CanuckInUSA

ROFLMAO ... (well not really but for added drama why not). Just because I was setting my brakes wrong on my Basic Research BASE rig for my first 50-60 BASE jumps including many of those being cliff jumps (I guess BRs design was more skydiver'ish and more forgiving for the mistake I was making than another manufacturers gear) but man was I in for a surprise on my first jump in Idaho on my new Vertigo rig when my brake fired on opening. Fortunately this happened at a forgiving site, at a site I was very familiar with and at a time when flying and landing my canopy on rears is something I routinely do. But that doesn't mean it was safe. It could have been a different story had my first jump on this rig occured at a less forgiving site. Complacency kills!!! You got that right. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

Being an expert ski jumper means one thing. The deceased was an expert ski jumper. He sure as hell wasn't an expert skydiver. I live about 15 minutes away from a world class ski jump facility (Canada Olympic Park site of the '88 Winter Olympics) and I see some similarities between swooping and ski jumping. We both travel similar speeds across the deck, we both travel a similar distance before we touch down and while ski jumpers are a littler higher off of the deck, swooping with the ground below us is similar and believe me the thought has crossed my mind that "hmmm maybe I should try it, it might be fun". But I would be a fool to strap on some skiis and just head on up the 70 meter hill and try my luck at ski jumping (the Wide World of Sports agony of defeat footage comes to mind). I don't want to sound like a hyprocrite too much here. In some people's eyes I did progress in certain disciplines in skydiving faster than many would have recommended. I am a member of the Cypres club pitching my main at 2k after pulling out of a head down jump at 3k (yes altitude awareness was lost) and the cypres fired at about 1100-1200 feet AGL ... it's all on video. I have come close to taking people out on head down jumps on two occasions and I have dug myself out of the corner while learning to swoop more times than I can remember. Shit can happen to anyone in this sport. None of us are the exception to the rule and none of us are "all that". Death can happen to anyone of us. But when we push the envelope, the chances of death happening to someone with less experience is higher than the chances of death happening to a more experienced jumper. Sadly I doubt very many "I'm special" people will learn the lesson. Who's next? Someone is ... but who? Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

Assuming you have the airspeed, otherwise (ouch) the pilot runs the risk of doing what I did 2 years ago when I rear riser stalled my velo carving my turn through the speed course. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

"Is our children learning?" - GWB ... ROFLMAO Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

Fred Thompson is the last person I want to see become the next prez. That's all we need is another prez endorsed and controlled by the right wing Christian neo-cons. Didn't America learn anything from these last 7 years? Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

I don't know what normal is. But whatever it is, I assure you, I am not it. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

What does your last post have to do with this topic? The OP is free to enter as a visitor to the USA (assuming US customs and immigration lets him in) and he is free to try his luck working illegally at your DZ as a packer. He may just get away with it. I have a relative who works illegally under the table in the USA every summer as a waiter (of course my relative never listens to us when we tell him sooner or later Canada and the USA are going to wonder how he makes his living when he reports no income in either country). Anyway I'm just saying that if the OP gets caught he stands a chance of being permanently banned from the USA. My point in all of this is to make sure the OP understands what he is getting into if he does decide to try his luck working at a US DZ, and to make sure he is not being given poor advice by others. Then again all he needs to do disguise myself as a Mexican, speak spanish and be willing to work for slave wages and the US immigration will turn a blind eye to his presence in your country. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

He's got 6 months with a visitors visa where he will be allowed entry into the country, but this does not mean he is allowed to work in the country. Please inform us of the appropriate work visa he must apply for in order to be legally allowed to work in the USA as a DZ packer. It just doesn't exist, this work visa you speak of. It still amazes me how little Americans know about their own country. When I had my TN-1 temporary NAFTA work visa I can't tell you how many people just said "why don't you just become a US citizen" when I told them I was only in the country as a temporary worker. You should educate yourself about your own immigration laws before you tell people on the otherside of the world to just come on over. Sure he can still come and work under the table and he may just pull it off. But if he gets caught, it could result in a permanent ban. Then again, he could learn spanish and disguise himself as a Mexican willing to work for slave wages and then he will have no immigration worries at all. Got to love how the US government works. They penalize the people who try and do things the legal way while they turn a blind eye to the millions of illegal Mexicans all because America is addicted to slave labor. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

Great pics Lisa. For those not all that familiar with the NHL game, it's awesome to be able to see a live game and the closer you get to the action they get exponentially bigger and faster. Not at all like watching it on TV. Of course I am tainted as an NHL fan since I was an Colorado Avalanche season ticket holder for 4 years (22 rows off of the ice just inside one of the blue lines) and I was not at all happy when millionaires decided to fight with billionaires and I being paying fan was the big loser in their battle for my entertainment dollar. Plus once you've been to about 100+ games, the novelty kind of wears thin. But one of my pro sports spectating highlights was to be at all 4 homes games of the 2001 AVS/DEVILS Stanley Cup finals and seeing the cup hoisted in person by the team you supported all season long was fun. Oh ... why do Canadians like doing it doggy style? So they can both watch the game at the same time. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

No hablo Inglés. Por favor, traduzco al Español, a Manderine, a Cantonés o Punjabi. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

Hola. Cómo es usted mi amigo? Por favor, no critique la gran nación socialista de Canadá puesto que seré forzado para informar a “Captian Canadá” en usted. Somos una nación eso acepta cualquier persona en el país no preguntas, damos las más mucha derechas a los inmigrantes que a nuestros propios ciudadanos. Debido a nuestros “corazones de sangre” hemos decidido es major para dar para arriba nuestra lengua y nuestra cultura de modo que no nos ofendamos los inmigrantes. A partir de este día adelante, será illegal para los Canadienses llevados en el país para hablar la lengua Inglesa. La necesidad habla Español, Manderine, Cantonés o Punjabi. Estos nuevos leyes no se aplican en la provincia de Quebec, puesto que todo el Quebecois es “pure lain – Vive le Quebec Libre” donde los leyes de la lengua del Francés solamente se han utilizado por los 30 años pasados. Le agradecemos por usted que entiende, su cheque del bienestar está en el correo. Tenga un buen día. jaja ... Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

I'm curious to know what sort of added wealth Bush's closest friends have accumulated in this time. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

The USA is a great place to be when you are rich. It's not such a good place to be when you do not have money. Unfortunately for many in America, they are heading in the wrong direction. Manufacturing jobs are leaving North America and bankruptcy and mortgage defaults are on the rise. I haven't seen much mention of this on these forums but a few years ago the value of the Candian dollar was considered pretty much like monopoly money. Today it closed at $0.9864 and who knows how long it will take before this once monopoly dollar is worth more than the almighty green back. Maybe all our doctors and nurses will return back to the country soon. Both healthcare systems are broken ... Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

You will be working illegally in the US. LOL, like that doesn't deter the 12-15 or so million Mexicans working illegally in the country. But if the immigration people do catch you, you may be permanently banned from the country. Once again, like that doesn't deter the 12-15 or so million Mexicans working illegally in the country. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

Her Daddy is one of the richest men in all of Canada and poor Belinda (who loves playing the victim whenever possible) is one of the biggest hypocrites in this country. Now don't get me wrong, I do empathize with her medical condition. Cancer is never nice. My father died of it, my uncle and a 2nd cousin of mine are both in the battles of their lives with it. But it is amazing how this woman criticizes others when they go against her political mindset of the day and who constantly plays the "I'm a victim" game. Yet when push comes to shove, she is not afraid to jump the cue for her preferred treatment. Money may not buy happiness. But it bought this hypocrite a spot at the head of the line while the common over taxed citizen rots away in the waiting rooms. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

Perfectly understandable and maybe you should have just keep to your original sentence of: "Is any one in SLC Utah area ground launching?" I assure you I am not about to begin to try and explain how to configure your gear, how to do forward and rear launches and where not to launch from based on weather conditions and terrain. But when someone tells us that they were dragged 50 feet, skinned their knees, immediately shot up 30 feet on their next attempt and proceeded to land in some bushes ... well you may not want to listen, but maybe someone else out there might. In strong'ish winds the first thing you do is attempt to kite outside of the harness. I was taught this when I took formal Ground Launch training from one of the sport's prioneers. Ground Launching is an incredible experience and Utah is bound to have some great terrain. But it not safe and the smart thing to do is to seek formal training instead of looking for some weekend warrior mentor. You may find someone who knows what they are doing, or you may find one who gives you improper advice and uses poor judgment. Personally I like the idea of seeking formal training from one of the sport's pioneers. Good Luck ... Ground Launching Rocks ... but it is not safe ... Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

When the winds are getting strong, you need to kite the canopy outside of the harness first. If you are having trouble doing this, then you should not be in the harness. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

I have reverse kited my BASE canopy and it was not any easy thing to do and it was rather squirrelly. But it is a 293 and I'm sure a 176 would perform much different. Is a BASE canopy the best tool for ground launching? ROFLMAO ... of course not. The GLX is designed and engineered for ground launching and one would would think that this would mostly likely be the best tool assuming you did not need to land in a tight landing area. But if the landing area is tight, should you even be considering ground launching off of the building. I would say very few people in this world should be considering such a stunt. You need to be a damn good and current canopy pilot. You need to be a damn good and current ground launcher. You need to be damn good and current at launching off of cliffs first. You need to be damn good and current building BASE jumper and well you better have above average judgement and you need to be somewhat crazy. I know I have the crazy part going for me, but I am not so sure about the rest. Ground Launching off of THE RIGHT building in THE RIGHT conditions is totally doable. But it is not something a sane person would do. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

I touch my handles and rehearse making my right hand move before the left. Oh and I try to do the skydiver handshaking with as many people as I can. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

Hey Travis it's six of one, half a dozen of another. Would I want to ground launch my FLiK 293 or Rock Dragon 303 off of a building? No to me that doesn't sound like I am using the right tool. But I might try it with a 176 or even as big as a 222 (keeping in mind that the slider, bridle and pilot cute have been removed from the canopy). Remember we are talking about launching in the urban jungle with all the obstacles and landing hazards that come with that playground. Sinking it in could be the difference between obscure success and high profile negative national news. I personally (I am no expert on this topic) don't believe the added weight of the tail pocket and larger lines are as much of an influencing factor as the ability to sink it in on a tight LZ. No I think a small BASE canopy could be the ideal tool to ground launch off of a building. Of course I doubt you will see me doing it anytime soon. There is no way in hell I would do a low to no wind ground launch off of a building and flying a canopy in turbulence in the urban jungle doesn't sound that good either. You need the right building (enough height to get the wing flying, located away from other buildings but with strong enough head wind conditions, the ability to run off with no ledge, and a good LZ etc, etc, etc) in order to pull off this stunt. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

I was taught that the ideal wind loading was in the 1.4 range and that open nose canopies were good for low wind scenarios while close nosed canopies are good for higher winds. Unless you are using a GLX (engineered for ground launching), there is no "one" canopy and you choose the wing based on the wind and the hill conditions. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

Ha Ha Ha ... we here in Canada will pretty much accept anyone into our country no questions asked. This doesn't matter if you are a brave draft dodger, an Islamic terrorist, a corrupt member of the Sudanese government or any other special interest group. We will let you in, give you a place to live, give you welfare and promise you free healthcare (though we won't tell you that you stand a good chance of dying in one of our free hospitals since we managed to chase all of our doctors and nurses out of the country). Anyway we prefer our new immigrants to support the LIEberal party of Canada (we turn a blind eye if you also like the socialist NDP), but please we really don't like it when our immigrants support the Tory party (we will bombard you with Boogie Man stories about the Tories if you don't believe us). Oh one last thing, it is a requirment for all new immigrants to Canada to hate the USA as we here in Canada strongly feel that we are superior in every way to the US. Thank you very kindly for you cooperation, your welfare cheque is now in the mail. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

Jim Slaton has done many tandem ground launches. Just not off of any buildings. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

It’s not stupid if it works, you get video and then you are a hero to all the crazy “you got to see this” people and who knows what movie you will make it into. And then it’s unbelievably stupid if someone dies while trying it. Several things to keep in mind: 1) I would never try a low to no wind launch from a building. I would only try it with moderate to high winds using the appropriate canopy selection based on the winds and the height of the building. Most likely not a small swooping canopy and most likely not a huge BASE canopy. Something in between like a moderately sized 7 cell canopy (it could be a small BASE canopy or it could be something like a Spectre which are actually decent GL canopies). 2) I would want at least a 30 story building (preferably much higher) and I don’t know how many 30 story buildings you will find that are standing on their own. Most buildings have other buildings surrounding them and since I wouldn’t launch in low to no wind you are all of a sudden dealing with turbulence between the buildings and we know how dicey canopy flight can be in turbulence. 3) Is the building something you can just run off of, or is there some sort of 1-3 foot high ledge? I haven't jumped off of very many buildings, but the ones I have been on have a ledge and running off of them just does not seem to be an option. I am no authority on the subject, but in the past I have had my eyes on launching from several cliffs (a 400 footer in Moab UT and 1800 footer in BC). I do know people have Ground Launched off of cliffs before, but buildings? Man you have to have the biggest set of ####s to put your life on the line. I’ve watched someone do a roll over with a swooping canopy off of the bridge in Idaho thinking "cool can I try that next". But after the roll over which took forever to get that canopy to start flying, my mind set was, no maybe I don’t want to try it. In summary, it’s not stupid if it works and unbelievably stupid if someone dies trying it. Remember how fast an object can get burned when a death occurs on it. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

I said it before and I will say it again. The USA needs to move closer to Canada's medical model and Canada needs to move closer to the USA's medical model. Both systems are broken if you ask me. Up here in our so called superior socialistic society (that's how Canadians view themselves in the world order ... they view themselves as the superior society for the entire planet), outside of lining up at some clinic and waiting hours and hours and hours for some person (who plays a doctor on TV) to see me for five minutes and pass me on back into the waiting queue to repeat the process, I CAN NOT FIND A DOCTOR who I could call a general practioner and who can pay attention to the needs I may have as a patient. No I hope I die a sudden death up here in this over taxed superior society of ours, since I know I will waste away waiting in the queues if I ever get sick. Superior society my ass. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over