Survivors Recall '92 Skydive Crash
Los Angeles - Dan Brodsky-Chenfeld remembers nothing about the airplane crash that nearly killed him, or the five weeks he lay in a coma afterward. What he does remember is that one of his best friends died on the skydiving plane that crashed 10 years ago last Monday.
"It infuriates me," he says of the crash. "I'm still very good friends with his mother, with his sister. I see them and talk to them and it just kills me, that I had anything to do with it."
In one of the worst accidents in skydiving history, the twin-engine de Havilland plunged to the ground during takeoff at Perris Valley Airport, killing the pilot and 15 skydivers.
Brodsky-Chenfeld, 40, was among six survivors. He was coaching American and Dutch skydivers and had recruited some to come out to Southern California for training. Among the dead was his friend James Layne, whom he had taught to skydive in Ohio.
Federal officials determined that contaminated fuel caused the right engine of the DHC-6-200 Twin Otter to lose power after takeoff. The pilot then made a mistake.
The overloaded plane's right wing dipped and struck the ground. Witnesses said the craft bounced upright and then nose-dived, shearing off its nose and wings.
Troy Widgery, 35, of Denver, recalls the aircraft was 300 feet in the air when it rolled over and he saw the ground out of the door. The crash knocked him out for several seconds. When he awoke, he found himself on top of bodies, fearful that the aircraft would catch fire.
"I thought, well we lived through that and now it's gonna burn. Gotta get out of here. Everyone was either dead, dying or couldn't move."
Widgery spent several days in the hospital with a broken hip, collarbone and other injuries. "I was jumping two months later. Once I could walk again, I was skydiving," he said.
The skydiving school about 60 miles southeast of Los Angeles survived and has flourished, now handling about 10,000 student jumps a year.
Pictures of the dead hang on the school walls, and there is a memorial park near the drop zone. On Monday, friends will gather there for skydiving and a barbecue.
"It's an opportunity to be among people who truly understand our pain," said Melanie Conatser, co-owner of Perris Valley Skydiving.
Brodsky-Chenfeld, of Chandler, Ariz., suffered a head injury, a broken neck, a collapsed lung and other internal injuries in the crash. He is "covered with scars" and still takes medication for back pain and other problems caused by his injuries.
Yet he, too, was back to skydiving only months after the crash, following two major surgeries and with a brace around his neck. He has made 9,000 jumps since the crash, and started a championship skydiving team, Arizona Airspeed.
"It's hard to ever consider a life that doesn't include that," he said. "It's really important that every day of your life you're doing something that really challenges you, something that you love to do."
~ Associated Press
First Dock - Two Jumpers Make History
The first controlled dock between a canopy pilot and a skydiver in freefall is a fact! In the skies of DeLand, Florida, around four o'clock in the afternoon on April 17th, Jari Kuosma, wearing a Skyflyer wingsuit, did a controlled dock on the ankle of Vladi Pesa who was flying his Performance Designs Velocity 84. Kuosma is the president of BirdMan, Inc. and has 2100 jumps in total, 1100 of those are wingsuit jumps. Pesa has 8,000 jumps and is an experienced canopy swoop competitor, AFF JM, tandem master, and a BirdMan instructor.
Videographer Todd Sutherland, flying his Skyflyer along side of Kuosma, was there to capture the magic moment.
Pesa wore a weight bag of 30 pounds; his wingloading was 3.5 to 1. His canopy risers were specially designed for this project in order to increase the speed and vertical decent of his Velocity.
This was Pesa's and Kuosma's 17th attempt trying to close the gap between canopy and wingsuit.
"We flew in close formation - within inches away from one another - during the last six attempts," said Kuosma, "but I had a hard time closing that final gap since I was at the edge of my Skyflyer's performance envelope."
"This flight was the physically hardest of all," said Kuosma. "Unfortunately Vladi's canopy turned 180 degrees on deployment, which made him travel at a high rate of speed in the opposite direction of what we had planned. Todd and I almost lost our faith, Vladi seemed to be miles away and there was no way he was able to see us on the horizon. Just prior to break off, though, we saw each other and I just went for it."
On this attempt I tried a new angle of attack. In past jumps, I had been flying above Vladi's canopy, just off the edge of his wing and arching to come down to his ankle. This time I still flew parallel to and above his canopy, but further away horizontally; I got to his ankle by doing a vertical side slide," Kuosma says.
Break off was planned at 5000 feet to give Jari time to safely deploy and Vladi the chance to unlock his risers and prepare for an intense landing.
"The weirdest part was looking at Jari breaking off and deploying his parachute right next to me while I was already under canopy," said Pesa. "How are the landings you wonder? - FAST !!"
A Larsen & Brusgaard ProTrack recorded Jari's average vertical speed at 35mph. The two estimate their forward speed at 60-70mph.
The two are planning to do more attempts in the next few days in order to get better video and still footage to show the world. It is not an easy task to capture such a unique stunt on film. "Southerland is doing a great job staying with us though," says Kuosma.
Kuosma and Pesa warn jumpers to not attempt this stunt without consulting them. You can contact Kuosma at the BirdMan office, (386) 785-0800 or Pesa at (386) 801-6295.
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Carbone Zone has touched down
That's right! You heard it here first. Skydive America Palm Beach is now the proud landlord of some new guests. Yep, that's right. Scotty Carbone (a self-proclaimed skydiving gypsy), his lovely wife, Tammy, and his 3-legged dog, Hercules, have traveled across time and space from their last dropzone which was Skydive Spaceland in Texas and have finally landed and set up home on the Skydive America property.
This is fantastic news for Skydive America and the jumpers as they have brought their entourage of trailers and tents including the cutaway cafe. Now Skydive America has the one thing it was missing -- the constant smell of food in the air, as they knock out some smashing breakfasts lunches, and dinners along with plenty of cold drinks, tea, coffee and homemade sandwiches, munchies and all sorts of skydiving goodies.
Skydive America was, is, and has always been an awesome dropzone which I thought had everything (except decent food). I mean where else do you get to jump with Olav Zipser, Jerry Bird and Scotty Carbone all on the same load on a weekly basis?
When asked how long they are going to stay, the reply was, "for at least a couple of years."
Scotty brings with him about 12,000 skydives, good food, a bang-on sense of humor and some great organizing, along with more stories than an old Jewish grandma at a Matzo ball party.
This weekend the skydiver writing this actually replaced his gold chain, that's been around his neck for the last 15 years, with a black piece of leather, a closing pin and a couple of beads, after being told by Carbone, "why you wearing that girlie thing kid, you need to be wearing one of these," as he kindly charged me $18 for my new necklace and told me how all skydivers with more than 200 jumps must wear these (hey who was I to argue -- I have 250 jumps -- he has over 12,000 and he did give me a free cup of tea).
Anyway, having Scotty and Tammy there have only added brownie points to the dropzone and added a sense of history. I mean, when I am awakened at 7:00 AM on a Sunday morning by the sound of horribly loud 70's music blasting from the "Carbone Zone" Trailer/Café, and I walk out of the bunkhouse and there's the sweet smell of bacon and French toast in the air and then there's Scotty Carbone with his big chef's hat, a pair of boots and boxer shorts and not too much else, scuttling around and kicking up dust dancing with cooking spatula in hand, it reminded me of a scene from "Good Morning Vietnam" or of old skydiving days. I don't know -- it just seemed to make me feel nostalgic and was definitely a lot better than a bunch of us sitting around eating cold Egg Mcmuffins before first load. So, needless to say, the "Carbone Zone", Tammy and Hercules, the 3-legged dog (who runs 22 miles an hour behind Scotty's scooter wherever he goes -- you have to see it -- it's hysterical), are warmly welcomed by the all the skydivers and everyone at Skydive America. (Yes, even the freeflyers have to eat you know.)
When I arrived home after another great weekend of jumpin', the wife said "Where's your chain?" I said, "its in my bag -- I am not wearing it anymore. I'm a skydiver and Scotty Carbone said I have to wear this." To this she replied, "Who the f#@# is Scotty Carbone. If he told you to jump off a bridge, would you do it?" (She's not a jumper.) Then, surprisingly, she said, "I actually hated that gold chain -- you look much better in that new thing, whatever it is."
Andre Stepsky
b32323
TFQ #1
www.tumblefuqs.com
Skydivers Realize Bobo's Big Dream
ELLINGTON -- Marylou Laughlin wiped tears from her eyes as she walked off the field next to Ellington Airport, her parachute in tow. Moments earlier, she was one of 39 skydivers to form a flower-like formation thousands of feet above. The formation set a state skydiving record - all in the name of Robert "Bobo" Bonadies, an instructor who died in a parachuting accident May 6. Bonadies died helping a student pull her parachute rip cord; he never had time to pull his own, police and skydivers said.
"This is the first time I cried since the fatality," said Laughlin, of Granby, who is the United States Parachutist Association regional director and a member of Connecticut Parachutists Inc.
"It was like Bobo was really with us," she said.
Wednesday was the first of a two-day skydiving event that Bonadies, president of the Connecticut group, helped plan. Bonadies, 47, of Vernon, wanted to get more than three dozen skydivers airborne to complete the formation.
The club's goal was 56 skydivers, a far cry from the 28 who failed to properly complete a formation in an impromptu jump eight years ago.
Rather than dampen their passion, Bonadies' death motivated the skydivers to carry on. Called "Bobo's Big Dream," the event continues today, as skydivers attempt to form multiple formations within jumps.
More than 50 skydivers traveled from as far as Philadelphia for the first day of jumping. They ranged from 67-year-old Howard Burling of Bristol to Paula Philbrook of Pepperell, Mass., who brought her 4-year-old son and mother to watch.
But success wasn't easy to achieve. Menacing rain clouds kept skydivers on the ground until the afternoon. Then, as the sun broke through the clouds, revealing blue patches, the skydivers got ready for the first jump.
First, they practiced on the ground ("dirt diving"). Hunched over like dads playing monster, they extended their arms, moved toward each other to form loops and broke away. They rehearsed jumping out of the plane on wooden platforms.
Then came the real thing.
Thirty-nine parachutists, plus three with video cameras, piled into three planes. On the first jump, the formation was almost completed, save for a few jumpers who were unable to latch onto a loop. The second time, 40 jumpers were too far apart to create any kind of pattern, save the central ring.
The third time was the charm. Thirty-nine skydivers fell into formation like clockwork, forming four rings outside a central ring. Three of the outer rings, or "rooms," had a jumper in the middle. The fourth room was empty, in a salute to Bonadies.
By one count, the skydivers held on to each other for 11 seconds. That's out of a 50-second descent from 13,500 feet at about 120 mph.
Their landings were staggered, punctuated by fluttering parachutes. Spectators cheered as skydivers whooshed across the grass below and hugged one another.
"Hey, don't forget, guys, that wasn't 39, it was 40, and it was for Bobo," said Roger Ponce de Leon of Hamden, who helped plan the formations.
~ The Hartford Courant
Golden Knights pilot memorialized
FORT BRAGG -- An Army pilot so skilled he could fly eight types of aircraft was remembered today by fellow members of the Golden Knights parachute exhibition team. Chief Warrant Officer Lowell Timmons, 45, died last week when the UV-20 single-engine turboprop he was flying near Tucson, Ariz., collided with a civilian skydiving plane. No one else was killed.
About 300 people attended the service today at the main chapel at Fort Bragg, home of the Golden Knights and the Army's 18th Airborne Corps.
At the front of the gathering, Timmons' dog tags and flight helmet hung on the butt of a M-16 rifle mounted vertically. On the floor beside it the rifle was a pair of empty jump boots. The display was backed by crossed United States and Golden Knights flags.
The demonstration team's commanding officer, Lt. Col. David Liwang, said while some Americans find it difficult to learn to drive a stick-shift automobile, Timmons was proficient flying everything from helicopters to cargo planes. His 6,000 hours of flight experience was equivalent to flying nonstop for nearly nine months, Liwang said.
"It's been my honor and my pleasure to serve with him," Maj. Trey Kelly, commander of the parachute team's pilots and crew members, said before stepping back from the podium and saluting.
Chief Warrant Officer Ken Breeden, a fellow pilot, knew Timmons when they served together in Korea before joining the Golden Knights. Breeden said Timmons had a knack for instantly earning the respect of fellow fliers and parachute troops.
Timmons was due for a promotion within a few months to become the aviator in charge of polishing the training of the team's instructor pilots, said Sgt. 1st Class Ken Kassens, a Golden Knights spokesman.
The Army's Aviation Safety Center and the National Transportation Safety Board are investigating the cause of last week's fatal crash.
Four Golden Knights had made a practice jump shortly before the collision with a Cessna 182 carrying four civilian skydivers. The four civilians aboard the Cessna jumped afterward.
Timmons, a 16-year veteran born in Fort Wayne, Ind., had served in Somalia, Turkey, Hungary, Bosnia, Germany and Korea. He is survived by his wife, Teresa, three daughters and three brothers.
His funeral will be held Saturday at Richmond Hill, Ga., near Savannah.
Jury rules against family of skydiver killed in accident
Moments after a jury cleared him of any wrongdoing in the death of a skydiver, Michael Hawkes stood on the front steps of the Foley Federal Building and pointed skyward at the Air Force Thunderbirds as they performed maneuvers.
"Hey! They're celebrating our win," Hawkes yelled over to fellow defendant Joe Herbst. "That's pretty good."
On Friday a Clark County civil jury ruled that Hawkes, the owner of Skydive Las Vegas, was not responsible for the May 1998 death of Vic Pappadato, an Emmy-award winning videographer and skydiver.
They also found that Herbst, a former teacher who jumped that day with Pappadato, did not contribute to Pappadato's death. In fact, they awarded Herbst $1, saying Pappadato caused the midair collision that led to his death and seriously injured Herbst.
The four-week trial was held in the Foley Federal Building to provide extra space.
The parents and brother of Vic Pappadato had claimed that Hawkes had a history of violating safety rules and on the afternoon of May 10, 1998, allowed a group to dive even though some of them had been partying the previous evening.
The family's attorney said those mistakes led to Pappadato's death.
Hawkes and Herbst's attorneys told jurors that Pappadato deviated from a pre-arranged plan, and his mistakes led to his death.
They also pointed out that Pappadato had signed a waiver releasing Skydive Las Vegas from any liability.
"It's been a long four weeks since the trial began and a long four years since the accident," Hawkes said. "I'm just very happy the waiver stood out and was upheld. Everyone who jumps out of airplanes knows it is potentially dangerous.
"There's been a lot of pain and suffering on both sides. I'm very sorry for the Pappadatos' loss, but this lawsuit should never have happened."
In a written statement, Vince Pappadato, Vic's brother wrote: "We accept the jury's verdict, although we do not necessarily agree with the outcome. Sometimes the truth cannot always be proven.
"This is just another bump in the road for us, and Vic Pappadato will never be forgotten for the champion he was in the sport that he loved so much, for the son and brother that he is, and for the man he became that everyone loved and misses dearly."
Vince Pappadato said his family also wished for peace for the Herbst family.
Herbst, who suffered internal injuries and broken bones in the accident, said he regretted having to file his counter-claim against Pappadato's estate. He said he went ahead with the lawsuit to clear his name.
"I have no animosity toward the Pappadato family, that's why I only asked for a dollar," Herbst said.
Herbst, who has made 1,000 dives since the accident, said the accident happened as the result of a few bad decisions made over a nine-second period.
"Who hasn't made bad decisions?" Herbst said. "I had forgiven Vic before I hit the ground."
~ LAS VEGAS SUN
Skydive DeLand takes flak from airport pilots
DELAND -- Skydive DeLand, the city airport's most prominent business, is under scrutiny by local factions of pilots and aviation businesses here who say the company gets preferential treatment from the city. Skydive DeLand has operated out of the tiny airport for 20 years, slowly building the city's worldwide reputation as a skydiving mecca.
Its local lore has also grown, as a place with loud planes and reckless pilots that not only attracts thousands of skydivers from all over Europe and South America, but also lets them stay in campers, tents -- even a teepee -- on airport property.
In recent months, people have complained about the "unsightliness" of the campground, and more than 100 people signed a petition asking the city to investigate the "dangerous" flying practices of Skydive DeLand's pilots.
The complaints surfaced as city officials are trying to map out the airport's future and decide if it will remain a small, mom-and-pop operation or grow to accommodate corporate jets for the city's adjacent industrial park.
"I think right now Skydive DeLand feels a little persecuted," said City Commissioner Charles Paiva, who is also a pilot who uses the airport. "People's perceptions are that [Skydive DeLand] does what they want to do and isn't very regulated. I think there needs to be some leeway given to a very good tenant that brings a lot of jobs and a lot of money. I don't want anyone to think we're giving anyone special treatment."
Company drops plans
Last week, Skydive DeLand dropped its plans to build a second RV park near its hangars and other buildings, which house a bar, a restaurant, a shop and indoor training classrooms.
Owner Bob Hallett said the city was insisting on too many restrictions -- such as an audit by the city's code enforcement office every six months to make sure people weren't using the campground as a permanent home -- to make the RV park worthwhile. "It was not in our political or financial interest to continue the project," Hallett said. "What other RV parks have that type of restriction?"
Under Skydive DeLand's lease with the city, the business is allowed to sublease the 18 spots in its existing RV park. It receives about $150 a month from each of those tenants.
Some of those tenants have kept trailers on the property for years, but they are out-of-towners who use it as a skydiving headquarters rather than a permanent home, said Skydive DeLand manager Mike Johnston.
Johnston told city commissioners last week that he doesn't understand what is prompting the complaints.
"These complaints have surfaced recently and we're not doing anything different," he said. Johnston said his pilots are not reckless and, in fact, follow standard skydive flight procedures accepted nationally.
FAA spokeswoman Kathleen Bergen said the agency is investigating the complaints about the pilots.
Neil Brady, a private pilot who has used the airport for 18 years, is part of the faction that has complained about Skydive DeLand. "This airport has grown tremendously in the last 18 years," he said. "There's a lot of flying activity here, and they simply cannot fly the way they did 18 years ago because it's not safe. Their airplane is no better than mine or a student pilot's or anyone else's out here."
Brady said he is also pleased the company decided not to build a second RV park because he considers the existing one an eyesore.
That RV park and campground are part of what has made it a successful draw for competitive and recreational skydivers all over the world, Johnston said.
Word of mouth across Europe and South America, say those who come here, is that Skydive DeLand is the place to train.
'Biggest skydive center'
"It's known as the biggest skydive center in the world, really," said Simon Staalnacke, 26, of Norway. He arrived in town about two weeks ago with two buddies from Sweden and Norway. On a recent morning, the three sat outside the large teepee they've been sleeping in, lounging on an old couch that they say they inherited from the last people who stayed in the teepee.
"The atmosphere is so nice here," Staalnacke said as his friend, Stefan Diahlkrist, strummed a guitar and sang Swedish songs. "Everybody is so fun and laid-back."
Staalnacke and Diahlkrist are typical of the foreign tourists Skydive DeLand attracts. From DeLand, they intend to make their way to another extreme sport -- snowboarding in Colorado.
Their teepee was one of seven tents set up in the yard next to the company's restaurant and bar, which boasts of a large number of imported beers to make their patrons feel at home.
National skydiving teams from Switzerland, Sweden and Italy are training at the facility now, but are renting homes in DeLand rather than camping.
"Florida is the mecca of skydiving in the world, and this has always been the No. 1 place in Florida," said Kurt Gaebel, who moved to DeLand from Germany to make a career as a skydiving coach.
Along with new residents and tourists, several skydiving equipment manufacturers have set up shop in DeLand near the airport. The city estimates Skydive DeLand's economic impact on the city to be near $30 million, said Assistant City Manager Michael Pleus.
Hallett, the company's owner, said he isn't surprised some airport users are getting restless from the growth, and says he also wants to keep the airport small.
"I really don't blame them," he said. "They really want the airport to go back to the days when it was just them and their buddies. We don't like to see the change either."
~Orlando Sentinel
"Team Funnel" Honors Fallen Friends by Sharing the Dream
For most skydivers, the reality of human flight is a dream come true. This May, a group of skydivers in Illinois will seek to make someone else's dream come true while remembering a few friends who have died living theirs.
Team Funnel is a loose organization of skydivers dedicated to the belief that no one should have to jump alone. With an emphasis on safety and inclusion, the more than eighty members across the world achieve their mission by seeking out low-timers and visitors at their home drop zones and organizing skydives and educational and social events to spread the joy and camaraderie of skydiving. In the Fall of 2001, Team Funnel lost three members to skydiving accidents. In honor of these members, and in honor of all passed skydivers, Team Funnel will hold the first annual Team Funnel Memorial Boogie on Saturday, May 25, 2002, at Skydive Chicago, in Ottawa, Illinois.
By remembering their fellow skydivers with a charity event, Team Funnel hopes to not only support the Make-A-Wish foundation, but also bring skydivers together in a relaxed, non-competitive atmosphere. Team Funnel co-founder Bill Homer summarizes the mission by saying, "even though we have lost some close friends, we want to remember them in a hopeful way. They lived their dreams, and we must continue to live ours, and pass the joy it gives us on to others." The primary goal of the event is to make one child's dream come true, through the resources of the Make-A-Wish Foundation. Funds will be raised through three activities:
A raffle, offering prizes such as merchandise from all the major manufacturers in the industry, coach jumps with some of the nation's leading freeflyers, gift certificates from Ottawa area merchants, and massages, video, rigging, and other services. Raffle tickets will be sold in advance and at the door for $5.00 each, or 5 for $20.00.
A silent auction featuring bigger-ticket items such as the chance to skydive naked with beautiful women. There will be a $10.00 charge for unlimited bidding in the auction.
A sunset barbecue on the docks of the Skydive Chicago swoop pond, with tickets going for $10.00, $5.00 for children under 8 years old.
100 percent of the proceeds from this event will be donated to the Make-A-Wish Foundation.
Held concurrently with Skydive Chicago's Memorial Day Boogie, the weekend will also include organized loads for all kinds of flyers, induction of new members into Team Funnel, and discounted skydives for registered participants in the Skydive Chicago Boogie.
For more information about the event or Team Funnel, visit www.TeamFunnel.com and follow the link to "TF Memorial Boogie." To make a donation or purchase raffle tickets in advance, please email TequilaBill@TeamFunnel.com. For directions or more information on the Skydive Chicago Memorial Day Boogie, please visit www.skydivechicago.com.
Skydive Sebastian may move its landing zone
SEBASTIAN -- Skydive Sebastian officials say they will now consider a city proposal to move their landing zone after initially objecting to the move. Jim Iannaccone, a representative of Skydive Sebastian, said the organization initially objected to the airport master plan, which requires the move, "because they hadn't had an opportunity to examine or discuss the viability of the northwest corner as a landing area."
Iannaccone said Skydive Sebastian is now willing to look at the city's offer.
"In light of the city's recent offer, Skydive is willing to look at and discuss the city's plans in the hope of finding a mutually beneficial solution," he said.
In a letter to the city council last week, City Manager Terrence Moore said the city will reserve land adjacent to the northwestern landing zones if Skydive Sebastian decides to move its operation to the northwestern area of the airport.
Recently, the Sebastian city council voted to pass the airport master plan, which requires the moving of Skydive's landing zone to the northwestern part of the airport.
It was a move Skydive Sebastian officials initially objected to because they said it would inconvenience skydivers by making them travel 1,500 feet back to the main facility after a jump.
Skydive officials said the move would turn away potential skydivers and hurt Skydive Sebastian's business.
Skydive Sebastian officials also said it is important to have a landing zone adjacent to the skydive facilities to ensure Skydive Sebastian's survival.
The current drop zone is adjacent to the Skydive Sebastian facilities.
Jason Milewski, Sebastian Municipal Airport manager, said the northwest section of the airport has been deemed the safest spot by the Federal Aviation Administration for skydivers to land.
Milewski added it would be safer because skydivers won't be landing near the east-west runway when the runway is reopened.
City officials argue that leaving the drop zone where it is now would endanger skydivers because airplanes would be taking off and landing nearby.
~ FLORIDA TODAY
Monkey around with Monkey Claw
The Monkey Claw Freefly Team and Freefly School had a busy 2001 season and it preparing for an even busier 2002 season. The Monkey Claw Freefly Team is based at Skydive Cross Keys, in Williamstown, New Jersey. The Team consists of Glen "Stuey" Newman, Tim Miller, Adam Rosen, Heath Richardson and Bert Navarette. They train at their home DZ and run a school where they instruct freefly students of all levels. On a regular basis they load organize freeflyers of all skill levels at Cross Keys.
The 2001 season included their Annual Monkey Jams over the Memorial Day and Labor Day holiday weekends. At these events freeflyers travel from across the globe to participate in big ways, tracking dives, tube dives as well as some one on one coaching with Monkey Claw. Every night there is plenty to entertain the hundreds of skydivers registered for the event. There is free food, free beer and fun activities that are always kept a secret until the last moment. Last year someone lit himself on fire (this year it was on purpose), there was a bungee racetrack and a psycho swing. All of the other amenities at Cross Keys are available as well, the Long Delay Café, the Tiki Bar, the swimming pool and the Booze Cruise.
Away from Cross Keys the Team traveled to many events and DZ's for coaching and load organizing. Some of the places included Lost Prairie, Quincy, Skydive Delmarva and Chicagoland. Chicagoland will also be the home of the first Monkey Claw Satellite School run by Brandon Park with visits from the rest of the team throughout the summer.
New for this season Skydive Cross Keys has its own fleet of aircraft's for all jumpers. At Cross Keys you have your choice of jumping from a Caravan, Skyvan, Super Otter, Biplane, Helicopter and of course a Cessna. Square 3 is located right on the DZ for all of you equipment needs. There are hot showers, bathrooms and plenty of camping areas on the premises. The Long Delay Café keeps jumpers fed throughout the day and the beach, Tiki Bar and Swimming pool are located right next to the landing area.
The Team just returned from the 2nd Freefall Festival in Puerto Rico where they were coaching and load organizing throughout the boogie. Over 200 skydivers from around the world attended the event and records were broken for number of registrants, loads flown and skydives made.
For the upcoming season the calendar is still being put together. Of course there will be the annual Memorial Day and Labor Day Monkey Jams and the theme for the first Jam has already been chosen. The team will be traveling to Chicagoland as well as Lost Prairie for the Voodoo Rendezvous. There are a lot of other events that are still being finalized at the moment.
If you want to learn more about Monkey Claw you can visit their website at www.monkeyclaw.com. At the site you can find photos, videos, a list of events and you can contact the members for more information.
Adam Rosens Monkey Claw GalleryAll photos by: Adam Rosen