slotperfect

There have been some really good things said here already. I will reinforce that a tandem is not just another skydive. There is increased risk and a huge increase in responsibility. For me, like Dave mentioned, the reward is well worth the extra risk,and I thrive on the extra responsibility. Getting to the questions, the hardest things about tandem jumps are the unpredictable exits and the landings, which have many more moving parts than a regular skydive landing. Do they wear your body out? Like anything else, if you are in shape to handle the activity, you can condition yourself to handle multiple tandem jumps. My max in a day was six, packing my own rig. I was tired, but not broken down. Sometimes if I have had really heavy students all day, my shoulders will be rather sore, but otherwise it's all good. Arrive Safely John

31 different types for me. I am missing a readily available civlian airplane (Shorts Skyvan) which I may remedy this weekend at Eloy. I am also missing a couple of common military aircraft as well: C-5B Galaxy and C-17 Globemaster. I constantly keep my ear to the ground to add those to the list as well. Arrive Safely John

I played trumpet for five years and was in the chorus for one year. My school was so small there was a lot of crossover between "groups." Lots of jocks like me were in the band and chorus as well. There were 19 people in my Senior class in high school. Arrive Safely John

Congratulations! Awesome, isn't it? I too had the pleasure of jumping the B-17 bomb bay back in 1993. The aircraft was owned by David Tallichet, a restauranteur from Texas, and was used to film the move "The Memphis Belle." I even got to crank open the bomb bay doors. As far as aircraft goes, that is the coolest one I have ever jumped. Arrive Safely John

Wazzap girlfriend??

I have jumped: PD421 EZ384 EZ425 Sigma 370 Sigma 395 Master 425 SET 400 My preference out of those for packing, opening, flight characteristics, toggle pressure, and landings is the Sigma 370. Arrive Safely John

The radio personality mentioned in an earlier post is Dave The Dwarf In 1992 there was a young lady named Shelby who had an administrative position at the school at Perris. I met her myself. Sandy Reid had built her a custom rig and she was going to start AFF shortly after I left. Arrive Safely John

In that case I recommend Dave DeWolf in Pennsylvania. I have received some dynamite training from him as well. Handsome Dave's Paraloft Arrive Safely John

I am a graduate of Sand Reid's USAPR Master Rigger Course. I highly recommend it! Arrive Safely John

Damn! There's another stereotype I don't fit! Oh well. Arrive Safely John

The Cruiselite was a 220 Sq Ft 7-cell F-11 canopy made by Para Flite. There was a Cruiselite XL as well, which was 245 Sq Ft. There may have been a smaller "Beta" version around 200 Sq Ft as well, but I'm not completely sure. Arrive Safely John

That appears to be an original Vector. A CYPRES retrofit can indeed be done by a qualified Rigger. I agree completely with the assessment that the rig needs to be gone over with a fine toothed comb before jumping it. Arrive Safely John

Happy burfday, pal. It sure is nice out here in Aridzona! The weather is here . . . wish you were beautiful. Arrive Safely John

The rig. Hands down. Arrive Safely John

That's it! Thanks! Arrive Safely John

I am looking for a post in which a gear dealer or someone who works there gave a formula for the value of used gear. Deduct X amount per jump and XXX per year of age. I searched for it but couldn't find it. Can anyone quote that formula for me or link me to that post?? Cheers, Arrive Safely John

Drive safely . . . stay hydrated . . . rest often. Bon voyage! Arrive Safely John

19 years ago I jumped out of a C-141 ay Fryar DZ in Ft. Benning, GA (the DZ is actually in Alabama). I have been "skydiving" full-time since 1989. Arrive Safely John

Heal quickly, my friend. Blue skies will be here waiting for you! Arrive Safely John

My Army recruiter showed me a film of the Basic Airborne Course at Ft. Benning, GA and I was hooked. That spawned my first jump from an airplane. My friend Rui talked me into doing static-line progression at the Green Beret Club in 1985. That was my first civilian skydive, albeit at a military club. Three years later I became HALO qualified, and have been skydiving since. Happy to be here.

I would never do that . . . I have air bags in one of my cars, and I trust them to work. I don't depend on them to save me, however. Nor do I choose to test them by driving my car into a wall to see if they work and prove my confidence in them. edit: BTW - I am not motivated by the money at all Arrive Safely John

I don't see any constructive benefit to doing this. You will be witness to many relationships in these forums that stem from honesty and integrity, some of which are between people who have never met in person or even talked on the phone. They flourish because honesty and integrity are strong building blocks from which to start any kind of relationship. Any relationship build on dishonesty (e.g. padding jump numbers one's profile) is bound to have difficulties from the start. I am a firm believer that I am not my jump numbers. They provide only a very generic measuring stick for my abilities and credibility as a skydiver. However, I freely choose to share my numbers and to keep them accurate. That is simply my way of doing things, and always has been. My close friendships in skydiving have less to do with a person's numbers or ability, they have more to do with the kind of person they are, which is often reflected in their skydiving as well. If you are purposely misleading others in these forums by padding the jump numbers in your profile, ask yourself if compromising your own integrity as well as that of these forums really serves you or the people around you? Arrive Safely John

To me this speaks of labels. The Political Correctness movement got really carried away on this. It serves me best when I choose my labels carefully. They have their constructive uses, but can turn detrimental very quickly. Sometimes they are not even necessary. Here's an example: I picked my kids up from day care a few years ago, my son Logan being 8 or so and my daughter Meredith being about 5. There was a kid in Logan's room I had not seen before, so I began to ask him about the young man. I asked him who the new kid was. He didn't get it. I asked him who the kid was using the computer by the door. He didn't get it. I asked him who the kid was in the red shirt using the computer by the door. He didn't get it. Finally, I asked him who the black kid was using the computer next to the door. He told me "Oh, that's Chris . . . and he's African American, not black. I said "OK, let's talk about that." I asked Logan for his opinion on why black is a bad label and African American a good one. He had no good answer. I asked "what's something else we could call people who are of that race?" From the back seat came Meredith's perfect wisdom: "We could ask them their name!" Sometimes my kids are the best teachers. I benefit in many ways by trying to have their perspective on the world. Arrive Safely John

Being judgemental does not serve me. Rather I use words like "choose" and "experience." For example: I "choose" bananas over oranges, and I may have my reasons for it, backed by a belief system that I have become clear serves me well. If I choose bananas, I take ownership of the decision. Even if all there is to eat anywhere around me are bananas, I still have a choice whether or not to eat them. Of course, the power of choice can be a very dangerous thing, so I know to be careful in discerning which choice I will make. With regard to others, I use the word "experience." I experience him as being angry. I experience her as being friendly. It's all about how the person shows up for me. The key is to love the person anyway, regardless of how they show up for me. Let's say someone cusses me out every time they are around me, but never sit down to talk things out. I might say "I experience this person as angry and confused," because that's how they show up for me. I also might "choose" not to be around that person because being together is not forwarding for either of us. That doesn't mean I don't love the person on a human level. This perspective works for me, keeping me free from hate and allows me to interact successfully with many people. More specifically, it serves me very well here in these forums. If I share my opinion from "experience," I just bring up what works for me, and if it works for someone, great! This is the alternative to beating someone over the head with my opinion (my way is the only way). See what I mean? Great post, BTW Arrive Safely John

I was jumping a Silhouette 210 loaded at 1.21:1, and went to Slydive New Mexico which has a DZ elevation in the neighborhood of 5500 FT MSL. I tightened up my approach due to the increased descent rate, flared a little higher and smoother, and had no problems. I knew I had to be on my toes, though. Arrive Safely John