skreamer

In general the fact that I wasn't current on big F111 canopies, in particular timing the flare on landing. I reckon about 20 jumps on big F111 canopies (doing the CR drills) would've sorted me out. I'll be hooking my Fox up to my accuracy rig and doing those drills starting this weekend - better late than never but I should really have done it before the FJC. Will

I agree, it is just a pity that they don't talk very much - especially Patrick, he is very quiet and shy. I'd also recommend Rob Silver from the Sebastian Freefly Center. Got some coach jumps off him, learnt heaps and had a bloody good laugh - top geezer!

BBC article - US to transfer troops into Africa Funny how the large ungoverned areas of Africa the Americans want to tackle are the ones with large oil-fields off the coast. But of course the war in Iraq wasn't about oil and I'm sure they will come up with some excuse about 'stabilizing' Africa not being about the oil either.

Could that possibly be because the Dark Lord wasn't in last year's movie?

Yo smokedude What kind of tracking practice did you do in skydiving to get your technique perfect? Two way max tracks with video or just general (ie bigger way) tracking dives? Or is it just a natural talent for Norgies? Will

For me it is like the difference between driving a car and go-kart racing. Sure the car/turbine is faster and more comfortable, but the go-kart/182 can be a helluva lot of fun.

Here is a pic of the Sugar Glider on Tom Aiello's site. I met Sean briefly in SA in May, he was testing a suit then. Since there was so much wing fabric that could cover the handle, he had a method of reaching all the way back and then sliding his hand along the bottom of the container until it reached the handle. Will

Emma and Ron Are either of you familiar with Reader's Digest Condensed Versions?

Good luck! (and don't mention skydiving if they don't ask)

LMFAO, now that was quality. Quade, I'm guessing here that you are a fan of John Cleese.

Hi everybody The trailer for the third Swedish Freefly Festival can now be downloaded here. The Swedish freefly festival rocks and Glenn makes kickass skydiving movies! That is all, carry on. Will

How about a sooooperior forum for South Africa? Some people would only be allowed to post some of the time and even then they'd have to have a pass to be allowed on the forum. I am very sure segregation on the forums would work, I mean not all skydivers are equal are they?

So for only $822 extra you would have your own rig after 150 jumps? Seems like a bargain to me. Anyway how do you know you won't want to carry on skydiving after 150 jumps, in which case you'd want your own rig anyway. Did you pick 150 jumps simply because that is the absolute minimum required by any FJC? Why not get some more skydives in, wait until you've had to deal with some shit in skydiving and then see how you feel about pushing your envelope? Pesonally I was happy with the amount of skydives I had before my FJC (470 inc. 1 cutaway) however it was the type of skydives that I should've done differently. A big advantage to waiting a bit longer is that the longer you skydive beforehand the more contacts you will have when you do start BASE. Somebody with 150 skydives and a couple of jumps on a FJC is probably not going to know all that many skydivers let alone BASE jumpers. From my personal experience the dropzone is a good place to meet BASE jumpers. This could lead to anything from watching them pack their BASE rigs, watching their personal BASE movies to perhaps even doing some ground crew for them. Will

OK Jesus.

When you are ready, get coaching from an experienced freefly coach. Not just experienced in terms of jump numbers but also experienced in terms of coaching. Along with freefly skills they will also teach you about safety (both for you and the people you jump with/after/before). Buy a second audible and always keep a spare set of audible batteries in your gear bag. Will

Howdy all I've been back a week now and quite a few people have been asking for feedback about the FJC, so here goes. I was in a class of four doing the BR FJC with JJ (gotta love the acronyms). I chose BR because I had bought a BR rig second hand (got a great deal through the dz.com classifieds - thank you Andrew). I'm sure all the various FJCs are good and anyway I have no basis for comparison. So rather than try and say what was good or bad about one particular course I thought I'd rather give some general feedback. Here are some of the mistakes I made : I had a total of 470 skydives prior to doing the course, I felt ready for the course however I hadn't been doing the right kind of skydives prior to the course. I wasn't current on big-ass F111 canopies, 400 jumps on relatively small ZP canopies doesn't help. Bottom line - my canopy control sucked. (CR has some great material for practicing canopy drills in a skydiving environment). I wasn't current on packing F111 canopies. If I did the preparation over, then I would've packed the static line canopies at the DZ on the weekend. This would've brought in extra cash (my flights were £603 alone) and got me lots of F111 flat packing practice. I had the bright idea to wear camera on one jump. The throbbing ache at the top of my neck made sure I didn't do it again. My course started on the Saturday morning 8AM. I arrived at my motel at 1AM that morning after 19 hours travelling (3 flights). This was stupid of me. Anybody else travelling to Idaho from Europe for your FJC, sacrifice a day and allow more time to be ready for the course. Mistakes aside, I did have a great time. I managed to get 12 jumps in : 1 PCA, 4 handheld (including 1 slider up) and 7 stowed. I could've got more in, but I lost one day due to a sore foot and it was too windy to jump two other days. Eight of the jumps were on the course and under supervision which was great. The theory part of the course was largely revision for me (I've been reading as much as I could on the net for a long time). However the real value of the course was in having an experienced jumper you could ask all your questions for 3 days. Especially when packing and debriefing, that was probably where I learnt the most. I must say that JJ was really patient (I wasn't the quickest learner). The other thing I learnt on this course was that no matter how prepared I thought I was, the real thing is totally different. I was very scared, I knew it and JJ could see it. After my first stowed jump my hands were shaking when I was packing. For me it is still a real conflict. I would be totally scared until I was counting down, then I would just get this massive calm sense of release as I left the edge. The real adrenaline headfuck for me was after deploying, that 'wait' to feel the canopy was just unreal. In the beginning I was just looking up. Then I started getting my peripheral vision back, started seeing the canyons on the side. Then I started sneaking peeks down. I am not a BASE jumper yet. I am a skydiver who has done some BASE jumps. I reckon after I've flicked something illegaly at night, after I've chosen to walk down rather than jump, after a whole bunch of other shit I'll know. But jumping a legal span in daylight under supervision with a boat ready to give you a ride (or rescue you) doesn't make you a BASE jumper (IMHO). My final observation is about the other jumpers I met there. I went there almost expecting DZ attitudes and egos. But everyone was really friendly and helpful. I met Jimmy and Marta from Vertigo, we were talking about South Africa. Also met Robert and Cathy from Morpheus along with loads of experienced jumpers. All of them were friendly and sincere. I commented on one guy's T-shirt, asked him where I could buy one, next thing he gives me the shirt off his back - I shit you not! (thank you Johnny). I didn't have a car (yes, I was the pedestrian in TF that week ), another jumper drove me out to the airport. (thank you Mark). And a last bit of advice : just because you are staying in Motel 6 doesn't mean you can't have breakfast at the Shilo. Will

This canopy was made by PISA. PISA no longer exists, it was incorporated into Aerodyne and no longer makes Hornets (or Heatwaves, Tempos, Skymasters). I have made about 300 jumps on a Hornet '150 (loaded ~ 1.25:1), but only have a couple of jumps on Sabres. If you are considering buying a Hornet you should be aware that the fact they are no longer manufactured will/should be reflected in the price. Also, if you do buy it you can still get it relined by Aerodyne. Will

On my recent FJC I was on the bridge waiting to do jump #4. The guy jumping before me had a hard opening, got disoriented and flew to the wrong side of the river. He hit the rocks there, broke both his feet and fell back into the river, Don pulled him out. This was in broad daylight from a legal span with a 'rescue' boat waiting below. I reckon if I choose to carry on jumping I have to accept that I am going to see or personally experience worse. This is not something that I am coming to terms with lightly or flippantly. Will

Won't happen, you are too Yellow.

Green? Pink? If I had my way Remster would be Black and Blue...

Seeing eye dog? Are you referring to my bitch that moved to Canada and promptly turned green?

I have FF2 so am biased, but problem with FFX is you have to take the camera out of the helmet to change batteries or firewire footage. Much easier with the flap on the FF2. Yes, they do now supply quality chin cups similar to the Bonehead one. After reading my comment in this thread I got an email from 2K offering me a free chincup. I was already using the Bonehead chincup but was impressed nonetheless with their after-sales service. Will

Proof positive the mad cow disease has hit Texas...

You kiss your mother with that mouth?