obelixtim

Jeez, life is tough. Surprised you didn't fire a couple of shots back at them. Just for a laugh of course. I guess the kids in Afghanistan don't have a lot to laugh about. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

Grafitti on the hangar wall at a boogie. Baglock, brainlock, wedlock......you choose, you lose!!. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

You've only just touched it, it gets better. Did a solo night jump early in my career, from 12500 feet. Full moon, crystal clear night, stars everywhere, a view of nearly 100 miles of the southern half of the North Island of NZ, with clusters of lights around the small towns and cities, the Tasman sea off one coast, the south Pacific Ocean off the other, silver in the moonlight. Me, alone, in freefall, feeling totally insignificant, like an ant in the universe, realising that all the people down below me under all those twinkling lights, didn't have the slightest conception of what I was experiencing......and most never ever would. As far as a spiritual experience goes, I've never come across anything even close to it, even on subsequent night jumps. That jump was 37 years ago, but is still as clear in my mind as it was when it happened...one of the best I ever did. I hope you get to experience something like that. It is such a privelidge to be able to do so, yet it is within the reach of nearly everyone. As the saying goes: "Only skydivers know why the birds sing"...... My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

Best wishes and good luck to the Duck.... My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

Interesting. There must be a way. Join the military as a Padre maybe.... Maybe the TV option is a good one, it is sufficiently different to maybe create some interest from a production company. Are there not a few God oriented channels in the US?. You could say you are interested in experiencing the heavens by going to altitude to be closer to God.... Good luck anyway. Hope it happens for you.... My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

Well it looks like this woman has cost your DZ a bit of custom. It seems everyone is in agreement about her attitude, What I can't understand is why she is allowed to carry on like this, its obvious her attitude is not a one off thing. Does she have some special immunity or something?. I hope she is told in no uncertain terms what has happened here. One episode may be excusable, with a warning, but repeat behaviour deserves nothing less than the order of the boot. I'd be very pissed off if I was the boss..... My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

There is NO reason for being abrupt and rude. The customer is always right....is generally true for any business. Especially when a customer is going to bring you lots of dinero. Courtesy and patience is essential for any person fronting the business, costs nothing, and potentially pays off in a big way. This front person has probablyv cost her boss a couple of thousand bucks, possibly more, not to mention his staff who miss out on the money they bring.. If I was the boss I'd be pretty pissed off, and she would certainly get a rocket up the bum, if not the DCM.. Nothing worse than someone treating potential clients like she's doing them a favour. She needs to realise that they pay her wages. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

I can't help you with DZ's around Calgary, if there are any, go there. But you can ask to speak to the DZ boss and tell him that he has missed out on 10 new jumpers because his receptionist is an unhelpful bitch. As far as the language barrier goes, if the Instructors have their act together, it shouldn't be a problem. I've trained first jump students from many countries, with little English language skills, and it hasn't been a problem.... Good luck. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

Came from a mate in the UK..... My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

I would think the problem it would create is that you would be short of staff for the day. And if you have a lot of tandems booked, then you may not get them all jumped. And that equates to a loss of income for the drop zone and unhappy customers. You don't see all of that as a problem? No, it never turned out to be a problem, we had enough TM's to fill the plane plus a couple of spares, They would rotate thru the day anyway, so they could have a coffee or sandwich, so if someone didn't show up it didn't matter. With 7 or 8 TM's, 1 missing for a day wouldn't matter. That TM would be out of pocket for not showing up, and the other greedy TM's would happily take up the slack. It meant that they might all do another one or two jumps in the day. The jumpers were in it for the money, and they could earn good bucks. If we were short of TM's ever, it was easy enough to organise bookings so people who were able to, were first in line the next day. And as Strat says, it was the ones stinking of booze and tobacco, grumpy with a hangover, who are the ones you don't want around. If they persisted with that behaviour they quickly fell down the pecking order. Most of the TM's had been around long enough to be past that party till you drop stage. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

Some operators have had drug testing in place for 10 years or more. Its not a big deal. THC can be detected for up to two months after use, it doesn't mean people are jumping stoned. If any of our staff members show up a bit worse for wear after a hard night, we would send them home. In fact they are told not to show up if they are hung over. They understand that, and it doesn't cause any problems. If they can't control their intake, they earn less money. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

If you take the time to study all the known airport access cases, one thing that stands out in those is that they all read verbatim. Like one of those call center script reading classes they all attended. All airport sponsors have an agenda when it comes to not wanting skydivers on the airport. They all use and say that same stupid shit and tactics with users and the FAA. All airport boards and sponsors act like and are the "good old boy's" club and if your not in the club you will get the "hillbillies in Deliverance" treatment. None of the actions of St. Mary's is a surprise, in fact many of their actions could have been expected and planned for had the proper actions been followed by the operator, thus giving the the dz the upper hand in any of it's on going access fight. As it turned out though, some in the skydiving camp thought it would be cute to "test" the city and while at it, thumb their nose at the very agency they are depending on to help with winning the access case.... by conducting a number of well documented via the press, violations of FAR 105.23b. That is what has doomed them, those actions alone sealed their fate, the fact the navy is pissed off now too.... well as one wise old Jap once said "I fear all we have done is awaken the sleeping giant". All the crap the city was pulling with special permits or what ever bullshit, should have been documented and calls to a lawyer and the ADO should have been on going for months, long before the cops showed up to revoke permission. Had the right steps and actions been taken by TJP owners and staff, this could have "maybe" been a victory for them pretty easy, depending on how the new PLA thing plays out. From standing on the outside and only having the public record to go by, in reading all, this is a classic example of: "how not to win your airport access case during a time of importance pending standards changes to on airport landing areas". It's not like this information is not out there and or a paid consultant for all members to seek strong advice and guidance in dealing with these kind of issues, only a fool would not heed his advice and make every effort work with in the system to fix the problem. I understand all the fucking games they play and all that bullshit about how it hurts her business... yadda yadda yadda. You know what, how's her fucking business now? If it was worth fighting for that location as much she made a stink about it , then playing by the rules of the fight should have been the plan from day one, there is that paid consultant guy who will help formulate a plan and help you with guidance.... many others have proven that advice and guidance to be reliable and successful if followed. TJP actions are unprofessional to say the least and could harm the industry on a national level. Thanks grandpa, and it's easy to sit there and say, I told you so when you didn't inform anyone of anything. Instead you attempted to bait me into a conversation for your own self gratification. Remember this comment I told you I didn't know and you appeared to be the expert. Quite cheap on your part honestly. Now tell us all again how you told all of us so. yadda yadda yadda, nothing is more worthless than saying I told you so.... when you didn't gramps. Pull your head in. The airport access issue has been well documented over a long time. use your fingers to search and you will find plenty of information. As Strat says, most are almost identical in the way they have evolved. Its not rocket science to realise diplomacy is always a good option when dealing with authority, especially when its your business they have influence over. And it might be an idea for you to listen to the Gramps of the world, it might save you reinventing the wheel some time. Especially when it comes to skydiving. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

Checking a rig before a boogie, I found a 2 inch nail seated beside the reserve pin. "WTF is this"? to the owner. Same deal, he'd put the nail in beside the pin in case someone accidentally pulled his reserve handle, while travelling. "When did you do that?" "Couple of weeks ago". "Have you done any jumps on the rig since then?" "Yeah, six or seven CRW jumps"...... "What about this nail?" The penny finally drops......... "I forgot"....... He went through two or three colour changes before slinking off with his ears ringing from a few choice words including: Fu§$%&/. Idiot. You. In a different sequence of course. I think he learnt several lessons that day about the dangers of temporary pins and checking your rig properly before you jump. Had he bounced, his rigger prolly would have had the finger pointed at him..... My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

Rates about the same level as dying under a perfectly good canopy....... Skydivers have won more than their fair share of Darwin awards..... My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

Do you really think a military security detail would be charged with anything if they put a bullet into an unauthorised, unannounced trespasser, using the "I thought he was a terrorist" defence?. I doubt if the military would pay any penalty, at all. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

Where did you get the idea that King's Bay is Top Secret? As stated many times in this thread the jumpers landed on a field next to the cafeteria....not a threat to national security, just to the afternoon snack. Inside the wire means you are on the base without permission. At a nuclear base, every square inch is theirs to declare whatever they like. Whether you land on the baseball diamond, or on top of a submarine, the navy security have a job to do. They could fill you full of bullet holes if they so chose, and walk away fully justified. I'm sure a determined terrorist would have no trouble learnig to skydive somewhere, come to a DZ and arrange an "accidental" landing inside a base. There would be hell to pay if security let them actually destroy or damage something. Everyone knows how rigid airport security is. Why would you think a nuclear naval base would be less stringent.... If the other side is playing dirty pool, if you want to fight them, you have to be clean. Raising the middle finger to their faces just because they aren't playing fair, totally compromises any chance you have of winning anything. Maybe it would have been an idea if the naval base was a potential alternate LZ, an approach to the base commander 7 years ago might have been beneficial......he might have even said yes!!!. And if not at least not objected strongly. I wonder how many times people have landed on the base in the past?. If its happened and been no hassle, the navy could have been an ally, or at least neutral. But not if they see you giving the finger to the city. I'm sure they aren't happy to be drawn into a shitfight, so its easy for them just to say no. It sounds to me like spotting isn't a DZ strongpoint.... My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

Where did I say that?. Now, where did you get that from? My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

You always have the option of not jumping with people you don't trust. An option I exercise all the time. Maybe its the option theyare exercising all the time..... My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

I don't see why not. Most of the components are similar, and a good rigger can pick up any obvious flaws or problems. There can be a wide variety of skydiving rigs which a rigger will come across sooner or later. As a rigger I've inspected and packed hang glider rigs, pilot and glider rigs, microlight rigs, and even the harnesses they use at the local bungy site, not to mention a few parasailing rigs. Even set up and tested an emergency system for the "Rack" where one of the local helicopter operators started taking punters for joy rides underneath the chopper, until the NZCAA took him to court to shut him down, they failed, but the legal costs effectively put him out of business. Base rigs are really not that much different to any other rig. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

§2 years old with 20 years of skydiving experience? Sounds like a landing accident, but the news media comes up with the stock word, "plummet" to describe it. They seem to think every skydiving accident was preceded by a plummet. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

Luckily my air forxe contact was able to swap it for a brand new pair, These days they are a bit more stingy, you only get a new pair if you hand in both the old ones.... Came from guys swapping one for two, and then a few weeks later swapping the other one for another pair. It took the AF a while to wise up to that one, I guess they might have got a QM with a brain and ambitions of promotion for a change.... My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

Some of his terminology doesn't really jell either.....Ropes???. He's talking about riser slap.... My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

Given a choice between a glove and a cutaway cable, I know which I'd rather lose mid-jump. I'd even argue that the guy was right to release your glove. Unless someone is very experienced/ switched on, he or she is probably better off without the distraction. Early in my career I jumped with a disposable camera to take some pictures in freefall. I remember how uneasy I felt having something in my hand during the skydive - it just felt 'wrong', and I was very conscious of having to transfer it to my other hand prior to pull time. The big question is - did he offer to buy you a new pair of gloves?

Because we are all psychopaths. Watch your back...... My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

Bigamy is having one wife too many..... Monogamy is the same..... (Apologies to Oscar Wilde). My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....