shropshire 0 #1 April 27, 2008 QuoteA Swiss amateur parachutist made a successful drop using a replica of a parachute designed over 500 years ago, by Leonardo da Vinci. clicky (.)Y(.) Chivalry is not dead; it only sleeps for want of work to do. - Jerome K Jerome Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
MajorDad 0 #2 April 27, 2008 The Story.... ----------------------------------------------------- Swiss jumps using Leonardo da Vinci-designed parachute 1 day ago PAYERNE, Switzerland (AFP) — A 36-year-old Swiss amateur parachutist made a successful 650-metre (2,130-foot) drop Saturday using a replica of a parachute designed more than 500 years ago by Leonardo da Vinci. "I came down... smack in the middle of the tarmac at Payerne military airport," said Olivier Vietti-Teppa. "A perfect jump." Vietti-Teppa is the first person to have made it safely to the ground with the Leonardo model. In 2000, Britain's Adrian Nicholas tried it but had to pull the ripcord on a modern backup parachute to complete his descent safely. Vietti-Teppa jumped from a hovering helicopter and the Leonardo parachute opened at 600 metres, he reported. The parachute he used was made using modern fabric along lines designed by the Renaissance genius. The specifications were found in a text dating from 1485. The parachute consists of four equilateral triangles, seven metres on each side, made of parachute fabric, Vietti-Teppa explained. The base of the pyramid is a square of mosquito net, which enables the parachute to open. A wooden frame originally conceived by da Vinci was not used on the model in action on Saturday. One drawback: it is impossible to manoeuvre or steer the Leonardo parachute. "You come down at the whim of the wind," said Vietti-Teppa, who carried out advance tests using a scale dummy model launched from a remote-controlled model helicopter. Major Dad CSPA D-579 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
LouDiamond 1 #3 April 27, 2008 This was done by Adrian Nichols several years ago(2002). It's very well documented on the IMAX movie Adrenaline Rush: the Science of Risk. I believe the reason for cutting away was due to the fact that they used the actual materials described in the text and as such had large wooden beams in the frame."It's just skydiving..additional drama is not required" Some people dream about flying, I live my dream SKYMONKEY PUBLISHING Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
MajorDad 0 #4 April 27, 2008 The Adrenaline Rush Imax film is out in DVD and did a great job telling how Adrian prepared and did the jump. He never intended to land it since the 80-some pounds of wood above him probably would have left a mark. Major Dad CSPA D-579 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
CazmoDee 3 #5 April 28, 2008 In the opening sequence, where they are free flying in the keys, you can see my old house! Looks like they were using the airstrip on lower Sugarloaf. There's a tandem operation there, behind the Sugarloaf lodge. I really miss that place.I'm behind the bar at Sloppy Joe's....See ya in the Keys! Muff 4313 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
kallend 2,106 #6 April 28, 2008 DaVinci's design had a rigid frame if I recall correctly. It didn't look as if the parachute in the clip had any frame at all. Rather like claiming to fly a replica of the Wright Flyer, but using a jet engine for power and C182 wings.... The only sure way to survive a canopy collision is not to have one. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Grips 0 #7 April 28, 2008 Is there a video of this anywhere? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
shropshire 0 #8 April 28, 2008 The clicky in my OP? (.)Y(.) Chivalry is not dead; it only sleeps for want of work to do. - Jerome K Jerome Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Grips 0 #9 April 28, 2008 Quote The clicky in my OP? I thought it was a link to just the article. This is nothing like the original! Big deal. The one in IMAX Adrenaline Rush is built to Da Vinci's specs. This is crap. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
piisfish 140 #10 April 28, 2008 They stated that it was built at Leo Da Vinci's parachute size etc.. More like building a Wright Flyer out of carbon and glass fiber. Evidently, what the whuffos see is "he jumped Leo's chute". What the skydivers see is "Why The F*ck does he need a Phoenix Fly track suit to do a static line jump" Congrats anyways Olivier. Good way to get free jumps in unusual places and get a couple of minutes of fame, massive TV and press coverage (at least in our part of Europe), and even a thread in the skydiving on DZ.com (could have been Bonfire... or Speaker's corner) P.S. The Adrian Nicholas jump is also stated in the press coverage scissors beat paper, paper beat rock, rock beat wingsuit - KarlM Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
virgin-burner 1 #11 April 28, 2008 but at least, he landed it!“Some may never live, but the crazy never die.” -Hunter S. Thompson "No. Try not. Do... or do not. There is no try." -Yoda Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
piisfish 140 #12 April 28, 2008 it is much wiser to NOT land an 80 kg parachute when it is guaranteed it will land on your head. It is fun to jump a modernised version of an antique parachute. It is funner to jump the exact replica IMHO. And I am really happy for Olivier.scissors beat paper, paper beat rock, rock beat wingsuit - KarlM Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
tbrown 26 #13 April 28, 2008 I think this is a cool way of taking the experiment one step beyond Adrian Nichols' accomplishment. It makes you wonder WHAT Leonardo was doing with his weekends, because his hang glider has also been tested and flown successfully. All they had to do to the hang glider was hang a kite-like tail on it and it flew beautifully. One other reconstruction I'd like to see would be Jacque Andre Garnerin's wooden parachute from 1793. Garnerin cut himself away from a balloon over Paris and successfully landed the thing. The only casualties were a number of ladies in the crowd who reportedly fainted from the excitement. Garnerin jumped his parachute something like five times before something went wrong and he went in (BSBD). Garnerin's canopy was said to be very unstable and to have oscillated wildly, so between that and wooden construction, it would definitely call for a cutaway rather than a planned landing. But it would be cool for some skydiving history buff to try. Beatnik ? Your humble servant.....Professor Gravity ! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Sletzer 3 #14 April 29, 2008 That guy was really ballzy, really crazy, or really both. I can't imagine being one of the first to try out the "parachute", let alone a wooden one. I'm going to have to read more on the beginnings of this sport. Stangely enough, I know next to nothing about its origins hundreds of years ago. Anyone know a good book about the start of it all?I will be kissing hands and shaking babies all afternoon. Thanks for all your support! *bows* SCS #8251 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
