Remster 30 #1 March 11, 2002 In the interest of letting all of you know how the boogie was, and delaying as much as possible having to actually do any work, here's my review (well, not really a review, more of a recap) of the Borneo Boogie I just landed back from some 9 hours ago.... The personal pics are being developed, and the Freefall pics being posted, so as soon as some get scanned in, I'll post some links...This is the first time I attended an Exotic Sky Adventure boogie (www.exoticskyadventures.nl). For the past 10 year, they have been organizing boogies in various exotic locations to attract both jumpers and non jumping partners. This winter, the event was held in Malaysian Borneo, in Kota Kinabalu.About 120 jumpers participated. Organisers were on hand for the various skill levels (from small RW dives to complex large piece moves). Not many Freeflyiers participated, but the few that did had the chance to get 1 on 1 coaching from Patrick Passe. I wont name all the organisers or videomen, but have a look at their staff page if you are curious.. all I'll say is "world class".The DZ was the Kota Kinabalu International Airport. Yes, the actual airport. We had 6 time slots a day to jump during which all other air traffic was held at bay. We were using the "old terminal" area at the other end of the runway from the new terminal. Very cool to see a 747 parked at a gate while tracking after a jump... Even cooler to see it take off a few 100 meters away from you as you packed... To say that this type of openness to skydiving is not what we westerners expect is a huge understatement. Then again, this is the country that welcomes BASE jumpers to leap off their national landmark buildings... Way to go Malaysia!This isn't a "hard core" skydiving boogie. Its not meant to be. To be honest, at 100% humidity and 35 C each and every day, I don't think most people could do 8 or 10 jumps a day for 2 weeks. Instead, there were 8 jumping days, with a few days off in between to explore the area. I managed 39 jumps in that time, which was more then I expected to do (a nice bonus). We had a few "jump slots" cancelled due to weather (low clouds, and 1/2 hour of rain), and one jump canned due to airplane problems (I'm sure one of you will know what a cowlings) does... not that I really care... we all though "but the damm plane has 3 other engines, we'll take the risk!").Which brings me to the plane: C-130s. The Royal Malaysian Airforce supplied the Hercs for our use (1 at a time, but I think we used 4 different planes), and we even had a stretched Herc one day (nice and roomy!)... and the air conditioning was a nice break from the hot weather. Those planes were a big plus for the boogie!The days off offered nice opportunities to explore part of the Borneo Island. Some went scuba diving (there are some awesome sites apparently), others visited Ouran Utan sanctuaries, or Climbed Mount Kinabalu (the tallest mountain in S-E Asia at some 4,300 m). Some nice snorkelling sites were minutes away by boat from the hotel we all stayed at. And I'm sure some stayed by the pool side to simply relax (allegedly).The hotel was very nice, and very well located: 10 minutes from the DZ, with a nice beach right next to it for sunset loads. The hotel's own beach was a bit tight (ok... a lot tight), but a few of the staff did land on it on the last day of jumping (pity that they didn't check it ahead of time.. they would have seen that the beach was filled with tables and chair for that night's farewell party; I'm sure it made the landings "interesting")On the safety side, the most notable accidents I noticed were dislocated shoulders on exit (130 knot jump run speeds will do that sometimes when you launch pieces) and a broken ankle due to a poor landing. All were attended by the boogie doctor and the local services. There also were a few sunburns (tanning is such a dangerous sport...)On a whole, we really enjoyed our trip. It was a nice combination of skydiving, and going to a place we normally wouldn't go to. The next boogie will probably be held in Costa Rica, which again will have lots to offer to people wanting to explore the land.Its not a cheap 2 week vacation, but I feel it was a good deal. Will we do it again? Probably. Will we do it every year? Probably not; there just are too many boogies and places to go to and not enough vacation days in a year.... But I can understand the people that have been to all 10 boogies....Damm this Monday at work is ever more awful then usual... lolRemsterMuff 914 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
skybytch 273 #2 March 11, 2002 Nice! pull and flare,lisa--I'll be in the bar... you'll find me... Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Remster 30 #3 March 11, 2002 Isnt she going straight to San Marcos?I dont think there were so many wild stories, but then again, maybe we missed the action... RemsterMuff 914 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
katecooper 0 #4 March 12, 2002 Hi Remi (that is Remi, isn't it?)I got back from Malaysia last night and am on a plane to San Carlos (mexico) tomorrow morning. Can you say "jet lagged?". To back up what the Remster had to say, Borneo was a BLAST! I had a great time, 41 jumps from the C-130 and one from an Antonov 38 (pretty darn cool), many were beach landings and the rest were on the airport located about a mile from the hotel. The mountain climb was great too, not often you get to go hiking with three Dutch jumpers, two Canadian brits (you know who you are!), a German and a fellow yank. Two much fun.The ESA folk put on a pretty mean boogie and I look forward to attending more in the future. Rumor has it that the next one will be in Costa Rica, making it very "user friendly" for the US based folk.Gotta run now, have a month worth of e-mails to catch up in just one day!blue skieskate Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
TEB6363 0 #5 March 12, 2002 Quoteblue skieskateLisa, Hide, the boss is here!Oh, Hi Kate, Lisa is, um, not here right now:::OK, Canopy is Open, No Traffic Around, .. Why are these "Extra" Lines Draping Down??, Damn! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
skybytch 273 #6 March 12, 2002 LOL! Like she can't see exactly what I'm doing anytime she wants to look over here.... pull and flare,lisa--I'll be in the bar... you'll find me... Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
mountainman 0 #7 March 12, 2002 Sounds like it was a really awesome time Remi and Kate. I have actually emailed with you a bit Kate, about getting a video of the last boogie. Either way, we decided against going due to the cost being a touch high and having just bought 2 brand new rigs. Hopefully if it is closer next year (and a bit cheaper), we'll be able to participate.Thanks for the update!!!JumpinDuo.com...come and sign the guestbook. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
