miked10270

Hi there, Yeah, velcroless toggles are the way to go for low maintenance. One small point, if you're going to do CReW then velcro toggles are better - that way you can stick them on your risers while docking so you don't have a loose toggle that could catch on other kit. Mike D10270.

Hi Frogger, though it pains me to say it, don't buy a Wonderhog unless you're getting into jumping "historic" kit. They (and copies) were manufactured until the mid 1980's and the design is best described as "dated" (that's polite speak for glaring design shortcomings compared to more modern rigs). Personally I gave my old Wonderhog away to a small aeronautic museum. They're only adequate for belly-flying (read positively dangerous for anything else) and at that age will need quite a lot of maintenance to stay airworthy. I got sick of having to replace grommets & stiffeners at every reserve repack. There is far far better kit available even budget secondhand. I'd recommend you keep looking. Mike D10270.

Hi there, I'm using a Tri 175 Hybrid as a casual CReW canopy. It takes a smoooooth 3 seconds to open no matter what I do with it!!! At the moment I'm "Wolmari" packing it with the nose out, the tail not rolled (actually spread at the base) and the slider pulled back from the nose!!! Short of collapsing the slider when packing I can't see how I can get it open faster! It did bang open once, but that was put down to the slider not being all the way up. Controlability: It does exactly what yopu tell it to. at 1.25:1 you still have the choice if hurtling in on full drive & front riser and surfing it feeling your way through the flare OR coming in steep on half brakes and "jerking" the flare for a pinpoint landing. It may not be the best canopy in any particular field, but it IS Sooooooo versatile. Mike D10270.

Hi JC, Yeah... if it's in good condition then sell it. The Talon is still a decent container and there's nothing wrong woth a Raven reserve. The main could always be changed for something more modern by the new owner but that is up to them. The biggie is to be honest in what you're selling and to make sure it's still in a condition to be safe! Apart from that, this is the sort of kit which will fly around newly qualified jumpers for a while 'cos it's stopped depreciating. It actually makes sense for a newly qualified skydiver to get old (BUT SAFE) kit while they're transitioning to somethng they'll settle with. I assume you bought the kit and used it as you got off student status and now you have something hotter. Time to pass it on to the next generation. Mike D10270. PS. As for converting it to a BASE Rig, these are now kind of specialised (and the safer for it). If you want to get into BASE, then get a purpose rig AND GET COACHED/TRAINED. BASE isn't skydiving and the skills are different... Similar, but different.

Hi Craig, First off I do dabble in CReW, but that isn't the sole reason against RSLs. I hve actually caught a misrouted RSL on a FL check - It had been disconnected last jump and then re-connected but now THROUGH the harness ring. Yes, I know it seems a stupid & impossible mistake, but does anyone want to give odds on the RSL not keeping the cutaway main in tow if it had been used? Next, picture the scenario: poor seperation after freefall and a wrap/entanglement. depending on the mechanics of the problem, are you SURE of being able to disconnect your RSL and stow it so it doesn't catch as you chop? Next scenario; I saw a first time student go out on, check canopy and next thing her reserve PC was out! turns out she pulled the tag on her RSL mistaking it for a steering toggle!! We do have a confidential reporting system here in the UK and there have been NUMEROUS reports of riggers finding misrouted RSLs during kit checks & repacks! Let's face it, does every skydiver do the routine maintenance on their rig that they're supposed to? Like at least once a month dismantling the 3-ring and flexing the webbing so the nylon doesn't "set"? There have been occasions where one riser has released before the other and if that's the riser the RSL is attached to... IMHO htere is ONE way to activate your reserve, that's to pull the reserve handle (usually after cutaway).Cypres is there for the non-conscious skydiver who would otherwise "burn-in". Where a RSL has made the (50ft) difference in a LOW cutaway, then personally I would have to question the individual skydivers thoughts & actions in cutting away so low! Just my $0.02 Mike D10270.

Hi there, A couple of things strike me on this post: Firstly, line twists are more of a nuisance than a malfunction (apart from high wing loading ellipticals). Like stuck sliders and closed end cells they are fixable. Personally, I'd define a malfunction as something not fixable without some drastic action like reserve drills or cutting a line with a knife. Secondly (and perhaps both my soapbox & I should apologise) I am against the RSL. Firstly, it is a mindless device that will pull your reserve pin as the attached main riser is pulled away from your harness whether you want the reserve out or not. This can cause more problems than it solves and as I've already said, if the Cypres was invented 15 years earlier the RSL would not have seen the light of day! An RSL is one more thing on your rig and as such is one more thing to go wrong! For example, any riggers out there who've found a misrouted RSL on a reserve repack? Just my $0.02 Mike D10270.

Hi Jacko, Well, Dave & Rob have just about covered it... BOC Hand Deploy IS the way to go. In the 1980's Pullout had advantages over the other deployment choices, namely hand deploy from belly-band (thankfully long since banned) and ROL (rear of legstrap). Both required the bridle to be routed from container to pocket with quite a bit of velcro (which wore through time. In the 1990's, better spandex for the pocket (and a bit of "eureka" moved the hand deploy to the bottom of the container and we finally had a deployment system which gave us all the advantages of both pull-out & hand deploy with none of the disadvantages (unless you count not being able to actually see the deployment handle when you reach for it). I suspect that the "5%" of new rigs still sold with pullout are to skydivers who have jumped pullout for years & don't want to change deployment device at this stage in ther carreers. I also suspect that when their rig changes hands it's not long before it's converted to BOC H/D. Mike D10270.

In an aircraft emergency we get to go call for help, that's why we have parachutes . Seriously, if it's genuine then look to the JM if one is nominated, failing that look to the most experienced local on the lift. If you're the JM then you should look to the pilot. DON'T just automatically make your decision based on your alti reading. Apart from Holland, many DZs have hills or mountains nearby and unless you KNOW EXACTLY where you are, then just because your alti says 1,500ft that doesn't mean that you're that high above the ground, it means you're that high above the DZ. ALso appreciate that in a genuine emergency the aircraft is unlikely to be directly over (or even near) the DZ. In most cases, the pilot will want you out, but there are situations where the pilot will want weight in the aircraft and remember the object of the exercise is to get the whole lift (including the aircraft & pilot) down as safe as possible. If you are going out, then can I suggest that under 8,000ft you do a clear & pull, or at least open by 7,000ft. The reason for this is that as I said previously the aircraft is unlikely to be over the DZ and you're probably going to regret opening at 2,000ft only to find yourself over something like "The World's Largest Alligator Farm"!! Seriously, while it may entail a LONG canopy ride, altitude translates into time & hence into distance in these situations and this gives you the best chance of making it back to the DZ (to get help, remember ) or to scope out somewhere nice & safe & civilised to land. This brings me quite neatly to another subject close to my heart - outlandings. A pullup and a couple of bungees in my jumpsuit pocket ahve saved me a fair amount of discomfort on the walk back from outlandings - land, trashpack (enough to get the rig closed) and then you're just carrying your rig instead of the canopy still open - just don't spend 45 minutes on the super-neat pack job, a decent DZO will have folk out looking for you. One tale springs to mind from a few years back at a North England DZ. It started with a MAJOR outlanding (like 2 miles) which was only saved by landing near a pub. In go our 2 heroes and they know the barman. Well, there's only one thing to do in a situation like that... Have a pint. Unfortunately, the search party didn't know our heroes well enough and drive around looking over walls and into fields instead of in pubs (don't send non-skydivers out on searches)! Anyway, 2 pints later (that's about 45 minutes), our heroes notice familiar looking cars hurtling up & down the road past the pub and decide that it would be a good idea to 'phone the DZ... but they don't have any money (notice that didn't stop them drinking). They're finally found about 10 minutes later by one of their wives/girlfriends who's greeted with a request to settle their bar bill (well, they couldn't leave without paying). Mike D10270.

Hi there, Can I suggest a small rule to stop the bitching: If you have a good experience at a DZ other than your own, then tell us by posting it. If you have a bad experience, then tell the DZO. If Sangiro refuses to accept reviews of a skydivers home DZ, the through time we should be able to get "some warning" if the DZ doesn't have any reviews. Meanwhile, let's keep it constructive. Mike D10270.

Hi Xpert, BTW... do you know the "phonetic" definition of expert: It's split into syllables with "X" defined as the unknown factor, and "spurt" defined as a drip under pressure!! ANyway, back to replying to your post. Firstly I'd say yeah, go for the transfer to get the low APR, at least for the intro period but get ready to change as soon as the attractive intro expires. There's a saying that the person who stays with the same credit card company for more than 6 months to a year is a fool. The credit card issuers WANT your business and hence the attractive intro offers. They rely on "customer inertia" for you to stay with them once they get back to charging you their normal rate. The donation the card issuer makes to the USPA is minimal (unless you're leasing a Gulfstream IV on your VISA). Finally, the card isn't issued by USPA, it's issued by a bank. The bank will be as sympathetic to a skydivers needs as any other bank & the fact you're using a "USPA Card" won't change that. Hope this helps, Mike D10270.

Hi there, Firstly I should say that while I'm Pro-RSL for students, I'm anti RSL for anyone off student status. My reasons for this are that there is ONLY ONE WAY to activate your reserve, that's by pulling your reserve handle! A RSL (does anyone stil call them a Stevens Lanyard?) is a mindless device. If you cut away a malfunction of sufficiently high drag then the RSL will pull your reserve pin as the main canopy departs WHETHER YOU WANT IT TO OR NOT! Canopy entanglements (collisions) can & do happen and not just on CReW. Poor seperation on an FS or FF dive and an off heading opening and there you are in a wrap or entanglement. At this point you may not be able to disconnect your RSL, but you can't chop until you have or you're risking being tangled/wrapped but now under your reserve! If the Cypres had been invented 15 years earlier then we wouldn't be having this discussion - The RSL would never have been developed! Practise your reserve drills often (at least before each skydive). Try to picture yourself in a canopy collision and think about seperating the reserve pull from the cutaway for a second or two. Just my $0.02, Mike D10270.

HI Stevie, Give Alan Hewitt at Sky Science a 'phone on 01980 844130.

BTW, Just a salutary tale about a Pro audible user... Guy was suspected of opening low (wearing a Pro-Dytter / similar) and the enuing conversation: DZ Controller: "Did'nt you pull low?" Skydiver: "No!" DZC: "Yes you did." S: "No I didn't!" DZC: "Lets see your helmet." S: "Here." DZC: "This (pro Audible) says 1,400ft... You're grounded."

Hi All, WHile we're doing commercials for audibles, let's not forget the humble "Time-Out". Cheap and relatively simple. OK, it doesn't interface with your PC, ti doesn't tell you how fast you went, how long you fell etc... WHat it does is sound off at your pre-selected (stop playing) height, then at 2,500ft (deploy NOW) & at 1,500ft (do something or DIE!!!). At the end of the day, this is the basic function of an audible alti & I like the way that the two lower settings are permanently set (so they can't be accidentally changed). One word of caution, don't let your audible take over from your sense of altitude/time or your visual alti - audibles come third in knowing how high you are! Mike D10270.

Two things strike me from this thread: 1. I smoke and I skydive but I don't really link the two (Zippos might CLAIM to be windproof but I've never managed to "spark up" in freefall). 2. Pity the poor cops... They can't score dope from a supplier so they have to rely on what they manage to confiscate. Remember the Drug Squad motto: "We can get the same conviction with half of this!" Mike D10270.

Hi Venwood, I'm with Pammi on this, skydiving is a very Darwinian sport (survival of the least stupid). It's not the low hook turns that kill, it's when someone moves beyond their experience and capability that they get hurt or killed. Currency, frequency & experience are everything in skydiving - the guy with 5,000+ jumps doing 1,000+ a year is going to be able to low hook and loooooooooooong surf his sub 100ft2 elliptical, and look cool & in control while doing it. The weekend/casual jumper with 500 jumps at 50-60 a year is going to kill him (or her) self if they try to emulate the "skygod's" actions. This isn't about being safe, if we were going to minimise personal risk then we wouldn't be skydiving. It's about keeping calm and making a realistic risk assessment of what you plan to do based on your skill, currency & experience. Mike D10270.

Does it matter how an individual pronounces it? Diversity is what makes life interesting... Diversity also confirms the superiority of those of us in the mother country over the colonials (former, present & future) and Foreigners. Let's face it, if everyone spoke properly and acted correctly then it would be almost impossible for the British to distinguish one another from "Johnny Dago" when abroard! Tee - Hee! MikeD10270.

Hi Jacko, Firstly, congratulations on being able to say no. Secondly, there is a group in the skydiving community, let's call them the "Death-Defying-Devil-Divers" who feel they're missing something if they're not living life at what they see as "Full-Throttle". So they're going to (claim) to skydive hard and then party hard! I suppose they see it as a lifestyle choice, believe me, most see it as the noisy, obnoxious group at the end of the bar. Don't get me wrong, I've nothing against "social drinking", a beer or two at the end of the day for those who can drink AND stop. The difference between those guys and you is that you know your limits and they don't. Don't get sucked in to the "one beer" idea, stick to the company of those who can understand you (personally I'd sooner be in the company of ladies and sober than swapping heroic tales with a bunch of burping drunks). Skydiving is intense enough - there's really no substitute for adrenaline for a buzz. Regards, Mike D10270.

Yeah.. Life isn't fair. if this was Hertz or Delta we'd have all gotten a free upgrade by now!

Modern Manners for Skydivers: Only fart in an ascending elevator if it's climbing at over 1,000ft/min. Point out to Whuffos that if this WAS a skydiving "lift" then you could open the door!

Hey Sis, Would this work?: You form a company - "Freaksister Incorporated" that err... sells things (or something!?). This company needs to advertise right? So it needs an advertising budget! What better advertising than by skydiving? I suppose that this means that ALL your skydiving costs would be tax-deductible (at least in theory????). Aletrnatively.... Do abducted kids count for tax allowances? Mike D10270.

Hi there, You missed one: You're in an elevator and as it starts to descend you instinctively ARCH!! Mike D10270.

Hi there, Just for the avoidance of doubt, "Foot & Mouth Disease" affects animals, not stupid politicians (you know... the ones who open their mouths only to put their foot in it!!). Yeah... most DZs in the UK are on farmland and there are rumours of one UK DZ being closed due to this outbreak :-(. Some other DZs are closing voluntarily at least this weekend. While this is disappointing, let's take the long view on this. While this disease is tragic for the animals, there is also the farmers livelihood to consider, and their reaction to off-landings (particularly into a field where there are beasts) would be serious - and reasonably so. As such, we have the opportunity to do the image of our sport in the eyes of our neighbours some small good, or irreparable harm. While "Farmer McNasty" seems to be a cariacture neighbour of almost all UK DZs, this situation is usually exacerbated by past experience of some "arrogant" skydiver "worrying" his investment - let's face it, if it were a dog making his animals stampede instead of a skydiver landing, he would be within his rights to shoot the dog. Right now, the farming community is somewhat tense. The last thing a farmer needs, having placed disinfection points at all the entrances & exits to his farm, is some skydiver (whose origin & infection status he doesn't know) landing in his fields or among his beasts. If a skydiver were to so land, & the farm subsequently suffered infection, then guess who would get the blame regardless!!! Remember people, we're all ambassadors to our sport (whether we like it or not) and we're all potential embarrassments to skydiving. When we get it right no-one notices... When we get it wrong then everyone notices. Mike D10270.

You missed the biggie... KEEP DRINKING!! If you know you're going to be suffering in the morning, then you may as well make it worthwhile!

Hi there, For those of you who're carrying your rig as hand-luggage (& have an evil sense of humour... OK.. humor!!) try recycling the old joke: Whuffo: What's in the bag? Skygod: My Parachute... Why, didn't the check-in give you one as well?