davelepka

Do you know where on the Perris website the updates will be? I've got a buddy competeing and I'm wondering how he's doing,

Have you considered going back to the 90? Or staying with the 180 untill you can work it?

I think the World Cup of swooping is at your home DZ right now. You should be able to talk with some good people there.

Thanks for bringing it up. My DZ.com home page is bigger, and my forum page is smaller (some other websites are also smaller. The other day my wheel mouse was zooming in and out instead of scrolling. This only lasted a short while, then it went back to scrolling, but now every web page I visit seems to be a different size.

Katana? Was there a pic of a Pac 750 in another post? Just guessing...

I posted this in the other thread as well, but I'm desperately seeking attention and approval from my peers.

I think this was a Fuji moment, but here it is, old school style, Stiletto 107 at just under 2 to 1..

I disagree with many of the assertions you have made reagrding your canopy, it's performance, and for that matter, your performance. The wingloading is excessive, and has gone far past the point of dimishing returns in terms of performce as related to wingloading. Furthermore, your refernces to some highly skilled and respected canopy pilots have probably hurt your case more than helped it in the eyes of those following this thread.

HOWEVER, this is only my opinion, and it is your right to jump whatever you please, and fly it in any manner you see fit. In light of this, good luck with this and all future ventures, blue skies, and safe swoops.

There really does appear to be some stabbage. The pics where the trees are in hte background give some perspective, and the pitch of the canopy and your position under the canopy seem to indicate some stabbage.

I'm not saying that you don't know how to fly your canopy, just that this landing doesn't look like your best (I hope). There are some people in this forum who have spent many years on a DZ. and watched many landings, and when we see stabbage, we know it.

Whats the purpose for jumping thast wingloading as an everyday canopy? There is a reason that Luigi only jumps the 46 on special occasions (and I think his WL on that is still lower than yours).

During AFF videos, if the student seems to distracted by me in front of him, I'll pop up a few feet, out of their sight, and wait untill the JM's are finished with their stuff. Anyway, most of our JM's are good about turning the student toward the sun, and I found that while waiting to get back in front of the student, you can do shadow puppets on their rig at certain times of the day.

With 150 jumps I would say you don't need a hot smoke canister strapped to your leg. Try this: Bring Mom to the DZ, make sure she has good sunglasses, get a low pass and do a hop n pop. You will be the only jumper in the sky, the plane will be lower at exit altitude, and she'll have no problem picking you out. For exrta insurance, have an experienced jumper stand next to her and help her to spot the plane before you leave, and give a play by play during your canopy ride. Safe. Simple. Smoke free.

I'd say the fact that others questioned his canopy selection, then he decided that a downwind landing was a sufficient indicator of skill needed to silence the objectors, and that he did it on a day when the winds were "honking" is dumb enough; traffic problems notwithstanding.

My advice to you is to file this story away in the back of your mind, and remember it in any situation where you be have to rely on this jumpers judgement for one reason or another.

Thats quite a story. I think the one point you are missing, is that if you intend to land in an alternate direction to the smart people, you need make provisions so that you are the absolute last one down, tandems included. It is not safe to have people landing in the same area going different directions. Your story indicates that you watched from under canopy, indicating that this jumper did not wait to land last, which puts others at risk from his stupid behavoir. What a jackass.

Just to clarify, I do intentional downwind landings from time to time. I am not opposed to that, but when I do them other jumpers are notified, and I will pull high enough to make sure I am the last one down. Also I am not trying to prove anything to anyone. I have a thousands of jumps, with almost as many high performance landings, and the downwinders are just a fun change of pace.

In reading this thread, I was wondering what DZ would give a person with 25 jumps a 135. I took a look at his profile, and I think his home DZ is the one that keeps crashing airplanes for one reason or another. I guess they take care of their students the same way they take care of their airplanes.

If I am wrong about this DZ being the one with the airplane problems, I apoligize. Even if their aircraft are well maintained, they still aren't doing their students any favors.

Anyone looking for a good deal on a complete rig w/ a Tempo 150 and a Sabre 135, watch the classifieds for the "Injury Forces Sale" ad that should be coming soon.

I did state in an earlier post that I do my own pin checks, but I have almost 2000 jumps on the same rig, and am VERY familiar with it.. When I borrow a rig, weather I can reach the pin or not, I always ask someone for a pin check. Always.

There are enough world class skydivers on satff in Deland to fill the Otter and the Skyvan at the same time. Additionally, there are countless numbers of teams training there at any one time, whose members have 10 times, or 100 times the experience you do. Grow up and get a pin check.

When you have thousands of jumps, and years in the sport, go ahead and do things your own way. For now , realize that you are engaged in an activity which can kill you (and others). Respect it, and your position in it, and get a freakin' pin check. (I'm glad I don't find myself in DeLand much anymore).

Many people have already made some good points here, but the bottom line is that the camera is a distraction. You may think you can ignore it, but you won't. After your first few jumps, you 'll see the difference in your video and a more expereinced jumpers video. Then you'll start to think of that in the air: Is my head still? Am I in the good light? Etc. This is when your mind is off of your flying.

If you need your mind for flying, don't try to use it for video at the same time.

Is your profile not up to date? It says you have 78 jumps. With 40 camera jumps and Birdman jumps coming soon, my guess is that you have several hundered by now (I hope).

If this is the case, I stand by my advice, talk to your local camera guys. They know you and your build and can give you a better idea of what to look for. I'm not sure if a camera suit with a small wing will help prep you for Birdman, but good luck anyway.

If you read on in my post you'll see that I address the issues you had concern with. I too do my own pin checks, and do not like others touching my gear.

It's the group of 50 jump wonders you are with which gives me concern. Do they know the importance of a pin check? Have they been aware and careful not to drag their large bulky rig all over the plane? Was their rig closed properly in the first place? Do they know how to give a proper pin check (which includes knowing to pass on checking a rig they have not been trained to check)?

Even more expereinced jumpers can become complacent with the pin check situation. Those who have not had a premature opening, or horseshoe, or pilot chute in tow, may let the pin check slide from time to time, but they should keep in mind that if their stuff comes out in the door, it can rip the tail off the plane, and kill them and most or all of the people still in the plane. Scary stuff.

People who know how to check pins need to do so. They also need to watch for people who haven't gotten a check, or people who are doing the checks wrong. Extra work? Yes. Pain in the ass? Yes. Worth the trouble? Yes.

A student once mistook the arch signal (thumbs down) for the pull signal on the first COA on AFF level 1. He dumped at 12k. The main side JM had a handheld radio, and pulled immediately to guide him down. I was shooting video, and rolled over to film the opening, then did a little freeflying with the reserve side JM.

Everytime I see a newer jumper not getting a pin check, I will ask them if they had one. "Uh, no" is the usual response.

If you haven't seen your pin since you put your rig on, who knows what's going on back there, after the ride to altitude, getting up and moving around in the plane etc. By not checking this (or having someone check it for you, you are putting others at risk for no reason.

This brings up another point. Cecking someone's pin without asking them first is a big no-no. My rig is very small, and I can check my pin myself (and I do, usually between 4 and 6 times). I have no window for checking my kill line, so that is not a factor. People do need to understand that touching another jumpers rig without asking is BAD. Some people do not feel comfortable with an unknown person touching their gear, and they will ask a trusted friend or instructor to do the check.

Along the same lines are the jumpers who will sit on the floor of the Otter, and not get up when they see all the other jumpers around them getting up for gear checks. Aside from being irresponsible of them (not cheching your gear proir to exit endangers you and the jumpers around you), this is inconsiderate to those to those trying do the right thing as a sitting jumper takes up more room than those on thier knees.

The info is not useless. The size of your pilot cute is what will effect your deployment, not the way it is deployed.

Buy a PD canopy. Be happy for a long time.

I don't know what you want out of a canopy, but the openings on the Sabre2, Spectre, Stiletto, and Velocity are all excellent. All will perform better then your current canopy.

Two words: Performance Designs

I would talk to the camera flyers at your DZ about this. I would be surprised if they said anything but, "Maybe you should log a couple hundred jumps before you start thinking about video, or a camera suit."

Why not learn to fly your body as it is, with a normal jumpsuit. Then maybe put some jumps on a camera with your regular suit, and get used to that. Then put some jumps on a camera suit (no camera), and get used to that. Then put the two together, and see how it works out. Anyway you look at it, you need more jumps.

Take a look at the Sony's new model, the "You need more than 58 jumps to start jumping a camera".

A great lens for that would be the "58 jumps is not enough expereince to jump a camera"

Mount that on a "I'm going to do another 300 or so jumps before I jump a camera", and you'll have a nice set-up.

Aren't we at 1G standing still?

Zero G = Weightless

1G = Bodyweight

2G = Twice bodyweight

Etc...

I could be way off with this one, but I don't think I am.