CanuckInUSA

I've yet to have the pleasure of seeing a femur thanks to a skydiving injury (give it time I'm sure it will happen), but I was a ski patroller for 4 years in the late 80s early 90s so I have seen my share of blood and gore. Plus I'm up to five people I've known who've bounced (3 skydiving, 2 in BASE) and Josh by far is the closest friend I've had who's bounced. It's not like Josh and I were best buds (people like Horn-dog, Chester-the-Molester and Ross'coe were much closer to him than I was), but he was a good friend nonetheless who's no longer with us and he will be missed. Yes I'm kind of over the terminal JVX thing-a-ma-bob (and while I really like my RDS, it isn't the reason why I'm over the openings). I had one bad opening resulting in a reserve ride early on which kind of spooked me, but I think I'm over it now. I just need to make sure I'm never complacent once that PC has been tossed. Plus the 87 seems to have better openings than the old 96. But no my 87 is ZP (it's Shimmel's old canopy) and I'm not so certain I will be buying anything new anytime soon. I sure hope to attend a few PST events this season (the one in FL in January looks like the bomb), but my PST career likely won't be a very long one. Age and currency being up here in the frozen tundra could really hurt me (in more ways than one). I have talked to one of the Alberta DZOs and he's given me the blessing to hold some CPC type swoop comps at his DZ next summer. But our season is only six months long and I want to make sure people are practicing running the gates before we hold any formal competitions. So we might only be able to hold 3 swoop comps here next summer. Time will tell. Dude unless your temps get down to -25F with your windchills in the -40F range, you guys have no idea what cold is. We're supposed to warm up here starting tomorrow (and be around 32F by the weekend), but we've been dealing with some downright dangerous tempuratures here in Alberta these last few days. Global Warming my ass. Living in Colorado for 8 years and BC for another year turned me into a wussy-chimp when it comes to cold weather. But I'm sure this will all change now that I'm back in Alberta (a place very very similar to Colorado, just colder come winter time). Later you punk ass kid. Of course the only ones who are even more of a punk ass than yourself is that Ryan guy you seem to like and let's not forget Keith. He's the king of punk asses. I miss CO. I miss the pond. Some American girl needs to marry me. It's not like I'm poor or anything like that. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

Don't forget to do something devilish for your 666th Katie. I took a wingsuit out of a hot air balloon over an urban environment. But you don't need to be that devilish. Just make sure you mark the occasion in your own way. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

Happy belated birthday Grant. You'll always be a young punk in my old (yes I am a POPS member thanks thanks to Mar) eyes. But you have been in the sport longer than I have, so I must assume that you've seen more than I have. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

Yes sometimes I wonder why some people want the latest tools. Is this because the person next to them has it or is it because they're competing against others in formal competitions and they're looking for all the help they can get. It took me well over a year into my (very short) competitive swooping career before I went to an RDS and I only did this because the vast majority of the people I all of a suddden found myself competing against had one. Why do people who fly canopies like Spinettos need HMA lines? (it could be any other non cross-braced canopy, I don't really want to pick on Spinettos). I know in a different thread I mentioned to Alex (cacaphony or whatever his user name is) that he should get himself a removeable slider. But I know he's a competitive swooper (I've competed against the guy) and I know he's got plenty of experience. Early on when I was getting some swoop coaching, it was mentioned to me that it doesn't matter what lines you have or what slider setup you have. If you're not flying your canopy efficiently, all these toys aren't going to help and they could hurt you if you don't hook up your RDS correctly. So I do agree with Grant here that spending the money on jumps is a much better idea than getting an RDS. Save the RDS for when you're a competitive swooper and are looking for an edge. With that said though, it sure is nice to take the slider off. So I guess we all have a little hypocrite in us. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

No ... I've kind of used DZ.COM as an informal log book as my paper log books aren't always up-to-date. So when it says I've made 1555 skydives, know that I have made 1555 skydives. But to each their own. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

Love the pic of your dog Karen. I was watching a neighbors dog (a Husky) play outside in the snow on the weekend while it was fridged outside and it funny to see this dog having fun while most of us would be miserable in the cold. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

I was going to make fun of you guys what with you saying that there is 2 inches of snow on the ground and all the schools are closed while we here on the other side of the mountains deal with just as much snow (if not more) and much much colder temperatures and well nothing is closed (life goes on in the frozen north). But I guess if people don't know how to drive on the white stuff and are not equipped with the proper tires, then maybe it's best not to be driving. Oh and the sun is shinning today here in cold cold Alberta. So it's much easier to stomach the cold. One more day they say and then things are supposed to start slowly warming up here. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

Save the full RDS for competition and practice. But get yourself a removable slider. You won't look back. I can take my slider off faster than I could stow it and it's so nice not to have it hanging around your head. Plus it only takes an extra one minute (maybe two) to put it back on. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

I am very happy with my Para-Concepts RDS. They're aren't the only guys on the block, but they do make a good product. My slider works just as good as the default slider. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

You might be on to something here. That's not a bad idea. It may not be the total solution, but it is something that can help much more than it would hurt. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

I'll see your foot of snow and raise you a -40 F in windchill temperatures. A foot of snow probably won't kill you, but being exposed to -40 F for a prolonged period of time without proper clothing will. Global Warming my ### ... Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

Now there's a "oxymoron" concept if I've ever heard one. Global warming makes the planet colder. BTW ... it's still very very cold out there and it will remain very very cold for the next few days ... at the very least. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

I'll be sporting shorts and a t-shirt when the temps warm up to a balmy 29F. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

You must be referring to your local Tim Horton's establishment. It's amazing all those lemmings who line up for blocks just to get some coffee. By the way, what's Tim Horton's putting in their coffee to have created so many dependents? Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

2nd place on Saturday in the Downhill and 1st place on Sunday in Super G. I guess the cold weather did work to our advantage this time around. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

Fret not grasshopper, as this is normal. Every canopy (especially the bigger ones) load up. Keep doing this and start paying attention to how much altitude is lost. But remember to let the canopy recover by itself before you check the altitudes. Of course at 75 jumps we don't want you doing this low to the ground, but there is no harm in playing with it up high. Good luck ... Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

Yes you will encountered plenty of guys who are all macho about their one-time lifetime achievement. The best thing to do is carry on with your jumping goals. Out of these two groups (yourself and the macho one-timers) we know who's got the bigger cajones ... and it's not the one-timers. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

You'd never know it by looking outside, and correct me if I'm wrong. But it's not even offically winter yet right? Brrrr ... Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

Easier said than done. I dated two single moms when I was in CO (before I was jumping) and then I dated another single woman soon after I started jumping. But it was pretty obvious that dating whuffo women wasn't such a good idea. So I was left thinking that my only chance was to date a fellow jumper. But we know how the odds are stacked against the guys here and well the women around the DZ weren't interested in an alien. Besides, I always told myself that I would never marry someone for the sake of getting a green card. Divorce is just too nasty. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

I don't think you would want to BASE in these temps. Your canopy is probably one big frozen fabric'cicle. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

Rub it in why don't you. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

First off I don't really intend for this thread to be very political, so hopefully (there are no guarantees) it won't find it's way into the Speakers Corner. But for anyone who's all up in arms about Global Warming, they obviously aren't in Alberta Canada right now. It's -24 C (feels like -32 C with the windchill) and for those of you who don't do metric that means it's -11 F (feels like -25 F). Brrrr ... I tell you skydiving feels so distant right now. If it wasn't for DZ.COM I would be totally disconnected from the sport. Oh well, I need to get back to some home reno projects. I've got tons to do here on this house these next few months. Carry on ... Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

I think they've been in a state of civil war for at least a year now. GWB and the media just don't want to admit it. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

Sorry Lisa but Notre Dame got spanked pretty bad tonight. Assuming USC beats UCLA next weekend, it looks like USC will be in the big title game against the Buckeyes. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over