runDMsef

Just pull high and watch everyone else land. I don't know what kind of canopy you fly, but I would be hard pressed to beat some of the smaller, high performance canopies down to the landing area.

N/A

www.freefalladventures.com A.K.A. Skydive CrossKeys I saw Speakers Corner as "A Soap Box in Cyber Space". I guess my soap box isn't politically motivated, so maybe I should move it to another board. My apologies if this is OT, but I didn't know of a more appropriate board.

Every year I plan a trip to the DZ for friends and co-workers to do their first tandem jumps. In refreshing my memory on how much it will cost, I went to the DZ's web site to do some investigation. On the home page, it advertised "Tandem Skydive Only $165!!!” I thought "wow, that's a pretty good price". However, buried deeper in the web site is the note "add $30 for rental gear". I find this kind of crap annoying. Why lure someone in with one price, only to introduce a secondary cost that they obviously cannot go without. It's a pricey activity, why sugar coat it by breaking it up into smaller "additions". When non-skydivers ask "how much does a tandem cost?” they want to know HOW MUCH IT WILL COST! Not how much the jump will cost in theory, without gear. What keeps them from saying "$20 Tandem Skydives" with the addition of $175 other fees (gear, aircraft, tandem master, fuel, fun tax, etc)? It just seems disingenuous. Whose bright idea was this anyways? ~run (off of soapbox now)

Good point. Yes, my rigger can pack the Reflex. I have spoken to him personally about this gear. He seems to think that the container + main + reserve is worth $2200.

I have the following deal I am trying to decide on: Container: Reflex 50 jumps (DOM '00) Main: Sabre 170 50 jumps (DOM '99) Reserve: PD176 0 jumps (DOM '99) Cypress: 4 year check/batteries done (DOM 2000) Jumpsuit: Bodysport w/ booties Helmet: Parasport Z1 full face Audible Altimier: Pro Dytter, needs battery Wrist Altimeter: Altimaster (cant recall which version) Gloves: Neuman Asking: $2750 All the above gear has been shipped to my DZ for my inspection before the sale takes place. The gear is in mint condition- it looks brand spakin' new! The Reflex has the Catapult installed, and I will have it removed if I decide to buy (and yes, I've read nearly every thread on this forum regarding Reflex and the Catapult). I spoke to people at the DZ (riggers, packers, jumpers, dealers) and got mixed reviews. Some seem to think its a good deal, others not so much (but I think they were considering the rig only and not the "extras"). If I decide not to buy, it will pay shipping back to the seller ($75) plus half of the shipping to get it to me ($37.50), per our agreement. Opinions?

The seller agreed to ship the gear out to my DZ for a final checkout. I am to send his money when the gear checks out. Im looking forward to getting this gear, its my first and Im looking forward to getting those jump #'s up. NO MORE RENTING!!!! WOHOOOOO Thanks all for the advice.

Please update your profile, including your home DZ. Sorry about that. I live in Maryland but my home DZ is Cross Keys in NJ. I have spoken to the DZ's master rigger (Mark Kruse) about making this transaction. I think it is a great idea to propose this mehtod. I'll let you know how the seller responds. ~run

I have decided to buy used gear from someone in the classifieds section. This transaction has been "in the works" for well over a month. During this time, I have had to: - Determine exactly what his gear was (no, there is no PD 180 reserve, try again) - Waiting for his rigger to do the repack - Waiting for the Cypres maintenece to be completed (took a little over the 2 weeks) - Putting up with his instances of "dissapearing" (meaning emails would go unanswered for awhile). - Deal with him trying to raise the price by 20% near the end of the deal. After all of this, we have decided on a price and agreed to a "half money before I get the gear, half after my rigger OK's it" transaction. Well, once again, he's changed his mind last minute. He wants me to send all of my money before he sends the gear. He claims this is because "my gear is worth a lot of money" and "you spoke to my rigger, and you know the gear is good. All I know about you is your name, phone number and email". I understand his concern, but all I know of him is his name and email (and riggers name). Normally I wouldn’t distrust an online transaction like this, but he has made me skeptical. What if he gets my money and decides he wants to raise the price again, or do another disappearing act? Does anyone suggest a way we can go ahead with this transaction while protecting both parties? Perhaps his rigger can send the gear to my rigger, and I’ll send the money when my rigger OK’s (instead of him sending it to me directly)? I’m not sure if I should just send the money and cross my fingers. After all, I don’t know this person any more than he knows me. ~run