Vapor

It was a Spectre... a Spectre to make a bishop kick a hole in a plate-glass window. I'm naming my canopy "Chandler" in your honor, Hawkins. ;) ---------------------------------------- 'Of course it hurts. The trick is not *minding* that it hurts.' - T.E. Lawrence

Canopy twitchiness is *definitely* not my first concern -- the thing is vast and stable as can be. Taking the swoop cords off is a little tricky, cause I route the left one under my alti. Maybe taking just the right one off would do the trick; I'll try it. I think the grabbing the middle and feeling my way out to the tabs is a good idea. Also stretching. ; ) many thanks for all the input. blues W ---------------------------------------- 'Of course it hurts. The trick is not *minding* that it hurts.' - T.E. Lawrence

N/A

Okay. this is dumb and basic, but I cannot for the life of me seem to reach/collapse my slider what with the flapping around. I think it may have to do with my swoop cords restricting arm movement, or maybe I just don't have the dexterity to grab the little tabs. Sounding like a Stearman is getting annoying. Tips? Tricks? ---------------------------------------- 'Of course it hurts. The trick is not *minding* that it hurts.' - T.E. Lawrence

6:2:1 First jump as a B-license holder. Feels good. Now if only I could stop #&$^#! backsliding... ---------------------------------------- 'Of course it hurts. The trick is not *minding* that it hurts.' - T.E. Lawrence

The other question is "Will your S/O's religion let you convert for that reason?" I can't speak for other religions, but Judaism won't; your decision to convert needs to be about the relationship between you and God and nobody else (for that matter, the Rabbinic council in charge of your conversion is required to seriously *discourage* you at least three times to ensure that you're serious); which is not to say that falling in love with somebody of another faith hasn't given a lot of people perspective on religions they ordinarily wouldn't have considered... but the final decision needs to be your own. blues. W ---------------------------------------- 'Of course it hurts. The trick is not *minding* that it hurts.' - T.E. Lawrence

Where indeed? Also, if there's a sufficient volume of people by then, will the price go down? ---------------------------------------- 'Of course it hurts. The trick is not *minding* that it hurts.' - T.E. Lawrence

A friend of mine wants to make her first tandem, but she's concerned about her eardrums -- she has holes in both, and has had two surgeries to repair them (or at least delay further damage). Anyone with a medical background care to venture an opinion on whether a jump would be safe? blues W ---------------------------------------- 'Of course it hurts. The trick is not *minding* that it hurts.' - T.E. Lawrence

Speaking of which, off-topic, but a little lesson from my recent trip to SDLI: Never, ever, EVER attempt to board a plane with your rig and your Arabic textbooks in the same bag. : ) ---------------------------------------- 'Of course it hurts. The trick is not *minding* that it hurts.' - T.E. Lawrence

I'd like to amend my answer to "I have absolutely no interest in ever jumping out of an airplane with a board strapped to my feet, under any circumstances, or, frankly, sitting near certain skysurfers in the plane while they're flailing around trying to get their board on Jet Li-style, especially if said skysurfers are wearing their hallmark elf-tights.' Ahem. ---------------------------------------- 'Of course it hurts. The trick is not *minding* that it hurts.' - T.E. Lawrence

>Heh heh -- looks like your lead was like Kerry's. Give it two months, then, and we'll wallop you. ;)

Crazy, yes, and absentminded. Great combination for a skydiver, eh? This is turning into a Firefly/Ouragan smackdown, and juding from PM traffic, people feel pretty damn passionately about their Ouragan suits. I may have found my answer. Anyone have experience with their delivery time? ---------------------------------------- 'Of course it hurts. The trick is not *minding* that it hurts.' - T.E. Lawrence

I'm firmly in the 'Yes I know they're safe but they're ugly as shit' camp regarding Pro-tecs. For RW I jump a ParaTec FreeZR, which has the most padding of any fullface I've seen, is a living room compared to a Z1, and has an easily removable visor if you want to use it as an open-face. I just today put the first two jumps on a Hurricane, which is a little on the small side, but comfy enough and low-profile. If you have a smallish head and can live without chin pro, you might want to check it out. Nearly everyone at my DZ jumps a Skypimp, because a) it's the mfr's home DZ and b) they rock. If you're willing to wait a bit, Dave can whip you up a helmet customized for YOUR head and with whatever bells and whistles you want. ---------------------------------------- 'Of course it hurts. The trick is not *minding* that it hurts.' - T.E. Lawrence

Attached in the lead! Woohoo! Wasn't attached earlobes the hallmark of either Dr. No or Blofeld's family in the James Bond series? I guess that makes us evil geniuses. On the other hand, unattached might fit my Hurricane more flexibly... ---------------------------------------- 'Of course it hurts. The trick is not *minding* that it hurts.' - T.E. Lawrence

Yes, I know there's a whole lot of discussion about individual mfr's on the forums, but I'm looking for a consensus... ---------------------------------------- 'Of course it hurts. The trick is not *minding* that it hurts.' - T.E. Lawrence

Happy half-skydiving-birthday, meatbomb. You can have your nose in my ass anytime. ---------------------------------------- 'Of course it hurts. The trick is not *minding* that it hurts.' - T.E. Lawrence

0 : 5 : 2 1st time I've launched a tube, which, for those interested, ruled; 1st time I've been on a load with 3 naked tandems, which interestingly also ruled... just not enough to raise that first number. ;) ---------------------------------------- 'Of course it hurts. The trick is not *minding* that it hurts.' - T.E. Lawrence

Yeah, the traffic situation took a little getting used to -- all those private planes & helicopters going out to the Hamptons. One guy I jumped with said it was like 'playing frogger'. While I was up there one of the TMs got buzzed (~150 yds) under canopy by some idiot whose passengers wanted a look... ---------------------------------------- 'Of course it hurts. The trick is not *minding* that it hurts.' - T.E. Lawrence

Took a trip 'home' to NY last week and spent most of it jumping at SLI... spiffy caravan, unbeatable views of the Atlantic & sound, sweet openings, and even with 100+ tandems a day, patient & friendly staff willing to indulge a low-number jumper with a taste for high-wind landings. If any of my fellow SSMers are going to be in the city in the near future, get your ass out to Calverton. Many thanks to Willy, Jim, Chris, Almo, Duncan, Eli & co for a good time - ---------------------------------------- 'Of course it hurts. The trick is not *minding* that it hurts.' - T.E. Lawrence

I bet that opens real nice and soft ...and the rig looks okay too Had to. Nice gear, C, but that doesn't look like any packing room I'm familiar with... ---------------------------------------- 'Of course it hurts. The trick is not *minding* that it hurts.' - T.E. Lawrence

Skim is non-fat. Whole is fat. If you order 'low fat' at Starbucks, Seattle's Best, or any corporate coffee chain, you'll get a cup with half skim/half whole in it, because it costs too much for them to stock 2% milk since so few people ask. Before I started working at Seattle's Best, I hated Starbucks because their baristas are just plain rude, not to mention often dumber than bricks. Since I started working in coffee, I hate Starbucks because of the above, PLUS it turns out they boil their coffee (which is why it tastes like shit). Not to mention the Starbucks customers who come into my store and throw that fake-italian tall/small/venti/grande/muchacho whatever crap at me. I've just started assuming that when people order a 'tall' coffee, they mean 'extra extra large'. ---------------------------------------- 'Of course it hurts. The trick is not *minding* that it hurts.' - T.E. Lawrence

We really need to work on that, C. ---------------------------------------- 'Of course it hurts. The trick is not *minding* that it hurts.' - T.E. Lawrence

I gotta say, the general thrust of this thread has been extremely reassuring; I had a reserve ride this past weekend after 4 or 5 line twists that weren't responding to (what I thought was) quite a bit of riser seperation and three tries at counterspin kicking. Chopped a bit above my hard deck. Dropped both handles and PLFed into about three inches of mud. Needless to say, the absolute last thing in my mind at the moment was "both hands on $25.00 red handle, pull; look at $25.00 silver handle, both hands on, add tax, pull." As for the decision to cutaway, there were a few constructive opinions offered afterwards (and that's not a euphemism; they really were constructive), along with a lot of congratulation and approval. I spent the day after the jump torn about whether I should have spent more time dealing with the mal, but I'll put it this way: I'm not 100% happy with my decision, but I'm 100% happy with the *results* of my decision. ---------------------------------------- 'Of course it hurts. The trick is not *minding* that it hurts.' - T.E. Lawrence

Oh shit, I just spent $4930! A said goodbye to a whuffo S/O! Foolish person, what with all the ranting about how 'rent' and 'food' and 'clothes' are more important than a new Infinity, Spectre and reserve.... : ) blue skies W ---------------------------------------- 'Of course it hurts. The trick is not *minding* that it hurts.' - T.E. Lawrence

It's my expereience that skydivers, to a person, be they trembling newbies, tough-as-nails military guys, crazy freeflyers, cranky old safety freaks -- all, deep down, share one thing: we all go to extreme lengths to experience joy. At some level, we're all five years old and in love with the idea of being able to fly. For this I forgive skydivers their many and varied personal, political, hygienic and stylistic eccentricities... ---------------------------------------- 'Of course it hurts. The trick is not *minding* that it hurts.' - T.E. Lawrence