dbagdrew

Possibly. Horner is the best place to meet other jumpers. Are there locals at this bar frequently, even in the winter? I heard that it may be possible to just show up and meet up with other jumpers. I would prefer to have something set up ahead of time, but if I don't for whatever reason, is this a possibility? Education: that which reveals to the wise, and conceals from the stupid, the vast limits of their knowledge. - Mark Twain

Good to know, I remember hearing about this, didn't remember where it was though. Some crampons might be in order. Education: that which reveals to the wise, and conceals from the stupid, the vast limits of their knowledge. - Mark Twain

I am going to be in Switzerland for a school trip this February. I am hoping to get a few jumps in. I have never been, and was hoping to get some advice, and was hoping to possibly meet up some jumpers there. Things I have learned: (from searching/asking some jumpers that have been there) 1. Getting to some exit points in the Valley in winter are a little sketchy. Or potentially is. 2. The Valley is accessible by train. 3. I heard that there is space available for packing in the summer (behind a pub?). 4. These cliffs are not to be taken lightly. Good exits and solid tracks are important. 5. The area is to be respected, it is fragile in terms of 'tolerance'. 6. Helicopter 'insurance' is a good idea. 7. I am going to bring some Canadian Whisky for the Farmers. 8. Call Air Glacier. 9. Don't land in the tall grass. (Questions:) What about packing in the winter? What do people do? Buy tarps? I am staying in Zurich for the first few days (read weekend) and then Berne (probably) for the next few. Are there any locals that would be up going for a beer at any point during that week? I am occupied for the mon-thursday of that week, but I should have evenings and both weekends free. We do not have our flights booked yet, so I'm not sure of the exact duration of the trip, but will post when I know. Please PM me. I am open to any advice and help. My experience: 43 slider down jumps. (Started this summer). 600+ Skydives (with ~20 solo tracks this summer). Thank you. Andrew Edited: to change wording and spelling. Education: that which reveals to the wise, and conceals from the stupid, the vast limits of their knowledge. - Mark Twain

You need a Minimum of 4 satellites for a position solution with GPS (This is 3 coordinates (i.e. x,y,z) and time (you need a time measurement to solve for the satellite clock error and to solve for time- you know 4 unknowns, so you need 4 equations). The fourth satellite provides this. Depending on the receiver and accuracy required you may need more. While It may be true that you only need one satellite to use a satellite phone, you will (as far as I know) not be able to get a position from it. As far this application getting a position at the bottom of a canyon, right next to a cliff, for example, is still possible. Remember that this receiver would have to be out in the open, and not obscured. From my thinking, the Beacon sounds like it would be more dependable in a situation like this. Education: that which reveals to the wise, and conceals from the stupid, the vast limits of their knowledge. - Mark Twain

25 0.5 Education: that which reveals to the wise, and conceals from the stupid, the vast limits of their knowledge. - Mark Twain

Here: http://www.skydivingmovies.com/ver2/pafiledb.php?action=file&id=3323&string=frasca and here: http://www.skydivingmovies.com/ver2/pafiledb.php?action=file&id=2847&string=frasca Education: that which reveals to the wise, and conceals from the stupid, the vast limits of their knowledge. - Mark Twain

Search engines are great Education: that which reveals to the wise, and conceals from the stupid, the vast limits of their knowledge. - Mark Twain

It says 'The Beautiful Girls' on SDmovies Link: http://www.skydivingmovies.com/ver2/pafiledb.php?action=file&id=2895&string=australian%20base Education: that which reveals to the wise, and conceals from the stupid, the vast limits of their knowledge. - Mark Twain

No offense, but you sound like a cop. Education: that which reveals to the wise, and conceals from the stupid, the vast limits of their knowledge. - Mark Twain

I was watching a BASE video recently (Keen 'n Able), and noticed a flag in what looked to be the side of a wall. It was a swiss flag, and the jump was beside a water fall. I assume this is the one in the swiss valley that is temporary closed. Does anyone know the story of this flag? It looks pretty cool, I was wondering where it is on the wall and how far out it is. Looks like it is quite a ways out. Education: that which reveals to the wise, and conceals from the stupid, the vast limits of their knowledge. - Mark Twain

I have also heard that keeping your hands out, as opposed to having them back, can help prevent you from going head low, as your hands/arms will catch more air. Probably a minor thing, but something to think about. I also, instinctively, reach back for my risers, almost immediately after pitching. Have been trying to kick this habit though. Education: that which reveals to the wise, and conceals from the stupid, the vast limits of their knowledge. - Mark Twain

I took a FJC in May - 7 day Death Camp with Tom Aiello. It was great, I learned a lot, and would recommend it to anyone. There is something to be said for people getting in to BASE the more traditional way, read learning things the hard way. I think that it is a little too easy to get into BASE these days. You can just buy a rig, pay for a course, and presto you're a BASE jumper. I think that this a move in the wrong direction. More emphasis has to be placed on spend the time, doing the ground crew work, opening new objects, that sort of thing. I feel I have been lacking in those areas, and that is what I need to focus on, at least a little. Education: that which reveals to the wise, and conceals from the stupid, the vast limits of their knowledge. - Mark Twain

You are probably exactly correct on this one. I didn't start skydiving to get into BASE, so continuing to skydive was natural for me. Education: that which reveals to the wise, and conceals from the stupid, the vast limits of their knowledge. - Mark Twain

In regards to the spring loaded pilot chutes. The idea is still superior, I believe. I think that what posbase said was true, and that throw out pilot chutes were much less of a hassle, and would potentially last longer. This is in reference to skydiving. However, you do not have to look hard in skydiving to see evidence that spring loaded pilot chutes are superior. Reserves are all still packed with them, and some mains are still packed with them for AFF students. The reasons are what you stated: body position does not matter and cannot (except in extreme cases, maybe) be responsible for a malfunction or the like. In BASE, we have seen, fairly recently some stunts that have been moving towards this as well. See the low BASE jumps that had exploding pilot chutes, etc. I doubt that this will come back, and ever been seen in mainstream BASE, as simplicity is an important part of things. But you never know. Thanks for your post. Education: that which reveals to the wise, and conceals from the stupid, the vast limits of their knowledge. - Mark Twain

I started BASE jumping this year in late May. I have done on average 100 skydives per year for the last 7 years. (Pretty good for the short skydiving season that I have up here in Canada) I have done 42 BASE jumps this year so far, and still managed to get over 100 skydives in. It helps that my wife is a skydiver, and interested getting into 4-way. Education: that which reveals to the wise, and conceals from the stupid, the vast limits of their knowledge. - Mark Twain

Many people use laser range finders. Usually accurate to +- 1 meter. Education: that which reveals to the wise, and conceals from the stupid, the vast limits of their knowledge. - Mark Twain

This is from Martin Tilley of Asylum I e-mailed Marty about this and got permission to post his answers. Here they are: (Martys Response) Additional tips: Education: that which reveals to the wise, and conceals from the stupid, the vast limits of their knowledge. - Mark Twain

I have seen Miles and crew do this as well. This is what I am not sure about, I have found that placing fabric above that line gives me a neater looking pack job, as the material files out the top better, getting rid of a nasty looking crease. Education: that which reveals to the wise, and conceals from the stupid, the vast limits of their knowledge. - Mark Twain

This was one of the changes that I made after talking to my Mentor, it made a big difference, especially on the bottom pins' tension. I think I can picture this, but are you saying that you go above that line or not? And if you do is it a lot or a little? I did some of this too, even rolled around on it with the leg straps tight. Made a difference as well. Thanks for your reply. Education: that which reveals to the wise, and conceals from the stupid, the vast limits of their knowledge. - Mark Twain

I was hoping to get some thoughts from people with Perigee Pro's. I have a new rig/canopy(Perigee Pro with a Blackjack 260), with less than 20 jumps on both. I have been having some issues with pin tension. It has been fairly high, and I have noticed what seems to be a longer deployment from similar delays (compared to the velcro rig I started jumping with). I have concluded (very unscientifically I know) that this is due to a fairly high pin tension. I talked to my mentor about it and he packed it with me changing the location of the folds, and that seemed to help quite a bit. I was able to get the tension to a reasonable level on my subsequent pack job, but I did this by placing material above the line on the label that says do not place material above this line (as well as changing the folds). My question is, does anyone else break this 'no material above this line rule' and what are your thoughts on it? I have e-mail Marty on this and am waiting for his response, but I would like to hear from others as well. Any thoughts/ideas would be great. I realize that it is a new rig and will likely take some time to get worn in. But at this point I would not consider doing anything resembling a 'low' freefall.

My thoughts almost exactly. Me and a couple friends were talking about this last night, on the drive back from a jump. People will ask you how you can do this for just a few seconds of fun. For me it is everything from that few seconds to the people you meet, to the long drives, to the anticipation and well to everything surrounding it. I really am realizing how much I love this sport, and how much I am really getting out of it. Well said.

I found another article that may help explain things. Here it is: Shocking News!

WEAK I have exited a plane slider up at sub 300'. Just curious, how fast did you have the plane going on that sub 300' jump? Average, or faster than usual, for the additional forward speed? I thought at first that that sounded ridiculous, but then I was thinking about some ski-BASEers I heard about going off 60' cliffs with a huge run up (read lots of forward speed). Sounds like 300' might be reasonable with proper forward speed. How long was your canopy flight? I really want to find a pilot that will let me out at 500'ish, I had D-Rings sewn on my rig for a 'tirsh' for that reason. (Well among other reasons). In response to you saying that 600 feet is weak, I agree that lower is reasonable.

There is no doubt in my mind that there is no way that any kind of course can prepare someone to be prepared for everything that could be out there. For me, from my course, I believe that I got the basic knowledge and strategies to be able to figure things out on my own (well some things). Also to know where to go to get help and to have the confidence to go and get that help. I suspect that any course that short would be lacking in areas such as that.

I would like to hear more of peoples thoughts on the title of this thread. I took a FJC at Twin Falls, and felt good about it afterwards, went out and did some jumps on my own afterwards. I still needed/need advice from people more experienced of course, but I felt relatively prepared for what could be out there. How do people that take a course at BD feel about things this after thieir course and only completing 2-4(max, I'm guessing) jumps? I'm guessing not very well, despite the "course material being the same". I did 17 jumps on my course over 6 days, and still felt like needed a lot. What are some peoples progression after a BD course? Ours was PCA -> Handheld -> Stowed -> longer delays -> etc... What do FJC instructors (other than Tom, who said that he offers a discount on a subsequent TF course) offer in terms of follow up?