captain1976

There is an old saying; "You can't run away from your troubles". My answer to that is "BULL SHIT", you most certainly can! You live more in the few minutes of skydiving than many people live in their lifetime

Hi, The answer is NO! with an explanation. There are 2 incidences where people I know were killed when they were in a position to do PLF’s. In a high speed descent both had double streamers. The first one was Connie O'Rourke (D-300) Who was doing a Santa Clause Suit jump in Lake Geneva Wisconsin. Anyway, the main (28 Ft Round) pilot chute caught on a smoke grenade and caused a horseshoe malfunction. The hand-deployed reserve got entangled but put Connie in a perfect upright position. He was killed on impact but the Coroners report stated that the areas which showed the greatest damage was on his right side. The areas on the outside of the right foot, calf, thigh and buttock all had shattered bones leaving us to believe he attempted a plf since he always emphasized them. The cause of death was listed as internal injuries as a result of from a parachuting accident. The 2nd was July 7, 1982 when Jim Stoyas (D-60 & POPS No 1000) who had over 4000 jumps experienced his first malfunction in Hebron Illinois. He was flying a square and though he was a great instructor and emphasized proper cutaway procedures, he dumped his reserve which entangled with the main. I know what he was trying to do as he mentioned it to me one day shortly before he was killed. He called it a canopy transfer as we really didn’t know in those days how easily a square main and reserve could entangle. He was also using a round reserve. Anyhow, he too was put in a perfect feet to earth position and tried a plf as the witnesses stated (I was flying the plane and didn’t see him hit). Because of my involvement added to the fact that he was a very close friend, I had first-hand information about what killed him. I even mentioned to the doctor what he was trying to do (the PLF) and why would he be killed rather than busted up badly. He explained that in most cases of hard impact, the brain which floats in a fluid is jarred so badly, the damage is done as it impacts the back of the scull. So massive brain injury was listed as the cause of his death. Maybe one of you is a Doctor and can give us more insight on this, but I do believe any impact of this type is only survivable when there is something else to break the fall other than the hard ground. You live more in the few minutes of skydiving than many people live in their lifetime

There are several spiders with webs behind my hot water heater at my cottage. Actually I catch flies on the ceiling when I can by holding a see through cup directly under the fly and quickly pushing it up to the ceiling as they always go down. Then I slip a piece of paper to keep them in. The next step is to take the cup to the web and slip the piece of paper away and they go fly right into the web. The exciting part comes next. As the fly struggles to get away, the spider comes a runnin. Certain spiders just wrap that puppy up for a later snack while others go right in and de-juice the fly. Great, Sick Fun on a rainy day. You live more in the few minutes of skydiving than many people live in their lifetime

PS Regarding "I never invent PERFECT solutions to problems" as far as most of us are concerned, you did invent the perfect solution with the 3 ring. Blue Skies You live more in the few minutes of skydiving than many people live in their lifetime

Sorry Bill, I didnt mean to be so presumptuous. Thanks for covering that. Hope your climb went well. Mike You live more in the few minutes of skydiving than many people live in their lifetime

Thanks folks, I guess it works Blue Skies You live more in the few minutes of skydiving than many people live in their lifetime

Can someone tell me specifically where I can upload the picture that appears next to the name when posting? I really don't see the option except for the "my photos" area which I already tried. Thanks You live more in the few minutes of skydiving than many people live in their lifetime

I guess Mr. Booth isn't going to answer my question about the floating ripcord. But I really think my question was a valid one. If anyone can comment, I would appreciate it. When viewing the trade show interview conducted by Doug Spotted Eagle; http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B1J_zE3eFdw it really looks to me that the elasticity in the cord can cause a floater to distance itself from the pocket at a much greater distance than the standard ripcord. Especially with the high wind speeds associated with free flying. Could be that this was tested as I have not actually pulled it myself, but the video shows it to be very easy. You live more in the few minutes of skydiving than many people live in their lifetime

I personally look forward to those calls. I have a home phone number that someone else used to stiff creditors. Since they don’t listen when I tell them I’m not the party, they don’t believe it. So I just changed what I say to them. One of my favorites is; “Ya know, I discussed that bill with my wife and we decided to take a vacation with that money”. When that gets old, I tell them to hold on and I simply hang up. When they call right back I do the same thing again. They usually quit after the 3rd try. Telemarketers are handled differently. When I get the live person, I simply push the test button on the smoke detector I have next to the phone. I hold the mouthpiece right up to it. Each and every time I did that, I went back on the line and there was nobody there. I will miss my fun, a new law not says that recorded telemarketing calls are now illegal but politicians and bill collectors can still use them. The politicians will now get an earful as well. You live more in the few minutes of skydiving than many people live in their lifetime

Bill, I just looked at the youtube video. When you were demonstrating the floating Spectra ripcord, it looks like that with the stretch in the cord, the ripcord actually can move further away from the housing than the metal housing allows. Has this been tested with freefall speeds it that the airflow can actually move it further away from the housing? You live more in the few minutes of skydiving than many people live in their lifetime

Reading Bills comments, I have to go with the success of their use on the tandem rigs over that long period with millions of jumps. The testing period is over and the stats are out there as far as I'm concerned. Regarding a previous post, I don't think saving money was a factor considering the small difference (whatever it is) in the Spectra vs metal, especially when compared to the cost of the rig. Bills past achievements in this sport is all I need. I'm gettin' one. You live more in the few minutes of skydiving than many people live in their lifetime

Time to make our own beer and bring a keg to the DZ http://www.soyouwanna.com/site/syws/makebeer/makebeer.html You live more in the few minutes of skydiving than many people live in their lifetime

I drive by a town on a regular basis and the route takes me past a local crematorium. Someone once told me that there is some kind of regulation that requires that they do what they do only after midnight. As I was driving past the place the other night (about 2:00 AM), I noticed there was smoke coming from their smokestack and the wind caused it to drift over the road right where I was driving. I couldn’t help but notice that the aroma was actually pretty good and reminded me of chicken. What is really sick is the fact that it gave me the munchies, and I had to stop and get something to eat You live more in the few minutes of skydiving than many people live in their lifetime

WHATS WRONG WITH THE DOLPHIN??. I love mine. Just because its cheaper doesn't mean its a bad rig. Its comfortable and seems to hold up well. I did a crash & burn on a taxiway a couple of months ago while avoiding a possible canopy collision. I tore up the container and sent it to the maker "Mike Furry". The whole repair job was $60 and it took a day. I'm buying a 2nd rig and going to order another dolphin. You live more in the few minutes of skydiving than many people live in their lifetime

There is no manual and it only come with a "quick reference" sheet which takes some time to digest. It shows how to set the "Profile" and the "Alarm", etc. but they don't explain what the hell they relate to. It took a few experienced skydivers to finally get it to work but it only worked for a few jumps. I set mine to 4000, 2000 and 1000 ft. It used to work on the way down (for only a few jumps) but now only goes off only at 500 ft under canopy. When I took it back to the dealer I purchased it from they didn't know either how to set it up and suggested a new battery. That didn't work, it was bad. My option was to leave it with them and they would send it back to Italy which would take a couple of months. To hell with this Piece of Sht, and a company that can't even produce a decent manual. I'm getting another brand. You live more in the few minutes of skydiving than many people live in their lifetime

Thanks all for the info. I wasn't figuring on any goodies or extras and now can't wait You live more in the few minutes of skydiving than many people live in their lifetime

I ordered a new PD Spectre from DeLand and it should arrive in the next couple of weeks. Does anyone know if they come with risers or toggles? The flight specs on the PD website say something about not shortening the brakes from factory, but if they do not come with toggles and risers how do you know how much slack to put in them? Thanks You live more in the few minutes of skydiving than many people live in their lifetime

The jumper is the one who determines when to go or not. When I get the green light I first look down and around to see if there is any air traffic. Then I go if I think its appropriate. I am also a jump pilot and respect any jumpers decision even if it mean a go-around. Nobody like delays but safety is the main issue. You live more in the few minutes of skydiving than many people live in their lifetime

You could try Chicago. The surfs up at least a couple times a year but the bacteria levels keep the beaches closed most of the time YUK. There are some great jump places there too if the weather cooperates (not too often). Seriously, I picked Florida. People in FL are the happiest I have ever encountered in the US. Northerners are usually miserable because they hate where they live. Texas gets too cold in the winter You live more in the few minutes of skydiving than many people live in their lifetime

I agree with an ad. Back in 2003 I had my hanger broken into and had some tools an my airplane logs stolen. I put an ad in the paper with a ridiculous reward of $10,000 (no questions asked) for the return of my log books. The very next day I got a call and I set up for the Detective to take my place. It was a teen who also ratted on all his buddies (as most Teenagers will do-Suburban ones anyway) and I got my stuff back. Didn't pay a dime. You live more in the few minutes of skydiving than many people live in their lifetime

Sorry folks, but you are all WRONG. The cop obviously though they saw a bag of donuts on the dash board and were just trying to verify it. When it turned out to be an illusion, they sped off to Dunkin Donuts You live more in the few minutes of skydiving than many people live in their lifetime

Deland is a great place to jump. They do have tandems but I never have a problem getting on a load. They are considered the Skydiving Capital of Europe in the Winter and never waited more than a load or 2 even when its busy. Like most DZ's, you are family. Come join us. Mike Fischer You live more in the few minutes of skydiving than many people live in their lifetime

You guys make sense, thanks for the input and I will give it another try Blue Skies all You live more in the few minutes of skydiving than many people live in their lifetime

What I was referring to was more of an incident and it only involved a couple of staff members, so I really shouldn't judge the entire staff. When landing on my first jump at Z Hills, I went out at 5K by myself to familiarize myself with the DZ. When landing, I chose a spot just north of your swoop pond. The winds were out of the north in the air and on the previous load they were very light but favored the North. However they dissipated at the time of my landing and when I landed I did my usual “no wind” slide to a stop. No problem, I have done it a thousand times before as a bad ankle doesn’t allow me to run it out in no wind. Anyway, I was immediately greeted by a staff member with another one observing. I don’t know his name, but he came up to me and pointed to the “limp” wind indicator which was facing a bit to the west. He said “that is a wind indicator” and I must land into the wind when landing. He went on to explain winds and why we must land into them and I should never do “That” again. I had several experience jumpers come up to me at the same time and tell me he was out of line, and I should have told him to piss-off. But I explained to them that I wanted to keep the peace for the students sake. Normally I would have jumped right back at him and told him to mind his own business, but there were tandem students around and I didn’t want to argue in front of them. It would have made them uncomfortable and they need as much nicety as possible. If I did respond, I would have made that staff member look like a real ass. Again, something that students don’t need to hear. He did not know what he was talking about.. he was simply looking at a limp wind sock and had no business giving me directions or instructions on how to land a parachute. Especially when the jumpers on load #1 and 2 landed in every direction on the compass. They only reason I can think of is that he wanted to look big or like someone in authority in front of the spectators, students and others. First Experience, pretty bad. I will never go back there again. The real pity is that TK never responded. Not the way to run a business. Mike Fischer You live more in the few minutes of skydiving than many people live in their lifetime

I would recommend Deland. They are friendly and I never have a problem getting on a load. Also great for kids. I went to Z Hills last fall and and was treated rather poorly. Actually I found the staff quite Rude. Normally I would have let it go, but I'm in business myself and feel an owner should know about this kind of thing. I even wrote to the owner "TK" about my experience (twice) and it was ignored. I also personally handed him a copy of the letter when I saw him at another airport. Not a great way to run a business, but I heard that TK has some serious problems that I won't mention here. You live more in the few minutes of skydiving than many people live in their lifetime