Muppetdog

So theoretically, if some one were to lose situational awarness during a malfuction resulting in a low cutaway, the RSL could save you from having a really bad day.

Is it true that during a cutaway, an RSL gets your reserve out quicker then if your rig was not RSL equiped and you pulled manually, translating into less altitude lost during cutaway procedures? Mark

Cold air. Tastes so good when it hits your lips.

I think he just had a little sand in his ginie (the holidays will do that). I am getting my commercial heli license this year and would never act like that to some one even with the pride that might come with securing a job of flying the President to the liquor store every day. I have heard that jumpers are seen as the trash of the aviation industry. Oh well, I still think it would be bad ass to jump out of one of those Canadian Regional Air 50's that I fly back and forth quite a bit, all though you would have to somehow get around the fact that it looks like both exits lead to a sever jet engine grinding for the first of the jump. Blues, Mark

I was in DIA today flying home from the holidays and saw a guy wearing a jacket that said "twin otter" on the back over a picture of an otter. He was in front of me in the security check line and I (just for fun) asked him if he ever flew jump planes. His reply was " I would not get one-hundred yards near one, I only fly REAL PEOPLE who land with the plane. Something, something, jump out of a perfectly good airplane", and acted like an A-hole about the subject. Fuh Ooh! Marry Christmas. I'm I wrong? Blues, MD

So the other day I found myself in Mexico. Great place to be if you meant to be there but to wake up with that fimiliar head ache and no sing of having sex the night before it's a little disconcerting. Ok, so why I'm I dressed in a white suite with one fake tuxedo type shoe on and the other,who knows. You know that feeling of post party hair, the gel or what ever you used the night before to make the dew look good and it's all parted to the side but this time you feel and it feels more like dirt then gel was used. Where the f##k did I sleep last night? Probably on the ground. And where are my friends? Did they leave me here, did they play a great joke on me? That seems up to par. If you play enough jokes in your life then you are bound to take a good one from the Karma you build up. Any way, I walk. A long time I walk and it seems that the road will not make me leave it. The houses although occupied look un-hospitable and unable of giving me the kind of help I need now. I know it's cold where I live and the planes are grounded because of clouds and rain. At the end there is a run way dust gives way to blue skies. The take off is uneventful and the load is sparse. I want to do a solo and some how I have my rig. Mirage baby. I think the last time I packed it was a month ago. The guy behind me says "where are you pulling." Easy, 3500 dude. What are you doing? Solo. "how bout a two way free fly?" Ya, ok. It's Mexico, how I got here who knows. I really think if you sleep with enough pillows in your life you will figure enough out to make it. Get the the 5 way out first and we can go. Tandems next then the two bird men in the back. I don't think I will hit this time. A jump like when you where learning, where you feel every thing will turn out ok cuz the instructor has it all under control. So you feel the hill with this dude with a red beard that you swore put in a dip before the jump and everything is going good. Then your coat tails distract you from your perfect sit and you are all alone but you are going to make this one and it's not fun that kicks in but something else. Check, check, cloud fly by, cloud. Every one favors clouds cuz they give you baring or an every time incountered respect for the feeling. Bells, voices, peace. Why did I jump? Where Am I really? Fine are they with there feet on the ground, But have they seen us... me, with my feet firmly planted in the sky? When the freefall lasts for a life time and the cows never get bigger on the ground, that is where you know God flys a Camo rig.

I'll, hicup, Grassy up his knoll.

That is scary. I do think a good mental back up of checking your manual alti should be subconsciously in place before relying on an audible, and hell when the cows start getting really big that should also be a sing. I have noticed in a lot of freefly footage the good skydivers still check the old wrist quite a bit even though you know they all have audibles. But if those skills are learned correctly there is nothing wrong with, and with out creating dependency, to have some more back up. MD

I think, at the moment that such a situations would ocour where you would need to whip out the old reserve into a spinning main, some people might panice or make the wrong decision in a low altitude situation. It might be nice to have that extra warning to save a life. If you train your self to be aware of your maual alti and be that aware that's great, but a little extra warning would not be bad. Just my two cents. I can think of a couple of faitals that that would have helped reading through the Paracutest mag and on this site.

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I was thinking, and if any company does this I want credit, just kidding. Because of some of the fatalities this year I was thinking. They should have a 4th alarm on all the popular audibles that would go off when you are under canopy that told you you should no matter what not cut away your main and just go strait to your reserve. I could be at a lower decible sounding then the others so it did not freak you out but just for a reminder that if by any chance somting were to happen, like a colision or what not, that you do not have the option to cut your main away and to just dump your reserve. I know that dumping your reserve with your main out is recomended if you are low to pervent just hitting the ground with out anyting in the case of a low cut-away. Just a thought, what do your guys think (let the egos flow) Blues, MD

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It just seems there has been a lot here in the US lately. There have been 5 with in the past month. That is a 60 person a year average, yikes. Blues, MD

Funny dingdong

Has any one heard of risers breaking? Has it happed recently and how would you prevent this? It would suck to have a riser break on final and with an rsl. Was just thinking. M D

My Dog (God rest her soul) looked like some weird thing you would see on the Muppets. She moved like a giant mop minus the time she drank a glass of Sisco by accident at one of my high school parties, then she was just a great motionless rug no one could move for the longest of time. Damn now that I think about it that was the same party some asshole killed my 13 year old gold fish, maybe I could come up with a name to remember him by. MD

I am currently trainning for the New York Marathon and for speed work the theme for this time around has got to be Audio Slave. It keeps the pace nice and fast for those killer tempo runs. Blues, Mark

What is the most jumps you have done in a day? Average a day? Times a week you go to jump? Most in a year? If this post has already been done then lets do it again:) Blues, Mark

Just wondering what AFF and Tandum instructors make every jump. Thanks, Mark

cool, maybe I will get a B and try for a coach here soon. Thanks man. Blues, Mark

That is f-ing bookin it. You need to learn to cup and slow down prabably along with a very baggy jump suit. When you start to free fly you will probably go very fast. I know I fall about 125 in RW (when I tried it) and sit at about 135-144mph, but I can slow stuff down to around 109 on my bell if I have to or in a track. It will suck for you if you can't control that fast rate and you start jumping in bigger groups or start to free fly. Im no skydiving expert but 140 is a hell of a belly speed, but what fun, huh? Blues, Mark

My brother is going through AFF right now and is about to finish level 7, that little bastard is a natural, he has not had to re-do any levels and is doing great. Any way, when you get singed off on novice status who can you jump with? I am taking a trip out to see him and would like to jump with him but all I have is an A license, I don't have my B yet and want to work on my belly flying for a while, probably till my C license till I get a coach rating, not in any rush. I thought you could jump with novices and they could dock on you but you can't toutch them with out a coach rating. Blues, Mark

It's cool. I hope to never join the "I got hurt skydiving club". I think I will just work on safty and canopy flight for a while to drive it into my head. Blues, Mark

Who have. My bad. But still, huh? What do you mean by that reaction? Blues, Mark

Can I just take my rig as a carry-on? People might stair but I read all the stuff the USPA put out about baggage checkers knowing what the stuff is suppose to look like and how you should be able to take it on planes. Has any one done this. Any thing I should know. Blues, Mark