kalaniwavo

My first canopy was a Pilot 210 and loaded at 1:1 I had the same concerns about sniveling forever so I asked a packer if they could pack it so it opens a little faster. She said "you want me to let the nose hang" me.. "uh yeah. just let it hang" it definantely opened faster!! and I went back to appreciating those long snivels.

sorry to see another mishap vid go black. I know everyone has there reasons for keeping them private but we could really learn alot from these. This was the best video I had ever seen of a low stall and I think with some discussion on here it could have opened up some eyes about how stalls occur, how violent they can be and the effects of obstacles

I shouldv'e included the whole story. Here's a link. I'll try and make it a "clicky" http://damontucker.com/2012/01/24/video-experienced-skydiver-has-serious-accident-on-north-shore-could-have-been-prevented-had-state-kept-to-outdoor-circle-agreement

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rXA0u5ElcUo&feature=youtube_gdata_player Ouch! That all happened pretty fast. Winds were 12-15mph.

It could be modeled similar to a TCAS system. It could be possible to disable advisories/alerts below a certain altitude. maybe pattern altitude or something like 700ft and below or reduce the sensitivity level. Also, what would be really interesting is if you could program your own. Basically, every unit would always transmit like a transponder but you could individually program your unit to whatever parameters you want If you were hot shit and didn't want any audible warnings you could disable those but still fly with it so that it still transmits your position to others. The possibilities are endless and obviously some big hurdles and decisions have to be overcome before it every sees a DZ but I believe is totally possible. And to that, whoever could mass produce a reliable system and market them to dz's could get a lock on the market and make a ton of money.

suck on a can of whip cream and then practice your EP's. the effects are pretty much in line with hypoxia

I agree. I'm still learning and trying to soak it in but have heard incredibly different techniques. and some that totally contradict one another. It would be great if there was a standardized progression but it probably just comes down to each instructors individual technique

exactly, seems like everyone involved (PIA,Argus,manufacturers) has been extremely quiet lately. I wonder what, if anything, is going on behind the scenes. Are we waiting on an investigation? Are we waiting on a cutter redesign? what's going on to resolve the dispute between Argus and the PIA? or is this it....?

ah, thanks! I'll have to make a call... just moved to Sacramento a couple weeks ago and haven't updated my info yet. =) Aloha!

Anyone skydive in Fiji? I went to the website and sent an email etc.. haven't been able to get anyone out there yet. I'm going to Fiji next month on a surf trip and thinking about bringing my rig... and just have a few questions about the set-up, winds, licence requirements. I'm stoked! Aloha

Skydive Hawaii! You need a C licence and it gets windy and there's a big ocean across the street from the DZ with heavy surf if you decide to put it in the water you should know how to swim. There are accomodations/hostels in the area (haleiwa)from cheap to super luxurious beachfront.

I'm in a sticky situation with a rental car company and my insurance unfortunantly. Just wanted to hear what you guys thought or if you all have any suggestions. Here's the deal... I recently took a quick weekend vacation to an outer island in Hawaii. While driving I "may or may not" have ran over something that inadvertently poked a hole in the oil pan. The oil light came on and I immediately call roadside assistance and stopped driving. They deliver a new car and take the broken car away. 3 weeks later I receive a bill for $3800 for a blown motor. Ok.... so I'm just a shade tree mechanic but I KNOW the motor wasn't blown when it was towed away. Specifically, the tow truck operator had to move the car to get it into position to tow it. The engine was running with no knocking or white smoke . Looking through the itemized bill I'm absolutely getting gouged in administrative fees and loss use fees. My insurance has told me this is a mechanical issue not covered by insurance so $3,800 is a shitload of money and I have excellent credit that I don't want to destroy! any ideas suggestions????

It ALWAYS pays to show up at court. At a minimum the judge will usually reduce the ticket and at best the cop will not show up and the judge will dismiss it altogether. There are ALOT of ways to get out of tickets too. Could be tough since you admitted to speeding, but there are ways.. you could ask the DA or the judge for a continuance at court. this will by you more time and increase the odds that the cop won't show up at a later date. all you need is to find a loop hole. If the cop wrote on your ticket that he radared a black car and your car is blue thats grounds for dismissal... and as a last resort hiring a traffic lawyer can be cheaper in the long run than paying sky high insurance for a couple years... you should be ok though if this is an isolated offense. its not if your guilty or not guilty, its how you manipulate the law unfortunantly... good luck!!

I was thinking the other day... what if I had an old canopy and shortened up the lines on the tail to create a positive angle of attack and then fabricated some method to control the canopy. think it would fly like a kite? anyone ever tried this.... I guess it could be too big to control.. just thinking it would be cool to fabricate a giant kite! Aloha

I bought a Pilot 210 directly from the factory, brand new and it came with a built in turn. It had a slow right turn with a heading change (it wasn't crabbing) I had it inspected by 2 riggers who couldn't find anything wrong.. I jumped it another 5 or 6 times thinking it was harness input, winds, etc... Finally had a rigger test jump it for me to confirm it was actually a canopy defect. Aerodyne had excellent customer service and replaced the canopy right away. Have another jumper do a hop n' pop with your rig if you're still having problems

I just traveled with my rig last week and found out that some airlines have begun limiting carry on baggage weight to 25 pounds - my rig weighed 27 pounds so I was required to check it. I asked to check it at the gate and that worked so I passed through the security check point with my rig and then checked it at the gate before boarding. I was flying on Hawaiian. It always helps to look for the nicest/coolest looking attendant to check bags with. Just talking them up a little can go a LONG way to letting some things slide. Have a fun trip!

I've called and emailed Skydive Madera but haven't gotten any response.. I will be in Fresno next week looking for somewhere close by to jump. Does anyone have the days/hours they operate and how easy is it for up jumpers to get on loads? I haven't been able to find any real details anywhere Thanks!

N/A

I am going to be in Fresno for a couple weeks very soon and have been trying to contact Skydive Madera for some info to see if it would be worth bringing my rig. I've tried calling and emailing but have gotten no response. Does anyone what days they operate? and if its easy to get on loads as a fun jumper? I would like to get in some skydives but my free time may be limited (family trip) Aloha!

for winds - windguru.com a great website for winds and also shows cloud cover percentages seperated by HIGH/MED/LOW levels only downside is coverage is limited to certain areas

I have a new SOLO audible and the audible pocket inside the bonehead mindwarp seems ok but not that secure. The audible shifts around inside the helmet and I know its not going to fall out or anything but.. Has anyone tried hard mounting their audible inside the helmet and just placing the earpads overtop?

I bought a brand new Argus AAD a couple months ago and have put about 25 or 30 jumps on it. I got the message BATT LOW and the following day BATT REPLACE. Just wondering if anyones else has had an issue of batteries dying this quick. Maybe just bad batteries from the factory or an issue where I need to send the unit back to the factory for inspection.

My rigger jumped it today and confirmed everything, called Aerodyne and they said they have had some recent issues with built in turns on the Pilot and they will ship a new one out once I return this one.. glad to have this figured out and learned a couple things in the process. Thanks! Nick

I jumped the rig again today and while under canopy I let go of the toggles and checked to make sure my leg straps and harness were even. The canopy then began a slight right turn. I looked at the canopy and I didn't see anything out of the ordinary. The canopy didn't looked deformed anywhere and the lines looked straight and the brake lines were even. Durind approach to landing I had to apply left toggle input intermittently to correct the uncommanded turn until a decent flare height and then I flared evenly and wakled out the landing, although it was obvious in the flare that the canopy was just slightly begining to turn right again. My rigger inspected the entire canopy and rig and could find nothing wrong. What was the final verdict on your canopy? Did Aerodyne ever give you an answer of what was causing the turn? I just want to make sure I have all my bases covered before I call Aerodyne. This seems really strange and it would be nice if there was a "smoking gun" but it seems a little more complicated. Thank you to everyone who responded! Nick

I just recently put together my first rig. The main is a new Pilot 210 loaded about 1.0/1.0 here's the issue.. I have 60 jumps and have always felt reasonably comfortable under canopy. I started on a nav240, then nav220, and a nav 200 for the past 10 jumps or so. I had 2 or 3 hard landings about 40 jumps ago, but everything since then has been very smooth until this new canopy I've jumped it twice and both landings were by far the worst ever.. definantly crash and burn landings. on the first jump I did a controlablity check up high and everything was good, then as I turned onto final something didn't feel right. with my limited experience I wasn't exacly sure what was going on, except that I had to constantly make heading corrections all the way to the ground. and then squeeze out a quick flare as the canopy was in a slight turn. on the second jump, I really tried to pay attention to control input up high and see what was happening. the only noticable difference I could find was after turning left 90 degrees and releasing the toggle back to full flight the canopy would turn back to right atleast another 45 to 60 degrees. so to turn to a heading I would either have to oversteer by a good 45 degrees or after the turn release the toggle input very slowly. as for the second landing I was making corrections all the way to the ground. one of the instructors said I pulled the left toggle all the way to my shoulder and he thought for sure the canopy would turn into a dive but for whatever reason it didn't. I wish I could provide more information but with my limited experience I'm just not sure whats happening. Is a new Pilot 210 that much different from a NAV 200? could this be my own input causing these problems or the canopy not being broken in? I really don't know, but for the first time I'm spooked about jumping this canopy and I'm not exactly sure what to do... I am REALLY glad I didn't listen to my freinds and get a Pilot 188! any info will be greatly appreciated! Thanks! Nick