NickDG

Find better Instructors. Okay, I won't leave that dangling . . . There are some Instructors that shy away from problem students and some that welcome them. The ones that welcome them make it their business to see that you succeed. They don't get wrote up in PARACHUTIST, get gold medals hung around their necks, don't get called athletes, or cop big endorsements from beverage companies. But they put their heads down at night re-winding the fact you finally turned and burned on your AFF Level 5. And that makes them sleep like babies . . . So like I said, find better Instructors . . . NickD

Read it this AM over coffee. You don't need a Kindle as it will D/L to your browser via the Kindle Cloud although you do need an Amazon account. NickD

The bigger question is why the person on top is called a Tandem Instructor? NickD

>>Anyone serious about the sport and about instruction in the sport has to accept that 100 jumps is a drop in the bucket

If you use Firefox there's a plugin for D/L, converting, and saving YouTube videos, or any other videos on the net. It's called downloadhelper. There's also stand alone programs that do the same thing. And I hope the rest of you guys aren't Coaches or Instructors, the poor guy asked a simple question and no one seemed to understand it, lol. NickD

In past years I've asked my skydiving friends to get involved with "Letters to Santa." This was helping young children when they ask Santa for clothing, school supplies, a warm winter coat for Mom, etc, However, due to the U.S. Postal Service being in financial trouble they have scaled back the program except for in some major cities. Another factor, if you can believe it, is some not very nice people were using the program to stalk the kids! So this year I'm asking for monetary donations to "Meals on Wheels." I started volunteering with the Los Angeles MOW program (the largest MOW program in the country) and they really do a tremendous amount of good. We prepare and distribute 3600 meals per day to the elderly, the seriously ill, shut-ins, and others who for any reason can't shop or prepare meals for themselves. One very important thing it does for the elderly is gives them a few more years in their own homes before moving into and becoming dependent on a senior care facility. MOW depends almost entirely on private donations to fund the program so I'm asking for the price of one jump ticket even if it's just a hop & pop. We are a non-profit so all contributions are tax deductible. You can do it online here: http://donate.stvincentmow.org/ProductDetails.asp?ProductCode=donate-1 Or directly to us at: St. Vincent Meals on Wheels 2131 West Third Street Los Angeles, CA 90057 In either case indicate the word "Skydiver" somewhere with your donation and maybe we can become a yearly force MOW can count on. Thanks! And have a wonderful Christmas everyone! NickD

A giant! Rest in peace Ted . . . NickD

http://www.cnn.com/video/#/video/topvideos/2011/10/13/pkg-couple-has-sex-while-skydiving.kget NickD

http://www.break.com/index/girls_getting_a_bikini_wax.html NickD

Originally the four lines were only color coded and pilots (after bailout or ejection) were taught to actually cut the four lines with a knife. But once under an open canopy the majority of pilots thought, "I ain't cutting nothing!" The mechanical "four line release" was in answer to that issue. NickD

Richie Stein, BASE 74, had over a hundred B.A.S.E. jumps before he made his first skydive in the late 1980s, and it was sort of a faker at DZ Xray. He was schooled on how to walk up to manifest, along with two other experienced skydivers for a garden variety three-way. (Look nervous and keep touching your handles, LOL.) In the door it became de-facto AFF and he did fine except under canopy at 3000-feet he wondered why he'd pulled so high . . . (I only a little to do with it.) NickD

We preached for years about the differences between BASE and skydiving (to keep folks safe) and it's nice to see people echoing that up-board. However, whenever a non-jumper asks me how many jumps I have I tell them but then always feel the urge to mention my B.A.S.E. jumps too. So I know, either from a plane or from an object, at least in my subconscious mind, a parachute jump is a parachute jump. That being said we had an old saying, "Don't B.A.S.E. jump at the DZ and don't skydive off the Flatiron building." So using your B.A.S.E. jumps to get signed off for a pro rating, even though I sort of agree with what your saying, isn't done, yet. Maybe someday. But when they send you up for your pro-rating accuracy jumps there's nothing that says you can't smile and make it look easy . . . NickD

Charleston, wv is where most fly into. Rent a car or stand around looking needy. So many jumpers come through there you'll get ride. NickD Be careful when buying your ticket. I've known two people that ended up in Charleston, North Carolina, LOL!

>>Well, they do have one, for Veterans that are service connected disabled. I have one.

Great! It's been some months now and the new transmission is holding up okay. NickD

I'm here. All's well! NickD

>>My personal thanks and gratitude to all veterans here for your service to our country!

9ina's new transmission is here! Yippie! I opened it up to check everything and it looks good! NickD

My favorite was after landing out by the Rock House in Perris after a 40-way with a bad spot. I stuck my thumb out and an ancient pickup truck stopped and the driver, a grizzled old timer in coveralls, waved me into the cab. We drove about a mile in silence until he finally said, "Skydiver, eh?" "Yes, sir," I answered. Figuring now I'd have to answer all the standard whuffo questions. But after another mile or so all he said was, "You're not too good at it, are you?" NickD

Good news! I e-mailed Ultima yesterday (the manufacturer of 9ina's transmission) and this morning I got a call from the head cheese himself. He told me, yes they did have a problem with bad pawl springs and he's sending me out a brand new upgraded version transmission. These newer ones have a better gear set and a much stronger pawl spring. It good to see great customer service! 9ina will be happy! NickD

1st major problem with 9ina! (Ya know, how woman are, LOL.) So I'm riding down the 210 Freeway and minding my own business and it's one of those great SoCal nights where you can smell the oranges and the honeysuckle, like you're breathing flowers, and everyone is smiling at me, and all of sudden BANG! Something lets go in 9ina's transmission! I angled my way over three lanes not being able to shift up or down. The pawl spring (a known issue in the transmission I have) finally let go. So tonight I'm tearing it apart, but at least I'm not sitting on my couch watching the Oscars!! I'm hoping they just send me a new one, and they've upgraded the spring on the newer ones, so I'll be golden! Lock up your wimmins . . . NickD :)

Kev, find another DZ, you got robbed! Floating Otter exits are less than optimum for early AFF dives (1-3.) Door exits (where you drag it out onto the hill) are much easier and successful (for you!) The Mainside JM should have let go of you much sooner. A rodeo like that is totally 1980s AFF! Both JMs riding through your deployment is what gave you the dead slow bag lift. If I was scoring this, like I did for twenty years of being an AFF evaluator, I'd give Reserve Side a 2 (for releasing at the right time) and then staying with the dive (he lost a point for the ride through, though) But Mainside get's a big fat frigging zero! I won't even mention the chance you might have panic pulled and wrapped your bridle around Mainside's GoPro that was hanging out there like a big Matzo Ball! Is this the end result of the new AFF certification program? NickD

http://www.cnn.com/video/flashLive/live.html?stream=stream1&hpt=T2 More info on the last Space Shuttle Flight . . . http://www.spaceflightnow.com/shuttle/sts133/110131rollout/ NickD

Probably, in his world, she was a terrorist! NickD

For those not aware, in most States (California included) assaulting an EMT or paramedic incurs a higher penalty (along the same lines as assaulting a police officer) than your garden variety assault. NickD