Liz

Um...this is you, right? And what's all this talk about amateurs...?

Does Caddying the Pub Golf qualify me? I got my Olympic snowsuit all ready!

The skyhook should be here tonight, and will be here Saturday and Sunday too!

I know the Skyvan and the Alouette Chopper for sure! They are doing the Skyhook jumps out of the Helicopter. The Super Otter will be there, too. If they are doing 40-ways, they will bring in a Caravan likely. And the Stearman Biplane will be available.

Hi there - There is free organizing on the Labor Day Weekend for freeflyers! And, they are planning a rockin Sat and Sun night, so it should be a great time. There is a big Freefly Boogie on Septembr 24-25 called CK Reborn - big ad in Skydiving Mag for it. They are bringing in big organizers for that one! Hope you can come.

The new, not yet official, Guinness World Record will stand at somewhere around 406 first jump tandem skydives! Freefall Adventures will be releasing the exact, official number this week when it is confirmed by the Guinness representative. Thanks to everyone who participated, all the new jumpers who started their skydiving life today, all the fun jumpers who couldn't believe how fast they got on loads, all the instructors and videographers who got up early and made it to the DZ at 4:30am, all the ground crew, office crew, support crew, organizers, Red Bull team, flair bartenders, the DJ, the Red Bull event staff, the food services people, and many many more who made this a totally fun day. I am heading back to the hangar for some moving and grooving! Hope we can do this again next year! Anybody thinking 500?....

Okay - It's 4:15, and off to the dropzone I go...

!4:30 as a matter of fact! Can you believe it? I sure hope you are playing hookie and joining us. I think there is enough sound equipment in the hangar for Woodstock III - $15 jumps all day and a rockin party at night! There is just no better way to spend a Monday! ......and I won't bet getting up early on Tuesday :^)

He'd be the one in the chartreuse microbus...

"Parents" - Randy Quaid, Mary Beth Hurt, Sandy Dennis, black comedy "JOhnny Suede" - Brad Pitt before fame, quirky hip "Funny Games" Michael Haneke dir. - thriller

Wait a minute...Hot Dogs? Don't get me started about hot dogs!!!!!!

Okay, you are right. You don’t owe nuthin to nobody. And if a guy with 6000 jumps organizes your load for free, and pays his own slot to get the plane in the air, you don’t owe nuthin to nobody. And when the DZ sends the 15 slot turbine with 6 jumpers just to get you in the air, you don’t owe nuthin to nobody. And when there’s stacks of pizza waiting for everyone at the end of the day, you don’t owe nuthin to nobody. And if the manifester calls you because he found an extra slot on the load you wanted, or she saves your lost gear in manifest until you return, or gets you a pair of scissors or a band-aid when you need one, you don’t owe nuthin to nobody. And if your rigger checks out a new set of gear that you want to buy, or spends time giving you recommendations or explanations about the gear you have, you don’t owe nuthin to nobody. And when the pilot gets you extra altitude, you don’t owe nuthin to nobody. And if the plane waits an extra minute so you can hop on the load even though you just walked in, you don’t owe nuthin to nobody. And when the same group of people jumps with you again and again so that your learning curve counts for your better skills, you don’t owe nuthin to nobody. And, should you land off, and you get a free ride back to the DZ within 10 minutes, you don’t owe nuthin to nobody. And if you have a cutaway, and the neighbors call to tell you where your main landed, you don’t owe nuthin to nobody. And after that cutaway, should the pilot fly the plane over the area to look for your freebag, and should your buddies tramp through the fields or woods to help you find it, you don’t owe nuthin to nobody. And when you are offered free seminars all day on Safety Day, including snacks in the morning and food after jumping, you don’t owe nuthin to nobody. And should a packer point out a little tear in your canopy, or show you a better way to route your bridle, or should she close the container just in time on the 5-minute call, you don’t owe nuthin to nobody. And when you land across “some line” and endanger yourself or spectators, I guess you still don’t owe nuthin to nobody. And if you drink or eat what is offered at the end of the day and fail to ask where it came from, and so miss an opportunity to make a new skydiving friend, you don’t owe nuthin to nobody. But that guy or gal who did buy beer, or sponsored the pizza, or laid out some snacks, gets so much in return. He or she has provided the “social conduit through which information is exchanged,” as Mark Kruse would say. The more information is exchanged between skydivers, the safer we all are. That is what we hope for when somebody buys beer. All the rest of the good stuff on this list will happen anyway, because that is the kind of community you are a part of even if you choose not to participate. But don't worry, we'll buy our own hooch, we'll jump with you anyway, and you don’t owe nuthin to nobody.

Tall and small Blue Gumbies! I think Bella is Brilliant!

K - just be warned about taking advice from Stacy. She is NOT KIDDING about sleeping on top of a car, and she even lost her car somewhere in front of her own house once! In fact, don't take her advice about cars OR sleeping! Good DZs maybe... HEY STACY! (AKA Dude Where's My Car)

Hey Adam: If you can swing it, come to Cross Keys for the "Take Pride in your Beaver Boogie" on October 18-19th. You can jump from a Skyvan for $20 Canadian! We are offering lift tickets to Canadians for Canadian $20 bills! If you need details, see our site at www.skydivecrosskeys.com, or email me directly for directions and motels. Liz

Okay - there was one weather-related motivation to come to the DZ. Imagine a load of skydivers, antsy to jump, dying to get some airtime. So they are offered chopper jumps. What unbelievable fun! That fast turbine engine, the panoramic view of hip-deep snow, the altitude, the freefall...wait a minute. THE HIP DEEP SNOW! Naturally, being Canadian, I ran out to watch, understanding the entertainment value of landings in deep snow. It is practically impossible to stand up. The jumpers didn't dissapoint. Everyone on the first load face-planed softly in a drift. It was a surprise to them and a delight to onlookers, some of whom hopped on load 2 regardless. We have actually been flying the chopper quite a bit, as it requires no plowed runway, and is fun at almost any altitude! Ya gotta try it!

Join us with special guest Glenn Bangs, USPA President, and soon to be our Director of OPerations! Glenn is bringing along all the latest stats and information from USPA. He has a full day planned with some guest speakers, so come on out and get ready for the 2003 season! [url]www.skydivecrosskeys.com

Just want to remind everyone to attend safety day. I know up here in the Northeast we have had no weather-related motivation to go to the DZ, but next Sat, come out and see your long-lost skydiving buddies, and hear Glenn Bangs, USPA prez. He is coming with all the latest info and the day is shaping up to be verrrrrry interesting! [url]www.skydivecrosskeys.com

$13 Wednesdays are more popular then ever at Skydive Cross Keys. Sometimes the parking lot is so full I get confused and think its the weekend. I realize some of you can't come because you are working, so I thought it would be helpful if everyone here posts their favorite excuses they use to get Wednesdays off and come to the DZ. PJ suggested this one: "Had to take the wife to the hospital because of a freak barbecue accident." When I was working in the real world I always planned ahead and said I was feeling ill a couple of days ahead. Then when I played hookey co-workers could honestly say I had been sick all week. What's your favorite excuse? See you tomorrow for one of the funnest days of the week at Cross Keys! (Funnest IS a word in skydiving).

Please join us at Skydive Cross Keys this coming weekend for our "Who Needs the Beach Boogie". Bring your sunhats, Hawaiian shirts, and fanciest bathing suits. Bring your gear, too! Get ready for tequila sunrise jumps, and entertainment from GorrillaGrips!

Now is the time to come up with your excuse for missing work tomorrow. It looks beautiful, and $11 jump Wednesdays continues at Skydive Cross Keys. We open at 10am. What could possibly be better on a Wednesday than jumping for $11?? Are you practicing that "bad cough voice"? Put your gear in the trunk - I'll see you at Cross Keys!

Hey - thanks to everyone who came out to Freezefest 2002 at Skydive Cross Keys! You guys were all just TOO much fun! We made about 500 skydives over 2 very chilly days, including jumps from our new Super Otter, our Caravan, the Helicopter, and even some Arctic BiPlane jumps (until the pilot was just too damn cold to continue - thanks Tom!) Saturday evening you all provided some great entertainment in the Winter Beer Olympics - and Monkeyclaw deserves our gratitude for encouraging everyone to chug waaaay too much beer! I gotta say, this was the most fun I ever had in February! I hope I see some of those new faces again - you all rocked!

Okay - the jumpers themselves are now calling the Feb 9-10 weekend our "Who needs the Beach?" Boogie. I am getting a really big response, so it looks like the first 2 weekends in February, Skydive Cross Keys is the place to be. And $11 Wednesdays are still really popular, so check it out. And Kelly...could you drop by the pool place and get some cleaner? We got a mop with your name on it hee hee hee...

Oh my dog! The new Cross Keys Super Otter is going to get us all in shape, because I have never seen those jump sluts at Skydive Cross Keys run so fast for loads. The turn times on this new Otter are really fast! We flew 17 full loads today (Sunday) between 11am and 5pm and they weren't even all back to back! We are having so much fun, we are opening tomorrow, too. And Wednesday - don't forget $11 Wednesday! And Friday...and then FREEZEFEST 2002! Yep, I think Kelly is going to have to clean that pool...

Start thinking up an excuse to take Wednesday off! The weather calls for 71degrees in the sunshine at Skydive Cross Keys. Even better, $11 Wednesday jumps continue with our Skyvan and our Caravan! Watch out soon (maybe tomorrow) for the Bride of FrankenOtter - our new Super Otter!! www.freefalladventures.com