#1 Pet Peeve: WHUFFOS!

[PLFXpert 0]

I met a friend this weekend who has recently started skydiving. My friend said his #1 pet peeve was when whuffos would approach him and say something along the lines of, "I mean, how hard is skydiving anyways? You just jump out and pull. Pretty simple."

I told him that whuffos would always be his pet peeve and warned him up front that:

1. Every whuffo has a friend who died skydiving
2. Every whuffo has a friend whose main and reserve both failed.
3. Many whuffos will say they did so many tandems they just "picked it up" and started skydiving
4. Many whuffos will say they keep meaning to skydive but just can't come up with the money (come on people, $150 isn't hard to come by if you really want to make a first jump)

Etc, Etc. Etc.

I'm not sure about the rest of you, but I don't bother explaining myself. If a whuffo asks a question, I will answer it to its fullest, but if a whuffo says something idiotic like they just "picked it up" I usually just smile, nod and walk away thinking, "Silly whuffo!"

I'm not out to try and convince whuffos that skydiving is an amazing sport. I know it is, you know it is, but if they really want to do it, they'll figure it out for themselves, and if not, I didn't waste any breath.

Paint me in a corner, but my color comes back.

[Rdutch 0]

You must really be bored to be posting at 5:29 am.
Or is bz just to tired from his big weekend of Rain watching and pond swimming to keep you company. lol

Ray
Small and fast what every girl dreams of!

[grega 0]

I just give a phone number of our dropzone, to all those kind of whuffos, and tell them to show up at the club, when me and my friends skydivers meet (every monday at 8:00 pm), and he can share his experience there, or signs in for first student jump and theoretical stuff...

as expected none of them showed up yet

"George just lucky i guess!"

[pilotdave 0]

For some of those people, my simple response is "you'll never understand..." and I just leave it at that. Not worth trying to explain. Some people may have misconceptions but are truly interested, such as a cop that was searching my car at an airport over the summer. I thought he might be slightly weirded out by the cardboard box in my trunk, so I let him know it was skydiving equipment. He had tons of questions, especially since it was only a few days after a swooper was killed nearby on a landing gone bad. "How many times have you done it? 60? WOW! You must be an expert! Are you an instructor?"
Dave

[TheBile 0]

Quote

I usually just smile, nod and walk away thinking, "Silly whuffo!"

I admire you as I couldn't do that. I'd have to ask them a question about their experience to stump them and make them know that I know that they are lying their ass off. Just me I guess.

Gerb

I stir feelings in others they themselves don't understand. KA'CHOW !

[christoofar 0]

At Rantoul... I had left the WFFC early so I was probably the first one to go through the Champaign airport's "security" checkpoint. I think the employees were told of the the event befordhand but they didn't know much about the gear.

Before I could sit down at the gate to read my paper, I gave all the morning shift security people a demo on what the rig looks like under X-ray. Sure was a comfy feeling having my rig in the machine and 10 people, some of them with guns, surrounding me going "oooo, ahhhh."

____________________________________________________________
I'm RICK JAMES! Fo shizzle.

[skygirlpc 0]

I think it's really funny when they hear that I got my A and ask if I can do a tandem with them now!

[grega 0]

haha, they asked me the same thing. they said: "you have 10 jumps already, cool. now we can go in tandem i'll be straped to you and you'll open the parachute" i almost died laughing.

"George just lucky i guess!"

[TheBile 0]

Quote

haha, they asked me the same thing. they said: "you have 10 jumps already, cool. now we can go in tandem i'll be straped to you and you'll open the parachute" i almost died laughing.

What's wrong with that then ? I only have 4 jumps under my belt and I take my Gerbil with me for a tandem. Shouldn't be that much of a step up to take a human.

Gerb

I stir feelings in others they themselves don't understand. KA'CHOW !

[bvsdjumper 0]

I had a whuffo tell me this weekend that he thought the reason skydivers wore jumpsuits was because falling so fast would burn the skin.

I did a good job of not laughing and told him that that's not the issue. I enjoyed the slight look of shock when I said that I jumped from 13.5 in a t-shirt and shorts.

Art

Sky-div'ing (ski'div'ing) n. A modern sport that involves parties, bragging, sexual excesses, the imbibing of large quantities of beer, and, on rare occasions, parachuting from aircraft.

[Remster 30]

Quote

skydivers wore jumpsuits was because falling so fast would burn the skin

Of course its not!

Its to regulate the amount of O2 we absorb by osmosis through the skin. Jumping without one would increase the surface area of skin exposed to the high pressure winds and raise the O2 level in our bloodsteam. This cause cause hyperoxia which we all fear.

Remster

[sunshine 2]

Quote

only have 4 jumps under my belt and I take my Gerbil with me for a tandem.

I guess it depends on where you store the gerbil for the tandem jump....

___________________________________________
meow

I get a Mike hug! I get a Mike hug!

[weid14 0]

Quote

You must really be bored to be posting at 5:29 am.
Or is bz just to tired from his big weekend of Rain watching and pond swimming to keep you company. lol

did anything get off the ground?

[TheBile 0]

Quote

I guess it depends on where you store the gerbil for the tandem jump

I'm not Richard Gere ! Besides which she'd feel the wrong kind of relative wind up there.

Gerb

I stir feelings in others they themselves don't understand. KA'CHOW !

[Rdutch 0]

Majik won the meet. Golden knights funneled their exit. The big surprise was Punky Fish beat the knights and lost to majic by 1 point. The cool thing about that is Majic had a great dive. Frost got an 18 and Nemisis got Nj'd out the door and scored a 16 (I think). The Nsl only had one jump sunday so the comp was decided by that. The swoopers did one round and everyone got wet. It was so windy everyone had about a 3 ft swoop, and considering it was a 150ft course, you guessed it, lots of wet swoopers.

Ray
Small and fast what every girl dreams of!

[wmw999 2,588]

I remember hearing a student say that he'd heard if you go too fast your skin peels off. After that, I told all of my first jump classes that's the ONLY stupid question (I answered it first, of course). Since I'd already answered the only stupid question, they were free to ask any of the others.

I pretty much got used to the fact that if I could answer ignorance with information and a positive attitude, then the next time that person mentioned skydiving to someone else, it would be on a positive note.

Wendy W.

There is nothing more dangerous than breaking a basic safety rule and getting away with it. It removes fear of the consequences and builds false confidence. (tbrown)

[wlie 0]

My favorite whuffo is my wife. 1 tandem, don't intend on doing it anymore. But she packs for me.

One more thing... It opens soft, and on-heading.

My other ride is the relative wind.

[cgross 1]

THAT IS AWFUL

[PLFXpert 0]

Ray, I think the clock on dz.com is wrong...i posted that at about 6 p.m. on Sunday night, right after we got back from SkyQuest.

Paint me in a corner, but my color comes back.

[PLFXpert 0]

Quote

such as a cop that was searching my car at an airport over the summer. I thought he might be slightly weirded out by the cardboard box in my trunk, so I let him know it was sky

I've been pulled over for speeding 28 times and had 8 speeding tickets. I got out of two tickets b/c the cop asked about all the skydiving stickers on my car (that was my old car, my new one just has a skydiving license plate holder and no stickers.) Both cops were so fascinated, they let me go, even though both times I was doing 20+ over.

Paint me in a corner, but my color comes back.

[PLFXpert 0]

Quote

did anything get off the ground?

They had half a round for swooping on Sunday morning. The winds were SO BAD, they radio'd up and cancelled the rest of the load. It was REALLY interesting, to say the least, seeing them try to swoop in those winds.

Lyle is talking about rescheduling sometime in December. Let's keep our fingers crossed.

Despite the weather, we had an EXCELLENT time partying Sat. night. I'll leave it at that

Paint me in a corner, but my color comes back.

[happythoughts 0]

Quote

I've been pulled over for speeding 28 times and had 8 speeding tickets. I got out of two tickets b/c the cop asked about all the skydiving stickers on my car (that was my old car, my new one just has a skydiving license plate holder and no stickers.) Both cops were so fascinated, they let me go, even though both times I was doing 20+ over.

Damn, I'm going to have to wear a mini-skirt when I drive. I thought they were just for social reasons.

[PLFXpert 0]

Ugh, negative ghostwriter, I don't wear skirts. I rock the shit out of my jeans, though.

People ask how I kept track of how many times I was pulled over; my old car was GREAT running-wise but it looked like shit (any time i'd get a scratch or dent instead of fixing it, I just stuck a sticker over it) so I used to make little notches on my dash board when I'd get pulled over (the dashboard was sun-friend anyways.) When I bought my new car, I counted 28 notches.

I haven't been pulled over though in two years (knock on wood) but I've also been w/ BZ two years and he can't relax when I'm behind the wheel so he does all the driving now

Paint me in a corner, but my color comes back.

[SatchFan 0]

Quote

My favorite whuffo is my wife. 1 tandem, don't intend on doing it anymore. But she packs for me.

One more thing... It opens soft, and on-heading.

How did you manage that? I have been trying to get my g/f to pack for me for weeks. She's just not up to it.

[Slappie 9]

Quote

Quote

skydivers wore jumpsuits was because falling so fast would burn the skin

Of course its not!

Its to regulate the amount of O2 we absorb by osmosis through the skin. Jumping without one would increase the surface area of skin exposed to the high pressure winds and raise the O2 level in our bloodsteam. This cause cause hyperoxia which we all fear.

I have got to start it again [rant] I was watching National Geographic a few months ago an there was a show on the Flying Peregrin Falcon an it's vidiot ect... good show very cool.. BUT! One of the questions they ask just before the show slips into a commercial was "Can a skydiver breath during freefall" my answer was "yes of cource we breath" {go get a beer knowing I'm right an hear in the other room} TV " No they can't {coming running from the kitchen with beer} the pressures from falling that fast keep their lungs from working so they abosorb all the o2 through their skin" I just looked at the TV with my mouth open in a silent gasp! Then I started screaming at the TV all kinds of explenatives "Whuffo Bast*rds" was one!!

So anyways whuffos are a strange breed indeed.. an you would think National Geographic would have gotten it right!? Go figure. I even emailed NG the next day telling them of the error... never got a responce nothing nodda.. not even a sorry, oh your wrong, nothing!!

Blah! I still have whuffo friends but they know now not to get me started on skydiving or I wont shutup so they just dont ask questions. Now the co-workers I haven't gotten trained yet! LOL working on them...

"Find out just what any people will quietly submit to and you have found out the exact measure of injustice and wrong which will be imposed upon them."