Environment for the jumps:
486 foot high Span.
Rig: Vertigo Rock Dragon 288 in a Warlock container - weight=15.5 pounds.
Jumper: Weight 200 pounds
Exit weight: 215.5 pounds
Number of Jumps: 10

I jumped my Fox right after the Rock Dragon (about 45 minutes later), to get
similar conditions.

Also, I should say that I am just interested in all BASE equipment and
did these jumps for my own education. I am NOT paid by, sponsered by, or
employed by Vertigo or any BASE equipment manufacturer. These impressions
are just mine. Also, it is fine to try and learn about BASE from written
material and talking to people, but ONE JUMP on a canopy will tell you
more for yourself than reading ten reviews by others.


Observations:

Glide - This was by no means a "scientific" test, but a practical one, with
attempts to equalize deployment altitude and flight profile. Both the Fox and
the Rock Dragon opened in about a count of "3 thousand". For the Rock Dragon
jump, the wind seemed about the same, but a little more headwind component at
times. Even so, it glided about 50 feet further than the Fox. As in all other
comparisons, the Rock Dragon seems to beat out the Fox.

Turns - Turns are quite responsive. Just what I would want for a BASE canopy.
It turns better than my Fox, ie, quicker and less "slip" or "slide".

Sinking - It sinks nicely and slow flight is nice. Transitions from an easy
sink to landing went well.

Heading - Headings were spot on for all jumps. Even though both canopies opened
in about a count of "3 thousand", The Rock Dragon opened very crisply and DEAD
ON HEADING. It opened like this for all the jumps. I mean, it was not even 5
degrees off. Now, granted, this is not a statistically relevant sample, but
lets just say the other canopies i jumped each day had much worse results, and
the Fox had a 180. I finally got tired of the perfect openings and did a side
launch, slanting my body and dipping a shoulder. I was able to get a 90 degree
opening that way. I have the most confidence about heading for this canopy than
any other I have tried. Now, this might not be true over 500 jumps, or might
not be true for ALL Rock Dragons, but this one gave me the gut feeling that the
Rock Dragon could end up being the "Heading Champion" of all canopies! If you
do a reasonably symmetrical pack job, and give it a reasonably symmetrical body
position at exit, it should be on heading for you. I never have felt this
positive about any other canopy.

Opening - Crisp, quick and fully inflated, ready to go! In addition to being on
heading, the Rock Dragon was completely open immediately (all cells inflated)
and ready to fly or receive riser inputs.

Rear Riser turns - Being immediately ready for input, I simulated a back-off
and turn away from a solid object. I grabbed both risers, slid the canopy
backwards, and transitioned into a turn away. The response was great, and the
Rock Dragon behaved as it was designed to for this low altitude scenario.

Toggles and Tail Pocket. The toggles are Vertigos Pin type, the same as on the
Dagger. These are a good system with none of the problems from the old "Zoo"
type. You do need to remember to "snug" the tension up on them. Properly
tensioned, these toggles seem to wear quite well, better than some other types.
They also accept the WLO toggles Vertigo makes for clearing lineovers. However,
the lower control lines on the canopy are universal, and will fit into any
container/riser on the market.
The Tailpocket is a good design, the same as on the Dagger. It is quite secure,
and I have never found it open at all after jumping. I am quite confident the
lines are only coming out of the center opening as they were designed to do.

Landing - In no wind at the landing area, the flare seems not to have a lot
of "low end" or last minute lift. My Fox seems to "float" me at the end for a
softer landing. I had no trouble standing up the Rock Dragon and running it
out, but it just isn't landing quite as nice as the fox. Perfectly acceptable,
though not quite as soft as the Fox. Although easily run out, it lands with a
slap and a runout, compared to a foxes tap and a runout. After a few jumps, I
seem to develop a feel for it and the landings became the same as my Fox. So,
if you have a few at first that are slightly harder than usual, be patient.
I was checking out its "sinking", and it slow flys and transitions to a sink
smoothly. While doing this sink, I got off to the side some and in trying
to recover and steer back to landing, I got headed towards a tree. I could see
that I would just miss the tree or perhaps skim through the top. As my feet
slapped through the tree top, I flared and the Rock Dragon responded quickly and
pulled me out giving me a nice no-wind landing runout.

Size of packing - seems much smaller than a Fox. Vertigo says the container the
canopy is in is one of their jump course containers. It was made for a Dagger
277, but the Rock Dragon 288 seems to go in fine, yet a little tight. It looks
pretty nice and compact though. I would say, if you had a container made for a
Dagger, that the same size Rock Dragon would fit in it well. Vertigo says the
Rock Dragons might pack a bit larger than a Dagger due to the vents and covers,
but that doesn't seem to be a big factor with this rig. It is 1 inch "thinner"
than a Fox and that should help cut down some bulk also.

================================================== ======
Measurements:

Rock Dragon:
Center Cell "thickness" -- 14 inches
Center Cell "Width" [measured about 24 inches back from leading edge] :
Bottom Skin -- 38 inches
Top Skin -- 40 inches

One cell over from center, Bottom Skin -- 35 inches

Mesh is 2 cells wide, 12 inches "deep" (starts 20 inches from leading edge
and goes to line attach point).

Lines are 4 inches longer than a Fox 285.

Center A & B lines are slightly shorter than the other lines (like the Dagger).
This is some canopy shaping they do. Vertigo explains: "the center a's
and b's are shorter because they are continuous. When the canopy is
inflated they equal the length of the cascaded lines(which are longer when
next to each other but shorten overall when spread apart-when the canopy is
inflated.) This is a super minor trim aspect in canopies this size, but
every little bit helps and continuous lines that are not a bit shorter will
be that much out of trim when the canopy is open. We use continuous center
a's and b's because this is where the most stress is on opening no matter
what the canopy(skydiving or BASE). We actually use 1000 pound Dacron for
the center a's."

FOX:
Center Cell "thickness" -- 15 inches
Center Cell "Width" [measured about 24 inches back from leading edge] :
Bottom Skin -- 38 inches
Top Skin -- 41 inches

If you lay out a 285 Fox on the ground and lay out a 288 Rock Dragon on top of
it, they are really about the same size - within an inch or so.

This Canopy is perfectly suited for jumping at Moab or any critical BASE jump.
I would guess that jumpers in Australia will really like this parachute. Anyone
thinking of buying a BASE canopy should SERIOUSLY consider this one. It is a
keeper.

The canopy is so new that Vertigo hasn't been able to get any information on
their web site, but hopefully that will change soon.

Contact the manufacturer, Vertigo at:

Vertigo Base Outfitters
PO Box 1304
Moab, Utah 84532
phone /fax (435) 259-1085
http://www.vertigobase.com/
adrenaline@vertigobase.com