Travman

The Australian Parachute Federation published some stats on this a few years ago. If I recall correctly, there is a big drop off after A-License which is people pretty much ticking the box. Next big drop-off I think is about the 2-year point and then 4 years, the APF said if you stay in for 4 years your likely in the sport for life. I found this was reflected in my license numbers. A-B there is a big difference but relatively small difference B-C-D then another big drop off in numbers to my E license.

I've landed at Ama Dablam base camp in Nepal, at an altitude of 15,000ft. We were using PD Navigators, if I recall correctly I think I was on a 290. Typically I jump a Katana 120, so for me the landings were quite slow. Coming from such a ground hungry canopy, I found myself struggling to burn off altitude on finals with the Navigator so I didn't overshoot. Since it's such a different canopy to what I normally jump, its hard to provide a comparison. Its about having the right equipment for the job.

Was my main drop zone for many years before moving interstate.

I sent them a ProTrack that was several years old and I'd taken for a swim in the swoop pond, they sent me a new one without hesitation.

Personally I cringe every time someone says "I bought XXX AAD cause it was cheaper". For me my key requirements for an AAD are: 1. Safe my life when I need it to 2. Don't kill me with misfires 3. Easy to use to prevent accidents Given the cost of AAD's at the market, I don't think any are overly expensive. When you're at 1000ft with nothing out, unconscious the few hundred $$$ you saved isn't going to help you if you're AAD doesn't fire for whatever reason. How much is your life worth? Personally I have chosen an AAD that aims to distinguish itself in the market based on quality, not cost. But its your choice, and like you said everyone has their opinion. I'd never heard of Mars M2 and if someone asked me locally about getting one I'd steer them away from them because they aren't used much (if at all) in Australia, but by the sounds of it they're popular at your DZ so instructors and riggers will be familiar with it.

When I went from my Sabre 170 to a Samurai 150. I think it was more the change from a square to an elliptical that made the big difference. It didn't scare more, because before making the change I jumped a 150 Sabre and a 170 Samurai, to get a feel for the difference between sizes and (Sabre 170/150) vs Design (Sam 170 vs Sabre 170). The change from the Sam 150 to 136 felt barely indistinguishable, was a bit faster but got used to it very quick. Now have gone to a Katana 120, much different flight characteristics to the Samurai but still does't feel as big a jump as the Sabre to the Sam was.

I bought a rig in Australia and sent it back to Mirage to have the harness adjusted. They sent it back via UPS. Australian Customs lost it and it took them over two months to find!

What are the classifieds you are looking at? Rigs in Australia are typically advertised on the APF site, skysurfer, mailing lists such as Skarsy and some various retailer sites. In my experience word of mouth tends to be the best way to get gear, but I jump at large DZs. Have a chat to the riggers and instructors who can recommend the correct gear and will be able to keep an eye out for things that come up.

Nice video. Its awesome hearing what's going on in his head. I find his drive very inspiring.

A team mate had a chop during nationals, got a repack and on the very next jump had a hard pull and had a terminal reserve ride.

The APF used to run the Spring League and Autumn League in 4-way and 3-way each year. They also ran CRW as well depending on demand It was a lot of fun, they did a round of 3 every three weeks for 9 weeks, making a total of 9 jumps. You sent your video into the APF to have it judged. I enjoyed it and participated several times, but it died off a few years ago due to lack of overall interest around the country.

I'd seek the advice of a doctor rather than an internet skydiving forum.

The video is looking real choppy for me so its hard to see the exit. But something that has worked well for me and my teams is to have the OC launch their leg more up, than out.. think of kicking the propeller. Then the FF doesn't need to launch as hard because the OC's leg is closer to where they are launching from, which puts less rotational energy into the exit. Also remind everyone at the mock up that it is EVERYONE's responsibility to stop the spin as soon as it starts.

My first jump I had a raging hangover from Tequila, a nasty head cold and it was the middle of winter... it wasn't the most pleasant experience. So I can't say I enjoyed my first jump, especially considering I nearly threw up under canopy, until my TM told me to throw up down the front of my jumpsuit. But I was glad I did it! If its something YOU want to do, then maybe go for the weekend away and do it another time, maybe he'll come as a supporting boyfriend when you choose to do it. I've surprised friends with a skydive present who have said they would/or wanted to do it but were too scared to commit and book it themselves. But I've got friends like your bf, who have stated they're not interested for whatever reason. For me, that's end of discussion, I respect their decision and I'm not going to try and change their mind.

I have done the vast majority of my jumps on Samurai's and have just moved to a Katana. I think the airlocks had some benefits, for example I found they helped keep the shape in the canopy if you were flying close to the stall point. Through turbulent conditions they keep the canopy feeling solid, but like others have said the wing depressurising is only part of the problem - you still need good airflow to generate lift. Also the best defence to turbulent conditions is a jumpers experience that tells them where to fly and when to sit on the ground. If there were still airlocked canopies being made would I have bought one instead of the Katana? Airlocks would not have been a deciding factor, I would have been far more interested in the overall flight characteristics of the canopies available. I've loved my Samurai's, they have been great canopies and I am keeping one in my second rig but that's because I like how they fly, not because of the airlocks. This is why I think they have fallen out of favour. The market just wasn't demanding them. AFAIK the only airlocked canopies were the Lotus, Samurai and Vengeance. The Lotus and Samuari were eventually manufactured by PD for Big Air Sportz (Brian Germain's company). The Vengeance was made by PD by licensing the Airlock Patent from Brian. Now PD is no longer make any of those canopies and Brian is no longer making them himself and he is now working with Aerodyne. I have no idea why PD and Brian discontinued their relationship but if PD had continued to manufacture them then perhaps they would have caught on more. But since they are not that common, many people aren't aware of airlocks and the problems they solve are not causing the market to demand them, so the manufacturers are not going to license the patent if it won't help them sell canopies.

I've had a Z1 for almost 7 years I think. Replaced the visor once in it. Never had issues with fogging. Good locking mechanism, comfortable etc. Great for rel and you can freefly with it as well. That said it is a dated design and there are some newer helmets out there. The cookie G3 is very popular at the moment and looks like a good helmet, but I've never tried one.

So is this generally available now? There is still almost no info on the mirage website that I could find.

Car make and year? Seriously dude, total scam. What would I do? Cut off contact and sell your rig to a real buyer.

Its the fall rate that matters. The things that affect fallrate are weight, drag and surface area. So you can add more weight, get a slicker jumpsuit and/or have an instructor look at your body position which may be able to decrease your surface area presented to the relative wind. Ideally head to a tunnel. I've found that different dropzones tend to have different average fallrates. Many of the instructors at the DZ I've jumped at most have done a fair bit of tunnel and competition RW so this DZ seems to have a faster average fall rate than other DZ's where there is less emphasis on competition RW and less instructors who have a lot of tunnel time.

Yup. First night jump (67th jump in total). Light ground winds, but the uppers had picked up considerably. Got put out over the top of the DZ for a 5 sec delay. After opening found DZ then took a bit longer than usual collapsing slider, wearing gloves, dark etc. Then unstowed my breaks and realised I was very far down wind of the DZ. Pointed canopy at DZ but had very little penetration. There was no moon, rural area so there were few ground lights and I had a really shitty torch so I couldn't see any outs and this was my first time at the DZ though I had done 6 jumps during the day there. It was pitch black and I couldn't see any detail on the ground so I just kept flying towards the DZ as I knew there were plenty of fields surrounding it. As I got low I realised I was flying straight for a building, steered around it and began to flare when I impacted a barbed wire fence. Injuries were a broken nose, a laceration across the bridge of my nose requiring 1 stitch and a sprained knee, so made a stop in at the hospital on the way to the pub.

I've had a complete range of attitudes from employers. Some think its amazing, others don't care and same have a negative attitude and think I am too high risk. Take the safe option and don't mention it during interviews. As for current employers they'll probably be concerned for a while but then will get over it when you keep turning up to work.

If you land off, avoid the barbed wire fences... I didn't.

You can call it a "Precision Pack" if it makes you feel any better. http://www.precision.aero/extreme_pack.htm

When I pack, I psychopack but I often get a packer so I've had quite a few psychopack and pro pack openings to compare. I can definitely notice the difference in openings, one isn't better than the other just different. But as for off headings and line twists, I haven't noticed one method being more consistent than the other. I haven't had line twists in a long time, but get a few off heading openings with either pack method.

Yeah my pro-track stopped working and they sent me a brand new one. To be fair it stopped working after I took an unintended dip in the swoop pond.