GrumpySmurf

Lovely, bloody lovely *chuckle* At least the other guys from Sir-Tech's Jagged Alliance 2 team will be happy to see the nickname they gave me has lived on. Better than being called Smack or...worse....

She's been a jem hidden in Latin America for some time (part Arab, part Columbian, I think) - I think she is engaged to the son of 'former' (which one, eh?) president of Argentina.

She's been a jem hidden in Latin America for some time (part Arab, part Columbian, I think) - I think she is engaged to the son of 'former' (which one, eh?) president of Argentina.

Yep, it was a comment about not hitting the pavement with it, or it would be toast. (and not to mention me, as well). I've invented some new variations of the PLF to keep as much of the rig as possible from hitting the ground

DOH!

DOH!

Hmm, let me guess the canopy colours.... umm 1) Internal Bleeding Red and umm.. 2) Compound Fracture White?

Look for this: http://www.dropzone.com/files/users/forums/2-95237-Pic184.jpg wearing this: http://www.dropzone.com/files/users/forums/2-86188-Picture002.jpg Usually answer to the name Mark - if you use my screen-name anywhere near the Team Funnel group - I am certain I'll be stuck with it in real life as well

Look for this: http://www.dropzone.com/files/users/forums/2-95237-Pic184.jpg wearing this: http://www.dropzone.com/files/users/forums/2-86188-Picture002.jpg Usually answer to the name Mark - if you use my screen-name anywhere near the Team Funnel group - I am certain I'll be stuck with it in real life as well

I think they were going to call it the Spring Expo, but in light of this weekends weather report - Winter definitely looks more accurate a term. Got the winter tent and sleeping bag good to go - gonna be a cold but, hopefully, fun weekend

I think they were going to call it the Spring Expo, but in light of this weekends weather report - Winter definitely looks more accurate a term. Got the winter tent and sleeping bag good to go - gonna be a cold but, hopefully, fun weekend

I more stating a view on the topic of discussion rather than offer a dissenting (or affirming) opinion - actually, looking them both over - it was a mixed bag of agreement and disagreement. Sorry. that this is the wrong sport for the individual who said this (or in the very least, the individual should spend some additional time in a harness getting, "You're spinning, you're spinning, you're going to die!" yelled at them until some variation of 'look, reach, pull, repeat' is permanently implanted in their head). As well (in my opinion) the vast majority of people who use an AAD and/or RSL (such as I) do so because we want our 'ABS' and 'air-bags' just in (the absolutely remote) case that sh*t hits the proverbial fan in a real, REAL bad way. Have you touched your handles today?

Given the opposite (polar opposite, mind you) opinion, "Even though I have never had a cutaway, I will never need an RSL. I know I will find my handles." - the first opinion worries me less. My take on the two devices are like airbags and ABS on cars - if you are a competent driver who can judge road conditions and drive accordingly - you should never need them. But there is always lurking 'statistical probability' (betterly known as really bad luck) that you may just need to depend on them - I don't drive more aggresively because of them (nor do I take more risks skydiving just because I have either an RSL or AAD). I think alot of folk who voice the opinion strongly in favour of either safety device are doing so because they want to err on the side of caution - and given the unforgiving nature of our sport - doesn't seem to un-reasonable to me. Now if you do drive like a socio-path because you do have air-bags - much like if you feel ok with pulling low cause you have a CYPRES, or feel ok to put off emergency procedure review because you have an RSL - then you might want to consider taking the bus (or in our case, taking up a new hobby). Figured I'd chime in :) Gotta get my message post numbers up

Aye, that goes without saying. We could take this to the point of saying, "Respect your Manta." I'm sure someone, somewhere face planted under a Manta from a low turn and didn't walk away.

Ditto on that about customer service - I contacted them back in Decembre about snagging first, a 170, then a 150 to try out. They replied with 24 hours of any email I sent them, often times, during business hours, within an hour AND they were very accomdating. Sadly, the individual who had the 170 was unexpectedly late in returning it - and it was too close to the end of the season to order a demo, so I put it off till the spring. I think the best comment about the Stilleto I heard from one of the Team Funnel folk at SDC - along the lines of, "The Stilletto is a very good canopy but always respect it."

Funny. This is very similar to a discussion that I had with a Muslim friend and a Jewish friend (at seperate times) on St.Patty's day last year (funny how alchohol can bring up these kinds of 'taboo' subjects )- each thought that the others people were a bunch of animals (they put it in a much more vulgar fashion) bent on their destruction. Look where it has gotten them? So destroy Al Quida, the Hezbolah, Hamas, etc, etc - until you correct the under lying problem, someone will always take thier place. The question begs asking, why do these people hate us so much that they are willing to commit suicide to kill us? Is it really a small minority of ex-Afgan fighters with no immediate enemy, so they went hunting for one? Or is it an underlying concern of an entire society about a culture (ours) that they know little about and that they feel is threatening them and thier way of life? The radical groups do need to be taken care of, but the situation and opinions that allows them to garner further support also needs to be addressed, in a way that doesn't rattle the wasps nest even more. On a side note, it was heartening to hear today that some in the Israeli government are considering the Saudi peace proposal. Maybe hope is not just a denial of reality, after all?

Funny. The exact same thing happened to me on Saturday....in freakin' Chicago (with a left, instead of a right turn). Must be some kind of Twilight Zone sort of thing.

But aren't students exempt from the 'f'-word rules until graduation with the notable exception of S/L, IAD students on f*rst-freefall?

Would have to agree with that opinion. I think the US is coming to realize that it's 'relative' shake-and-bake forgien policy of the recent past needs to be replaced by a policy that doesn't just deal with a crisis at hand, but also considers future ramifications of that policy, especially when deaing with an 'alien' culture. How they are now handling Afganistan appears to be a step in the right direction - if you're gonna blow stuff up, then stick around help clean up the mess afterwards - seems to have worked well with Germany and Japan, over 50 years later.

Ahh, welcome to America...run by lobbiests and ambulance chasers. Hmm, maybe the option of having a first aid seminar for the staff, at least allowing them to quickly identify the potential for a more serious injury than at first glance, especially if they say, "My back/neck hurts." And make sure if the plane is going up, always have someone on the ground with FA if not IFA training on site - considering the number of people who get killed/hurt in our sport each year, I finding it frightening that we don't take medical training for staff more seriously - especially at larger DZ's. *shrug*

Both the men and the women's, eh? 'Boot bloody time

So you made her wear metal on her breasts, set her afloat on a boat and proceeded to set it alight? Sounds kewl to me

Now begs the question, how are you going to make her earn it?

*hehe* Thanx! On a side note, your note of "Hope you never need it" on the CYPRES I ordered from you last summer has proven true thus far - so it has been a more or less good 100.

You were on load 2, belly flying in a freefly suit - it was red right -I remember seeing it, not recognizing the pattern, and thinking, "New guy to the DZ." I should have said hello, sorry .