Megatron

I was just being sarcastic. Truth be told I have rarely had to PLF. Without getting ahead of myself I think I'm quite proficient in my piloting skills given my level of experience. I'm set to take a canopy course in the coming weeks as well. There are many things which, while I understand superficially, I dont really get fully. Line twist being a good example...it seems that, as Dave's experience shows, that line twist becomes a more aggressive malfunction with higher wingloading, but why? btw, is there I book I can get that goes into alot of this kinda stuff in detail...rigging & such?

yes, its no fun unless I PLF

Just wanted to get a general consensus here: What do you feel are the most critical steps in packing a parachute in order from what you feel is absolutely crucial for a functional opening to something you think you can probably get away with given a little luck. From what I gather it goes like this: 1) Lines in the center 2) Correct bridle routing and closing pin setting 3) Slider quartered and grommets pushed all the way up 4) Good line stows 5) Brakes set correctly 6) Excess brake line stowed properly I'm gonna go out on a limb here and say that as long as I knew my rig was packed with those 6 things done correctly...I would jump it knowing the rest was done by a blind monkey. Seriously, though..how does that list look to you guys? Anything to add, remove, rearrange?

thanks! wrote that down in my "stuff to do so as not to get killed skydiving" list

How do these 3 factors interplay? From what I understand at this point, higher wingloadings make line twist a more dangerous malfunction by turning it into a spinner. Is this correct? If so, at what WL does this become significant? Ive had line twist 4 times already and so far its been little more than an inconvenience. The first two were on student canopies and I arguably could have landed it twisted with a good PLF (assuming I didnt have to steer). The last two were at a 1.2WL and initially showed some tendency to dive but quickly stabilized. I want to avoid any parachute with WL that requires a cutaway after line twist since I'm near certain it will happen again.

yeah, from what Ive read a skyhook definitely seems like a more sophisticated system. They are only available on Vectors, right? Is there any way I can get them set up in my voodoo??

Thanks for all the replies. I guess the problem I have with it is that in a sport where being in control of the situation is so critical to your survival, an RSL actually gives you less control over whats about to happen next. That's just something I'm not sure I'm comfortable with. However, based on all your replies it seems that in that particular scenario the action that RSL forces seems to be the best choice in most cases and close to that in almost all others. Certainly, at my experience level I think an RSL is a must and I had little intention of not using one even before I posted this. Can anyone think of/know of a situation when an RSL caused a major reserve malfunction, not including line twist?

The more I think about it the more I begin to convince myself that an RSL isnt always a good thing to have. The basic reason is that once you cut away a main you life depends solely on that reserve deploying and deploying right. Given the plethora of situations requiring a cutaway, I could foresee quite a few of them leaving you in a less-than-perfect body position for reserve deployment, what if this causes your reserve to malfunction, or even worse, get entangled with your main...well now you're fucked! Without going into specific hypothetical examples, an RSL will force a reserve deployment at an instant that is indiscriminate of what is going on around you. Thats seems like a very one-dimensional solution to a multi-dimensional problem. Even if I cut away at 1500 ft, given how quickly reserves are built/packed to open, I would rather give myself an extra 2 seconds to set up at least somewhat of a decent body position then have my reserve deploy when Im head-low and on my back into a ball of tangles lines, for instance. I know that the first priority is to pull, then pull at the right altitude, and only then pull stable. But that seems like a very rigid doctrine and generally applies better to main deployment in my opinion. When applying to EP's, I think it should be approached on a case by case basis. All of this is just a bunch of crap floating around in my head so if anyone can prove me wrong by all mean tell me that none of what I described is physically probable. Also, can anyone think of a situation where an RSL undoubtably saved a life?? EDIT: if you search "Parachute accident - Spadochron" on youtube, you'll get videos of a bunch of different mals & cutaways. On each one, the jumper is unstable in the 1-2 seconds following a cutaway. Its my belief that had a reserve in deployed at that instant, it would increase the chances of a mal of the reserve.

At 270 jumps over 12 years, you might wanna sing "ooooh, yeah, focus on the skydive, man...ooooh yeah baby...oh yeah...PULL PULL PULL, oh Baby oh SHIIIIII....................!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!". Just a thought. C'mon man why are you getting on the guy's case? I had a song playing in my head during AFF1..forgot what it was though

Perhaps this is my lack of experience talking but I dont see the big deal in landing off. Granted, it is more dangerous since there are likely more obstacle to avoid but assuming you're not skydiving over Manhatten, chances are you can avoid them with a good improvised flight plan. Im gonna assume the off landing is due to an off exit point rather than a mal or something of that nature. Just look around, find a clearing and aim for it! Its not that hard.

thanks for the replies...personally I think I'd rather opt for a more brisk opening than a soft long one. As someone said, I wanna know asap that my gear is going to function properly. Being less forgiving to sloppy packing can be an issue (because I suck at packing) but all the more reason to improve. Glad to know a saber is worth getting.

yeah, I meant to ask about that too...it seems to be so. I tend to agree, however, I wont be jumping this main until around march when my rig comes in...I should have a bit over a hundred plus a canopy course under my belt by then.

Dolphin sucks what Ive heard, the main is 22 years old as someone said, and 275 will only be good for student status until you can demonstrate that you can fly a canopy without killing yourself of someone else. On top of that your instructors probably wont allow you to use that rig for AFF since it does not have a PC release handle on other side of the container. Buying it will be a waste of money. I wait until you get your license and I promise you'll be happy you did.

How big a difference is there between these two canopies, taking into account that most original Saber's you'll find will be much more worn than most used Saber 2's. The reason I'm asking is because I'm on the market for a main and while I'd love to buy a brand new/moderately used Saber 2, its a stretch financially. I've seen quite a few used Sabers around but most have upwards of 400 jumps and are substantially more worn. The good part is that they're substantially cheaper too! I'm not looking for a high performance canopy by any means...just something to get me from 4000ft to 0ft and allow me to land on my own two feet (not my ass, not my face). Being a ZP and therefore never becoming porous, would the original Saber still fly well enough and give me enough flare at a 1.3WL to give consistent landing that dont require a 5000 jump canopy ace to negotiate? Is an older Saber 1 a piece of crap, is what I'm really asking.

I'd figure you'd would capture him and torture him. Waterboarding OK for that offense? haha so the posting comes full circle ...yes a loud muffler deserves a long bout of torture watching full house reruns at guantanamo bay.

thats a good point...regardless of the cause the best course of action seems to be go for the reserve unless there are other complications.

Correct me if Im wrong but a typical PC creates something on the order of 80lbs of force. For those of you who workout (and even those that dont)..lie face down on a bench, put your right arm about where your PC handle is and have someone hand you an 80lb dumbell...see if you can even hold it up for a second. So if your PC isn't creating enough force its doubtful that you will. The only other way I could see a jumper manually clearing PC in tow is if the bridle is somehow snagged such that it requires a force to clear it that's in a direction other than the one the PC creates. That very specific scenario, in my opinion, is not worth the risk given how little time you have. My vote is for reserve before cutaway then cutaway as a precaution.

How Many times do you think your terrorist was just somebody turned over just for a reward.. or because he just did not like the guy.. oh well shit happens. You just turned an innocent family into terrorist supporters... that is NOT very good COIN theory. Again, if we're gonna start changing our tactics based on contrived, hypothetical scenarios then we fighting a war with hands tied behind our back and might as well quit. All's fair in love & war.

Are you actually boasting that you've got a terrorist mindset? Dude, that isn't a good thing! You're missing the point. The point is that while all of you are sitting here worrying about how some mass murdered is being treated behind closed doors, there are 200 others vilifying American as "the great satan" with absolutely no regard or consideration for our human rights (like those to not to have planes crashed into our buildings). The mindset is antagonistic, not terrorist.

You got it...unfortunately it seems to be human nature. You can bet your ass that as ethnocentric and one-dimensional I may sound to you, there are hundreds if not thousands of recruiters for terrorist organizations making that same argument against us and being a million times more passionate & convincing than I can ever be. True, 90% of average citizens, while probably still feeling some animosity against Americans (or perhaps not), are just trying to live their lives no different than we are over here. They are not the 'them' Im talking about. But we must be steadfast in differentiating one from the other and show no mercy where none is due. thats makes not sense, how is torturing a known terrorist for intel terrorism? reverse-terrorism maybe

Yes, it is disgusting...its an atrocity that things like this go on in the world but the fact remains that its us against them. Regardless of any Orwellian parallels that it may conjure up or how cliche it may sound..our enemies (the more committed ones) are religious extremists who believe it is their divine duty to exterminate all infidels (who are conveniently defined by us..western civilization..Americans). And we all know how stubborn a brain washed religious nut can be; they cannot be reasoned with any more than one can reason with a rabid dog..they must be put down at all costs. That being said, any cave dwelling fuck that happens to be unfortunate enough to get caught alive should be shown no mercy, no consideration of human rights (or especially constitutional rights), they should be treated like a commodity and as such be subject to whatever interrogation methods get the job done [EDIT]: then shot in the fucking head! Now on the question of whether torture yields reliable intel..I cannot say with certainty that it does..that is far from my area of expertise. I *believe* that it could under the right circumstances and I'm willing to bet that it has saved innocent lives in the past. If that's in fact the case, the last thing we should be worried about is consideration of these scumbag's human rights or what effect it has on Al-Queda's recruitment. Thats kinda like not cutting away from a mal because youre worried your main will land on the windshield of a crowded school bus at 65mph. [EDIT] ..one way of preventing Al-Queda recruitment btw is if our government did a better job of keeping this shit under wraps. Like 1) keep the media the fuck off the battlefield, and 2) keeping the average meathead marine in check so the shit that went on in abu-jambu prison doesnt get out into the general public.

First off, if we're gonna stop doing something just because our enemies use it as propaganda against us, than we might as well pull our troops out of everywhere in the world, convert to islam, and give up democracy. So I dont really see that as a valid argument against torture. That being said, and Im certainly no expert on this, but I dont believe torture yields credible info when used frivolously. Given enough time you can get most people to admit to pretty much anything. Im sure, however, that there have been times where this type of interrogation has led to vital intelligence which perhaps has saved the lives or hundreds, even thousands of innocent civilians and/or US troops. Given that fact, I believe torture should be used as a legitimate interrogation method but only in certain cases and only on known and especially high-ranking members of terrorist organizations. Besides, Al-Queda is practically doing us a favor by recruiting these scumbags...the more they recruit, the more we get to kill!

I say talk to him first. Assuming that he will be unreasonable is ignorance on your part. Violence has its place and it usually comes after diplomacy. Fucking with a mans car, on the other hand, esspecially behind his back like a rat is an immarure and cowardly move. If you don't feel like the ligitimate way to handle this situation will be of any help (and I tend to agree) then confront the guy face to face and let him know where he stands. I'll take assault over vandalism any day.. esspecially since there's much more room for litigious bs to help your case (self defense ect)

ya know, leave it to some post-menopausal broad with a life-long case of penis envy and a misdirected maternal instict to pull some shit like this. This nothing but the feeble attempt of a feeble minded soccer mom to "enpower" herself in a male-dominant world under the guise of protecting her children from the latest round of scare tactics put on by the mainstream media. I bet it makes her feel good to know that if anyone tried to rape her she could literally shoot him down, like she wishes she could do when some punch drunk loser shows interest at her local watering hole. Too bad no one ever does. I guess she doesn't realize that most rapists would gather stick their cock into a meat grinder than get a well lubed handjob from her. Her punishment should be to 5 years of doing the sheriffs dishes and to give that gun to someone who really needs it...a hot 21 year old stripper.

btw why the hell is his website in french? ..didnt anyone tell him that the world has bend over backwards to accommodate us? ...NO BIG MACK FOR YOU!!