SkySlut

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Posts posted by SkySlut


  1. Plenty of places...I would imagine that you could look up online about hang gliding. I know that there is a place in NH somewhere. Sorry, I dont know where but I know a few people that went so I would assume that you could find a place. I dont know anyone who is doing it around here. But I am sure that if you looked around you could find some great places.

  2. Here is my take on this...I have always worn a fullface helmet on AFF jumps for these reasons: 1)My safety 2)Its just what I am comfortable with.

    I think that a fullface can be used effectively if you teach the student what to expect ahead of time. For example, we dont teach the toungue out signal, instead we brief the students on a Cat C, for instance, "what do you think happened if you see both of your instructors out in front of you?" Answer from the student: I am going backwards? so we then ask them what makes that happen and how can you fix that??? So we are getting them thinking early on and I have never (knock on wood) had to get in a full track (Merlin CompSuit) to get to a student, so driving towards them while giving a legs out signal isnt typically a problem. If they are sliding so quickly then typically they are going to be sitting upright to the point of flipping over...needing a redock anyways.

    As far as spotting...I will usually give them a briefing on how to spot on the ground and then I will have them just take a look out of the plane to see where we are getting out and then have them tell me where we were when we get back down as an introduction. When I have them pick the spot...I have them tell me where we should be getting out of the plane while we are on the ground according to todays winds. Then while we are up in the plane, I have them stick their head out and then look to me and give me a thumbs up or a nod that they think that they are in a good spot. I will either agree or disagree and give them a wait signal and then talk about it later.

    The other thing is that students can see a smile through a helmet...they can also see your eyes light up. NonVerbal communication is just as, if not more, important than verbal communication.

    Point being: A fullface isnt a problem if you set the expectations ahead of time:)
    The other thing in the AFF course is that they tell you to dress for success. Some AFF Is have to learn to compensate for not dressing for success. But that is a whole different discussion. I see the benefits of a open face, but I dont think that they outweigh safety in my opinion. An openface helmet in the air or in the A/C doesnt substitute for a comprehensive briefing on the ground.

  3. Yeah, I have looked at the boneheads as well. I really like their cutaway system, but in general I have heard more negative than I have positive. You either love 'em or hate 'em. I have tried them on and I seem pretty neutral towards them.

  4. yeah, I am going to be eventually shooting video for students...just kinda doing it for shits and giggles at the moment until I get the hang of it....what a pain in the ass sorting all this stuff out has become. from suits to mixing boards, to cameras, to helmets, blah, blah, blah...

    Thanks for the input. Ive got a pc101...$450 bucks, brand new off of Ebay...I am stoked with that thing so far....now a helmet and I am going to borrow different type of wingsuits to see what I prefer.

    Cheers

  5. I am looking at getting a camera helmet. There are so many choices. One of the biggest factors is weight because I dont need any fusions in my neck. The other factors is left/top mount, minimal snags, etc. I have narrowed it down to a few and I was wondering if anyone has any opinions. I have been asking around and I have tried on every helmet concievable. Everyone who jumps that particular helmet think that their helmet is the cat's ass...so I would like to hear what others have to say. Here are the ones that I am looking at...Rawa, 2K Composites, Cookie Composites and of course the Hawkeye (although I think its the heaviest one out of the bunch-but the cheapest).

    My priorities, in order are...lightweight, safety (snag points/cutaway options), durability and price.

    Also, does anyone have a glass fibre helmet and how do they hold up and are they typically lighter than the carbon fibre helmets?

    Thanks

  6. yep, dont abuse it though...they are a great company...dont make that customer service go away...but yes, I know several people that have had this happen to and they have replaced them...free of charge!!! L and B Rocks!!!!

  7. Man, I dont know what the deal is....but I had 5 in my class last night and 2 showed up to check in with beers in their hand...I really dont think that we should have to tell people that they need to be sober while skydiving. I kicked them out of the class. That is 2 weeks in a row.>:(

  8. We had someone hit wake turbulance at sunset over our pond. The lead canopy was a Jedei and the trailing canopy was an 84 Velo. It turned the Velo into a dishrag...absolutely destroyed it. I havent seen anything like it...thank god the velo pilot was over water because if he had been over land he would have been definately hopitalized. Nasty stuff.

  9. I was a bit harsh, but still nice. The thing that really pisses me off is that they had no regard to their safety or mine, for that matter, showing up with a buzz on...I didnt do anything different. I just didnt have as much patience as I normally do because of their disregard to common sense...needless to say...a couple of the culprits had to do tandems...they just couldnt perform at all...so...off to a Cat A tandem. I never found out how they did because I was doing a demo jump on the beach, but the rest of the class did great...at least the sober ones anyways.

  10. well...according to the "state induced" learning method which states that anything that you learn while drunk you will remember better when drunk...I just have to make sure that they are drunk while they are jumping!!! :)
    Just kidding...what a bunch of jackasses. Class should be interesting this morning...I cant wait to see what I get.>:(

  11. Well, I got a good one...I had 10 people in my AFF class this evening...guess how many showed up drunk??? 7!!! Can you believe it??? Every once in a while I will suspect someone who has had one beer or two because they watched everyone else drinking one while the sunset load is landing...but these guys were HAMMERED...hows that for asshat???

    Needless to say...I postponed the entire class for tomorrow.>:(

  12. New England's most famous boogie is back! This year it's Papa Smurf's mystery weekend. What do we mean by that? Well it's a mystery to us too, but this much we do know. . . . . .

    * BIRDMAN will be here this weekend!! This is your only opportunity in New England to come and demo BirdMan suits!!!!
    * CRW with World Champ Paul Quandt for all experience levels
    * Live music with Big D and the Kids Table , and Sly Chi for the weekend Saturday and Sunday night
    * We have RW load organizing with Brian Germain, Papa Smurf, Pete Levasseur and our mystery guest.
    * Fred and Heathers award winning pig roast (we know because we gave them the award ourselves)
    * And the feature presentation. . . . .the TikiBar Burning

    For further details check out www.ugojump.com
    http://www.bigdandthekidstable.com/
    http://www.slychi.com/