rastapara

Way to welcome people to the sport dude... Parachute gear garage sale at :http://www.usedparachutes.eu

Operation save the pack job http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TFtCwvZaDB4 Parachute gear garage sale at :http://www.usedparachutes.eu

Without taking prices in to account (the op has not told the price, so one can't take them in to account), a sabre 1 150 is a nice canopy. I have one and love it. One just has to pay attention to wear and tear and your packjob to avoid those slammers. I have not had one yet (at least not harder or more frequent then on other canopies). I cant say that about the Turbo Zpo since I have never jumped it. More general: Im happy to save some bucks on the latest gear and packers (IMO packers are for teams, pro's and rich people), to have a bit more money for jumps... It sounds like the OP might also be limited in their monetary resources... Parachute gear garage sale at :http://www.usedparachutes.eu

thanks for taking the time to explain the merits of your approach... Ill take some time to ponder on this and talk to the people who taught me my approach to audiables and timeouts (you know what they say about advice from the internet ) Parachute gear garage sale at :http://www.usedparachutes.eu

I understand your point of view. To me the surprise is when I hear the beep and have not pulled yet. Thats when I need to reflect on keeping better track of things. Like I said, I jump an old school time out, it just has one beep, so on all the jumps where I pull on planned altitude its a confirmation that I did perfect. I hear it while the canopy is opening and think, I pulled perfectly on time, good job, keep it up.. (so its either a sign I'm late, or did perfect, and can reflect on this every jump) Maybe I'd set things differently when I would have the option of multiple beeps, then it makes sence to have an advance warning for the phase of the skydive thats coming up. I like the crosscheck concept. Then again I have always learned audiables are backup/secondary devices for your altimeter and eyeballs and internal clock and thus to treat them like that.. Would you set a single beep time out 500ft before planned altitude/action? Parachute gear garage sale at :http://www.usedparachutes.eu

I don't like devices (that have to be set, and work on batteries) to do my altitude tracking for me, Im afraid that it will seduce me to a wait for the beep mentality. But that is a personal preference. Even more so because I use an old skool time out that has only one beep. I set it to "you should be under a parachute thats opening/sniveling". If not action... Or in other words, Id rather be 200ft behind the curve on a bad day, then waiting for a beep (and thinking that Im still 500ft above the beep alltitude) that doesnt come on a really bad day... Parachute gear garage sale at :http://www.usedparachutes.eu

The bias maybe unjustified (based on wuffo assumptions), but the botemline that skydiving is dangerous is inherently true... more dangerous then somethings, less dangerous then others... you could always run the "we promote safety in skydiving/aim for an optimal safe skydiving enviroment" as a goal you are trying to achieve with your organization... good luck, I do support your cause/idea! Parachute gear garage sale at :http://www.usedparachutes.eu

Where did the copilot find the other bolt? is the plane scattered with lose bolts Parachute gear garage sale at :http://www.usedparachutes.eu

I've heard of one case of someone forgetting to connect the upper connectors.... (I believe the story was that he found the TP smelling kinda funky, but all hearsay) There was at least one TM where I used to jump who always said, If I didnt tell you you are connected, then It might be a good idea to remind me... All the tm's I know count on the hooks on the hooking up process I once went out lower (182) and saw there was something sketchy going on with the lower hooks (if I remember correctly) I pointed this out to the TM and he already knew and expressed that he was happy with me pointing it out... It doesnt hurt to remind people they have an intrinsic motivation to be hooked up to a parachute IMO (but I'm not a TM not a current skydiver, not licensed, just a sketchy dude who saw alot of tandems go by on a single 182 dz)... If you have the space to put up the sign why not, its the skydive thats scary, not the waiver or the signs IMO Parachute gear garage sale at :http://www.usedparachutes.eu

Just start drinking, when the skygods see that the winds usually go down, and all the other people can jump, and you can watch with a beer in your hand... Parachute gear garage sale at :http://www.usedparachutes.eu

When ever I find a problem I can fix with a bit of ductape - I fix it with ductape... I think that is the skydiver-thing to do... Parachute gear garage sale at :http://www.usedparachutes.eu

I made my first tandem when I was 8... I found the freefall part to be death scary, but the canopy ride was awsome... the four following tandems I made in the 8 years after that where really fun! 8 was to young for me... but another TM I know took both of his kids at the age of 8, and they found the experience to be awsome, start to finish... Its a case by case thing IMO at the age of 8 I had no real insight in the risk, but I don't think any whuffo has a real insight in the risk, even watching the manufacturers video and reading the waiver... You know its empirically obvious that its dangerous, especially because its scary, but also because its a real plane, really high, and you have a guy on your back with two closed packages, an eight year old can figure that out. But everyone just seems to do it and come back smiling, so when you feel like it, and the opportunity is there, you go for it (like any non-minor could and would) So this means, that to me, for the kids, its not about assessing the risk, but assessing the scare factor.... (for lawyers its probably about the risk factor- but if it where up to the lawyers.... geez don't get me started) My dad, the Dzo always had the following procedure dealing with under age kids. He'd put on his angry-DZO-face, and ask another tandem master the follow his lead. We get the parents out of the room, and then ask the kid if he really wants to make the jump, and tell them, that, if we are going up you're attached to the TM and ask them "what do you think will happen if you don't want to go and you're attached to the TM and he leaves the plane?" - if the kids response was something along the lines like, I dont care, I wanna go... we'd take m'. We've had quit a few who response was, I don't know if I'm ready, I don't want to go anymore. (So sometimes its more of a parents idea, this is to me the most important thing to look out for IMO) But these are just my 2 cents (I do feel like a total fuck up in life.... but I dont that those few tandems are to blame for that ) Parachute gear garage sale at :http://www.usedparachutes.eu

I dont really want to go in to speculation here.... but what if the guy/girl tries to kill him or her self (something the authorities in the dutch accident do not exclude as posability, and in all fairness in the facts known about the accident point to...) I think there should be a general concern where you do not let people rot for nine days in a field... even if they didnt take responsibility for being accounted for post jump (or saving their own ass) ... checking out from the DZ vs Checking out from the jump, there is a big difference... mind you.. On the other hand, I see this as an opportunity to realize we need to look out for one another (not more, but just do)... no system is foolproof... I have looked at my own observational capabilities and concluded to try to be a lot more aware and forthcoming of my observations.... ofcourse you can not check an entire load, but at least the people in front of you and behind you...(right?) Ofcourse, responsablity is something diffrent but seeing that we have a general concern this is something we shoud do, and promote! please people, be safe! And don't count on the guy with the binoculars to safe your ass or not let you rot in a field for nine days...(again not starting a menhunt, but facts are facts, and you are resposible for your own actions vs our general interesst in to not letting this happen) Parachute gear garage sale at :http://www.usedparachutes.eu

And you just keep to posting on DZ.com, thats what you're good at. I dont think he lost the canopy... he knows where he left it, at 2500ft somewhere near the DZ but on a long spot. I mean come on, the S&TA who observe on the ground could've kept a closer eye on the cutaway main... maybe they should pay for part of the damage... And the DZO put cutaway systems on his rental rigs, just to jack with students renting gear And he also rented a malfunctioning canopy, so he didnt get the main canopy ride as advertised... I dont believe in the "you lost it by cuting away - you pay" idea, unless its pre-determent in the rental agreement. You dont rent the main and the reserve and the rig as separate items, you rent a parachute system that can malfunction... I've heard this story about a guy landing in the middle of a huge cornfield, taking of his gear and leaving it there to walk back to the DZ. No way to find that gear back! I believe they pretty much chewed him a new one (left crying so I heard) - and then didnt even make him pay... (I would've made him pay in that case). If you rent out gear, its a risk you need to cover, either in an agreement (wich inherently would make some people hesitate to chop when they have to - or even worse, people become instant heroes and try to catch the cutaway main mid air under their reserve) or just charge more to cover the risk that you as a business or club are taking. (also the more expensive the rental stuff the more people are motivated to get their own gear). And where did the OP say he is to cheap to buy his own gear/ or unwilling to take the financial risk of maybe losing his own gear? Parachute gear garage sale at :http://www.usedparachutes.eu

The DZO/CI of the DZ I've always jumped had a chapter in the first jump course called mistake I & mistake II Mistake I You think you have a mal but you dont, and you chop... That is a sucky day for the DZO. You might lose your handles, we have to find the main and freebag (or worst case - its lost), and some tourist might call an ambulance because of the cutaway main... not good publicity Then DZo has to use two hours of his time to repack that stuff. But Mistake II You do have a problem but you dont chop for sake of the DZO not having to do all that work... Your under a spinning main and hit the ground hard... Dzo has to call an ambulance, or worst case lifeflight... the paramedics cuts the mainlift webbing to aid you in your critical condition. DZO has to call your family, and then get someone to get your car and other stuff from the DZ to the hospital or your house. The following day a bunch of journalist call the DZO, and he has to explain to them what happend and maybe even why you didn't chop like you where trained, spending hours on end on the phone. Then a half year later, your employer and his smartass layer will send the DZO a letter telling him to pay something like a million or so because your now disabled and he didnt train you correctly... All in all you see why the DZO will prefer mistake I. OTH. What the DZO did do if someone chopped because "they kept pulling their toggles and the slider wouldnt go UP" (yes there has been a chop because of that ) is have a conversation about their future in this sport. Chopping can be expansive. Where I used to jump - with the right wind your cutaway main can be blown out to sea... well good luck finding the main then... If you're a Dzo and rent out gear, you probably know the risks involved (better then the people you rent the gear to). If you dont want people losing the main sabotage the cutaway , or better yet charge more for the rental to cover cost.... The risk of losing gear in a chop is all in the game of running a DZ. Helping to find gear that you chopped is the least you can do... also buy a case of beer for the chop and a bottle of the riggers favorite for the save... (at my DZ that would have been the DZO ) My 2 cents. Parachute gear garage sale at :http://www.usedparachutes.eu

I know that there was skydiving in Malta a long time ago (1995 or 96) with MI8 helicopters... The DZ was at Gozo (horse track?) but the heli had to return to Malta at the end of the jump day (=expensive). My dad rented some of his equipment to the organizers... and did some tandems there... But dont know al the details, I was 8 years old or something at the time... Good luck! Parachute gear garage sale at :http://www.usedparachutes.eu

dont forget the gopro dude, this is something I would like to see... (have you ever seen the movie dropzone with wesly snipes, great movie!) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8s9nvB7Oc8s Parachute gear garage sale at :http://www.usedparachutes.eu

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CGBDWER-wUI&feature=related This (really loud while sitting in an easy chair with a beverage in my hand) Parachute gear garage sale at :http://www.usedparachutes.eu

On a scale from one to ten I think its a solid eleven, might even be a twelve... If you dont know at what altitude you are how are you sure you want to jump? Of course depending on the situation, it is very unlikely IMO I would exit at 300ft... (but of course if I was in a burning plane without wings that was heading for a nuclear reactor or something I might reconsider, if I even would have any time for that...) anyway I call troll edit to correct spelling Parachute gear garage sale at :http://www.usedparachutes.eu

I think that selling video's to tandem passengers is a matter of economics. You know, supply and demand... When I look at my home dz (182 dz) I can see that since we've dropped outside video from our product package and only offer handcam we sell video on 80ish% of our tandemjumps, with hardly any salespitch. With outside video this used to be around 30ish%/ 40ish% with lots of pitch effort. Also we've stopped editing video's. At first this was an experiment and we made the rough cut cheaper. When we saw that most people didn't want to pay the extra 10 bucks for an edit we made it permanent. To make our rough cut more attractive we decided to upload all the videos to youtube (of course asking the customer permission first!!!). This really boosted sales and took little to no effort. People were really happy to be able to show friends their adventure just a couple of hours after the jump (and share it on facebook and the lot). And this is what showed us what the value of the product was for our customers, proof and memory of the jump. Its nøt the cool edit that makes them the Hero of the day, its the fact they jumped out of the plane! Also this enabled us to give our customers true HD video, something that is a burden with hd-dvd's versus blue ray versus what the customer has to play said systems. Now we can make a lot more customers happy with our product in a day. (We've been in the situation where we had to turn customers down because we were full for the day because of outside video, I cuts about half our capacity*) I cant proof if customers are just as happy as they would've been with outside video, but this offcourse is rather subjective. But in general they are happy with the product they've bought (mind you this is in first place the jump, the video is a "side dish"). And people keep coming and we are selling more and more. These results show us that there is a demand and who are we to not provide this service? In the end they are consumers and have a choice to buy a tandem with handcam or go somewhere else and buy a tandem with outside video. This model has proved it self to us. If the operation would run on goodwill, happy thougts and video-artistic-fulfillment** of the videostaff we would use a different model. But it seems it runs on avgas, jetfuel and money... (supply and demand) (*note in another economic situation, for instance a big turbine DZ, were it is important to fill the slots and keep the thing flying, outside video might be a good thing) (** for artistic fullfillment you might want to consider making a real cool documentary thing like crosswind. If its cool enough Ill buy it. And remember, you're not in it for the money you are an artist . Crowdfund your hobby on kickstarter or something, super cool!) (*** note that I do not talk about safety since I do not have a TM rating so I don't think I'm entitled to judge this - this is just the economics part for some small DZ's) Parachute gear garage sale at :http://www.usedparachutes.eu

Age doesnt say that much about if its still good or not, it depends how previous owner(s) took care of their gear. If you are not sure about its condition you might want to ask a rigger for advice/a second opinion. My first rig was 4 year older then I was when I started . And why spend money on colors when you could spend it on jumptickets. Also making the harness fit your size seems like a nice option. Parachute gear garage sale at :http://www.usedparachutes.eu

5:18 that seems iike a fast approach for a base canopy? 5:20 oh he didnt deploy yet aha! Parachute gear garage sale at :http://www.usedparachutes.eu

Please tell me some of the basics and what are the difficult things about skydiving ------------------ In my opinion: The sport has an absolute factor (once you're out you cant go back) that takes a certain mindset and philosophy to be able to do this stuff safe. Unlike kitesurfing (or other sports) where you can stop at (almost) any time. It is vital you understand your equipment, not just what to pull when, but how it actually works. This ads to the philosphy/mindset of skydiving. There is also a part of muscle memory and doing something your body has never done before (I.e. falling for a long time while staying in control). This takes practice, on the ground, and in the air (with someone who knows what he's doing for coaching/refrence). Then there are a bunch of traffic rules. The sky is big but not infinite, and I dont like other people crashing in to me or visa versa. And when you go make your first skydive - you have to be able to handle all of these things, you cant really skip the hard parts because you are new. (Unlike many other sports) And to grasp al of these aspects of skydiving instruction is vital, and if you look at time spend teaching vs money you pay, you get a pretty good bang (educational experience) for your buck. But the hardest thing is: making those youtube video's of your own skydive look "so damn easy!" Parachute gear garage sale at :http://www.usedparachutes.eu

I'm happy with my sabre, I have about 70ish jumps on the thing- only slammed on me twice when I forgot to roll the nose in. Easily avoidable, and flies great IMO... Parachute gear garage sale at :http://www.usedparachutes.eu

+10 We should train people to be more like "fossils". I dont use a modern audiable but an old skool time out, one beep, one reminder. I always set it 500ft under my deployment altitude. If i've pulled on the correct altitude it will beep when the canopy inflates, when I hear it and I'm still in freefall I know I'm late, I f'd up, I should have already pulled. Instructors have thought me to use the device like this when I started freefall training. NEVER RELY ON IT, ITS A BACKUP! I dont think allowing 100ish jump wonders to use an audiable is a silver bullet solution. I've heard a 80 jump wonder tell me that he had one of those digital altimeters, but he had it set on speed instead of altitude (he did'nt know how it works) but it did'nt really matter because he had an audiable (just one). WTF!?!?! He was never traint on how to use such devices (audiable and dig altimeter).... A couple of weeks ago another 60 jump wonder gives back a rented altimeter and says "I did'nt really need this thing, I just made a hop and pop." I replied "but what if things go south and you need to make decisions, time is a factor there." He sort of admitted I had a point. There are experienced people that jump with two audibles in case one doesnt work... How is that for device dependency? A 4 way team I know give each other shit for looking on their altimeter during a team dive.... IMO thats wrong. With every safety gizmo you introduce you should give proper instruction on how to use it, be it a RSL, AAD, or audible. And this could IMO start from jump one. Its the attitude not the gizmo. Parachute gear garage sale at :http://www.usedparachutes.eu