hookitt

Gear familiarity, emergency procedures, landing priorities, and canopy drills. My grammar sometimes resembles that of magnetic refrigerator poetry... Ghetto

That's actually a flip through. I personally would have given it a control check .A Flip through is mostly embarrassing. It's almost always flyable. Is it square: yes Is it stable: yes. Is it steerable: .... If you don't try to steer it, you won't know. Flaring with risers with the brakes still set feels wobbly because it's already flying with the tail pulled down. Try it next time you skydive. Then clear the brakes and try again. 240 Jumps is enough jumps to have understanding and practice using your risers to control the canopy with and without the brakes set. Take a canopy control class from someone like Alter Ego. It is a wealth of knowledge. My grammar sometimes resembles that of magnetic refrigerator poetry... Ghetto

No, I meant Spectra just like I said. You are correct though, Dacron is common. I took the Dacron off of my RDSs because of the line burn it was causing on my canopies. Admittedly I use the RDS at high loadings at terminal which is beyond what PD recommends. Thanks. I haven't seen any so I've learned something today. My grammar sometimes resembles that of magnetic refrigerator poetry... Ghetto

All the ones I know of use Dacron. Is that what you meant? My grammar sometimes resembles that of magnetic refrigerator poetry... Ghetto

The defense of the dual RSL is astounding. I only started jumping in 1991 so I missed out on it's origin. That's still a lot of years for a poor RSL application to be in service. It was never a good design . The only reason there were few issues was because cutaways don't happen that often. Reserve first 2 canopy out scenarios happen even less frequently. Imagine a reserve first 2 out that's spinning. "No panic". Simply disconnect one or the other snap shackle, then cutaway. That is the worst possible training suggestion I've heard. Besides that nifty scenario, if you forget to tuck your head during a normal cutaway, that lanyard has to pass your head, and anything your head has on it. The very first Racer I packed in 1993 or 1994 had the RSL under the top flap when he dropped it of. It was immediately converted. The 2 DZOs both owned Racer as did a few other people. They all knew the RSL was too much of a potential killer. I'm glad it's finally going away. It's decades overdue. Thanks. My grammar sometimes resembles that of magnetic refrigerator poetry... Ghetto

Why in the world would you toss the other toggle. Keep the toggle whether or not you use it to flare with. You can also flare using one toggle and one rear with far greater power. This Skydiving website doesn't need this 6 year old thread resurrection. WLO toggles are a specialty item that is only appropriate for a few handfuls of people.

This makes it even better. The Sky Systems website has been reported to have malware.

Nope. You're looking at tension knots. The lines are going through the rings as they're supposed to. ----------------- Original Poster. This is my feedback regarding what I see on the video. Prior to the cutaway: The tug on the risers wasn't doing a thing. The canopy wasn't in a high G spiral, there were no line twists, and there was a lot of altitude. If the canopy isn't trying to make you pass out and you have altitude, clear the brakes and give it a few full flares to attempt to clear the tension knots. If it failed, then arch and perform the emergency procedures. There was no attempt to use the toggles. I've seen several cutaways in the past few years where the cutaway was completely preventable. Clearing the brakes would have fixed the issue on some of the issues. A prime example: Brake release on opening. Spiraling a couple times while pulling equally on rear risers... and then cutting away. I don't know when this basic action was forgotten by many people but it clearly has been. The reserve ride: Looked good to me. A swoop landing under a reserve is no big deal either. My grammar sometimes resembles that of magnetic refrigerator poetry... Ghetto

That sounds as if it's not absolutely great if it wears so easily. If that is true, it is a horrible choice. Is it measured the same as a PD? My grammar sometimes resembles that of magnetic refrigerator poetry... Ghetto

Oh that's nothing But I'm glad it makes sense. You don't always get to land anywhere you would like to. And... that reserve canopy sucks! My grammar sometimes resembles that of magnetic refrigerator poetry... Ghetto

If you get an Optimum, look up to see how large you can make it. Go up in size if you can. I personally have no issues with the Optimum. I haven't searched here to see what issues people have, or claim so I guess I will after posting to see what the internet users have to say and which ones are saying it. I'm not a Smart fan but they seem to be OK. I would rather go with PD. My grammar sometimes resembles that of magnetic refrigerator poetry... Ghetto

You're saying that you weigh 250 out the door for that high of a wingload on a 150. You've maxed out one of the worst canopies to max out. I have a 109 -m (Not ZP) and it sits in a closet now. I have flown it so I'm not making anything up. The canopy will land you safely, assuming you know how to fly that particular canopy, and flare it as it is designed. You can not flare like the canopies you're used to. You'll need ALL the skill you can muster and hopefully when you need that skill, you have it handy. Chances are, you'll pound in at least a little. Unlike the Crossfire2, they have a very short control stroke. If you flare it like the Crossfire, you'll stall high and land on your back. Watching people improperly flare a Raven sucks. It's definitely worse for the person laying on the ground. I grew up on Ravens and other canopies with short control strokes. After a person flies so many different canopies, they can figure out the flare point after a couple quick practice flares. But... you don't always flare correctly on such a wing when trying to land it in the cow field on the corner of the dz next to the fence, and power lines. So, beyond figuring out how to fly that particular canopy, here's my real opinion. That canopy is a piece of shit. I won't pack them anymore. If the ZP fails, it fails big. Ravens have a very positive opening. If you are a freeflier as your username suggests... a high speed opening will happen to you at some point, either with your main, or your reserve. Blowing out the top skin, or breaking the line attachments will ruin your day. If I was your rigger, and friend, etc... I wouldn't touch that canopy. Get a different one. Good luck! My grammar sometimes resembles that of magnetic refrigerator poetry... Ghetto

Ask your instructors, and talk to other jumpers in person. Please don't rely too much on this website. There are some things I won't talk about on this site, but small jumpers often get hosed. The tips I mentioned were for both you and instructors that may not think past putting a student on a big ass student rig. If your rig hinders your learning, or is potentially dangerous, then I am inclined to broadcast it. If you haven't met Valerie yet, go find her. She is a good person to talk jumpsuits with. My grammar sometimes resembles that of magnetic refrigerator poetry... Ghetto

100% tie the leg straps together with a bungee, or even a correct length solid cord such as a pull up cord. The harness needs to be short enough so that when you are standing, and the the leg straps are tightened properly, the leg straps form a V, and are not straight across. If the leg straps won't tighten around the leg, I've been known to remove a leg pad bartack so the pad can be compressed. The fit doesn't have to be perfect and there's almost no way it will be with your body style and a large parachute, but it can be close enough to be safe. The other challenge is how fast you might fall. Your instructors already know this. You should be in a very tight jump suit, and they need to dress in a way that going super slow is an option. When the instructor puts you in spandex, or a slick skin tight suit, it's actually for a purpose. I used to give the super small students a pink spandex jumpsuit. Often I'd hear complaints. I fixed that by wearing a super baggy heavy material pink flowery jump suit. If the student had to wear the pink suit, so did I! Have fun. The only thing I'd be sure of, is the leg bungee, the belly band and a reasonable fit. Those simple things keep a person in the harness if the parachute is opened in a less than optimum body position. My grammar sometimes resembles that of magnetic refrigerator poetry... Ghetto

In the past few weeks, I've taught 2 people about your size. One person was no more than 109. The other who I flew with just yesterday is 100 pounds even. I didn't fly either person on their first 2 jumps. Since the jump I was about to be on is intended to be a release dive, we had to consider the student's best interest of success, and of safety. We had a choice of a rig that was too large, or a rig that was small enough that contained a 168 Pilot. I chose the rig with the 168, made sure the leg straps were tied together at the proper length and put a belly band on the rig. Both students not only flew well, they could turn and properly flare the canopy. The *heavier* jumper, flared too high on the first jump and still had a decent landing. She fell over, but the landing wasn't hard. The container size must be taken into consideration. The rig can't move side to side and *fly* the student. The rig has to fit well enough, and be properly secured to the student so they can't come out of it if the parachute opens in a less than optimum body position. As an instructor, it's a struggle to believe the smaller canopy is appropriate, but at a .7 to 1 wingload max... it becomes rational. Besides, that type of progression has been going on for decades so it wasn't something new. Both students flew a 240 navigator before I flew with them. Ideally you'd be put on a 190, then a 170, and so on. But it wouldn't be a stretch to use a 170ish right now as long as the canopy has a long control stroke so it won't stall easily. I'm not sure what rental Gear you have up at skydance, but I do know they have quite a big selection. Personally I'd take you out of a student harness immediately and put you in a rig more suitable for your size. I'd make sure the leg straps were secured, and a belly band was used. Good luck! Be safe and of course, don't fly into the gun club. That would be dumb :) My grammar sometimes resembles that of magnetic refrigerator poetry... Ghetto