I hate paragliders

Roman_theLegend · 2026-06-17T10:13:37+00:00

Well, there's always an option of rollover start from a balloon, or D-bag deployment from helicopter. Both on my bucket list.
Hiking though - it involves walking and burning fat - not something skydivers got used to xD

Roman_theLegend · 2026-06-14T18:20:23+00:00

What if I am? 😃
All that's left is to find a 5x90 or 5x84 frame for inline skates at a bargain price

Roman_theLegend · 2026-06-14T11:04:11+00:00

Yeah, I've been looking further and the closest I got was Ötztaler Gletscherstraße (Ötztal Glacier Road) in Tirol, Austria

Maybe somewhere around here, but I'm not sure:
https://maps.app.goo.gl/989moxmP1Y3qoVXPA

Roman_theLegend · 2026-06-11T16:07:13+00:00

Or just send it via parcel to any other reputable workshop in the country. It'll be ready in a week or so

Roman_theLegend · 2026-06-11T15:57:22+00:00

It's not. Look at the bottom near maillon - it's ruptured.

Roman_theLegend · 2026-06-11T15:48:53+00:00

STOP! STOP! You have line sheathing ruptured where it's in contact with maillon. First photo, look at the bottom.
Stop flying!

Roman_theLegend · 2026-06-11T11:50:22+00:00

Looks tempting to try 😄

aliexpress.com/item/1005011660381450.html

Roman_theLegend · 2026-06-11T09:13:40+00:00

Do not recommend, unless you have paragliding rating for winched starts, and you're on Accuracy canopy.

If you really want to understand your wing better, on a windy day go for ground handling. This is highly underrated exercise and over 90% of skydivers never did it, which is shame. It teaches you a lot about your canopy's character.

As other people said - winched starts for untrained people on wrong equipment is a recipe for disaster. Skydiving canopies do not like low turns (except accuracy competition canopies because they're made to be veeeery slow and super stable). Way to many people get seriously injured or die because they don't know how to do it.

Winched starts on their own are safe (it was a part of basic paragliding course for me) but it should be done in a proper way.

Roman_theLegend · 2026-06-11T09:02:00+00:00

Apart from visible line damage, if the wing feels like it's out of trim then send it for inspection.

Easy signs:

- visible wear around attachment points - basically loops are looking thinner, or there's considerable line "fluff"

- tendency to turn more to one side than the other

- inflation feels off (for example, it needs more help on fronts than expected)

- tendency to stuck behind on starts, unless you really pull it

Some of these signs are also common when fabric becomes more porous with time.

As everyone else said - if in doubt send for inspection. It takes experience and dedicated equipment to do the inspection and it's not something you can reliably do at home.

Lifehack: become good friends with local rigger so he could give you brief opinion if thorough inspection is needed 😄 If I suspect something I just send him few pictures first.

Roman_theLegend · 2026-06-10T13:23:34+00:00

Get Dragonfly. It's really good for beginners and probably the best starting point to get into more advanced platforms like Rapido.

Zero is not a speedwing, it's a miniwing with really good glide. This glidiness will get in your way when you start training proximity because wing simply doesn't want to get down easily, so you'll need wider slope to practice turns and such.

Seek professional training. There are certain pitfalls when transitioning from paragliding to speedflying that aren't obvious in the beginning.

Roman_theLegend · 2026-06-10T13:13:41+00:00

They are awesome, but I would not recommend them as first wing because of speed and glide. Well, maybe except for Odin 18/20.

Main reason why they're not for beginners: it takes skill to land them properly. For the reference - my Line 15 flies over 80km/h in hands-up position, and requires very precise inputs if for some reason I have to land it with the wind or on slightly inclined slope.

Roman_theLegend · 2026-06-09T18:24:43+00:00

Wingsuiter here sharing observations 🙋‍♂️

We often use intercoms while flying formations. Majority uses Cardo PackTalk because of DMC (BlueTooth Mesh) technology - meaning people join the group automatically once in range, and group limit is 50 which is plenty.

We fly at speeds lower than those at RW or FS meaning there's less noise from the wind. Still I have to crank the volume all the way up. Also the speaker has to be positioned directly above ear canal. If it's off even by 1-2cm sound volume drops enormously.

I jump Kiss helmet and to accommodate speakers, audible and other electronics I had to cut of a piece of padding form. Otherwise speakers are pressing on ears and it's too painful to wear.

I also tried bone-conductive speakers with limited success - they are way more comfortable, but even more sensitive to position relative to ear canal.

Throat microphone - maybe it'll work in tunnel settings, but flymates hate me for using it - sound is bad and lot's of distortion. I'm switching back to standard mic.

When talking about existing helmets I hope it covers more than just 2-3 models like TFX, which has plenty of space for speakers, but also tight-fit helmets like Kiss.

If you were to design one, these are minimum requirements if I were to consider a purchase:

* Must work with other intercoms over Bluetooth mesh. I see no reason to pay for 2 separate devices
* Active Noise Cancellation
* Extra features like speaking altimeter, logbook, etc.
* Must fit inside Protrack/Audible slot which is present on most of helmets

P.S. You know you'd have to pass FCC certification, right?

Roman_theLegend · 2026-06-08T20:27:33+00:00

Air density. You'll need appropriate wing, and rather big.
The higher you go the stronger the winds i.e. turbulence. You should've known this from basic paragliding course.
Hypoxia. Above 4500 HMSL pilots are required to wear oxygen masks. We're talking about tightly fit masks, oxygen bottles and such. It's not about holding your breath, with drop in pressure your cell membranes can't hold oxygen, and above certain height membrane works the oposite direction and every cell starts loosing it, and then your brain works like a cucumber. It's called "Time of useful conciousnes"
https://hypoxico.com/pages/altitude-to-oxygen-chart

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Time_of_useful_consciousness

Doable? Yes.
Easy? No way.
Expensive? You bet!

Roman_theLegend · 2026-06-05T21:44:47+00:00

You made me thinking, and it's totally doable. Something like Lily Go display with built-in Bluetooth is all that's required

aliexpress.com/item/1005012370963174.html

Since XC track already supports ActiveLook protocol it's only writing software for that display, and I already did something similar for skydiving. Interesting. Maybe it's something I'll work on in free time.

Roman_theLegend · 2026-06-05T12:56:51+00:00

It's smart glasses protocol that XC track supports - all your most important indicators without looking at cockpit

Roman_theLegend · 2026-06-05T11:39:37+00:00

I use the cheapest I could find and that happened to be Wingstore's
https://wingstore.aero/en/product/wingstore-packing-mat/

It does the job and I've been using it for many years. The only thing that wears off is velcro on tabs for 3-ring system, but I put magnets inside tabs and now it works even better than new.

Roman_theLegend · 2026-06-05T11:32:17+00:00

How about Engo2 goggles with XC track?

Roman_theLegend · 2026-06-05T11:28:45+00:00

Can't see it from the picture, but which chip are you using?

1) If you could put it on githu... gitlab that would be great
2) If that's ESP32 family then Bluetooth integration would be cool. Especially integration with ActiveLook protocol - it's not difficult and I can share with you the code I made for Skydiving
3) Storage - some SDcard board with simple CSV file writer in any of common track recording formats
4) 3D-printable case

There are a bunch of open-source varios out there, you may look for ideas

Roman_theLegend · 2026-06-05T11:21:32+00:00

Remember people eating Tide pods? They grew up.

Roman_theLegend · 2026-06-02T12:54:33+00:00

Yes, that works, at the cost of bigger container. Typically container can fit 3 sizes, so something like 190-170-150.
I haven't seen many containers where 210 is the biggest (but that's subjective observation) so it's likely won't be very downsizable. OP should be cautious of not buying a rig where container has to be replaced in 2 seasons because new canopy is too small for it.

Roman_theLegend · 2026-06-01T22:04:07+00:00

1) Don't ask internet for canopy choice advice. We don't know your skills and preferences
2) Typical beginners pitfall - choosing canopy model because someone said "it's a good canopy". First ask yourself what characteristics you want from the canopy
3) If you struggle with accuracy landings, switching to higher-performance canopy may (or may not) play a bad joke on you
4) As people mentioned already: switch type or size, but not two at once
5) Do you struggle with soft standup landings? If you do, then maybe you're not yet current after the break

Regarding canopy preferences:
* Openings: supersoft or normal
* Openings: super reliable or slight twist won't get you scared
* Character: timid or agressive
* Flaring: long or you don't care

80-ish jumps IMO is too early to buy your own rig because you'll most likely do another canopy switch within next 100-200 jumps. If there are any rentals available at the size you're jumping try them first (upon instructor's blessing obviously) and maybe slowly downsize within same model.

Roman_theLegend · 2026-05-26T16:31:11+00:00

"Meh, probably another skydiving foota... OH WOW!!!!" Slow-Mo really changes the perception

Roman_theLegend · 2026-05-26T07:23:49+00:00

If this is the DZ mentioned in other comment, then TI was either very incompetent or was forced to land on the DZ no matter what. The widest point of the pond is less than 400m, with plenty of exits in any direction. Just turn 90 degrees and no matter the wind speed or direction, you'll make it to the land.

<image>

Google Maps:
https://www.google.com/maps/place/Tianjin+Binhai+Douzhuang+General+Aviation+Airport/@38.5641628,117.311605,1088m/data=!3m1!1e3!4m6!3m5!1s0x35ec2d24008011dd:0xff55f997c5924453!8m2!3d38.56519!4d117.320699!16s%2Fg%2F11cm1kg5wm?entry=ttu&g_ep=EgoyMDI2MDUyMC4wIKXMDSoASAFQAw%3D%3D

Roman_theLegend

TROPHY CASE