freeflyer58D

well i've had enough of listening to people argue about this... today after landing i let the toggles up after my weight was off loaded. the canopy came overheard and flew very well, winds 090 @20 Gusting 26. sure enough i wasnt dragged at all. i took a step or two back as well but i could have remained in place just fine. once the canopy was overhead i quickly stalled via rear risers and made sure to completely get it tail forward. then i bundled my lines and walked right in. very easy technique. i think this argument should go a different direction. we should teach people how to fly canopies. every AFF should have a dedicated canopy control course of sorts. the canopy is what is causing alot of needless injuries. if people cant even kite a canopy then i agree they should not be jumping in winds where this technique is helpful. but lets teach people and instruct new jumpers to learn more about the wing the rely on. so instead of bashing this concept. try teaching it on a windy day. oh and i also fly airplanes, helicopters and canopies. each is different but work on the same principles. educate yourselves and never stop learning.

well, as just about everyone here has mentioned, it is very easy to unload your lines and cause a wrap. i personally started going back and really exploring the deeper more aggressive portions of flight my canopy has to offer after about 150 jumps on it. i would open at 4500. try my hardest to stall it and see how it responded to slow and fast stall recovery. then i would do the 180 to 90 turns as hard as possible(with the knowledge of possible line twists!!!) and my goal was to know just where the break point was when it would wrap. i would do this from braked turns and full glide. then i worked on rear riser stalls as well and using rears to flatten out a turn. all of this work i did over about 20 jumps really payed off well. im on a saber 1 (170). so its 1:1 exactly. it isn't easy to induce line twists on my personal canopy but it sure isnt hard either:) another thing to look at is leading with a harness turn as well to get the canopy heading into the turn just prior to toggle inputs. This is straight from the SIM: Category G Canopy Dive Flow Clear for traffic. Make a sharp, balanced 90-degree turn. Reverse the toggle position aggressively and make a balanced 180-degree turn. Check position and traffic. Repeat to no lower than 2,500 feet, in case of line twist.

hey, thanks for the reply, i just got back from the helicopter trip, i wasnt able to get a camcorder in time cuz we left two days earlier but i will look into the camcorders. Mike

i did read that review about three days ago, i currently have a canon SD1000 and an SD1100. they both work great for picture and video but im looking to get one that is more in the way of a camcorded, flip open screen and such. i've shot lots of flying video with those canons but i just want something made more for video. ei: bigger video resolution and larger capacity/ frames per second. my SD cams work but they just weren't designed for it, ya know. any other info would be greatly appreciated and again thanks for the reply!!! Mike

hi everyone, in the day time i fly OH-58D helicopters for the army, in my off time i love jumping. i am currently looking for a camcorder that i can use to film video of flight training and gunnery shooting from the helicopter. i am not to smart on camcorders. i am however kinda smart with still photo terms. i would like it to be a good cam but it doesnt have to win any awards. needs to be environmently tough cuz we fly high, low, in rain, and sandy places. plus i would like to use it for jumps when im ready...(only got 75 jumps so far) the big thing is i dont want to purchase a camera for flying just to find that its not a good one for jumping when im ready to make that transition. you guys probably know better than me all the goods and bads of cameras out today! well, thanks in advance for all your help! Mike