DSE

I'm not on any side of the Vigil/Cypres/Argus camp, but do believe they can build a product that is good for say....6000-8000 uses (avg 300-400 jumps per year/20 years). The device isn't stored in a constantly vibrating rigid enclosure that is moving for long periods of time. I have at least 4 calculators in my office that are nearly 20 years old; an AAD isn't significantly more complex than a calculator in terms of what the physical aspects are, and a chip will hold the static memory indefinitely. Along that same line, after having spoken with all of the AAD manufacturers this past week, I truly believe that they're all trying to do what they feel is best for skydivers, at a profit for their company, of course. But I don't believe any of them are cutting corners, seeking cheaper ways to design an AAD that might have risky features at the expense of safety. In other words, my opinion is that you likely can't go wrong with any of them. That said, I have a Cypres in both of my rigs.

Bill Booth was in the Sunpath booth, showing the Skyhook. SunPath missed their interview appointment twice, so I plan on uploading the Broll we shot of the very cool custom rigs they had on-site. Very sexy stuff. The Wings girls declined to be interviewed. As for the rest...we just simply ran out of time. I still have a couple vids to upload, but outside of those, we're done/gone. Might not seem like much; the vidiots will support me in saying that the shooting, capturing, editing, uploading all takes quite a bit of time, and considering that we interviewed and uploaded more than 40 vids over a 3 day show suggests Matt and I didn't sleep, party, or hang out much. Thanks to those that PM'd me, and I hope that the vids were of benefit to some of the DZ crowd.

This is already being discussed at length in the Gear and Rigging forum sticky thread Ironically or at least differently, JumpShack has a new, much thinner and stronger steel cable ripcord that is very soft and pliable, but doesn't kink, and allows for significantly smaller diameter housings.

Grant Ball of WayCool shows off a couple of products.

There aren't any wingsuit manufacturers here that I can immediately see. I was surprised to not see TonySuit or Birdman in particular here. I did see Scott Campos briefly, and meant to ask him about why there are no wingsuit manufacturer booths. Could very well be that there are reps here, but with no booth, I'd need someone to introduce me. I don't fly a wingsuit, so have zero knowledge on the subject or those who make em' outside of Birdman, Phoenixfly, Matter, and Tonysuits.

Guys, it's gonna be a long time before you'll be able to match what a Rebel XT is shooting to what a video camera is capable of. Rolling shutter, lower grade glass, completely different sort of DSP...Video cameras are for vid. True, you can take reasonably high resolution stills with a camcorder these days, but if you're charging for those stills, I hope you're not charging much, cuz they're just not worth much. The bottom line is unfortunately, the bottom line. The stills from these small chip/small format camcorders are good for the web, and little else, even though the resolutions are starting to really climb. At least, that's my nickel's-worth view.

Nancy & Jerry from the JumpShack have a lot to say about the little things in skydiving life and equipment. Curt Bachman of ParaGear shares the secret location of Skokie, Illinois, and how to find out the latest from Paragear. Want to check out a fairly intimate tattoo? It might be temporary, but you'll remember the clip. Rainbow Suits is attending the show to share their wares with the US and international market.

if you want great audio input and better stills, yes. Otherwise, little is to be gained by getting the HC7 vs HC5. Ibought the HC7, because I need to be able to plug mic's into it for non-skydiving purposes.

yeah, it was a little late (just like tonight) and I guess I copy/pasted the html incorrectly, and then found I couldn't edit it once I realized I'd ooops'd it. Fortunately, Ian corrected it for me. Apologies to Mads and anyone else my error messed up.

We stopped by there several times, no one seemed to be interested in some stops, and very busy and occupied at other times. We're pretty well done with interviews, I still have 10-12 to put up, but those will have to wait until tomorrow.

Jo Smolders of Vigil explains how the Vigil works, why they recalled 700 units, and how Vigil has been updated since the misfires at Rantoul. Dunno if his technical explanation will help or hinder the discussion, but there it is...

You might want to revisit the interview. Jo Smolders of Vigil explains how the Vigil works, why they recalled 700 units, and how Vigil has been updated since the misfires at Rantoul.

You're not going to be able to induce a spiral by pulling down a front like that, I don't think, because as you build speed, it's going to want to plane out. If you're trying to do a 90, 180, etc...you might be getting the turn, but can't really feel it. I'm not a canopy coach, but having one work with me, I've been pulling front turns very high, and feeling it plane out after releasing, then going to toggles to flare, practicing these moves very high up.

Mads Larsen of L&B talks about new altimeters, new accessories. John Leblanc from [url "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z2z_k3sKNsY"Performance Designs shares information about the new Optimum reserve, skydiving industry, and equipment. Cliff Schumacher of [url "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=08BbNe2L0dc"]SSK Industries shows the military products and Cypres 2.

For me, it wouldn't be appropriate to ask those questions, even if the opportunity hadn't passed on Monday during the conference. I did note quite a few DZO's such as Larry Hill of Skydive Arizona, Jack Guthrie of Skydive Utah, Bob Dougherty of Skydive Greensburg, all being shocked, surprised (insert your own description here) at those that were raising their hands when the question was asked. In my opinion, I think the USPA was asking the question so they might make some decisions as to "what to do if anything" about the Skyride situation. Sadly (again IMO) it is VERY easy to shut Skyride down if the industry as a whole truly doesn't want them around. Skyride knows this. It's no different than Ford Motor company releasing the Pinto with a bad gas tank...get the money while you can, pay for the lawsuits if and when they come. It's a gamble as to how long they can exist, and based on the cars, homes, etc that the owners of Skyride own....it's been a good bet so far. But eventually...the deck will run dry. Utah's CBS affiliate just shot another story about Skyride ripping off another customer, and the customer had to go out of state to jump, even though there was a DZ less than 15 minutes from her home. This is the second story this particular affiliate station has done.

I'm in the camp of those wanting to shut Skyride down, but FWIW... Attending the DZO conference here at PIA, I was bowled over by the numbers of DZ's that accept the Skyride coupons. So, while there are obviously (and rightfully so) angry people regarding the existence and business practices of Skyride, there are a lot of DZ's actually supporting the practice, saying that without Skyride, they'd have fewer tandems. I'd venture to say that by show of hands, at least 30% of the DZO's in the room were taking coupons from Skyride.

No talk of new products, but Norman Kent has a lot to say about skydiving, enthusiasm, cinematography, and life in general. One of my favorite interviews of the show...

Jeff from Mirage talks about new developments at Mirage. Cliff Schmucker, PIA president talks about the state of the industry.

Trunk from Hypoxic shows off his camera status indicator. And Bushman of Aerodyne shows their new standard/stock rigs that allow for a custom harness to be delivered in 21 days or less, completely packed and ready to fly. Get the low-down on RealXstream straight from Mike.

Bill Booth has a lot to share about magnetic riser covers, Skyhook, and the new "bungee" reserve cord. Close-in shots of how these tools/options work, with Bill explaining it all. (part 1 of 2 parts)

PD currently says they're only up to 143 reserves. They officially announced fulfillment to dealers today at 11:30. Other sizes won't be available for a while.

Joe Jennings has his say at the PIA show.

I put an HDV tape directly on top of a magnetic riser, it didn't erase nor corrupt any data. there was a guy standing there that claimed he "could see a softer picture" which is absurd, as digital media won't get softer; it's either there, or it's not there. Lots bits don't translate into a softer picture.

I'll have the BillBooth interview showing the "bungee" reserve cord, magnetic riser covers, etc., up in a short time. Editing it now.

Parasport's new products can be seen here as well.