Tonto

My SO is a skydiver. We both bitch when we DON'T make it to the DZ. Life is good.

Have you read "The Stand" By Stephen King? I'd imagine you'd quite enjoy looking at survival in a post apocalypse world. It's not "horror" by any stretch of the imagination. t It's the year of the Pig.

Never get complacent. Touch your handles in freefall. Open a little higher if you can. 1000 ft will give you an extra 20% to impact, and an extra 50% prior to Cypress intervention over 4000ft. Don't jump when you're tired or angry or sad. Never forget the responsibility you have. Enjoy (As much as you can with a 250lb person sweating fear while on your lap..)

Now that seems a little like prejidice... I like to hook, but I open right after my AFF student, so that puts me at about 4000ft. I then hang back on the brakes till everyone but my student is down, and then land in the pro rated student area. If there is traffic I can't avoid, I abort a hook aproach and land normally. I jump a Stilleto 107 loaded to 1.7 and my DZ is 5000 ASL. We operate a Porter so max per load is 10. t It's the year of the Pig.

Great news! Enjoy. I'm currently working with a student to get him back in the air since he was paralysed on his 25th jump. We've done 3 solo jumps so far, after 2 tandems, and he's coming along nicely! Lets hear how it went in talkback, OK? t It's the year of the Pig.

A jumper had a malfunction when the plastic handle used to deploy the main pilot chute came off when she attempted to deploy. The below response is from an employee of Aerodyne - formerly PISA. "Hi Skydivers As many of you have heard, there was an incident involving a PISA manufactured Teardrop, whereby the main pilot chute handle was pulled off the pilot chute during deployment sequence. We are currently drawing up a Safety Bulletin regarding this, and will publish it ASAP. If you own a PISA manufactured Teardrop, please check your main pilot chute where the plastic tube handle is sewn onto the pilot chute fabric. If you find that there is any wear at all, or it looks like it is coming loose, please do not jump it until it has been modified in one of the following ways: 1) The zig-zag stitching has been re-enforced with bartacks (A Qualified Rigger must do this) 2) It has been sent to the PISA factory, now called Aerodyne Systems, for a factory upgrade / modification. If there is no wear, please still get your nearest rigger to do this mod, or send it back to us. If you have any queries regarding this, please contact me on the below numbers. NB: If you have already replaced the plastic tube handle with a Hackey Sack or Monkey Claw, this should not apply to your pilot chute, but check it anyway to be on the safe side... Blue skies and safe dives! Dave **************************************************************************************************** * AERODYNE SYSTEMS Dave Macrae - Sports Marketing: Africa, Australia & New Zealand Regions PO Box 1616, Verulam, 4340, South Africa Tel: +27 (0)32 5330333 Fax: +27 (0)32 5330262 Cell: +27 (0)82 3399964 Email: [email protected] Web: www.aerodyne-int.com " It's the year of the Pig.

If that round had come out of a barrel instead of a case.... there would be little chance for the arm. t It's the year of the Pig.

Wow. Carl and Roger. Blue Skies, Missy and Rook in my thoughts. t It's the year of the Pig.

Already gone the route of the bellyband here... BOC or pullout. No Pullout for birdman, t It's the year of the Pig.

Yeah - but it would intersect the AFF I's range... and that could be ugly. USPA, BPA, PASA AFF I's work to 2, then save themselves. t It's the year of the Pig.

Yeah. The nova sank it's company in the early 90's when it killed a dozen people on front risers... t It's the year of the Pig.

ROL? t It's the year of the Pig.

Well - I think it's fucked up. The FXC has a range of 1000 ft. 500 up or down. Most DZ's I've seen using then have them on the reserve set for 1500 so the range is 1000 (About Cypress) to 2000 (end AFF pursuit) Any higher and they fire all the time. Now we have 2 AAD's on the same rig, on different canopies, with intersecting ranges... and a student in there to spice stuff up. That's fucked up.... That's not safe, no matter how safe you're trying to be. Maybe they should put another cypres on the reserve as well. Just in case the one fails. t t It's the year of the Pig.

I have one. Look out for your teeth. Go short and fat as soon as you can, and think about plastic/Nylon/Gold beads to save your teeth. No gold shaft. bad breath. It's fun. I can use it - or I can leave it out of play. Your tongue is programmed to push stuff between your teeth. That includes stainless steel. t It's the year of the Pig.

And from South Africa... Staf sucks! t It's the year of the Pig.

"all this monkeyt bussiness" WHAT! You can't even spell monkey business! (Thought about you late last night...) t It's the year of the Pig.

Slapping's for cigarettes? t It's the year of the Pig.

I have an exclusion clause on my life - and a loading on my disability. t It's the year of the Pig.

Around 1000 dives - in 1992. It was a Jonathan 120 - I think it was the first production eliptical? t It's the year of the Pig.

At 16 - OVER MY DEAD BODY! At 21 - I'd be really disapointed with you if you did that. You're a smart boy. You'll do the right thing. At 22 - You did WHAT? Are you mad? At 23 - You're lucky to have only broken your ankle! At 25 - What do you mean you're fine - in a hospital in England? At 30 - Why are you going to the US? They've been to the moon! They don't need an African to teach them to Accelerate in freefall! At 31 - Can I do a Tandem with you when you get back?

No. It's the year of the Pig.

Because I have over 3300 swoops this way, and I'm good for 200 ft + most warm days. I've been doing this aproach and landing for over 15 years, it's really consistant, I've had no injuries and I've visited EVERY one of my friends of the same generation in hospital after they lost a toggle/ hit turbulence and fucked themselves up learning or doing riser turns. I've see newbies burying themselves the same way since word went out that what I do is dangerous. I do use harness input during and after my toggle turn. Rule 1 is simple. Don't get caught in the corner. I have no doubt that the best way to swoop is using the risers, but I know some canopies don't like risers, and no canopy performs well in turbulence on front riser/s, and I've seen people die with and without experience, on toggle turns, and on riser turns. Rule 2 is simple. Don't fuck up. I'm an old dog, and I'm happy with my trick. t It's the year of the Pig.

Here we go about altitude and tempreture again... Higher and hotter will lose you more altitude. The speed you do the turn will say a lot too. 2000ft to 150 foot, I would guess. I'm jumping a Stilleto 107 loaded to 1.7 and TOGGLE turning. I lose around 400 ft. t It's the year of the Pig.

Yes, I've done a bit. 12 years of judo at school, then 2 years in the military being taught to kill people inbetween being bored, then 10 years of southern chinese styles, mainly wing chun and Hungar with some Shaolin long fist. No edged weapons, just short staff (baton) long staff (6ft) and 3 sectional staff. I needed more grappling so I did some brazilian jijitsu as well, and rounded it all off with 8 years working as a bouncer to gain some experience and figure out whats practical. There was some overlap there. I used to fight a lot. I never fight now. I don't train within a system now but I still train, mainly stretching, and internal stuff, Chi Gung and breathing. About 30 years worth of training including overlaps. I did nothing until I was 6, nothing formal from 20 to 22, and nothing formal from 38 to now. It's the year of the Pig.

Come to SA and jump! t It's the year of the Pig.