bosco

You simply cant beat the A2 as a great all rounder. Good luck.

My money is on the A2. It is the best all round tandem main on the market today (in my opinion). Easy flare, a nice balance of speed, performance and dependable openings. Each of the canopies detailed here have their excellent points (especially the HOP which is great fun to fly and does flare like the home sick angel) however if your looking for a tandem main which has a good balance of all things we look for then the A2 is my choice.

Its all good lads!!! Keep it going

Brilliant stuff those last few posts. :-)

Id like to see that same girl grip onto your legs!! Are not our legs our most valuable flying asset?? If the student is causing problems is this not mostly due to the lower end of their body and not their arms? I have nevr had a great deal of success messing with thstudents arms and when I have its usually aquick in and out to amend the position slightly in the cse of the students arms being far back enough to Like the comment re bootie suit earlier in this forum.. Yes I do use student control techniques pre drogue but this is usually a reflex action. 99% of the work is done post drogue. Comon guys this is tandem mastery in the year 2000 when we know a little more about flying. As an examiner I get to watch all the old footage of tandem masters riding their students and not flying the skydive. Just check out the free flyers that do tandems... Those guys can do the job...

Good comments Rhys... However, if you can control the student at the top end and fix up any issues they may have, chances are that you will have a happier FF. On exit the student is very likely to de- arch, wave about etc but you as the TM can use your own body to re work the pasenger into a better position by using your legs to lock or pull in that wayward arm or leg etc. Yes, of course, fly the skydive, this is a given, but why fight an unsteady freefall when it takes only seconds to fix a passenger who has legs out straight or knees to their chest. I find that if I fix a student at the top end than more often than not the student maintains that position. It makes for a better DVD for the passenger and a happier day for you. I cant believe comments from an earlier post when an IE would not allow the candidate to not leg lock the passenger and trim up the skydive with their own body!! They are robbing the candidate of vital Tandem Master skills.. This isn’t a trim control contest but a tandem mastery essential skill. Use whatever techniques we have available to make the jump flow as smooth as possible.. It’s all about the passenger after all. There is so much miss information out there!!!! Arggggg

I've asked for repeat levels before but so far no full fails and no scary rides either. I remember back to my first on the back and how calm my examiner felt and how much that had an effect on me. I try and do the same. If the Examiner is ampt up and or frightened, then that will rub off on the candidate. Trust the equipment, trust what you teach and trust the guy on your back and you will have heaps of fun on the front... Good luck

I just wanted to support the previous replies. The info on the leg lift strap is bang on. I had a rigger build a similar design for me when taking folk who have no ability to move their lower limbs. It is a little involved under canopy but it lifts the legs up high for the canopy ride and landing. The duct tape around the legs works great too but the freefall can be as tricky as hell (tendency to try and spin). Choose your aircraft well and pick your day carefully. Ive taken many movement impaired folk and Im not afraid to can the day if conditions are not perfect. Every time I plan for one of these special jumps I tell myself never again but once on the ground with my ecstatic passenger I know exactly why Ive done it. Those jumps can be the most rewarding of your career. The ones I have done have certainly been mine. Take extra time with planning, have heaps of catchers all briefed carefully on their responsibilities and pick your day. I think Relative Workshop have a booklet from a symposium long gone with heaps of tips on doing this kind of jump (also has detailed plans of the leg strap/support descried). Enjoy Apologies, I just spotted that your not a tandem I yourself but looking for advice. My post was directed to an I doing that actual jump. In that case, I hope your uUncle has a crackin jump!!

Yes agreed, I think he is missing the point completely and will continue to do so.. READ THE DAM REPLIES PROPERLY!!!! No one is complaining about making the student comfy!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Just about the harness!!! If you dont have an issue with it then you havent come across this particular design. Jezzzzzzz

Quote i never thought of it as a pain in the ass. i always thought of it as just doing my job. I think you got the wrong end of the stick, Im sure they were not referring to the "making of the student comfortable" as being the "pain in the ass" but the harness constantly ending up around the students neck as being the pain. Im sure that with all the feedback re this particular harness type this issue is not just a case of a lazy tandem I or bad harnessing. There has been a change in the design and Im not the only one to notice. Other competent TIs who before had no issue with the harness when changing to the design with the ususually long main lift web have all had problems.

I recently bought a 2 new Strong systems (Oct last year) and the harness that came with it are driving me nuts. At the DZ I previously worked they used the newer Strong harness (articulated and purchased a year earlier) and Ive noticed a definite difference between that model and the new ones I just bought. The main lift web length is far longer and they are an absolute pain when it comes to having the chest strap rise up around the students neck. I asked the dealer about this and they had no knowledge of a change in design but it is evident that this has happened. Why? I spend allot of time on the front and even when I do the things up myself I end up spending half the flight choking. The earlier model (of the newer type) did not do this!!!!

Im a DZO and an active tandem I and there is no comparison. I bought two A2 canopys about a year ago (both sizes) and myself and the other Tandem I's love them to bits. I absolutely recommend the A2 as the best all round tandem canopy Ive ever jumped (and Ive jumed them all). Openings, performance in turbs, quick flying, good to swoop n glide, easy toggle pressure and flares like a home sick angel. I took a chance in buying them as Id only test jumped them once but after a few jumps I knew Id made a good decision. I recon I sound like a company rep but I promise Im far from it. Id put my name to the canopy and Ive worked hard enough for that..

After all that I took a 10 year old girl on Saturday. She fitted the harness (just) and her Dad went with her too. It went just fine with smiles all round. My previous comments re minors jumping still stand.

Skydog Good call, Was it tacked down n some way?? Ive seen others with a similar tack n place (maybe that was yours Im remembering) for some reason although its been a while since Ive used Vec. Im only thorough with TICCs as its me on the front!! Hoped you liked the pic credits in Skydive.. I did ask the English paper who published the story to mention your name but they ignored my request..

After that scary ride, I vowed to never again do tandems with 13 year olds! Totally agreed. There are always exceptions to the rule but in the experience of someone who has taken many minors I feel that overall skydiving is an activity for a more mature mind. I simply feel that the minor is not yet at the mental stage where they can fully appreciate what it is they are doing (of course there are many shades of grey with this statement). On most of these jumps, once on the ground, after you unhook the kid they walk away and say "whats next mum"? Yes before I get swamped with replies saying that allot of adults can and are far more high maintenance and scary to take" I totally agree but at least we can communacate with them on the same level and feel secure in the knowledge that "most of the time" they will comprehend exactly what it is they are about to do" and mostly not try and harm themselves through random actions. I have found that minors are more likely to react in ways I am unable to predict and do random things that can cause added un necessary risk to the jump. In my opinion...

Yowwwwwwww Mr B, no mate, I agree with you completely. That model harness has an imovable chest strap. As to the scissors Round end scissors not as much fun to run with.

but remember if you use scissors to assist in this process be sure to stow them safely down the passengers jumpsuit for the exit n freefall. Otherwise the TI might get cut n stuff...

Jezz guys, what a crackin debate oto have over a bunch of beers with a group of TIs. Im surprised and a little dis-believing that those of you who have taken the more robust passenger have never had issues with the harness. Never/not at all are definate statements.. So what do we tell our novice TI with the question on harnessing?? As much time as I put into harnessing I still have issues with the larger lady when that canopy opens and I look down at the chest strap up around their neck. Yes I spend time working it out as I care deeply about the comfort of my pasenger but the question still remains, how do I solve this. To let our novice TI know that I still have this issuses after a few years of tandems is my answer. With some folk not matter what you do, comfort will be an issue.. Its a fine balance between how much you, as a TI want to take that person (who REALLY wants to go for a skydive ride) and how much you as a professional skydiver will take on the responsibility of an Instructor and say "not today". When you have figured out that question please let me know but please tell all the new TIs that sometimes there is no real good answer to their question and its a case of personal and thoughtful judgment. Cheers

Whow, this question has opened up allot of feedback. My youngest is 12 and as Im currently working in NZ this is not an uncommon occurrence. Its as weird as hell taking minors. all the friendly banter in which we can engage in during the plane ride turns very odd when you realize thats its a child you have on the front. Taking minors changes the entire tandem thing into a fair-ground type attraction and for me cheapens what I love to do. As physically easy as it is I dont enjoy taking children and find the entire experience uncomfortable. Once again tandem skydiving is a medium for skydive Instruction even on the most basic level an not a fair-ground ride....

Re Miss Piggys, I have turned down passengers who I thought may be so uncomfortable in the harness it just wasnt worth it (this was usually compounded by lack of wind/ground elevation etc). This was and is a sport and skydiving isnt for everyone (even with the advent of tandem). Maybe Im just a grouch, of sizeist or just plain old tired of lugging those that cant support their own weight around the ski to cries of pain as their legstraps like dental floss get sucked up into their thighs. We are employed to make desicions on anothers behalf. Sometimes its not what they want to hear but ther it is. To the harness question... This has been as issue with every harness Ive used..

Dont see much mention given to the A2. We just bought a couple and everyone who flies them now says that these are without a doubt the best all round tandem main they have flown. We have what can be a choppy area for flying canopys so was hesitant about buying the more high performance mains as in my experience thay have all been prone to severe bounce n end cell closure in turbulence. The A2 nails the openings everytime are fly like your own canopy and are solid in chop. When I come to buy more Im not going to hesitate in picking up the A2 (the smaller of the two sizes is picked up more than the 390).

hey Chris, so you made it back to the uk!! All well here. The Xpress flights are starting to take off after our TV thing a few weeks ago. Its sooo cool lining up with 747s at Wellington in our little 206 and flying over the Strait. Im hoping we may have found our niche. Keep in touch via my DZ email, Cheers. N

we did a telivized tandem a few weeks ago and I was cackin it.. We did the first jump from the North Island of NZ to the South Island with a tandem. We had a TV crew at our departure point and a crew at our landing site. Yes we were all very aware that if we stuffed it up then national TV would record every moment.. All went well and many beers were bought that night..