CanuckInUSA

Unless I'm mistaken the $165 includes your six jumps and part of this money is used for the winners prize money (even though I still question why amateurs are competiting for money). The actual course material is not free nor is trying to find volunteer judges (you need to compensate them somehow like buying them pizza). So you're really only out the annual entrance fees as well as each competition fee. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

Well it sounds like we don't need to worry about being in the the top five of a district anymore (the only downside to having this top five rule was that some districts produce more swoopers than others and a sixth place person in one area not invited to the big show could be better than a top five person from another area). But unless the powers in charge just start allowing people to take pro qualifiers (something I don't see them doing), why should the top ten requirement at the CPC nationals change? Certain well connected jumpers should not be allowed to cut to the front of the line while the others have to earn their way. Everyone should have equal access. It sounds like you don't like the CPC (and that's fine), but what are your alternatives? The level of competition at last year's CPC finals was outstanding. Unless you were there you'd be surprised how well most people flew. Obviously the top five competitors were much better than the bottom five, but the overall skill level of the entire field was excellent. I guess I say all of this because I don't think well connected swoopers should be given "pass go for free" cards. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

Have you guys thought of this? Does the jumper need to make three competitions in a given "home" district or can it be three competitions no matter where they are just as long as they competed in three sanctioned CPC competitions. I ask this because until I hear otherwise that a new local CPC region is starting here in BC, I am forced to travel this summer to get my CPC fix (assuming I can afford to do this). If I knew that all I needed to do would be to get three CPC competitions in no matter where they were, then I would be travelling to different venues this season (once again assuming I can afford to do this) as I believe competiting in different districts can only help become a better well rounded swooper. And even though I told you that I wanted to make SkyQuest and never did make it, it is tempting to try and make the first FL comp in Lake Wales next month if I knew that spending all that money would be worth it. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

I started off liking freefall. But after a few hundred jumps, all of a sudden I began enjoying the canopy more and more until I started focusing on the canopy aspect. Freefall is optional. The canopy ride and successful landing is mandatory. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

Cool ... Jaap's concern I think is more about another individual closer regionally to us. There are a few local objects around here that are pretty sweat (and I have Jaap to thank for showing me them) and it would be a shame for a person with questionable experience attempting them, fucking up and burn the object. But then again anyone of us is capable of burning an object by messing up. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

Unless I'm mistaken, last years top 10 finishers have one calendar year to complete their pro qualifier attempt (and there is nothing forcing anyone to actually do it). So all top ten finishers (except Brian) should be allowed to compete in the 2006 season as a CPC competitor. No questions asked. There is no guarantee that a top ten finisher will pass their qualifier. It becomes more of a question of what happens next year and so on. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

Unless I'm mistaken, last years top 10 finishers have one calendar year to complete their pro qualifier attempt (and there is nothing forcing anyone to actually do it). So all top ten finishers (except Brian) should be allowed to compete in the 2006 season as a CPC competitor. No questions asked. There is no guarantee that a top ten finisher will pass their qualifier. It becomes more of a question of what happens next year and so on. If someone does not want to be a pro, then how can you possibly force them. But if a top CPC canopy pilot chooses to stay and compete year after year, then they should forfeit their qualifier slot to the next guy down the list who wants it. Plus I've always questioned why amateur swooping has a $$$ prize purse. Shouldn't the money be the domain of the pros? I thought that was what being a professional athlete was all about? IMO, amateur swooping should be about developing as a competitive swooper? If there was no prize purse at the CPC level, then people wouldn't need to worry about guest "ringer" competitors taking home all the dough and it might actually attract more younger swoopers into the CPC ranks? I like this idea. In fact is it possible to handicap the scoring somehow where your end score for the discipline will be better if you successfully navigate the 5 foot course, but will get penalized more if your fail on the 5 footers. This way the less experienced or lower competitive risk taker can attempt the safer 10 foot gates while the more established competitors are rewarded on successful completion of the 5 footers but could pay a higher price for failure. It doesn't solve the gear difference issues, but it sounds like a possible way to allow people of different skill levels to compete against each other. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

He will if you feed him enough GoFast the night before a comp. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

Hey Chris I've got plenty of respect for the things that you, Jim and others have done for the up and coming swooping community. On one hand this is great news since it takes pressures off of some people and puts more focus on competiting in the minimum number of events (the CPC should be all about gaining competition experience). But what happens when 100+ people show up in September? One could only assume the Colorado people alone will field 20+ swoopers at this event (obviously with 20+ different skill and experience levels). I guess I'm just concerned about completing the competition where variable WX conditions couldn't negatively influence the results only because the field was so big and someone scheduled to jump in a certain part of the day will have an advantage over someone else all because the field was so big. I like the CPC and think that it likely is the (current) best way to develop competitive swooping amongst us amateurs. The pros outweigh the cons. But what is this discussion really about? What is the CPC? Who should turn pro? How do they become pros? Or how long can a top CPC person be allowed to stay on the CPC? If someone possesses the ability to swoop pro qualified courses and doesn't routinely scare the judges, then are they, or are they not, ready to compete at the pro level? Obviously I think they need to come up some sort of amateur swooping league where they compete in events and their skills can be evaluated by the more seasoned competitors and judges. But if someone can pass a pro qualifier (maybe the qualifier should be made even harder), then maybe just maybe they are ready to be pros. Anyway, I'm curious to see where swooping goes in the coming years. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

You should never buzz someone unless they are aware and have agreed with you in advance. It's fun to hunt down tandems, and do a fly-by (you in a wingsuit, them under canopy) and open up in front of them. But we need to talk to those who will be buzzed in advance and get their "okay" before you do it. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

Was that Brooke jumping with a helmet-cam now? It looked like her jumpsuit. Also, it's amazing to watch Jillian Parker do her knee flying. The girl is flexible that's for sure. I missed the Eloy Holiday Boogie this year and it was obviously my loss. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

I'll take yours or any of the other's top ten slots to qualify if they're not interested (of course I realize the powers in charge wouldn't let this happen since I wasn't one of the top ten and many other non-top ten peeps are also in the same boat). Besides building some good competition experience (#1 mandate of the CPC if I'm not mistaken), wasn't the goal of competiting on the CPC to be able to qualify as a top ten finisher to take the pro qualifier? Disclaimer: of course thanks to the unjumpable shitty weather here on the wet and rainy Pacific Northwest as well as the fact that my savings are rapidly vanishing, I'm beginning to wonder how much swooping skills I may have lost the last 3 months since I left CO. So could I qualify if I even had the opportunity to qualify? Of course I won't be taking the pro qualifier, so my lack of currency is a moot point. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

Of course getting money and time off of work could help keep the numbers down, but doesn't this new policy have the potential to setup too big of a field at the CPC finals? Not to say that a few more than the 30 people we had last year could have been accomodated. But what happens if 100+ people qualified and showed up? Would you be able to hold a swoop meet with such a large competitor field? Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

The best part about this season is that for most of the year, the NFL experts have ignored the Broncos and focused on other teams (Colts, Pats, Eagles, etc, etc, etc). Of course they'll still need to show up next Sunday against a good Steelers squad. But despite the fact that most of the NFL doesn't know what Denver can do and never gave them much of a chance to do anything this year, I like the Broncos chances against Blitzburgh. Denver is solid on D and have enough offense to move the ball and put points on the board. It should be a fun Sunday for football fans. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

That was great. Thanks for the memories. I wish more raw footage of the event was out there. But this video was fun to watch.

Why I like hop n' pops 1) They are fun. 2) You get your own air space (for the most part). 3) You get time to play with your canopy (high altitude hop n' pops are even better). 4) You can be packed by the time the rest of the load lands. 4) Your cloud ceiling limit is lower than free fallers. 6) They are cheaper. 7) You can get to a beer faster on sunset loads than free fallers do. I like my hop n' pops!!! Please don't take them away from me. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

Swooping rocks!!! But there are no short cuts. It's already been said, but I will say it as well. Learn how to fly your canopy in the slow flight characteristics before you start inducing speed close to the ground (and this applies to each new canopy you start to fly). Play with your canopy and dedicate jumps towards canopy control. Seek coaching because good instruction rocks. But also realize that while coaching equipes you with knowledge. It doesn't equipe you with skill or experience. Experience is gained but doing hundreds and hundreds if not thousands of jumps and stay current. Learning each canopy before you move on to the next one requires hundreds and hundreds of jumps on each canopy and just remember that even the experienced people can fuck up. Swooping rocks!!! But it's not safe. Oh and Sabre2s are geat canopies to learn on. In fact it was a Sabre2 170 that I learned on before I moved on to other smaller more high performance canopies. Stay safe, play smart and have fun. Choose baby steps over great leaps and remember that unless you're one of the top PST guys, there's always someone better than you. So don't let egos get in the way of your progression. But know that there are no short cuts. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

I've done lots of long road trips but I think the longest one I did was back in the fall of 2002 when I travelled from Denver Colorado to Vancouver BC (via Wyoming, Utah, Idaho, Oregon and Washington State) before venturing from Vancouver BC to Calgary Alberta (via the Kokahola Highway through the BC/Alberta rockies) and then completing the trip from Calgary Alberta to Denver Colorado (via Montana and Wyoming). I'm sure it's not the longest road trip done. But it was a pretty long trip that's for sure. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

Well I've now got many many hours under my belt playing this game and it is intense. Having never been in actual combat, I can't say how realistic it may or may not be. But it is still intense nonetheless and I have learned to run for cover and hit the deck once I find suitable protection. I have completed every mission in the game but I am far from finished playing this game if you know what I mean. Some missions were completed using the "Easy" skill level, most completed at the "Normal" skill level and some missions were completed after I was killed, but the game lets you pick up a few steps back from where you were wasted. But so far I've only been able to complete six missions (4 Russian, 2 British) from start to finish in the "Hardened" skill category without being killed along the way and I will only consider having completed the game when I can finish all or most of missions at this skill level without being killed. But with that said and done, I have died way more times than I have finished the missions intact without dying. And it's usually not the opposing gun fire that gets me, but those damn grenades. Oh and have I mentioned that this game is intense? Of course my goal to complete each mission at the "Hardened" skill level without dying may never happen as the "D-Day" mission is brutal (one can only imagine what horrors the real thing was like). Getting off the beech and up the cliffs is not hard and navigating your way through the initial trenches you find isn't bad. But as soon as you expose yourself in the open assaulting that first gun position is deadly more often than not (and exposing yourself a second time to get to the town is also pretty brutal). I guess I need to use more smoke grenades and hope to find more along the way if I ever hope to finish that mission at the "Hardened" skill level without dying. Have I mentioned that this game is intense? A few nights ago (after pretty much playing the game all day and all night long) I think I was (computer version of course) shell shocked and can totally understand how real soldiers get that way. Finally, if I haven't mentioned this, this game is intense. But it is only a game, thank god. But I have a stronger respect now more than ever for the people who sacrificed their lives in World War II so that we can enjoy the freedom we now enjoy in our western democracies. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

Nice memories Brian I was one of those young jumpers doing my FJC with Marta when Tom did this. I thought I might have video of it, but after searching my tapes, I couldn't find it. It was classic Tom Manship behavior. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

Congrats to Team Canada. They played very very well all tournament long. Of course I'm not very impressed with what happened in a certain semi-final game Wednesday evening. Pretty classless by some of these Vancouver fans. There is more to life than the game of hockey and these fans should be ashamed of themselves. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

On New Years eve I did my first static line BASE jump (my 80th BASE jump in total) from a very very low 180 foot local span (it was my 4th time jumping from this object). You better believe I was afraid of dying. But I still jumped and I survived ... this time. I'm not afriad of death in that we're all going to die one day. But I do respect death and don't want to foolishly kill myself doing something stupid that I didn't weigh the risks versus the rewards. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

Some of you people are beginning to sound like children in the school play ground ... Uncle Bob did this and served there ... well in order to fit in. My Grandfather(s) were too young for WWI and too old for WWII and my father was too young for WWII. So none of them served in the war and thus I was allowed to exist. So there. Said it before, I'll say it again. Thanks to all those nations and individuals who served on the allied side in WWII. Without them (regardless of their nationality) life as we know it today in our western democracies would not exist and I'm sure many of us would never have been born. Oh and I picked up "Call of Duty 2" last night and played a few rounds in the Russian campaign and it's a good thing that I didn't have to serve in a war since I was KIA many many times (and it's only a game). War (at least the real thing) is nasty with no winners and really should only be entered into as a last resort. WWII was a noble war and the right war to get into, the Iraq war isn't. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

Good post Bonnie ... It's also a good idea to look at who's on your load before the airplane even takes off determining what sort of jump they are doing, what type of gear they jump and what sort of landing approach they use and where you think you'll fit into the landing pattern. Sometimes it makes sense to try and be the first one down. Sometimes it makes sense to try and hang in brakes and be last and often it makes sense to try and find your window in the middle of the load. If you have a game plan before you even jump, then you're a step ahead of the action and it's harder to get surprised by someone else. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

If you're on a BASE jump and you have a PC in tow you try to do everything in your power to survive (you have the rest of your life to deal with this mal). But on a skydive it's better just to cutaway and go to your reserve. Try not to worry about the things you have no control over