swovelin

Happy Birthday to "The Parachute Center at Skylark Field!" It was definitely the place to be when I made my first jump there, Aug. 2 1970. I'm really happy to see that it's still going strong! HAPPY BIRTHDAY ELSINORE!

*** Gary grounded me back in the 60's for trying to make a shortcut to China through the Elsinore DZ. I would say I am alive and jumping today because of that grounding. So, to Gary I say," Thanks Red". *** I heard a lot this past weekend about "grounding" and since I'm so new here I have no idea what that means!! ------- Carlee: That is a great question! 'Back in the day,' a jumper might be "grounded" by Red Douris because of a serious safety infraction. For example, if Gary saw me intentionally "pull low" (i,e, less than a 60-second canopy ride) and if I didn't have a good excuse he could (and he did) put my name on the "grounding board." (Which was, believe it or not, an actual, physical chalkboard at manifest listing the current malefactors!) When I was grounded for 30 days, it meant that the DZ would refuse to let me jump. (What a thought; a business punishing unruly customers by refusing them service! Harumph!) I'll attach a couple more photos from your uncle Gary's memorial event: Eike H. with the giant US flag, the Marine 21-gun salute, and the Johnson brothers, Brian and Mark, sharing a laugh with Gary. Take care, Jerry

Carlee: If I can do this correctly, I'll attach 2 of Barb's images from Gary's get-together. One shot shows our "Gary" posing with two of his oldest friends, Barry Lastinger and Jerry Bourquin. The other photo is during "Taps." I hope that someone will upload the jump videos, so that we can see them also. Bye for now, Jerry

Carlee: Your making your first jump a Elsinore last Saturday made the day even more unforgettable. For those of you who missed it, the Gary Douris Memorial Tribute and Life Celebration was really quite a spectacular send-off for our friend. The aerial burial was accomplished with FOUR 8-way groups, each with a portion of Gary's ashes. They were followed by one jumper towing a great big US Marine flag and by Eike flying a HUGE American flag. Another highlight was the 16-man Marine Color Guard, who performed a 21-gun salute, played 'Taps' and presented e US flag to Gary's family, represented by his loving sister Louanne. Next came a spectacular fly-by with two of Gary's favorite aircraft, Skip's shiny DC-3 and a beautiful vintage Howard DGA-5. The celebration continued long into the night with a sit-down dinner for 300+, slide-shows, movies, and many, many memories. Gary was not just a special skydiver, he was a very special PERSON, and this was demonstrated once again by the outpouring of emotion by some of the many, many people who loved him. So long "Red;" we'll miss you!

Yeah, I jumped one at Elsinore back in the early '70s. I agree with the comment about an uncomfortable ride to altitude; I was sharing the rear cockpit with a wuffo by squating on the floor. Fortunately, it was a short ride to altitude; the pilot had promised me 3,000 feet, but he forgot the "above ground level" part. (Let's see, Elsinore is about 1,300 msl and his alti read about 2,900 msl, so, hhmmmm...) As to the exit, I just rolled the canopy back, put one foot on the right rail, and did a STRONG exit out to the side to clear the horizontal tail. It worked just fine and I lived to tell the tale. (I guess I didn't need that death-grip on my reserve handle, which was 'just in case' I did hit the tail. Ha ha.)

Hi Jerry: I'm glad that you can attend! Here is what I know so far: Gary's friends will be fun jumping all day. The ashes dive is going to take off before 4:00 and the the aerial display, fly-by, taps, etc. will take place right before sunset The memorial event follows that, and then stories galore, along with food & beer & etc. I'll post more details as it gets closer. Jerry

In case you haven't heard, the Gary Douris Memorial Tribute will be Saturday November 14 at Skydive Elsinore. The organizers have gone 'all out,' and this is really going to be quite a memorable event. All Friends of Gary are welcome, of course, but if you do plan to attend, you should RSVP to the organizers, so they can get a head count. (PM me if you need contact info.) We'll give ol' "Red" Douris quite a send off! Jerry Old Fart #2 (Thanks Gary!)

In case you haven't heard, the Gary Douris Memorial Tribute will be Saturday November 14 at Skydive Elsinore. The organizers have gone 'all out,' and this is really going to be quite a memorable event. All Friends of Gary are welcome, of course, but if you do plan to attend, you should RSVP to the organizers, so they can get a head count. (PM me if you need contact info.) We'll give ol' "Red" Douris quite a send off! Jerry

I had the pleasure of knowing and working with Gary Douris for many, many years and I can state unequivocally that he was truly a giant amongst men. He did so very many different things, and he did them all to a standard of perfection. I am a richer, and a better, man for having been by his side. God speed, Gary Douris.

Yo Al! No apology necessary at all! I've enjoyed the stories about Angel Falls BASE pioneers; I had no idea that YOU were one of the first to jump AF! (I didn't get to jump AF until 2005; what an amazing jump!) I'll ask around and see what I can learn about who might possibly have claimed Angel Falls #1 Blue Skies, Jerry

Janna, thank you so much for sharing this information. I know that delving into these details and then writing it up for us must be hard for you. But I know that this is an essential step in the process. We were all left with unanswered questions. Why Harry? (Harry of all people!) And why now? It helps to understand that Harry's death resulted from a medical emergency (which apparently was the cause of both his his hard opening and his uncontrolled descent). That is much better than speculating about some unknown "Shit happens" equipment problem. This knowledge helps give us insight that will (eventually) help us to find closure. (Yourself included.) Thanks again Janna. Harry would be proud of you for helping the community to heal in this way.

Pete: No. you are not rambling. I'm glad that you took the time to organize and communicate your thoughts and feelings on this terrible day. There really is relief in 'getting things off your chest,' saying right out loud the things that are sometimes the hardest to say. We are all feeling a bit sad & helpless in times like these. Hold fast to the good memories. Harry was a good man and right at this moment many, many people are holding him fondly in their thoughts. Peace, Jerry

Jason, due to your excellent memory, I'll have to cop a 'nolo contrede' plea on this one: THAT WAS ME! My memories are only slightly different from yours. On that long-ago August morning, there were a series of unfortunate delays at the exit point. Most distressing was the post-exit disappearance of our friend Blue (a near-death story for another post) but we were also hampered by the fact that our radios were suddenly rendered unusable by an illegal radio-Evangelist. We did our best to direct rescue personnel to Blue, then we got off that rock absolutely as fast as we could. As I recall, we exited between 8:30 - 8:35. Upon landing in the meadow, we were immediately accosted by NPS Rangers. (Including one who's horse was spooked by a jumper's nearby slip & slide landing; she was actually thrown from the animal and dragged a short distance through the wet grass.) The Rangers on scene were most unhappy and they cited the five of us for the usual "illegal aerial delivery" charge. We had to wait all day for our Court appearance before the soon-to-be-infamous Judge Pitts. We were last on the Court Docket, and we watched as the Judge handed out seemingly harsh sentences for minor offenses by other tourists/campers. (e.g. One old tourist, who got his car stuck in the mud by the side of the paved road, was convicted and fined heavily for THREE offenses: Making an illegal U-turn, failure to control his vehicle, AND driving off-road in a National Park. Sheese. Were were worried!) Finally our case was called and the Ranger prosecutor laid out his charges. Judge Pitts looked incredulous and then said something like "I can't believe that you are wasting this Court's time with charges against these jumpers. They secured the necessary permits, they jumped on the right day, they landed in the right spot, and their only offense was being less than 5 minutes late? CASE DISMISSED!" We had absolutely NO IDEA how lucky we were. We made the long drive back to So Cal cursing our luck for being delayed on exit and for being charged at all. Little did we know that we were some of the ONLY jumpers to ever receive leniency from Judge Pitts. In retrospect, I do regret the incident; I would hate to think that we were "part of the problem" that summer. But I know that if our little mishap hadn't happened at all, the NPS would still have shut-down the BASE permit system, due to the many much more egregious incidents. With the story now being public (after 28 years), I throw myself on the Court of Public Opinion and plead for mercy.

Yo Sparky: Thank you! That's just the info I was hoping for. You earned El Cap # 270 on Aug 28th. I jumped it just 3 days earlier. So, now I've got a pretty good idea of what my own El Cap # must have been. Also, look at the amazing progression that month: Harry jumped El Cap just 3 weeks earlier, on Aug 4, and he is EC# 157. Thanks for posting the photo of your EC patch and Cert too! That brings back good memories of than once-in-a-lifetime summer in the Park! J

Yo Harry: Thanks a lot for the info! You jumped El Cap exactly three weeks before I did. (Gee, I wonder how many 'virgins' went off in between and were added to the EC# list before me?) I already had a permit to go back for a 2nd El Cap jump. It was only a few days later, but, alas, it was not to be; NPS had shut us down by then. Nick D. You were exactly correct; the people jumping El Cap that summer weren't really BASE jumpers at all. We were just a bunch of yahoo skydivers who thought we were off on a lark in the park. Good memories! Jerry

Does anyone here remember the old system of "El Capitan BASE Numbers?" As we know, BASE was 'legal' off El Cap only for a brief, glorious moment in the summer of 1980; Alas. But, IIRC, over a period of years, several hundred jumpers (skydivers) earned their El Cap #s by making that one BASE jump. I'm one of the very lucky ones; I jumped El Cap in broad daylight on August 25, 1980. (But, I have absolutely no idea what my El Cap # is. Dang.) Here's the challenge: Is there anyone here who can actually claim to remember his/her own El Cap #? If so, please share the story. (Anonymously, if you like.) Blue skies, J

OK, I'll bite. (How accurate could the name-generator be anyway?) It sez that I'm really "Ol' Strangeman of the Wild Wierdos MC. (Dang; that thing is accurate!)

Is it Zing?

Hhmmm... First try, Jeanie McCombs (sp.) at Elsinore?

You want past issues of Parachutist & Skydiving magazines? Ha! Feel free to go "dumpster diving" in my garage. PM sent. Jerry

Gray hair? What gray hair? I don't think my few remaining hairs can reach consensus on ANY particular color. Ha ha.

Oops. Let's see if I can attach those photos now.

Hi Mike: Here's a photo or two of the double-keel 'dactyl that I'm sending to you.

Hey Mike! I finally found the double keel 'dactyl I was looking for. (In fact, I got lucky; I found TWO 'Dactyls.) I'll PM ya with details. Merry Christmas! Jerry

Boy, that image brings back some OLD memories! I had an identical one on the wind-wind of my old '63 Falcon that I drove to Elsinore as a newbie. I made my first jump at Elsinore in August '70, so that old fashioned design must have still been availble even then. P.S. It's a DECAL ya know, not a sticker, a flimsy thin decal that you had to soak in water and then sliiide off the paper backing onto glass. Ha; haven't done that in a while.