sfzombie

i tried learning to fly on my own through static line course years ago and never did learn until i went to the tunnel this year.  if you are doing aff, listen to your instructors rather than random people on the internet like me.  having said that, when your instructors let go, they want you to fly flat and stable.  ask them before you jump if you can try what you learned in the tunnel, and go through it on the ground first with them.  again, don't listen to anything anyone has to say here or anywhere else without asking your instructors.  oh, before i forget, did i mention to not listen to anyone but your instructors?  kind of important at your stage.

all i know is that i read about cypres firing when it wasn't supposed to, regardless of the fault, and that makes it a non-zero event.  i have been in the sport since '97 and out of it more often than in having just got my a, so any information i have read is from years ago, but i read it and recall others on the dz discussing it. 

i should hope that they are dependable and reliable, but nothing is 100% effective, at least nothing electronic or manufactured.  they may have the safest product out there and the best recall system in the event of faulty equipment, but if there have ever been any recalls or safety advisories where something has been repaired or switched out, then it could have failed and counts toward the effectiveness.  just because the company caught it first does not mean it couldn't have caused a failure or else it would have been left alone.

considering how many times i have heard about a cypres firing when it wasn't supposed to i would hesitate to call it 0 errors.  i understand they changed things to reduce them but i seem to recall they still happen, not sure about that though.

i don't see a suicide attempt either but have to disagree on one point.

i have seen a person falling over 100' onto packed dirt and sustain only minor injuries(a couple of bruises and some scrapes) due to a proper plf.  that says that what you do when you land is what says if you live or die.

i have dropped from about 50' after having my wind stolen and it hurts like hell but is usually survivable if you have tight body position and roll like you are taught.  i know that if i ever had a double total mal and was heading in with nothing out at my home dz, i think i may just start tracking hard and try glancing off the river rather than hitting the ground.

thanx gary. i got a copy of it and will look into using it, and sharing it with anyone at my dz who may want to use it.

On 3/11/2019 at 1:31 AM, Divalent said:

Well, my Google foo must be weakening, as it apparently led me to the 2018 version.  So I stand corrected: it is "freefall jumps" now in the SIM (2019 version). 

 

i just got my a license with a proficiency card that said 25 skydives but my logbook i got on my first jump in 1998 said 25 freefall jumps.  not sure about the sim and when it changed but it appears to have always been freefall, at least my book has it printed that way and it is listed as uspa fai license requirements.

On 7/22/2019 at 5:33 PM, BIGUN said:

It's great to see the world moving away from the old written jump logs. I have no clue on how many jumps I failed to log over the years.

i don't like to see the trend go that way as it just shows that a certain phone was carried on a jump.  if one were so inclined, one could jump with a dozen phones for a dozen different jumpers to falsify logs.  of course, you could always have someone sign for a falsified logbook, just would leave a paper trail which some folks would rather not leave. 

having said that, i would like to have a shot at converting the code to android if possible.  it sounds like a great idea and i hate iphones.  send me a message if you are so inclined.

i would go with an aon2 brilliant pebbles audible.  you can set up to 20 alarms and it only costs around $100, depending on exchange rate from pounds.  the only drawback i have found so far is that you need a computer or android phone to change the settings.  works for me as i don't change them often though. 

i would agree with the not using it precisely on landings, just as a suggestion.  our dz only has about 300' of width and the base leg is always more of a sweeping turn into the final, as there is just not enough room.  i started hitting the target consistently when i started to use my eyes instead of adhering to the altitudes completely.  but then again, there are never more than 4 of us landing anyway and the patterns are easier to keep track of.  it can be a little bit intimidating making your downwind completely over the ohio river, but you get used to it and it is usually the other way. 

jump.  as much as you can afford.  be honest with the folks at the dz and you will gain experience by doing it.  log them all and don't downsize too early.  be safe. 

On 10/28/2019 at 6:50 PM, wolfriverjoe said:

Ju

Apparently planning for this mission has been going on for a while. 

The original plan was expecting the US SF guys to still be in place with the Kurds.

Trump pulling all of them out, leaving no US assets on the ground, made them have to revise the plan and jeopardized it. 

 

they were special operations guys, not special forces.  i was special forces.  delta force if i recall.

yes

being a student - solved that one by getting my a license after 22 years, 3 months, and 29 days in the sport and 61 skydives with 32 static line military jumps.

weather

money

On 10/3/2018 at 7:45 PM, roostnureye said:

just try and find yourself an N3a.
set it to countdown. you'll get audible alerts every 1000 feet.
it actually talks to you. ten thousand feet, nine thousand feet, etc
you can even record your own .wav sounds for it to play if you want.
there is no better option.

Flock University FWC / ZFlock
B.A.S.E. 1580
Aussie BASE 121

oh, i don't know about that.  i just got an aon2 brilliant pebbles and it has 20 programmable alarms on it that you can set to count down every 1000 ft and it only cost $100.  You have to program it with a computer or smartphone app but hey, for that price, i can get 3 and have them all pre-programmed.  of course i would rather just use the phone, but then i am also into making my own altimeter/logbook that will record all sorts of data on each jump.  i one were to make a wrist mounted altimeter using a raspberry pi with a gps module, you could have it sending an output to google glass i think. 

while the n3a sounds really cool, having a personal hud system that not only is an altimeter and logbook is awesome. 

rwieder

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