Good damn park rangers, well i ought ta...

[chickenhawk420 0]

Hey i was reading about El cap (yosemitie- damn i shoulda stayed a wake in english) in the 1980's when BASE was taking off. I read this article about a three month peiod of legal jumping untill the NPS and USPA had it withdrawn (one of the reasons were not deaths from BASE so much as the littering and drivers wrapping their cars round trees because of the distraction- cause and effect?). Anyway it was banned making illegal daybreak jumps essential, the banning was meant to make it safe for all. Instead jumpers died, one of which made a landing but because (who would?) he didn't want $2000 fine and rig confiscated, tried to run, swimming a river in the chase and drowning. Others had legal action against them by the USPA (who had no jurrisdiction)- mind you this time the jumpers won by sueing the USPA.
Now ive heard that Bridge day 2001 was cancelled (ive been hiding in the cupboard under the stairs) by the NPS (one jumper suspects that there is more to it than just cancelling this year).
Anyway have any of you have any interesting NPS stories, even police stories (jumping from man made structures). Just kinda pisses me off, especially when this is all done in the idea of safety but gets people killed- why coz i just have this feeling that, i dunno, we actually like this and gonna keep jumping:)
Rooftops and sunsets
Peace

[mountainman 0]

I think that they are trying to phase it out. Do a search on this from other threads and it'll take you to some other articles about it. Seems they are making the 9/11 incident one reason, but we all know that is BS.
Other thoughts?
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Brandon Wren

[chickenhawk420 0]

I can understand that after 9/11 people are feeling vunerable and scared of more attacks, and i can kinda understand that a big event like that, high profile could be a target but so could anything (shopping mall, multiplexes, offices) in normal everyday life. I also can't see how a BASE jumper can inflict incredble damage by turning themselves into a suicidal meteor.
Anyway i agree BS basicly, maybe just a convienient excuse, but what gets me is that people do what they want (freedom of speech and all that) so banning an event which allows jumpers to jump safely under the observation of many degrees experienced jumpers. Also what a great event to do your first base jump- for exactley the reason that reason. Hey i can't deny that the illegal aspect isn't a extra buzz factor (im not saying its the factor but when you do something you like and the law decides its against it, then still doing it is a tremendous FY) and i like the underground but it'll just go further and they done the oppossite to anything they were trying to acheive.
Brandon if you could point me in the way of other articles on this would be cool as need more info- only just found some of this out so always learning. Cheers.
Peace
Rooftops and sunsets.

[billvon 3,120]

>I can understand that after 9/11 people are feeling vunerable and scared of more
>attacks, and i can kinda understand that a big event like that, high profile could
> be a target but so could anything (shopping mall, multiplexes, offices) in normal
> everyday life.
In this case, there was evidence that bridges, rather than malls, were being targeted. I think bridge day was cancelled more to prevent a lot of people from gathering on a potential terrorist target, rather than preventing a BASE jumper from smuggling some explosives to the exit point.
>I also can't see how a BASE jumper can inflict incredble damage by turning
> themselves into a suicidal meteor.
No, but they can cause a large crowd to gather, which then becomes a great target for a terrorist. (Or, if the bridge isn't closed to vehicles, a huge traffic hazard.)
-bill von

[chickenhawk420 0]

I understand that but as i said so is any gathering like shopping malls, multiplexes anything where people are, so are they going to stop us gathering in large groups. Are they going to close down busy road bridges at the price of commerce to them- they haven't yet but the danger there must be greater as it would be a target that would cause much greater problems after the event. I know there trying to minimise what they have to allow to go on and watch for attacks- closing bridge day is just one less thing to worry about. But dissrupting everyday life is exactley what terror is being used for.
The kamikaze skydiver was a joke as im sure you realised:)
Rooftops and sunsets