Zlew

Some people don't drag for style, so much as they drag to unload the canopy. If you are going to do so, you need to have a landing area that you know well, and is pretty smooth. To reduce risk (and drag) I usualy don't start unloading until the very last seconds of the surf when canpy is slowed way down and beginning to lose lift. PS, i drag both feet, one if front of the other, and end up with all my weight on my front foot. Z

Craig Gerard used to do pretty well at the swoop meets under a stiletto, but I can't remember what size or wing loading. Might be interesting to know. Having said that, If I wanted to go play mr. super swooper at a competition, i think there are wings out there that would fair much better than a stiletto. I guess it just depends on what you want from your parachute Z

The stiletto first came out the max was 1.3:1 . The word got out that all the PD guys jumped theirs WAY over that..and over the years PD HAD to change their Rec to keep up with the market. I have a 97 and 107, that depending on what gear I have on, I load from 1.63 to about 1.8, and from 1.8 to just over 2.0. I have not quite 500 jumps on both canopies. For me, the 97 out surfs the 107 all day long. Having said that, I think that it depends a lot on how you fly your parachute. If you surf such that you allow your canopy to build speed over a longer time/more alt. then I think u will like the higher loaded stiletto, but will find it doesn't surf as well if you like to use toggles, or more snappy lower turns. Also, if you are a fan of running out your landings or are not skilled in unloading a canopy to a stop, then you will also like the lower wing loading. But other than that.... I define perfornance like Bill does (should that scare me?) and to me there is no loss in performance as you get over 1.6:1 on that canopy. As for spinning Mals.... any loades eliptical will be very picky durring opennings and not respondwell to line twist. Total "loaded" eliptical jumps: Over 1,000. Cutaways due to the canopy being eliptical (or total really) 1 (bag cought the edge of the pack tray on the way out and had MANY line twists before it ever came out of the bag). If you are not used to flying through your opennings, or dealing with that kind of canpy, you will enjoy the lower wing loadings. Z

well, it didn't burn when u add the cold water... But how does it help? I mean it has to do something more than be good just by not hurting..... Z

uh oh.... think i might fail in the quality department. Shaving cream: Shampoo lather (%95 of the time shave in teh shower...) and a Mach 3. I almost never have any kind of irritation or anything like that. I just found that not using it never seemed to hurt me...and using it just burns like hell.....

OK guys. You have to help me out here. I have after shave.... THink I've had a bottle on had as long as I've been shaving. I don't get razor burn or anything like that...and usually don't use after shave. Can any of you really explaine to me what it's for? It says to sooth harsh shaving....but when you put the stuff on after a "harsh" shave, it does anything but sooth...it BURNS like hell! Imagine that, it's mostly alcohol..... Any thoughts? Z

Row The Front Moon

http://www.strong.dk/girl.php

how long was the exposure on the night pic? Z

I can only speak for myself, but I totally disagree that they dont' prduce lift. Is it harder to surf with rear risers? Sure as hell can be. You compress the entire range of your toggles into a few inches. If you do not have good tech. and smooth input, you are not going to like risers at all. Most people, IMO, over input their toggles when they swoop (you know, the flappers, pumpers, popers....). You have less room for error with risers, but i find they work GREAT. The first time I was brave enought to try a rear riser landing on a swoop, I thought I would start with risers and then have to transition to toggles to stop it....I was very happy to find that I didn't need to go to toggles at all. The surf was great, and I slid it to a total stop (at not quite 2:1) in no wind just like I do on toggles. If you don't unload your canopy,and are of the school of Swoop for 70 yards, then run for 20..... you won't like risers I woldn't think. But if you unload, you can stop the canopy very smoothly. Risers are very powerfull, don't buy into the "they don't produce any lift" line of crap. Learn you wing.... you will find plenty of lift there. Z

Don't think they make the sidewinder amymore. If Underdog is still lurking this area he might remember the make of Flabby's camera helmet. Looks like a Hanson, but is full face. I never new anyone who had a sidwinder that was happy with it. It seemed ok for POV type shooting...but the 2 guys i know who had them didn't like them. Z

2 things to think about: it might be what the other guys are saying, but the PC 100 also has a switch on the side of it that has 3 play modes. and one of them is such that it only reconrds when u have the button down (the other is normal and number three is i belive 5 or 10 sec's of recording per time u push the button). might want to look and make sure that is right. ALso, the cam eye might sitill activate it with the came eye button. Z

my brain says that it's the lense that is moving, but that doesn't seem right because the image is stable and deosn't move, only the black. I doubt Steady Shot is good enough to stableize an image that is moving that much. The only way I could get my PC 5 to get any vingette was when I put a step up ring on it, with the sony .6 X that is at 30mm to start with it doesn't get any at all. lots of people use the Kenko lense.... i havent heard if others have the same problem. I hope you get it figured out though. My eye is drawn to that instead of the subjects. otherwise great vid man Z

are you using a D-box? trying to figure out why your vingette is so deep and so shifty. I've seen vingette that bad when people use too much glass or length of lense (sep up ring, wide angle, and filter). But the flutter that it gets is what seems to be the most odd. What is your set up? Any ideas why it does that so much?\ Z

More pics posted here http://groups.msn.com/HopethisnameisntInvalid/shoebox.msnw?Page=1 i love the pic of Matt (aggie) doing the horns down. Dave would be happy to know that pic was taken durring the pre-game UT school song. Z

buzz is that Jimmy Johnson maybe have purchased some things in College station....that could be interesting. Z

if u won more home games....u might have a reason to jump around on the benches..... hehe ZING sorry man, I couldnt help it Z

The bleachers broke when we were all standing on them and jumping around (get frisky when u long horn stomp u know), and they took the goal posts down at the end of the game....so that we couldn't. Amazing how fast they got them down.

I worked with those guys this summer.... make all the jokes you want, but they are bad asses. Built like brick shit houses. remind me to re-size the pics next time........ sorry Z

I just got back for my annual trip to see a Texas Tech football game with my old roomie and other buddies from school. We couldn't have picked a better game to go to; it was a great game and we beat the damn long horns (ranked #3....or were..hehe). Wow...we beat the horns and aggies in the same year (can t remember that happening before). We brought along an Aggie (who represented for you guys Dave... would have been proud) and a longhorn Alum. missed jumping....but was worth it.... Put a cheerleader pic in there for those who don't follow football. Even a horns cheer pic (worked with them this summer). Who woulda thought that they had a full up QP now? Droped a streatch though... Z

most of us have things that we like to do a lot... Sadly, a lot of times these things are not for everyone....Even more sadly these things that are not for everyone seems to be the ones that we try to push on others. Be it drinking, drugs or even skydiving. I know skydiving is not for everyone, and I never try to make pepole want to jump (did when I was new). If you don't want to drink, that doesn't bother me at all. I've never met yoru seen you, but i've seen the male dominated jump crowd push pretty hard to get some people drunk just to see how they act. maybe people are uptight...maybe they are a conservative person (girl...even more often). That might have something to do wiht people pushing you. Not that they want you to drink.... so much as they want to see you drunk. Z oh yea, several of my good jumping friends don't drink at all....

You have to remember that location really does make a big difference in the fact that there are differnces in rescources availbe at a given place and time. If we don't have police or sizeable military folks there to take care of things that need to be taken care of, I'm fine with useing what we have (hellfire from above). Thats not going to be the case in Canada or the US. Apples and oranges Z

I dunno if I could pick up an aggie ring. I think they would revoke my degree from tech. I find student ripcords all the time, but that was the first time I found something of real value. I'm amazed it workes.. It's sun faded and has some rust on the pressure ring (just the ring that puts friction on the dial to keep you from turning it when you don't mean to) and moisture on the lense. It has to have been out there for a while, but seems fine. It is a Safire by the way. Let me know if anyone knows who it might belong to. Z

While working on a fence (whole other story...hehe) I found an alt. out in the field next to skydive texas. It's a blue (either FT 50 or Safire...not sure...will check). It looks like it has been out there for a while, but still seems to work. If it's yours, write me and tell me what is etched on the back of it, and I'll get it back to you. Z