JohnMitchell

The Y-strap mod comes close to that. It certainly helps block the hole thru which these folks are escaping. I've had a few big booty passengers that I insisted have that harness.. Our tandem harness fit, as I jokingly say, from 4'8" to 8'4". You're always going to have a huge range of adjustments. There is no substitute for fitting the harness properly. The best time to do that is BEFORE WALKING TO THE PLANE. If the dropzone staff and especially the TI can't take the time to ensure the harness fits, they need to get out of the business.

Can I squawk both? 7700, then 7600, then back to 7700. Signalling a 7600 would be useful because I am deaf. Actually alternating between the two is appropriate and recommended in some situations. I think yours would be one of those.

What makes a guy bad in bed? How about sneaking peeks at the game on TV during it all?

I saw the Who a couple of times in the mid 70's and have some of their vinyl. My kids, too, have discovered them. Vskydiver and I took some of the kids to a Greenday show once and had a great time. "Dookie", one of their first CD's, is great. Maybe give 'em another listen.

Absolutely. Some fatal collisions have even been at Cessna DZ's with only 4 jumpers in the air. It's all about pattern discipline, learning to scan properly for traffic and knowing where the most dangerous areas are. It's also about keeping people from swooping in traffic.

Man, sorry you got hurt, esp. at the beginning of the summer. Sucks. Just always remember, there's no skydive that you can make where you can't get hurt. That little thought helps me to focus my ADD mind. I haven't mentioned it in the Bonfire yet, but I'm back to jumping after taking 6 months off this winter due to shoulder surgery. It's going pretty well. I don't have 100% of my strength back, but it's getting there.

Agreed, way optimistic.

I think a couple of hours in the wind tunnel might make us all able to handle that kind of stuff.

All you jump pilots out there flying home from boogies, consider getting VFR flight following from ATC. We're there to help. And should you accidentally encounter bad weather, we can immediately assist you instead of having you blindly fly into a hillside. I've helped a number of VFR pilots who encountered IMC conditions. None of them lost their license or anything like that. All you jumpers out there, start doubting you pilots a little and let them know it's okay to say "no" or to turn around and land safely short of the destination. "Get-home-itis" is one of the most deadly diseases in aviation. And if you have a cowboy pilot that does "fun" things with the airplane, esp. on take off, tell the DZO you're not jumping until they fire his a$$.

Visualization is a powerful training tool. Use your down time and plane time to visualize the entire jump over and over, each time going perfectly. World class competitors use this technique to achieve peak performance. Become a student of all things skydiving. Visualize and practice your emergency procedures until they become reflex. Learn to pack, and learn what each component of your rig does. Learn what NOT to do with your parachute. One of the hardest things to do as a student jumper is to control your emotions. Learn to gauge your arousal level and moderate it thru breathing, visualization, practice and confidence building. Once again, the best skydivers in the world do exactly that. Always open your chute. It makes the landings so much softer. Land with your canopy above you, not in a hard turn. Flare. PLF if you need to, or even think you may need to. Make PLF'ing a reflex if you see the ground coming up too fast. This will keep you off crutches and allow you to skydive more. Stay humble. Humble is more receptive to learning. Enjoy every moment. You've just started on one of the best adventures in life.

And if you google "skydiving" they are way up near the top. I wish the USPA could get their list of member DZ's to show up like that. Maybe the USPA should alter their website to guide whuffos to local DZ's. I hate seeing new jumpers ripped off by a crass operator like skyride.

Or at least 3 years, the minimum time in sport to become a TI. Even a weekend jumper can rack up 125 jumps a year to have the 500 required in 4 years. If you can find a DZ with a static line program, you can start working with students earlier and get your "people skills" fine tuned. I find that's what some TM's lack. I've got 37+ years in the sport, and have loved them all. I don't think I could have lasted a decade as a full time jumper. I'm quite happy as a part timer.

Pretty damn funny since I know she lives. I hope every TM in the world is paying attention.

Thank you.

Is, or was? Still employed in the Boston area with some company in the aftermath of it all. CTO @ Harvard. Doin' pretty well.

My brother-in-law is a programmer for Sun. He talks about suits-to-sandals ratios for determining the focus and emphasis of meetings, conventions, etc. Where I work, an FAA air traffic control facility, we had an official dress code for about 5 years, slacks and collared shirts. Not bad. Our last contract overturned that code, so now some of the guys literally wear gym shorts, shower sandals or those godawful orange plastic clogs. One overweight hairy guy was wearing tank tops until enough people complained to actually cause some peer pressure. I'm glad I can wear casual shorts and t-shirts to work, but I usually wear jeans and a polo shirt or better.

Years ago I had a well built coworker that liked to go braless. The boss quietly told her it was a distraction and to please buy some foundation garments. Damn. Vskydiver, back when she worked in a local hospital, liked to dress nicely. She had to put up with some cattiness from her female boss because all the doctors wanted to talk to her, not the boss. Go figure.

Okay, I'm in. "Oh yeah, that's goooood! Don't stop, bay-bee!"

Krisanne, I love your posts.

Looks like he hardly touched most of the boxes. How about we set 'em up and try it ourselves?

The guy who married Vskydiver and me was a jump buddy and LDS airborne chaplain. Good guy. His work was made to last.

My work here is done.

Ouch, don't say that too loud. You may not get a date for months if the word gets out. Also, make sure you enter the course at the right gate.

He just wants to make sure he goes the distance.

By culture we could mean a petri dish.