jcrouch

Josh's dad owns the maintenance shop at West Point, and has been there working on planes for more than 20 years. He brought Josh to Skydive West Point in 1993 when Josh was 11 or 12 and asked us to teach him to pack parachutes so he could make some money and stay busy on weekends. He was a good kid, and the Queen Air crash in 1995 really devastated him, losing so many friends at such a young age. We stole his youth, and he grew up fast hanging around a bunch of 20-40 year old skydivers. He traveled with us to boogies all over the U.S. and packed parachutes. He was probably the only 13 year old with an ATM card and making more cash in a weekend than most kids 5 years older were making in six months at the local McDonalds. He ended up getting his girlfriend pregnant at 15 and he worked hard to raise the baby and help his girlfriend wherever possible. He came home for leave from the Coast Guard a few years ago and we put him through his A license training (the little bugger never did pay me for it, but I did not really mind). A year later he hooked himself in down in Alabama or Mississippi and broke his pelvis. His dad came to the DZ hangar and told me when he injured himself, and it was sad to hear. But his dad, Curt, said that Josh was tough and stubborn and would be OK. He was real proud that Josh was making something of himself in the Coast Guard. Curt came to me in the same hangar last weekend while we were doing the 88 way jumps and told me about Josh. He looked pretty stunned, as were all of us there. Seeing his picture in the Honolulu newspaper made me realize how much he looks like his dad. 2008 has been a tough year for many of us at West Point Skydiving Adventures, losing friends to oddball accidents. Blue skies Josh, your troublesome pelvis won't bother you anymore. Jim Couch

Friday afternoon and Saturday was lost due to Hanna rolling through. There was some practice 40-50 way formation loads done on Thursday and Friday morning. Sunday we started at 8 AM with 89 ways out of two Casas, an Otter and a King Air. There were a couple of slots shifted around, some late arrivals added and a couple of people cut, and the 4th attempt was an 88 way that came within two seconds of completing before break-off at 7K. The 5th and final attempt built faster and was held for about 6-8 seconds or so. The 88 way is the official state record, recorded with USPA and the new state record program. We had a successful 87-way back in 1997, and the Suffolk attempts in 1999 built to 98 with the 99th person out. So it was very close to a complete formation but did not complete. Hopefully sometime we can get a successful 100 plus jumpers to make a 3-digit record for Virginia. Congratulations to all the participants. The record jump flew really well. The organizers and club volunteers busted their ass to put this event on. Jim Crouch

I am not sure where this rumor started. My drop zone, West Point Skydiving Adventures, was the only DZ to participate in the inspection program as soon as it was available back in 2002, I think. I wanted input from an outside source, to see if I was missing anything important or necessary that I should have been doing, but might not have thought of. I was pretty sure that the student training and gear were better than average, but at the time, I was not a pilot, and wanted to make sure the aircraft and pilots were as safe as possible. The inspection went well, I learned more of what to look for in pilots and aircraft, and in the end there was nothing that needed to be changed. JE Vannatta did the inspection and was thorough and professional, but then again I have always found him to be that way, so I did not expect anything less during his inspection. Sorry for the long post, I just got tired of hearing this rumor over and over about the "one" DZ that was inspected and failed, when it was my DZ and I know the truth. Regards, Jim Crouch

Hopefully the date and location of his drop zone farewell-ash dive (if there is one) will be posted here. I would like to make it to the event, if it is at all possible. Beezy was such a great human being. It is so sad that he is gone.

I am sad to say that Benny Sherman lost his battle with cancer at 6:15 PM, December 27. His wife Terrie and his only daughter Tiffany were both at his side as he passed on. A page has been added to update his friends and family on his services. www.skydivethepoint.com/benny.htm There will be a service in Mechanicsville, VA for him in the next few days, and he will make one final skydive with his family and friends at Skydive The Point in West Point sometime in the future. Keep an eye on the web page for information updates.

Bill's obituary is in the Washington Post today. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/12/03/AR2005120301211.\ html

Anyone out there have the correct line lengths of the steering lines for a 1994 Sabre 135? I will call PD in the morning, but thought I would post to see what comes back. I didn't see anything in PD's manual for line dimensions. Thanks, Jim

If someone is working on the basics it is a one day course on Saturday. If someone is interested in more advanced canopy control the course covers both days. So a jumper of any experience level can be accomodated. Sorry for the confusion!

Due to last minute cancellations there are 2 slots open for teh Scott Miller course this Saturday and Sunday, May 15-16. $75 per day plus slots for 10 jumps. Send me an email if you can make it. The class is limited to 8.

Hi Jon, Yes it looks like we will have a lot of help with our camp which has been moved to June 4-6. Lyn Hannah has helped us make some arrangements for coaches and canopies. We are still working out the details. Thanks, Jim

Hey I am looking for a CRW Coach to host a CRW training camp for newbies June 19-20 at Skydive The Point in West Point, VA. We would need canopies as well. I would expect 10-15 interested in participating in the camp. Dave Richardson are you interested? Anyone else? For those of you who may have heard about my CRW expertise don't worry, I'll stay on the ground! Let me know! Thanks, Jim Crouch www.skydivewestpoint.com

Man are you ever rough on an old, worn out skydiver (But not as old as YOU! HA!) Heather is doing well and really showed a lot of determination working towards her license! She was always prepared when she got to the DZ and studied all the book stuff ahead of time. I would buy her a beer if it weren't for 6 months of crap weather and the fact that I am fighting my dog over the bag of Dog Chow!