QuietStorm

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Everything posted by QuietStorm

  1. Here is my FACTUAL experience with wingsuit manufacturers so far: My first wingsuit was a Birdman Firebird ordered in September 2005 and not delivered until January 2006; 5 months later. 25 jumps later seams were blowing out of the arm and leg wings. Birdman made good on it, sent me the matching fabric and requested that I send them the rigger bill. I figured that sending the bill to Birdman was too much hassle. I had to search for a rigger who was competent, qualified, and confident to work on a wingsuit. Wayne in Casa Grande, AZ was up to the task. By the time he was done he could not ask me for all the money to cover his time in tearing apart the suit; so I paid $200. By Christmas 2007 my Firebird had more seams busting out. It has been patched so many times it has no resale value whatsoever. It has more value bringing people into the joy of wingsuiting as a demo suit. So I keep it around and make it available for others to fly. At the Eloy Christmas 2007 boogie I ordered a Birdman Blade in PARAPACK for better durability and was measured in metric by Scott Campos. I recieved my Blade late February 2008. With 50 jumps my Blade does not show the workmanship flaws that my Firebird had. I am happy with my Blade both performance wise and quality wise. I did not have the same delivery, sizing, and quality issues that DSE had with Birdman. DSE has documented these issues in a factual manner. If I need any kind of product repair or upgrade to my Birdman product I have TWO choices: 1.) Take my suit to a local rigger for a fix and hope he can do it right and be reasonable in the charge. or 2.) Ship my Blade off to Europe for repair, and deal with the wait, shipping, customs, and difficult communications due to language and time zones. This past weekend I bought a used and well taken care of Tony Suit Super Mach 1 with a "back up" zipper system for wing cutaway. If I need to have my suit repaired or there is an upgrade available I do the following: 1.) Overnight the suit to Tony in Florida for less than $20.00 UPS. 2.) Have the suit in the hands of the factory guys as opposed to finding a rigger willing to do a job on something he may not be familiar with , end results uncertain, and a bill to be paid at the end. 3.) Pick up the phone and speak in English with somebody only 2 hours away. 4.) Have my suit turned around in under 2 weeks, delivered to me via UPS overnight, without jacking around with customs or overseas shipments.
  2. So.....today I'm walking out of Walmart with a soda in my hand from McDonalds; As I exit I see this big poster advertising Kung Fu Panda's. Instantly the indelible image of Scotty as the Kung Fu Cameraman flashes into my mind. In my uncontrolable laughter I double over laughing, spill my Coke, laughing myself breathless all the way to the truck
  3. Doug; Anne and I will be there! More opportunity to work on flying wingsuits in slot and continue to build skills. I want to fly winguits as well as I can fly belly RW. Its so weird; I'm from the RW / Freefly capitol of skydiving but I have to get on an airplane to go find opportunities to fly Wingsuits in relative formations......but if this is what it takes........ Maybe this is what it was like to be a skysurfer or freeflyer back when everybody was flying on the belly.
  4. In addition to a camo base rig, olive drab main, camo stash bag, ghillie suit, and non reflective hardware; it does serve its purpose you know....... ( S.E.R.E ) Survival Evasion Resistance Escape from certain police in certain national parks. You go Nick!
  5. That would be Domin. She is from France and OMG she is so HOT! Looks, brains, and flies a wingsuit. What more could you possibly want?
  6. Juan and Scott flew still cameras and outside video for de-brief. Thanks guys! Others had video but chose to focus exclusively on learning to fly to a specific slot and work on improving individual flying skills rather than worrying about a camera. Class was in session with lots of work to be done!
  7. Brian: Anne and I are making plans to be there on Saturday. We are going to be driving over from Phoenix when she gets home from work late on Friday. Anne has finally broken down and wants to get a wingsuit so she can go fly rather than skydive with me; she really likes the features of the Tony Intro Suit. I'm sure Jeff will relish taking her measurements.
  8. Welcome Pete! Dude, its going to be a HOT one wrapped up in NYLON wingsuits this summer. Remember, pack a cooler with lots of water!
  9. "Also 95% of people who don't fly a wingsuit have very little knowledge of how wingsuits perform. Many people will freak out if you get within 100 yards of them and if it's a tandem or student, you'll probably hurt the wingsuit scene at the DZ. Make sure people are cool with it and build up some trust at the DZ you're at. The people under canopy have no control, you have all the control, so they really need to trust you. " A few years ago when I first started flying a wingsuit I hyperfocused trying to fly back home and unintenionally flew between 2 tandems with about 100 yards to the left and right between them. In the opinion of the TM I was too close. He ran to the other TM's S&TA crying like a little school girl. S&TA chewed me a good one. Right or wrong the wrath fell on me and the birds. This particular TM eventually went on to another DZ in Utah with a VERY NEGATIVE attitude toward wingsuits and gave existing wingsuiters grief. In addition my deployment time puts me in the same landing time frame as tandems. Some DZ's are smaller and can pull this off but for the " Big Destination DZ's" that bang out 80 tandems a day my advice to birds is to stay away. This is a major revenue stream for the DZ. These TM's and Camera Men are getting PAID for a professional and SAFE performance for a PAYING CUSTOMER. They have to pull things off without a hitch. In my opinion they don't want / need a wingsuit pilot throwing in a variable in a well choreographed assembly line tandem skydive machine. These people carry weight and influence on the DZ becuase of the revenue they generate. Yeah it looks cool on videos but the two biggest things going against birds these days is FEAR and IGNORANCE of wingsuits and wingsuit piloting from EXPERIENCED skydivers who want to pass judgement about what is safe or unsafe involving things they know nothing about. For this reason I avoid tandems and make every attempt to not even be on the same plane. I shall now step off my soapbox.
  10. To All: Temps are now in the upper 90's during the day but it has been really nice at night. Swamp coolers in the hanger have been turned on. Bring lots of water and stay hydrated because you sure do sweat alot in winguits.
  11. My trip to Lodi made it clear that the only way I am going to get the OPPORTUNITY to fly wingsuits in larger groups in order to LEARN and GROW is going to be getting on the Southwest 737 and traveling to other DZ's. I will be at Scott's event this weekend at Eloy, Jeff's camp at Elsinore the following weekend and June. I am making plans for the All the Above Boogie in Oregon and June events. The "local" Eloy flock continues to grow slow in the shadow of the tunnel, freefly, and RW presence but I am sure the November attempts at both Elsinore and Eloy will raise the profile of wingsuits. Especially when the flocks block out the sun!
  12. I am going have my rigger sew additional tabs on my booties and install snaps like my Firebird. Once I stow my leg wing the forwared airspeed from my canopy pulls the "rare earth magnets" apart. The leg wing winds up flapping between my legs, then my leg wing winds up dragging along the ground when I land.
  13. Many thanks to Ed for the organization and coaching for the group and to Avery for dinner on Saturday. It was also great to see some of the Z-flock come all the way out from Florida! Thanks to Jeff from Tony Suits for all the demo suits for people to try out as well! Lodi has a great vibe and is now one of my favorite DZ's. Not having the opportunity in the past to fly in large flocks I found the learning curve steep which pushed me to grow fast; need more practice !
  14. Scott: March was interuppted by the wedding of Bridezilla. Winds in April have been really squirrelly here in Eloy, several wind outs in the afternoon. Met another wingsuit pilot and airplane driver Dave who is into nylon crack so we are flying together now, fellow Space Cadet Frank shows promise and flys my Firebird. I coming over to Lodi for the Cinco de Mayo weekend. Hope to see you there? John
  15. I started off in a Firebird for my first 200 WS jumps; recently just got a Blade. I have less than 20 jumps on the Blade; but I like it so far. I keep the Firebird around for friends or newbees to try. I will probably wind up buying a 3rd suit and it will most likely be a Tony Suit; Super Mach I; Nothing against Phoenix Fly....I want somebody here, domestic, in the U.S. who can respond with more competitive customer service. I am not pleased with what DSE went through with his Blade order fiasco.
  16. Count me in.....The NEW Blade is here! Beer drinking has been cut back.....push ups and cardio to cut weight are now in. I could not make it to any of the Jan, Feb, Mar, events in Florida due to working both my business and TSA. TSA got kicked the curb 2 weeks ago as my business has finally blossomed after 2 years of hard work. Once my step-daughters wedding is over March 16th then I'm wide open to hit some boogies and work on large group flying. John
  17. Spot: Just got my Blade; picked up at the post office on Saturday. Glad I went with the Parpak and not nylon. Beautiful weather at Eloy yesterday; but I'm fighting off a nasty head cold/congestion....so I didn't go fly my new Blade. I jumped ONCE when I had a head cold and could not clear my ears; ONCE.....very painful lesson. So I worked on my camera helmet. I never had any problem finding my hack when I flew the demo Blade at Christmas. Altitude is life so nothing wrong with starting your wave off and deployment higher. John
  18. Hey Scott: I saw Rolph and his crew this weekend. He said they were leaving this Sunday ( the 10th ) John
  19. Spot: I saw Rolph yesterday. He said he will be here another three weeks; not sure how that will fall out for the February 14th boogie. I'll be there, so I'll go flying with you. Night jumps in a wingsuit rock. Best Regards, John
  20. Spot: For comparison I laid the Ghost overtop the Blade and they both appeared to have the same surface area. Guys like you and I really need more wing to start out with due to our large body frames/body mass.....its like wing loading on a canopy. You gotta have a lot of forward speed to generate the lift; you come out the sky faster. When you put on the brakes to fly relative you stall out and drop out. Your range of control of the "lift sweet spot" becomes very small; one slight misadjustment and your out of there. A frustrating experience I have repeated one too many times when trying to fly relative to a flock with my body size in a Firebird and little people in huge wingsuits. I never had the chance to try out all the different wingsuits like you did and bought my first wingsuit right after my first flight. I bought an "intermediate" suit - A Firebird; from Scott's recommendation; at the time the Vampire V1 by Phoenix and SkyFlyer S3 by Birdman were the "hottest" suits out there. As per Scott's advice I did "grow into" the FireBird with my skills but eventually my entire upper body would be so tired as I tried to keep up with skinny/light guys in Vampire V2's and SkyFlyer S3 or S6. I had less wing so I had to fly the shit out of my body.....hardly had the strength to pitch my pilot chute at pull time. I have demo'd both the Tony Super Mach 1 and now the Blade. I have noticed that with either suit I never had to struggle to fly relative to others and my body was not exhausted at the end of the dive; wingsuiting was enjoyable again. I have not had the opportunity to fly a wide variety of suits but I agree with both Scott and Jarno that good wingsuit flying is BOTH a combination of the suit and the pilot. There are poor pilots flying really big suits that make up for thier mistakes and awesome pilots in smaller suits who can fly circles around them. In the beginning I was actually flying my Firebird better than the Blade; it was not until the end of the boogie that I really started to learn the "feel" of the Blade and start to make it fly for me. I was ready to buy a Tony Super Mach 1 but I was not comfortable with the current wing-cutaway system. I was also attracted to the fact that Tony is in FL and can make any repairs and service the product quickly within the domestic US. The determing factor for the purchase of the Blade was the safety of the the wing cutaway system. I believe the Phoenix Fly suits have a similar system. I also bought the Blade on a promised 1 month delivery time. Maybe Birdman is reacting to competitive market pressure, losing orders to Tony Suits due to delivery issues, and therefore "stepping up" his game. I was ready to go demo fly the Phoenix Fly Ghost at the Eloy boogie but the winds cancelled the days I could fly.......bummer. I think you will do fine in either a Phoenix Fly Ghost or Birdman Blade or S6 Skyflyer. I really like the Tony Suits and will keep them up on my radar screen until some changes are made on the wing cut-away system.
  21. Yeah, I'll be there but after Christmas as my kids finally get to come from back east to see me! Yay! Count me in on all day the 26th and 27th, morning of the 28th, all day Saturday the 29th. I'm going to try to take some leave New Years Eve for the Night Jump. Flew my Firebird out of the DC-3 at the stroke of midnight last year.....TOTAL BLAST. Only two "Night Raptors" flew. Scott..... might be cool to try to organize Birds at Night.
  22. QuietStorm

    Skydive Arizona

    After reading all the "Cons" from folks who visit my home DZ; here are some tips I hope will make your stay even more enjoyable with us. If your from out of town, don't be shy; speak up! Make your needs known and we'll help! "Middle of nowhere, nothing around, inadequate ammenities, stranded with no car, food sucks, drink machines are expensive" * Take a look inside the brand new Skyrider Inn on the DZ! Humble on the outside, VERY NICE on the inside. My extended family from Phoenix had our family reunion there. With three single beds per room ( split the bill with your buddies) , TV's, nice bathrooms, and a full kitchen with utensils; its perfect! * If you fly in to Phoenix or Tucson; rent a car! Everything you might need or forgot is 2 exits up in Casa Grande and now a HUGE mall is being built one exit up from the DZ. This way if you camp or stay at the bunkhouse you are not "stranded." Plan ahead! Get a cooler to throw in some drinks, sandwiches, and snacks in to keep you jumping. The Bent Prop is for partying and not fine dining; however I highly recommend the "Bent Burger" * If you get drunk; don't ever drive, don't even entertain the thought! - STAY ON THE DZ! The small town Eloy police will be waiting outside the DZ for you like vultures on Tumbleweed Road! " No internet access or it costs too much, other DZ's have it for free" * The wireless signal at the Red Roof Inn on the Toltec Rd exit off the I-10 is loose. Cruise into the parking lot with your laptop to tap in for emails. "Heated air, varying wind or no wind,off landings, scary/crazy canopy traffic, landing patterns, off DZ landings." * During the summer we start early and finish mostly by noon; for good reasons! The heat coming off the desert floor makes the air thin, unstable,and the dust devils come out....this affects ALL desert aviators! This is our "off season" for good reason! Fall, winter, and spring air is more cold, dense, and thus landings predictable and consistent. * To the up jumper from a small DZ the canopy traffic from just one Otter or Skyvan with proper group exit order will seem heavy in relation to a Cessna load. Don't be afraid just be aware! Hang in HALF BRAKES letting everbody else land before you, watch the pattern develop, and enter the pattern. Always fly your canopy with your head on a swivel, look before you turn, and keep aware of other canopies around you. * SDAZ put an end to the 360, 540, 720 diving spirals into the main landing area. No turns over 180 into the main area and nothing more than 90 into the alternate student area. High performance canopy pilots now do hop & pops on a seperate 4500 ft pass. * If you are going to land "off" those farm fields have deep trenches from the harvesting machinery but the earth is usually soft; prepare to PLF! * In addition to the office inbrief check in with the local S&TA Bryan Burke for your landing area concerns and questions; he'll steer you in the right direction and keep you safe. " Military Loads " * For the most part military jumpers are doing special training for a short period of time. They usually manifest their own plane, open away from the DZ, fly big chutes, and land to pack in the student area. " Nobody to jump with, skygods, big intimidating operation" * I started on a small east coast DZ and returned to SDAZ after a 13 year lay off; I'll admit when I arrived at Eloy I was intimidated by the operaton at first but in time it now feels like my first South Carolina DZ back east. If you are moving here it just takes a little time for everyone to put a new name and face together....don't be shy! * If you are from out of town and visiting go to manifest and speak up! SDAZ has load organizers who are getting PAID to jump with YOU! * In season SDAZ is a BIG, BUSY operation! Don't be shy! Extend a hand, introduce yourself, and ask questions. What I originally thought were "cliques" were just big grown up kids like me VERY BUSY having FUN on a huge playground. Just think back to being a little kid on huge playground.....just go out and get in the mix! * I have yet to meet a skygod at SDAZ but have met plenty at little dropzones. SDAZ is more than a dropzone; its a community of skydivers for skydivers - The only way professional teams can survive is through the coaching and teaching of others. * Yes our DZ has big reputation as a destination dropzone and advertises world class talent in all disciplines; but MOST of us hold down weekday jobs in Phoenix or Tucson. The majority of SDAZ jumpers are not on professional teams; we are just like anybody else who lives to jump every weekend. When it comes to DZ's we just happened to win the location lottery; we count our blessings every weekend.
  23. Scott: I have seen folks do just fine with no mods. When I first starting jumping my wingsuit I had some nasty openings and LONG pilot chute hesitations. This was with a Talon FS container, without dynamic corners and stock bridle length. More than likely it was a result of me as a beginner to getting used to completely shutting down my wings. After reading Scott's book I had Rigging Innovations install a 9 ft bridle and open up the bottom pack tray corners. No opening issues ever again. I pack with the lines up. The extended bridle gets the pilot chute out of my burble nicely. Fellow birds who watch my deployment say that the deployment bag comes off my back clean on a nice 45 degree angle. Without the wingsuit I still jump this container in the same configuration, extended bridle, dynamic corner, and packed with lines up (toward reserve); no issues.