sabre210

I should add though 1. I don't really care about the whole Red Bull sponsorship thing etc.....good luck to the guy and live and let live. It would just be nice for him to realise that his publicity isn't always useful to other jumpers. 2. If this was a fully legal B jump with permits but the media chose to portray it as a bandit jump DESPITE felix and his team's efforts at promoting it as legal, then I apologise for the majority of the above. If however it was legal but they chose to portray it as a bandit jump to add kudos, then that stinks. 3. (covering his back) Some urban jumps you run a high risk of getting busted. It could happen to anyone (really covering his back), I just think on those jumps, inviting the world media along is necessarily the best idea.

I can give you my take on Felix's antics and why it bugs me. I live in the UK, a considerable distance from Mexico City. Today I received a text from a non jumper friend saying he just saw this jump by an austrian on TV. Yeah, on TV in the UK. That's news. Worldwide news. It's news because Felix in his wisdom has decided that what he does has to be told to the masses, so he and his sponsors call all the news agencies and invite them along to watch and report and film. Why does that bug me personally? Because what he seems to not realise, is that hundreds of BASE jumpers the world over, hidden from the public glare are secretly planning their own building jumps. Jumps which they have had to put a lot of effort into to get to the exit point. These jumpers, haven't the luxury of a coporate sponsor who can organise their jumps, and pull strings to get access. They have got there through sheer determination, sheer luck and in the majority of cases, sheer oversight on the part of building security. Now however, in every hotel lobby in the world, in every apartment block, in every office building, security personel are watching felix's 'bandit' jump on the national news and are thinking 'man, i bet someone get's their arse kicked for letting that happen.....oh wait a minute, could that happen here.' Now the majority of security personel won't actually get off their fat behinds and go check the door to the roof, or the stairwell access, so no harm done there. But I will bet you that worldwide some will. And somewhere a jumper might have lost their access and they don't even know it yet. At the very least, basejumpers are now at the forefront of the minds of most news watching security personel the world over, which means we all have a higher chance of both getting busted or losing our access. In a nutshell, building jumps (especially occupied buildings) are hard enough to bag as it is, without felix broadcasting to the world that we're out there and doing our thing. It wouldn't even have been so bad if it was a legal jump and reported as such. That way everyone in a position of security would be happy that the status quo has been maintained. I really feel for the local jumpers in Mexico City at the moment. Their Buildings will be under a lot of scrutiny, but because of the global news networks, felix's antics create ripples way beyond the 'local' level that usually gets created when a jumper is spotted or busted. That's what bugs me. ian

Yo baldy. Wind yer neck in. ian

I'll keep my comments to the video. Very poor indeed. I ought to invoice you for a refund on my phone bill. The negative effect IMHO just makes it worse because the brain isn't used to seeing images that way. The eye naturally is drawn to the lightest part of the image which in this case is the part of the image you shouldn't be looking at. Night footage is best left as it is and if possible just push the gain/gamma up to maximize what little detail you get. Yes it can get pretty grainy and the highlights get blown but the viewer will often mentally pad out what little detail they can make out. ian

it's still shabby though. ian

Congratulations on what has to be one of the worst BASE videos in history leroy. It truly is stunningly bad. Just satisfy yourself with what must have been a fun jump and a job well done. Stop being so 'needy'. ian

I really hope this is a drunken post/joke/troll wind up cos the ramifications are pretty ugly if it's true. ian

That was a short delay (3sec) but a very long pc hesitation (canopy out at 8.5seconds) and what looks like a reserve deployment at the same time as the main deploys. I'm guessing he either had a standard skydiving pilot chute or a short bridle. 100ft less altitude and he'd have been dead. But then he learned the hard way so we don't have to. thanks for posting that. ian

Hi Sam My own personal experience is the absolute opposite. Leg strength (which i have) is of very little use to you when you're trying to clamber over a smooth builders hoarding around a site. You end up hanging off the top, scrambling away with your legs trying to get a toe hold on anything (a screw head or splinter of wood) to push up off . If you had upper body strength then you'd jump, catch the top of the wood and pull yourself up without all the kicking and thrashing and noisiness. The most common barrier for BASE jumpers i would say is your standard link fence with barbed wire across the top. They also tend to overhang to hamper climbing them. My experience is that climbing anything which overhangs requires upper body strength, arm strength, chest strength (again which i lack in proportion to my body weight). That famous shot of Cruise hanging in MI2. I don't see strong legs helping him out at that particular moment. Now your experience may be different to mine but then your not as heavy as me, and they don't call you 'hippo'. What i can tell you with 100% certainty is that if i could be arsed to work out and build myself into a better BASE jumper, the thing i'd be working on would be my upper body. But then don't just ask me, ask the poor bastards I jump with. ian ps. and hanwags couldn't be further removed from the rock climbing specific shoes that are used in that sport (canyons etc)

I think i fall into the category of the larger jumper. I currently weigh 225lbs without gear. I jump the following configurations ace280 for slider up jumps with larger landing areas which allow faster (skydiving type) toggles up, let it fly then flare approaches. ace310 which i use for the whole range of jumps but not for jumps where i expect less than 5 seconds of canopy time, as i do experience more end cell closure and wierd pressurisation and jelly fishing. troll305 which so far has been going great and i'd be happier to jump the lower stuff where i think canopy time is going to be under 5 seconds. The vents and valves mean it bangs open and pressurises solidly a lot more quickly than the ace. As a bigger guy under a bigger canopy i currently avoid freefalls under 210ft. I just seem to get a lot less canopy time than my jump buddies, although there are too many variables involved to say with any certainty that it is down to the canopy size alone. It is important to know your own limits. Not just ability but psychological limits and maybe even physiological limits. Just because you're a bigger guy doesn't mean you have stronger bones. Extra body mass puts more stress on your bones in an impact situation which lighter jumpers may just walk away from. Just because all these weedy little freaks can land in an area and be okay doesn't mean it will be okay for you. Buy a good pair of boots (hanwags or the like). Your ankles will be pushed to their limits when 220+ pounds of man and rig comes banging down on them at 15mph. Your tib and fibs are seriously at risk. I've broken both mine left and right. Seriously think about perfecting a good plf. It's better to be laughed at for plf'ing than to be laughed at for being on crutches. Be prepared to have the piss taken out of you constantly, and don't be surprised if you land yourself a less than flattering nickname. My one personal recommendation to a larger BASE jumper would be to try and build up a lot more upper body strength (which i lack in spades). It could prove very useful for climbing over fences, builders hoardings, suicide nets and barriers,hoists, trees, ladders, ropes and cliffs. You'll be wearing big sturdy boots which make it really difficult to climb in so you need to rely on your upper body strength (or the shoulders of a friend) and it means you'll be able to punch them harder when they start taking the piss out of you. Your weight isn't necessarily helping you, but it certainly shouldn't stop you when the time comes for you to decide whether you want to get into BASE or not. ian

Tom Are you saying that this happens because a lot of the time what we consider to be tailwinds are actually not pure 180 tailwinds and so the canopy is turned from the dominant direction. If it was a pure bona fide tail wind i can't understand how the wind could grab the cells at the front of the canopy and turn it one direction or the other. Surely all it can do is push. Crosswinds on sub terminal slider ups are something i am very weary of but have laboured under the belief that a tailwind was not something that would affect my heading performance per se, and to a degree, this has been my experience. Have you experienced the canopy getting pitched nose down (or rather tail lifted) and diving to the ground in tailwinds? ian

QuoteProgress, maybe:Quote Nope. Just more of the same. It's almost unheard of for a BUST jumper to go to court over here. You usually get a telling off and that's about it. One of the few cases that made it to court in the UK got thrown out straight away and the jumper was paid compensation by the police for wrongful arrest and seizure of their gear. They used this cash to finance a trip to Angel Falls. We're regarded generally as an annoyance and that's about it. Start breaking or damaging property though and they'll fire a burglary charge at you or B&E. I also would be careful doing any jump which might be construed as placing innocent bystanders at risk as this could prompt a reckless endangerment charge i fear. Easy solution to that. JUmp in the wee hours when no one is around. I have had brushes with the Police over here and on the whole I think they have a pretty good attitude towards us. I respect the fact that they have a job to do, and they seem to respect the fact that we have a passion to persue. My bust lead to no charges at all but a banning order from stepping foot in that part of the city for 6 months. Fair enough. Of course there will always be Officers with chips on their shoulders but on the whole, the boys in blue play a fair game i reckon. I'll probably get shot on my next B now i've gone and said that. ian

Super nice Guy. What a terrible shame. Thoughts go out to all who were close. ian

I have seen rage. It's one of my favourite BASE jumping videos out there. Even now. Just to be clear, I haven't got a problem with BASE movies that have music all over them. I really like Continuum I and II (i bought the K&D sessions because of it), I love 1st and 2nd BASE because of the music. I love Dead Air Dummies (but i know the gang so i'm biased of course) I just believe that using music in BASE videos, and by editing the footage in a certain 'music video' way steers the viewer into very specific emotional places, which by it's very nature means they are being manipulated or distracted, and that could mean they fail to appreciate the reality, the gravity, the very real dangers of jumping at certain sites and attempting certain types of jumps like aerials, tards/ roll overs, multi ways. With regards this thread I was wondering if the net result of so many of these videos/streaming mpegs is to create a culture within which new jumpers mistakenly under-estimate the complexity, difficulty and dangers inherent in BASE jumping. Just a thought that could partly explain why both Clint and Pope are finding an increasing number of ill equiped jumpers turning up at what are IMHO the most dangerous jumps you can do (short delay cliffs). ian

I utterly agree. Up until this summer, the closest wind tunnel for us Brits was the aerokart centre in Paris, which i visited quite a lot (being in a 4way team you tend to). Like most walks of life, what you put in you you generally get back, so if your are respectful and polite and slightly apologetic for not having the ability to converse in their language then you'll find parisians no different than any other metropolitans in the western world - slightly preoccupied and hectic but essentially friendly. I have found rural French people to be amongst the most hospitable on the planet. The added bonus for us BASE jumpers is that whereas in the UK and the states where people are often concerned about their level of liability and how what we do might effect them, in rural France they just shrug and tend to take the view that if you're stupid enough to jump off a bridge then fair enough. About 2 and half years ago I rolled up to a 350ft bridge in the south of france (a stunning bridge constructed very much in the Eiffel style) and explained to the owner of the Hotel at one end of the bridge, in very limited and inaccurate French that i wished to jump off it. They couldn't facilitate me enough, getting out timetables for the trains that passed over the bridge so i wouldn't get hit (or spotted by the driver). I then hiked to the landing area to explain to the landowner who again vaguely understood and just shrugged as if to say 'why you asking me'. I waited for a gap in the trains and jumped. Overdelayed a bit, got an instant 110left and ended up dangling from some trees about 3feet above the river. As i was spinning in my harness, amazed at not being injured or wet the old man i spoke to earlier came over to the bank, waved, said "bon jour" then walked off at a snails pace back to his house. I climbed out my harness, got a soaking up to my knees in the river and then stood on the bank wondering what to do next. The old guy re-appears with an axe and beckons me to use it on the tree - his tree - to free my parachute. I absolutely flatly refused and eventually got the canopy free by tugging and yanking on it. Not for a second did that guy look pissed or put out. He was smiling the whole time and couldn't have been more helpful. I dropped off a bottle of wine to him to say thanks and he was genuinely gob-smacked. The owners of the hotel were great too, letting me spread out my canopy to check for damage and eventually pack it. I stayed in their hotel too where they went out their way to prepare me vegetarian meals (and nothing baffles the french more than non meat eaters). Next to the Hotel is an old disused train station. The old guy who lives there is the old station master and as i was packing he came out and started gesticulating with frustration. I thought I was in trouble but what he was saying was he was annoyed he hadn't been in when i had jumped cos he would have loved to come and watch. The hotel owner then gave me some info on a motorway bridge i was intent on jumping about 1mile away which proved to be very useful. How's that for hospitality and tolerance. And remember, these were not legal jumps off legal objects. So, Viva la France is what i say. We could learn a lot by taking the odd leaf out of the frenchies books.

You hear that a lot with any big city. A lot of Brits think Londoners are rude and aloof, and i've heard many American's describe New Yorkers in the same way. That aside, i find that if you make even a slight effort to speak their language they respond in a much more positive way. ian

If you find that 100% of Parisians are openly hostile then i would suggest the problem lies with you. ian

Hi Clint Absolutely. Mentors and FJC's have a huge responsibility to explain some fundamental truths and suggest a sensible route of progression to their students, and although my experience of these courses is limited I believe that on the whole they do actually do this. However, a student's exposure to this 'conservative' approach to base on their FJC is for a very short time scale and so it probably doesn't influence them as much as perhaps would be desirable. I'm not suggesting that BASE DVD's are the source of all evil. They are not. I do think though that the prevailing vogue for showcasing 'COOL' over 'gritty reality' is having an effect on the expectations of newcomers to the sport (and i count myself amongst them). By snipping out the 'dull bits' and presenting 450 seemless, slick exits with technical aerials in 30minutes they distort what is actually quite a complex process; site evaluation, weather evaluation, ability evaluation, possible outcomes, outs, plan B's, landing patterns etc etc etc Not wishing to labour (labor) the point, but one thing springs to mind which, for me anyway, illustrate the disparity between what we see on most DVD's/ BASE movies and the actual reality. The first is quite simple. I've seen a fair chunk of footage of Jeb doing his thing and it has always impressed me. A few years ago in Norway i watched him prepare for one of his aerial spectaculars on the edge at Kjerag. I almost expected him to just stroll up and hop off i must admit, but the amount of time he took to prepare and visualise and go through his moves was truly quite an eye opener. Lots of eyes closed mental preparation, lots of check, double check, triple check his pc and pitch. In the end i think people were almost tempted to go push him off cos it was taking so long. But that was a good thing. That was a slap of reality. A slice of the action that usually hits the proverbial cutting room floor cos it quite simply isn't cool. That was what people need to see to understand that to make these spectacular jumps look so good you need to practice and prepare and train and visualise. This isn't coming across in many BASE movies and i feel that perhaps this is certainly a contributing factor in many low experience jumpers taking on jumps and sites which are far beyond their capabilities. Tom i haven't seen the ground is the limit but have just placed an order for one. I look forward to seeing it. ian ps. Clint. With a name like yours you should have your own Private investigation firm. Brilliant.

Hi Pope This is a genuine observation/question and not intended at all to be a dig at anyone, and I certainly don't mean to bait you guys or cause ill feeling. I have the utmost respect for you all. I just want you to know that before you read further. In some way, do you not feel that this is partially a case of reaping what you have sown. Continuum and it's sequel showcased the site as a 'playground' and in a way made it all look quite (for want of a better term) 'sanitized'. With it's emphasis on trancey music and aerials and cool road trips, it unfortunately gives the impression in a way that Moab is a place you just have to go and 'DO' after throwing a bunch of gainers and flippy do's off the perrine. Even the fruit salad section, and some of the little asides from the top (everyone's doing front loops) give the general vibe that it's a fun ,casual place to go and jump and experiment and try shit out and make fun videos in daylight. There just doesn't seem to be any underlying message that it's a place you have to have a healthy respect for. You don't really see people sweating it at the exit point (it's all smiles and jokes)....in fact the one thing you just don't get from it is a sense of fear or foreboding or just plain old scariness. I think the music is the main culprit (this applies to all base videos i have seen) but also the edit process removes a lot of the pre jump jitters and preparations and nerves so that you're presented with just one successful jump after another. Just a succession of 'no big deals' set to some cool music. Have you ever shown non jumpers or skydivers the final edit and seen them watch in awe but noticed they don't really get that pure 'gut' danger factor but seem to get more of a 'wow' factor. Play them the raw footage though and it's nearly always a different matter. They hear the wind and the birds and the pre jump nerves and the feet shuffling towards the edge and their response is usually more...respectful. They get it more....and so their response is more "i don't know how you can do that" and less "that's so cool, i'd love to do that" Like i said, this isn't actually directed specifically at Continuum as most BASE videos on the market employ the same devices and techniques. So i guess my point is, it doesn't really surprise me that newbies are turning up off their FJC's and not displaying the healthy respect they ought to. It comes as no great shock to me at all that 30 jump novices are trying out gainers off a 350ft cliff with only one previous aerial off the potato bridge and it wouldn't shock me to learn that people with a dozen jumps are weighing up going stowed and are oblivious to the added dangers they are exposing themselves to by doing so. I love BASE videos as much as the next man - in fact i love em more than most - but they do tend to skew what for many is the reality of jumping and present it instead in a sanitized and palettable form which turns real danger into real cool, and really lucky into really gnarly, and really sick (as in stupid) into really sick (as in rad). Maybe BASE has become a victim of it's own marketing success and maybe it might take the inevitable fatality and resultant up-roar over legal sites to get it back to where it should be, which is a past time not to be taken lightly and without appropriate respect. Does any of this make any sense to you. with utmost respect. ian

Whilst sticking to the usual protocol of not naming specific sites, would you tell me what you think is at the UK site you named that would single it out as a BASE paradise. I'm not sure what's there apart from an RAF base.

Is this a choice of military bases where you could be posted?

Lee That's some wonderful camerawork there. Really stunning. Congrats. ian (843)

This could get interesting....

that email address for sales keeps getting a failure notice. is that definitely the right address?? ian

(drumroll) tell your friends, he's here all week. i thank you ian