larsrulz

My academic experience is with airplanes, i.e. things that don't inflate, but the background can carry over. Without getting overly technical, lift occurs due to a pressure difference, which the case of a wing is due to difference in airspeed over the two sides of the wing. In the case of a pilot chute, prior to complete inflation the airspeed within the pilot chute will become turbulent and most likely reduce in speed, while the external speed does not decrease in speed, so there would be higher static pressure on the inside, essentially pressurizing the pilot chute during inflation, so in a way there is some lift contributing to the inflation, but by and large, the inflation (I would imagine) would be primarily due to air deflection, i.e. drag. The lift will be more useful after inflation in that it will increase the rigid pressurization of the pilot chute, as the higher static pressure air will want to leave the pilot chutes through the side, there by keeping the pilot chute inflated and rigid. Of importance to this situation is that were the pilot chute to be fully within a burble, then dynamic pressurization like this cannot occur as the air surrounding the pilot chute would not be traveling quicker, another good reason for a strong reserve pilot chute spring or big ass pilot chute for you BASErs. I got a strong urge to fly, but I got no where to fly to. -PF

I know nothing about BASE, but I have a fair bit of knowledge about aerodynamics given I have a graduate degree in it. It has been mentioned before on this thread, but lift is produced only perpendicular to the flow of air. So when falling straight down, lift can only be produced to the sides, where as drag is only produced parallel to the flow of air, i.e. up. The force exerted by a pilot chute (or round canopy for that matter) is soley drag by way of air deflection. When it comes down to it, a modern day parachute is actually working mostly by the same principle of air deflection, so in a way both people are correct as the pilot chute creates lift by way of air deflection, which at the same time can be referred to as drag. I got a strong urge to fly, but I got no where to fly to. -PF

At least at the Hinckley one, Bram isn't doing a static line course, but maybe he normally does. I know I would have been there if so. I got a strong urge to fly, but I got no where to fly to. -PF

There cannot be a USPA Coach's Course because the WFFC is not a USPA group member drop zone. The tandem course is most likely not a tandem instructor course but instead the course which is required by the manufacturer, and the instructor portion would be completed at a later date. I know that last year there was a coach's course at Illinois Skydiving Center in Paxton, IL the weekend before the convention started, but with their moving airports it may not happen this year. You can try to contact them by email or phone with the info here. ISC is now operating out of the Champaign/Urbana airport, so it is not far from Rantoul. I got a strong urge to fly, but I got no where to fly to. -PF

That's correct. It is simply tied to a loop at the waist (so you can vary the length of the swoop cord and I have lengthed mine as I learned to rarely need them) and then threaded through a loop at the wrist, so then on the plane ride I pull out the cord and put it around my thumb. The loop at the wrist really has no other purpose then to keep the end I need close at hand. If you think about it, a cord between your waist and wrist would go exactly where you want your wing to be, so there is no need for other connections, in my opinion. I got a strong urge to fly, but I got no where to fly to. -PF

Tony also offers continuous swoop cords where this exact thing occurs, one single cord is used between the two hands. I borrowed such a suit a number of times waiting for mine, and I didn't feel it was terribly necessary, but I suppose someone who needs some wing all the time could appreciate it. I got a strong urge to fly, but I got no where to fly to. -PF

If it was less than your weight you would be accelerating. Once you reach terminal forces up and down will be balanced, and you will no longer be accelerating. Ding...simple physics.....force equals mass times acceleration. Forces in equilibrium mean there is no acceleration (i.e. terminal velocity); there is no for all those other details unless you want to determine explicitly what your terminal velocity will be. I got a strong urge to fly, but I got no where to fly to. -PF

Got your facts a little screwed up there. Check out the Proficiency Card to see it is in fact 25 skydives not freefalls. From my coaching experience, rarely does a student take more than the 25 jumps to complete their A-license via static line unless they have accuracy problems. The freefall skills necessary are not a problem to obtain in 25 jumps of a static line progression. I got a strong urge to fly, but I got no where to fly to. -PF

My tony suit connects down where riggerrob mentioned and doesn't go through any loops until it gets to the one which is at my wrist. This works just fine for me! I got a strong urge to fly, but I got no where to fly to. -PF

But that's a bad analogy. He (I would assume) won't be coming to your dropzone and telling people to come to the airport to get cheaper tandems. He is advertising at the same place you are; nothing more. If he is legitamately conducting business, then there isn't much he is doing, and he is far from being a skyride type operation. Now if he is doing any funny business, i.e. skyride type antics, then show up at his advertising events and hand out info letting people know there are other, better options. Just because he's on your territory doesn't make what he is doing wrong. I got a strong urge to fly, but I got no where to fly to. -PF

Often student jumpsuits are a thick fabric, such as polycotton. If you have a problem with falling too slow, then you'll want something for slow fallers, such as nylon. You might try asking around your dropzone if anyone has a nylon jumpsuit you can try, this could make a huge difference. Other than that, if the suit you are using is restricting your arch, then this is a problem which a custom suit can fix. Hip rings will do more for making your rig feel comfortable to wear. The fact that you have a custom rig which fits you better will be much more important than hip rings specifically. Practicing your arch at home during the week can help a lot. I personally recommend to my students who have arch problems to spend time at home practicing. A hard arch is not a comfortable position which comes naturally to everyone. Practice makes perfect afterall! Ask your instructors or whoever is organizing. Some people with 200 jumps shouldn't be doing 4-ways while some people with 25 would do just fine. 8-ways are certainly not something to be doing until you have some experience with 4-ways, and fall rate issues alone are not reason to not include yourself, as many people have that problem when they first come off student status. Again, practice makes perfect! Although an important thing to remember is that even with a linked 4-way exit, there is never a guarantee that the exit will go perfectly. You may funnel the exit and end up 20' above the formation and have to move to it (it is very hard for a formation to move significantly), so you'll still have to be able to fly your body, not to mention that just because you're in the base doesn't mean you won't end up on the outside of the formation for some of the points. The best advice is to go talk to whoever will be organizing the jumps and let them know your situation and that you would really like to join a 4-way. Maybe by the end of the weekend you'll feel comfortable enough to get on an 8-way!!!

I'll respond to this because I was the same weight when I got my first rig with a Sabre 190. The answer should be as simple as that if your instructor recommended a 210, then why get a 190? He obviously believes that a 210 is the right canopy for you. I personally got a 190 at 25 jumps, but that was also at the suggestion of an instructor. If you get a rig sized for a 210, then you will be able to fit a 190 in it without any problem, so if you decide to downsize to a 190 in a hundred jumps, then you will only have to purchase a new (or used) main and nothing else. Other than that, see the link above, it'll answer all your questions! I got a strong urge to fly, but I got no where to fly to. -PF

Awesome, I'll be sure to check further into it once I get the pistol. I got a strong urge to fly, but I got no where to fly to. -PF

For what you are doing, there will really be minimal benefit in getting the coach rating. There is some information in the course about how to teach people to skydive, but it depends on if the individual (you in this case) is lacking in this area. If you are already good to getting your point across and helping people understand what they may not completely comprehend, then this aspect of the course isn't terrible necessary. All the course will do is standardize you to some guidelines that the USPA sets down. The rating itself will allow you to jump with people prior to their getting their rating (once clear for self supervision) and let you complete refresher training and jumps for experienced jumpers. If you merely wish to continue to fun jump with post-A license newbies, then there isn't a lot of benefit in my opinion. I got a strong urge to fly, but I got no where to fly to. -PF

Might want to double check your constitutional knowledge there bud! I got a strong urge to fly, but I got no where to fly to. -PF

Just found out a few days ago that my grandpa got a German Luger while he was in Italy during WWII. After my grandma passed away last month, it was one of the items that was up for family taking. As my two uncles were planning to just sell it, I managed to get it. Not currently in my possession, but anyone know the value of such a handgun? I don't know if it comes with a holster or matching magazines or any such things, but I am pretty sure it is in very good condition and never fired since the war (as my dad didn't even know about it). I certainly don't plan to sell it or get any special insurance policy for it, so no need for an official appraisal, just curious. Thanks in advance! I got a strong urge to fly, but I got no where to fly to. -PF

As I understand it (at least as far as the US police go) hollow point bullets are the most common type used. I got a strong urge to fly, but I got no where to fly to. -PF

That'll certainly keep people from jumping in hight winds that they shouldn't. I got a strong urge to fly, but I got no where to fly to. -PF

Why do you say? I bought a wings, sabre1 190, raven-M 218, and cypres (all DOM 2000) last summer for about $3900. I turned around this past winter and sold the cypres for $725 and the rig w/out cypres for $3000. Cost me $175 for a season and about 250 jumps. The above all seems to be good equipment which will keep its resale value for the next few years, so simply dismissing it isn't necessary. I got a strong urge to fly, but I got no where to fly to. -PF

If you don't feel comfortable with the altitude they want you to break off, and they are unwilling to change it so that you feel safer, then they aren't concerned about your safety and there is no foul in choosing to no longer jump with this team. I would recommend you speak with your fellow teammates separately, and ask them to join you in speaking with the coach. If you all desire break off at 4.5K, then if he proceeds to indicate otherwise, then it's time to find a new coach! I got a strong urge to fly, but I got no where to fly to. -PF

My opinion is someone is just stirring the pot. I went there and didn't detect the slightest bit of intolerance. You do have to understand that the majority of the individuals going to the Air Force Academy are Christian. It's a fact of the matter that some people will display some of that Christianity, as it is a large part of who they are, but I would bet that if someone ever raised the fact that they had a problem with something religious being displayed, then the problem would be resolved respectfully. This came up earlier this year, and when it did I asked a number of my friends who may have experienced such intolerance (mainly a jewish friend and muslim friend), and both indicated they never sensed the slightest bit of intolerance. As far as the three issues cited, I never knew of professors doing such things and certainly never heard of a single military chaplain with such a horrible bias; certainly not one at the academy. The most important thing to remember is that the separation of church and state doesn't require that individuals cannot have religion in their life....the people attending the academy are individuals...some people will be bothered by others living their lives religiously; if they feel that is intolerance, then that is a problem of theirs, not the people they live with. I got a strong urge to fly, but I got no where to fly to. -PF

The F-16 canopy is a one piece, i.e. no supports, so that isn't the problem. Most likely a very real picture of a missing man formation, but this particular picture is PSed....sorry. First of all, the picture of the stadium is the *exact* some one as from here. Also, look closely and you'll see the shadow of the vertical stabalizer is to the left of the picture, while the shadow on the stadium is to the right. I got a strong urge to fly, but I got no where to fly to. -PF

Reread BillVon's downsizing checklist for how to do the first one. You start by pulling down on a single toggle and then stop the turn by pulling on the other. This will keep you from losing speed in the turn or diving afterwards! This true flat turn is the one which causes least altitude loss. Edited to add....if that is the impression you are getting from experimenting, then you are doing them wrong. Ask an experienced canopy pilot or instructor to watch you do a flat turn on landing. Or if you are willing to pay slot, maybe you can convince someone with camera to video you doing them at altitude, but this will require someone who doesn't have a wing loading twice what yours is. I got a strong urge to fly, but I got no where to fly to. -PF

What the hell are people doing using their servers to download skydiving movies? I got a strong urge to fly, but I got no where to fly to. -PF

Wait until you get your license.....then start worrying about gear! I got a strong urge to fly, but I got no where to fly to. -PF