EFS4LIFE

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Everything posted by EFS4LIFE

  1. I have jumped all of them. Sigma has the strongest flare hands down. Icarus has the lightest toggle pressure. A2's snivel and open soft. My two cents. Worth what you paid to hear it.
  2. Sandy I might hit you up for one. I am loving my V304 you helped me with I am an asshole, but I am honest
  3. It is essentially Vigil's "Cypress Speed" version. Vigil hasn't had a swoop friendly device until now. It has a higher activation speed (96.8 mph) and will not activate under a perceived 300 ft altitude. I am an asshole, but I am honest
  4. ChutingStar replied and this item will be on sale shortly! Like this week ;-) I am an asshole, but I am honest
  5. So I have heard talk of this swoop unit for about a year now, but no one has them for sale apparently. The guy at Square1 hadn't even heard of it. I emailed Chutingstar but haven't heard back yet. I emailed the U.S. Sales rep and didn't get a response. Has anyone heard anything? I looked up a thread where it was mentioned here once but not much info was available. Anyone know someone that would have the answers and could refer them to this thread? I am an asshole, but I am honest
  6. As others have eluded to it is simply better to not put yourself in this position by flying a more accurate pattern to begin with. While I am not a canopy coach I am a multi-discipline Instructor and I have found that around your experience level I have given some advice to jumpers that seems to help. Before advancing you should speak with your Instructors at your particular Dropzone. They know how you fly. Also the advice given is intended for the jumper with a bit of experience, i.e. NOT a student. Okay with that out of the way. Loose the altimeter. Before I get set aflame let me explain. Use your altimeter to set up your entry point of the pattern (beginning of downwind) usually at 1,000 feet AGL. After that don't look at it. Use your eyeballs to fly the rest of your pattern. At 1k and under your eyeballs are more accurate than an analog altimeter. We beat into our AFF students 1,000-600-300 because we are afraid of them committing a low turn, for good reason, but this tends to lead to early accuracy problems in my opinion. Which leads to young jumpers such as yourself asking questions like this. As long as your eyeballs aren't screaming at you that you are low then fly your downwind until the target is 45 degrees behind you over your shoulder. This will be different for varying wind conditions, but I am trying to give you a baseline. Then turn onto base leg. Base leg is where you really refine your accuracy. Keep your eyes on traffic in the pattern but when you can safely do so glance at the target. You need to judge when to turn onto final in order to hit your target. Take your base a little longer if your eyes tell you you are high. Round the corner to final and shorten that base leg if your eyes tell you that you are lower. Once you turn onto final your accuracy is either on or off. At this point your accuracy goals should be gone, because now it is all about concentrating on your landing priorities. None of them have to do with how close you are to the target. It will take some practice and resisting the urge to not do so, but you need to start calibrating those eyeballs young jedi. Be safe. Edited to add : Oh yeah buy Brian's book! Good stuff there. Just don't go reading the high performance landing stuff and then think you can bust out a 180. I have seen a friend do exactly that after reading it and he has metal in his femur. I am an asshole, but I am honest
  7. I think you need to eat some cheeseburgers and pizzas......lots of them. I am an asshole, but I am honest
  8. I always thought the difference between the Sabre 2 and the Katana was a little too big. With proper experience, coaching, mindset, etc it is certainly manageable, but man there is quite a difference between those two wings for sure. I wonder if PD will focus on filling that gap a tad or if I am just way off base. I am an asshole, but I am honest
  9. My 96 I am an asshole, but I am honest
  10. Lazurus brings up a good option. Brian Germain made me a pocketed slider for my Samurai when I was dealing with cervical pain issues. Worked amazing. It would however take 1,000 to 1,200 feet to open so I always had to pitch higher. Thankfully PT and the Chiro straightened out most of my neck pain issues. Personally I would get a Samurai 150, send it to Brian and have him make a pocketed slider for you. It worked amazing for me. I don't know if you are ready for a full elliptical, but considering you are talking about a Crossfire2 it is a safe assumption that at least you think you are. If you do make the jump from a Spectre to any full elliptical do yourself a favor and don't go down a size in the process. You should find the change from Spectre to full elliptical anything fun enough on its own accord I would think. I am an asshole, but I am honest
  11. My second cutaway (small format camera entanglement) the skyhook released prior to deploying the reserve. Result was a normal RSL deployment. It is a backup device. Relying on it is equivalent to waiting for your AAD to fire. In other words just plain stupid. As stated previously a freebag becoming separated from the main is not an a sign of it being misrigged necessarily. I am an asshole, but I am honest
  12. I am not so much about quanity as I am quality. I get plenty of quanity pitching drogues and doing AFF at my Home DZ. I keep hearing Taft but USPA said they operate a 206. Good info. I may not have considered Taft a possibility without this thread. Glad I asked. Taft will probably get a visit. I think I would be amiss not to check out Elisnore and Perris as well. SDSB will probably be left out. I get the whole tandem mill thing. It is what keeps DZ's in business; my home do included; but not what I am looking for on my trip. Thanks guys. I am an asshole, but I am honest
  13. Subject line says it all. I will be visitng family in Ventura for the holidays. It is an hour or a bit more northwest of LA. DZ locator on USPA website shows some options, but are there any non group member dz's I maybe missing? Looking like Skydive Santa Barbra is the closest that matches preferred criteria....turbine is a must. I jump 182s here and have no desire to do so on my trip. Is the extra mileage warranted for a trip to Elisnore or Perris? California jumpers please let me know from your experiences. Thanks in advance. I am an asshole, but I am honest
  14. Touche'. I am the opposite. Fast isn't a problem. Slowing down with feather butts is. I have found booties to really help me maneuver when I am slow flying. Oh well seems like it is too opinionated of a subject to get a handle on as far as which brand etc. Thanks for the input all. I am an asshole, but I am honest
  15. I don't "need" booties. I want booties. See earlier comment about right tools for the job. I can close on a student faster and easier with them. I am an asshole, but I am honest
  16. My apologies I should have asked a more specific question I guess. First, I believe in having the right tools for the job and while I am sure plenty of instructors make due with their freefly suit and just throw on a baggy sweatshirt if needed I won't be doing that. The advise on multiple suits seems solid. No problems taking that to heart and implementing a multiple suit purchase. My main concern is in my limited experience with belly suits the booties always seem poorly designed. They slip off way too easily on exit or in freefall and don't hold up well over time. My Viper Vertical suit is freaking bombproof, and I am wanting the equivalent in a belly suit if possible. Now by my own admission I have mainly only used WELL used (old) stuff that was definitely not sized for me. It's is possible a suit designed for me specifically would display these issues. Basically what I want input on is opinions on which brands have the most durable and best designed booties. I am experienced enough to make my own choices, but when making an expensive purchase like 2-3 jumpsuits it can be wise to get others opinions and previous experiences with their purchases. I am an asshole, but I am honest
  17. New AFF Instructor here. I am wondering if any other AFF-I's have recommendations (brands) for belly suits for AFF. I have always been a freefly guy and have a sweet Vertical suit for that purpose. I kinda stole an old Tony suit that was laying around the DZ for the course and it works great but was thinking of buying a new one in my colors and measurements. So hit me up with your 2 cents. Bev, Tony? Just interested in opinions on who has the best of these weird boogie things etc lol. I am an asshole, but I am honest
  18. One of the best tandem students I had is deaf. Lame excuse. I literally just got my AFF rating but I would train your buddy if he could provide the sign language interpreter and felt like coming to Missouri. I freaking hate radios for students anyway. There are other ways (non audio) to communicate ground to air as well. Sound like an excuse. I am an asshole, but I am honest
  19. Yes a Pulse can swoop. Hell there is a video I saw of a big ass Navigator being swooped. Why you are asking is what I am concerned with though. Just curiosity? Then you have you answer. Underlying desire to learn the art of fast? Then read on. Would I recommend learning to swoop on one? No. This would drift into another topic of learning hp landings on short vs medium to longer recovery arcs. I am sure that debate has already been had on dz.com, but I fall into the crowd of believing short recovery arc canopies (Pulse, Stiletto, etc.) leave less time to realize you are in the corner and react appropriately. As Zlew said there are better tools available. Edited to correct username I am an asshole, but I am honest
  20. Me too Remster. A bruise to my ego, that I needed, and nothing else. I can most definitely live with that. I am an asshole, but I am honest
  21. So I was a complete dumbass. I made the jump from my Samurai 136 which I had 300+ jumps on and was swooping nicely at a 1.54WL to a Velo 103 at a 2.03 WL. In my infinite wisdom I decided a 120 would be a waste of time and figured a 111 would be under a 2.0WL and a waste of crossbracing, so I sprung for the 103. I was lucky enough on my 8 or 9 jumps on the Velo that I didn't hurt myself or worse. I flew and landed it each time in near perfect conditions. Then I woke the fuck up. (Thankfully) Reality set in and even my stubborn ass knew I was in over my head. I didn't like using every bit of concentration and skill I possess just to land the damn thing conservatively straight in. I was not "learning" a damn thing on it. I was asking for it, and I knew it. No one came and "talked" to me. No one forced, or even influenced my decision but me. I guess I am growing up a little. I would like to thank Craig Bey, a complete stranger, for immediately shipping me out his Samurai 120. He has earned a ton of good karma, and respect from me. The only good decision I made was to wise up before it was too late and reach out for the canopy I should have transitioned to in the first place. Only a couple of jumps on the 120 but I am in love. Comfortable enough to swoop on it, but fast enough to keep me excited. I guess the purpose of the thread is to maybe reach some other dumbass and let him know to wake the fuck up and make a good decision, before it is too late. Be honest with yourself. It is harder than it seems. Ego can be a bitch. I am an asshole, but I am honest
  22. For one, I shouldn't have to. I should be able to look in the minutes and see for myself. Let alone the fact that obviously some members are afraid to say how they voted, otherwise there would be no "secret ballot" to begin with. So how would an email remedy this, and why exactly should i trust they voted the way they say they did when I ask them? The digital world is a two way street and the USPA can just as easily adjust. I think it is about time for a change Tom, so does most everyone else I have asked. I am an asshole, but I am honest
  23. EFS4LIFE

    Tattoos?

    I have 3. All have meaning. The biggest one has the most. I am an asshole, but I am honest
  24. Young grasshopper I think he was referring to the fact that at the time your father would have "claimed" you were 18 because he could get in trouble for that. I am an asshole, but I am honest
  25. Bill Booth's Law #1- the lower your parachute is deployed, the longer it takes to open and the more likely it is to malfunction. He makes no reference to reserve or main. The man has been advocating for higher pull altitudes and AAD activation altitudes for awhile. Maybe we need to listen to him. This is not the first time an AAD has fired but the reserve still does not have time to inflate. My guess is it won't be the last either. I am an asshole, but I am honest