JohnMitchell

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Everything posted by JohnMitchell

  1. JohnMitchell
    Not plugged in?? Then what's the point?
  2. JohnMitchell
    One of the posters on here is an ER doc. He's got some great stories for around the bonfire.
  3. JohnMitchell
    Anything in the chocolate family, the fudgier the better.
  4. JohnMitchell
    Timing is everything. . . .
  5. JohnMitchell
    Don't make me tell some Aggie jokes. . .
  6. JohnMitchell
    More weight training and wind sprints.
  7. JohnMitchell
    Yo, where's all the poodles?
  8. JohnMitchell
    So, a positive review. I still haven't seen it. Did the plot device of seeing the Hubble telescope even though their altitudes are a hundred miles apart bother you?
  9. JohnMitchell
    It's been great. We've raised over $145K for lupus research over 7-8 years. The generosity and support of so many people in the skydiving community, esp. the manufacturers and dealers, has been amazing. Valinda and I were up at an open house Thursday night for our recipients, the Univ. of WA Division of Rheumatology. The occasion was the relocation into their new facility in the burgeoning Lake Union medical research campus in Seattle. We were proud to see Leap for Lupus listed in the presentation as one of the important supporters of their research work. Dr. Keith Elkon reiterated how important our contributions have been to helping them recruit and retain young talented researchers. Really makes all the hard work worth it.
  10. JohnMitchell
    I like Habitat for Humanity. I donate all my reusable construction stuff to them. Gave them a stove, sink and disposal last month.
  11. JohnMitchell
    It beats getting to the DZ and not having a rig to jump.
  12. JohnMitchell
    I actually enjoyed driving in France. People seem to pay attention at 130 kph.
  13. JohnMitchell
    NASA tried to portray all those guys as apple pie/straight shooters. But they were humans, they were thrill seekers, they would fit right in at any DZ. They weren't boy scouts . . . except for John Glenn.
  14. JohnMitchell
    I remember when throw outs were brand new. A lot of thinking about what could and couldn't happen. Most of us just decided, I think, to go straight to the reserve for a pilot chute in tow. Usually it was caused by a twisted belly band. Only towed one and we had broken to pull high for CRW. It finally opened but I wasn't real happy with it. This was before curved pins.
  15. JohnMitchell
    Oops, yeah. We're thinking about getting away from it all in PortLAND, ME. But Portsmouth, NH sounds okay too.
  16. JohnMitchell
    Interesting point. I learned on capewells and a front mount, a fair amount of stuff to learn. Seemed that practice was the key. And we used to teach not to cutaway for a true total. "I can't find/pull the hackey! Pull my reserve!" seemed simple enough to me, a fairly easy decision tree. However, you can only teach a scared dog so many tricks, right? So in the interest of KISS, I guess I'll quit my bitchin'. I hope everyone gets the memo to revise their EP's as they get more experience. Some people are real students of the sport, some just coast along.
  17. JohnMitchell
    Good points, Dave, and it's how we do it in our family. At my DZ, though, I'm required by management to teach "chop, then reserve." On another internet forum I had an instructor with half the jumps and time in sport as me trying to shred me for stating there were 2 valid ways to handle it. He insisted that not cutting away first was tantamount to suicide. He went away after I told him to go read the SIM. It says both ways too. It's an endless debate, but I agree with you.
  18. JohnMitchell
    Portsmouth is on the short list. You just moved it up a notch or two. Thanks.
  19. JohnMitchell
    NYC just might make it. We've only been there once, on a 24 hour layover. Pretty crowded, crazy and expensive though. It's on the list. Thanks.
  20. JohnMitchell
    >
  21. JohnMitchell
    I totally remember you. How come you're not jumping anymore?
  22. JohnMitchell
    The guy with the big smile.
  23. JohnMitchell
    Having a good working knowledge of science hampers my enjoyment of many a Hollywood work. It's hard to set your brain on a shelf while the screenwriters' plot devices over write reality. Apollo 13, I thought, was a great example of a fantastic true story being done as accurately as possible. Give me more of that. At the same time, I'm sure I'll see and enjoy "Gravity". Make sure to remind me to pick up my brain on the way out.
  24. JohnMitchell
    Not bad. My Allstate policy covers me in rental cars as well. It varies so much from week to week. Now is the Fall Colors time and Parents' Weekend time in the NE, so rates tend to rise. On Oahu in HI, I rented a car for $50 a day one month. Four months later (June) it was $9 a day. Just goes to show ya.
  25. JohnMitchell
    Nothing wrong with being scared or telling your instructor that you are. Probably the best thing to do about it.