CanuckInUSA

I have what I would refer to as “activity” related friends. When I am skydiving, I am chilling with my jumping friends. When I am playing some other sport or doing some other activity, I am chilling with those friends. I still have a few “old-time” friends, but that doesn’t mean that I chill with them very often. Three years ago I was a busy camper in Colorado and I was living a very enjoyable existence. Friday through Sunday I was predominately chilling with my jumping friends. Monday nights was volleyball and hung with those friends. Tuesday nights was hockey, Wednesday nights was a different volleyball league and a different set of friends. But none of these “activity” friends interacted with each other (ie: the jumping friends never knew the volleyball and/or hockey friends) and if they had met, universes would collide (aka a specific Seinfeld episode). Now I am up in the frozen north with all of the DZs still closed for the season and I am very busy doing some large ambitious home renovation projects. So I am not interacting with very many “activity” friends. But that’s fine, soon the DZs will reopen and I will either renew some old friendships or make new ones (I assume mainly make new ones since I am kind of new to the area) and in the meantime there is no shortage of work that I need to do on my house. But I will say that most whuffos have a hard time understanding why we jump. They just don’t get it. My family is nothing but whuffos, I doubt anyone of them will ever jump and sometimes that causes more tensions than anything else. They just don’t understand that I am NOT interested in the way they lead their whuffo lives where their children and their artsy-fartsy Hollywood/Reality TV worshipping ways dominate their everyday existence. It’s just not for me. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

Sorry for your loss, I'm not going to be happy when my pet's time has come to an end. What I'm about to say may seem harsh and cruel, but nothing in life is routine. To think that it's your right to sue someone just because something goes wrong just goes to show how ####ed up this litigious society of ours is. Have you ever noticed how many things die on a daily basis? You know one day your card will come up (just as mine will) and who knows maybe the circumstances surrounding your death will be hard to explain. With all due respect, suck it up. Living creatures die and sometimes making sense of why is hard to understand. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

Chester-the-Molester how are you bro? I miss you all in CO. We were getting some nice Colorado like Spring weather here in Cowtown Oilberta a few days ago. But today it's freaking snowing cats and dogs and one wonders when I'll ever get airborne. Later dude ... Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

D'oh ... obviously my charm (or lack thereof) on Karen hasn't worked. I see Colorado in Karen's future. Otter DZ, large tandem business, swoop pond and a wind tunnel within an hours drive. Then again she could always stay in the Snohomish area. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

Well I used to play one on TV. But that was all before I started jumping. Yes flying is probably the most expensive thing you can do. It's fun ... but dang ... it's not cheap. Good luck with your IFR training. Hmmm ... not a peep from Karen. Either she has a life and is just ignoring us, or she's been abducted my martian aliens. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

1) Duck 2) Call the cleanup crew. 3) Make someone else deal with it. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

Hey I'm still editing the grammatical errors I made in my last post and now you had to go out and quote me. Now Karen will know that I've got less than ideal grammatical skills, she won't dump her boyfriend and my plan to return to Colorado will be shot. Oh well like I said, in my dreams right. Hey I found a new activity which is about as expensive as skydiving is. Home Renovations. I have spend thousands so far and my home still looks like a local food market in Baghdad. However the basement games room is starting to return to form and soon the pool table will be resurrected. Oh well, things a northerner must do when he can't jump since all the local DZs are closed for the winter season. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

What's your point? Just because I don't live in Colorado anymore is meaningless when it comes to my opinions of that state. In fact given the choice I would still be in Colorado. But I didn't have permanent resident status in the USA. I was only ever considered a temporary resident (unlike the millions of illegal aliens who are allowed to stay). Gotta love how the US immigration system works. Oh I know Karen can dump her boyfriend, marry me, I will sell my house here in Cowtown and resettle down in Colorado in some new digs and everyone will live happily ever after. Well maybe not Karen's boyfriend. LOL ... in my dreams right ... Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

Not to say that the front range doesn't get it's share of wind, but there are plenty of places that are windier. My vote for Karen is still in Colorado. I had the pleasure of meeting her a couple of times last summer and I think the good people of Colorado would warm up to her real fast. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

It doesn't get any cheaper. You just end up making more jumps once your gear is purchased and paid for. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

What makes one person more qualified than another person towards being “Skydiver of the Year”? Who knows … and in the big picture does it really matter? There are many disciplines in this sport and the main common denominator is that we jump from an aircraft (or from fix objects) and we use gear to deploy what we hope is a functional wing which hopefully will then allow us to land safely, pack up and go make another jump. In case you haven’t noticed, not everyone wants to be an AFF instructor or a tandem bitch. Now AFF instructors and tandem bitches are important to the sport, but as long as some of us can afford to, we enjoy being nothing more than goal driven “fun” jumpers. So stop judging people who happen to have a little extra pocket change (you never know maybe that person actually worked for their money and now they are enjoying working hard on an activity that allows them to spend it). There is no shortage of talented jumpers who have put their heart and their souls into becoming better jumpers and who's to say that one method is better than another. Obviously Natasha wasn’t looking to be “Skydiver of the Year” when she set out to be the best that she could be one, two or three years ago. It just kind of happened than one day recently someone decided to recognize her efforts. Is there someone else out there more qualified for this award? Who knows and really who cares. More jumping and less bitching people … Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

Skydiving has been a blessing and a curse in my life. It is one of the most exhilarating things we humans can do. But it can also consume us to the point where the rest of our life suffers. If you’re not ready and willing to cut away and take all the good and the not so good that comes with such actions, then make sure you find balance between this sport and your life outside of this sport. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

It's funny that these billions you speak of are predomintaly found in two nations who are rapidly adding to the problem with little or no concern. Plus maybe there are far too many humans to begin with walking this earth. Have humans done damage to this planet? Yes we have ... Can humans reverse the problem? Maybe ... maybe not. Time will tell. If humans can fix the problem, will we see it in our life time? Nope, it will take centuries to reverse the trend ... So why all the "Chicken Littles" all of a sudden? It's just politics ... "Party On". Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

"You can't always get what you want" - The Rolling Stones. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

Karen you won't regret Colorado if you decide to go there. CU is a cool school with lot's of character, Boulder is a really cool town to check out (I lived there for 4 years) but I should warn you that Boulder is not cheap. You can always live in places like Superior, Lafayatte, Louisville, Westminster and Longmont and the the commute shouldn't be more than 30 minutes in most cases. Oh and there is an Otter, a King Air and a Cessna at the Longmont DZ and well if you want to go swimming there is also the swoop pond (not to mention the tunnel in south Denver). Plus if you want to do something other than skydiving, Colorado is a outdoor's-man paradise. Mountains, mountains oh and yes did I mention Colorado has some pretty cool mountains. I miss Colorado ... it's a rocking good time ... PS: Fort Collins (home of CSU) is a pretty cool town as well and it is more affordable than Denver and places like Loveland are not far from Fort Collins and/or Longmont. Go to Colorado Karen, you won't regret it. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

Exactly ... one of three things will happen when we do these less than legal jumps and two of the three things have very negative impacts on the sport. 1) You get busted and generate negative (all too often national) media exposure. 2) You die or hurt yourself and generate negative (all too often national) media exposure. 3) You're successful and live to jump another day. The problem with #3 is that it encourages more jumping which could result in #1 or #2. This could happen to anyone who jumps less than legal objects, so before people go off on their "slam-fests" of the two accused individuals, just remember that it too can happen to you. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

If water can not be thought of as a safety device when landing, neither can the frozen variety. But with that said, as long as you’re not flying overly aggressively above your skills and are not wearing overly bulky gloves, there is a good chance you’ll be fine. Just remember (as others have already pointed out) that the depth perception could get you if you’re jumping into a white LZ with no other features. Ever watch a downhill race where the course is lined with small twigs? It's the same principle. They’re just there to help the racer with the depth perception issues. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

If you are referring to set “swoopists” (LOL …) who are flying cross-braced canopies, don’t forget that these cross-braced canopies are far more rigid than their non cross-braced cousins and this helps them cut through (dare I say) crappy turbulent air easier. But if there is so much crappy air up there, let’s not forget the saying: “It’s better to be on the ground wishing you were in the air than to be in the air wishing you were on the ground”. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

Location, location, location ... Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

Wow I'd be very happy if the cops used whatever tactic needed to nab someone who stole my credit card and proceeded to use it. While they may not always be my favorite people, the cops do serve a purpose. But people do need to think twice before they share video/pics of their jumps. Besides, I was always under the assumption that the best BASE jumps were known only by the actual jumpers and any ground crew that they had at the time. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

After this current winter break of ours, I feel that I am going to have to put the 87 on the shelf for a while and upsize at the very least to my 96 if not something bigger. I'm not really enjoying this seasonal jumping. But what can a 'Nuck do these days. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

SRV of course ... may he RIP. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

I'm not sure what you're really looking for in this thread (it's been jumping all over the map). 1) Skydiving is not like anything you've ever done before. I don't care if you've tried paragliding, are a rock climber, skier, mountain biker or just self professed "I'm extreme" type of dude who just likes to yank your own chicken. All these other sports are cool, but just because you've done them or are still active in them, it doesn't mean squat. They are not skydiving and they won't make you a good skydiver. The only way to know if skydiving is for you is to try it and see if you like it. But it takes hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of jumps just to start getting into what being a good skydiver is (in fact you're pretty much a beginner skydiver until you've made about 500+ jumps and only then does the real learning begin). 2) Skydivers come from all walks of life. At the DZ you will meet the professional skydiver who does nothing else in life but jump (many of them, not all, only do work jumps). You will meet professionals such as doctors, lawyers, engineerers, etc, etc, etc (skydiving is an expensive sport so naturally it attracts people who have money to spend). You will meet blue collar and white collar. You will meet housewives and even children of DZOs who jump. You will meet your poor skydivers. They are usually either professional skydivers and/or starving students often funding their habit working at the DZ in some form or another ... such as packing and/or driving shuttle vehicles back and forth. You will meet young and old, smart and some not so smart. You will meet many friendly skydivers and some are not so friendly. You will meet humble skydivers and arrogant skydivers. You will also meet the law abiding person (as most skydivers are ... in fact some are even cops) and then you will also meet skydivers who are less than law abiding. I don't think I have ever meet such a diverse group of people in society as I have met at the DZ. 3) Finally, skydiving is not safe. If you get into this sport and stay in it long enough, you will have friends who die in the sport. You may even witness one of your friends go in, or who knows it could be you, me or anyone else who jumps. I have five (count'em) dead friends and I've been lucky. Go into this sport with the wrong attitude and I guarantee you a ride out of here ... in a body bag. But go into the sport with the right attitude and you may (there are no guarantees) come out of here as a better person. Skydiving has been a blessing and a curse in my life. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

My rock climbing and mountaineering experiences curred me of any fear of heights. I respect them, but no way do I fear them. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

For a second I thought you were referring to this Mike Holmes. But I guess you're referring to a "Mikey" and not "Mike". BTW, the Mike Holmes I speak of is a true hero for home renovators since he has helped educate people about what not to do and helped educate people on how to look for the right home improvement contractor. But hey anyone who can survive a double mal has a story to tell. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over