ZoneRat

Ron, as you probably know, we are serious people. We do not do this staff ... at least officially Well. Some more serious than others... Anton's too modest to admit the truth. See, we were spinning on exit so hard that Anton literally had to wedge his shoulder against the IC's leg and go into a full max-track to stop it. No, really. Chec the pic. The dynamic centrifical forces generated from this terribly troubled launch are literally forcing our cuttaway pillows to point away from our bodies! What more proof could you need. Sure. The rest of us woulda helped. We wanted to help! But we were all like: "Which kneeee do we drop to stop this horrrrible spinnn..." Again, the photo is conclusive. No knees are dropped. We are paralyzed with fear and confusion. Tail, often the case on our neophite, first year team, was the only one to keep his head and act appropriately during this traumatically challenging exit. “There are more things in Heaven and Earth, Horatio, than are dreamt of in your philosophies.”

Quit my job, gave a pretty brunette an engagement ring. Missed my plane the next morning for Phuket Thailand. Got on another plane. Worked crew on my oldest friend's sailboat as we sailed it from Thailand to Israel (with side adventures into Sri-Lanka, India, Nepal, Djibouti, etc). Got back 4.5 months later. Picked up my stuff. Moved to where my cutie lived. Got married. Moved away from said cutie. Got divorced. Got over it. Started skydiving. I don't seek out adventure per se ...But if a good one happens by, as they occasionally do, I generally opt in. “There are more things in Heaven and Earth, Horatio, than are dreamt of in your philosophies.”

Here's something you might consider at some point in your solo progression. During your freefall, pick a heading, do a practice touch and hold it for about 3 seconds. Then move back to neutral. Check your alt, check your heading. Rinse/ repeat. Try to maintain heading as you move smoothly back and forth from neutral to deployment positions. If you can, you'll have far fewer line twists in the jumps to come. Plus it's kinda fun noodling out how to fly with one arm up and the other down. It's easy. You'll have it in just a couple tries. Once you feel you've got it down pat... try it with your eyes closed! (That should make for an interesting moment). Your initial solo's may be a little unnerving, but they are not beyond you. You've proven that to your instructors. Otherwise they would not have approved you to self-jumpmaster. Good luck and have fun! “There are more things in Heaven and Earth, Horatio, than are dreamt of in your philosophies.”

0,10,1 4 on Friday. To celebrate a friends 700th we did a little 3-way hybrid with a couple of us rodeo-ing the 2 belly flyers. Max speed 171. Dat wuz fun. 6 TSL (4-way comp) Sat. and I organized and deployed with a hoop for the beer time on Sunday. Dat wuz fun too. The rookie team I'm kinda mentoring matched my Intermediate team in points this competition-Knocking us to second place in handicap. 3/4's of them all started the team with less than 100 jumps. They had a couple 7 point rounds in 35 seconds ...and they do their own engineering. I'm so proud of 'em . Yep. Much fun had by all. “There are more things in Heaven and Earth, Horatio, than are dreamt of in your philosophies.”

I've had one badly sprained ankle and the occasional light bruise. “There are more things in Heaven and Earth, Horatio, than are dreamt of in your philosophies.”

2/1 • 16 • 1 Beer to jump ratio... 10 team training jumps, a 36-way, and some passable video. Broke 700 this weekend.

Same kinda thing... I'd look at all that fabric and lines and could make no sense of it all. I'd packed one time for my A (took me hours...). Swore I'd never pack again. 100 jumps later my friends were planning a trip to a small Cesna DZ. No packers. I was going to look like an idiot. So I invited one of the more experienced skydivers over to the house to teach me how to pack. Better to look the idiot to one than to everyone, I thought. "I thought you just got your B licence. You still don't know how to pack?" he said. "Uh. well.. not really, no". "Ok. I'll be there in 20 minutes... what's your address again?" Gave him food and beer while he sat on the couch telling me what to do. It was easier to learn in the relaxed environment of my house. By the end of the night, the canopy still didn't make sense, but I learned the process without really understanding it. Practiced several nights that week. Had to call him a couple times... but eventually I locked it in. Sorta. When the group went to the smaller dz I was able to pack my own. Took me longer... missed a few loads, but I got through it without being totally embarrassed... and that guy that helped me out? Now we play disk golf together a couple times a week. He's become a great friend. So... call someone up (or PM frenchy), explain the situation, ask for some help... and don't forget to pick up a few brews on on the way home.

dynamic unplanned bowel decompression you become one with the earth spontanious combustion in freefall yours was a tandem with penetration that's odd, the canopy didn't explode LAST time hidden jumpsuit weasal awakens in freefall hooray! A bowel/ bladder decompression twofer! you land in the middle of a rattlesnake roundup your tandem master forgot his meds that poor duck never saw ya comin' the fine print on that waiver was actually a contract with satan “There are more things in Heaven and Earth, Horatio, than are dreamt of in your philosophies.”

Ya know, diva... You could be there by dinner... (If it doesn't work out, you can be back by midnight...) Ivan: She drives, you'll buy? Hey. Life is short... “There are more things in Heaven and Earth, Horatio, than are dreamt of in your philosophies.”

We also have TXBlackbear... Sherriff dept, and a packer who works admin at a firestation... (she's en route to becoming a full fledged fire fighter). I can think of 4 former or current emt's... along with the sniper guy that's 7 (that I know of) just at SDD. You could get quite a group if you work it right... Put an ad in the back of Parachutist, getcha a website and a few starter boxes of T-shirts made and there you have it. Consider organizing an event of some kind on Safety Day. Possibly a memorial big-way or other event to commemorate those who have sacrificed their lives in the line of duty. Could be a lot of fun. Go for it. “There are more things in Heaven and Earth, Horatio, than are dreamt of in your philosophies.”

Apparantly the architects are fishing about for one... Seems like if you have an approved/ stamped blueline and acted accordingly, any money loss as a result of their retracting said approval should be their burden to bear, not the universities. Might that be the dick-slap you were looking to give 'em, Clint? “There are more things in Heaven and Earth, Horatio, than are dreamt of in your philosophies.”

Here's a couple pics of diving exits. One person left belly to earth, the other belly to the relative wind. Any guesses which one went hilariously unstable? Naw. Diving exits are easy and fun. You'll love 'em. “There are more things in Heaven and Earth, Horatio, than are dreamt of in your philosophies.”

"...After the service when you're walking slowly to the car And the silver in her hair shines in the cold November air You hear the tolling bell And touch the silk in your lapel And as the tear drops rise to meet the comfort of the band You take her frail hand And hold on to the dream ..." “There are more things in Heaven and Earth, Horatio, than are dreamt of in your philosophies.”

I tried this rig at Skyfest and couldn't agree more. It's nice knowing for certain that the cuttaway proceedure feels and acts just like I'd visualized. It was also interesting that while I'd planned to not pull the reserve cable... just letting the skyhook do it's thing while I palmed it... when it came time to initiate the cuttaway, I found myself with both handles in my hands. What you train, not just plan, is what you do. “There are more things in Heaven and Earth, Horatio, than are dreamt of in your philosophies.”

I will. And should the powers that be decide that 6 mos is appropriate I will pay the difference: • because a little extra from me wont break me, but it could break the rigger. • because I appreciate the breadth of knowledge and convenience of multiple riggers. • because I don't want to see my friends have to stop doing what they love because they can no longer afford to do it. I respect that others don't agree or prefer not to afford more expensive repacks (even if the yearly cost comes out the same). It makes sense for those folk get a riggers ticket and pack their own reserves. And should those folk need a loft rigger to act as go-between for a used equipment sale, or reline their main, or to simply ask advice on how to best pack their reserve into their new wings container, I hope one will still be readily available. If we halve the number of riggers in the sport, that may not be the case. “There are more things in Heaven and Earth, Horatio, than are dreamt of in your philosophies.”

Because riggers are part of the skydiving family. Old chinese/ budhist saying: Never break another man's ricebowl. Also: Repacks may be their bread and butter, but don't forget that Riggers do more than just repack reserves. If repacks go to 6 mos or a year and riggers go out of business, then it may be a pain to find someone to a sew a pocket on your slider, or a patch your main, or perform a post sale modification to your equipment. There may be no techinical reason per se to repack every 4 months, but it decreases the possibility of accidental damage to the reserve going undetected prior to use. (i.e. Cypress battery leak. or other unknowns). Although I haven't studied it closely, my gut tells me that there's probably some pretty compelling longitudinal data from the U.K. and other places that support a 6 mos repack cycle. I'm willing to pay the difference to keep the riggers in business. It's the hassle of scheduling/ getting the repack I don't like. “There are more things in Heaven and Earth, Horatio, than are dreamt of in your philosophies.”

Sent you a p.m. with a few names. “There are more things in Heaven and Earth, Horatio, than are dreamt of in your philosophies.”

Hey J, You did a man's job, sir. Well done. Ya know, your damn boogie cost me shitload of beer, Cowboy: First Ultralight, scared a few folk on my first Bannanajump, first intentional cuttaway... Naw, had a great time, got 3 maggots their SCR's. Got to talk with Gary Beyers and do a rather sporty formation load with him and a bunch of cool DZ.comers... A lot of unexpected pleasures. What suprised me the most was just how good the Schrimsher memorial dvd was that you put together! I have to hand it to you. You and Stan did an excellent job on that thing. Very professional. A fitting memorial. Got a much better feel of who Jerry was. Thanks for the boogie. Your hard work showed through. “There are more things in Heaven and Earth, Horatio, than are dreamt of in your philosophies.”

76 mph? I'll let your instructors handle the fall rate thang as they see fit... but consider this: Everytime you make a jump, put a dollar into a special account. Then, when it's gets to around 500ish buck or so. Buy a birdman/ wingsuit! You'd stay up there forever! “There are more things in Heaven and Earth, Horatio, than are dreamt of in your philosophies.”

Never heard of 'em....they any good? They were ok a couple years ago. Back in '99 their SDU coach, exasperated and at wits end, had to make them make a video just so they could finally learn the formations. Each person had to wear a different colored shirt on the dirt dive so they could remember what slots they flew. “There are more things in Heaven and Earth, Horatio, than are dreamt of in your philosophies.”

My closest friends in the sport are mostly fun jump FF'rs. I went the team RW rout, so I rarely get to play in the air with them. Every now and then I'll take a vacation from team training and treat myself to some no pressure FF jumps with my buds: To reconnect with them in the air. To remind myself that it's not all just about technical accuracy. To see how badass they've gotten since last time we've jumped together. I always come down with a grin. I love those jumps. For me, it's like the skydiving equivalent of a steak dinner. I keep them rare. I want them to remain special. “There are more things in Heaven and Earth, Horatio, than are dreamt of in your philosophies.”

I can't believe no one's mentioned Aggieland yet. They can absolutely "pull it together"! Still owe beer for that Cesna Formation Load... “There are more things in Heaven and Earth, Horatio, than are dreamt of in your philosophies.”

On Safety Day, 2003, a low-pull cypress-fire resulted in a stable bi-plane. It was my 111th jump. 170 spectre in front and a 170 tempo in back. I opened above a place I couldn't land, so I had to steer it. I used very gentle front/ main canopy toggle input as that is how I was instructed. I would turn a smidge then wait. The rear canopy would catch up and bump the main, then I would give it a little more input and wait. It felt weird. Like driving in slush. Took a bit to get the hang of it. But it was actually very easy to carefully steer and land. I slowly inched the canopies around to where I not only landed in the middle of a field, but into the light 0-10 mph wind. No flare. Stood it up. Softest landing I've ever had. It wasn't difficult to do right. It never gave any indication of wanting to go into a side-by-side or downplane. (If you're going to have a 2 canopy out situation, 2 similarly sized 7 cells is the way to go. Not only are they sized about the same, they have the same line lengths as well). I didn't really get scared until 45 minutes after I landed. It really rattled my cage. That next jump the following weekend was a hard one to do. Took a couple months before I felt 100% confident again. Took a hell of a lot longer than that before people stopped referring to me as "Mr. Safety Day". AAD's are a good thing. The cheapest insurance you can get. Mine did nothing wrong. It did what it was designed to do. I was the one at fault. Would I land a 2-out again? Maybe. If winds are light and my canopies seem to like each other, yes. No question. If I had some altitude, and the winds were high, at 600 plus jumps, and my now mismatched canopies were fighting each other, I'd try to force a dp and cut. The best thing though, is respect the sport and simply don't pull low. (Maintain alt awareness, learn a good track and you shouldn't ever have to). “There are more things in Heaven and Earth, Horatio, than are dreamt of in your philosophies.”

I imagine they're thinking the same of you! It's a nice moment, huh. Gettin that A.

If time, money and effort is no object, then anything is possible. The Most kick-ass Skydivey B-Day Thingy Ever There are rules that govern jumps that are higher than 13.5k. The oxegen gets thin. You run the risk of hypoxia. In order to do the 15 runs to 15-18k properly, you'd need an oxegen tank on board... and friends willing to pay a little extra per jump ticket. He'd been talking about doing the 30-jump thing literally for months. But it was all talk. When it came time, he'd done exactly nothing to make it actually happen. Disappointing. It would've been a cool thing to have been a part of. “There are more things in Heaven and Earth, Horatio, than are dreamt of in your philosophies.”