scottmyers

Amazing post. GREAT STORY! Thanks for sharing with the rest of us jumpers and one-time jumpers. Scott Myers Mineola, TX Gig em, Garland Owls!

Man, that's great photo clips you have there, Howard. It does bring back memories of just reading about those who lived and skydived in the 1960s. THANKS for sharing! Scott Gig em, Garland Owls!

Cool, Howard! I wish I could go to this reunion just to rub shoulders with those who were in the sport back in the 1960s. Plus I'd love to chat with Anne, Barbara and the other ladies about how they felt being in a man's sport and having lots and lots of success while showing the guys they love skydiving as much as they did. Scott postscript - Does anyone know if "Barbara Roquemore (Parachuting)" that came out on VHS back in 1972 is still available on the Internet? Just asking...and thanks in advance. Gig em, Garland Owls!

Just curious, Howard. Is champion skydiver Anne Batterson planning to attend? Just wondering since she won at the "young" age of 16 back in the early 1960s. Thanks! Scott Gig em, Garland Owls!

Fathom was a bit awesome because of Raquel Welch packing a parachute in a bikini (yeah, hot ya know). But how about this movie I was doing a Google search on? DON'T MAKE WAVES starring Tony Curtis, Claudia Cardinale and the late Sharon Tate as the skydiving babe Malibu. How about the stunt in the plane where she's ready to jump and Tony not only gets in the way....but falls out of the plane without a chute? Sharon Tate to the rescue...oh, and they land holding onto each other into a pool! Classic comedy for a 1967 flick! Scott (Back into my lurk when I have time to visit here) Gig em, Garland Owls!

To set the record straight, ladies AND gentlemen...the cheerleaders were wearing the golden colored jumpsuits the Golden Knights have (with the U.S. Army logo on the jumpsuit) NOT their skimpy looking ahlter top outfits. That would have been cool just to check out BUT alas not to be. And they were debriefed about what to expect and what to do during the jump. There was a video clip posted at http://www.dallasnews.com. Check it out while you can, folks! Blue Skies to one and all! Scott (postscript -- I would have loved to jump with any one of those cheerleaders, but not trained to jump solo yet. DARN! ) Gig em, Garland Owls!

I saw this story unfold this morning on the local FOX-TV morning show. Members of the Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders took part promoting the USO and the Golden Knights parachuting team at Meacham Field in Fort Worth around 9 a.m. Video of this story can be found at http://www.myfoxdfw.com (look under Good Day link) and also at http://www.cbs11tv.com (look under News Story link). It was a good story folks! Ten of the cheerleaders were pulled from rehearsals this morning and were whisked away for the skydive. All of the ten chosen did a tandem jump. All landed successfully too! Enjoy! Scott

I agree. This seems, to me, another cycle of unneeded tragedy in this sport. As to how the FAA handles the unforseen deaths that have happened is yet to be seen. *frowning as I walk out of the chat room* Gig em, Garland Owls!

Whatever happened to Donna Wardean? Wasn't she a jumpmaster at Aero Country Airport near McKinney back in the 1980s? (Memory might be faulty on that train of thought!) Gig em, Garland Owls!

FIVE DAYS??????? Ouch! Go to a different DZ! Gig em, Garland Owls!

All that just to demo a jump for US Steel? Incredible.......BUT TRUE! Gig em, Garland Owls!

Welcome aboard, Diane! Blue Skies to you from Texas! Gig em, Garland Owls!

Welcome to the family....the dropzone family that is! Gig em, Garland Owls!

Looks like that girl in the oldtime photo has that look of praying that the chute opens when she pulls the ripcord! Gig em, Garland Owls!

Anne Batterson is a well-known author and naturalist. That's what I found out when I did a Google search. Gig em, Garland Owls!

Tiny Broadwick. Heard of her just reading about her. But how about the women skydivers in the 1960s? Muriel Simbro, jeanni McCombs, Anne Batterson, Helen Lord. Now those are also pioneers in the sport much like Tiny, albeit they had two chutes to use instead on one Tiny used. Gig em, Garland Owls!

Welcome to the neighborhood. Didn't know there was a DZ in Beaumont. Ask about whatever happened to their website...tried to check the DZ website out and got an error message. Gig em, Garland Owls!

I heard about the DZ and have visited it at least a couple of times when I was bored and needed to get a shot of adrenaline by driving out from Garland and just watching what was going on. Best memory I had was checking the DZ out in 1986 and remembering the whole place as just a rundown airport that was good enough to be used as a DZ. I remember meeting a lady jumper named Marilyn who had a tragic accident a few years later and wound up in bad shape. Have to ask since I am still a newbie here. Anyone come very close to burning in at the DZ? I do remember a plane crash that took a couple of lives back in 1986 or 1987. Sidenote: Before having the courage to finally do a tandem jump, I had visited that CZ as well as the one near Lake Lavon (small DZ), near McKinney (Aero Country Airport where there was a small DZ and got my first and only observation ride back in 1984.....what a thrill just to go up with only a round main chute on my back and no reserve chute....wondered if I had to use it in an emergency!!!), and one other DZ in Gainesville before they closed that down (I remember being stuck up there for a few hours while a bad thunderstorm came thru the area and did visit with a couple of people there and shot the breeze with them). See ya! Scott Gig em, Garland Owls!

WOW! What a time warp to go back into when you check out those covers of what it was like to skydive in the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s. Gig em, Garland Owls!

One correction in the post about my jump. My tandem master was Glenn Hodigren, a great guy who helped me be a bit calm throughout the jump. The videographer was Carolyn Provost, great gal to watch in freefall while doing her job running the videocam! Anyone know what they are doing now since I heard from a good source that Skydive Texas closed their dropzone for good? Thanks for the time. Good night and good luck! Scott Gig em, Garland Owls!

Steve1, you mentioned about a girl skydiver in the 1970s that kept falling and didn't deploy until she was out of sight...and looked as if she went in, but didn't. I am wondering out aloud about past female skydivers (1950s thru 1980s) that had scary experiences and those who actually went in. I remember reading in one of the skydiving books about a female jumper on her first solo in 1959 and not pulling either ripcord, staying stable, and hitting the ground. No reason given why she never pulled anything, and she may have had a heart attack while in freefall. Scott Gig em, Garland Owls!

Shayna, I won't be one to criticize what happened to you or the aftermath. I am not one to judge your personal or skydiving life. I am one who was shocked by what happened to you and, as I told freethefly, I just wished the NATIONAL MEDIA hadn't screwed this story up a lot more than they did. May you heal soon, God bless you always, and Blue Skies and SAFE LANDINGS next time! Scott Gig em, Garland Owls!

I am trying so hard to keep from laughing at what I just read on this thread. Guess everyone does have their moments similar to what happened to best experts in their profession when they have a meltdown moment. See ya! Gig em, Garland Owls!

In case you haven't seen it, here's the tandem photo. A bit dark, but viewable. Gig em, Garland Owls!

Didn't know where to post this, but here is what MY FIRST TANDEM SKYDIVE was like. It was cloudy and rainy Saturday morning, October 9, 1999, as I awoke at my brother's apartment in Dallas. Had spent the night after attending a high school game to start my vacation time from work...and wondered if I could go thru jumping out of an airplane for the first time.....ever! Ever since growing up in Kansas back in the late 1960s/early 1970s, I had a fascination of the sport...even remembered watching it on ABC'S Wide World of Sports. Loved the lady jumpers and the reserve chutes on the chest side of the body...and wondered how they did cutaway from the main if it didn't open. I do remember a story about a female champion skydiver died when she had a malfunction, and never opened the reserve. That did scare me a bit....but then again, I was only 12 or 13. (Ah, yes, youth being innocent back then) Flash forward to 1999. Now 36, had wondered if I could finally go skydive for the first time...but didn't want to fully commit by telling anyone about it. Instead, I kept it to myself in case I did back out and "no one knowing any wiser of it." I called around and got in touch with the DZ manifest person at Skydive Texas near Decatur...asked if I could come out and do a tandem. She said, "Yes, come on out." I drove out that morning, still a bit nervous about the jump and hoping it stayed cloudy...and it was UNTIL I got into Wise County. The skies cleared. Oh, great. Got to the DZ and the skies had cleared. Checked in, signed in, got weighed in (247....extra charge for being a few pounds overweight. Still am a bit overweight around 245.) After paying the money for the tandem jump (with video and photos included), I watched an introductory video that calmed my nerves down...oh, yeah....had to sign my life away (that scared me a bit....but I was going to go thru this jump and NOT BACK OUT NOW!) Got assigned to a jumpmaster named Glenn. Big guy who could handle my size.