LloydDobbler

Like sticking your hands in warm oatmeal. And windy! Did anyone mention windy? Got it. Windy warm oatmeal. With your hands. Check. Signatures are the new black.

Well said, Winsor. Thanks for posting that. As for the thought above that students should always be approached with a sugar-coated 'good' and 'less-than-good' analysis, I disagree. I think some students respond better to that sort of thing. But some respond better to a good kick in the pants. Depends on the student. (It seemed to leave an impression on Winsor.) Even so, I agree - he should've been praised for his performance when he had assessed the situation. (In addition to the solid kick in the pants for getting himself into the situation to begin with). Signatures are the new black.

Strongly advised that you not freefall without a parachute. Haha, was wondering if anyone else had noticed that, too. Signatures are the new black.

+1. A great event for all skill and experience levels. For those of you not in CO, we had a 'mini-boogie' this past Saturday at Mile-Hi - with demos from PD, UPT & Vertical Suits, along with load organizing by the tunnel instructors from Skyventure CO (who also supplied some free tunnel time to the first X people to show up, and were selling 15-minute blocks at a 'you-can't-beat-this' rate). After the day of jumping, we headed to the tunnel for an evening jam session where we divided by skill levels and flew. No serious 'drilling' allowed - just fun. To that end, my g/f & I were privileged to be part of the first (to my knowledge) 6-way belly formation to turn points in this tunnel (it was a *bit* tight). It was also rather cool to be able to walk up to someone you didn't know and say, 'Hey - let's go turn some points.' That's not the type of thing you get to do at a tunnel all too often. A few people even made their first flights in the tunnel that evening. Overall, it was a great day from start to finish. Much thanks to Frank, Bob, & the Skyventure staff for putting the full day together - and for donating the time and jump tix (prizes given away included jump tickets, tunnel time, and discounts from Vertical Suits and UPT/Vector). It was a blast. If you haven't flown the Colorado tunnel yet, you need to come check it out. Not only is it a beautiful facility...but the staff is top-notch. & I think they're going to be hitting some boogies this year, so if you see them, stop by and get in a jump or two (and buy some cheap time!). Signatures are the new black.

Congrats, Rich! I'm guessing we'll see you out tomorrow, eh? Signatures are the new black.

Well, it's a good thing it's finally been updated, so 4 years from now when we have this situation again, the responsibility chain will be even more complex. This is what gets me, Scott. You say you feel sorry for the situation this guy is in. You say that it's "a bummer deal for everyone involved." So tell me again why Eric is the one who should 'man up' and send the gear back, and be out his cost? That's actually not too much of a bummer deal for Ralph - who put together an ill-advised transaction, and who may or may not have written off the loss or filed an insurance claim for it by now. I guess what's bugging me after reading through 5 pages of posts is this: a little empathy would go a long way. The tone of Eric's first post doesn't seem defiant - it seems like he's looking for a way to work this out. But everything that I've heard from Ralph, or his associates - be it you, Cynthia, or whomever - has been hard-line, 'my-way-or-the-highway'. That rubs me the wrong way. Cynthia's post says "It's an unfortunate situation but the bottom line is the dealer was not paid for the gear & it's become stolen equipment." I don't see it that way - I see multiple 'bottom lines'. I see a gear dealer who made a sale under ridiculous pretenses. Who didn't cover his own ass. I also see a guy who bought gear without checking the S/N of EVERY piece of it. Who also didn't cover his own ass. So why should guy number 2 be the only one left out in the cold? Even if it holds up legally that Ralph is entitled to the gear, here's the big thing: I'm pretty much convinced I don't want to buy from Ralph, because I know that he's not willing to suffer a minor loss to win a customer who will sing his praises. It appears he's only looking out for his own interests, and really doesn't care about the guy who wound up on the wrong end of a bad situation. A situation that's supposedly "a bummer deal for everyone involved." I wouldn't expect Ralph to give away his shirt over this...but if he at least had offered a compromise, I'd be better able to see things from his side. But sending a strongly-worded letter saying he's going to sic the FBI on this guy? Come ON. If he had come on here and said, "I've talked to Eric and we're going to split the cost of the canopies," he'd likely gain a few more customers on that gesture alone. Instead, this turns into a PR nightmare. Like you said, it's a bummer deal for everyone involved. So why is the OP the only one who needs to 'man up' and 'do the right thing', again? Note: Apologies for naming names here, but after someone from Eagle Creek posted with specific details, I think we all know who the dealer is in this situation. The OP even made it a point to not identify them - they identified themselves. Signatures are the new black.

Lots of good advice here. I second the recommendation to check out Brian Germain's video. Also, +1 to what Twardo said: I don't really think you should worry if it's 'nerves' OR 'fear' - either way, your adrenalin surges when that door opens. It's a normal, natural reaction. Just keep at it, and it will wear itself out over time. In the meantime, you've got to find what works for you. For me, I reminded myself that 'once you get out the door, it's all going to be good.' Knowing that my fear of the door would be washed a way the second I got outside somehow made me calmer. The other thing that worked was visualizing the dive. When that moment of anxiety hit as someone yelled 'DOOR!', I allowed myself a split second of 'oh shit', then forced myself back to breathing and concentrating on the dive at hand. Taking your mind off of it really helps...and visualizing the dive flow makes for a better jump, too. Signatures are the new black.

or if you're willing to wait until the end of the month, the Neptune 3 is supposedly now in production, and should be arriving in gear stores soon. It joins the post-1999 world with a brand new mini-USB port!! Signatures are the new black.

+1 Signatures are the new black.

As others are saying, best to replace the batteries and try it again. If it continues to drain the new ones really fast, then drop Aviacom a line, and they'll take good care of you. (At least, they did when it happened to me). Signatures are the new black.

of course Re "if your setting is such that you only allow text e-mails, you will receive a text-only version" Are the links directly to USPA's web site or the tracker urls? Tracker urls usually get broken up with line breaks because they are so long, filled with encrypted user-identifiable info. FMI see Email tracking Email Bugs I think the phrase "link tracking is an industry accepted practice" is accepted by the people and companies doing the tracking, ie the industry. The sad news is that most people, the recipients of these emails, have no clue that so much information can be gathered from them. If they knew what was going on behind the scenes they may not particularly like it. . Jan, I was gonna send this as a PM, but since you don't accept PM's, I'll just throw it out there: Although I'm pretty certain you know a lot about coding, I think you're reaching on this one. If they're using tracking via click-commands/tracker URLs, or via hiding a pixel, that's common practice. For almost every website and email campaign (at least those that are worth a dime). Including dropzone.com - it uses Google Analytics to track page views, paths through the site, etc. Your depiction of tracker URLs as "filled with encrypted user-identifiable info" and stating that "most people, the recipients of these emails, have no clue that so much information can be gathered from them" is a misrepresentation, at best. You seem to be under the impression - or wishing to create the impression - that a tracker URL goes snooping around someone's computer for identifying info. That couldn't be further from the case. Analytics is a cornerstone of the web, and after Ed's explanation, I see no reason to think that they're being used in any devious way. In fact, knowing ConstantContact, I can assure you they're not. ConstantContact is a legitimate, highly-regarded email marketing service...they monitor for complaints, subscribe to all feedback loops, and maintain a strict no spam policy that ensures that senders meet CAN-SPAM regulations. I know you have a beef with All Things USPA - I share a number of your concerns - but I'm starting to find your methods quite unprofessional. To get on DZ.com and wage a war with the other USPA leadership - by spreading incorrect/incomplete info and trying to get readers on your side, instead of addressing it with the person directly, then taking it public if it's not resolved - is exactly the sort of political BS that I keep hearing is "business-as-usual" on the USPA Board. And IIRC, you're one of the ones who I've heard speak out against the "business-as-usual." I hope that it's ignorance of current email marketing best practices that's leading to your statements, instead of malicious intent. To imply that most people would see any sort of analytics as a gross invasion of their privacy is really grasping at straws. Like I said, I don't like a lot of the USPA way of doing things, either. But I'm beginning to think that you have a bone to pick, and don't seem to be particularly forthcoming about it. You seem to want to try and discredit this program no matter what you have to say to do it. I hope I'm wrong on that one, as I often value your insights, and mutual friends think very highly of you. But this whole thread is starting to seem like your own personal attempt to throw a monkey-wrench into a new USPA program, instead of finding a way to work with the rest of USPA leadership to help give it a better shape. Or maybe I could just be misreading your tone, since those often don't carry well on message boards... Again, apologies for making this public without directing it to you first (pot, meet kettle, right?) - but after following this thread for a while, I thought it needed to be brought up. Signatures are the new black.

To be fair, I think that's one of the reasons why Brian knows so much about canopy aerodynamics... Signatures are the new black.

Dunno if anyone else knows the email marketing world, but this is a serious issue that sets both the DZ in question AND the USPA up for liability. The DZ could see trouble due to sharing said info without the person's consent (from both the individual and the government), and the USPA is violating the federal CAN-SPAM Act by sending unsolicited email without both an opt-out method and the clear identification of their mailing address and contact info. Not to mention, it will possibly wind up hurting the USPA's rep with these people more than it helps. Dunno about you all, but I hate unsolicited email. Like I said, I work in the field of email marketing, and I know what a great marketing medium it is in terms of ROI (when done right). At the same time, I wouldn't hesitate to call up a DZ and chew them out (and report them to the FCC) if they shared my email address without my consent. Not cool. Signatures are the new black.

You say you have ~1 hr in the tunnel...what were you working on? All belly? Belly/back? I'll assume you've just been flying on your belly - correct me if I'm wrong. For the progression you want to make, your back is where they'll likely start you. It'll probably take a good bit before getting comfortable & making controlled turns. Unfortunately, the only way to shorten the learning curve that I've seen is just to listen to your coaches, watch the videos, and spend more time on it. It just takes a while. Then you'll likely move on to belly/back/belly transitions (on the pitch axis, as well as the roll axis)...or sitfly. You'll find it helps with your sit to be comfortable on your back (or at least, I did). As far as the front loop/back loop/barrel roll, if you've never flown on your back, you'll likely only get to the barrel roll portion of that (and then maybe only 1/2 barrel roll). Flips can be very tricky in the tunnel - I've never seen someone with only an hour's time doing them. Hopefully a tunnel instructor will chime in and offer some specific req's, but in my experience, at this point you'll get more out of practicing those in the sky, where there's not a big plexiglass wall 3 feet from your head (or a net to crash down on). Good luck! Signatures are the new black.

I'm sure Mark will chime in, but to my knowledge, no, there isn't. I've talked to(/annoyed) UPT a few times about getting magnetic riser covers on my 2003 V3 Micron. The word is that in order to retrofit any rig that didn't originally have them, you'd need to replace the rig's entire yoke. So they don't retrofit. The mod in this thread is only for V3's/Micron's that already have magnetic riser covers - adding additional magnets to account for a few minor problems. Given that a V2 has velcro riser flaps, I'm pretty darn certain it's the same thing as the V3. Signatures are the new black.

Congrats, Nate! An excellent statement - glad to hear you say it. And if you continually look at what's happening around you in the skydiving world, you'll see that it scales with time & experience. (i.e., the more you learn, the more you realize you don't know.) Keep that attitude, and it will likely save your ass one day.

Looks to be Taft...see here for more info.

Exactly. To the OP, the thing is, there are too many variables to do any sort of reliable statistical analysis here. Experience, disciplines practiced, currency, etc all come into play. But the biggest variable of all: you're not the same as the guy sitting next to you on the plane. Like Matt said, you have quite a bit of control. If it was luck (and it *sometimes* is) that determined the outcome, the numbers analysis would work well. But analyzing your chances based on someone who's made 5 jumps per year with 1 recurrency jump since 1988? You might as well be comparing apples to doughnuts. Signatures are the new black.

Hey, Brett - I, like Grant, find you at least to seem somewhat reasonable about this whole thing (& not of merely resorting to adolescent insults like the others who are chiming in to defend ASC). But at the same time, some things rub me the wrong way. I have a number of friends/acquaintances who jump/have jumped at ASC, and they're good people. I'd gladly share a beer with them at a boogie, or invite them on a jump should they show up at my DZ (Hell, I grew up down the road from there. We Georgia folks like to stick together...well, except when Georgia Tech is decidedly whooping Georgia's ass ). I think that most of us who are anti-Skyride feel that way (about ASC, not about Tech . If you're a jumper who started jumping at ASC, so be it. You're not responsible for the fact that your community is owned and operated by someone who has screwed people over. But it's when someone shows up online and start defending Skyride's unethical practices by way of immature insults, they're not contributing to any productive discourse and I lose all respect for them. And their position, by association. And then there's this... This is where I take issue. You say you think that thousands of people have bought Skyride certificates and left smiling from a great experience...fair enough. But since you jump(ed?) at ASC, you likely haven't seen the hundreds of people I've seen - the ones who bought Skyride certificates and came to the DZ I was at, only to find out that we didn't accept them (in spite of what they were told by the Skyride operator when they booked). I can assure you, when they found that out - AND saw what we charged for tandems compared to what they paid - they were anything but smiling. So here you are, saying you will fuck up anyone who ruins your fun, laughing all the way. But you have no problem if you ruin someone else's fun in your pursuit of this "God-given right to a good time." As your defense of Skyride's "practices that walked the business ethics tight rope" (understatement of the year) shows. That's pretty damned hypocritical, don't you think? If you're all about spreading the love and having a good time, why defend a company that's gone out of its way to deceive and rip off its customers? Signatures are the new black.

Hey, Jeff - On behalf of all of us, apologies for the thread drift. No drama here - just a funny situation. Back to your OP, the tunnel can help tremendously with docking. There are a lot of different things that could be going wrong right now for you - 1) Are you jumping with jumpers of similar experience levels to you? If so, oftentimes you both think you're falling straight down, but both of you are adding some unintentional control inputs. So you wind up kinda circling each other, never getting close enough to dock. The tunnel can help with this by getting you relaxed and comfortable simply falling straight. I know it sounds simple, but without a good solid reference, it's tough to tell if you're backsliding or moving in some other way. That way, you can go out with someone, and decide you'll be the base, and just hang out and let them come to you. Of course, you don't always want to be the base, so: 2) Are you having trouble closing distance? Yes, the tunnel is small, but it can help with this. Forward and backward movements require the same shift in CG - it's just the level you commit to it that allows you to close distance. Getting your body in touch with what input yields how much result is one of the undeniable benefits of flying relative to the tunnel walls. 3) Are you getting close, but having trouble taking grips? Maybe you have trouble reaching for a grip and backsliding away? Or you find yourself popping up every time you go to take a grip (which was my problem, incidentally - I weigh in at 115 lbs.)? Yep, the tunnel is all over this one. There are all sorts of stability drills the instructor can come in and do with you to work your tight-flying skills - from kneeling and letting you take grips on his/her arms to having you put one hand on your head and reach forward with the other while still maintaining the same altitude (etc, etc). They may even work on getting you into the Mantis position, which is inherently less-stable, but arguably gives a more rock-solid base for taking stable grips on others. In short, one benefit is getting to where you can compensate for one motion (forward/back/up/down/side/side) with another motion...and where you do it without thinking about it. The tunnel *really* shines working these sorts of fine motor skills. --- Think of it this way - if you spend 10 minutes in the tunnel, you'll definitely come out of it with more skills than you had going in. And ultimately, depending on what you're paying, it works out to be cheaper than training in the sky. Good luck! Signatures are the new black.

Well said. The classic 'I'm-Better-Than-You' SkyGod mentality definitely exists...but in my (limited) experience, those types are usually people who can't back it up and need to overcompensate. The true SkyGods are the ones you wouldn't know from any other skydiver...until you see them fly and have to pick your jaw off the ground. On another note... [whole 'nother can of worms]A perfect example of the problem with the 100-jump-wonder coach rating program.[/whole 'nother can of worms] (But I suppose we should take that discussion to another thread.) Signatures are the new black.

A good point. And interestingly enough, the classic Pro-tec is no longer advertised as meeting the ASTM F 1492 standard...which means it's supposedly not a good multi-impact helmet. (In other words, you fall off your skateboard/bike/whatever and hit your head once, you need a new helmet, b/c the foam records the memory of the head imprint and weakens). But how many people hit their head once and go buy a new helmet? Pro-tec now offers helmets with SXP foam, which meets higher standards for multi-impact collisions (and is a lot less-comfortable, incidentally). Regardless, you're right: who knows? I've always assumed that if I hit my head on the horizontal stabilizer, I'm likely gone, helmet or no. Coming down under a spinning main is another question. As for landings (well, the type of landings I do) and full-combat RW

Incorrect - the lining on any skydiving helmet outside of the protec is not going to protect you against anything more than a casual knock - the lining is the wrong type of material and there's not enough of it. Yep. If any of you *really* want to dig into helmet stuff, check out Helmets.org. The page linked is geared more towards bicycle helmets, but there's info on standards for skateboarding, hockey, and other helmets, too. In a nutshell, the hard shell helps...but the padding inside is the real injury-stopper. A lot depends on the size of the padding, and what it's made of. No matter the head-size, 1/2 inch of foam protects more than 1/4 inch of foam, and so on (hence the reason why Pro-tecs look like a mushroom on my small head). Etc. Since there's no standard for skydiving helmets, I think it's reasonable to look at skateboarding/bike helmets as comps. If something wouldn't meet standards for falling off a bike, it's tough to think it would protect you very well when you biff a landing...or (God forbid) hit the horizontal stabilizer on the way out the door. Signatures are the new black.

Hey, Mock - I've flown at AAC, and wanted to second the recommendation that you go to Raeford to ParacleteXP. First off, I should point out that the folks at AAC in Waynesville are REALLY nice. And there are some really good flyers among them. The problem is, I'm not a big fan of their tunnel. Here's why: In a SkyVenture tunnel, you have walls on all sides, and a door to get in/out of. This means that even if you're a little unstable, you're going to keep flying it until you get it (or until your time is up). With AAC, because there's no physical boundaries, the entire time becomes focused on staying in the column of air. If one leg goes out, for instance, and you try to drive forward with it to bring yourself back into the column, you won't get any drive (because there's no air for it to push off of). So you slide out of the air, and have to get back in again. To stay in said column of air, you want to look down and line up a dot on the net with a dot 10 feet below the net. That means your head is centered in the column. Problem is, when you're belly-flying, it's bad body position to fly face-down all the time. You really want to be looking forward, so you can see the person you're flying with. When you can look at the wall in front of you and tell how far off-center you are, that's a more accurate approximation of skydiving. And the outdoor thing kinda sucks, when it's snowing outside and you're over a big fan. Be sure and bring a neck gator, full face helmet, and gloves. This is only my opinion, but I went there when I had ~100 jumps and 45 mins of tunnel time, and found I spent the whole time learning to deal with the quirks of that tunnel, instead of working on drills I wanted to work on. Like I said, the people at AAC are really nice, and they have some great flyers, so I mean them no disrespect. But for the purpose you want to fly the tunnel, I'd make the extra drive to go to Raeford if I were you. Signatures are the new black.

To make it easier, you can search for 'Wii' or 'cheap Wii' (or 'PS3', or lots of other expensive toys). At the top of your screen in the sponsored links, it'll show a link to ebay, saying you may get X% off via Paypal if eligible. That link takes you to ebay. But you don't *have* to buy the item you searched for. So just search for the item you're looking for, then complete the purchase like you normally would. Just look for the little green 'Microsoft Cashback' banner at the top of the screen - as long as that's there, you'll get the deal. Here's the other catches: - You have to buy the item using Paypal, from a 'Buy It Now' auction. - You'll receive your Cashback 60 days after the purchase completes. Then they'll transfer the money into your Paypal account. (This is to prevent people from buying, then returning, and still keeping the cash). - You can only receive up to $200 cashback per transaction, and $2500 maximum annually. - The amount off changes from time to time - IIRC, the most it ever gets is 30%, and it can go as low as 10%. When you win the auction, you'll get an email asking you to create a cashback account through live.com. Follow the instructions and you're all set. (Yes, I'm that cheap. This offer has led to lots of impulse buys.) Have fun. Signatures are the new black.