SEREJumper

Thanks for sharing! We're not fucking flying airplanes are we, no we're flying a glorified kite with no power and it should be flown like one! - Stratostar

It's all good man, thanks for clarifying. Thanks for your service, few americans can say they served, in any capacity. We're not fucking flying airplanes are we, no we're flying a glorified kite with no power and it should be flown like one! - Stratostar

Maybe it's in lieu of recent events of a fallen warrior, or I don't know, but it sounds like you are being a little vague about what you did in the Navy. I'm sure I'm over reacting, but I can't stand posers. "In the service my team did night jumps with NVGs on their helmets and once under canopy used them to spot the LZ." Let me fix it for you: "In the service I got to jump with a special forces team one time and the team did night jumps with NVGs on their helmets and once under canopy used them to spot the LZ." First thread: "I've only had one jump in my life but what a cool jump it was. I was able to jump with a special forces unit during my time in the Navy." "I was in BUDS so I know how extremities don't articulate as well in cold weather, and I've been in enough C-130s to know how cold a fuselage gets at altitude." We're not fucking flying airplanes are we, no we're flying a glorified kite with no power and it should be flown like one! - Stratostar

One of the most rewarding things I have ever done on this earth is take people, whether it be warriors or civilians that know nothing about freefall and teach them how to fly. My heart dropped when I clicked on the CNN link and there was a picture of Nick looking back at me, I knew exactly who it was without even reading his name. I had the honor of being Nicks Military Freefall Instructor to earn his basic freefall wings during his career. I remember from jump #1 he was a rock solid jumper and the only student I have EVER had to tell that he was to relaxed in the air! It was a short 30 day course, but jumping with him multiple times a day and getting to know him was an honor. It was quite a few months after he graduated and he had went back to his unit that we met up again. He recognized me from across the parking lot while on a training trip and came over to say hello. I turned around and couldn't remember his first name, but I remembered his last name and who he was instantly. I'm pretty humble and I thought it was pretty special that he recognized me and came over to say hi and to see what was going on. Thats just the way he was. Nick left a lasting impression on me that will last for the rest of my life and you will be missed by many. Way to soon...Blue Skies Nick. 08 Dec 12 Afghanistan http://www.cnn.com/2012/12/10/world/asia/afghanistan-taliban-rescue/index.html?hpt=hp_t3 We're not fucking flying airplanes are we, no we're flying a glorified kite with no power and it should be flown like one! - Stratostar

On a side note, a lot of people have switched to 9ft bridles for wingsuiting and the increased length helps the PC get out of the burble. Then there are others that just stick with the standard length and it seems to work out as well. We're not fucking flying airplanes are we, no we're flying a glorified kite with no power and it should be flown like one! - Stratostar

One from this last season... A fairly attractive lady in her mid-40's came to make a tandem with her 18 yr old son. Jump goes great and just after opening she is screaming her lungs out. I ask "So have you done anything more extreme then that?", she comes back with what I dub the "altitude confession", just me, her, and a few thousand feet feet of silent beautiful blue sky to hear it. Let me preface this with, I've been totally professional and have known this individual for all of 28 mins. So she says "Well, I'll tell you something, not very many people know this about me, not even my son, but I'm a porn star". It sort of caught me off guard, since she told me what her real "day job" was when I was harnessing her up and talking with her son. Ok, she brought it up, I'll bite, what the heck, so I say "So what's the name you go by?" she says she works for "XYZ.com and her fake name". After I realize she wasn't kidding, I kind of feel a little weird, not knowing what to say next and we have another couple thousand feet to kill. Then she says "Well, um, if you do go on there, I kinda do some hardcore stuff, so don't get freaked out or anything, ok? I say "yeah, ok, ok." What else am I going to say?!? haha. Then she tells me "I never thought I would be able to do this, I was in a car accident a few years ago and I have this metal rod and screws in my spine and my doctor said I would never be able to jump". Now I'm thinking great, better not screw...I mean mess up the landing! Landing goes great, mom and son reunite and everything is great (although a little weird now knowing what mom does on the side). She was a nice lady and it was a fun tandem after all. Then my curiosity gets the better of me and I go check out if she was telling the truth, I find XYZ.com (never heard of it before, but turns out to be some S&M hardcore site...first warning..ignored) and actually find her in the models section (photo of her doing some said S&M...second warning...ignored). Then it has a short video of some of her past "performances" and I stopped watching the fast paced/cut video at the 12sec mark when I figured out that the lady washing the car in skimpy clothes (her) and being cat called by a group of 20 something men doesn't end in the woman going home with one of the guys but...all...22. Note to self...Sometimes things should just be left to your imagination!haha We're not fucking flying airplanes are we, no we're flying a glorified kite with no power and it should be flown like one! - Stratostar

It wouldn't fire when you needed it to and it would fire when you didn't want it to. Some were operator error, others were wrong cable lengths installed, and others it was just bad luck. I never had an issue with an FF2, it fired everytime. We're not fucking flying airplanes are we, no we're flying a glorified kite with no power and it should be flown like one! - Stratostar

Pat, Thanks for sharing! We're not fucking flying airplanes are we, no we're flying a glorified kite with no power and it should be flown like one! - Stratostar

Great post Peter, thanks for sharing! We're not fucking flying airplanes are we, no we're flying a glorified kite with no power and it should be flown like one! - Stratostar

I'm sure some poor country still uses them, but not the US. Army used to use the AR2 and the AF used the FF2. Now everybody in the US uses the Cypres for the most part. We're not fucking flying airplanes are we, no we're flying a glorified kite with no power and it should be flown like one! - Stratostar

A wise teacher once said " Tell them and they will forget, show them and they will remember, but involve them and they will understand". We're not fucking flying airplanes are we, no we're flying a glorified kite with no power and it should be flown like one! - Stratostar

Very few if any DZ's actually "train" with rounds. I few people migth jump them from time to time as novelties, or jump them hard core all the time in a place called Canada In reality, you are better suited to work hard on your wildland firefighter experience then risk getting hurt on a round BEFORE you have the chance to try out for the real deal. Even the website says prior jumping experience is not needed or even desired in some cases because people form bad habits. The parachute is just a way to get the the fire, being the BEST on the ground is what will seal the deal of actually making it as a rookie, they will train you the "right" way. But hey, if you want to jump a round, go ahead, they are FUN!!! We're not fucking flying airplanes are we, no we're flying a glorified kite with no power and it should be flown like one! - Stratostar

Interesting DZ location, since this is in my area I thought I would do a little more investigating. The closest airport where the "skydiving" is depicted on the map should be Sky Way Airport in Elk Grove, CA. Not really that close to the fish ponds actually (map attached, airport depicted as point "A"). I called the manager and when asked about the history of any parachute jumping she said "No jumping EVER!", in not a nice tone. So still leaves a question as to the origin of the symbol. We're not fucking flying airplanes are we, no we're flying a glorified kite with no power and it should be flown like one! - Stratostar

On the note of changing face shields, I don't know about the Phanton X (probably easier), but the G3 has 6 screws to unscrew before the lens can be switched out. It's not that hard to change out, but I wouldn't want to be doing it every day depending on the time of day it is. We're not fucking flying airplanes are we, no we're flying a glorified kite with no power and it should be flown like one! - Stratostar

The owner works at Skydive Toledo, give them a call, they may be able to help. http://www.skydivetoledo.com We're not fucking flying airplanes are we, no we're flying a glorified kite with no power and it should be flown like one! - Stratostar

Interesting video of a static line jump with what I think is a unique PCA method/ or style of PC for that matter. Looks to be a bigger non collapsible PC similar to what is used on military T-10R MIRPS reserves (58" across, see attached pics). Looks to work better than spring loaded PC's and has more than enough drag to pull out the Dbag. Anyone else using a setup like this, any drawbacks vs. spring loaded PC's? Safer? https://www.dropbox.com/s/heij5a72h6fvlvg/STATIC%20LINE%20JUMP.wmv We're not fucking flying airplanes are we, no we're flying a glorified kite with no power and it should be flown like one! - Stratostar

$USD FJC - $60 first person - $30 additional per person. Jump 1-instructor $30 if you just do the jump Jump 2-instructors $30 for main side (you do the complete briefing/debriefing) $15 for reserve side We're not fucking flying airplanes are we, no we're flying a glorified kite with no power and it should be flown like one! - Stratostar

I won't make mine jump, but if they want to I'll help them out in everyway possible, so they can be as prepared and safe as possible. It's totally a personal decision and would not be hurt to bad if they decided they didn't want to or it wasn't for them. We're not fucking flying airplanes are we, no we're flying a glorified kite with no power and it should be flown like one! - Stratostar

Sounds like you are doing a lot of good things to prepare. Taking the first jump course, know your malfunctions and emergency procedures like your life depended on it (it does) and asking questions to those things you do not understand, making sure your equipment is properly maintained, not getting complacent, be conservative in your choices of canopy size/style, and not trying to do everything "cool" in skydiving as soon as you can are all ways to mitigate the risk. That being said. "You are never good enough not to die in skydiving". You'll hear that phrase and hopefully not see it in person, but odds are you will unfortunetely. Injuries and death do not discriminate in this sport, student to experienced can both be affected equally. Skydiving is dangerous, period. We trade that risk for the enjoyment and freedom we feel when we are up there. If you can deal with that, WELCOME! We're not fucking flying airplanes are we, no we're flying a glorified kite with no power and it should be flown like one! - Stratostar

But what is the time to altitude going to be. That thing probably makes a 182 look like a rocket ship! We're not fucking flying airplanes are we, no we're flying a glorified kite with no power and it should be flown like one! - Stratostar

That great! We're not fucking flying airplanes are we, no we're flying a glorified kite with no power and it should be flown like one! - Stratostar

That is awesome! Good job guys! We're not fucking flying airplanes are we, no we're flying a glorified kite with no power and it should be flown like one! - Stratostar

Have you taken a look at PD's website? Lots of good articles on canopy choice like these: http://www.performancedesigns.com/docs/choosing2.pdf Also they have a good writeup on flight characteristics of the Sabre2, but for some reason not the Silhouette. At least to give you some other info to go off of then other peoples experiences. http://www.performancedesigns.com/docs/Sabre2-Flight.pdf From experience, use PDs demo program and jump the size of canopy you want to buy. Nothing worse than buying a canopy to find out you didn't think it was going to be like "that". They are cheap to demo and will save you headaches down the road on not buying the right one the first time. We're not fucking flying airplanes are we, no we're flying a glorified kite with no power and it should be flown like one! - Stratostar

We all do stuff like that time to time, but we really have to listen to our bodies. It can be hard though when there is money to be made. The few hundred bucks and the jumps that you get while injured, will catch up with you at some point. Follow the docs advice on the healing process and the physical therapy/ rehab to be ready for next season! We're not fucking flying airplanes are we, no we're flying a glorified kite with no power and it should be flown like one! - Stratostar

There is always a lesson to learn no matter how small. There is always another day to jump if the conditions are not ideal, if something is not right with your body get it checked out ASAP, and no matter how safe you are, you have the chance of getting hurt or worse on every jump you make. Hope your surgery goes well and you are back in the sky soon. We're not fucking flying airplanes are we, no we're flying a glorified kite with no power and it should be flown like one! - Stratostar