prost

You can get that kind of a swoop out of even a regular Sabre with a straight in approach if you flare it correctly. Most people start to flare to soon a scrub off extra speed that limits their swoop. If you figure out your flare point well enough that when you are just above the ground you can go quickly and smoothly to the point where you will plane out and hold it there while you swoop across the ground and then flare the rest of the way at the very end you will be able to get the kind of swoops you are looking for out of any Zero-p canopy at that wing loading with straight in approaches. This is the first skill you need to learn to swoop a canopy. I see many jumpers performing hook turns that do not flare right and it cost them a lot on their surf. William

maybe he got comfused...thought he was the Captain instead of the camera man....and thought he should go down with his ship...

When I click on someones profile all I get is the short form. Name # of posts. How do you bring up all of their info. Ex. # of jumps...type of canopy?

Very inspiring.

Two words...Blue Skies

Damn...my girlfriend can no longer bitch about me being on here to much. William

As far as wings lasting long....my girlfriend got one of the first ones three years ago. It has over 500 jumps on it and looks like it is brand new. She uses it for flying video so everytime she lands it is dropped on the ground so she can film the tandems landing. One of my rigs is a Javelin with about the same number of jumps and it does not look as good as hers. I just ordered a new Wings. William

As far as the sasches in the swoop path is concerned, this person is not in the right. It is not just swoopers that they get in the way of but everyone on final. If you need to bleed of altitude, do it outside the landing area. Quick back and forth S-turns that do not carry you very far to the left and right are acceptable but more than that is not. William

First off they never changed their story on the S&TA situation. They only pointed out that people were to reading the statement correctly (this is called a clarification). The statement was that an S&TA was do determine if a jumper had the experience to jump a canopy. Something S&TA's should do anyway. The did not want jumpers jumping a canopy if they did not have the experience to know it was not flying correctly. A jumper at our drop zone got one of the first Crossfires and jumped it for quite a while untill someone else jumped it and told him it was not supposed to buck like that in front riser turns. This is the original statement they released but many people took it as the S&TA was supposed to determine the airworthyness of the canopies. So they released a clarification. Second, on the issue of changing the list of affected canopies. After they put out the first list they asked for people to give them feed back on their canopies. After they did this they found more canopies with problems so they added to the list. Second they have not changed the recommendation of a line trim change. When the first notice came out they stated that they believed a line trim change would solve the problems. They concluded that a line trim change was needed and are currently doing this to the canopies. These are the facts I am talking about. We don't need wide spread speculation or rumors. It does not do anyone any good. The only thing good from it is you might be able to get a Crossfire for a little cheaper now. William

Move south where it is warm and forget the storage. you have to get your priorities straight. William

I think anyone who knows me will not think I am a canopy nazi. I will usually argued for putting novice jumpers on a little higher performance wing than what skybitch recommends if they are a good canopy pilot with good sense. But there comes a point when it just gets plain stupid. A vengence at 60 jumps is stupid. You might get away with it but for what. You will not be able to fly the canopy to the level you need to get the great performance out of it and your risk has shot way up. No extra fun, much higher risk. Where is the balance? William

What story have you been watching. At least get you facts straight. You sound like you have a grudge against them. Or is it like one of those company fan things (like,"I'm a Ford man so piss on Chevys").

The helmet is much more likely to stay on with a chin cup. Why do you think Football players wear a chin strap instead of a strap that goes under the jaw. And if you look at the instances where their helmets come off it is usually because of an improperly attached chin strap. With the extra weight of a camera on your helmet, the helmet is more likely to slide on your head. A strap under your jaw will limit the helmets movement to the rear but not forward. After the helmet slides forward over your face (like in a hard opening) it is very easy for it to fall off. If the helmet does stay on, the extra momentum it has gained would increase the possibility of a neck injury. William

Chuck, I did not fully understand what you were trying to say about the triple risers deflecting the tail without input. Can you clarify that for me? William

I would not even consider jumping a camera helmet without a chin cup. You will need it to stabalize the camera. Also under a hard openning it is possible for the helmet to come of your head with the extra wheight of a camera on it. William

Moss Point does not have a Beech 99 anymore. We now have a Super Otter. This thing is getting to altitude in about 11 minutes thanks to new engines and our low elevation. If you are coming around Feb. you can check out our Mardis Gras Boogie. It is by far the biggest event on the Gulf Coast. William

Come on. We know that rig has been done for two weeks and you are enjoying jumping it every chance you get and laughing everytime he calls to ask about it..............well at least that sounds like what your buyer thinks.

The most common high-quality set up I see is a MX-1 with a TM-2000. These are both made by Videonics (or were made). The MX-1 does many special effects and is very high quality. The TM2000 handles rolling titles. You also need something to edit sound. I would suggest going to Radio Shack and buying their 2 Channel mixer. It runs $99 but is sometimes on sale for $69. You will also need three small televisions, two CD walkmans A good VCR and good connection wires. One tv is for the titler control, one for the effects contol , and one for the final product. The best deal I have found for this is a 13" Orion at Wal-mart for $79. The tv's must have rca inputs. If you go to E-bay you can search under Videonics and listings for the MX-1 board and the TM2000 will come up. The MX-1 will usually go for about $500 and the TM2000 for $100. There is a lot of techniques to using this equipment I can share with you if you want. I have a couple of set ups like this. Good luck.

Depends on the canopy. In my experience, PD canopies tend to do better with the brakes stowed while Icarus canopies do better with the brakes unstowed.

Mostly the concern is not having enough lift to land you lightly. F-111 lets more of the air pass through the canopy. This causes the canopy to have less flare power. If you load a canopy to a point that it can not produce enough lift at full brakes to briefly stop (or very close to it) your downward movement, you are in for a rough landing.

I disagree with your opinion on the pricing. After this deal is over i would expect the selling price to go to the same price as an FX. The list price is $3 more than the FX. If you want one I would suggest getting it while the getting is good.

Tim, It might not be an option anymore. I can't find anyone selling the 11 anymore. Oh yeah, and get a haircut you are starting to look like a hippie. William

Omar, It has been several years since I have jumped any canopy inside the manufacturers recommended maximum wing loading.

Anyone have expeirence loading a Sabre2 at 2 to 1 or above? How does it fly compared to a Stilletto?

Tim, where did you finally get the figure of twenty weeks? Straight from skysystems or from pierltd? I have decided I want one as well but it might be twenty weeks before I can afford it. William