mccordia

Looking at most performance runs, the glide levels of around 3, even for the top pilots. 3:1 is current sustained glide. 3.5:1 is mostly wishfull thinking. Looking at canopy design, its progressed with huge steps, but a 25 year old canopy has the same glide as the latest one. Its only dive/swoop/response etc thats been updated. But glide, close to zero. Glide is limited by physics, and not influenced by marketing JC FlyLikeBrick I'm an Athlete?

Wingsuit research also (thankfully) spans a much wider field than just max glide. Agility, Safety/Usability, behavior and stability at other angles than max glide are in most suits of almost bigger importance. All the theorizing is really nice, but looking at wingsuit design (similar to sports parachutes) the glide is not making major leaps anymore. Most of the big steps come from more understanding of dive/flare and retaining energy, and having products that in inflation, maneuverability and fit translate the users intended actions best onto the wing. These are factors that manufacturers try and test through years of research. Not research done with a calculator. But actual flying. And looking at what people are doing in wingsuits, its there that big steps have been taken (next to just general knowledge, skills and improved teaching). And to anyone actively flying wingsuits, these changes in suits (or even same model, but newer version) are very much noticeable. Looking at the current wingsuit lineup across all manufacturers, it's the actual aforementioned research that has the biggest effect in the product evolution from version 1,2,3 and onward... JC FlyLikeBrick I'm an Athlete?

Performance wise, the biggest leaps in design have been made years ago. But in terms of 'same old same old' the problem is probably more your own flying. If you just fly a straight line, more or less, there isnt much different. But looking at handling/agility, even in two generations of the same suit there are huge differences. Straight line performance is to most almost the least interesting aspect of wingsuit flying, and the actual maneuverability and handling (which differs night and day between the various brand 'style' cut, wingsuit models and more) is why most people these day fly. Even straight line performance in competition for those that are into that, is these days more about dive/flare and how the suits handle at those steeper and/or shallower angles, than it is about 'the suits all do the same glide'. I think practically experiencing bit more modern wingsuit design, to compare handling of the suits in turns, transitions, dives, and see the (sometimes huge) differences, will expand your horizon, and make you realize the numbers in your excel sheets are to most not the biggest interest. And often people will go for smaller suits, not looking for the max glide, but loving the other 99% of what makes wingsuit flying fun. Give it a go....as 'same old, same old' mainly reads as 'im old..im old' JC FlyLikeBrick I'm an Athlete?

The rafale is a big step up in comparison. Closer to an acrobatic Alpine in range. Forward speed / flare are massive. I did 42 jumps in the freak2 for a movie shoot, and these suits are worlds apart. Agility/Precission on the rafale is to me unique for a suit that size. Not the usual ‘sloppy’ handling. Video - https://youtu.be/x72JfGXLTn8 Video shows first 5 jumps in the suit only. Attached a picture of a freak2 overlayed on a rafale made for identical size person. Shows the different trim quite well. Rafale is a missile. Cant wait to do XRW in it, and carve/flip over the canopy. The range is stellar.. Best thing to me was being able to pull any way i like. Normal, flare, collapsed wing. Unhindered. Without effort. My last 3000 out of 5000 ws jumps no reserve, then 2 due to pull issues on the F2. I prefer seeing design boost agility and glide while not hindering basic safety..Rafale for dayz... JC FlyLikeBrick I'm an Athlete?

I put 2000 jumps on my previous Winx, and (after a reline) that one is still going with a new owner at 2200 jumps. Its built to last! JC FlyLikeBrick I'm an Athlete?

[email protected] JC FlyLikeBrick I'm an Athlete?

Think Ive used them 3 times in 4500 ws jumps. Twice clothing caught. Once (JiWings) broken zipper, during spinning mal (that I then did clear after I freed my second arm). With the low/agressive arm sweep, some suits now have difficulty reaching risers when not lifting knees. Which in a spinning mal doesnt work. I dont mind jumping suits without, but have cutaway on my personal suits usually. JC FlyLikeBrick I'm an Athlete?

depending on how the matts are layered, plastic or carbon doesnt make that much of a difference. Its more about the protective layers inside, and there 2 mm of padding isnt doing the trick. But heard through the grapevine good things are coming.. JC FlyLikeBrick I'm an Athlete?

The Winx120 is a loose/comfortable fit in my V306, compared to the tighter storm. Its not a full size down, but close. JC FlyLikeBrick I'm an Athlete?

What did you order and through which dealer? I've got about 12 suits on order for various friends, and all suits ordered second week of Feb are already delivered? You might want to give [email protected] a check, or see with the dealer you ordered through. Lead time at the moment is around 7 weeks only on the normal production line (Phantom, Strix, Havok, Onesie etc), only the Vampire (Alpine / SU) queue is longer. If you're waiting since mid Dec, there's probably some issue and worth checking direct with the company. JC FlyLikeBrick I'm an Athlete?

CE is still the lowest rating possible. A Pedestrian/bicycle helmet standard at best. At the speed and dangers of impact in tunnelflying/skydiving, more heavy hit (transport) standards such as DOT, ECE 22.05 or Snell seem more meaningfull.. Might resort to some of the (bit bigger) BMX/offroad helmets for some testing on use ability.. JC FlyLikeBrick I'm an Athlete?

Anyone have any good suggestions for a good impact rated full face for (wingsuit) tunnel flying? Especially in a wingsuit, your hands can't brace for an impact of the head, should there be any. At the moment most sky helmets available are either impact rated open face (similar to most snowboard helmets), or the few fullface helmets around that pretend to be impact rated, are only CE rated (which essentially means its recognized as being a helmet, with no real heavy impact protection. Or "Intermediate category personal protective equipment" as the official statement reads). But it essentially is the same thin foam and a thin plastic or carbon shell, and not the same thickness and quality in padding you see in 'real' helmets. Mostly of course to keep the size down. There are some good options around for motorcycling/paragliding, but often quite big/heavy. Most suitable so far seems BMX helmets that combine lighter size, breathing/air channels (as skydiving full face helmets get quite sweaty during a full day in the tunnel) and also the much needed chin/face protection. But very few have a visor/face shield. Curious to hear if anyone has found/used anything 'outside of our sport' JC FlyLikeBrick I'm an Athlete?

I'v shot a bit more with the RX0 in the last weeks. Most of it in the indoor wingsuit tunnel in Sweden, but also outdoors, during various skysives, often using it together with a DSLR (Sony NEX5) and GoPro4 for comparison. Comparing the footage, all the shots the RX0 get seem to have more look and feel of a DSLR. Especially in terms of highlights/exposure, it always seems to very nicely handle whats in front of the lens. Never having blown out highlights (also as I shoot 1 stop under exposed, one of the many, many things you can do in the menu's, handling exposure automatic, but just always a bit down). Shooting in the complete dark (sadly most stuff for projects where I can't show the footage yet) at 120 FPS esp. the low light capability of the (much bigger) sensor shines. The RX0 shoot beatyfull 120 fps footage, where the GoPro also shot 120 fps, but couldnt handle the low light, so instead if exposed longer, and only wrote every 4th frame (so the 120 fps was actually saved as 30 fps with duped frames, with a bigger file as the difference). Colorwise and focus on the RX0 was also a lot better. I'll have more stuff to show soon. But so far quite impressed, and hope at some point a 4K (internal) version is coming.. I think for 90% of the jumpers, a GoPro will do fine, as (video wise) this is more a small dslr (at a steep price) but for me personally, a much nicer choice to do more cinematic style shooting with. JC FlyLikeBrick I'm an Athlete?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n73GCWgxHnA JC FlyLikeBrick I'm an Athlete?

Somewhere 2007 or so.. JC FlyLikeBrick I'm an Athlete?

New Video JC FlyLikeBrick I'm an Athlete?

YouTube JC FlyLikeBrick I'm an Athlete?

if you got patience and sewing skills, for sure it could be worth trying. JC FlyLikeBrick I'm an Athlete?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0FfpRmq5GK8 Every week, it gets more fun! JC FlyLikeBrick I'm an Athlete?

I have not shot in these modes yet, but will do so next week (indoors / low light / fast movement) and will post the footage as well. Do feel a version 2 with 1080p / 120 fps / 4K would be a sure hit. Already loving this a lot so far. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3O72e2yjlnM JC FlyLikeBrick I'm an Athlete?

I am currently shooting with a RX0 (provided to me for testing) and have to say Im impressed. Image quality is for sure a step up from the GoPro, and having the actual full settings menu available comparable to the sony Alpha / NEX etc mirrorless cameras, it's closer to a tiny mirrorless in functionality and results than a GoPro. We did a night jump, and seeing the actual black parts of the sky in real black, no grain, and clear, crisp colors of the lights, without blown out colors, while shooting at 120 fps at night....Im impressed! Comparing it side by side to GoPro footage, it was a clear noticeable difference in quality in both low light situations and daylight.. JC FlyLikeBrick I'm an Athlete?

We’ve so far had a lot of ‘pre FFC’ flyers who already learn all formation flying basics, docks, control etc that will make their actual first flight a much more relaxed experience. We offer a specific training for deployments etc as well. Of course this is coming from ‘the tunnel itself’ but from what Ive seen its a huge asset. JC FlyLikeBrick I'm an Athlete?

The hunter is a big acro suit. Unlike most actual big suits (strix/freak/baracuda powers/scorpion etc) it handles like a small suit, and when flown with more angle (most tend to fly it to flat) it can give other suits a run for their money in speed as well. When people say ‘faster suit’ in a lot of cases it translates to ‘steeper angle’ and comes down to not having the same range when not flying balistic angles, especially on their backs. Often ending up low and in front. The Hunter is not a competing suit with the aforementioned suits. Its a big acrobatic flocker, and super suit for especially camerawork. Im flying one for camera in these videos. Huge range. https://youtu.be/M-U5VPdcbx0 https://youtu.be/DKK5xspHiBU https://youtu.be/TbfZvcaCOMc https://youtu.be/SnJp71Bn2vU https://youtu.be/k7NlsxR8fSU JC FlyLikeBrick I'm an Athlete?

The signal is loud enough to hear, even if its not directly in the ear. I have it located in the top of my camera helmet and hear it clear/loud. JC FlyLikeBrick I'm an Athlete?

You can fly close to the same without backfly inlets, but the main difference is fatigue/arm pressure. And it tends to be a bit less stable, as you need to fight a bit more to keep a clean airfoil. So, yes, but with a lot more effort... Before 2006 or so we all flew on the back without inlets. Then it was normal. But if you have the option to switch/trade your suit for something with backfly inlets, it is worth it. JC FlyLikeBrick I'm an Athlete?