kkeenan

You could move to England. From evidence I've seen, they don't have dentists there. _____________________________________ Dude, you are so awesome... Can I be on your ash jump ?

Yes, it definitely needs to be done. But not with people as the "ballast". This can be a high-risk operation, with the jumpers too low to be anything other than victims if things go bad. The only thing you save by using people is that it's easier than loading some secured weight. That's no reason to risk your friends. The sad part is that plenty of people see no problem going along with this. It's just an unnecessary risk. Kevin K. _____________________________________ Dude, you are so awesome... Can I be on your ash jump ?

Usually, pointing out to someone that their actions could kill people is more than enough to make a rational person examine those actions. You, however, are concerned that this matter is not being addressed in the kind, loving, supportive way that Young Jarred can absorb in his nurturing, womb-like world. Well, Fuck that. Anyone who responds the way Jerrod has to safety comments (no matter how unkindly they are presented) does not have the maturity to be trusted in a Tandem environment. As has been pointed out here, Tandem Passengers are not there for vidiots and TMs to showcase their newest tricks. They deserve the highest level of professionalism and safety, and if that's not "fun enough" for the jumpers involved, then they need to get out of the Tandem business. It hasn't been too long ago that a young swooper, when given advice about unsafe practices told us all how he was God's gift to skydiving and we were all just jealous of his phenomenal skill. That "expert's" ashes have since blown away in the winds of freefall and will eventually be followed by those of more "experts", who hate the fact that a bunch of "Old Farts" want to restrict their obviously supernatural ability. These things have a way of working out. Being in the sport for some time allows one the length of vision to see the trends and patterns that cannot be seen from a short view. Nothing is certain. Maybe someday Jarred will be a wise, old jumper thinking of the obstacles he overcame on his way to greatness. Or maybe he'll be a picture on a DZ wall, that people will feel sad every time they pass, thinking, "If only I could have said something more, maybe..." Kevin Keenan _____________________________________ Dude, you are so awesome... Can I be on your ash jump ?

A Mind is a Terrible Thing... A lot of people (maybe most) skydive because of the adrenaline rush. It's exciting. If it were completely safe, your mind would know that, and not be scared shitless, no matter how wild a ride it was. The fact that your mind knows (at least it should) that you can be hurt or killed in some horrible, extremely violent way, makes it imperative that you do it right - and therefore it is thrilling. Sometimes, when jumpers have been at it a while and are very competent and comfortable with one type of jumping, they will move to another, that they don't feel so comfortable with. This added fctor of newness and increased difficulty brings back the thrill that may have diminished for them. I am fairly familiar with CRW (Canopy Formation). I have seen folks with years in the sport and several thousand jumps come down from a CRW jump saying, "I haven't been that scared since my first jump - When can we go up again ?" The trick is to manage this thrill/fright feeling and use it to both keep you on your toes (don't forget that horrible, violent death thing) and to feed your adreneline need (Woo Hoo). Kevin K. _____________________________________ Dude, you are so awesome... Can I be on your ash jump ?

Dude, you show the kind of determination that makes folks want to help you. I think that the suggestions about yoga are the best. Find a good instructor, who can understand your needs, and they will stretch you out properly. The belly flying idea is good also, since you don't stretch out the hamstrings as much. Lots of good skydives are made this way. However, you still need the flexibility in your legs to avoid landing injury. Good luck with your training. Kevin K. _____________________________________ Dude, you are so awesome... Can I be on your ash jump ?

Put that hash mark on the PLUS side! True. Plenty of DZs wish they could make that claim. _____________________________________ Dude, you are so awesome... Can I be on your ash jump ?

We had a fun weekend of CRW at ZHills. One jump in particular made for a pretty good story. We were building a 6-way Box with Annie DeKoker on right Row-3 wing and Dave Hillebrandt as the tail of the 4-way. Stan (The Shark) Bussey was the lockup between Dave and Annie. Stan was in the process of docking when we started to break the formation to do a run-back. As the formation broke apart, Dave, Annie, and Stan came together in what looked at first like a couple of bumps. It looked like Dave was going to be sucked into the mess, but popped out and flew merrily away. Annie's canopy stalled, dropping her into the middle of Stan's canopy, and it was Off to the Races. As you may know, Annie weighs about 110 lbs. soaking wet. Stanley weighs about 220 (wet or dry). Stan's canopy wrapped around Annie like the shrink wrap on a CD. They started spinning at a high rate, with Stan on the end of the lines and Annie cocooned in his canopy under her still-inflated 113 Lightning. The spin was pretty fast, and they were descending like crazy. Annie said that she was completely wrapped, and the fabric was so tight around her face and chest that she couldn't breathe - she also couldn't move anything but her legs. I think the load of Stanley pulling 2-3g in the spin was probably considerable. After 4-5 revolutions, which Annie said seemed pretty long, the spin stopped and they were flying stable under Annie's L-113. She said that at this point, she was starting to pass out. A few seconds later, Stanley cut away. The weather had been pretty funny all weekend, with gusty winds and increasing clouds. The wrap ccurred at about 8k. As the wrapped pair spun downward, with the rest of us chasing, we were directly over a large cloud. They were probably about 300-400 above the cloud when Stanley cutaway, disappearing in freefall into the cloud. A few seconds later, Annie flew into the cloud with Stan's parachute around her. She said that it was a huge relief when Stan cutaway. She was still completely wrapped in the canopy, but being able to breathe again was a major improvement. By the time we all cleared the cloud, we were all ofer the sky in all different directions. We could see Stanley's reserve for the first time, so that was a relief - he would apparently live on to cause yet more chaos on another day. Annie, meanwhile, was trying to get free of The Shark's canopy, which was tied pretty securely to her body and risers. Dave flew up next to her, yelling for her to start cutting. She hadn't wanted to use a hook knife on the canopy, but with Dave's encouragement, she started hacking. Soon, the canopy was free, landing near the airport with Dave following close by. A search was done for Stanley's free bag, but it is still at large. I'm not sure if Dave thought about who would be fixing Stan's canopy when he told Annie to use her hook knife on it. However, with the number of cut lines, and cut and torn fabric, it looked like it had been run over by a Pasco County mowing tractor. Dave will be busy for a while. Annie was pretty battered. The fabric squeezing around her pushed her sunglasses into her face, so she thinks she'll have a couple of black eyes. Those will go good with the bruises all over her body. She said that today she feels like she's been in a car wreck. Everyone loves a good jump story. I figured this qualifies. Blu Skize, Kevin 3 _____________________________________ Dude, you are so awesome... Can I be on your ash jump ?

Yeah, well, that does trump good judgement at many DZs. (Might also explain that spin...) _____________________________________ Dude, you are so awesome... Can I be on your ash jump ?

More "jobs that Americans won't do..." _____________________________________ Dude, you are so awesome... Can I be on your ash jump ?

There are many capable, professional packers and packing operations in the U.S. But, there are also many who operate on the fringes - legally, financially, and ethically. From what I can tell, it's an all all-cash, no-taxes, off-the-books economy in which anyone, regardless of qualifications can make a living in the U.S. A pocket full of rubber bands, a pull-up cord and a few words of English, and you're in business. There are Federal Regulations requiring supervision, but at many DZs, these are unknown or winked at. The cover-all explanation for any bad result of a packjob is "It was your body position". People have died as a result of a string of events started by a bad commercial packjob, and the packer involved was never even spoken to. All cash - no responsibility. What's not to love about a job like that. Once again, there are a great many packers whose ability and credentials are above reproach. I respect these folks and their hard work tremendously. But we all know that there are others... Kevin Keenan _____________________________________ Dude, you are so awesome... Can I be on your ash jump ?

I hate to sidetrack the thread, but I'm thinking that anyone who spins uncontrollably and has to be rescued by the video guy maybe doesn't really belong on a 4-way. Kevin _____________________________________ Dude, you are so awesome... Can I be on your ash jump ?

Congrats to Jim. A true pro in the skydiving business. _____________________________________ Dude, you are so awesome... Can I be on your ash jump ?

That's the beauty of a Gravity-Powered sport. Once you step out the door, it's all Physics. Now, if we had to pedal or flap or something to get to altitude, I'd definitely be sitting under a tree with a cold one watching the youngsters. _____________________________________ Dude, you are so awesome... Can I be on your ash jump ?

Because it's fun, if you do it right. The best start to doing it right is to ask about it before you do it wrong and get all beat up. Kevin _____________________________________ Dude, you are so awesome... Can I be on your ash jump ?

That's more than I can say... _____________________________________ Dude, you are so awesome... Can I be on your ash jump ?

Motto of POPS (Parachutists Over Phorty Society) : You don't quit skydiving because you get old, you get old because you quit skydiving! - Bill Wood Couldn't have said it better myself. Kevin _____________________________________ Dude, you are so awesome... Can I be on your ash jump ?

And if the taste is like biting into an electric wire and you can't taste anything at all for several weeks, it's still probably battery acid. There are better ways to check for it than sucking on everything in your trunk. Kevin _____________________________________ Dude, you are so awesome... Can I be on your ash jump ?

LOL. I have a vision of that guy going to every event he could find that featured a demo. He probably has his wife whack him in the shoulder with a ball bat a couple of days before, then shows up with the "smoking pin". Hopefully, she's still beating him and the demo jumpers are still telling him to shove that pin up his ass. Kevin _____________________________________ Dude, you are so awesome... Can I be on your ash jump ?

Gee, where have I heard this story ? Oh yeah. We used yo have a guy like this in the U. S. Very charming, very well-liked, very talented and skilled. No one grounded him, or chewed him out, and if they did, he would turn it into a joke and everyone went away remarking on what a fine upstanding individual he was. That guy is dead now. A good friend of his is also dead. Friends of both of them have spent a lot of time and tears thinking about what they could have said or done to prevent the accident. Funny thing is, there is no shortage of the things that could have been said or done. The only problem is that No one did any of those things. Get as many people as you can, who agree with your point of view, and go to the DZO and calmly explain that none of you will buy a single jump ticket at his place until this concern is dealt with. You may not even feel bad if this gent does himself in with his antics, but if he takes one of your friends in with him, you will hate yourself for your inaction. Kevin Keenan Florida, USA _____________________________________ Dude, you are so awesome... Can I be on your ash jump ?

Silly me, I didn't know. Maybe the rest of the world is not following your progress as closely as you think. Anyway, you imply that an AAD is something that you would rather not have and that you will only acquire if forced to by regulations. I realize that you have 4 whole jumps, and all of the knowledge that comes with that experience. However, the rule requireing an AAD for students is a good one, and the AAD may do more than make a hole in your wallet - it may keep you and your new rig from making a hole in the DZ. Kevin Keenan _____________________________________ Dude, you are so awesome... Can I be on your ash jump ?

*** CAUTION-Check with your Instructor First *** Something to think about with student equipment is the setup of the steering lines. On many student / rental canopies, the steering lines are set up rather long. I'm not sure if this is to lessen the chance of students stalling them or not. Regardless of the reason, if the steering lines are extra-long, it takes a longer control movement to produce a good flare. Someone with shorter arms, may not get much of a flare at all. When flying the canopy, look up at the steering lines and see how much you have to pull a toggle down before the tail of the canopy actually moves. If it is more than 8-9 inches, that is pretty loose. You may be able to get a better flare by wrapping the steering lines around your hand once to take up the slack before you land. This will move the flare point to a part of the stroke of your arm where you have more strength. It will also flare you a bit higher, so be careful of stalling too high. Please be sure to check this out with your instructor before trying it. There may be reasons for you not to do this, and your instructor is the best judge of that. In any case, gym work on your arms will allow you to do more canopy work on each jump without getting tired andwill make you a better pilot. Kevin K. _____________________________________ Dude, you are so awesome... Can I be on your ash jump ?

I recently turned 55, and I've noticed that as I get older, I don't seem to be in sync with whuffos my age. I think that hanging with "them young whippersnappers" at the DZ affects my perception of age. Also, dodging swoopers in the pattern really keeps you on your toes. Until I achieve perfection in RW, CRW, Wingsuit, and Freeflying, I'll be hanging in there. (That may take another 35 years.) As long as Pain Pill technology keeps advancing, there should be plenty of Old Farts around the DZ. Kevin _____________________________________ Dude, you are so awesome... Can I be on your ash jump ?

Tom is right. The only way to get through to the person is through the DZO grounding him (and enforcing it) or the other jumpers refusing to jump with him. It's doubtful that the DZO will send the airplane up with only one person on it. Kevin _____________________________________ Dude, you are so awesome... Can I be on your ash jump ?

I caught that, too. The MC clearly expects the dude to bottom out. It looks like if he had one of those 3" transponder antennas on the bottom of the fuselage, he would have bent it. In March, we had a L-39 jet do something similar at our local airshow ...except for the staying in the air part. It produced quite a large explosion. _____________________________________ Dude, you are so awesome... Can I be on your ash jump ?

Yeah, Saturday was OK at DeLand, but Sunday, we had a "Smoke Hold" most of the day. I thought that meant we were all supposed to go to some van in the parking lot, but it was actually due to the fires all over the state. Kevin _____________________________________ Dude, you are so awesome... Can I be on your ash jump ?