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We know that there are standalone altimeter simulators and similar altimeter "apps" for mobile devices, for use with student training. However, I have heard that some tunnels do not allow any "extra" devices in the tunnel. Does anyone know if anyone has written an altimeter program for Windows/laptops (or Apple devices/OS) that sits outside a wind tunnel, for similar training? (Stopped and started by a "helper" I assume.) Or, do the "time remaining" displays in tunnels have this option?

PIA, not USPA, but I can understand the confusion at times. :)

In today's USPA Professional newsletter there is a paragraph about PIA's position on emergency handles relocation on wingsuits. There is a link to the paper but I can't find a link to it on the PIA web site. In the PIA document the Position Statement paragraph included the sentence "Wingsuit manufacturers are responsible for obtaining the proper authorizations for such alterations." Does anyone have more detail about this?

Thanks to you (and Deimian) for the info. Looks a bit short to me! And the curve in most popular pins is there for a reason.

Ok, the picture on that web page ... Is it 3 of these pins randomly laying on top of each other, or does the pin have some kind of hinged something or other? Does anyone have a picture of ir installed on a bridle?

Goodness, the things you learn about your fellow jumpers on dropzone.com! I too, have skysurfed. 12 jumps, with 2 different boards (and their release systems) designed by me. I might have the distinction of having been the first/only person to have skysurfed from an AN-2. Anyone else done that? I gave it up because it was such a hassle. No one likes a big guy with a large board strapped to him hopping around in a plane and stepping on people's feet while they get out. I did all these jumps with a double wing sit-suit and Spandex pants for low drag on my legs. I'm not sure I could have done it otherwise. I'm not that balanced or athletic or flexible. Just imagine me in something that looks like yoga pants. ... or perhaps not.

And the result (first section): http://uspa.org/News-Events/News/View-Article/Article/2325/USPA-Summer-Board-Meeting-Concludes

Years ago I had 2 long pieces of tape on a canopy with F-111 type fabric (not zero porosity) that had large friction burns. It lasted a long time. Just replaced it if needed.

Ahh, parachutist.... the magazine I never read but always got when I was active- My wife was a business manager for several years for many outdoor magazines and a movie production company, so seeing this thread, I picked her brain as magazines and digital media are very much in her wheel house- What I got out of it, was pretty interesting, but pretty much what you'd expect, and I'll make it quick- 1. There is always a certain resistance, against going digital, especially depending on the age of those in charge. The older the age, the greater the resistance. 2. Digital often, on small projects/subscriber number kills your advertising revenue compared to paper. 3. Everyone who doesn't want the magazine delivery, is a win for the maker of the magazine, since they probably only quote member numbers to advertisers..., and since you don't have to produce for newsstand, you know exactly how many you need to make. 4. Making a magazine isn't cheap. If you gave me some numbers, I probably could tell you what it would cost to make parachutist at my wife's former company since she's in the know, but they got preferential treatment with the publishers since they made so many.... book size. Number, etcetera, many terms I butchered I'm sure... 5. Shuttering a magazine isn't easy, and just going digital will probably cost you more money if the ad revenue dries up and the people (and salaries) of those responsible for creating it stay on- That said, when I was active I paid the dues more cause I had to, but in reality it was more for someone to lobby with the FAA on our behalf... In summation, Kill the magazine? If you want an analysis financially, I can get you a quote from my wife, lol. Though the first thing to go would be BOD face to face meetings if she was in charge of the budget probably... _j Well, thank you very much, but for now, the BOD has not even discussed eliminating the paper copy, and will not do so for quite a while. It appears to be a "sacred cow".

Thank you for letting us know. I would eventually have been wondering why we no longer heard from him.

That is exactly right. Some people say that to create an unbiased survey or poll, that you need to be an expert at it, or trained to do so. I can believe that. That is why I am suspect of most surveys. Well, I'm off to the meeting in a few minutes. Wish us (all) luck.

That is similar to how many of us feel. And we could use a number of members saying so, because USPA in general thinks that the paper copy is highly desired by members. Of course this varies a great deal among members. I would guess that newer members like the paper copy. I have a bookshelf with paper copies back to 1981, but I seldom refer to them. Sometimes I get out the old issues that contain my articles and admire them. :)

I think it's a reasonable idea. Can't hurt to experiment as long as the streamer is not too close to your deploying parachute. I think you will just need to make them gradually longer until they work. Binding tape material is cheap and comes in a lot of nice colors. If nothing else you can get some cool pictures.

I agree, a PDF file would not cut it. It is my understanding that the printing, paper, and mailing is a large part of the cost. I think that is where the savings would be. This would take some studying with the real and entire figures, which I don't have.

Good questions. I don't know.

I don't know for sure, but I think they would need to decide one way or another.

OK, I have been given some figures on how your dues are spent, in particular, Parachutist magazine. About 25% of a domestic member's dues goes to providing a mailed paper copy of Parachutist. This includes payments to contributors ($10,000 per year) and to photographers ($14,000 per year). This doe not include staff salaries and overhead. (Keep in mind that if an online version of Parachutist exists, that some of the costs will remain if the online version is identical to the paper version.) So I would think that the question to members would be, would you be willing to forego a paper copy of Parachutist to help keep the costs of your dues from increasing?

Actually, the event mentioned in Parachutist happened in Kansas. See the link above. However, it is interesting that multiple instances of something like this continue to happen. Kind of a lack of knowledge about aerodynamics.

https://www.ntsb.gov/_layouts/ntsb.aviation/brief.aspx?ev_id=20160510X14942&key=1&queryId=08668b69-9d37-4d48-a00b-4fb479713dd9&pgno=6&pgsize=50 You read right.

Oh my goodness, I recognize her as someone I saw many times, especially the WFFC. She was quiet, and I never really got to talk to her, which is now a regret. Try not to have regrets, people. I'm glad she didn't have any.

Chuck, I think we probably need to make a mental note to tell them to include an expiration date. Let's say that a member went to an event on a Saturday, and checked in with a valid membership, but 1. that Saturday was the end of the month, and 2. the member expired at the end of that month. They would then be at the event, and expired on Sunday. This would not happen too often, but is a possibility.

Are you sure it was PIA? I don't know anything about that.

I know that a lot of USPA members don't really read much in Parachutist magazine, so I'm asking members to read the article on page 38 of the July 2017 Parachutist, "Is Indoor Skydiving Skydiving?" The article is wriiten by Randy Connell, headquarters Director of Competition. USPA is trying to determine how deeply, if at all, to get "officially" involved in tunnel flying, and all of the associated issues with doing so. (More than just competition issues.) The article includes many, many questions, so this may be an indication to you of how complex this issue is.

Thank you very much for that explanation. It gives us a better understanding of why things are often taught that way in the tunnel. Otherwise, we might assume that tunnel training and skydiving training should always be the same. This in particular is a very important statement: "Doing 2 minutes of first timer flying before AFF is imo a waste of money. However, if you follow with 10-15 of real flying skills, dedicated for what is to come in the air, then the tunnel is a great resource for pre aff training."

Great article with great pictures.