Beachbum

Yes, I read those definitions and understand that is the minimum he considers acceptable per each category. I'm still not seeing that chart as right at the low end though, so since I know he's associated with Aerodyne, checked the recommendations for a couple of their canopies ... Triathlon since it's got a rep as a very forgiving canopy good for low experience levels (plus I fly one), and the Pilot. The smallest Tri recommended for student/novice is a 175 at 158 lbs, and the smallest Pilot for the same category is a 188 at 207 lbs. Their chart for the Tri shows the 150 only for intermediate and above, with loading starting at 165 lbs, and the Pilot 150 the same. Maybe I'm a bit off as to what is considered novice, intermediate, etc. ... ??? I sure would not have thought that someone with 40 jumps would be considered intermediate? I guess it could also be my understanding of which canopies are docile and good for those just off student status ... what canopies at 150 ARE recomemnded for someone (a for instance from the chart) with 40 jumps and a 154 exit weight? As long as you are happy with yourself ... who cares what the rest of the world thinks?

That is the point of my question. If a 150 is "expert", isn't it still so regardless of wing loading? If a canopy reacts very quickly and more agressively due to short line length, that doesn't change much just because it is lightly loaded does it? As long as you are happy with yourself ... who cares what the rest of the world thinks?

Certainly not me, thank you! Too many variables involved ... how much of a person's driving is actually necessary (work related, etc.) ... as you point out, what IS the base line?? Then of course you get into choice of travel means (mass transit, what size of car, etc.) which is something I don't really want to see government involved in mandating. Next they'd be telling us we have to live closer to our jobs ... like THAT can work well with a married couple!! I said I like the concept ... doesn't mean I have all the "how to" answers ... LOL!!! I guess my idea of overuse would include things like someone being ferried about in a limo when it's not even near necessary (I suppose I can see use of them for protective reasons and such), instances such as folks who seldom set foot on it, yet have their yacht ferried from the northeast down the waterway to Florida and back each spring/fall just in case they want to use it during the respective area's season ... can even be people who make a trip to the store every time they think of something they need/want, rather than go once a week (or whatever) and combine trips ... are myriad ways we could cut back our nation's fuel consumption without seriously hurting or taxing anyone. Sadly, it seems to take a financial crowbar to jar most people out of bad habits these days. and to DanG ... "hits harder" ... exactly ... it still DOES hit everyone, not just the worst offenders as seems the intent of the whole thing. As long as you are happy with yourself ... who cares what the rest of the world thinks?

I also see that "necessity vs. choice" as a big problem with that. Who decides, and based on what criteria? I think that distinction not only varies significantly from person to person, but I'd bet that the overall concensus view of it changes from generation to generation. What constitutes "attack" could also play into that. Must it be an actual military attack, or would something like a serious economic threat be within guidelines as well? It will take someone who has given a lot more thought to this than I have to come up with a method that is functional long term!! As long as you are happy with yourself ... who cares what the rest of the world thinks?

Not at all ... it appears that the gist of their idea is to hit those who over-use. A straight gas tax doesn't accomplish that since it hits everyone. As long as you are happy with yourself ... who cares what the rest of the world thinks?

ok ... checked this chart in a link in the incidents forum, and it made me wonder. http://www.bigairsportz.com/pdf/bas-sizingchart.pdf I've read and been told plenty of times that anything 150 or smaller is considered "expert" due to the short line length/response speed, etc. ... yet this chart shows it's ok for a very light person to be on a 150 at 40 jumps, and a 135 at 100 jumps ... what's with that???? As long as you are happy with yourself ... who cares what the rest of the world thinks?

I like it!!! Carbon tax percentage based on sq. ft. of house over a reasonable size, possibly include something like our homestead exemption that let's you decrease it a little if it is your primary residence (so you would pay full amount on secondary/vacation properties, etc.). Of course, that would never happen, because it's a) basically fair, and b) even if not totally fair, it doesn't favor the wealthy. Add on for multiple vehicles/vehicle weight?? Harder to do anything with travel habits, since tracking that would be rather touchy rights-wise. I don't like that part about developing countries though. If the technology exists for the already developed countries to do things in a "cleaner" way, that same technology should be used in developing countries even if it must be shared at little to no profit other than the fact that it's helping protect the environment a bit. If we're really going to be "global", then it needs to be extended beyond things that are strictly economics. As long as you are happy with yourself ... who cares what the rest of the world thinks?

no batteries anywhere?? As long as you are happy with yourself ... who cares what the rest of the world thinks?

eeeeewwwwww .... I lived up there for a few years, and the first time I went into a BBQ joint and couldn't even find beef on the menu I knew I was in trouble! Pork isn't BBQ ... it's just meat cooked LIKE BBQ ... ... and that vinegar sauce .... ???? Being a Texas, I'm one of the beef lovers, but chicken, etc. is ok too ... ribs must be beef, not pork!!! And don't forget to throw a bit of good old kielbasa (sp?) on there too ... :) ... Dang ... someone at the dz better have the smoker fired up later today ... As long as you are happy with yourself ... who cares what the rest of the world thinks?

Overboard as far as I'm concerned, but I'm not Japanese, and I'm not familiar with their laws. If it is against their laws, then it's not totally ridiculous to make the arrests. I may not agree with them, but their laws ARE their laws. I think that when considering something like this, we have to at least attempt to remember that we come from a vastly different culture. I'm sure many Japanese think we are mad for allowing the freedoms we have with firearms here in the US. As long as you are happy with yourself ... who cares what the rest of the world thinks?

The government is spending too much ... Obama is just president. Yes, a lot of the ideas are coming directly out of his administration, but they don't get into law without congress approving them. So ... we need a 3rd option there ... There is one good thing that COULD come from all of this. If things get sufficiently f'd up, perhaps enough of the sheep will cease to be sheep and people will manage to get some real changes made. Kinda like a drunk or other addict "hitting bottom" before they wake up and do something about their situation. As long as you are happy with yourself ... who cares what the rest of the world thinks?

Same here ... antenna/converter box (according to reports I checked beforehand, one of the better ones) ... and local channels come and go without me changing anything, get the mosaic effect a lot (same thing on sound), or channels just go completely ... might come back an hour later. Seems even more effected by small weather changes than the nondigital was, and when it is effected, instead of just a little blurby part now and then you get nothing at all. I wasn't in favor of it to start with, now I've tried it for a while I'm even more convinced! Another thing politicians had no business messing with that they screwed up when they did get involved. As long as you are happy with yourself ... who cares what the rest of the world thinks?

The exact reason I didn't mount my protrack in my helmet as soon as I got it. I initially got it to help work on fall rate (I'm fall rate challenged ... LOL!!), and carry it in a jumpsuit pocket for now. Based on checking versus other's FF computers, it does read a little low as a result, but the difference seems consistent, so once I figured out the adjustment, I get pretty realistic readings. I think altitude awareness is pretty much ingrained now though, so am thinking it might be time to go ahead and put it in the helmet. As long as you are happy with yourself ... who cares what the rest of the world thinks?

Both!! Can't say I'd want to look at them all the time, but as with anything like that .. have to go somewhere! As long as you are happy with yourself ... who cares what the rest of the world thinks?

Aside from the fact that he used to quite willingly jump from Alpha Lima, the dz he currently jumps at uses Otters as their primary jump ships. I guess they are only unsafe at certain dz's! Legalities aside, I'd love to see any jumper willing to attempt putting many dz's at risk for their own benefit run OUT of the sport. Have to admit, in a way I agree with the post about Slyde and "conduct unbecoming" ... if what he did qualifies, surely this should also. Yes, I do jump at the dz in question quite a bit. As to the poll though, I agree with others that it's probably not really something the USPA should do, as much as I wish I could justify thinking otherwise. As long as you are happy with yourself ... who cares what the rest of the world thinks?

Hey Dave ... I'm out of work again, and if that is still the case come that time, I'll be happy to help with setup etc. ... just let me know. I had posted on the Aggieland forum a while back about this, but guess you haven't checked it in a while ... LOL! Gonna be out wednesday by any chance?? ... uncle of mine coming up there to do a tandem. As long as you are happy with yourself ... who cares what the rest of the world thinks?

And don't forget the water usage! It's going to take some major changes to people's approach. I know my biggest usage is on my yard, but I live in a subdivision with deed restrictions mandating you keep it looking decent (and they don't hesitate to send out letters if you let it start to get brown!). Here we are in the midst of an early summer 100+ stretch of weather, and I am having to water more than normal just to keep it alive. Getting subdivision management to change it's approach to encourage something that will help with this is going to be very difficult, since it effects property values. I remember reading about a woman (Cali, I think) who tried putting in fake grass to cut back her water usage, and her homeowners assn. forced her to get rid of it. Most if not all of those associations aren't going to exactly welcome the use of native grasses that are more drought tolerant, since they too turn brown when not watered. They just have the advantage of not going totally dead as a result, and do a better job of coming back when it rains again. As long as you are happy with yourself ... who cares what the rest of the world thinks?

I haven't talked to a lot of folks about them, so can't comment from that viewpoint. I do have to agree with the green tractor man ... it's not a matter of things falling off during freefall and breaking on impact with the ground. In my case it was totally self induced. I just tightened the screws too much in a manner that caused the break. Making the housing a little bit thicker (and thus the battery cover) would of course help with that a little bit, but I also understand the desire to keep things lightweight. I may experiment with the now broken cover and some JB Weld ... a little layer of that over the outside would make it a lot more substantial. As long as you are happy with yourself ... who cares what the rest of the world thinks?

thanks ... will give it a try. As long as you are happy with yourself ... who cares what the rest of the world thinks?

I learned the hard way to NOT tighten one screw on the battery cover for my ProTrack all the way in, THEN tighten the other ... split my battery cover. I emailed explaining what I'd done, and to inquire about cost/availability for replacing it, and they sent me a new one for no charge (they even covered the shipping)!!! On top of that, included new screws, springs, and a set of batteries for me ... :) ... Now THAT is what I call great service!!! In the future, I'll only tighten each screw a little at a time, and not try to get the cover on so snugly! As long as you are happy with yourself ... who cares what the rest of the world thinks?

I'll have to pay a little more attention to that particular part of some jumps to be sure, but what I THINK I am doing is similar. If I am doing what I believe I am on reflection, I tend to keep my arms out while I turn, not in a T, but more like boxman position. I agree it must help keep me from bleeding altitude as fast, because I have noticed that I am often above much more experienced folks as we start to get separation in our respective tracks. Of course, being built how I am helps in that also (tall, skinny!!). As long as you are happy with yourself ... who cares what the rest of the world thinks?

Great in theory, but not very practical, since thanks to some policies favoring it, and companies like Walmart forcing manufacturing out of the US, there are many things that you simply cannot FIND made in the US anymore. When is the last time you picked up something textile or even most electronics, and found a "made in USA" sticker on it?? Doesn't seem to bother Washington for some reason, but I think that loss of manufacturing capability (not to mention the jobs) is a huge problem for us. If you want to buy only US made products, there are a lot of things you'll have to learn to do without for right now. As long as you are happy with yourself ... who cares what the rest of the world thinks?

It would be pretty easy for a group of countries to actually have a serious impact on the dollar and the US, should they choose to do it. Nice little chart in a recent Newsweek showing our national debt now near 11 trillion, and the breakdown of it. China and Japan have the largest chunks, being 767.9 billion, and 686.7 billion respectively. Russia would not be as significant a player, holding "only" 318.4 billion of our debt. I haven't seen one, but it would be interesting to see a chart of how much money the US has poured into each country over the years in various forms of assistance and subsidies. As long as you are happy with yourself ... who cares what the rest of the world thinks?

Except the fundamental flaw is that the majority of people from both sides may disagree about details, but they both think they government is the solution. They're unable to see any possible solution that doesn't somehow serve themselves. They are the problem. I couldn't agree more! Somewhere along the line, those "serving" this country in government changed it from a temporary position of servitude into a career ... which resulted in elected officials becoming more worried about what would get them reelected than about what is best for their constituents and the long term health of the country and it's economy. Prime example is what has been taking place now - try to fix this mess by spending and spending, don't worry about the future generations who will have to PAY for it all. The "me, now" generation in office ... LOL!!! As long as you are happy with yourself ... who cares what the rest of the world thinks?

No, they didn't force anyone, but policies helped lead to, and encourage it all, and lack of appropriate control allowed it. Election?? ... nope ... didn't sleep through it, nor does that have anything to do with my earlier post. I said the government, not the administration. Just because there is a different person now at the top of the pile doesn't mean things have changed all the way down (which they haven't as much as Obama says he'd like them to). And most of the rest of the posts in this thread just illustrate my other point. What good does it do to worry about who to blame?? I think it's much more important to get people working together to FIX the problems than to worry about the particular "who" who caused them. Why is it so important to so many people to take such a negative and at times damaging approach to stuff like this?? It's not that hard to just say "yes, we disagree about a lot, but we need to take care of this" ... and work together to at least TRY to have a positive impact for a change. The fact that average people (read "not politicians") are not able to do this makes it painfully obvoius that the odds of politicians being able to are likely miniscule! Perhaps if people set a better example for the politicians for a change ...... As long as you are happy with yourself ... who cares what the rest of the world thinks?