nbblood

Yeah, maybe hypoxia is not the term I'm looking for. What I do know is after that rapid ascent I wasn't exactly feeling "normal". Whatever it does to you, it is somewhat disorienting, I know from experience. I imagine it would affect individuals differently too. Nathan Blues, Nathan If you wait 'til the last minute, it'll only take a minute.

Actually, I'm at Camp Red Cloud, close to Casey though, and yes, sadly, the DZ there has closed. Blues Nathan Blues, Nathan If you wait 'til the last minute, it'll only take a minute.

ROFLMAO.....sorry JT that was funny. As far as Mesquite goes, if it helps any, the travel time to Mesquite as opposed to the "local" DZs at Vegas is negligible, and Mesquite is much better. I agree with JT, wouldn't go to the Vegas DZs personally. Bus and train were good options....also might want to check airfares. You'd be surprised what you can fly in and out of Vegas for. Might be able to find a 1 way to LA for as little as $39 if you get the timing right. Check out Southwest Airlines, they've got those deals going quite a bit around that area. Just ideas. Blues, Nathan Blues, Nathan If you wait 'til the last minute, it'll only take a minute.

As far as SLV goes, those that have been in that area know the DZ is well known for its dirty politics and less than cordial attitude to fun jumpers. However, I've heard the DZ recently changed owners, maybe it'll change. As far as fastest jumpship, I know I've been from the ground to 12000 AGL in 4 minutes in a Blackhawk helicopter. Don't think the King Airs are gonna keep up with that. On the other hand, don't know of any DZs that are operating Blackhawks either. Also, it wasn't exactly a fun ride and hypoxia could be more of an issue at that rapid of an ascent. Maybe someday DZs will have Blackhawks though. With seats out it'd be a great jump ship. Exit both sides, big doors, rapid ascent, 20 or so jumpers with seats out, would be cool. Oh, I take it back, I do know a DZ that operates a Blackhawk.....Fort Campbell Sport Parachute Activity. Of course you have to have a DOD ID card to use that DZ.......I'll tell you how it is when I get there.....lol Blues, Nathan Blues, Nathan If you wait 'til the last minute, it'll only take a minute.

Being in the military, I've not only traveled to other countries, I've had the "opportunity" to reside for a length of time in a few. List includes, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Canada, Mexico, Ireland, France, and currently Korea, for various lengths of time. Some of theses places I don't ever care to see again and hope I don't. Others have some fantastic qualities, particularly or brothers and sisters to the north!! However, when all is said and done nobody will ever get me to leave the US. Also, some of these countries bring rapid realization to just what freedom means. I won't point out which ones I particularly hate(d), but some on this list I would never willingly visit again for one reason or another. Nathan Blues, Nathan If you wait 'til the last minute, it'll only take a minute.

If I read this right, I don't think this is the criticism. Rather I think the criticism is for the folks that think, "Because I have an AAD, I can do anything in the sky I can think of, regardless of risk, because if I fail, the AAD will save me." This is the mentality I believe is criticized, and in my opinion, rightly so. I have Cypreses in my rigs and always use them and turn them on. However, if my Cypres were turned in for maintenance, I would go ahead and jump the rig anyway. Also, if my AAD ever fired because of my failure to take appropriate action, I would seriously reconsider my ability to continue in the sport. It is merely an insurance policy and should make no difference in my actions and is not an excuse for my actions. Just my .02. Blues. Nathan Blues, Nathan If you wait 'til the last minute, it'll only take a minute.

That's exactly what happened on the one I caught. Different DZ though. Nathan Blues, Nathan If you wait 'til the last minute, it'll only take a minute.

Amen to that. I've got a Mindwarp for my camera helmet and it was a pain in the ass to get everything right on it. Plus, by the time I got the chincup and top mount for it I was into it more than if I'd bought the Optik in the first place. Learned my lesson. Besides, the Optik has flat mounts for both side and top mounts, so if you ever want to go top mount, it's ready. It's like Dave said, by the time you get the chincup for the Mindwarp, it's already better to get the Optik. Blues. Nathan Blues, Nathan If you wait 'til the last minute, it'll only take a minute.

Unfortunately they happen more often than they should. I only have 230ish jumps and I have 3 chest strap saves, a PC nearly out of BOC (would've almost certainly been a premature) save, and ......yes......1 did not wear rig at all save. Unbelievable, the last one. I'm sure somebody would've noticed if I hadn't, but you never know. I also carry a spare pair of goggles and have given them and my wrist altimeter a couple times to jumpers that forgot. I too, am always checking whether people realize it or not. And, I must confess, I've forgotten goggles and altimeter a time or two myself (hence the extra pair in the pocket of my jumpsuits). Never something like a chest strap, though. I'd never feel dimed out by somebody wanting to check me out. I always check myself out, but it never hurts to double-check. Blues. Nathan Blues, Nathan If you wait 'til the last minute, it'll only take a minute.

Personally, I agree that it is much better for skydivers to regulate themselves as opposed to the FAA stepping in. Also, I've seen canopy pilots that have no business jumping their current canopies. They're not only a danger to themselves, they're a danger to others in the sky around them. I try to keep in mind that any decision I make not only affects me, it affects the other skydivers around me, either directly or indirectly. I wish everybody would too. I support this letter, if not for the individuals making canopy choices, then for other skydivers and me that may suffer the consequences of their decisions. Personally, I also look forward to canopy courses and instruction. I consider myself a safe canopy pilot, but I always welcome feedback and instruction. It makes me better. If that costs me $$, that's fine too. Blues, Nathan Blues, Nathan If you wait 'til the last minute, it'll only take a minute.

Nope, it's fixed. If you want flip-up the Oxygn is made by Sky Systems (same company that makes Factory Diver). Z1 is another good option by Parasport Italia. Blues. Nathan Blues, Nathan If you wait 'til the last minute, it'll only take a minute.

Ok, I'm paying attention. If you do work out the dual color thing, and get some black. I'm definitely interested in Royal Blue and Black dual color. Let me know when you get around to it. Blues. Nathan Blues, Nathan If you wait 'til the last minute, it'll only take a minute.

First of all I don't have that many jumps, so there's plenty more experienced advice out there. I started trying to sitfly around 50 jumps and realized that it is very easy to get disoriented when trying to learn. You can end up all over the sky. So I went back to belly flying for a while. Then about 150 jumps or so I got more serious about it. The difference I noticed in that time was my awareness, both of what I was doing and what others were doing around me. Ask yourself this "At pull time do I know where the group that exited before me is? The group that exited after me? Do you know what direction jump run was in? If the answer to any of these is "no", I'd wait until you had that level of awareness. As far as learning to sitfly, I found I too was "flipflying"....that makes me laugh, I can relate. I also call it "freeflailing". Anyway, I found myself traveling large distances in the sky without realizing how or why. Thus, always set yourself up perpendicular to line of flight to prevent moving into groups in front or behind you. Maintain your awareness of where they are. When you don't know, time to figure it out. I tried for about 10 jumps of "freeflailing" and just one day I finally "got it". Once I felt it it wasn't that hard at all. Then it was on to learning to fly it rather than just be in a sit, i.e., forward/backward movement, turns, fall rates. I didn't find it that difficult, once I could stay stable. I did several coach jumps that really helped. Helps keep you oriented on what you're doing too, i.e., backsliding, corking, whatever. Bottom line, maintain awareness. Talk to the guys at your DZ, have your gear checked out for freeflying, get a coach jump. Blues. Nathan Blues, Nathan If you wait 'til the last minute, it'll only take a minute.

Yeah, they just recently updated their website and said they're doing 16 week productions as of now. We'll see, I know they tend to take a while, but it'll be worth the wait! Blues. Nathan Blues, Nathan If you wait 'til the last minute, it'll only take a minute.

Command Launch Unit- Now give em shit if they don't know and some Artillery guy does. I've got some Javelin videos....oh, wait, you're not doing Skydiving classes, you're doing tank killer classes. Serious, though, the Division Javelin master gunner works for me. He may have some good video and stuff for you too. PM me and I'll get you in touch with him. Sorry, can't help with the "bodies" video. I'll check around though. Blues. Nathan Blues, Nathan If you wait 'til the last minute, it'll only take a minute.

Ok, the decision's been made. I just ordered my new Odyssey. I used this rig as a "model". Mine will be close, except where there is purple in this pic, mine will be royal blue, the white pinstriping will be silver. Hip and chest rings, tie-dye handles, spacer foam backpad, mini-risers, the works. Got the countdown going, 16 weeks and counting. God, I can't wait!!!! Blues. Nathan Blues, Nathan If you wait 'til the last minute, it'll only take a minute.

Skyjuggler- Great link, very enlightening, thanks. Sorts stores by highest ratings then you can skim through the price ranges, very user friendly and useful info. Freeflir-Let us know when you get the camera, I'd be interested in knowing how they follow through, that's a pretty good price. I've got a PC101, but for that price I'd think about getting a new one. Blues. Nathan Blues, Nathan If you wait 'til the last minute, it'll only take a minute.

It happens, and I agree with all the above, best to sit it out. Besides packing, one thing I did during weathered out days.....study incident reports. Find out what hurts/kills people in this sport. Learn the lessons. Ask questions. I printed out all the incident reports for the past however many years and went over each and every one of them. When I had questions I asked my instructor. When I thought I knew how to avoid a particular incident, I ran my solution by the instructor. Tough lessons to learn the hard way, much easier on the ground with an instructor. Blues. Nathan Blues, Nathan If you wait 'til the last minute, it'll only take a minute.

Ok, got my attention. Where's this? How do I contact? Thanks. Nathan Blues, Nathan If you wait 'til the last minute, it'll only take a minute.

Yeah, what they said. Look, if you still don't get it you might need to talk to your instructor about it. Get the visual, that might help. Nathan Blues, Nathan If you wait 'til the last minute, it'll only take a minute.

Yeah, I see what your saying. Makes sense to me. I think going back to the original post, if the Cypres is out of date, the reserve repack is out of date. If that's the case, the rigger won't repack the reserve with an out of date Cypres and a responsible DZ won't let the jumper jump with an out of date reserve repack. Therefore, the answer is get the Cypres maintenance done, or remove the Cypres for repack, whatever you decide. Blues, Nathan Blues, Nathan If you wait 'til the last minute, it'll only take a minute.

Aaah, I see what you're saying....jumper has gone past the 120 day repack cycle......now that I agree with, in that case I don't think the rigger could be liable. Of course, I'm not a lawyer either.....lol Blues, Nathan If you wait 'til the last minute, it'll only take a minute.

Here's my Javelin. Not an Odyssey, but the colors and panels are basically the same. I got the tie-dye cutaway handle too and I like it. I'm just about to order an Odyssey myself, so I'll be interested to see what others post as well. Blues. Nathan Blues, Nathan If you wait 'til the last minute, it'll only take a minute.

I've got a PC101 and I love it. They can be had for around $500 US on eBay. If you're looking for a less expensive option than the PC105, that could be one. Blues. Nathan Blues, Nathan If you wait 'til the last minute, it'll only take a minute.

I know my rigger checks the data card before he accepts a rig for repack. It has the Cypres info on it (DOM, when batteries were replaced, when last serviced). I know he will NOT pack a reserve with a Cypres that is not current. He WILL take it out and repack if you so desire. I'm not an rigger, and I really don't know for sure, but I was led to believe that riggers are liable for packing a Cypres that is not current. Anybody else? Can anybody reference the FAA reg on this? Blues. Nathan Blues, Nathan If you wait 'til the last minute, it'll only take a minute.