bobsoutar
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Everything posted by bobsoutar
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Sounds like everyone is hacked off with your whining. Jumping a huge great tablecloth like that I'm amazed you manage to fall over. Start giving yourself some positive self talk (I am great at landing canopies, landings are easy, I always stand up my landings etc.) Check the brake lines under canopy to make sure they aren't too long for you to flare (should be a foot or so bulging at the back of the canopy - wrap the lines around your hands once or twice to take up any more slack than that or your arms wont be long enough). Practice plenty of flares on your way down and finish with a really nice smooth flare for your landing - that your are great at because you find them so easy etc. etc. - keep looking in front of you, chest forward (toilet position isn't cool!) and just land or walk a step or two if you need to.
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Do you set your brakes as soon as you land? (Be honest.)
bobsoutar replied to Jessica's topic in Gear and Rigging
Virtually always - unless it's windy and the canopy doesnt want to lie down. -
What do you do when you can't read the windsock properly?
bobsoutar replied to NicoNYC's topic in Swooping and Canopy Control
I jumped at a very busy drop zone in Spain where you get the wind direction from the "T". When it gets busy they sometimes fix it in place and take down the windsocks to get everyone landing in the same direction. Watched 3 loads all crashing in doing downwind landings during a Xmas boogie because the wind had shifted 180 degrees (ouch - get me a lawyer!). -
Not necessarily, effectively you are doing a depression turn from a partially stalled canopy (ie with some brakes already applied on both sides). Pulling down a toggle from that setting will cause a fast on-the-spot turn. There are plenty of Sabre 170s around. Measure your lines up against another one and see (technicians do get it wrong occasionally and are usually only too happy to admit it and put things right).
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Not sure of the reason, perhaps it just sets you up better for the angle that the canopy is flying. Definately works though!
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Sounds like you're sorted. Be careful with the retractable rings as it is easy to find the bridle line wrongly routed and also to get bits of canopy caught in them when you are putting it into the bag (assuming you are using one). I use a clothes peg on the outside of the bag to hold the bridle line tight and the rings together and then take it off after stowing the rigging lines.
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Sure! I did my first 700+ jumps on an F111 and the Stilletto took a bit of learning afterwards (but probably only 20-30 jumps). Point is that most people do grow out of canopies pretty quickly between 20 and 150 jumps, you can pick up an F111 without spending a fortune and drop in a smaller ZP canopy (if you feel the need) when you have the experience to fork out for something you will be happy with for a longer time.
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Whatever suits you right now you will grow out of in the next 100 jumps. F111 packs up smaller than ZP. Consider buying a rig with a PD170 (or similar F111 canopy) in it - buzz around on that for 70 or 80 jumps. By then you will have a better idea of what you want and can buy a ZP150 that will fit straight into your container and still allow you to downsize again later on.
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Had my third one last week (spinner under an Extreme FX this time). Was cool, calm and methodical on all three but felt shaky afterwards when I got time to reflect and relive the experience. First one was good for confidence, next two were a pain in the ass!
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Sound like your brake lines are way too short. Rule of thumb is that the length of your brake loops to the toggles should be about the same length as your risers. I would get them checked by a rigger to be sure and then lengthened or replaced.
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Do some practice pulls lying face down on the ground and a couple more in freefall before pulling nice and high (I always open a new canopy above 5,000 first time). Under canopy try steering with risers before you take the brakes off. Then release the brakes, find the stall point a couple of times and then practice a few flares. Check your alti and do some 180 & 360 toggle turns -- check your alti after each one as well so you know how much height you lose. Now try some flat turns - go into half brakes and ease up one toggle and pull it back down to stop the turn - now check to see how much height you lost this time. Should be enough for your first one. Now find a nice big area to land in, turn in for final approach at 500', quarter brakes or full drive and a smooth flare -- aim to step down the last foot as you are used to landing a slightly larger canopy up to now. Have fun & good luck.
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I've got an FX loaded at 1.9. Never opened hard but had really squirrelly openings when I first got it as the pilot chute was too big and the bridle line was too long. I now have a 21" zp pilot chute (Icarus recommend between 18"-22" depending on the canopy size) and a 5' bridle line on a pull-out system. I also psycho pack it and have had nice openings ever since.
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Yep! And consider getting 2 sets of blocks put on the front risers - close to the top and about half way down (that way you can bell pull and twist them to suit the situation).
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Try Tommo at Weston on the Green - he got me a PC9 for £625.
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Tubes are fun and easy. Lie in the door with your legs outside the plane and your butt on the edge. Other guy faces the door with legs astride your chest and takes a firm grip on each of your legs (grips or a chunk of material). You take a similar grip on your partners legs (doesn't matter where but if you both grip at about the same place it helps). Guy standing up rolls out of the door pulling you out as well. Hold on for a while as the speed builds up and then both drop a left (or right) grip and you will spin like crazy, let go with the other hand and you will be thrown well clear of each other. This is a fun jump and has no other merit except that it is a fun and can be done with more than 2 people. Enjoy!
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Effect of aging on F-111 flare and stall question
bobsoutar replied to dterrick's topic in Swooping and Canopy Control
Your rigger is right. Bin it and get yourself on something else. A 170 sounds about the right size to go for and there are plenty of good canopies out there at that size - demo a few betofe you decide and check that it will go into your bag/container ok as zp packs up bigger than your f111. -
Thanks all! Rigs & Things got it - ordered yesterday for $1279.20.
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Hi Michele You probably wont notice very much of a difference - bit more responsive, bit more stable, bit faster to land. Pick a day with a little wind and just open up at about 8-10,000ft and play around with it - you will soon get used to any differences. Don't worry about changing your landing pattern, choose a fairly big safe place to land and use the pattern you are used to. Canopy school is a really good way to improve or maybe see if you can get someone on radio to talk you through your first landing or two.
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Is my rig's bit too big for me? Yes!
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Works for me too although I try to glide in a touch higher just in case I do get bumped down a couple of feet. Probably worth mentioning that we are still talking about x-braced and tri-braced canopies.
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May well be. They are quoting retail as $1600.
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Just passing on what I was told by the rigger for the Red Devils before I put blocks and wrap onto my CRW risers.
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You may be right. It's a brand new canopy from Germany. We have only just got them in the UK 2-3 weeks ago.
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I prefer to use single stows for the mouthlock (actually tube stows) and if they are too big just fit smaller ones. You may well be getting slower openings because of friction on the slider grommets. Also because the bag and lines are heavier than they used to be, the pilot chute has more work to do. You could try a slightly larger pilot chute or leave some extra line unstowed in the bottom of your container.
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Thanks for the info Will, better than the $1450 + tax that Square One are quoting! Going to California 'cos we fancied it and got non-stop return tickets with Virgin for £242 (may try Florida next year).