Pendragon

I agree with you there, but the canopy will be far more susceptible to such turbulence at 80% brakes than it would be at full drive. -- BASE #1182 Muff #3573 PFI #52; UK WSI #13

Doesn't the USPA collate such information; if the incident was serious enough to require repatriation, then surely it would have been reported? Whether the USPA would release that kind of information though is another matter. -- BASE #1182 Muff #3573 PFI #52; UK WSI #13

Like Monkey said, the problems with a higher wingloaded canopy is that they don't respond too well in line twists - and that can even apply to a pilot. You will most likely take a few jumps to get yourself confident of deploying your wingsuit in a completely stable position. However, 1.6 on a Pilot isn't that bad for a wingsuit (I use a Safire2 129 @ 1.6 myself and never have problems) and, with wingsuit experience, is fine - theoretically. Only you and the people around you know whether you're ready to fly the higher w/l canopy though. -- BASE #1182 Muff #3573 PFI #52; UK WSI #13

The pilot is a good wingsuit canopy; I used to jump the 150 @ 1.4. I now use a Safire2 129 @ 1.6 - I found that the Safire2 canopy gave me better high performance landings; the Pilot (IMO) was more resistant to front riser input, and recovered fast. Any tapered canopy (Pilot, Safire2 etc) is fine for wingsuiting, certainly up to 1.6. Your choice will depend on how current you are / will remain, and how you feel flying the canopies you're thinking about. From my own experience, I did c. 300 jumps on my Pilot 150 before getting the Safire 2 129; but after

I agree with Matt. I would hope that, if you were coming back from a long spot, you would be going downwind (aircraft likely to have been running into wind, after all). So, with a tailwind, max glide will be closer to min sink on the canopy than it would be in nil winds. IIRC, max glide on a parachute is around half brakes; min sink would be somewhere between three quarters and full brakes. The canopy is trimmed like that to provide decent forward speed for a flare (try standing up from a flare beginning at half brakes), and to penetrate higher winds. Rear risers deform the canopy in a different way and they do not reduce the sink rate as much as control line inputs. As a result, using rears to lengthen glide in a slight headwind would be beneficial, whereas three-quarter brakes would actually reduce glide. Anyone reading this should do some searching around "polar curves" if you want to know more. -- BASE #1182 Muff #3573 PFI #52; UK WSI #13

Out of interest, do you know if foreign ratings are acceptable at the US resorts? Eg, I have a BHPA Pilot (hill) rating on a paraglider, which is equivalent to an IPPI Para Pro stage 4 - I used that to fly my paraglder in Switzerland, for instance. -- BASE #1182 Muff #3573 PFI #52; UK WSI #13

Scott Roberts is worth considering for private tuition as well; he's quite technical. He lives in Deland, but usually jumps in Palatka or sometimes Sebastian. -- BASE #1182 Muff #3573 PFI #52; UK WSI #13

Not if you've got to go through their elongated (even by litigious American standards!) waiver procedures you won't... -- BASE #1182 Muff #3573 PFI #52; UK WSI #13

Just because the xfire2 has a shorter recovery arc than a crossbraced doesn't mean that rears aren't useful; rather the opportunity to use them is narrower. Besides, why not learn how to use rears on the plane out before transitioning to a crossbraced canopy? Anyway, you need a decent enough speed - from at least a 270 degree turn - to make any use of them, and depending on your technique, it is possible have a difference experience to someone else. -- BASE #1182 Muff #3573 PFI #52; UK WSI #13

Simply put, you want your ground speed to be zero when you land. So, in nil wind, you want zero airspeed, and your toggle stroke to achieve this will take you close (but not to) the stall point. If you're landing into 15 mph winds, you want your airspeed to be 15 mph (so groundspeed zero). As a consequence, your toggle stroke may only be to half it was in nil winds. So, the windier it is, the less toggle input you put in to land. This is just a quick theoretical demonstration; get some advice on the DZ on how best to land given different wind conditions. -- BASE #1182 Muff #3573 PFI #52; UK WSI #13

It's a technique used to raise the angle of attack on the canopy without slowing the canopy down, preventing the canopy from diving further, taking the extra speed you have and converting it into horizontal distance. Sure, you would technically be ever so slightly "in the corner" should you not use the rears, but the point at which you use them is when the pilot has swung back underneath the canopy but before the canopy itself has fully recovered to normal flight on its own (sometimes called the "roll-out" phase). It's a bit difficult to explain without showing though. However, the internet is not the place for teaching this or similar techniques; get some good advice about how and when to use the rears when you have several hundred HP landings and you've got your 270 degree turn dialed in. -- BASE #1182 Muff #3573 PFI #52; UK WSI #13

I regularly jump a xfire2 109 @ 1.8 and a safire2 129 @ 1.6; I've also jumped a xfire2 129. I noticed the biggest difference going from the xfire2 129 to the 109, rather than from the safire2 of the same size. Depending on your experience level / currency etc, if you're looking to buy I'd recommend loading the xfire2 at 1.7/1.8; maybe borrow a larger one for a few jumps? However, both canopies execute high-performance landings nicely. I still regularly use the safire2 as a wingsuit canopy and it gives me some nice swoops; 270 degree turns and using the rears to force the plane-out. So much of this is technique. Get some local advice if you plan to downsize though. -- BASE #1182 Muff #3573 PFI #52; UK WSI #13

Your missus will never allow it! Anyway, you need to start jumping properly again. -- BASE #1182 Muff #3573 PFI #52; UK WSI #13

Why the last chance to compete on it? Are we about to lose the only suitable pond of any BPA centre? I never quite understand how some minds work... -- BASE #1182 Muff #3573 PFI #52; UK WSI #13

Yeah, Chris was always a bit of a mad bugger... Had many a fine flight with him, as my avatar shows. I still remember him showing up on the DZ for the first time with his van and it's new horn; I think it cost him $1,500 at least. It should have been fitted to a fire truck it was so loud! -- BASE #1182 Muff #3573 PFI #52; UK WSI #13

Never actually jumped a Sabre 2, but I can assure you that the Safire2 can swoop pretty nicely, and does work as a canopy to progress on. It is my wingsuit canopy of choice currently, and I usually execute 270s on it with a bit of rear-riser input during the roll-out. Mine is a 129 loaded at 1.6 or so. Take advice, get some coaching and have fun! -- BASE #1182 Muff #3573 PFI #52; UK WSI #13

Well, you know my thoughts on that one... -- BASE #1182 Muff #3573 PFI #52; UK WSI #13

You're probably barking up the wrong tree with the JVX. I've met a number of camera guys who use a xaos-21 (not the 27!) for it's openings. They don't behave as "badly" during the snivel as velocities (I've jumped both). However, they will still take off and put you in unrecoverable line twists if you fail to treat them with respect. I would also add that if you're getting consistantly bad openings, it may be due to your lack of experience. Velocities - and x-braced canopies in general - are highly sensitive to body position in the harness during opening. Your ability to land the canopy won't help if you can't open it successfully! You might do well to spend more time on something like a xfire2 or Katana @ 1.8-1.9 wing loading (the xfire2 makes an excellent camera canopy) and then go back to the x-braced. I would really consider that because you don't seem to have quite enough experience for what you want to do just yet, but maybe in a season or so. It's worse if you're light (which given your canopy size / wingloading examples you must be) as the smaller canopies tend to be more aggessive at a lower wingloading than their larger cousins. Same is true of paragliders. This is in part due to the relative length of the control and suspension lines. You should re-evaluate your options... and the JVX definitely isn't the answer. Edit to add: Given that you mention that you have a lot of experience on a Nitro 88 @ 1.7 in another thread, you really should get some more experience on a canopy like a Crossfire2 or Katana at 1.8 before going crossbraced. Ultimately, stepping up too early will only damage your confidence and hold your canopy development back - and bad / scary openings are the obvious symptom of that. -- BASE #1182 Muff #3573 PFI #52; UK WSI #13

1.4 to 1.6. Much higher than that and you should think about a Xfire2. I regularly jump a Safire2 129 @ 1.6 for wingsuiting and get nice swoops out of it doing 270 turns. At a lower wingloading, the riser pressure may build up too quickly to go much beyond 180s. Personally I would load a Xfire2 around 1.8 - they're way more fun and take on a whole different meaning than how they behave at 1.6 in my experience. Higher than that you should go xbraced. -- BASE #1182 Muff #3573 PFI #52; UK WSI #13

I like high-speed passes, but solos/2-ways are better bets with these or you risk scattering the whole load for miles down jump-run, and it is best to speak to someone who has done this in the past before trying yourself regarding the (manageable) risks involved. Two-way linked gainer exits (facing the tail) are also a lot of fun; leg wing shoulder width apart with arm wings collapsed and holding hands. Give the key then jump and let the slipstream throw your legs over your head... With the gainer exits, some jumpers inadvertantly keep the suit in a dive for too long and lose altitude quickly; something to be mindful if trying to get a small flock together. -- BASE #1182 Muff #3573 PFI #52; UK WSI #13

Not sure...may be a while - I'm getting married this summer! -- BASE #1182 Muff #3573 PFI #52; UK WSI #13

What I would add is that changing your canopy type will affect the amount of alititude lost in a turn (all other things being equal) way more than a change in wing loading on the same canopy (eg, by wearing lead). Some examples for when I initiate my 270 turns: Around 500ft on a Safire2 129; slightly more when I wear a wingsuit Around 600ft on a Xfire2 109 (about the same when I wear a weight belt) Around 800ft on a Velocity 96; about the same on a Velocity 90 I've successfully done 270s lower than that, but the turns were faster and I generated less speed in the plane out. The beauty of a 270 or higher turn is that you have range as well as generating speed - so compensations can be made during the turn to allow for being slightly lower/higher than you would have hoped for - but there is a limit. However, if you are the type of person who makes their turn at a height close to either end of their height-loss range (one pro swooper once told me he could initiate a 270 from between roughly 450 and 900ft on his Velocity and still get a swoop out) then you have nowhere to go when you're out of position. In addition, when you change your technique, the results can be quite stark - my first turns on the Velocity were initiated at 700ft. Be weary that as you train and get better, you get to hold the dive for longer and so your initiation altitude may go up! Regarding turn size; 450s are harder to target than 270s, but you generate more speed so those that can, do... 630s start to get very hard to target and this benefit becomes outweighed. -- BASE #1182 Muff #3573 PFI #52; UK WSI #13

Well done. Cool shots... and nice exposure for the sport.

Agreed; James Boole and I put together a set of proposals regarding the definition of a wingsuit for the purposes of this kind of event a few years back. Not sure whether it went anywhere though. It's not that difficult; main definition for me is a requirement for wing aerofoil to be double-surface construction of a minimum percentage (to avoid confusion with camera wings). -- BASE #1182 Muff #3573 PFI #52; UK WSI #13

Why? Bigger? Smaller? Rings made of a different metal? Can't think of anything else that would make a difference given the set up you describe... Just curious. -- BASE #1182 Muff #3573 PFI #52; UK WSI #13