yuri_base

Good illustration. While not about heading performance, here's another factor that should be taken into account: extra loss of altitude caused by canopy surging down in strong tailwind. This can make a low pull uncomfortably low. Android+Wear/iOS/Windows apps: L/D Vario, Smart Altimeter, Rockdrop Pro, Wingsuit FAP iOS only: L/D Magic Windows only: WS Studio

No. veter was an actor in Internet Drama. yuri_base is who's having fun watching it. Keep the show going on, it's truly entertaining! Android+Wear/iOS/Windows apps: L/D Vario, Smart Altimeter, Rockdrop Pro, Wingsuit FAP iOS only: L/D Magic Windows only: WS Studio

I agree. Only birdmen know why the birds sing, and only BASE jumpers know why the birds shit! I would love to see Shane launching deathcampers in wingsuits from Potato Yuri Android+Wear/iOS/Windows apps: L/D Vario, Smart Altimeter, Rockdrop Pro, Wingsuit FAP iOS only: L/D Magic Windows only: WS Studio

It's like a scientist is plotting a few scattered data points, and drawing a theoretical curve to best fit these points. Suddenly, a new batch of data (hundreds of points at the opposite side of spectrum) arrives and overturns the previous theory. It would be interesting to hear details of the 48" hesitations. How long before the jump the PC was packed? Was it made of that sticky ZP that almost killed Jaap? How new/old was it? What was the folding method? As an unexperienced jumper, my small contribution is that 42 has a greater variability in opening height on 0-2s delays than 48, which seemed to be very consistent from jump to jump, stowed or handheld. Android+Wear/iOS/Windows apps: L/D Vario, Smart Altimeter, Rockdrop Pro, Wingsuit FAP iOS only: L/D Magic Windows only: WS Studio

What physically causes 48" to hesitate more often than 42? Is there a known connection with how long before the jump PC was packed? I always repack PC as close to jump as possible. On my accident jump, I repacked PC on top of the cliff just minutes before the jump. It was stored in the pouch for about a week and was quite dense and retaining its dense cylinder shape with almost no expansion. It took me a couple of strong yanks to completely unfold it. Bigger PC is compressed in the pouch stronger and may take longer to unfold in the air stream. Android+Wear/iOS/Windows apps: L/D Vario, Smart Altimeter, Rockdrop Pro, Wingsuit FAP iOS only: L/D Magic Windows only: WS Studio

Yo! I wonder if anyone got a Nick's number while (or rather, because) trying to get a BASE number. Personally, I hate numbers. Yuri Android+Wear/iOS/Windows apps: L/D Vario, Smart Altimeter, Rockdrop Pro, Wingsuit FAP iOS only: L/D Magic Windows only: WS Studio

...or all BASE jumpers would live secretly in the Mexican cave Android+Wear/iOS/Windows apps: L/D Vario, Smart Altimeter, Rockdrop Pro, Wingsuit FAP iOS only: L/D Magic Windows only: WS Studio

Thanks, Brook! Android+Wear/iOS/Windows apps: L/D Vario, Smart Altimeter, Rockdrop Pro, Wingsuit FAP iOS only: L/D Magic Windows only: WS Studio

Yo! I had a cliff strike last week in Arizona (S******, 450ft). I thought whether to post about it or not. Nobody likes to reveal their fuckups. But without sharing the information, there will be no learning. This post and video is a tribute to those who share for others to learn and whose videos helped me to create a mental picture of the cliff strike and handle it without panic. I have the video detailing the various stages of the strike. If anybody can host a 66MB file, PM me (skydivingmovies.com is down now). Equipment used: Apex DP, Flik 322 Vtec (exit weight ~225lbs), 48" ZP PC. Jump: 2s delay stowed. Cliff: 450ft to impact, 600ft to landing. Wind: ~5mph from right. Body protection: Hanwag boots, kneepads, gloves, helmet. This was my jump #38. Jump time sequence: 0s - exit. Exit point is a little triangle sloping down, you need to make a good push to clear outcropping. When launching, I erred on the head-high side. Kicked legs in attempt to better the body position. 2.2s - symmetric pull. My body was at about 45-60 angle head-high. Tilted a little to the left, but not bad. 3.0s - my body suddenly started to rotate and made 90 left in just 0.5s. I still don't know what caused this quick turn. I didn't feel any snag on my body. It is possible for bridle to get snagged momentarily on the right bottom corner of the container (where there is a little space between the corner and main lift web attachment) in the head-high position and increase the force required to extract the pin, while rotating the body left during this momentary hesitation. 3.7s - canopy inflation. "this is probably it" moment. Canopy makes another 90 left due to low left shoulder and continuing body rotation. 4.7s - canopy is facing the wall perpendicularly. "Oh Shit" moment. I get on risers and start turning right. I got on them too quick to grab them high, making the turn non-aggressive. This was a mistake, but it was too late to re-grab. 6.2s - wall strike. I struck at about 45 degrees angle. Half a second before the strike I realized that it's imminent and pulled on both risers to slow down. Raised the legs and took most of the impact with them. 7.0s - canopy is flat against the wall, while my body is now rotating left. I regrabbed the risers higher. From video it looks like I reach for the left toggle. I don't remember that moment and whether I released the toggle or not. Canopy is shearing some rocks off the cliff and tearing itself. 7.6s - my body is facing 90 left, but despite the attempts to turn left, the canopy seems to be "glued" to the wall. 8.0s - I'm facing the wall again, continuing to fall straight down (the cliff is overhang there) and pulling on both risers to back up from the wall. 10.0s - I pull hard to turn right. 11.0s - overhung is over and the slope (~10 degrees) is coming up at me and I hit it with my legs and ass. I'm facing 90 right now and continue to pull on right riser with all my force. This finally turns me 180 from the wall. 12s - after sliding some 20ft on my ass down the 10 degree slope the canopy finally acquires some horizontal speed and I fly away from the wall. 29s - stand-up landing. Flare was weak, but not bad. It turned out I flew on 6 cells, with holes here and there. I got away mostly unscathed: smashed elbow and a few bruises and lacerations. The canopy and its pilot are expected to make a full recovery. My observations and thoughts: 1. I went stowed off an unfamiliar cliff with a sketchy exit point. "What could possibly go wrong?", right? Should have gone handheld. 2. I always thought head-high position is better that head-low. Now I think the opposite. (Of course, perfectly flat is the best, but sometimes we have to err.) Head-high position has more snagging possibilities (bottom corner of container for bridle, helmet and camera for canopy and lines) than moderate head-low with straight legs. Besides, in head-high position the tension in the risers is transmitted directly to leg straps on inflation, and thus the evenness of hips (which is harder to feel and control) is what determines the heading. In head-low position, shoulders take the first hit and they are easier to feel and control. 3. Can the bridle be jammed momentarily between your body and container's corner when you pull head-high? Anybody have had snags like this? If yes, the main lift web attachment should be made wider so its bottom is flush against the bottom corner of the container. I'll experiment to see if I can reproduce the snag. 4. After pull, I usually hold my hands near shoulders in anticipation of risers. So when I faced the wall, I grabbed them immediately -- and it was too close to shoulders. There was not enough range of motion to make a hard turn. Practicing at Potato bridge is one thing, the real thing is another. I'm thinking now about holding hands stretched high in anticipation of risers, so that when you get on risers quick, you have the full range. 5. Turn or back up? Which one is more effective? Of course, it depends on the distance to the wall. I think if I had my hands high on risers and stalled the canopy quick, I could have avoided the strike. But who knows. I was about 10ft from the wall. Interestingly, just a few days before the accident I researched the possibility of using high-accuracy GPS+ (20 measurements per second, 1/4 inch accuracy, see e.g. http://www.topcongps.com/images/GPSPlusBooklet.pdf) to imitate cliff strikes on bridge jumps and to learn how effective different methods (risers vs. toggles, turn vs. back up) are. 6. "Thanks God for vents!" The canopy stayed pressurized all the time. One can only imagine how this strike would look like without vents. No vents most likely means no writing about your accident by yourself. 7. 322 is a big canopy loaded at 0.70 lbs/sq.ft. It is noticeably slower than the 293 Fox I used to jump before. Big is good! It is less responsive, though, and requires larger inputs and more time. It's a tradeoff between the force you're smacked against the wall and the time it takes to turn it away. 8. Deep brake setting was not deep enough. I Potato-tested the DBS and was satisfied with it, but flying towards the wall provided an ultimate - almost last - test. Don't rely on "looks OK" setting. Perhaps using GPS off Potato can help to fine-tune your DBS to "minimum horizontal speed, but still not stalling" position. 9. There was no time for panic. Mind and body switched to survival mode. I wasn't even shaken, just in pain and high. Everything was in full auto. Which makes it even more important to engrave the right reflexes into your body. Engraving the seemingly looking right, but in real emergency not working reflexes doesn't help. When jumping a bridge practicing riser drills, there's time to raise hands to grab the risers. When you face the wall 10ft from you, hands automatically grab the risers where they are. I might be wrong, but now I think hands should be up high waiting for risers. If not perfectly flat, err a little bit on head low side with legs straight. Stop kicking legs before the pull. On low jumps, open pin flap and mud flaps. See if bridle can catch on the bottom of your container. 10. Body armor. Need to say more? To jumpers I met in Arizona: you guys kick ass!!! I had a great time with you. Many thanks for everything. Happy and safe New Year to all, and c-ya at the exit point!

Yo again A good practical way (and most precise one) to estimate the height necessary to clear an obstacle is to do your typical exit from a step onto pavement while wearing rollerblades or onto ice while wearing skates (to simulate virtually frictionless forward motion). Use a stopwatch to measure the time it takes to clear the obstacle length + half your body height + safety margin. Then use freefall chart to find out the corresponding height. (or use the formula H=0.5*g*t^2) This method will tell YOUR safe height. As my previous example showed, this height varies greatly depending on your launch speed. 100ft may be enough for you, while someone with weak exit may be surprised to find out they need 400ft. Yuri Android+Wear/iOS/Windows apps: L/D Vario, Smart Altimeter, Rockdrop Pro, Wingsuit FAP iOS only: L/D Magic Windows only: WS Studio

Exactly. On an object where exit point is fixed (cliff with outcropping), you can simply look down and your guts will tell you all the math. In this particular case, he asks how high above outcropping he needs to climb to clear it. Math just shows that vertical safety margin is surprisingly sensitive to the horizontal one. Android+Wear/iOS/Windows apps: L/D Vario, Smart Altimeter, Rockdrop Pro, Wingsuit FAP iOS only: L/D Magic Windows only: WS Studio

Yo! To clear the platform of length L, assuming you're launching with horizontal speed V, you need to jump at least from height H = 0.5*g*(L/V)^2 above it. Here g is acceleration of gravity, g=32ft/s^2=9.8m/s^2. L should actually be the sum of platform length and half of your body height. E.g. for L=9ft (6ft platform + half your height) and V=8ft/s, H=0.5*32*(9/8)^2=20ft. Give it a good margin of error -- L=15ft (6ft clearance), V=3ft/s (weak poised launch) -- and you get a whopping H=400ft. Feel the danger now? Yuri Android+Wear/iOS/Windows apps: L/D Vario, Smart Altimeter, Rockdrop Pro, Wingsuit FAP iOS only: L/D Magic Windows only: WS Studio

THE RUSSIAN FLOCKERS 1. gadget (NL) 2. Jari (FI) 3. Jussi (FI) 4. B.J. Alexander (USA) 5. Scary Perry (USA) 6. MCordia (NL) 7. Medusa (COL) 8. Costyn (NL) 9. Joni (USA) 10. Yuri (USA-Russia) 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. Should be fun Yuri Android+Wear/iOS/Windows apps: L/D Vario, Smart Altimeter, Rockdrop Pro, Wingsuit FAP iOS only: L/D Magic Windows only: WS Studio

Yo! It's easy to see from the sequence of pictures that you shook your hands while looking at the horizon before the launch. That's when the bridle got under your thumb. Don't shake your hand while the bridle is in it before the jump and you'll die during sex at age 100. Yuri Android+Wear/iOS/Windows apps: L/D Vario, Smart Altimeter, Rockdrop Pro, Wingsuit FAP iOS only: L/D Magic Windows only: WS Studio

Beautiful. Inspiring. Android+Wear/iOS/Windows apps: L/D Vario, Smart Altimeter, Rockdrop Pro, Wingsuit FAP iOS only: L/D Magic Windows only: WS Studio

Yo! Find someone with HC-1 and watch the footage on 34-50" HDTV. You'll have no more questions. Yuri Android+Wear/iOS/Windows apps: L/D Vario, Smart Altimeter, Rockdrop Pro, Wingsuit FAP iOS only: L/D Magic Windows only: WS Studio

Yo! At 100 jumps, if you dedicate another ~20 jumps to tracking (learning objectives: WS-style exit, symmetric pull, angle of attack control, dealing with spin/instability/potato chipping), you'll fly Prodigy easily and safely. Prodigy IS prodigy, after all Yuri Android+Wear/iOS/Windows apps: L/D Vario, Smart Altimeter, Rockdrop Pro, Wingsuit FAP iOS only: L/D Magic Windows only: WS Studio

That's f*cking impressive. Holding 1.5-1.9 glide ratio for 10 seconds is not just a momentary "flare". Care to explain body position and other details? Which GPS was used to record at 0.1s intervals? Yuri Android+Wear/iOS/Windows apps: L/D Vario, Smart Altimeter, Rockdrop Pro, Wingsuit FAP iOS only: L/D Magic Windows only: WS Studio

Why bother with antenna? A tethered balloon will be much cheaper and safer. Heck, one can even have a cheap 'porta-BASE' -- a cluster of small balloons tethered to the car, like here: http://www.clusterballoon.org With some wind and rope long enough, there's no way to strike object other than Earth. While some can argue balloon jump is not a BASE jump, it's great for teaching students and making easy relaxed jumps. "What could possibly go wrong?" Yuri Android+Wear/iOS/Windows apps: L/D Vario, Smart Altimeter, Rockdrop Pro, Wingsuit FAP iOS only: L/D Magic Windows only: WS Studio

Yo! Good stuff , thanks for sharing. Yuri Android+Wear/iOS/Windows apps: L/D Vario, Smart Altimeter, Rockdrop Pro, Wingsuit FAP iOS only: L/D Magic Windows only: WS Studio

The fact that the circular depression is centered at approximately D line attachment point suggests that it's simply tailgate at work. Android+Wear/iOS/Windows apps: L/D Vario, Smart Altimeter, Rockdrop Pro, Wingsuit FAP iOS only: L/D Magic Windows only: WS Studio

Agreed. It looks even scarier than the jump itself Bringing my Prodigy, let's flock

I see tail inversion in the third picture... looks scary! A steering line could have ended up in front of the nose, making a lineover. Did you use primary stow? Android+Wear/iOS/Windows apps: L/D Vario, Smart Altimeter, Rockdrop Pro, Wingsuit FAP iOS only: L/D Magic Windows only: WS Studio

Watch BASE videos by norwegian trackers. E.g. http://www.skydivingmovies.com/ver2/pafiledb.php?action=file&id=2882 These guys track so well because they want to live So learn from them. And aerodynamics says that the lower aspect ratio of the flying body, the lower the angle of attack for best glide. "Flat track" (about 45 degrees angle of attack) is too inefficient aerodynamically. Search BASE forum here and at blincmagazine.com for tracking tips from norwegians. Android+Wear/iOS/Windows apps: L/D Vario, Smart Altimeter, Rockdrop Pro, Wingsuit FAP iOS only: L/D Magic Windows only: WS Studio

Try (when you're ready, of course) flying just the leg wing (e.g., Prodigy's bottom half, or other wingsuit with wings disconnected and hidden under the shirt). You'll feel 100% free and will be amazed how much thrust you get. I'm getting horizontal speeds ~140mph and glide ratio 1.15, even without much experience. See attached track (1.95mi horizontally, 8800ft vertically in 50 seconds). Zooming at 140mph, especially when you pull at ~2K, is quite exciting Yuri Android+Wear/iOS/Windows apps: L/D Vario, Smart Altimeter, Rockdrop Pro, Wingsuit FAP iOS only: L/D Magic Windows only: WS Studio