VideoFly

Manta Mirage.

Porsche Cayenne as in the parachute Cayenne, which is made by Firebird, as in Pontiac Firebird!

What do car and parachute/container names have in common? Can you think of any more? Parachutes Honda Pilot Buick La Sabre Dodge Crossfire Chevrolet Cobalt Lincoln Navigator Alpha Romeo Plymouth Viper Ford Tempo Smart Pulse Plymouth Fury Geo Storm Kia Spectre Oldsmobile Silhouette Tata Manza Aura Safire Lotus Esprit Lamborghini Diablo Dodge Omni Dodge Challenger Dodge Demon Opel Omega Ford Fusion Chevrolet Camaro Synergy Ford Falcon Corbin Raven BMW Vision Smart Car Eagle Talon Ford Maverick Dodge Nitro Suzuki Samurai AMC Hornet Icarus M9 Combat Car Kia Optima (Optimum) Containers Mitsubishi Sigma Eagle Talon Mitsubishi Eclipse AMC Javelin Ford Reflex Mitsubishi Mirage Peugeot Quasar Honda Odyssey Buick Century Exid Micron

If I’m jumping with you, I want to see your eyes. They let me know that you are okay, if I’m okay, and if everything around us is okay.

That looks great! You can also hang your coat on it…..or a bridle or brake line if you like.

I put a ¾ inch strap on my goggles with an added horizontal and vertical elastic loop over my ear. My ditter fits securely in the loops and is easy to hear without a helmet on. It would probably work well with a short helmet that does not cover the ears. Also, I have always found Protec helmets to afford satisfactory protection when skydiving.

Once on a tandem video jump, the student caused the instructor to turn toward the tail on exit. Although I have filmed this TM hundreds of times, the pair went into a front flip much closer to me than usual. While they were in an inverted position with their backs toward me, I simply placed my hand against the rig to secure more distance between us. Unfortunately, while slightly slowing their rotation, the TM’s knees bent and I was kicked in the head with the backs of the TM’s heels. I blacked out for a moment or two and then came to, albeit foggy at best. With a bit of consciousness and worried that I would go out again, I backed up and deployed my main. The video was over anyway because my camera was broken from the kick. Although my Cypres was on, I knew it was only a back-up and the jump quickly became one for survival. While under canopy, I was still dazed and my focus was dedicated to returning to the DZ and landing safely. Once on the ground, the student screamed at me repeatedly for ruining her video.

I loved my PD and jumped it while I also jumped a ZP canopy. I think that the PD F-111 canopy is excellent and easy to land as well. However, I do feel that for me, my ZP is capable of softer landings than my PD. But that could also be because I am comparing two very different canopy designs.

I had a double discectomy and double laminectomy on my lower back (L4, L5, S1) 18 years ago and have jumped 1,500 times since then. Over the past ten years, jumping with a good arch has been the best activity to fight chronic back and leg pain. Almost two years ago, I broke my neck on a hard opening with cameras on my head and needed to have a T5-T7 fusion with a hip implant and titanium plate. I have had to slow down with my jumping and stop flying with cameras altogether. Now, when I jump, my left hand and arm paralysis get a little worse, so I limit my jump numbers. It is hard to say how jumping might affect your back because opening and landing impacts tend to vary and may at times, be extreme. You might want to speak with a competent sports doctor who will not immediately tell you that skydiving is stupid for anyone to do. My neurosurgeon, who worked on my neck, did so with the understanding that she was trying to get me back in the sport. I guess all-in-all, skydiving is a potentially hazardous sport and your previous injury may or may not impact on your overall health. For me, the joy of skydiving outweighs other concerns and for the most part, I find the physical affects to be minimal.

Don’t take a few ounces of extra weight too lightly. Aside from the cumulative damage to the neck from a thousand or more camera jumps, a hard opening can cause immediate sever damage. My hip-bone and titanium neck, along with my paralyzed hand is bad enough; but the end of skydiving camera work hurts worse.

1- Avoid a low-pull malfunction by not pulling low. 2- If a cutaway at 1,000 feet or lower is necessary, it might become necessary to deploy a reserve without cutting the main away. 3- I lost the use of my left arm on a hard-opening/broken neck situation. The right arm works well for a reserve pull, especially with a large D-handle. 4- Although I do not have an RSL on my rig, I recommend them to others and will probably be adding one to my rig. 5- Ask some riggers. They will sometimes rent/loan you an AAD while yours is temporarily out. 6- Check to make sure your DZ will allow you to jump without an AAD. Don’t pretend and try to fool them.

When I was an avid climber, stepping on ropes was forbidden because we used kernmantle rope and it is possible to damage the core while the sheath still looks okay. This was especially true when we wore crampons. Even on night ice climbs, we always paid close attention to not stepping on ropes. I can even remember throwing what appeared to be good ropes away or only using them for hauling gear after being stepped on. Later on, in the skydiving arena, it has always amazed me that people don’t think twice about walking on gear and lines. I explain to people that it is unacceptable to walk on gear and they usually get the message. I think that talking about it is about the best we can do. It might be a good topic of discussion during the upcoming Safety Day.

I always wondered how those signs worked, but now I know to be more careful when I see them :)

I’ve got two rides, each on a different Tempo 150. They both flew straight and landed well. I wrapped the brake lines a couple of times around my hands to get more of a flare on landing. Compared to my main, they were doggish, but for a reserve, they were great.

I’ve gone through many plugs over the years until I finally found great plugs, which are already attached to the wires, are tiny, and are extremely durable. I use the plugs and wires from the leads used for TENS units (transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation). They are the small shock units, which are used to reduce the symptoms of pain. Originally, you plug one end of the lead into the TENS unit and the other end into sticky pads that you stick to your skin over painful nerve endings. The leads come with straight or right angle ends and are made to take a lot of abuse when being threaded under belts, through clothing, and around limbs. I cut the end that goes into the sticky pad off and solder the wires to my switch (I use a blow switch). I plug the other end into my camera. The leads are inexpensive and can be purchased through medical distributors. They work great and do not short out or break.

That was great. I laughed because I've heard it before. It would be a great addition to an AFFI course because it won't be the last time we hear it.

Toyota’s Vehicle Stability Control (VSC) monitors your steering angle and the direction your vehicle is actually traveling and senses when your front or rear wheels begin to slip. When it senses this loss of traction or slip, VSC reduces engine power and applies braking to the individual wheels that need it to help correct the slip and keep the vehicle in the intended path.

I was packing snow down in a driveway today in my RAV4 and got stuck in a rut. I tried rocking loose, but on the reverse I kept losing power. Even though I wanted the power and floored the gas pedal, I had what felt like no power. It was weird and I wasn’t sure what was going on, but I assumed my gas input was being over-ridden by the car’s computer. I think I could have rocked the car out with more power, and with no power and rocking, I did climb out of the rut. Maybe, the car knows better, but it is frustrating being used to cars that do what you want and not what you need to do. I would imagine that if I was in a rush to avoid an oncoming car, I would like to be able to get power when I know I need it instead of being hit.

With a rare snow storm in Virginia, I took my 4WD RAV4 into a parking lot to do donuts. Darn ABS and traction control. Hitting the wheel and brakes on an icy surface was no match for the car’s computer. It sure wasn’t as much fun as my old ’66 Buick Electra 225.

Back in the 70's, I lit my nylon and goose down bag on fire one night and I felt like I was in a grilled cheese sandwich. Another time, I lost my gear to a flaming catalytic heater. Get goose down, wool blankets, and/or someone to keep you warm. It beats a fire in a tent. Leave yourself an out and don't put yourself in a corner.

I used to like the cold, but now I can't stand it. I also used to like my birthday, which is also on Christmas day. Now I don't like birthdays much either. But if I had my choice, I'd rather have more birthdays than not have them. And I'd like to have them where it's warm.

I also had large spurs attempting to grow together in my neck. Doctors said it was from over 1,200 camera jumps, many of which were done with heavy hi-8 and 35mm cameras. I attached a picture of the spurs. After breaking my neck on a hard opening, C5-C7 were fused. The doctor cut the spurs off, replaced the discs with parts from my hip bone, and screwed it all together with a titanium plate and screws. If you’ve already got spurs, you probably want to be careful with your neck when jumping.

I hope it isn't the third tool from the same rigger. Either way, that's really messed up!

Since I broke my neck on a hard opening, I have switched back to my old Cobalt 150, which takes 1,200 to 1,800 feet to open beautifully. Therefore, the days of comfortably exiting low are over. Years ago, 2,000 feet on my Sabre 1 did not bother me, but if I were in an emergency situation at 2,000 feet or below, I’d go to my reserve first.

None tonight. That means my eleven year total is none. I guess I'm too far into the woods and it's not worth hiking in. On the bright side, these Reese's White Chocolate Peanut Butter Cups are great!