DID YOU EVER want to jump out of an airplane then wait until your altimeter goes into the red to pull the ripcord? With modern technology you can, but you don't have to jump; let a little dummy do it for you. To do this you need to obtain a parafoil chute, and you must have a transmitter and servos and a receiver. Then you have to make or build a body to house all the equipment needed to skydive. (At the end of this article I will list several places to obtain all the materials required to make a jumper and a parachute.) Approximately 10 years ago Bob Deadmond and I decided to try this, and it took this long to perfect the art. And it is an art. We tried everything from old military parachutes to military flare parachutes. Then we sewed our own. At first they were bad, but they became better with practice. Now we can take our Golden Knight Skydivers up as far as we can see— sometimes more than 1,100 feet—and drop them. We count five to 10 seconds and open the parachutes. After that, it's nothing but air. We do figure 8s and 360° turns and stalls just to slow our descents. Landings are a real adventure. We have to land a jumper the same way we would land an airplane—and that is into the wind. Otherwise, landings can be hard and we may have a long walk. Some of those long walks took place at AMA Headquarters in Muncie. Indiana, where we held the first national skydiving event. Winds were gusting to 30 miles per hour, and to land our jumpers into the wind was not the easiest thing to do. Therefore, we decided to back into the wind. We had a circle that was approximately 30 feet across, and it was marked into increments of 10-, 20-, 30-, 40-, and 50-point target circles. The 50-point circle was the big goal. To compete, you strap your jumper onto the jump airplane, check everything out, then your jumper is on the way up to the drop zone. After your model gets to altitude and you feel comfortable with it. you call out to the pilot "jumper out." At that time, the pilot releases your jumper and it is in free fall. You wait awhile, then open the parachute and start the maneuvers you have practiced. But that's the easy part. The hard part is if the parachute doesn't open or if you have an accident before you get up to the drop zone. In either case, you start rebuilding your jumper. (CR Fowler has jumpers and parachutes for sale, as do Bob Deadmond and I.) Juan Fernandez in Washington has been doing this same thing, as did the late Wally Gitchel. Radio Control (RC) skydiving has been a long time coming, but it's here and we hope to get more people involved. It's a real challenge to do this, knowing that you can destroy all your equipment the first time, but it's all in the name of fun. We hope to be back in Muncie for the same kind of turnout—only bigger and better. There were jumpers from Kansas, Indiana. Illinois, Virginia, Florida, Kentucky, Tennessee, a few other states, and Saint Louis, Missouri. We even had the US Army Golden Knights parachute team drop in. Not too bad for old-timers! The team from R/C Skydive St. Louis also calls itself the Golden Knights. The parachutes are the most difficult items to get. Most of the time we make them ourselves, but Hobby Lobby has a jumper and a parachute, sold complete. (I think there are a tew items you need extra to make it fly right.) The Gitchel parachute is about the best if you are a good seamstress. We have made many modifications to the design, and now we have a fine parachute. We have also developed a way of stringing the lines so that they function like those on a full-scale parachute. We use a functional slider. As the parachute starts to deploy, the slider comes down the lines and slows the opening. It helps keep the lines separated. Many others use a stationary slider, which means that it is secured at the top of the harness. This can cause problems, but only if the parachute is not folded properly. The "container" (what holds the parachute in its packed position) is the next important item. It must be built to accommodate the size of parachute you are using and how you will be releasing it. Most of the jumpers are held under the airplanes' fuselages by means of elastic lines attached to a release servo. The pilot of the airplane controls this servo. If something goes wrong during takeoff, the pilot can release the jumper so that the airplane is not damaged. The models vary from a 40-size all the way up to [A scale. Following is a list of Web sites pertaining to RC skydiving. Visit the sites and ask questions: they will try to answer as many as they can. • www.mindspring.com/~sanyol (Let's Jump, run by me) • www.rcskydivers.com (run by C.R. Fowler and Jami) • www.olywa.net/yosemiteflash/rcprchpg.htm (run by Juan Fernandez) • www.hobby-lobby.com • www.paramax.de/ (a German site) Thanks to Gary Bussell. who was contest director of the event in Muncie, and to Gary W. Van Fossen, who helped with the design of the release system. (There are several release systems that can be used.) Thanks also to Juan Fernandez. He designed another skydiver that performs great. In August I will be taking my jumpers to the World Free Fall Convention in Rantoul. Illinois, where I plan on having all the US Army Golden Knights autograph my Ram Air Parachute. You may contact me at [email protected] or Bob Deadmond at [email protected]. Between us. 1 believe we can answer any questions pertaining to RC Skydiving. "A mind is like a parachute. It only functions when it is open." Blue skies to all.
Edition: Model Aviation - 2002/10
Page Numbers: 38, 39, 40
Edition: Model Aviation - 2002/10
Page Numbers: 38, 39, 40
DID YOU EVER want to jump out of an airplane then wait until your altimeter goes into the red to pull the ripcord? With modern technology you can, but you don't have to jump; let a little dummy do it for you. To do this you need to obtain a parafoil chute, and you must have a transmitter and servos and a receiver. Then you have to make or build a body to house all the equipment needed to skydive. (At the end of this article I will list several places to obtain all the materials required to make a jumper and a parachute.) Approximately 10 years ago Bob Deadmond and I decided to try this, and it took this long to perfect the art. And it is an art. We tried everything from old military parachutes to military flare parachutes. Then we sewed our own. At first they were bad, but they became better with practice. Now we can take our Golden Knight Skydivers up as far as we can see— sometimes more than 1,100 feet—and drop them. We count five to 10 seconds and open the parachutes. After that, it's nothing but air. We do figure 8s and 360° turns and stalls just to slow our descents. Landings are a real adventure. We have to land a jumper the same way we would land an airplane—and that is into the wind. Otherwise, landings can be hard and we may have a long walk. Some of those long walks took place at AMA Headquarters in Muncie. Indiana, where we held the first national skydiving event. Winds were gusting to 30 miles per hour, and to land our jumpers into the wind was not the easiest thing to do. Therefore, we decided to back into the wind. We had a circle that was approximately 30 feet across, and it was marked into increments of 10-, 20-, 30-, 40-, and 50-point target circles. The 50-point circle was the big goal. To compete, you strap your jumper onto the jump airplane, check everything out, then your jumper is on the way up to the drop zone. After your model gets to altitude and you feel comfortable with it. you call out to the pilot "jumper out." At that time, the pilot releases your jumper and it is in free fall. You wait awhile, then open the parachute and start the maneuvers you have practiced. But that's the easy part. The hard part is if the parachute doesn't open or if you have an accident before you get up to the drop zone. In either case, you start rebuilding your jumper. (CR Fowler has jumpers and parachutes for sale, as do Bob Deadmond and I.) Juan Fernandez in Washington has been doing this same thing, as did the late Wally Gitchel. Radio Control (RC) skydiving has been a long time coming, but it's here and we hope to get more people involved. It's a real challenge to do this, knowing that you can destroy all your equipment the first time, but it's all in the name of fun. We hope to be back in Muncie for the same kind of turnout—only bigger and better. There were jumpers from Kansas, Indiana. Illinois, Virginia, Florida, Kentucky, Tennessee, a few other states, and Saint Louis, Missouri. We even had the US Army Golden Knights parachute team drop in. Not too bad for old-timers! The team from R/C Skydive St. Louis also calls itself the Golden Knights. The parachutes are the most difficult items to get. Most of the time we make them ourselves, but Hobby Lobby has a jumper and a parachute, sold complete. (I think there are a tew items you need extra to make it fly right.) The Gitchel parachute is about the best if you are a good seamstress. We have made many modifications to the design, and now we have a fine parachute. We have also developed a way of stringing the lines so that they function like those on a full-scale parachute. We use a functional slider. As the parachute starts to deploy, the slider comes down the lines and slows the opening. It helps keep the lines separated. Many others use a stationary slider, which means that it is secured at the top of the harness. This can cause problems, but only if the parachute is not folded properly. The "container" (what holds the parachute in its packed position) is the next important item. It must be built to accommodate the size of parachute you are using and how you will be releasing it. Most of the jumpers are held under the airplanes' fuselages by means of elastic lines attached to a release servo. The pilot of the airplane controls this servo. If something goes wrong during takeoff, the pilot can release the jumper so that the airplane is not damaged. The models vary from a 40-size all the way up to [A scale. Following is a list of Web sites pertaining to RC skydiving. Visit the sites and ask questions: they will try to answer as many as they can. • www.mindspring.com/~sanyol (Let's Jump, run by me) • www.rcskydivers.com (run by C.R. Fowler and Jami) • www.olywa.net/yosemiteflash/rcprchpg.htm (run by Juan Fernandez) • www.hobby-lobby.com • www.paramax.de/ (a German site) Thanks to Gary Bussell. who was contest director of the event in Muncie, and to Gary W. Van Fossen, who helped with the design of the release system. (There are several release systems that can be used.) Thanks also to Juan Fernandez. He designed another skydiver that performs great. In August I will be taking my jumpers to the World Free Fall Convention in Rantoul. Illinois, where I plan on having all the US Army Golden Knights autograph my Ram Air Parachute. You may contact me at [email protected] or Bob Deadmond at [email protected]. Between us. 1 believe we can answer any questions pertaining to RC Skydiving. "A mind is like a parachute. It only functions when it is open." Blue skies to all.
Edition: Model Aviation - 2002/10
Page Numbers: 38, 39, 40
DID YOU EVER want to jump out of an airplane then wait until your altimeter goes into the red to pull the ripcord? With modern technology you can, but you don't have to jump; let a little dummy do it for you. To do this you need to obtain a parafoil chute, and you must have a transmitter and servos and a receiver. Then you have to make or build a body to house all the equipment needed to skydive. (At the end of this article I will list several places to obtain all the materials required to make a jumper and a parachute.) Approximately 10 years ago Bob Deadmond and I decided to try this, and it took this long to perfect the art. And it is an art. We tried everything from old military parachutes to military flare parachutes. Then we sewed our own. At first they were bad, but they became better with practice. Now we can take our Golden Knight Skydivers up as far as we can see— sometimes more than 1,100 feet—and drop them. We count five to 10 seconds and open the parachutes. After that, it's nothing but air. We do figure 8s and 360° turns and stalls just to slow our descents. Landings are a real adventure. We have to land a jumper the same way we would land an airplane—and that is into the wind. Otherwise, landings can be hard and we may have a long walk. Some of those long walks took place at AMA Headquarters in Muncie. Indiana, where we held the first national skydiving event. Winds were gusting to 30 miles per hour, and to land our jumpers into the wind was not the easiest thing to do. Therefore, we decided to back into the wind. We had a circle that was approximately 30 feet across, and it was marked into increments of 10-, 20-, 30-, 40-, and 50-point target circles. The 50-point circle was the big goal. To compete, you strap your jumper onto the jump airplane, check everything out, then your jumper is on the way up to the drop zone. After your model gets to altitude and you feel comfortable with it. you call out to the pilot "jumper out." At that time, the pilot releases your jumper and it is in free fall. You wait awhile, then open the parachute and start the maneuvers you have practiced. But that's the easy part. The hard part is if the parachute doesn't open or if you have an accident before you get up to the drop zone. In either case, you start rebuilding your jumper. (CR Fowler has jumpers and parachutes for sale, as do Bob Deadmond and I.) Juan Fernandez in Washington has been doing this same thing, as did the late Wally Gitchel. Radio Control (RC) skydiving has been a long time coming, but it's here and we hope to get more people involved. It's a real challenge to do this, knowing that you can destroy all your equipment the first time, but it's all in the name of fun. We hope to be back in Muncie for the same kind of turnout—only bigger and better. There were jumpers from Kansas, Indiana. Illinois, Virginia, Florida, Kentucky, Tennessee, a few other states, and Saint Louis, Missouri. We even had the US Army Golden Knights parachute team drop in. Not too bad for old-timers! The team from R/C Skydive St. Louis also calls itself the Golden Knights. The parachutes are the most difficult items to get. Most of the time we make them ourselves, but Hobby Lobby has a jumper and a parachute, sold complete. (I think there are a tew items you need extra to make it fly right.) The Gitchel parachute is about the best if you are a good seamstress. We have made many modifications to the design, and now we have a fine parachute. We have also developed a way of stringing the lines so that they function like those on a full-scale parachute. We use a functional slider. As the parachute starts to deploy, the slider comes down the lines and slows the opening. It helps keep the lines separated. Many others use a stationary slider, which means that it is secured at the top of the harness. This can cause problems, but only if the parachute is not folded properly. The "container" (what holds the parachute in its packed position) is the next important item. It must be built to accommodate the size of parachute you are using and how you will be releasing it. Most of the jumpers are held under the airplanes' fuselages by means of elastic lines attached to a release servo. The pilot of the airplane controls this servo. If something goes wrong during takeoff, the pilot can release the jumper so that the airplane is not damaged. The models vary from a 40-size all the way up to [A scale. Following is a list of Web sites pertaining to RC skydiving. Visit the sites and ask questions: they will try to answer as many as they can. • www.mindspring.com/~sanyol (Let's Jump, run by me) • www.rcskydivers.com (run by C.R. Fowler and Jami) • www.olywa.net/yosemiteflash/rcprchpg.htm (run by Juan Fernandez) • www.hobby-lobby.com • www.paramax.de/ (a German site) Thanks to Gary Bussell. who was contest director of the event in Muncie, and to Gary W. Van Fossen, who helped with the design of the release system. (There are several release systems that can be used.) Thanks also to Juan Fernandez. He designed another skydiver that performs great. In August I will be taking my jumpers to the World Free Fall Convention in Rantoul. Illinois, where I plan on having all the US Army Golden Knights autograph my Ram Air Parachute. You may contact me at [email protected] or Bob Deadmond at [email protected]. Between us. 1 believe we can answer any questions pertaining to RC Skydiving. "A mind is like a parachute. It only functions when it is open." Blue skies to all.
