BASE813

what do you mean by low? I mean I would take a non vented canopy to around 220ft freefall, but others would only take a vented canopy below 300ft freefalls................... I guess it all depends on your opinion of what exactly "low" is.................. One mans SL is another mans FF...............

what ever happened to making practice jumps in a pool from a board????? - if you not testing gear config's and you are just trying to get your exit sorted then go back to basics.....

Michael "Mac" McHale Age: 30 Height and weight: 5'11, 12 stone 12lbs (for now) Birthplace: Ascot, Berks, UK Marital status: Unmarried but not single Occupation: Was Accountant, but got sacked after my 6 months off during injury Hobbies: BASE, Learning about BASE, Walking my 2 dogs, drinking, and now after injury, going to the gym. Harness and container: Gargoyle Parachute: Troll MDV 265 Home dropzone: Well when I actually skydived it was Hinton UK - I will be back to get canopy skills up to speed again. Records or awards: I award myself a medal to overcome my vertigo problem each and everytime I jump. Pet peeves: traffic jams and newbies who think they know what they are doing, and people who burn objects, and people who have no respect for what they are doing in BASE..... What is your favorite quote? "If you dont like it - FUCK OFF", "what could possibly go wrong", "and you wonder why we dont meet women" What is your philosophy on life? Dont get caught up in the bulshit - live it, love it - and if you dont like it, dont fucking do it! What is something most people don’t know about you? I am intersted in archeology and history Who has inspired you in BASE jumping? Firstly, Myself - I have manged to tame my fears, other than that - then Mark Amodeo for being more scared than me on an exit but still flicking the 240ft B with shit landing area, and also flicking a well known "cheesey" cliff solo, and obviously people like Slim who went back to jump after horrific injury, and DW who just pushed the limits that we never thought were able to be pushed. - In the end I get inspired by everyone - there is always someone out there that amazes me in what they are doing, whether its someone with 10 jumps or 1000 jumps - YOU ARE ALL INSPIRING! What is your most memorable BASE jumping moment? Fucking up my leg quite badly........... the one that put the biggest smile on my face though, was doing a 270ft E with Faber on his first E........ Describe Michael McHale in five words or less: always looking for explainations and reasons for things. I BASE jump because… I spent 28 years looking for something that makes me smile inside for real, I have now found it.

Or Fabers favourite, try landing through trees that have a brick wall one side and a large wire fence 10ft away from it on the other side. - Dam! I did not even think a canopy would fit in there! - never mind landing on the ground! "ITS OK! IM ALRIGHT!"

nice one 954............... lets not try and get carried away though, getting a sub1000 number aint worth doing stupid shit - you may get a sub100 number instead........

just curious............... what are the rules for gear at BD?

UK BASE Jumpers Meet: 4th December 2004 from 5pm onwards: Belushi's 48-50 Camden High Street, London, NW1 0LT 020 7388 1012 Large Video screen available to us for playing your vids from your DV cams (if anyone has a long wire can you bring it - ask evilivan for tech details if required) - or call Russell to ask about playing other formats. BASE Jumpers discounts on food and drinks Food available til 9pm, video screen and sectioned area available until 10pm. Accomodation is available above the pub for £15 for the night, please call Russell on the number above to book your place if you require. Invite open to new jumpers and skydivers who are thinking about BASE. A chance to meet contacts, share information and ask questions. A chance for others to reflect on the years events and raise a cold one to the ones that left us this year. If you have any questions please PM / email me. Michael Mac

4th December 2004 from 5pm onwards: Belushi's 48-50 Camden High Street, London, NW1 0LT 020 7388 1012 Large Video screen available to us for playing your vids from your DV cams (if anyone has a long wire can you bring it - ask evilivan for tech details if required) - or call Russell to ask about playing other formats. BASE Jumpers discounts on food and drinks Food available til 9pm, video screen and sectioned area available until 10pm. Accomodation is available above the pub for £15 for the night, please call Russell on the number above to book your place if you require. Invite open to new jumpers and skydivers who are thinking about BASE. A chance to meet contacts, share information and ask questions. A chance for others to reflect on the years events and raise a cold one to the ones that left us this year. If you have any questions please PM / email me. Michael Mac

...........and have managed to get your hands on it without any jumps made on it during your injury! Nice work.......

the UK forum will be (should be) back up and running again in a few days............. but it will have lost all previous information.......

hey George! you still got my number? PM me if not.......... I have made arrangements to take my Gargoyle out of one of those airplane things, not sure if the guy will allow lots of people to do it - but maybe if all goes well with my first jumps, who knows................ speak soon mate..........

http://www.peterboroughnow.co.uk/ViewArticle2.aspx?SectionID=845&ArticleID=880287 Rest in pieces..............

http://www.parachutehistory.com/

my perceived errors were more to do with the errors I personally made rather than equipment problems - the use of equipment i was unfamiliar with lead to the brake setting hang up. I beleive that although I had popped the toggle off I had in fact not pulled hard enough to free the setting, factored with the "newness" of the lines and setting and my lazy pull down the setting stayed and with my sudden "oh shit" and release of the setting when trying to flare, and the lack of alitude, this made for a very hard energy impact. More testing and more jumps on my gear before taking it so low would have prevented this happening. I have attached something - but its pretty crappy............ not sure its of any benefit at all......... especially as the scale is probably fucked up..... but hey I tried and you may get some idea. Due to his work he has very advanced trauma training. And yes, before I return to jumping I want to have taken an outdoor activity first aid course (the one I have planned is used for instrutor ratings for rock climbing etc) - I dont ever want to be in a position of not knowing what to do for the best. I was wearing some pretty sturdy hiking boots, a helmet and knee pads. The boots had stopped my tib from breaking the skin at the bottom of my foot and compounding - if I had been wearing my vans trainers (as I had done on many jumps) my ankle and leg would have been in a much more serious state. The body has an amazing way to deal with the pain, and unless someone had specific medical training I would say that giving me pain killers is unnecessary - of course I would have loved pain killers, I just had to wait 2 1/2 hours to get to the hospital where they actually put me out to realign and reduce the fractures. Well I hope in some way my dodgy explainations are clear.

I often question this myself, I never really come up with an answer except that something deep inside me craves it. The wide range of emotions, the wide range of visuals, the wide range of experiences, the wide range of friends - all of these mix together and make me feel something I have never found in anything else in my life. It is very personal to me. As far as measure goes in BASE in achievement - this is also personal. For some its to make more and more technical jumps that require alot of skill, for others its just to make a jump once in awhile, for some its to open up as many new objects as possible, for some its to just have fun off of one object, for some its to jump low, for some its to climb high and inaccessable places to jump....... to me staying safe and walking away from each jump uninjured is an achievement, anyone can jump from a fixed object, but not everyone can walk away to jump again. Everyone goes at their own pace and makes their own jumps and has their own rules and limits and ways to make them feel what they feel. Dont try and measure it, dont try and question it - just enjoy it and what it does for you. Mac PS) I wanna be batman too!!

when you dance with the devil, the devil does not change - you do.

my true approach to each jump from here will be focusing on what will happen when it goes wrong.......... If I am not happy with being able to be rescued or happy I will be ok with a problem, then I aint gonna jump......... I have met many people recently that after some pretty bad injuries they only look at "what happens when this goes to real shit" - maybe experience jumpers all think this way? I know I will now............ maybe I am just progressing on the normal path.......... I thank the people with me that night, as without them I would have maybe lost my foot......... I will never again be so comfortable and never again be in a situation that if that happens to my friend I dont have a clue what to do................ body armour and trauma courses ARE the future............. dont be the one that could have done something that could save your friends limb............. but you did not know what to do.......... I thank Uncle Tom, Sean, and Greeny for being there on my jump........ without you guys I dont know what I would have done - thanks fellas........ I owe you big!!! (never again will i do solos!!!!!) shits and giggles it is.......... but one day it maybe a fucking bastard.............

human flight rocks!

a benchmark for the rest of the world........... a dark year.................

For sure, I think the fact you thought about BASE for a few years, the fact you had 1000+ skydives, the fact you were a sensible and thoughtful jumper, the fact that out of all the new jumpers I ever spoke to you were the last person I would think of getting injured so soon, the fact you fucked your leg on a perceived "normal jump", the fact that BASE bites the most sensible person I know, the fact that this year I have seen my first actual friends die or get injured, - may help show others that it does not matter who you are - things go wrong and hurt you someday........ just look at the last people on the list, in fact just look at the people on the list who were deemed experienced.................. No one is safe.................. please people, just be careful..........

I have questioned whether to post this. I wonder if its worth doing and whether people read it and learn from it, i question whether people think I am trying to grab attention, or whether its worth putting injury reports up so the media get their hands on it and say "these guys are mad" I am hoping what I have written is something I have written and at least one person says "mmmmmmm" I would be interested in what others say about the way I have tried to report my accident, I would also be interested if you think reporting an accident like this is beneficial............ I would like to hear your thoughts about my accident in anyway............ I expect some negativity from posting this, and realise I aint the first person to ever suffer a BASE injury - I just hope I have conveyed my thoughts about my injury enough to have someone question something.............. Oh well, flame away.............

My thoughts are with the Oz BASE'rs, this has been a dark and terrible time. I only had a few eMail conversations with him, and he appeared to be such a nice and generous guy......... My deepest thoughts and condolences to friends, family and the Ozzie BASE'rs. Peace.

Last time I checked on some, I phoned up the Technical Director of the company that ran them, put on a geeky voice and explained I was an "antenna spotter" and could they give me some information on their set up.......... he was more than willing to go all technical and give out the information - out of the 12 AM'sthat used to be there and were running, he told me exactly which ones were live and which were dead............... Nice one boys in opening up the dirty dozen before knock down.... may it all now rest in pieces..............

Hey J! Good to see you again (although circumstances were shitty) Sorry not to remember who you were!!! I have never been good with names! Slowly waiting for all the vids to download (even on Broadband)............. I hope its worth the patience!! maybe calling you when I am back to jumping again, fancy doing another jump with you, a jump off something higher than the last time hey!! - its time I find out what this slider up stuff is all about!! be cool man............... Love ya work.............

Alot of people are getting bounce backs on my DZ account. I have enough room left to receive emails!