Mr17Hz

Before you do anything; take a ton of screen captures and compile a document that gives you pretty good proof that it happened. that way down the road you can use it in the case that someone ever successfully launches a class action or any other type of group suit... THEN have your lawyer send them a letter. Matt Christenson [email protected] http://www.RealDropzone.com - A new breed of dropzone manifest software.

I want to thank everyone for the responses I've received so far, both posts on the forums and private messages. I've heard a lot of good ideas that I plan to put to use. I'll spend some time later this week sumarizing them. -Matt Matt Christenson [email protected] http://www.RealDropzone.com - A new breed of dropzone manifest software.

My purpose for this survey has nothing to do with ultimately enforcing anything. In fact, my personal opinion is 100% against enforcing things like an AAD. While I support and encourage the use of devices like this, I don't think any government body should take away the choice; that is something that education should do, not rules. The ENTIRE idea of a survey is to gather facts and opinions. Some of the questions the survey asks will reflect facts (What equipment do you jump, how many years in the sport, etc.). Some of the questions will represent opinion (Do *you* jump with an AAD?, Do you feel that a dropzone business owner has the right to REQUIRE you to jump with an AAD?, ect.) My purpose for this survey is to allow people to see numbers that haven't been collected into a single source yet - but *could* be. It is to give a factual representation of the data collected, and allow others to interpret that data on their own. Don't put words in my mouth, uneducated assumptions are not productive. Matt Christenson [email protected] http://www.RealDropzone.com - A new breed of dropzone manifest software.

Chicago in a week, eh? That didn't take long! I will absolutely accept any assistance in getting notice of the survey out once it's available; I appreciate your support. Right now - though, what I could use the most is more ideas about what to ask in the survey. As jumpers, what do you want to know about other jumpers, statistically speaking? Matt Christenson [email protected] http://www.RealDropzone.com - A new breed of dropzone manifest software.

Well, that's one of the reasons for this thread; I don't know how many others would be interested in something like that, and while I feel that it would be pretty strong, I actually have no idea. I appreciate your feedback. I don't expect the first year to be nearly as popular as the second. I would be quite satisfied if I had over 150 people take the 2006 survey. While a lot of the statistics may not mean as much with this few people, some meaning would come out of the report. For example - merchant ratings, dropzone ratings, some common malfunctions, etc. If the report keeps up, and doubles in popularity each year - we could have some really interesting numbers to look at 5 years from now, with 2,400 different opinions. Perhaps vendors would see the value of the survey, and donate items to be put into a random drawing of participants; so that by participating in the survey you have a chance of winning certain industry prizes. It would be cool if that happened, however even if it doesn't - I'm at least going to give it a shot at making this popular. Matt Christenson [email protected] http://www.RealDropzone.com - A new breed of dropzone manifest software.

Heh, I just had a few people private message me with answers to some questions that I asked. This thread is not the survey, it's a survey about the survey. The survey itself will be available January 1st 2007 and a web URL to be announced at that time. Matt Matt Christenson [email protected] http://www.RealDropzone.com - A new breed of dropzone manifest software.

As of late September, I will be working full time for myself under the business name RealSkydiving. It will be in partnership with Skydive Chicago, which is serving as a pilot implementation for my dropzone management software. The dropzone management software will be my primary focus over the next 12 months. I'm doing this for the love I've developed for the industry; I'm leaving my comfortable steady paycheck in the corporate world for self employement; and with the exception of increasing RealSkydiving's reputation in the industry as a provider to the community; I have no plans for revenue from this survey. How am I going to get people to spend the 30-90 minutes filling out the survey? My hope is that the reason that drives me to provide the service, is the same reason why others would take the survey. I feel that the public results would provide a great value to community as a whole. How will I get the survey to the people? Though a web interface, word of mouth advertisement, and by allowing others that see the same value in it that I do to help make it happen by encouraging people they know to take the survey. -Matt Matt Christenson [email protected] http://www.RealDropzone.com - A new breed of dropzone manifest software.

Hello all, Soon, my full time focus will be dedicated to providing software solutions for the Skydiving Industry. One of my secondary projects is going to be setting up an annual Skydiving Survey. This will be a fairly elaborate survey. It will be administered online using a custom web application. I expect that the survey will take the average person 30 minutes to an hour and a half to take. The base of it will be required to be tallied in the resulting report, many more advanced questions will be optional. Also included in this project will be an attempt at collecting malfunction information. This information can be entered in the end-of-year report; but also submitted throughout the year as you may experience them. I expect this system to be online by January 1st 2007. 2006 data will be collected up until February 28th 2007, and the resulting report will be made available to the public before April 1st. My intention is to make this an annual service. The report will provide anonymous information. Anonymous from the perspective names will not be provided with data unless permission is granted at the time of taking the survey. I will be working with a few people who have dealt with developing privacy policies in the past to work out specifics before it goes live. The results of the survey will be 100% free to the public; and I will even set up custom query forms so that you can "ask your own questions" against the data. I plan to give publishing rights to the report at no cost to reputable organizations such the USPA. Part of the survey itself may be questions about how you would like the data to be treated durring future years. I am taking suggestions from the community as to what kind of questions to ask and not to ask; concerns about privacy; and what it would take to get you to participate. The purpose of this thread is to ask the following: - What would be your privacy concerns about participating in this survey. - What type of questions would you like to know the answers to? Some good suggestions for topics include: Malfunctions Currency/Incurrency Age/Years in sport Licenses Confidence in organizations such as USPA Equipment used Equipment manufacturer ratings Camera Jumping Safety devices, what do you use? Safety devices, what should be required? Types of jumps made Close calls Opinions about regulations Dropzone Owner section - What are your policies, prices, etc. I am going to try to make this as International based as possible, however I'm sure that there will be a US bias to it based on my lack of knowledge of other organizations. Suggestions for how to best accomidate various regions would be great. A lot of ideas for questions will be based on some of the debates going on in these forums. The neat thing about this being it's own application; is that the questions asked can be based off of answers to previous questions, for example - if you didn't jump in a certain country; questions regaurding that country will not be asked. If you didn't make a camera jump; questions about your camera gear will not be asked... Please, submit your comments, questions, concerns, and constructive criticisms. I will begin the work on this project around mid-october, and how the specification ends up will depend completely on comments received here, on other forums, and by talking with people at the dropzones I visit. Thanks, Matt Christenson [email protected] http://www.realskydiving.com Matt Christenson [email protected] http://www.RealDropzone.com - A new breed of dropzone manifest software.

To rely on an AAD would be to jump out of the aircraft with no intention of deploying your main or reserve, or to at some point durring the skydive make the decision that you'll be okay because the AAD will get you out of this mess. Nobody should ever rely on an AAD. I wear my seatbelt in my car. I don't feel comfortable in a car without a belt - i might ride in it anyway because transportation is often a requirement. Skydiving is rarely a requirement (only in the case of an emergency landing), and is significantly more dangerous than driving a car. Also, I'm not telling any experience skydivers that they have to use an AAD, I made no statements like "if you dont jump with an AAD you don't belong skydiving". I just said that I feel that anybody that doesn't use one without a good reason is foolish. That is my opinion, and I hoped that bringing up the topic may allow others to re-evaluate their stance on the subject. Matt Christenson [email protected] http://www.RealDropzone.com - A new breed of dropzone manifest software.

Read that one more time, but this time replace the work CYPRESS with RESERVE. Would you jump without a reserve? That would be foolish. When I exit the aircraft, I want to make sure I've done everything possible to assist me in the case that I need an extra out. I've never jumped with a skyhook; but I keep telling myself that I should have one. I don't make the kind of jumps that adds risk to using them (CREW, etc.).. so why not? makes me safer. On the ground is EXACTLY the place where you want to be nervious. Prepare the event as safely as you can, check your gear, and jump with the best equipment available. Don't go telling a student that he has no right jumping just because he wants to take advantage of the progress we've made in equipment before he gets in the airplane... Just because someone won't jump without one doesn't mean they are "RELYING" on it. Matt Christenson [email protected] http://www.RealDropzone.com - A new breed of dropzone manifest software.

We all screw up sometimes. No matter how well you've been trained or physically and mentally healthy you are, nobody always makes the best decision. Matt Christenson [email protected] http://www.RealDropzone.com - A new breed of dropzone manifest software.

About Cellphones: A single cellphone tower has the capability of a 15 mile range, sometimes longer. However towers are rarely set to transmit this powerfully, it has to do with how populated of an area you're in. If you're in a more populated area you're more likely to have a bunch of towers in the area covering around a 2.5 mile range, sometimes even less. Under canopy you have an advantage in that you probably have a PERFECT line of sight path to the transmitter, no buildings or trees or other objects in the way. Inside a plane would be a little more difficult because of it's shape, as well as verious electronic noise directly around you - you would need a stronger signal to keep a carrier. That being said, many cellphone towers use directional antennas that cover about a 20 degree cone... pointed parallel to the ground. Towers that expect a higher call volume or are on very flat land are more likely to use 5 of these 20% antennas.. Based on all these things, but not having tried it, I would say that at most dropzones you've got a pretty good chance of being able to make a call: however it would be less likely if the dropzone was in a populated area or if it was on very flat land. Matt Christenson [email protected] http://www.RealDropzone.com - A new breed of dropzone manifest software.

There have been a number of unfortunate incidents over the last few years that an AAD could have prevented. I've noticed that many 'old-timers' are less likely to jump with an AAD, Which I personally think is foolish. I'm curious what current statistics look like. If you vote NO, please respond with your age. I am guessing that we will find that most people who do not use them learned how to skydive on equipment where they were not available; however I am quite interested in the results of this survey. Matt Christenson [email protected] http://www.RealDropzone.com - A new breed of dropzone manifest software.

I have a few co-hosted windows servers, and would be willing to donate the hosting space nessisary to help make a collaborative project like this happen, however I don't have the time to organize it. If somebody wants to take me up on this feel free to drop me a message. Matt Christenson [email protected] http://www.RealDropzone.com - A new breed of dropzone manifest software.

I'm not trying to call anyone a liar here, I acknowledge that it could have happened just like that, but my first impression is that there must be some fact missing or incorrect. I would be interested in hearing a pilot's opinion on how a plane could flip over durring a taxi because of a dust devil. Matt Christenson [email protected] http://www.RealDropzone.com - A new breed of dropzone manifest software.

I have put up a site for RealDropzone at www.RealDropzone.com, It will be updated with product information by October 1st. Thanks for the overwhelming response I have received from dropzone owners and managers. At this point I have a full list of interested customers to participate in beta implementations. I need to get Skydive Chicago up and operational so that I can demo the product before I ask for any commitments. I apologize to everyone I will not be able to include for beta implementations, however it is important that I don't over schedule myself. If anybody else has an interest in the product, please email me at [email protected] and I will be sure to keep you up to date with status and documentation as it because available. As of September 15th I will be leaving my current employer to start up a software development firm of my own, RealDropzone will be my primary focus, however I am also available for part-time contract jobs. My resume has been posted at the site above. Thanks! Matt Christenson Matt Christenson [email protected] http://www.RealDropzone.com - A new breed of dropzone manifest software.

I have put up a site for RealDropzone at www.RealDropzone.com, It will be updated with product information by October 1st. Matt Christenson [email protected] http://www.RealDropzone.com - A new breed of dropzone manifest software.

You can always move to the DZ and work for credit until you've got 500 jumps :) If your DZ isn't looking for help, there are plenty that are! A trailer to live in doesn't cost that much and most places will give you a discount on rent if you work for them. Say goodbye to your friends tonight, because whether you know it or not - this is exactly what's going to happen! :) Matt Christenson [email protected] http://www.RealDropzone.com - A new breed of dropzone manifest software.

You have a number of choices when it comes to software solutions. JumpRun (~$1,500): IMO the most advanced application available today from the manifest perspective, 1999-2000 technology. weak when it comes to tandem registration and reservations; but capable of it. http://www.dztools.com/products.asp Manifest Master 2000 ($0) This is probably the only free application you're going to find. It is no longer supported and DOS based. It's free but very old technology. http://www.manifestmaster.com/mm.html Manifest XP: ($300) Decent. I don't have much hands on experience with this except to know that its limitations made it not an option for clients I've consulted with. http://www.digiacom.com/prod_manifest/MFW_Home.htm SkyWriter: ($500) Decent. I don't have much hands on experience with this except to know that its limitations made it not an option for clients I've consulted with. http://www.skydivesoft.com/ RealDropzone (~$2,500): My product, not yet publicly available - but taking applicants for beta installations. If your club doesn't do tandems - it's probably not worth the price because its most powerful benefits come from online marketing, reservations, etc. It has great value for larger fun jumper dropzones as well but is well beyond a small club (self manifesting kiosks, organizers able to use wireless laptops, etc.). A great deal of effort has gone into making large event registration and ticketing scenarios significantly easier as well. This product is probably well beyond what you're looking for but you can read information here: http://www.dropzone.com/cgi-bin/forum/gforum.cgi?post=2328894;sb=post_latest_reply;so=ASC;forum_view=forum_view_collapsed;;page=unread#unread In addition there are other products that will assist you with online reservations - TandemRS is one of them: http://www.tandemrs.com/ In my opinion, if you're smart enough to figure out how to use Access to effectively and efficiently manage your dropzone, then you're smart enough to realize that you're better off buying someone else's application instead - since there are already a handful out there reasonably priced. Free is never free - it means that you're replacing money for time, and that time has to come from someone that's pretty sharp as far as business and computers are concerned. Good luck. Matt Christenson [email protected] http://www.RealDropzone.com - A new breed of dropzone manifest software.

You should see a doctor, there is a good chance that you have an infection, and if that infection is left untreated long enough it could spread to other parts of your body - like your brain, for example. A weeks worth of antibiotics may be all you need to fix it up. Also, an infection can perminatly damage hearing if it gets out of control. to everyone else, I dont think that it is nessisary to be hastling this guy about asking the question on here. Remember that a doctors visit is ussually around $100 plus up to $30+ for a perscription. He may not have the health insurance and for all he knows we knew something he didn't about fixing ear problems that are skydiving related. It is worth mentioning that you shouldn't have waited 3 weeks. Matt Christenson [email protected] http://www.RealDropzone.com - A new breed of dropzone manifest software.

Does somebody want to take the time to dig up the home address of the parents involved in this suit? I think we should all send them a letter letting them know how mature they're acting. Matt Christenson [email protected] http://www.RealDropzone.com - A new breed of dropzone manifest software.

Travel to Skydive Chicago for one of the weeks they do their "AFP In a Week" program... your budget will take you all the way to your A license (25 jumps) and the 18 step AFP program is significantly better than the 7 step AFF program that most dropzones use. You'll come out a significantly better flier having only 25 jumps graduating at skydive chicago. Matt Christenson [email protected] http://www.RealDropzone.com - A new breed of dropzone manifest software.

I completely disagree with this statement. I jump at Skydive Chicago where training is taken very seriously. They charge for their services and I'm happy to pay the rates. I think that my first packing class was $35 for each person that attended, There were two of us... the senior rigger that trained us spent about 2.5 hours with us... Her full time job is rigging for Paraconcepts. I want to be taught by someone who is extremely resourceful... that means they do it full time and will take the time to point out things that many people just don't know - or don't feel is important to teach. In my opinion; you get what you pay for. How can you expect someone to put their heart into something if they're not putting bread on the table by doing it? I'm not interested in getting trained by a part-timer if there is someone who spends 5-7 days a week making themselves available in a consistant manner and asking a very reasonable price for their time. In some cases considerably less money than they would be packing reserves, mains, tandems, or doing other types of work on rigs. I can see how some dropzone's might include it in a package - meaning the money comes in another way - but many dropzones have various business inside of them. At skydive chicago all of the rigging is done by Paraconcepts; and jump instruction by skydive chicago - so packaging up the pricing doesn't work, because both businesses need to pay their bills. Matt Christenson [email protected] http://www.RealDropzone.com - A new breed of dropzone manifest software.

I would encourage you to read my only post in the WFFC 2K6 incident thread, however I will review my point in here because I think this is something we need to consider: Any time a student indicent takes place, or someone on very low jump numbers, or a legitimate equipment failure causes an incident... It is indeed worth pulling apart the incident and in some cases even speculating on what *might* have happened... Because these are cases where the jumper's life *wasn't* 100% in their control. HOWEVER, many times I see incidents posted, that happened by people with 1,000+ jumps, who were jumping with quality equipment that was well maintained, were of good physical health at the time of exit, and were very current..... I can tell you exactly what happened. It was an accident. Everybody has them, you do - I do, Unless there are very SOLID facts to analyse an incident... it's not worth guessing. 1000s of different things could have happened. They hit their arm on exit and lost strength, they sprained some part of their body in freefall, they had a hard opening that cause them to be dissy and have a momentary lapse of good thought, or maybe some guy caught the glimps of a lady in a red dress on his approach... and for just a split second lost himself in fantacy instead of the present. Maybe for just a second someones eyes water up and they can't see anything at all... Each and every one of us should acknowledge that there is a significant risk to skydiving, and that *WE* have control over how risky we want to be. If you jump a 1:1 wing loading, never attempt high speed landings, stay current, never get in a group larger than a RW 4 way, and always jump at a facility where there are PLENTY of outs to land in... you could possibly use the argued statistic of "skydiving is safer than driving". HOWEVER... You don't see many people that stay this conservative for long. No matter HOW experienced you are - there are a few seconds durring any high speed aproach that there is almost *NO* room for error. The truth of the matter is, There will always be a certain percentage of inicidents in this sport that can only be blamed on somebody making a mistake. I accept the risks that I take in skydiving, and I acknowledge that those risks may even lead to my parents and loved ones being notified of my death. I am a very conservative jumper and will remain so throughout my years - however I expect that when I start seeing jump numbers in the 1,000 range I will be trying higher speed aproaches. The personal enjoyment and satisfaction that I get out of skydiving is undescribable; and I have made the personal choice that the risk is worth it. Safety is *VERY* important, however sometimes when reading through these forums - I almost get the impression that they are *TO* critical and because of that they loose their educational effect... ---------------------------------- There are a lot of incidents that we have learn from over the past few years... Things that we didn't even know before they happened... Who knew a tandem student could fall out of their harness? Who knew it could happen even if they were not handicap? Now it looks like we might have an incident that displays the risks involved in a rig getting wet and then jumped. Some things we relearn: Many incidents over the past year may have been prevented by an RSL, especially a skyhook. While there are many reasons to jump without one... when is that last time an RSL caused a fatality? My personal choice is to jump with an RSL; even when I'm flying a camera. Many people disagree with this; I understand the arguments and accept the risks. It is looking at recent incidents that makes me confident in my decisions about these things. Sometimes it comes down to the physical health of the people existing the aircraft. At what point in an old respected elders life do you take away his personal freedom of deciding to make a skydive in the interest of his own safety? If i make it to 75+ years old; and I'm still mentally capable of making decisions... and I decide to make a skydive that ends up ending my life because of a previous heart condition.... Guess what - it was my time to go. I lived life to it's fullest. Sometimes I think that a lot of people here are lying to themselves about how 'safe' this sport is. How many of your wuffo freinds can tell you how many people doing what they do in the past year? God bless personal freedom. Matt Christenson [email protected] http://www.RealDropzone.com - A new breed of dropzone manifest software.

To quote the entire article: I'm not a pilot. I wonder what this FAA manager's definition of "uncontrolled traffic patterns" is. Perhaps this airport had no designated flight patterns like others ussually do? Could somebody educated on this matter fill me in to what "uncontrolled traffic patterns" are and how they're different from "controlled traffic patterns" around airports? Before we go and get upset about the quote we should consider it in context. Matt Christenson [email protected] http://www.RealDropzone.com - A new breed of dropzone manifest software.