motherhucker

In short, no. I have about 15 jumps on an Interceptor somewhere around the 220sf range. Your wingloading on this canopy is way too high for a beginner. On the one I jumped, opening heading was pretty inconsistent, and being a crew canopy it has a noticably steeper angle of attack. It might be a good canopy to jump at the perrine for an EXPERIENCED jumper, but a beginner canopy it is NOT. I believe the last time that particular canopy was used for a BASE jump, It was landed in a talus field and the jumper spent a couple of very long days crawling out of the area. don't do it. huck

That's good advice...Adam & Marty know their shit, but the Sorcerer is manufactured by Vertigo. I'd give Marta and Jimmy a call in Moab. 435.259.1085. out, the huck

Yikes! I don't mean the following to sound standoffish or otherwise disrespectful, so all due respect, but that was then, this is now--Wouldn't you agree though that it's not what will "work", but rather what is the most safe/appropriate for the task at hand for BASE these days? yes, you "old timers" had brass ones. props. the huck

Norway is a BASE jumper's Heaven. It's one of the most beautiful places to jump on the planet. With that being said, I will also say that the cliffs near Lysebotn are huge, but unforgiving, as the number of fatalities there will attest to. 250 skydives as a minimum is LOW for a cliff jump of ANY size, including those in Norway. There is also grumblings of banning BASE from these cliffs, so expect these minimum jump number requirements to increase-- But what's the rush? If you are really all about BASE, then make your skydives on a BASE canopy, practice your canopy skills, etc. (which you should do anyway), but skydiving is FUN! Why don't you get lost in skydiving for awhile--then go through a US FJC, make some bridge jumps, become a SAFE BASE jumper, and THEN think about Norway. Besides--I GUARANTEE you will have a lot more fun in Norway if you have BASE experience beforehand. Trust me on this. cya the huck

unless, of course, that self-respecting freeflyer was just learning how to BASE jump--don't add the camera to your head (especially on the side) on a BASE jump until you are uber comfortable with BASE exits, maneuvering in sub-terminal air, and low(er) speed deployments. Besides--any self-respecting freeflyer knows which end of the camera is TRULY IMPORTANT to be on! the huck

I can understand how you feel this way. You just achieved your first jump from a fixed object and you might feel like others are minimizing your achievement. In reading some of the comments that upset you, though, they contain good advice. What you have to remember about BASE is that this is a sport where if someone burns in, gets hurt or gets busted, it takes a highly marginalized sport and brings it one step closer to "extinction". You would feel the same way about skydiving if every time a 50 jump wonder decides he has what it takes to 90-270 himself into a double compound fracture, that drop zone was made illegal to jump. BASE jumping has a greater risk factor. There is a better chance that you will get hurt. The comments offered to you were meant to protect you from getting hurt, and protect the greater good of the sport, as well. Please don't take it personally. It's great that you made your first, and hope you're hooked enough to invest in proper gear and training. Just try to understand what you're getting into. It's not skydiving, and there are some harsh realities involved. I'm sure you're aware that the BASE fatality list has had 33%+ of its fatalities this year. That is cause for concern. 'nuff said...I welcome you to BASE jumping and encourage your continued enthusiasm. the huck.

I hope if you take 5 secs slider up from a 600' object, you are over water and wearing indestructible diapers. And if you take 5 secs slider "on", but not up, be prepared to land on 3 or 4 cells. be careful.

you can call it whatever you want. A bridge has two ends connected to land and cars/people move accross it. The sport should be called "fixed object jumping" we have really opened up a whole new realm of objects that don't really fall into the "BASE" categories. My point is that if you are a low-experience skydiver, as described in the above posts, then you want to go somewhere big, over water, with zero object strike potential, then it is a bridge, or span. or whatever you want to call it. cya

This is all good information, but is far too liberal. BASE jumpers should have WAY more than 150 skydives. 400 is more like it. 150 might do for someone who just wanted to go out to the Perrine and make a couple water landings, but what's the point in that? Experience counts, especially when you have a REAL object to avoid. Your accuracy jumps should be not just on a big 7-cell F-111 canopy, they should be on a BASE canopy, specifically, the one you will use to BASE jump with. If you don't know how to rig a BASE canopy for a skydive, YOU ARE NOT READY TO BASE JUMP. See your rigger for lessons on how to do this. Your approaches should include downwind landings, cross wind landings, and rear-riser ONLY landings. Be careful with these, because the stall point comes up much quicker when only using rear risers. You can't always turn away from the object, so practise the "back away" technique as well. CRW is a great idea. the more the better. GO WATCH!!! I believe no-one should learn to BASE jump without having some experience with ground-crewing for other BASE jumpers. If you want to be a "bridge jumper," then fine. See if you can take a trip out to the perrine to watch/help/learn. If you want to get in to the sport for real, learn how to ground crew and go help out on some jumps! BUY YOUR OWN GEAR!!!! Borrowing BASE gear is not right, unless you are renting it from a manufacturer in a FJC scenario. Learn how to pack a BASE canopy--before you jump. It doesn't count if you didn't pack it. Study, ask questions, and never be afraid to say no...ever. Some people never know that BASE isn't for them until they are about to step off an object. You don't HAVE to jump! So if you are the slightest bit unsure, go home and watch jeapordy, then that weekend, go have fun at the DZ. Look on http://www.blincmagazine.com if you want to learn more. And yes, Vertigo Rocks.

What is "extreme" about skydiving? I think there are aspects of skydiving that can be considered "extreme", but I would not say that jumping out of a plane with a parachute is extreme accross the board...IMHO.

dude, the "beer for your first..." tradition is a _skydiving_ thing. You're off the hook for your BASE canopy--until you jump it out of an airplane for the FIRST time.

"you want me to KY my bald head and put it WHERE?"

If someone fucks with my dog they better be ready to die. No shit. Messing with someone's dog like that is like messing with someone's child. I say you hospitalize the MF.

see [/url]http://www.rocketguy.com/oldhome.html[url]

congrats on discovering REAL jumping! Welcome to the dark(er) side. Hope to see ya on an exit point sometime. the huck.

anyone know where these two might be residing these days? any contact info for them would be appreciated. thx

sorry, but I have good reasons for not wanting my profile posted. And to me, it seemed kind of rude/smartass to have a legitimate question replied to the way "duece" did. Is there anyone _not_ hung up on chat room ettiquette that can comment on my question?

I guess you could have acheived that without posting at all. thanks!

to any and all video persons: What does your DZ pay you for your videos? example: Tandem-$40 AFF-$40 what is provided by the DZ? VHS tape, still film, dub, editing equipment, etc.? Where is your DZ geographically? Does anyone have a gig that is NOT as a sub-contractor? thanks for your input. The huck.