lurking 0 #1 June 21, 2002 Hi everybody!Can you spell "whuffo"? No, I am not a skydiver. Not even did a tandem yet (will have to loose some weight before they take me).I have been reading your posts for a few weeks out of curiosity and the desire to learn something about skydiving. I am a glider pilot (flying gliders/sailplanes not hang gliders) in Germany and I am posting today because I am amazed by the number of similarities between your sport and mine.I am not talking about the obvious things like the love of flying, the blue skies and such but about the circumstances that surround the sport. Let me just mention a few points:Similar to skydiving...- Gliding tends to absorb your life- your fellow pilots become your friends- you spend most of your free time at the airport- it is a strain on relationships with non-pilots- it can be a problem for your finances- there tend to be lots of barbecues- there´s beer for new achievements (first solo, first flight on a new type, first height gain of more than 1000m, first flight over 1 hour, first...)- people are mostly very safety-conscious- there´s also the phenomenon of whuffo´s (asking "how can you fly today, there´s no wind" or such)- hell we even wear a parachute (but preferring not to use it...)On a sad note I have to admit, that people in gliding seem to be a bit less "crazy", but maybe the selection her on dz.com is not representative of skydiving ;-)Just wanted to let you know...Hope you have a fun and safe jumping season. Wish me a bit more thermals (the year hasn´t been to good until today...)Cheers,Thomasfrom Germany(OK it´s still 3 hours until USA-GER is kicked off) Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
hohonukai 0 #2 June 21, 2002 Welcome! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites Scratch 0 #3 June 21, 2002 QuoteOn a sad note I have to admit, that people in gliding seem to be a bit less "crazy", but maybe the selection her on dz.com is not representative of skydiving ;-)You are right, the people here are more well behaved than the average skydiverGo Germany.I wish the real worldwould just stop hassling me~~~matchbox20 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites A12 0 #4 June 21, 2002 I'm actually going gliding very soon. Got a gift certificate for a local gliding company. Should be fantastic! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites fly 0 #5 June 21, 2002 Good going Germany!Have flown in sailplanes a couple of times, lot's of fun but it will never make me want to give up skydiving.Am working on getting a jump from a glider - combining the best of both worlds? :-) Does anybody know if it has been done before?Welcome to the Dark Side Thomas...Blue One'sG Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites skybytch 273 #6 June 21, 2002 QuoteDoes anybody know if it has been done before?It's been done before. Yet another jumpship I'd love to log a jump out of...pull & flare,lisa"Try not. Do or do not. There is no try." - Yoda sez Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites lurking 0 #7 June 21, 2002 Skydiving from a glider has been done before. I remember an article in Sailplane & Gliding (the british gliding mag) some months ago showing somebody jumping from a Bocian (a polish 2-seater) with the rear canopy removed. Wouldn´t be legal in Germany though.On a different note: I feel almost sorry the US-soccer team lost to "us". Haven´t seen such a bad performance from a German team in a while..On yet another topic: Not being a native speaker I´m using the spell checker on this forum. Marks the word "skydiving" as unknown every time. How weird is that...? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites Join the conversation You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account. Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible. Reply to this topic... × Pasted as rich text. Paste as plain text instead Only 75 emoji are allowed. × Your link has been automatically embedded. Display as a link instead × Your previous content has been restored. Clear editor × You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL. Insert image from URL × Desktop Tablet Phone Submit Reply 0
Scratch 0 #3 June 21, 2002 QuoteOn a sad note I have to admit, that people in gliding seem to be a bit less "crazy", but maybe the selection her on dz.com is not representative of skydiving ;-)You are right, the people here are more well behaved than the average skydiverGo Germany.I wish the real worldwould just stop hassling me~~~matchbox20 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
A12 0 #4 June 21, 2002 I'm actually going gliding very soon. Got a gift certificate for a local gliding company. Should be fantastic! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
fly 0 #5 June 21, 2002 Good going Germany!Have flown in sailplanes a couple of times, lot's of fun but it will never make me want to give up skydiving.Am working on getting a jump from a glider - combining the best of both worlds? :-) Does anybody know if it has been done before?Welcome to the Dark Side Thomas...Blue One'sG Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
skybytch 273 #6 June 21, 2002 QuoteDoes anybody know if it has been done before?It's been done before. Yet another jumpship I'd love to log a jump out of...pull & flare,lisa"Try not. Do or do not. There is no try." - Yoda sez Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
lurking 0 #7 June 21, 2002 Skydiving from a glider has been done before. I remember an article in Sailplane & Gliding (the british gliding mag) some months ago showing somebody jumping from a Bocian (a polish 2-seater) with the rear canopy removed. Wouldn´t be legal in Germany though.On a different note: I feel almost sorry the US-soccer team lost to "us". Haven´t seen such a bad performance from a German team in a while..On yet another topic: Not being a native speaker I´m using the spell checker on this forum. Marks the word "skydiving" as unknown every time. How weird is that...? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
