agk23

Now, it is well past April and no news Anyone heard anything on what is going on with Vigil? They do not reply to PMs Website has nothing to offer "Gravity is a habit that is hard to shake off" Terry Pratchett, "Small Gods"

After 10 years since my last jump and probably 15 years since my active involvement in the sport, I am back in the sky!!! This weekend I did my first 4 jumps after a looong, looong brake from the sport. It feels so good that I can not even describe. Those who read my previous posts probably remember that my last jumps I made in russia on a ram air canopy with a riffing system (long tape that is attached to the the spring loaded deployment chute and goes around the edge of the canopy to slow opennings, almost like a slider) and a belly mount round reserve. I was trained in Style and Accuracy and never done any RW. I had 450 jumps with probably 100 of them on rounds and para-commanders. So here I am, moved a couple of years ago to Canada and decided to get back into sport. Last fall I visited Skydive Burnaby (near Toronto) and asked them to help me out to get back in the sky. The folks there were exceptionally friendly. It felt very much like I was back on my home DZ in Russia. I wanted to start in spring, so as soon as I got a note from Burnaby about safety day I was there. After some ground school with one of the best instructors in this part of the world. I was ready to go up. The only problem, weather was not good, so I had to wait one more week. Finally, the day arrived. Saturday was pretty windy. I even thought I will not be able to jump again. After some more training and practicing EPs, my instructor OK me for my first jump. The first jump was nothing complicated - stable exit, three practice throws, three 360 turns, wave-off and throw. Everything went as planned (considering some pretty rusty practices of the past still stuck in my head). My instructor was there the whole time filming me (i got my first skydiving video - kind of cool). Landing was a stand up in the middle of landing area (flared a bit low, but still not bad) Result - I am cleared for solos!!! I have done three more jumps on Sunday (two solos and one more with instructor). My big thanks to all the folks in Burnaby, particularly my instructor. I will be back next weekend!!! "Gravity is a habit that is hard to shake off" Terry Pratchett, "Small Gods"

Are we there yet? "Gravity is a habit that is hard to shake off" Terry Pratchett, "Small Gods"

Anyone placed an order on Vector 3 with UPT in the past 2-3 weeks? What are the time frames for delivery? thanks Anvar "Gravity is a habit that is hard to shake off" Terry Pratchett, "Small Gods"

Good job. I liked it a lot. One suggestion - create some kind of pattern for the ground, so that it is easier to see the altitude. It will probably require more resources, but would be a big help on landing. In real life you can measure your altitude if you have visual features (grass, trees, small objects) around you. Otherwise, there is no depth perception (as if you land in water in overcast weather) That would be a great tool for new jumpers to learn. "Gravity is a habit that is hard to shake off" Terry Pratchett, "Small Gods"

There is nothing on Vigil web site and none of the online shops show it on their's as available either. Sabre1Lucke, where did you order yours? "Gravity is a habit that is hard to shake off" Terry Pratchett, "Small Gods"

Any update on when Vigil 2 will be available on the market? Anvar "Gravity is a habit that is hard to shake off" Terry Pratchett, "Small Gods"

I have already sent e-mail to them. No response yet. Anvar

Folks, can anyone help me get in touch with reputable rigger near Buffalo, upstate NY. Thanks Anvar "Gravity is a habit that is hard to shake off" Terry Pratchett, "Small Gods"

"Anyway what discipline are you involved or going to be involved? " Most likely RW, but I may try freefly "Gravity is a habit that is hard to shake off" Terry Pratchett, "Small Gods"

I agree that Wings is very reasonably priced. And I guess this is one of the reasons I hesitate. I guess I am thinking that there's got to be a reason why it is so much cheaper. (you can't win here, can you if it is too expensive - not good, if it is too cheap - not good either

"Why do you make it so complicated? Any combination of your selection would do it just fine." I guess you are right. It is just that without much recent experience with new gear, every little thing sounds important. Plus I am spending $4k-$7k on the whole rig and would be jumping it a long time. I figured asking would not hurt anyway. "Gravity is a habit that is hard to shake off" Terry Pratchett, "Small Gods"

I'm about to buy my first rig after many years of not jumping. I plan to buy all new gear and I am considering four options: Vector, Icon, Mirage, Wings I will be jumping relatively big canopies (190-210 range for both main and reserve). I would love to try them, but I live in Canada (which makes it more difficult to get one for a weekend) and want to order it ASAP to get it by the end of May beginning of June This is what I found so far: Vector Pluses: has skyhook, magnetic riser covers, looks good, the company developed many innovations used by others Minuses: expensive Icon: Pluses: will have skyhook real soon, looks good Minuses: still pretty costly compared to Wings Mirage (not sure how big is difference btwn 3&4): Pluses: looks good, may get skyhook in the future (do not how soon) Minuses: it will probably take some time before skyhook is available, pretty costly (3 is not that bad though) Wings Pluses: not expensive (relatively) Minuses: no skyhook, I do not like external reserve PC, anything else??? I guess my question is except for skyhook, the looks and price are there any other major things I should consider when selecting container? As for main canopy I am thinking to buy something safe and reliable (last time I jumped accuracy wings and it was 10 years ago). I plant to make around 100 jumps per season and probably keep my gear for a long time, so I thought I should buy all new. I do not plan to do swooping or downsize any time soon and will mostly concentrate on FF. I am thinking WL would be 1-1.1. My weight is 170 lb without gear so I am thinking 210-190 should be OK. Here are the options I am considering: Pilot – a bit concerned about loooong openings. Otherwise similar to Sabre 2 (see next) Sabre 2 – over all looks like a good option but I never jumped 9 cell Triathlon or Spectre – My understanding those are very similar, but I do not know if I should try 9 cell or stick with 7 cells Your suggestion on mains would also be much appreciated. Reserve is really simple: anything with WL 1-1:11 that I can get at good price Thanks for your suggestions Anvar (PM me if you have something negative to say about any of my options)

technically I was 14 y.o. when I did my first three jumps. In Russia they allowed to start jumping at 15, but I was only 2 month short of being 15 and also brought a note from my parents saying that they were OK "Gravity is a habit that is hard to shake off" Terry Pratchett, "Small Gods"

I've done a couple of those 80-100 m jumps. Yes it is D1-5U and yes we also had belly reserves and knives (not hook knives, real stuff). Thank god I never had to use one. Who knows if one will die because of knife wounds or because of hard landing. By the way the reserve also helps from the dragging in the winter (I once had to ride for 1km on my belly before falling down into ravine from 2 meters, thankfully there was a lot of snow) Here is translation of the first part of the song (not one for one, but close): Keep straight line boys we march on soviet land we serve in wingy (not sure if this is a word) paratroopers where one has to be eagle for us paratroopers, it is very comfortable in the clear sky we are light on our feet (on lift off) we will stop trouble-makers one should not play with fire The service is not easy, however, paratrooper can handle everything Like an angel he descends from the sky But he fights like a devil for us paratroopers, it is very comfortable in the clear sky we are light on our feet (on lift off) we will stop trouble-makers one should not play with fire etc... hope that helps blue sky "Gravity is a habit that is hard to shake off" Terry Pratchett, "Small Gods"

50 km/hour? that does not sound right. I jumped it many times and normal speed when out the door is 140km/h. I am pretty sure that at 50km/h it would be falling like a brick. "Gravity is a habit that is hard to shake off" Terry Pratchett, "Small Gods"

I hope you guys had a blast (isn't it a bit early for x-mas?

Thank you everyone for your input. That really helps. Following your advice I decided to visit all local DZs and since this weekend was really nice, I figured folks would be jumping and I can see some of the DZs in operations even before the spring. I managed to visit four DZs. On Saturday I visited Parachute School of Toronto and Skydive Toronto. It was nice to see some of you at PST. I was pleasantly surprised when I was told that I do not need to go through all the steps of getting license, apparently my old papers are still good. All I need is to get familiar with new technology and safety procedures, which should not take long. Overall atmosphere at PST reminded me of my old club, very family like. I really appreciated personal approach of the management. In Skydive Toronto my experience was not as good though. I guess I came at the wrong time. They were closing for the day and were about to go to a party (I am guessing X-mass). I talked to the owner for two seconds. She said to me she was too busy and could not think straight. She said that my case was too complex to discuss now, and I should come back in the spring to talk it over when I am ready to jump. The crowd was pretty lively there though. I guess I should try again in the spring when the time is right. On Sunday I hit Skydive Niagara and Burnaby. I was very impressed by both places. Folks there were eager to help me and quite helpful. I was assured in both places that it would be pretty easy to get current. I was a bit surprised to see two strong DZs right next to each other. They must be stealing a lot of business from each other. I could not find many differences between them too; they both have big birds, good locations, and pretty good facilities. Both seam to be pretty popular among jumping crowd too. Can anyone share with me your ideas on what would be main differences between the two? Overall, I was pleasantly surprised by the fact that the sport is pretty active around Toronto and there are so many options for folks who want to jump. It was also very nice to hear that it would not be a major problem to get back into skydiving even after 10 years on the ground. I can't wait until spring returns. I will be filing my CSPA membership today. Thanks again for your help and see you next spring! Anvar

I have already checked the CSPA. They do not have anything on renewing outdated license, only what you need to accomplish to get new once. I guess I would need to talk to a DZ about it. I plan to start at the end of April. How do you personally compare different DZs around Toronto? "Gravity is a habit that is hard to shake off" Terry Pratchett, "Small Gods"

Hi folks, I wonder if there is any skydivers from Ontario, Canada, around here. I need your advice. I recently moved to Canada from Russia and want to get back into the sport. I have 450 jumps and "C" license from Russia (the license were internationally recognized and comparable to "C" in US and Canada). However, I have not been in the air for almost 10 years now. Back then, I did mostly Style and Accuracy. I jumped quite a few different canopies including rounds. The ram air canopy that I jumped before leaving sport was with riffing line (I am not sure many remember those here