PrairieDoug

Damn! As a resident of MD (in Montgomery County near DC), this headline had me pumped. This passed as soon as I saw the new DZ location. For those who aren't current on their Maryland Geography, Garrett County is at the far western end of the state, at least 3+ hrs from the DC suburbs. Bummer. Anyway, thank goodness for Chambersburg Skydiving Ctr (PA), a nice DZ only 80 miles from my door.

I've done some PB with my son since he's really into it. One thing that I've found bothersome is that some of the new technology allows shooters to just lay down a virtually continuous stream of fire at very high velocities. Then the technology becomes more important than the strategy and skill. I'd like a game where each player is limited to, say, 10-20 balls per game. That way, you'd have to really think carefully about picking your shots, so winning would take superior strategy and shooting ability rather than just the latest, greatest marker. Does anybody play that way?

Maybe this is one of those cases where you can take the "high road" without being a doormat. You've already gotten the best years outta that rig. If I were in your shoes and had other rig options, I'd return the rig with a smile and tell the person not to contact me again under any circumstances. BTW, it sounds like ther person may have some mental health issues. (Not saying that judgmentally, it just helps provide some perspective.) Doug

I will... what a tough, uhmm, break.

By this reasoning, if I love I'm probably also Muslim, Buddhist, Jewish, etc. to a degree. I thought being Christian required believing that Jesus is the Son of God and all that. But I defer to those who are better informed on the topic. Edited to add: Anyway, the main point of my original post was to say that even non-Christians can welcome the participation of Christians in skydiving.

I'm NOT a Christian, or otherwise religious. However, I think it's great that skydiving attracts a broad spectrum of people, including those of different faiths, genders, nationalities, sexual orientation, economic class, etc. For me, this is a people sport, and I would get bored if all skydivers fit a narrow profile. Edited for spelling.

Sarah -- Great question. I'll just mention that my New Years resolution for '05 has been to not initiate or continue any gossip. It's not that I ever was a big gossip, but it had become an issue within my circle of friends and I didn't want to be part of it. Doug

This reminds me of a funny story. About 10-11 years ago I took my kids scrambling around some boulders on a nearby mountain. My daughter Laura -- about 10 YO at the time -- found herself at a precarious overlook and said exactly those words, just as casual as can be. I just said "Really?" My girlfriend responded "Well, I guess the apple doesn't fall far from the tree." I don't know, I had never used that phrase around her and it's really not my style. I think she saw it on TV or something. Fast forward ahead a few years and she completed AFF in the minimum # of jumps.

... and by cool I mean totally sweet. (Sorry, couldn't resist.) I would be so thrilled and proud if one of my daughters took me on a tandem one day.

I'm sure Morgan's fiance has had a very positive impact on her progress in skydiving. Sometimes the student eventually surpasses the teacher, but that just means the teacher did a great job.

This student apparently hasn't heard that "If you're going to be stupid, you better be tough."

Did any men attend this boogie? If so, apparently the women made a bigger impression on you than the guys... which is totally understandable! I'll definitely have to put this event on my list for next year.

Both my surgeries were done using an "allograft" (donor tissue). This provides for a faster recovery because there is no additional cutting to harvest the ligament. I was told that an allograft is not quite as strong as an autograft (self-donated tissue), but is still much stronger than the original (pre-injury) ACL.

Hi hottuna -- Disclaimer: I'm not a physician. Having ACL reconstruction on both knees. however, has led me to learn some about ACL injuries. My understanding is that reconstruction of the ACL is not required in all cases. It depends on the nature of the injury (esp. amount of "collateral damage" to other parts of the knee), your age, and the kind of activities you want to pursue. That said, if you forego surgery it will be necessary to compensate for the missing ACL support by vigorously strengthening the surrounding muscles. This takes time and must be done before you consider jumping. Initially, a torn ACL will usually result in considerable instability that can flare up even when just walking. Don't rush this process. Following my second ACL tear about 2 years ago, I delayed surgery in favor of physical therapy and a brace. It worked pretty well and I was able to jump about 6 months after the injury. But my recovery sort of leveled off at about 90% of where I wanted to be and I went ahead with the surgery a couple of months ago. I plan to be back in the air in May. In both of my cases, the surgery has been very successful. Best wishes whatever you decide to do.

I share this dream and can't think of much else I'd rather acheive for myself. (For others there are lots of things I'd like to provide.) Unfortunately, unlike you I don't feel very close to it right now.

Ron -- This is really helpful, thank you. I'm going to look at the options and see where that leads.

I appreciate the feedback... rehmwa -- thanks for the tip on the camp this week... unfortunately I'm rehabbing from knee surgery and won't be ready for the tunnel until April or so. Who are the "regular" organizers that you speak of? Rosa -- I've been wanting to visit Perris anyway, so maybe I should combine that with a trip to the tunnel.

I was hoping to attend a FS tunnel camp in Orlando this spring, but not much seems available. As I recall, last year both Airspeed and NSL had a pretty full schedule. This year Airspeed is focusing on Perris and AZ camps until late July and NSL seems to be out of the tunnel camp picture completely. Did I miss something? I guess the solution is to go to Perris or AZ, but Orlando is more convenient. Thanks, Doug

For the record, my G3 Unisyn fits like a glove.

At the CSS Thanksgiving boogie. Just had ACL surgery in early Jan., so I'll prolly be grounded until May.

huh?

My kids gave me the 1st 3 seasons of Family Guy on DVD for Christmas. I had never seen it before, but they said if I liked The Simpsons (of course!) then I would definitely like FG. They were right!

Like you suggest, I have also found that there is not a perfect correlation between jump #s and ability. Taking advantage of coaching, skills camps, and tunnel work can really accelerate the learning process. For the jumpers I admire and try to emulate, the learning process never stops, even when they have 4-digit jump numbers.

What a gem of a post, really thought provoking. Sometimes in Bonfire I feel like an old-time gold prospector, sifting through cubic yards of mud to find the occasional nugget. This is the sort of thing that makes it worthwhile.

Very cool pics, but I alwys imagined the Statue of Liberty with sexier legs than that.