JohnMitchell

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Everything posted by JohnMitchell

  1. JohnMitchell

    Abe Vigoda

    JohnMitchell replied to ryoder's topic in The Bonfire

    Sounds like he's making his decisions about the end of his life. May we all be so lucky in our twilight hours. Godspeed, Abe.
  2. JohnMitchell
    Yeah, even at $199 for the Session, I'd rather pony up the $220 for the Hero 3 Silver.
  3. JohnMitchell
    I had the original Hero. Then Vskydiver got one, but gave it to our son. This year she picked up a Hero3 silver at Costco. I lost it on a jump over the North Shore. . . So we picked up 2 more, his and hers, at Costco when they were another $30 off. So they've sold 3 units to our household in the past 6 months. Glad we could help. But you're right. The market is saturated and their product has a lot of competition. I also think the price is a bit high.
  4. JohnMitchell
    Take the money and run. Hey, ask him if he wants a Sony PC-1 and a Cookie box thrown in.
  5. JohnMitchell
    Nice post. Keep 'em coming.
  6. JohnMitchell
    Io amo Italia! When I saw the title of the thread "Where has Twardo been?" my first thought was "Damn near everywhere!"
  7. JohnMitchell
    "No more calls. We have a winner."
  8. JohnMitchell
    I'm no expert on Tampa but have visited a few times. Busch Gardens is a decent amusement park/zoo and you can get the resident season's pass. Google maps shows Z-hills 40 minutes away, as close as my home DZ. Lots of sunshine, crazy wild storm watching, some really nice beaches I've been to. Yeah, I could do Florida.
  9. JohnMitchell
    That woman sounds a little whiny about the doritos too.
  10. JohnMitchell
    We did that last May. It was fun but the gators were inland due to drought conditions. We were out an hour and I think 30-45 minutes would have been fine. We enjoyed doing a manatee tour, but that might be a little low key for the kids. I know you said you don't do theme parks. That's too bad because Universal's Islands of Adventure in Orlando is our family's all time favorite. Great rides, smart layout, lots of water features to keep you and the kids cool on the hottest days. And no giant rodent cartoon characters.
  11. JohnMitchell
    Believe me, no "thinking" was done. To paraphrase that book, "All I Need to Know in Life I Learned in the First Jump Course." Of course, we teach that if your stuff goes, exit immediately and follow it. As much as my brain was saying "HOLY CRAP!" I knew I had to shove off and go, no questions asked. Later we talked about what had happened. We were jumping with a bunch of locals in Costa Rica, so there was a language barrier. We were at the front of the Twin Otter when, on jump run, the organizer said we were first out. So we climbed/threaded/squirmed our way down the crowded aisle back to the door, and I'm pretty sure that's how my pin got popped. These days I protect extra well when moving around.
  12. JohnMitchell
    the air flow over the pads is more turbulent than on a smooth surface. I wonder if they could engineer smoother pads?
  13. JohnMitchell
    Very true. Long story is that I had my pin popped on an Otter climbout, back when I jumped a pull-out. I felt my bag leave and looked to see my pilot chute on the guy next to me. I immediately shoved off the plane and was under canopy a second later. Now, when I climbout, I give a glance or two downwind just to make sure none of my stuff is leaving early.
  14. JohnMitchell
    I hope you never get a Coach Rating. God help our sport then.
  15. JohnMitchell
    Started dating at the end of July, married 2nd of June the next summer. If you know you want it, why wait forever?
  16. JohnMitchell
    The original wind tunnels were padded on the insides. No reason except marketing and visuals as to why it couldn't be done again.
  17. JohnMitchell
    Yeah, I gotta go with you on this one too, Grimmie.
  18. JohnMitchell
    Very true, but think of it as a comparative point on the curve.
  19. JohnMitchell
    Basic physics would say "yes." At 18K, the air is about half the density of sea level, so I would expect maybe twice the G load at opening. But you know how many other variables there are for opening shock, such as packing, type canopy, chaos in the universe, etc. I've never actually opened above 13K, and esp. not at terminal. Maybe more experienced jumper will chime in.
  20. JohnMitchell
    I'm certainly not a tunnel instructor, but I've seen many of them wearing the pads. And I've collected a bruise or two in the windy tube. Certainly think we'll get some pads for Vskydiver and see if they have any my size.
  21. JohnMitchell
    Super good TED talk. I want to give this a well deserved bump. Family and friends have made my life rich, rich, rich.
  22. JohnMitchell
    "distrust all in whom the impulse to punish is powerful" ~ Nietzsche Words to live by.
  23. JohnMitchell
    You'd see my wife and me landing our P-51 Mustang down in Deland for a week of jumping and scuba diving. Then off to the Bahamas with a boatload of friends for drinks on the beach... . where we'd be building our private wind tunnel.
  24. JohnMitchell
    I like that for YEARS researchers have been trying to find something wrong with coffee, causing this cancer or that illness. Nope, nada, zip. I'm glad they're researching and I love their results. I think I'll go refill my cup now.
  25. JohnMitchell
    $2.25 here in Lacey, WA at the local Costco. Anything around $2 a gallon keeps me happy. Washington State has the 2nd highest fuel taxes, 44.5 cents + 16 cents federal, beaten only by Pennsylvania, at over 50 cents + federal.