Tee

Right back at ya! Gotta love those "future skydivers" and their supportive parents. My brother has 4 kids (the boyz are 5 and 3 and the twin girls are 8 months) and the boyz LOVE to come out to the dz with me (can't wait to get the girls out there). If you ask my nephews what they want to be when they grow up they say "a skydiver!" I just reply...sweetie, you don't have to grow up for that!

OMG you poor thing! I can't say it ever happened to me but we got one of the students on the in-plane video. There were 2 SL students left and the girl about to exit the C206 had to get sick. She tried to stick her head out the door but didn't get it far enough and her vomit caught the wind coming back INTO the plane. All you see on video is the poor guy sitting in the back get it all over his face and jump suit!!!! The girl still jumped as the poor guy was wiping his goggles and his face clean. Then as he was climbing out, he tried to hang from the strut and his hands were still wet from vomit and he lasted about 1/2 a scond before he flew off! AND the pilot felt it hit his neck so, needless-to-say, he got out the doggie bag and got sick himself! What a ride to altitude! Oh, and my b/f is a tandem master and a girl got sick under canopy....lets just say he was happy for his full face!

I have had the same problem with stereotyping. I work for the government with a bunch hoity-toity accountants. At my job we have to act a certain way, do all of our "proper" networking etc. VERY POLITICAL! (Trust me, this is a temporary job till I am done my pilots license) I was here for almost a year before people started to find out that I was a skydiver. The people that know me seem to be okay with it and just shake their heads, but the older employees really seem to frown down upon it like I am some crazy kid who needs to grow up. (funny how I was considered a colleague BEFORE they found out about the skydiving) I wonder how they would feel about me if they knew about the tattoo and pierced navel??? Tee

Now that one made me LAUGH!!! Good one! Tee

I think as skydivers we should feel very lucky for the tight bond that we have with our "family". Where else can you walk into a new place (dz) and feel like you are at home and completely relaxed? Everyone is always welcoming and accepting. I think skydivers as a whole are some of the best friends you could ever ask for!

Some may have seen these before...(and believe me, this is the shortened list) but they are always good for a chuckle. YOU KNOW YOU'RE A SKYDIVER WHEN... · You're making love to your partner and they whisper "I've never done this before" and you yell out "THAT'S a case of beer!". · On cloudy/windy days you pull out your parachute and pack it just to say that you've done something skydiving-related. · You "dirt-dive", "post-dive" and critique your love-making sessions. · Whenever leaving an establishment you yell "DOOR" to all the patrons before opening the door. · You think of Jack Jeffries, Tamara Koyn and Norm Kent as "famous". · You sign your checks with your name and USPA number. · Every time someone's beeper goes off you look at your watch to see if it's break-off altitude. · You analyze sessions of love-making in terms of "points turned". · You have your paycheck direct-deposited into the dz account. · You plan your vacations around skydiving boogies. · You drive a beaten-up car because you really need that new canopy more. · You catch yourself flaking the bed instead of making it · You name your dog "Toggles" · You look at your VCR and think, "Hmm, that's gotta be worth a few jumps." · Your rig costs more than your trailer. · Losing your job is a reason for celebration! · Your 'work' clothes have grippers. · Your log book is thicker than any book you've ever read. · You stop by the New River Bridge and take a look. All the others are saying 'damn, look how high it is' and you're saying 'damn, look how low it is'. · When you buy anything you calculate how many skydives it will cost. · When seeing seats in a twin otter gives you the willies. · When you go to divorce court and give your ex everything as long as you can keep all your skydiving gear. · You put your arms down and back in a full track when running down stairs. · When you wake up with a mean hangover in a tent, the first thing you check is your rig. Then the person sleeping next to you. · Your thinking about taking all the but the driver's seats out of your car. · Your whuffo friends only call if the weather man says the weekend will be shitty. · You can't think of a better way to relax other than falling 10,000 feet. · You try to convince the flight attendant on a commercial flight that you really! would be much more comfortable sitting on the floor. · Your friends think it's funny to, when you are sleeping, blow a fan in your face and set a beeper off near your ear. · When someone asks you where you're from, you reply with the name of your dz, not your hometown.

And we all know how much you boyz hate girls that spit

We did have a guy who was used to jumping with a ripcord rig, and on his first jump with his new rig (BOC), he pulled and held on to the PC. After 5 seconds he didn't feel anything....looked...nothing over his head....so he pulled the reserve. Under canopy, he realized what he had done and held the PC all the way down. Talk about a potentially dangerous situation! Tee

You got it right, you DO want to pull the risers apart but you also want to kick to so that will get you out of the line twist faster. Even if your canopy is flying straight, if there are other jumpers in the air, you want to be out of the line twists quickly, aware of where the other jumpers are and ready to steer.

Thanks for the support Carrie. Your book is an amazing idea! I have been teaching these divorce classes for a few years now and I haven't come by a book like that in all of my research. We also have classes for the parents teaching them how to talk to their children and your book would be a wonderful tool.

Carrie, you should be very proud of yourself for what you do. I know from experience that even if it doesn't seem like you are reaching a child at the time, it is amazing what information they take with them and use later in their lives. I teach adults with learning disabilities to read so that they can get out of homes and become more self sufficient, as well I teach a course to children dealing with their parents divorce. It is so wonderful to see adults reading for the first time and understanding the importance of it and seeing children learning to talk about their feelings instead of misbehaving. It truly is a wonderful thing!

And the two bottles of hairspray a week....don't forget that!!!

If I have to wear acid wash jeans or a white dress with black nylons and white open toes shoes again I will just die!!!! Tee

BLAH! Being in Canada, and because I work so much overtime, I am lucky if I break even every tax season.

http://www.para-gear.com/ Here is the link to their site. I'm not sure if you can get the signs off the site, but you can order a catalogue or e-mail them.

ParaGear sells them in their catalogue.

I know in my experience, I've never met anyone that does drugs during jumping hours, just in the evening. I'm not sure there are many skydivers that would endanger themselves or anyone they are jumping with by jumping "under the influence". tee

That is hilarious because my dzo always makes a joke to the tandem students that if he has to go by a bit of a cloud that they should hold their breath. When they ask why he says "well, what are clouds made of" and they of coarse reply "water" and he procedes to tell them that if they were to breathe in while going through a cloud that they could drown. It is amazing how many fall for it before the truth comes out!

Hey guys...we can't forget Swayze!!!

I have to agree too, I haven't been to a boogie or a dz yet that didn't have drugs present. Which could take us back to the previous thread where it was mentioned that most people who skydive have addictive personalities....if not with drugs, then with adrenaline, etc. Even the skydiving lifestyle can be addictive. There is nothing like a weekend out at the dz....and the skydiving "family" is second to none. I can't think of a better, more friendly group of people!

Just yesterday I was asked "can you stear your parachute?" and "what do you wear when you jump" After replying to them my jumpsuit....they responded "cool you should wear it to work someday." Yeah...those booties are such a fashion statement.

I completely agree. Myself, I am not acquaited with the word moderation....I either do something LOTS or I don't do it at all.

Hey Froggie. Well, by the looks of your tandem pic, you don't have much fear while being in the air so you won't have that to contend with.

Only when they are cute and tight......

You lucky girl you! Is it in the city or can people jump into your dront door? What a perfect way to make an entrance to a party!