diverdriver

Awwwwwwwwwwwwww See Clay. You're a swell guy. Just got a little twitterpated. LOL.

Really? Where? I know this one happened in JUNE in Cushing, OK. They had 6 total on board one being the pilot. You will need to look at the STC for the mods you want and see if you can actually carry 5 jumpers in that plane legally. Hence my suggestion to not worry about the paperwork and just get another 206 if you want to carry 5-6 jumpers. Put the big IO-550 on it with 300 BHP continuous and you will be glad you did. It could make your primary 206 your "second" airplane. But hey, it's not MY money now is it? Chris Schindler www.diverdriver.com ATP/D-19012 FB #4125

I definately spilled the beans.... Oh well.....who cares...I gotta make my feelings known. Dude...you are not a dumbass for having feelings. Hope we didn't encourage you too much to "go for it" last night and get you into trouble. Good luck dude.

I've been in a spinning jump-plane after the pilot lost control. The Gs had my hand pinned to my leg and opening the door was out, let alone getting over to it. Ok, this is a bit of a smartass question but also I'm interested in the answer. Did you make it? What happened?

If you are bailing at 2,000 feet there is no need to track. Let the plane do the seperating for you. Also, some main canopies opening at 2,000 feet take awhile so you need to know your gear and what you will do at each exit altitude if you had to. Waisting time tracking while exiting at 2,000 feet can put you in jeapordy for other bad things to happen. If the plane is under control and you are doing what I term a "precautionary exit" then just do solo hop-n-pops at regular intervals. Talk to the pilot. If the plane is spinning out of control and you are losing parts in flight then it is every man for themselve. The LAST thing you want to have happen is everyone shifting around in a panic and exiting. You can cause problems for the pilot AND for you and your fellow jumpers. It is an exciting situation the first time it happens to you. So, do yourself and everyone a favor. Breathe in really deep and hold it. Count to 3. Then exhale slow. Ok, what is going? What is the pilot doing and is the pilot talking to anyone about the situation. They have procedures to go through so give them a chance to do something before exiting on your own. Get with some really experienced people and talk out senarios. There are more than can be talked about here. Make sure everyone is on the same page at your DZ about what to do in an aircraft emergency. The last thing you need to have is an arguement during an emergency. There should be some structure to your thought process before you get in the air. 3,000 hours flying skydivers. 5 engine failures in jump planes. 3 dead stick landings. 2 precautionary exit runs as pilot. Chris Schindler www.diverdriver.com ATP/D-19012 FB #4125

Ummm...what? I don't understand what this references. Sorry.

Soloy. Turbine 206. 410 SHP. grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrlllllllllllllllllllll...... Ok, I need to be by myself for awhile.

Galore? Hubba hubba.

If you are really going to do it go get a C-206 and upgrade the engine to an IO-550. Carry 6 jumpers with relative comfort and go like a home sick angel (for a Cessna piston). I don't think you would regret it. I know I loved flying it out at Skydive Monterey Bay. Chris Schindler www.diverdriver.com ATP/D-19012 FB #4125

Ok...back to not reinventing the wheel. In piloting aircraft it has been shown that almost EVERY pilot thinks they are above average. That's how we get pilots flying into IFR weather without an instrument ticket. That's why when we hear people post here that they "are above average" I just shake my head. By whose standards? What have they proven? In flying aircraft we have a system of endorsements that really does not impose that much grief in proving to an instructor that you can handle a more complex aircraft than your basic trainer. High performance, complex, multi-engine are all add ons to one's pilot certificate. It is not hard to track and it does give the visiting pilot some proof to a FBO that does not know them an idea of what their background may be. And maybe that's part of this system. To give DZOs a chance to see what their background was. A story: I visited Quantum Leap in Sullivan, MO. I fly a Stilleto 107. I hadn't logged a jump in my logbood for a few months even though I had jumped. Most people have heard of me (not all...but many around the midwest at least). The DZO was skeptical of letting me jump there. We talked. And I didn't get defensive about being questioned. I just kept explaining my experience. I then was allowed to jump there. This does not mean I wasn't still being watched. After my second jump I opened up later in the groups and since my canopy was smaller than most there I caught up to some of the earlier exiting jumpers. I meshed with traffic and landed. The DZO came up and said "Nice way to get into the flow of traffic." At first I thought this was sarcasm and I had actually cut someone off. I said "say what?" He turned back around and said "Oh no...I really mean it. I liked the way you integrated with traffic." Oh, ok. Cool. I really didn't want to cause problems. A canopy WL BSR (with consideration of already printed WL suggestions by the manufacturer) would be a good way to give guidance to a broader spectrum. And yes, it can be enforced. Because we are pilots and we do need to prove (and document) that we are ready for each next level. We aren't all jumping Para-Commanders anymore. There is a WIDE spectrum of possibilities. We need to give guidance and support to those who can make a difference. We recognize it is a much more complex world out there in canopy choices than just cutting out different panels in a round cuz that's what Joe Blo tried out. The resulting landing injury is more than just a busted leg/ankle. Nowadays, it usually involves a coroner more and more. The stats don't lie about our history in skydiving. It used to be low/no pulls that caused fatalities. Now, it's canopy control / WL. We do need to do something about it and giving a tool to those who can enforce it is the best option. The form it will take has yet to be determined. That is where people's input on HOW to best address the problem can make the difference. There is a ground swell of support for this. So, you can be on the outside yelling in. Or, you can be on the inside guiding what it will look like. Chris Schindler www.diverdriver.com ATP/D-19012 FB #4125

Oh, most definitely not a tourist any more.

That's where you are completely wrong. AFF does NOT teach enough skills in the MODERN skydiving world. And that is where the problem lies. You have not evolved at all if you believe what you just posted. Get your head out of the sand. Chris Schindler www.diverdriver.com ATP/D-19012 FB #4125

Yes, I left a DZ. 11 months later I had 5 friends killed in a jump plane crash. Not a day goes by that I don't think about them and "what if" I had stayed to watch over them. edit to add: But I felt I had to leave for safety and financial reasons. I had 3 engine failures in 4 months. All on take off. All landed to a dead stick.

*AAAhhhh Chooooo!! That's great. Now get that darn cat outta here. Some of us are allergic you know?!!! ahh choooo Oh my eyes.....ugh...

Yah really!

Make-A-Wish Foundation is the charity that Team Funnel has donated to over the past few years during the Memorial Day Boogie. It was started to remember some of the team members who have past on. This year, our fearless founder Bill Homer TF1 has really gone all out to try and do something different. Naturally, we want to advertise something that IS going to happen rather than cause a large stir and then fall short of pulling it off. It's a fine line to run while trying to organize this. We would love to come out and announce a very cool event but want to make sure the logistics have been put in place too. So....it is a real plan, with a real cause, with a group of people with a proven track record for raising money for this particular charity. So, if you think you can help out with information on doing something really cool give Bo a PM. It should be pretty darn cool. Chris

Ooooohhhhmmmmmm........

Nothing. Nothing is free. There's always a cost. Always. [/sarcasm]

Past tense of frolic? Frolik? Frolicing? ok....maybe I didn't spell it right.

And NOT necessarilly in that order! Yah, you want to skydive first cuz skydive hair is similar in appearance to "freshly froliced" hair. That's if you don't want to take shit as you show to the dirt dive with freshly froliced hair.

You are so wrong. A gun won't cut through cooked spaghetti. A hook knife will. And you thought I was gonna say something about a jar of spaghetti sauce, didn't you? Mar....keep running! She's just trying to sucker you into coming back. I can see the smoke coming out of her ears from here!

EAT Fuck SKYDIVE!

No, no involvement in the Christian Pilot's Assoc. either. The jump was done for a Christian rock concert that was held at the DZ. The DZ provided the venue for people from all over the area to come and spend an afternoon. It wasn't just a concert. There were other entertainers from what I understand like comedians and such. Well, it went around that they wanted to organize a cross jump for the attendees. I didn't think they would be able to see it as we had a perfect blue sky above and that doesn't lend itlself to easily viewing people in freefall. Ahh hah! A test of faith! Yes, we can certainly read into many things with this. So we dirt dove it. I forget who exactly organized it whether it was Max or TJ or Uncle Jerry. I got to be one of the last divers and formed at the foot of the cross on the left side. Missy closed the head and Rook closed the foot. The whole day was somehting that Roger really was looking forward to. I'm glad we got to participate in that. When we got to the ground we were told that the dive was easily seen right over the top of the concert. That really warmed my heart. Not sure if the video was ever shown for them but they did get to see this cross form over head and then vanish. I wish someone had gotten video of that from the ground but it's ok. I got to see the smiling faces in freefall. That was truly cool. In attached picture...I'm lower end of cross on left side. White jumpsuit, blue rig.

Well, I'm no doctor but you might try cutting all alcohol from your diet for a few weeks and see if that changes anything for you. It's just a thought.

Oh, I know that many have taken that tactic with many more than just you. When the JW come to my door to save me I do feel uncomfortable with that. Don't they know I'm already baptised? Don't they know I was an alter boy? This topic certainly does conjure up strong emotions on both sides. And yes, I know exactly how you can end up on a 3 hour rant. I didn't leave the church for 16 years for no reason at all either. I had my issues too. But then, the thing that I thought that really kept me from going back to church was that I am not here to judge others on how well they are acting as Christians. It's not my decision. I have to walk this path for me. The community is there to help. That is how it should be. I'm sorry you have been turned off by the idea of organized religion. Because to many, it does mean many postive things. Boy, if I post more on this thread I have a feeling some will think I'm preaching. I think I'll go back to just being quiet on this again. Thanks for reading anyhow. Chris