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Sure glad I bought a few WFFC videos from Q and Rantoul. Not nearly as good as the real thing, but better than nuthin... kinda like porn movies. 2018 marks half a century as a skydiver. Trained by the late Perry Stevens D-51 in 1968.

Did you shoot that? Wow! I see a face in that star cloud? No, not Cooper's face. 2018 marks half a century as a skydiver. Trained by the late Perry Stevens D-51 in 1968.

Beautiful shots Beatnik! Were these really approved as reserves??? 2018 marks half a century as a skydiver. Trained by the late Perry Stevens D-51 in 1968.

If you want to see a genius inventor take a look at the history of Philo Farnsworth. He invented electrically scanned video (TV as we know it) and actually described HDTV in great detail eighty years before we had the high bandwidth electronics to do it. He was no Da Vinci, few were, but he had incredible inventive intellect and remains obscure and under appreciated. Edwin Armstrong is another. He made basic radio circuit inventions in the 1920s (and even earlier) that have not been improved upon even today. 2018 marks half a century as a skydiver. Trained by the late Perry Stevens D-51 in 1968.

yeah, how about just leaving a note on a pack of gum that says stop taking this stuff or you will be fired. I really hate thieves, but have a sense of proportion. A VP at my last job left a twenty dollar bill sitting in plain sight in his cubicle permanently. Said it was a workplace honesty meter and made him feel good every morning when he returned to see it in place. Cleaning crews get blamed for lots of stuff they don't do. I worked one summer as a janitor and know that first hand. A couple of cases of toilet paper and tampax disappeared from a storage area. I got the f--king third degree but it wasn't me. It is really disheartening to be a suspect every time something goes missing. That's what it's like if you are a janitor. ' 2018 marks half a century as a skydiver. Trained by the late Perry Stevens D-51 in 1968.

if you want to see a truly amazing machine go to the Computer History Museum in Silicon Valley. They have a working Babbage Difference Engine on display. It is a Victorian Era mechanical digital computer. It's really big, very complex and was built recently to Babbage's exact drawings. It works, can be programmed and can print answers. Not a single bit of electronics in it, just gears, cams, etc.... and a big hand crank. I'd like to see it driven by a steam engine. Babbage was not as multi talented as da Vinci, but his intellect was no less amazing. This guy had digital computing figured out before electronics even existed. 2018 marks half a century as a skydiver. Trained by the late Perry Stevens D-51 in 1968.

It's all about the money and it's a national disgrace. The overbilling and downright fraud on the civil side of the Iraq war is costing every single one of us dearly. You wonder why W has no clear exit strategy? The Iraq war is a money faucet for Blackwater, Bechtel, Halliburton and other outfits with strong White House ties. How would you like to be awarded a no bid contract to build infrastructure in Iraq and receive a huge multimillion dollar standby/readiness payment without ever having to do ANY actual construction? Do ya really think George Bush Jr. is going to turn off the spigot even one day before his term ends??? "NOT GONNA" This corrupt adminsitration has ironically given rise to their worst nightmare: a liberal black man as a viable presidential candidate. Obama wouldn't have a prayer if he had to follow a Republican presidency that balanced the budget and had moral integrity. Nice going guys. Tell me, was it worth it? 2018 marks half a century as a skydiver. Trained by the late Perry Stevens D-51 in 1968.

How far will you take it Beatnik? Would you jump an unsleeved silk round from WW 2 if it was structurally sound? I'd forgive you if you cut a couple of steering slots in it and deployed subterminal. Keep up the good work. I love to see historic aircraft fly and your canopies are indeed historic unpowered aircraft. 377 2018 marks half a century as a skydiver. Trained by the late Perry Stevens D-51 in 1968.

Is this consistent with choosing a spot to build a fire? Wouldn't you want to build it away from all the debris that had been swept into that area? I know I am being paranoid, but the money find has always been suspicious to me. I look at every detail with a skeptical eye. No worries, I have taken my Lithium and Haldol today and can acknowledge the real possibility that it occurred exactly as reported. Who among us can explain how the bag got from the flight path, including throw and wind drift, to Tena bar? Is Jo correct in saying that there is no natural water transport path that could account for it? I don't know much about river hydrology, but I do know that ocean current eddys collect floating trash quite effectively. I fished tuna commercially between Midway Island and Japan. We would occasionally run across vast floating trash dumps formed in current eddys. Sometimes you'd get lucky and find a LOT of Japanese glass net float balls in the midst. You'd also find a zillion pieces of carelessly discarded trash, and sometimes dead birds entangled in it. Never any money though. You could go for hundreds of miles and see zero floating debris then you'd come across one of these aggregated trash areas and see literally tons of floating junk. Some of it had been floating for a long long time judging by the accumulation of barnacles. Big barely afloat logs made these areas hazardous to navigation. Maybe there was a lot of driftwood on the area of Tena bar where the money was found and that would explain why the spot was chosen to build a fire. Can't wait for Sluggo's return, and where is Snowmman? Has he returned from blowing up that North Korean nuke enrichment plant cooling tower? 2018 marks half a century as a skydiver. Trained by the late Perry Stevens D-51 in 1968.

Here is Beatniks "game": no matter how poor the original performance, if he can find a historic canopy he will jump it, including old reserves. If they made an exact copy of the Titanic and planned a maiden voyage next winter through the North Atlantic ice fields without radar, Beatnik would buy the first ticket. I like to read about skydiving history. Beatnik likes to relive it. Wonder if he wears French Paraboots? 2018 marks half a century as a skydiver. Trained by the late Perry Stevens D-51 in 1968.

Jo, Why do you focus on land ownership so much? Is it because you will seek permission to cross private land or do you suspect Duane was assisted by some landowner or ? You seem pretty energetic in your recent posts. I hope that indicates an upturn in health. 377 2018 marks half a century as a skydiver. Trained by the late Perry Stevens D-51 in 1968.

that's a great idea. thanks! SKYDIVING MAKES CRACK SEEM LIKE (--------------- ) fill in suggestions: broccoli, oatmeal, cabbage what other ideas for fill ins?? please post. 2018 marks half a century as a skydiver. Trained by the late Perry Stevens D-51 in 1968.

Hmmm, now that tells me something I didn't know... that these types of river sandbars are natural aggregators for flotsam. So maybe now the odds are one in a million rather than one in a trillion. Still pretty remarkable, but perhaps not as far out as I originally thought. Sharing real life experiences can add a lot towards figuring out all these Cooper things. Like jet jumpers telling their exit stories, we'd just be guessing and theorizing otherwise. Thanks Happythoughts. 2018 marks half a century as a skydiver. Trained by the late Perry Stevens D-51 in 1968.

What if I revised the text? POINT BREAK (picture) MAKES SKYDIVING SEEM LIKE CRACK but in reality, it's just beer 2018 marks half a century as a skydiver. Trained by the late Perry Stevens D-51 in 1968.

Hi Beth!! I am not a druggie. I wouldn't know crack from Nutrasweet. I just get bored with no WFFC this summer and like to stir things up. What good is the First Amendment if ya don't use it? I'd drop the whole idea if I knew there were going to be WFFC 2009 t shirts available next summer on site somewhere. Sure miss you and the whole gang. Mark 2018 marks half a century as a skydiver. Trained by the late Perry Stevens D-51 in 1968.

Judging by how much a ragged piece of a Cooper $20 brought at auction, if they concealed and spent extra found money they must be kicking themselves now. If the find story is true, it is one of the most remarkable needle in a haystack stories I have ever heard. What are the odds? 377 2018 marks half a century as a skydiver. Trained by the late Perry Stevens D-51 in 1968.

Never got kicked off myself, but in my time I have seen Bill Dause kick out quite a few jumpers from Pope Valley and Lodi. I quickly learned to keep a low profile, never pull low and not fuss about anything at the DZ. For cheap jumps it was worth keeping my mouth shut. 2018 marks half a century as a skydiver. Trained by the late Perry Stevens D-51 in 1968.

I nominate all of the women over forty who jump. Most young women look great just because youth has its own inherent beauty. Any twenty year old can do extreme sports easily, but those who pull it off at twice that age (and more) are beautiful to me no matter what they look like. It is ten times as hard to look good at 40 as it is at 20, so anyone over 40 who looks half as good as they did at 20, is waaay ahead of the game. Do the math. 377 2018 marks half a century as a skydiver. Trained by the late Perry Stevens D-51 in 1968.

It is a just a one off. I am not a t shirt seller. Just getting tired of the same old skydive t shirts. You can get one made to your design for under ten dollars at: www.vistaprint.com I am not pushing this outfit, there are many others. Vistaprint did a good job on one I ordered but they bombard you with spam so be careful what email address you give them. 2018 marks half a century as a skydiver. Trained by the late Perry Stevens D-51 in 1968.

what Acme said, especially bout number 3! Surprised you saw so many. I thought most Texas snakes held political office. 2018 marks half a century as a skydiver. Trained by the late Perry Stevens D-51 in 1968.

look at this tshirt design. picture is public domain. t shirt text reads: POINT BREAK (picture) MAKES SKYDIVING SEEM LIKE CRACK but in reality it's just meth. 2018 marks half a century as a skydiver. Trained by the late Perry Stevens D-51 in 1968.

If the Israelis can hunt for Nazi war criminals some of whom must be close to 100 years old by now, the Cooper hunt still has some life left in it. Just when you think there is no point in further searching, they find some guy in his 80s who was a concentration camp guard or similar, so there is some proven merit in searching for old people who have escaped justice for over six decades. Let's not close the Cooper book too soon. It isnt costing the taxpayers much. It sure isn't Ckret's main job and he has a bunch of unpaid tireless and smart assistants. There is some historical value in solving the case, even if it does not result in a live prosecution. Cooper lives, if only in our minds. 377 2018 marks half a century as a skydiver. Trained by the late Perry Stevens D-51 in 1968.

Congrats Sangiro! You have built a really great website and deserve to finally make some serious money for all your efforts. Hope the new owners can keep the flavor and spirit intact. Thanks for what you have given us. Getting skydivers working together in an organized and disciplined manner in a free environment like dropzone.com must be like herding cats, but you (and especially your moderators) did it! I also think this website may have saved some lives. The Incidents forum and wise advice from experienced jumpers and riggers have probably prevented a few newbies from biting off more than they could chew on canopy choices, camera flying, swoops etc. 377 2018 marks half a century as a skydiver. Trained by the late Perry Stevens D-51 in 1968.

Finding the rig (without any body parts) wont tell us whether he lived or died. He could have shed the rig and died en route to civilization. I used to think that the lack of a body find meant that Cooper survived the jump. Now I am not so sure. What do you think? Splat or $Phat$ or alive and still broke (lost money bag in jump)? 2018 marks half a century as a skydiver. Trained by the late Perry Stevens D-51 in 1968.

Guru, We need some Cal Tech people on this forum. Quick, while the channel is still open, ask Feynman who Cooper was. I am sure he could put together a mathematical model that would give us the answer. Othewise I am going to have to rely on Shirley MacClaine. http://www.shirleymaclaine.com/ My Oiuja Board said McCoy was Cooper, but it was wrong. Those cheap made in China boards are junk. They made me sell Google at 123. As an aside, I was talking with a hunter friend about the odds of finding Cooper's body if he went in. He pointed out something interesting. There are Cougars (Mountain Lions) that live in the hills of the San Francisco Peninsula. Once in a while one roams into a city and is shot by cops, which confirms their continued existence in the area. He said to his knowledge not one dead Cougar has ever been found in the hills around here. He asked a game warden whose beat is their habitat and he had never seen a Cougar carcass although he had sighted live ones. We know they live there, they obviously die there, but their bodies are never found. I used to think that if Cooper went in, his body would have been found. Now, I am not so sure. If he fell into really thick brush his body might have remained hidden and eventually decomposed to bones. I have always thought Vultures would find Cooper's body if he went in and circle it for weeks. Vultures might give up on a carcass that is in the midst of very thick brush. From my obervations of Vulture behavior they want a quick exit path always available. I watched Vultures work on a cow carcass that had washed up on a beach where I was vacationing. The carcass had a hole in it. The hole was just big enough for them to go inside the body where there was much more to eat. They could fit, but they wouldn't go in. Too easy to get trapped. They ate everything that they could access from the outside, but eventually gave up and stopped visiting the carcass which still had a lot of stuff inside. I have tried to figure out what Snowmman's aerial photo of his "home" shows but I am having no success. It looks like a possible Superfund site is all I can say. 377 2018 marks half a century as a skydiver. Trained by the late Perry Stevens D-51 in 1968.