. I'm sure you're a competent pilot and there are probably several Novas still in the air out there that have been jumped without incident for years... again is it really worth the risk? I prepare for the flames from Nova jumpers... but there is nothing you can say or do to convince me that a Nova is "safe". Additionally there is nothing you can say that will bring Ron back to me, his brother and his dad. I plead with you to drop the idea... it just isn't worth it. GraficO check out this web addy for a pic of Ron and others that didn't make it to the green light and a beer at the end of the day... http://www.robharris.org/eternalflame.htm GraficO "A Mind is a terrible thing to taste."

HEH... Seems that most of my gear gets copied somehow since I used a lot of it in various ads. Not a problem... glad I could help take away some of the trauma in deciding a color scheme! BTW... forrest green instead of blue looks cool too... I screwed up in my post with the rigs... the one in the ad is the one on the right... the new Infinity is the one on the left (the one with the chrome stripes on the main flap) GraficO GraficO "A Mind is a terrible thing to taste."

I have been watching this thread for awhile and finally decided to post... Well... let's start from the beginning. I have had a plethora of different containers in my skydiving career (Talon, Reflex, Jav... uh... Classiflyer... if any of you old timers remember it...etc.) and I preface my comments by saying that I do work for many of the skydiving manufacturers, distributors, etc. The container... Out of all of my rigs I am far more pleased with the features and comfort of both of my Infinity rigs than any of the other rigs I have flown. I like the way they close... my rigger likes to pack em... I feel confident in any skydiving discipline that the rig will function as a container should. The company... Since day one I have had the best relationship I could ever want with a skydiving equipement manufacturer. I make great looking ads, cool decals, slick t-shirts for the company and VSE allows me the PRIVILEGE to jump and recommend Infinity to those who are looking for new gear. Kelly and I have built a great working relationship as well as a good friendship over the past few years. I can honestly say that I really do like admire the company, the high quality products it builds and the reputation for being one of the best customers service providers in the skydiving world. I've met or worked with almost every company in the industry in some form or another and I can honestly say that VSE has a great product that I feel confident in and would buy over and over again... Frankly I am extremely happy with the relationship I have built with Kelly Farrington & VSE. If I HAD to choose another container I would go with a Javelin... but since I don't HAVE to wait 24+ weeks to get a Jav... I would BEG to get another Infinity. All of that aside... since I know Kelly will probably ready this... the only negative thing I can say about Kelly/VSE is that he should pick a better brand of car or at least one that isn't in the shop for YEARS at a time. For your amusement and viewing pleasure I have posted a photo of both of my Infinitys... and yes the one on the left IS the one used in the ads Anyone who doesn't want to pay an arm and a leg for an great rig should consider an Infinity... lots of different containers out there, but it's the little value added things in VSE service and product quality that really bump the Infinity from an AWESOME rig to an OUTSTANDING rig. Sincerely, GraficO GraficO "A Mind is a terrible thing to taste."

none that I know of in Europe... Check out http://www.ts-skyboards.com Tom will ship a board anywhere in the world GraficO GraficO "A Mind is a terrible thing to taste."