skydivr

No skydiving - no one can die from no skydiving. No driving - no one can die from no driving. No sex - no one can die from no sex. To be human is to accept responsibility for humanness. There are some who accept the reality of wars as a condition of humanness. These people become professional in their ability to carry it out, not to promote it but to restrict it. Those warriors wait in the shadows for orders to unleash their fury. There is an old story of the sheep and the sheepdogs. It is not bad to be a sheep. However, if you are a sheep, it is extremely bad taste to disparage the sheep dog. This is especially true when the sheep is from another herd in another pasture. Well said. You've got 3 choices in this world to be; 1) The Wolf, 2) The Sheep or 3) the sheepdog. Which is it gonna be? Keith Abner D-17590 "Those who do, can't explain; those who don't, can't understand"

It's Nancy Pelosi's new ride....

Driving radius is still in effect. Oh really? I musta not heard that part... Make sure you tell all of your JMs that you're a skydiver and you have mad skillz... Oohhhh...that would be a mistake of monumental proportions...talk about staying late on the swing landing trainer Soldier: Focus on the task at hand (those shiny wings), and complete your school before you go play...don't know if getting hurt bandit jumping outside of school would be considered line of duty, and no one skydive is worth your military career... Keith Abner D-17590 "Those who do, can't explain; those who don't, can't understand"

Saw this in another vid about a year ago and have used it a couple times.... works great!! Way better than trying to pull the risers apart and kicking out of it. Great post! Fascinating and an interesting alternative. Best option would to try and not get the twists in the first place. Proper packing and body position would help, but the smaller the canopy gets the more likely twists will occur. I'm too old to jump that really small stuff anyway. Keith Abner D-17590 "Those who do, can't explain; those who don't, can't understand"

At least we know the original poster knows how to cut/paste.... I've got mixed feelings about this. I do think that 'contracting' has gotten a little bit out of hand. As a retired soldier, I know how slow the government moves, and there are times when cutting thru the BS is good and necessary, but it can also get out of hand. A tough balance. The LA Governor sat on her damn hands while Katrina came rolling into New Orleans. IF Blackwater got a contract and had legal authority to provide protection services for those sites, then good for them, but conducting law enforcement roles on the city streets probably was overstepping their authority. BUT for someone who was briefly near NO the week afterwards (to help extract someone), there were a lot of things going on and at least somebody was stepping up....it was briefly the wild wild west... Keith Abner D-17590 "Those who do, can't explain; those who don't, can't understand"

An interesting physics lesson. However, I've never seen a line twist a jumper could get his hands ABOVE and you'd be on the wrong end of it. I guess the only way to test your hypothesis is to pack yourself a few and try it...:) You're mostly kicking to get the 'untwist' started (or to try and stop it as it spins you the wrong way)...once it starts to untwist it builds up momentum. Keith Abner D-17590 "Those who do, can't explain; those who don't, can't understand"

Down at Mullins, I suspect? Great DZ! Keith Abner D-17590 "Those who do, can't explain; those who don't, can't understand"

Good Job and thank you BV; the reason I don't come here as often or just lurk is because of the level of vitrol displayed. Keith Abner D-17590 "Those who do, can't explain; those who don't, can't understand"

Two parachutes out at same time. They can get to fighting over which one is the 'primary'. They can also both turn downhill ('downplane") speeding you up to fatal speed. Google it for a pic. The two decisions to be made are: 1. If both are flying OK, use slow and few steering imputs and try to land it, OR 2. Cut the main away if all conditions are right so they don't have opportunity to tangle or downplane. There has been plenty of debate on this over the years - canopy size, placement and order (which one is in front), winds, etc. all have an effect. I would personally prefer to get rid of the main and not try to ride them both down, as they could go into a downplane too low for you to do anything about it.. You need to talk to your Instructor about this situation, as it can happen when people get too low and their main is opening as the reserve fires....especally with a student cypress as it's set to go off higher than the expert model Keith Abner D-17590 "Those who do, can't explain; those who don't, can't understand"

Fair enough. With student gear the likelyhood of a downplane is somewhat less than that of the smaller main/reserve combos. If both were out and flying well I could see your point. But if I've got a Cypres on, passing below 1200 with a partial/spin, I'd prefer to have clear air and cut it away before the Cypres fires than take the chance of getting it tangled up. The BEST solution, however, is to PACK WELL and have a good body position on opening. I have had only one malfunction in 2700 jumps and 18 years, and you know why? Because I pack my own gear....better go knock on wood now that I've said that Keith Abner D-17590 "Those who do, can't explain; those who don't, can't understand"

Like this guy? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QECtqCRNKxs What else you gonna do? Sit there and ride it out? Cutting away at 1200 ft with a partial or even total is MUCH better than waiting for your Cypress to fire at 700+/-; you are the first AND LAST line of defense NEVER GIVE UP. Keith Abner D-17590 "Those who do, can't explain; those who don't, can't understand"

No. Fear helps keep you alive (by giving you a health dose of respect for what are doing so you know get complacent) and it's also what keeps you coming back for more. Conquering your fear in skydiving helps you conquer your other fears in life. Keith Abner D-17590 "Those who do, can't explain; those who don't, can't understand"

After opening: 1. If you don't already, get your hands on your risers immediately. 2. Take a good look around (for traffic to avoid) 3. Stow your slider if applicable. 4. Look around for traffic AGAIN 5. Put your hands in your toggles, LOOK AT THEM AND WATCH THEM RELEASE when you do controllability check; that way you know if there are any issues. 6. Go ahead and finish controllablity check 7. Look around for traffic again, then proceed to plan your landing. Do not ride around on your riser with unreleased toggles for too long, not a good idea. Keith Abner D-17590 "Those who do, can't explain; those who don't, can't understand"

Hope you guys had a great weekend Mike! Melissa and I still jumping, but stay closer to home as our daughter is now 9 (remember when we'd fly her down when she was a baby?). Keith Abner D-17590 "Those who do, can't explain; those who don't, can't understand"

It used to be, when jumps were under $15, that it was alot easier to change jumps in mid-stride to add another jumper. Don't let it bother you, you only get in on cool stuff if you ASK. Don't let that prevent you from asking another jumper, BEFORE HE STARTS DIRT DIVING, if you can get in on it. My wife gives me grief because I try to let TOO many people come in :) Keith Abner D-17590 "Those who do, can't explain; those who don't, can't understand"

+1000 Do NOT Mention to the Blackhats that you skydive or you will be setting yourself up for abuse...wait til it's over. P.S. Always better to be the first out "stand in the door" as you only have to worry about the guy behind you getting out on top of you...in the middle of the stick you have to worry about the everyone around you...I told the guy in front of me I was going to give him a 'pause', and the guy behind me that he'd better give me a 'pause' - not enough to get kicked out of the Aircraft, but enough for a little separation and clean air. Good luck and have a great time! AIRBORNE! Keith Abner D-17590 "Those who do, can't explain; those who don't, can't understand"

I was on the last load Mr. D flew (at Tullahoma)...About 5K Chris Martin comes out and says we gotta get out..when asked why he pointed to the left side..the prop was standing straight up... I miss them both... Keith Abner D-17590 "Those who do, can't explain; those who don't, can't understand"

I personally do not like anyone touching my rig that I don't know. I am very careful how I pack and don't want someone I don't know touching it. If someone asks me for a gear check, I'll gladly oblige if it's gear I understand. If not, I'll ask them what they want me to do. I have seen misrouted bridles, 3-rings wrong and a whole lot of potential fatality-inducing things on the way to altitude in time to either be fixed or that jumper ride the plane down. I don't grab anybody's stuff, but I am very careful to look them in the eye and point it out. Touching your rig is invading your space. Ask politely; refuse politely; no harm no foul. Keith Abner D-17590 "Those who do, can't explain; those who don't, can't understand"

Depends on the rig and the venue. My only BASE jump was at Bridge Day like 10 years ago. I jumped my big honking Falcon 265 with the slider packed down and a huge pilot chute. Opened cleanly, landed on the sandbar on the edge and didn't even get my canopy wet. I would not recommend a zero-p canopy for it. Keith Abner D-17590 "Those who do, can't explain; those who don't, can't understand"

Zulu, FFI I jumped with Susie, Mike Paiser (Susie and Mike got married this spring) on Sunday, talked to Otto last week when the bad news came, and see Jose' regularly. We are all grieving in the only way we know how, and that's jump in his memory. You could see his smiling face.... Keith Abner D-17590 "Those who do, can't explain; those who don't, can't understand"

How did the ceremony go at Ft. Meade yesterday? It happened faster than most of us got word of it and could make arrangements to be there. Eventually, there will be a get together and please post arrangments as a bunch of us want to come in to honor and celebrate Harry's life. Keith Abner D-17590 "Those who do, can't explain; those who don't, can't understand"

I really do miss seeing him on the Drop Zone. How's his family doing? Keith Abner D-17590 "Those who do, can't explain; those who don't, can't understand"

I do not have the words. Harry helped so many people (including me) learn to love the sky. My thoughts are with his widow and his unborn child. I was at his old USAR unit in Nashville for a change of command (the outgoing Bn Cdr was also a student at FCSPA) when I got the news and passed it along; they are also shocked and saddened. If there is a fund set up for them, I'd like to know about it. Hang in there Baby Parrish everyone is rooting for a good, stable exit! Such a tragedy. DEEP BLUE SKIES FOREVER HARRY. Keith Abner D-17590 "Those who do, can't explain; those who don't, can't understand"

I would just about give up my left testicle for another WFFC. I went to every one from 1993 to the last one. I even wrote for several years a daily website diary with pics that was linked to their site. There is NOTHING like the WFFC. In it's heydey, it was HUGE. Where else could you walk onto the DZ and in 10 minutes be last out on a 20-way entire plane shot? A carnival atmosphere, renewing friendships, parties and a great band every night - awesome. I would BE THERE. Bring it on Don! Keith Abner D-17590 "Those who do, can't explain; those who don't, can't understand"

Would advise you not to say that in the presence of or USAR or ARNG soldiers who have deployed and fought same fight in Iraq/Afganistan. But yes, they should be able to jump. Keith Abner D-17590 "Those who do, can't explain; those who don't, can't understand"