repcool

Fly Free Jarno.  No doubt he helped me take my flying to another level thanks to his tunnel coaching.

We didn't always agree on everything but it was always a valuable conversation, and I enjoyed his company when I got a chance.  

Going directly to an ATC is way too big of an upsize move. Need to for something truly intermediate in there first.

If feel you get knocked out in a collision you don’t have a choice about how low you go. Something quite possible in wingsuiting.

Bluhdow

***the quality of it indeed impacts what kind of opening you are going to get.

Eh...kind of. I would say that the PC is one of the smallest contributors to the quality of your opening. Like...probably dead last after a whole lot of other way more important factors like body position, airspeed, canopy selection, bridle length...etc.

All things being equal, it might matter a little. But for the vast majority of people as long as your PC is in good condition and lacking an overly heavy handle it will work just fine. Most people would be better served taking that $200 and paying a coach to help them with their deployment technique for a day.

Your initial advice recommend “grocery bag” and not “PC in good condition”. I agree with what you amended it too.

Bluhdow

As for pilot chutes, you could tie a plastic grocery bag to the end of your bridle and the canopy would come out.

That's terrible advice, or a terrible joke mixed in with what is otherwise good advice. The PC starts the deployment sequence and the quality of it indeed impacts what kind of opening you are going to get. Replacing a worn PC or kill line is an often overlooked item that can make a big difference.

A few manufacturers have "long" versions of standard rigs and a lot of wingsuiters including myself prefer those. More natural to reach back and not have to bend the elbow much and fight the wing.

I know Aerodyne has a long version, I am sure UPT does and I suspect others do.

Fly with as many other wingsuiters as you can. Travel for it, since that's half the fun of being a skydiver. Don't always fly with the same organizer. Visit the new tunnel in Stockholm before you develop any bad habits.

Being a data nerd is fun and its part of wingsuiting, but learning to fly isn't a solo activity.

I don't see any good reason not to just go with FlySight. It's been proven over and over again in our environment, the support for it is great, feedback is heard and incorporated in updates and at the end of the day we are supporting a family member.

It's not cheap but its great value for what it does. I tried going other routes originally and it just cost me more in the long run.

LeeroyJenkins

Specter is where it is at. Great all around canopy and is great for wingsuiting. I just a Freak 2 and Specter 150 loaded at 1.5 and its fantastic and fun.

Spectre and Sabre are still good choices for those on a budget, but they aren’t so much fun when compared directly to the newer canopies in the lineup such as Storm and P7.

None, so far in 1500ish WS flights. I'd be nervous to fly something without punchouts or cutaways because you know, shit happens.

Its one of those safety features you just don't need, until you do.

skow

In what way?

I have consistent and mostly on heading openings with the P7, and I haven’t had to chop it yet. My original Pilot was less consistent when wingsuiting and did have to get chopped.

I’d say if someone really wanted to fly a 9 cell then stick with the Pilot but if you don’t have a strong opinion about cell size then the P7 has the edge for wingsuiting.

At the end of the day it’s best to fly both and make a personal choice. Neither is wrong.

skydave89

I dont see why anyone wouldn't just get the original Pilot. It has great openings and it has better glide than a 7-cell. Not to mention it's more fun to swoop.

I've had both and I find the openings on the P7 are superior for wingsuiting.

tommymc

Is it really a quantum leap above the tried and true Triathlon (which can be had in very nice second-hand form for $500 to $600)?
Tom

The two really aren't even similar, other than both being 7 cells. I have 100+ wingsuit jumps on a tri and it doesn't compare in handling or landing to the P7. Tri got me on the ground safely, P7 does it with a smile and a swoop.

However, if you are on a budget the then Tri is a great option.

I just spent 90 minutes over 2 days in the tunnel and it totally exceeded my expectations. I learned more about the technical nuances of flying a wingsuit than I have even come close to in the sky in the last 10 years.

If you are thinking of flying a wingsuit, go visit the tunnel.
If you think you know how to fly a wingsuit, go visit the tunnel and take a napkin for your humble pie. :)

Oh, and for bonus points, Stockholm is an amazing city!

Simon

I no longer have an Aerodyne sponsorship but I still decided to purchase a Pilot7. I enjoy it and trust it that much.

I can fly a wingsuit way better than I can belly or free fly, but then again they both bored me and I would have quit skydiving if it weren't for wingsuiting.

I don't fly to be good, I fly to put a smile on my face.

It's so strange to me that people turn to social media before reaching out to their dealer or the manufacturer directly.

I feel like social media is where we should go to escalate but shouldn't be the first port of call.

Bump.....

the weekend is approaching and all looks well. The team that brought you the Cessna 182 formation load record in MI will be organizing. How will we up the ante with a Sherpa? Going to have to turn up to find out, put on your wings and come on out!

I hear rumblings of a fair few folks coming to Summerfest at the end of the month, I think it is going to be more epic than ever before.

I never got to start a list before...so here goes:

1) Simon



(dammit...now I owe beer)

The last record we did, MI, didn't use any "official" spacing. We didn't measure out a 10ft spacing or anything like that on the ground, we just laid down something even and it just wasn't head to foot. We figured the lift capacity we were using upped the ante enough.

Why don't you post a photo of what you suggest and set the standard, then we can show it at WI and people will understand your vision?

We changed the Beta sign up address to

iAlti.com

Should be rolling it out for beta in 2 - 4 weeks. If you already signed up you will hear from us in the next few days.

During this Summer I have a 240 mile drive which is just under 4 hours give or take.

During the winter to jump I had a 891 mile each way trip once or twice a month which took me 8 hours door to door

It's worth it to jump at a good DZ with good people.

Quote

Sounds good.

So long as it easy to mark the exit, opening and landing points and calculate average GR, speeds etc you should be on to a good thing (auto detection would be great, but it's difficult to get right so easy manual adjustment is a must). Paralog and FlySight viewer are great, but it's still tedious to get this basic info.

I assume it'll have the option to apply PPC style mask to a jump to view the competition performance? And submit jumps to PPC?

An android app that connects to it or at least a smart phone usable web-interface would be nice too.

If you join the beta you will have a place to submit all of these ideas...we like ideas and it is why an online version is more adaptable and flexible when great ideas need to be implemented.

I actually have an iAlti Logger on my iPhone that uploads to the site...still a work in progress but all part of the big picture.

Thanks for your interest.

Simon

Quote

What software is the screen capture from?

The screenshot is from an early version of iAlti Logbook an online logbook solution for manual and supported logging devices. Imagine logbook meets facebook meets runkeeper\garmin connect. It will automatically link you to others on the same jump (if using GPS) and share details, photos and videos. Easy publication to Facebook and Twitter to show off those wonderful flights!

One cool feature is it automatically determines which DZ you jumped at simply from the GPS database, great for us lazy loggers!

It should be in BETA in the next month or so. We will need people that can do manual entries and flysight entries in the initial beta. You can sign up here:


http://tinyurl.com/ialti

The attached is from my first solo in an S Bird a month or so ago, I used a Flysight. I think I can do a lot better but I don't get to do many solos.

195 seconds from 14,200 and pulling at 3,500.

Simon


edit: for bad splling.