UPS dropped off my parachute after a fresh repack from Don Mayer (www.parachuteshop.com)
Its like Christmas morning opening up the box and seeing your chute lookin' all spiff
Having a fresh repack is a mandatory thing to be done in 180 day intervals. In addition to making sure you are legal the repack also serves to make sure the rig is still in good condition. Things shift over time and the last thing you want is your chute not deploying properly while the ground rushes up at you. Getting a freshly packed chute is like crawling into bed when you've just changed the sheets. Everything feels clean and tightened up.
When you pull a the ripcord what you are actually doing is pulling these three pins. These pins hold the whole assembly in place. I should have taken some photos of the guts of the chute while it was open. Underneath the pins is a spring...a very large spring that looks like it was pulled from a matress. When the pins are gone, that spring is free to shoot out, dragging with it a small drag chute which then catches the airflow and pulls out your canopy. As part of an acro preflight I check to make sure that these pins are secure in place and haven't slipped at all. Over time they can wiggle free.
The packing log stays with the chute in a little pocket. When I go to a contest I have to show the contest director and any other official this slip proving that my pack is legal and within the 180 repack interval.
Its like Christmas morning opening up the box and seeing your chute lookin' all spiff
Having a fresh repack is a mandatory thing to be done in 180 day intervals. In addition to making sure you are legal the repack also serves to make sure the rig is still in good condition. Things shift over time and the last thing you want is your chute not deploying properly while the ground rushes up at you. Getting a freshly packed chute is like crawling into bed when you've just changed the sheets. Everything feels clean and tightened up.
When you pull a the ripcord what you are actually doing is pulling these three pins. These pins hold the whole assembly in place. I should have taken some photos of the guts of the chute while it was open. Underneath the pins is a spring...a very large spring that looks like it was pulled from a matress. When the pins are gone, that spring is free to shoot out, dragging with it a small drag chute which then catches the airflow and pulls out your canopy. As part of an acro preflight I check to make sure that these pins are secure in place and haven't slipped at all. Over time they can wiggle free.
The packing log stays with the chute in a little pocket. When I go to a contest I have to show the contest director and any other official this slip proving that my pack is legal and within the 180 repack interval.
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