Zennie

Well, while we walk down the murder tangent a bit... I wonder if anybody actually saw the two of them getting into the plane. I mean, if it was a murder, there would be a struggle, and I'd think the pilot would know that. I sure wouldn't want to risk my neck (and jail time) because I botched a murder attempt inside an airplane. If it was a murder, I'm willing to bet he managed to somehow get the already dead guy onto the plane, dumped the body, and then made up the story. - Z "Always be yourself... unless you suck." - Joss Whedon

Nah. It has to be an act of incredible stupidity. If you intentionally kill yourself, you really haven't done it out of stupidity. - Z "Always be yourself... unless you suck." - Joss Whedon

I'm really glad that you have this forum Tom. I lurk Blinc a lot, and it has been a gold mine of information, but I'm still a little leery of posting over there because the hostility factor is a little high. I'm going to wait until I actually get to know some of those folks before I actually post there. The thing that's nice about this forum is that I can freefly ask "newbie"-ish questions without fear of being ridiculed (too much). And there are enough experienced BASE jumpers here that I feel like I get good response to any question. Of course, I still ask my mentor as many questions as I can. But he has always said not to take what he says as Gospel, and to ask other people on the internet as well. He's very big on gathering as much information as one can and making one's own decisions. It's very much a "think for yourself" approach that I wholeheartedly agree with. It encourages one to seek out the way things are done and look for ways of improving things, this is how we grow as people and how the sport grows as well. Anyway, thanks Tom! - Z "Always be yourself... unless you suck." - Joss Whedon

I'd like to hear people's recommendations on boots. Just reading around I know that you need good ankle support, shock absorption and slip-resistance (Vibram is mentioned frequently). Problem is that there's a dizzying array of boots that claim to fit those criteria. Seems that you'd want something without lace hooks and something that offers good protection, but is lightweight. Thoughts? - Z "Always be yourself... unless you suck." - Joss Whedon

I came oh so close to buying one of the Sherpas when I was out at one of the outdoor shops recently. Had to pass cuz I had just purchased a bunch of other stuff. - Z "Always be yourself... unless you suck." - Joss Whedon

Well, now that you mention it, that is what I want to get. For a different reason, obviously. In my case the Phoenix is a pretty good representation of where I've been and where I'm at in my life. Plus the bird/flight theme also works. Problem is I can't seem to find a good design, and like I said, I'm not getting one until I find one that clicks with me. And since I'm letting the cat out of the bag, what i was thinking of on the other arm was a Chinese Phoenix. In Chinese mythology, it represents the union of yin and yang. It was thought to be a gentle creature, alighting so gently that it crushed nothing, and eating only dewdrops. It was also believed that a phoenix controlled the 5 tones of Chinese music and that it represented the Confucian virtues of loyalty, honesty, decorum and justice. It is considered a symbol of good luck. - Z "Always be yourself... unless you suck." - Joss Whedon

No worries. I just read that and the first thing that popped into my head was the Swedish Chef from the Muppet Show. - Z "Always be yourself... unless you suck." - Joss Whedon

Bork! Bork! Bork! Sorry, couldn't resist. - Z "Always be yourself... unless you suck." - Joss Whedon

No names necessary. The symbolism will speak for itself. I've looked around a bit on the internet for a graphic that really speaks to me, one came close, but not quite. I may talk to the artist about the concept and see what he can draw up for me. And yeah if I'm gonna do it I'm gonna do it right... no cheap stuff. That was going to be my next step, finding the best artist in Houston. PM me with your recommendations. As far as the addictiveness goes... I know full well, my brother has a ton of them. And actually, I have a second one that I could put on the other arm that would complement the first one. - Z "Always be yourself... unless you suck." - Joss Whedon

OK. I've always held off getting a tattoo because: a. Liz forbade it; b. I never really thought of something that was meaningful... Until now. I have a concept for one (not something big, just maybe 3 inches or so in diameter along the side of the arm) that would have a lot of meaning on several levels, but I'm still sort of on the fence as to whether a tattoo is really "me". So whatcha think? - Z "Always be yourself... unless you suck." - Joss Whedon

I am a Snake. No wisecracks please. ----------- People born in the Year of the Snake are deep. They say little and possess great wisdom. They never have to worry about money; they are financially fortunate. Snake people are often quite vain, selfish, and a bit stingy. Yet they have tremendous sympathy for others and try to help those less fortunate. Snake people tend to overdo, since they have doubts about other people's judgment and prefer to rely on themselves. They are determined in whatever they do and hate to fail. Although calm on the surface, they are intense and passionate. Snake people are usually good-looking and sometimes have martial problems because they are fickle. They are most compatible with the Ox and Rooster. -------------- - Z "Always be yourself... unless you suck." - Joss Whedon

We've had two "Western" zodiac polls. I thought it might be fun to do the "other" zodiac. - Z "Always be yourself... unless you suck." - Joss Whedon

You sound like a born Libertarian. - Z "Always be yourself... unless you suck." - Joss Whedon

Yeah, but weren't you impressed? Didn't they get you swooning anyway? C'mon, admit it, you were hot for them. You know it. - Z "Always be yourself... unless you suck." - Joss Whedon

WHAT??? I hadn't checked in a while cuz the numbers that were coming in weren't too flattering. I have absolutely no idea how they calculate this stuff then. Not that I'll complain. - Z "Always be yourself... unless you suck." - Joss Whedon

Yup. I had a nasty stomach bug last week. Thought I was gonna hurl for about 3 days. Thank god for fenergen. - Z "Always be yourself... unless you suck." - Joss Whedon

Just for giggles I threw my AOT boogie pic out there. Put me down for a solid "NOT". Eh, well... at least I got skydiving. - Z "Always be yourself... unless you suck." - Joss Whedon

Seriously, though... Yeah your CG won't change, but your surface area sure does. I think what she's driving at is that the belly position is an inherently more stable position than most freefly positions by virtue of the increased body surface area that one has to work with. So if one is used to being stable with less surface area, going to a position with more area should be easier to work with... assuming the flier has a good sense of body flight dynamics. And like she said, that doesn't mean that freefliers are going to kick butt in hardcore RW, just that they won't suck on their belly either. - Z "Always be yourself... unless you suck." - Joss Whedon

If it's a female, yeah. - Z "Always be yourself... unless you suck." - Joss Whedon

Guess it sorta depends on how much money I have and whether I'm feeling in a generous mood. If we both can afford to pay, then I think Each should pay. If the other person is temporarily broke & I have money to burn (yeah, right) I might float her some tix. But in this era of equality & all, I'd be inclined to go dutch. - Z "Always be yourself... unless you suck." - Joss Whedon

Lesseee.... Saturday I managed to have two off landings, one where I had to dodge a spider's web of power lines in high winds and then land in the burble behind some trees, the other where me, Brit & Levin landed about 4 miles off (don't ask...). The winds on the ground were weird enough but the uppers were honking! Then me and 460 went out for a while. I had a 48oz margarita & then we hit one of the local dives. His passenger-side window got broken while we were inside. They didn't seem to steal anything other than the 6-pack we had on the floor and some stuff out of the glove box. So not trouble per se, but a weird day nonetheless. - Z "Always be yourself... unless you suck." - Joss Whedon

I can only go by what I've read & seen, which is admittedly very little. Most, if not all, FJCs will have rental gear available for you to use. So you don't need to have your own rig to take it. When I was at Bridge Day I was sort of observing the interaction of people from the various manufacturers and it seemed very cordial & cooperative. I'm fairly certain they would show you how to set up your own rig regardless of who made it. And regardless, doing so would just be good business. If you help the person and don't give them flak about the gear they own (unless it's non-BASE equipment or otherwise in horrible shape) that person is more likely to become a customer in the future. Just my $0.02. - Z "Always be yourself... unless you suck." - Joss Whedon

I think it's always dangerous to speak in generalities. All I can do is relate my own experience. I personally think I progressed faster in freefly at the beginning having spent my first 100 or so jumps doing RW. By then I had developed at least a fundamental sense of body position, fall rate control & relative wind dynamics. So I picked up sitflying relatively quickly. I also found that when I went back to do the occasional RW jump I performed better than I had previously because freeflying further improved my body awareness. Getting where you need to be sort of becomes instinctual. Unfortuantely, my RW skills have probably degraded because I've floated out on practically every RW formation I've been on lately (read "hybrid"). Might need to dig out my SCUBA weight belt . But to be really skilled at either discipline requires dedicated practice. Advanced RW requires skills, such as exit technique, block moves, etc, that freefliers don't know. Advanced freefly has similar skills that you just can't know until you practice them over & over. But of course, IMHO, belly flying is just another dimension of freeflying. A neglected one, granted, but it is just another axis/dimension in which one can fly. And true freeflying is about being proficient in any orientation. - Z "Always be yourself... unless you suck." - Joss Whedon

From what I understand the big one is accuracy. The bottom of the cave is huge, but the landable area is very small, maybe 50x50 feet. - Z "Always be yourself... unless you suck." - Joss Whedon

Drugs & Noses. Hmmmm.... Appetite for Destruction ruled. GnR Lies was sort of "eh". Use Your Illusion absolutely sucked. I didn't even bother with The Spaghetti Incident. By then I had moved on to Metallica, Megadeth & Nirvana. - Z "Always be yourself... unless you suck." - Joss Whedon