Rant & Rave Blog

Submitting an order for complete skydiving rig has changed dramatically over the past 20 years, and while online technology has made the orders more accurate, it's not an exactly straight forward process for those ordering their first rig. So in this article, we'll break down the process and make it a bit easier to know you're on the right path to jumping out of a plane with your own rig! The process is summarized in these 8 steps:

• Choosing the Container, Canopies & AAD
• Finding the price for the complete skydiving rig gear package
• Submitting the manufacturer container order form
• Submitting the manufacturer canopy order forms
• Submitting the complete skydiving rig package order
• Confirming the details
• Waiting for the rig to be manufactured and rigged
• Receiving the rig and jumping it!

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ChutingStar receives daily emails, phone calls and social media messages on skydiving gear pricing, mostly related to complete gear packages as they'll see new advertisements, supposed "special offers" or web listings that claim to have the "best" price. It's difficult sometimes to cut through all of those claims because of how the pricing is bundled together and/or final pricing add-ons for options, shipping, rigging and the like. But we're going to try to make sense of it all for you to give you peace of mind that you're not getting ripped off. First off, all skydiving gear dealers are skydivers like you. We're out jumping, rigging or flying in a wind tunnel every week using the gear we purchased from the same manufacturers that also sell us the gear you're buying from us. We've all been in your shoes buying that first piece of skydiving gear, our first rig or the latest new gadget to make skydiving, rigging or wind tunnel flying even more enjoyable than it already is. We all started selling and/or servicing skydiving gear to fill a need of skydivers needing gear advice, and because of the great service we provided ended up growing a small service into a full-time job...usually with the help of a drop zone, manufacturers and other gear shops. It's a small industry, and almost everyone knows everyone.  Continue reading →

ChutingStar has been blessed with abundant business over the past 20 years and most of our donations to those in need are done in private. But this year we're asking our customers to join in with a drive to donate socks and water to the homeless in our area. In Marietta GA, where ChutingStar is located, there is a homeless shelter less than a mile away and homeless people are frequently seen along the main roads. According to a 2015 Georgia Department of Community Affairs Report, there is estimated to be 14,000 homeless in Georgia. Owners Mike & Stephanie Gruwell have pledged to give away 1 pair of socks and 1 bottle of water to the homeless for every order placed online from Thanksgiving to Christmas Day.  Continue reading →

ChutingStar's Crew would love to attend every event and boogie each year!

Unfortunately we can't physically be at every boogie, but we can help you and your skydivers in other ways. Read about the three different options below, and contact the ChutingStar Crew about attending or supporting your next boogie! Continue reading →

Over the years, ChutingStar Parachute Riggers have used a wide variety of seal presses. Some of these were commonly available and others were obtained with long searching, persistent inquiries and the utmost patience (it took one year to get a unique press from Germany). ChutingStar started selling Parachute Rigging Seal Presses to our rigging students, and then later, to riggers worldwide once we found a quality press and engraver. It must be a tough business as over the past 20 years, we've seen a few seal press manufacturers come and go.  Continue reading →

In a sea of photographers, Adrian Fuentes quickly stands out as a true artist. His photos of local skaters show off their talents while blowing your mind with the overall shot framing as well as the coloring through an infrared process. Continue reading →

ChutingStar has been carrying Dan BC's book Above All Else for the past 5 years, and we have sold well over 100 copies, but I had never taken the time to read the book until this past week. WOW...what have I been waiting for? What a story of life...from pursuing your dreams to just trying to survive to a glimpse of the afterlife as well as perseverance, determination and the rewards of never giving up. Above All Else is a page-turner from the first chapter account of his conversation with his teammate James in the afterlife while Dan Brodsky-Chenfeld was in a coma to the step-by-step personal and business guidance at the end for "Playing to Win." Continue reading →

With the release of the STELLA electronic analog altimeter by LB Altimeters (aka Larsen & Brusgaard), skydivers are living in a brand new world of analog altimeters to choose from.

Even manufacturer Mads Larsen was surprised by the demand and response a few days before initial STELLA orders shipped out.

"The STELLA seems to have become very popular..." he told ChutingStar.

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Skydivers LOVE their Cookie G3 helmets as well as their GoPro cameras...but combining those two together has been a bit of a gamble in the past as the full-face helmet didn't have any type of cutaway system. And a cutaway system is important at 2,000 feet when that pilot chute just got snagged on your camera mount at the end of a crazy, funneled skydive with a "save yourself" deployment.

Cookie hasn't yet developed a cutaway system for the helmet, so skydivers have resolved to either take the risk, make their own cutaway system, make a mount that is less likely to get snagged or find a mount that cuts away the camera.

The most unique mount is from Vmag, which allows a quick release via magnets. This unique mount is available as a chin or top mount

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(Published in Parachutist Magazine and Canpara Magazine) So you’ve decided to delve in the realm of freeflying, but you bought a used rig that’s just a tad big on you and that one main riser cover is always opening on you during exit. Is that a big deal? Probably. Can it be fixed? Maybe. Will I have to buy a whole new setup? Not likely. Lets take a look at a couple of things to consider before subjecting your body to the possibility of a premature opening at 150 mph.

Fit

It’s more critical your harness fits you appropriately now that your body will be moving around the sky in a multitude of positions. Throughout a freefly dive, you will expose all sides of the rig to the relative wind at some point. If the rig doesn’t fit you properly, it can push the rig from side to side, down your legs or up your back. At a minimum, this can affect your ability to learn new freefly skills. At worst, this can put you in a dangerous position of coming out of your rig. Continue reading →