posted Apr 21st, 2008 - NSL-TV has already moved on to Round 2 of the FSL April meet. The videos of the four national teams in DeLand have been uploaded and can now be viewed. Round 2 opens a series of three 22-pointers shared between Canada Evolution and Norway Arcteryx.

The 22-pointers in Round 2 were actually 23-pointers within working time for both teams. Event judges Shannon Pilcher and Pete Allum deducted one point for each team. Fastrax Blue and Sequence lost one point each, as well. The Dutch team Orange Blue had a 2-point deduction.

Shannon Pilcher and Pete Allum continued with the judging policy that Eric Heinsheimer and Jukka Olkkonen had set at the FSL Shamrock Showdown 2008. It was a tough policy, and the goal has been to prepare the national teams as good as possible for any judging situation at the World Championship of Formation Skydiving this year.

Round 1 had already a few penalty situations. Arcteryx' 24-pointer included a 1-point deduction, and DK Sequence lost the first point already at the meet opener. Orange Blue lost two pints in the first round, as well.

The four national teams in DeLand did not only have to deal with especially sharpened eyes of the judges. The right-hand door of the Pilatus Porter is still challenging teams and videographers on each exit.

The difficulty is not only the fact that the teams had to switch from left-hand doors to right-hand doors. The exit and subterminal air feels very different, as well.

The airspeed of the Twinotter is usually between 85 to 95 knots at any competitions, with as little torque as possible. The French organizers of this year's World Meet have already published specific aircraft information of the Pilatus Porter, and it is quite different.

The Pilatus Porter will drop the teams in Maubeuge with an airspeed of approx. 70 knots. The difference of 15 knots is significant and adds a challenging situation to the right-hand door exit.

Comments from the teams that have to switch to the Pilatus Porter always include the feeling of very soft air right after the exit. That is obviously no surprise considering the difference of 15 knots. However, it is still difficult to get used to the slower airspeed at the beginning of the skydive.

The blast of the one propeller does not make it much easier and creates additional challenges. It is hard for the teams to climb out against the prop-created wind. The slow airspeed does not allow the pilot to reduce the torque much, the plane still has to be stable and keep flying...

The tough climbout creates the impression that there will be a lot of air, but there isn't. It takes a lot of exit training to get used to all these factors. Eventually, even good climbouts and launches from the Pilatus Porter still do not bring the same great start compared to the 85 - 95 knot exits from the Twinotter.

The teams have two options how to deal with the slower airspeed. They can simply accept that the air is "softer" and patiently wait until the airspeed increases with gravity. This means that the first subterminal moves will be slower.

The other option is to use more input for each move by digging in deeper with arms and knees. This can compensate for the slower airspeed, but it has a risk. The chances to cut into the wind and create serious level problems increase with this technique.

Last not least, the exit formations have a different angle and timeframe during the subterminal work, and the videographers are greatly challenged to keep everything in frame. The climbout and the position behind the sliding door are more difficult, as well.

It might be interesting to keep these factors in mind while watching the national teams doing their work during the first five seconds of each competition jump. Enjoy the new NSL-TV show and help the NSL with a donation.