NWFlyer

I've always done it that way even with the smallest groups. I can still remember my hybrid at 50ish jumps, two-way base, single hanger and being 1) shocked that we pulled it off and 2) surprised at how fast the hanger disappeared when he dropped off (and the two of us in the base hung out for another 1,000 feet). "There is only one basic human right, the right to do as you damn well please. And with it comes the only basic human duty, the duty to take the consequences." -P.J. O'Rourke

When I've been on hybrids each group has a breakoff altitude, which is staged. The freeflyers (no matter whether they're hanging or stinging) are gone a good 1000-2000 feet higher than the belly flyers (exact difference dependent on how big/experienced the group is). They should be well out of the way before the belly flyers start to track. Of course, always good to have an "if everything went to shit and we're all back on our bellies to regroup" alternative tracking plan, which would probably be no different than a belly jump of the same size/mix of experience levels. "There is only one basic human right, the right to do as you damn well please. And with it comes the only basic human duty, the duty to take the consequences." -P.J. O'Rourke

Yep, me neither. As long as I'm home, it's almost always home-brew for me (Trader Joe's "Joe" coffee is my bean of choice lately). Every so often after a session with my trainer I'll treat myself to an Americano from Peerless, the local roaster that's been an Oakland-based family business for 80+ years. Otherwise, paying for coffee is an "on the road" thing for the most part, usually on a company expense report. Even then it's usually a $1.50 20 oz cup in the cafeteria, not a $4 coffee shop version. "There is only one basic human right, the right to do as you damn well please. And with it comes the only basic human duty, the duty to take the consequences." -P.J. O'Rourke

Quit paying packers till you can do it yourself, reliably and repeatedly. Then it can be an option not a requirement that you pay a packer. "There is only one basic human right, the right to do as you damn well please. And with it comes the only basic human duty, the duty to take the consequences." -P.J. O'Rourke

+1 on that one. Really liked it.

I was till his last few books ... then I thought he really jumped the shark. Next was almost unreadable. "There is only one basic human right, the right to do as you damn well please. And with it comes the only basic human duty, the duty to take the consequences." -P.J. O'Rourke

It was Tuesday. Somewhere I have a Down Boy Down cassette. At least I did at one point - not sure where it might have gotten to. "There is only one basic human right, the right to do as you damn well please. And with it comes the only basic human duty, the duty to take the consequences." -P.J. O'Rourke

For fiction - which I don't read much of - I just finished Steig Larsson's Millennium trilogy (The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo, The Girl Who Played With Fire, and The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest) and really loved them all. For non-fiction (most of what I've been reading in the last few years), I've enjoyed all of Michael Pollan's books. Recently I read Blind Descent: The Quest to Discover the Deepest Place on Earth by James Tabor - a really cool look into another "extreme" sport, mega-cave exploration. "There is only one basic human right, the right to do as you damn well please. And with it comes the only basic human duty, the duty to take the consequences." -P.J. O'Rourke

Mad John, you really are getting old since not only is there already a thread about the boogie, YOU started it. "There is only one basic human right, the right to do as you damn well please. And with it comes the only basic human duty, the duty to take the consequences." -P.J. O'Rourke

I have a similar philosophy to quade's. I try to seek out local coffee shops whenever I can, but Starbucks is there if / when you need it as a known quantity of a certain quality level. Hotel lobbies. Airports. Situations I'm in fairly often, where I just need to caffeinate and get on with my day. But generally if I'm looking to hang out at the shop, or if I'm in my own neighborhood I'll hit the local place above Starbucks almost every time. And in the OAK airport Peet's trumps Starbucks every time (fortunately they're not far from each other so no matter where I am in the terminal I can go to Peet's). Back to the original question - I use a straw, hot or cold, whether it's in a store-bought drip coffee or Americano with a paper cup and lid, or if I'm drinking homebrew in a travel mug. One of my criteria in choosing travel mugs is a good straw space. "There is only one basic human right, the right to do as you damn well please. And with it comes the only basic human duty, the duty to take the consequences." -P.J. O'Rourke

My first job out of college was for a company that did a LOT of public sector consulting. We actually took the word pubic out of the MS Word dictionary for that very reason... "There is only one basic human right, the right to do as you damn well please. And with it comes the only basic human duty, the duty to take the consequences." -P.J. O'Rourke

Well no wonder you were ill! "There is only one basic human right, the right to do as you damn well please. And with it comes the only basic human duty, the duty to take the consequences." -P.J. O'Rourke

Spence will be a good source of advice, as will Rich Grimm (user name grimmie) who has 6 years experience putting on the Boogie in Belize. "There is only one basic human right, the right to do as you damn well please. And with it comes the only basic human duty, the duty to take the consequences." -P.J. O'Rourke

I'm surprised JohnMitchell hasn't chimed in on this discussion yet - he had to make that very decision last year. http://www.dropzone.com/cgi-bin/forum/gforum.cgi?post=3636677 Bear in mind that the two people involved in this save both have 20+ years and 4000+ jumps and multiple instructor ratings. They had the skill and experience to pull this off (and in this case, the altitude as well). As skybytch has pointed out, that may not always be the case, and in a different situation with different players (or an unconscious victim who is much more unstable) things can end very differently and very badly. "There is only one basic human right, the right to do as you damn well please. And with it comes the only basic human duty, the duty to take the consequences." -P.J. O'Rourke

I'm pretty low-maintenance and I haven't stayed anywhere I'd consider truly awful. The worst I can remember recently was the America's Best Value Inn in Sun City (near Perris). The room itself was okay - bathroom and room were clean and everything worked well; what concerned me about it was the security - I was on the first floor so I had a sliding glass door to a patio plus the front door of the hotel room - and both of them had horrible locks on them. I ended up creating a fire hazard by shoving the table and chairs in front of the patio door and my heavy duffel bag in front of the front door. I figured at least if someone tried to break in they'd make a lot of noise trying to get past that stuff. "There is only one basic human right, the right to do as you damn well please. And with it comes the only basic human duty, the duty to take the consequences." -P.J. O'Rourke

You're cool as long as you do them in that order. Get a few more jumps under your belt and you can do the ultimate skydive/scuba combination at the Blue Hole in Belize. Did that in February of this year and it definitely goes down as one of life's most memorable days. "There is only one basic human right, the right to do as you damn well please. And with it comes the only basic human duty, the duty to take the consequences." -P.J. O'Rourke

Chilling out. Hoping my sinuses clear enough that I feel up to working out again. Neighborhood farmer's market tomorrow (hope they still have late season tomatoes at rock bottom prices!). Books, DVDs, mellowness. Can't wait! "There is only one basic human right, the right to do as you damn well please. And with it comes the only basic human duty, the duty to take the consequences." -P.J. O'Rourke

I guess they're not. But they're probably the helmets that you used as a student - the vast majority of dropzones use them. http://www.pro-tec.net/classic-full-cut-skate-helmet.php As for where to buy - if your local DZ has a gear store, start there. Supporting a local business as well as receiving the personal service that you'll get at your home DZ can add value beyond the cost of the item. For a helmet - maybe not that big a deal - but for a more complex and custom purchase like a jumpsuit or rig, you'll want top-notch service and help in making those decisions. Prices aren't going to vary a massive amount across dealers, anyway. "There is only one basic human right, the right to do as you damn well please. And with it comes the only basic human duty, the duty to take the consequences." -P.J. O'Rourke

I think it was just awkward phrasing. I read it as "Since they have B or C licenses, you can't call them advanced skydivers." "There is only one basic human right, the right to do as you damn well please. And with it comes the only basic human duty, the duty to take the consequences." -P.J. O'Rourke

If I'm buying Girl Scout cookies (or whatever other fundraiser they're doing), I much prefer to buy them from the girls themselves when they're sitting outside of the grocery store and actually doing the work themselves. Yes, they have adult supervision then, but they're usually the ones approaching people, getting their boxes for them, taking money, making change, etc. I understand parents bringing in the forms for cookies to the office - my mom did that for me, too, when I was a kid, but I also had to pound the pavement in the neighborhood and work the tables in front of the local stores to sell the cookies. Tell your SIL that you want to talk to your nephew about the project and how the money gets used in the school and that if he calls (or visits) to ask for your support you'll be happy to help out, but not until then. "There is only one basic human right, the right to do as you damn well please. And with it comes the only basic human duty, the duty to take the consequences." -P.J. O'Rourke

No one can say "X Insurance company covers this and Y insurance company doesn't." Every insurance company offers a wide variety of plans and benefits, particularly to the large group (large employer) market, where they can and will customize the hell out of their products to get a company's business. If you're getting your insurance through work, particularly if you work for a large company, your benefits very well may vary within the company by division, whether you're in a union group or not, whether you're management or not, etc. What peregrinerose said: Read your stuff. Call and ask questions if you don't understand it. It's not that difficult to read. MOST insurance contracts will have a specific section about exclusions... but read your own contract to be sure. "There is only one basic human right, the right to do as you damn well please. And with it comes the only basic human duty, the duty to take the consequences." -P.J. O'Rourke

January of what year? "There is only one basic human right, the right to do as you damn well please. And with it comes the only basic human duty, the duty to take the consequences." -P.J. O'Rourke

You don't have to do anything you don't want to do. Personally, if I come down under a reserve without that silver handle in my hand ... I will feel like I have fucked up my emergency procedures and failed to do everything I needed to do to save my own life. "There is only one basic human right, the right to do as you damn well please. And with it comes the only basic human duty, the duty to take the consequences." -P.J. O'Rourke

Supplemental potassium. I've supplemented potassium for years (just one pill a day) and very very rarely do I get cramps anymore. "There is only one basic human right, the right to do as you damn well please. And with it comes the only basic human duty, the duty to take the consequences." -P.J. O'Rourke

First of all, if you're looking for used helmets appropriate for skydiving, start in the right place... the classifieds here on this site are a good start: http://www.dropzone.com/cgi-bin/classifieds/page.cgi?g=Head_Gear%2Findex.html;d=1 You can also read reviews here: http://www.dropzone.com/gear/Helmets__Head_Gear_and_Goggles/index.shtml One thing you might consider, though, is starting with a Pro-Tec helmet. Even brand-new, they're inexpensive and provide great protection. That will give you time to take a look at a variety of helmets, try on helmets (either at gear stores, or by borrowing a fellow jumper's helmet) to figure out what style and features you really like and what works well for your head and face. "There is only one basic human right, the right to do as you damn well please. And with it comes the only basic human duty, the duty to take the consequences." -P.J. O'Rourke