cbuffalino

Wendy, thank you for your insights. I appreciate your open-mindedness. May I ask why you no longer an instruct and/or jump? And follow up: Why do you feel you're not in the target audience? I'm aware that most of what I have up on the landing page is vague and only offers the bare minimum information to gauge interest. That's kind of the point: to receive reactions in order to improve upon my hypothesis. End of the day, I want to contribute to the community, whether it's this way or another we'll figure it out together :) Never give up on something you can't go a day without thinking about.

Thanks for the feedback. I understand that things many roads have been paved. Through my own interactions and research into the sport I'm suggesting there may be more efficient and beneficial ways to approach the learning environment in order to create retention and conversion which is an issue within the industry. By paving a new road forward we can engage the community on a more granular level and increase our performance as a sport. It's not about reinventing the wheel, just putting new tires on the rim. So far through y research it's been suggested that the SIM while a great resource is an antiquated and difficult document to approach and not providing the benefits we all need overall. Never give up on something you can't go a day without thinking about.

Those methods are currently being developed. The page is to gauge preliminary interest in that type of functionality which has been determined to be a need through research. Never give up on something you can't go a day without thinking about.

Thank you for the feedback. My intention is to first get our students set on a path towards their A. The process will then allow them to set individual goals i.e. I want to be a Tandem Master and provide a pathway to success toward that goal. The ultimate prize is being able to keep us in the sport longer, pursuing our goals directly through community and immersive educational tools and then create more skydivers from the outside. The goals of this project are dynamic in that the voice of the community will guide me toward what is needed. I had a slightly different vision on this at first and it has blossomed into this initial offering which looks to gauge interest in a platform that unifies the industry in a different way thus making the path toward quality education and by extension, retention, more of a possibility. To directly answer a few points you raised: It can be a platform yes for a repository of curated information It can be a platform that provides tools and services to DZOs It can be a platform to increase community engagement in order to convert 1st timers into students and retain those students through the current retention envelope. It can allow our sport to utilize data in order to create better experiences for the entire participant pool which will lead to more skydives being completed. Never give up on something you can't go a day without thinking about.

Damn, that stinks. Sorry my man. If you have any other way to access it that I can help you with lmk. Never give up on something you can't go a day without thinking about.

Good afternoon all, I have begun a research study into the habits and tendencies of skydivers. When I set out on this path I quickly found that while there was a ton of information out there about skydiving, there was little about the actual people who participate in the sport. I download the yearly report from the USPA and go over the data to identify trends, which they are amazing at doing already, but I still feel like there is a gap in knowledge and types of information being collected. It may seem kind of trivial, but I know many of you out there are white collar individuals who understand the value of data and how it can greatly impact the minutia in our lives. As a result of my first round of subject interviews I have identified a handful of common threads between 6 different demographics within the sport and specifically the way we are interacting with students and potential students. I would appreciate it if anyone seeing this would take a look at the link below which details the first iteration of my proposed solution which was crafted directly from my interviewees and will always be based on the feedback of anyone interested in skydiving. Feel free to contact me directly by signing up for the private beta, or clicking the link at the very bottom of the landing page which will lead you to my website for contact. Thank you all in advance and fly safe! -Chris http://bit.ly/27hb4vi Never give up on something you can't go a day without thinking about.

Good afternoon all, I have begun a research study into the habits and tendencies of skydivers. When I set out on this path I quickly found that while there was a ton of information out there about skydiving, there was little about the actual people who participate in the sport. I download the yearly report from the USPA and go over the data to identify trends, which they are amazing at doing already, but I still feel like there is a gap in knowledge and types of information being collected. It may seem kind of trivial, but I know many of you out there are white collar individuals who understand the value of data and how it can greatly impact the minutia in our lives. As a result of my first round of subject interviews I have identified a handful of common threads between 6 different demographics within the sport and specifically the way we are interacting with students and potential students. I would appreciate it if anyone seeing this would take a look at the link below which details the first iteration of my proposed solution which was crafted directly from my interviewees and will always be based on the feedback of anyone interested in skydiving. Feel free to contact me directly by signing up for the private beta, or clicking the link at the very bottom of the landing page which will lead you to my website for contact. Thank you all in advance and fly safe! -Chris http://bit.ly/27hb4vi Never give up on something you can't go a day without thinking about.

Such a well written, thoughtful and thought provoking article. As a novice diver and tracking, tracksuit and angle enthusiast I will certainly be paying closer attention as I have seen personally the potential for all of these examples to happen when complacency or thoughtlessness sets in. Thanks for putting in the time to write this. Any resources you have for proper flight planning would be great!!!

I bought my 1996 Triathlon used for $650 and was excited to move down to 7 cells, get a good deal and have something that had a steeper angle than my PD Pulse. I had flown one of these previously on a student jump but didn't remember how it flew. So far I have put about 10 jumps on the canopy, below is my quick assesment: Packing: Fabric was in "like new" condition, estimated between 200-300 jumps. Still crispy and shiny (sat in a closet since 97). It packed nice and easy, no problems stuffing it into the bag. The previous owner did a good job maintaining it and the canopy retained most of the previous owners folds, making it easier to pack. When packing the first time, I employed the same exact method used for my PD Pulse 150 (nothing special), and had a nice soft opening, on heading. On the second attempt, I got jerked- not to the point of a "hard opening" but less smooth than desired. Slider came flying down over the front risers, and the opening moved left to right and eventually settled in on heading. This could have been because of packing technique, or body position, but I tend to think it was my packing. On the next hand full of jumps, I made sure when quartering the slider to stick the slider nose a little further out to catch air quicker and aid in properly staging the opening. I also did 2-3 gentle rolls of the nose inward and left the center cell visibly hang out. I did not push the nose into the pack job. This arrangement has worked perfectly for me and all of my openings are gentle and on heading. The slider, even if it pops down quickly will not come down so hard that it covers the risers or toggles- which is a common problem with this canopy (as I have read). The slider grommets are larger than the more common #25 grommets most canopies have these days, but are great in their own respect because it has no resistance when moving them over the risers/toggles for a behind the neck slider stow. Another note about my packing technique: I always, even with my Pulse, use a second pull up cord to tie the large rings on my 3-ring system together to make sure the risers stay the same length, which has helped dramatically in my on headings. Openings: Generally pretty great! On heading and soft, if the pack job and body position are in check. Flight: Note: My particular Triathlon's lines are about 5 inches out of trim. WL on Triathlon: 1.24 WL on previous PD Pulse: 1.12 Turns are very gentle- there is no feeling of G-Force even when burying the toggle. Recovery arc seems to be medium- after the toggle returns to full flight you gently settle back into the saddle and the canopy levels out smoothly Glide is good due to its flatter trim, but there is a noticeable sink when compared to the PD Pulse, which can glide FAAAAAAR without any special maneuvering. Rear riser inputs to flatten it out further are noticeable and you can hear the canopy changing its glide when you do this. Control length to me seems medium and the response is medium as well. Front riser inputs respond smoothly and again no feeling of G-Force even when doing multiple rotations. In my experience when you use dual front riser inputs in final approach to land closer to the target you have to yank a little more than expected to get the change you want, but this could be due to my inexperience in accuracy landing or that my canopy is out of trim. Landings: The flare is good and comparable to the PD Pulse. The canopy hasn't popped back up on me, except for once when I caught some extra turbulence before touching down. The stroke is one continuous motion from full flight to flare, just like the Pulse. Similarly, if you flare too low it won't drop you on your ass and you can recover a potentially botched landing and look like a badass when you stand it back up after a little foot drag. The landings are gentle and when compared to the Pulse you are coming at the ground at a noticeably steeper angle, and faster. Random Note: The length of the lines is much shorter than on my Pulse, so when landing the canopy is closer to you. Almost every landing I get a step over or lines caught on my camera, so if possible after landing, grab those fronts and pull the canopy forward, or turn 90 degrees to get it to fall to the side nicely.

My pulse does open very soft. I have heard conflicting opinions about the Tri. My question is basically that I need an explanation of what it means to push the nose into the pack job. Never give up on something you can't go a day without thinking about.

Hello all, I will be switching canopies soon to a Triathlon 7 cell from a PD Pulse. I have been reading up on this canopy and have heard many varying opinions on it. Regardless I will be making the switch and it seems the most common suggestions is either that the nose is "split rolled" and/or "pushed into the pack job." All opinions aside on canopy selection and packing method, can anyone explain to me/point me to a video or other thread on the proper way to split roll the nose and the proper way to push the nose into the pack job. On my Pulse I sometimes will gently roll the nose in and leave the center cell out if I got jerked on an opening, but it seems more critical in this application since many people have said this canopy needs a little more finesse when packing. Thanks for the help! Never give up on something you can't go a day without thinking about.

Great insight!

Thanks for the advice. I'll check this out, this is pretty much what I had in mind. Never give up on something you can't go a day without thinking about.

Also I was just thinking.... The camera itself doesn't have its own viewfinder to have someone line it up to. Never give up on something you can't go a day without thinking about.

"Usually you see the paper asshole though. they're a dime for a million and easily adjustable." What's the "paper asshole?" Lol some unexplored region of myself, so you can say: "he doesn't know his head from his paper asshole." No bud seriously what is the paper asshole? Never give up on something you can't go a day without thinking about.

So I have seen some camera guys who have taped off a rectangle on their helmet's visor that will allow them to compose the shot their camera is seeing while accounting for offset. Does anyone know how to work this out? Never give up on something you can't go a day without thinking about.

FYI 61 degree FOV which means extremely claustrophobic tight shots. GP is 170 i believe and contour+2 is around that as well. So with this you wouldn't get any fisheye effect, however you would likely miss your target constantly. Watch the link at the bottom which was filmed with a Pivothead POV action cam at 70 degree FOV and see what I mean. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XmEKeImTq9E

I think he makes it difficult on himself. After starting a dispute through PayPal, he contacted me about 2 days later and tried to weasel his way out of it. Then when I sent him proof that it wasn't my order and invalidated his other claims he offered to replace the suit. I sent him a couple emails asking questions to which I have yet to receive a reply. I doubt I'll get this done before my trip which was the point of ordering through him in the first place (and to save a few bucks). Never give up on something you can't go a day without thinking about.

I'm definitely a bit on the skinny/lanky side. It's unfortunate. His website offers custom sizing and via email he pledged it as well. Too bad. I'm trying to decide with help from friends whether to keep it or ditch it and dispute the charge on my CC. Would you review the attached pics and let me know what you think of the sizing? Never give up on something you can't go a day without thinking about.

UPDATE: So I ordered my suit about 2 days ago. The communications was great as I described above. EG assured me my suit would be ready in time for my upcoming trip. So I pulled the trigger. 24 hours later I get an email from him with a tracking number for my suit. He said he rushed it out because he would be traveling and wanted to be sure he got it done.24 hours! So I wait 2 days for the priority mail to arrive. I am skeptical obviously and as soon as I open the package my suspicions were confirmed. Wrong colors, missing features, fit was baggy in areas which we previously decided on a tighter fit for speed. The suit is very nice actually. Build quality seems high. However the order is completely wrong. Not to mention the pattern on the coloring program does not reflect the pattern of the actual suit. Also this is confusing because the suit doesn't look like any of the suits from his stock list either, so I am at a complete loss. Awaiting his contact to see about getting a replacement. Never give up on something you can't go a day without thinking about.

Thanks! That clears that up. Would rolling the nose on the canopy for a slower more staged opening lessen the pain? And am I to understand that in BASE when a tracker deploys since there is no time to spare going back to box, they often face very painful openings? Never give up on something you can't go a day without thinking about.

Out of curiosity: When I watch BASE videos online and see the wingsuiters and trackers pull they are almost always pulling while in a horizontally flying position- wingsuiters always. How is this different than in the skydiving environment and if it is the same, how is a proper deployment done when you are in a track/moving forward position? Never give up on something you can't go a day without thinking about.

Just ordered a FF suit from EG tonight (1/28/13). Sent measurements and payment through his website and PayPal. So far my experience has been as follows: -3 days for first response for a random email inquiry from website (definitely a good response time) Still waiting for a response from PhoenixFly about their tracking suit and that was a few days ago as well. -Less than a few hours for all other email correspondences (More than satisfactory) and answered most/all of my questions. -Requested a confirmation of payment and order details and he responded in about a half hour to an hour. This was great because I read this thread after submitting payment and got worried. -Promised turnaround and delivery prior to February 12, 2013 for a February 13th trip. We'll see how that turns out. So far my experience has been pretty positive. And I'm hoping that the suit arrives in time and is worth the money for a first suit. Couldn't see spending $600+ for one of those cool Tonfly suits. I'll repost when I have further details on my EG Sky Suits experience. -Blue Skies Never give up on something you can't go a day without thinking about.

An email from Bermuda's Director of Civil Aviation: Dear Mr. Buffalino, That is not such an odd question. Unfortunately there are no skydiving facilities in Bermuda, nor is there any general aviation, other than corporate aircraft, for you to have a fly around the Island. Being so remote out in the Atlantic, there is not a lot of demand for GA and AvGas is not available. I certainly hope you enjoy your holiday while on our beautiful Island despite this. There are plenty of other activities to keep you busy. Warm wishes & Happy Holidays! Thomas Dunstan Director Bermuda Department of Civil Aviation Never give up on something you can't go a day without thinking about.

Weather forecasts are low-mid 70's which would be great for a 3-4 day vacation right about now, coming from NY. SCUBA or snorkeling is definitely on my list, however I would love to get some much needed air time and it seems like such a waste to go somewhere and not be able to fly.... oh well. Clearly Bermuda needs someone to go there and open a small DZ! Any takers? Never give up on something you can't go a day without thinking about.