johnboy

Acoustic Kenny Wayne Shepherd: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ee735pZ6kxk

My almost 12 year old in the tunnel, a younger version of my now 7 year old as a flower girl, and my almost 3 year old daughter.

thanks all! And for the PMs too. Time marches on and so will I. I'm not one for sitting down while the world happens around me. I just needed to sit for a moment. Now where's the beer?

Fourteen and a half years of marriage down the tubes. I've spent pretty much the entire time putting her and our marriage ahead of my own needs only to be repeatedly told that I'm not doing enough. I'm 100% positive I'm not perfect and that I could have done things different or better, but I'm tired and don't want to be the football any longer, particularly since she has flat out told me that she refuses to change. I don't speak up much around here, but I'm stinging pretty hard tonight. Tomorrow always brings with it the inevitability of change and I will stand and face it like I always do. But tonight I could really just use a hug.

I did my first camera jump at jump 143 (roughly) with a Hansen I found on ebay for 125 bucks. I managed to scare myself something fierce and put it back in the closet until about jump 240 or so. After that, I made a handful of jumps with a tandem instructor (him on a solo rig, no students involved) who was also an experienced camera flyer. We did at least 10 mock tandem exits until I could get the swing of the exit. Even further after that, a lot of jumps with fellow solo jumpers, and I still sometimes think I started too early with the camera. Having scared myself a number of times (not just for my own actions but trying to decipher what others are going to do, too), you're smart to stay patient! I've not made a jump in over a year now for personal reasons, but when I start jumping again in a few weeks, it is going to be without camera stuff for quite a while as I get comfortable with the air again, and it will be no where near tandems for quite a while, too. Remember this is not a race to see who can start flying the camera the soonest, or who can rack up the most camera jumps! It is VERY rewarding when you get to do it, but the complications that come with the camera are extensive. As a few others have mentioned, it is not just the bulk of the equipment. I had a high speed mal a few years ago in which I really wish I hadn't been wearing my camera stuff, and I assure you, I got nothing worth looking at to try and figure out what happened to cause the mal. It took a few weeks for my neck to feel even close to normal again after the ride I went for. Thank you for listening to the staff at your dropzone, and I look forward to seeing your video later on down the road!

The skies still call, but I need to put the camera stuff on the shelf for a while. Thanks letting me lurk all this time and for all for the pointers along the way. I'll put the cameras back on again at some point, but for now, it is what is. The regulars around this forum are truly awesome people.

Good point. All he'd have to do is put another long stick off the stupid thing, anyway.

Wait.... No flash?

You should recycle the cats, too.

Baking definitely made the difference. Thanks all. I should have bought the new liner when I first got the helmet. Cheapskate that I am.... Oh well.

Also clean and sober for almost 15 years. I don't buy it either, but I've brought plenty of mid-day Gatorade, and fancy sodas.

I'll be perusing the bike shops of Tucson over the next few weeks. I appreciate all the pointers! I've definitely discovered over the last month or so since I got my bike out again, I don't have the knees of an 18 year old anymore. Sigh. On another note, anyone else here an Arizona rider? I'm thinking I want to do the Tour de Tucson this year. That gives me 4 more months to burn some of this chub off and better prepare for the full 109 miles. I should have my new bike well before that, too.

Thanks for the links! I've not looked at bikes in many years. My wife will undoubtedly be thrilled with my next planned expenditure after recently replacing my cameras....

Got any pointers for me? I'm back on my bike again after many years of not being on it and have decided my 1988 built Trek 1000 is a bit tired... (dramatic understatement). Given a budget of $1000 +/- 200 or so, mostly flatland riding (zero hills around here), and 25-40 mile rides 3-4 times a week, got any suggestions? I've always liked this Trek, but I've no reason to be loyal. I've seen a few carbon framesets I like, but I doubt my budget would handle it with a decent component group. Oh, and I tend to lean toward Shimano, but again, no particular reason to be loyal. Thanks!

I've been playing with the layers of padding and it's better than it was. It's more a function of the pad folding in half when I put it on. More of a nuisance than anything. I haven't baked it yet, but hopefully that will fix it. Thanks!

Has Bonehead changed the shape of the chin cup on the FTP over the years? I got mine second hand about two years ago and it was a few years old then. I just got a new liner for it and the pads for the chin are different than the original. It will fit, but its a serious pain in the butt. Thoughts anyone? Edited to say I haven't heat molded the pads yet. I will be doing this shortly and expect it will improve it a bit. There's just a lot more material top and bottom than the old chin pad.

If your jump numbers are accurate, then I would also like to encourage you to spend plenty of time getting comfortable on your belly first. Freeflying is cool beyond words and a very worthy goal, but if your aim is to become a better skydiver (also a worthy goal!), a solid foundation of belly flying is going to make you safer all the way around. The tunnel is awesome for learning both and definitely worth your time. Remember, this isn't a race! Take your time, have fun, and best wishes!

Thanks all. Much appreciated!

I'm going to be in Indianapolis on business the end of this month and have an afternoon totally free. Having never been there before and since I can't bring my rig on this one, can anyone recommend anything I should see or do whilst there?

I lurk way more than I post, but appreciate all the input from everyone here, too. I first bought my cameras so I could offset my skydiving expenses and have ended up liking it so much, its now my preferred discipline. I'm not all that great yet as the jumps have been pretty thin this year after the loss of my business, but having just moved to AZ and with Eloy just up the road that will be rectified shortly. Thanks to all for teaching me how to be less stupid. 2009 looks to kick some ass! I should have been at that boogie yesterday. Darn family. Oh well. Happy New Years all!

My personal favorite: one of our tandem instructors shared this with us. He was on the ground with his PAX waiting their turn to jump. The person he was taking up was watching another tandem come down and exclaimed, "Look! They're throwing confetti!" If puke is confetti, she was spot on.

Cool. Thanks.

I'm probably not googling the right search terms, but does anyone know the total count of voters country wide this year? Pure curiosity.

There are a few things to consider. God always wants what is best for all of us and will answer prayers accordingly. However, the one thing He gave to all of us that he will not control is our freewill. He will in no way ever answer a prayer that overrides the freewill of another. Realize that the main purpose of this life is to test how well we perform without Him telling us every single step of the way. He will always offer us which way we should head, but it is up to us to go that direction. If we were forced to follow every instruction rather than choose for ourselves, then there would be no such thing as freewill. As far as forgiveness, it is available to all provided one truly repents, meaning admit the fault, do whatever possible to fix it, and not return to that behavior again. Also consider that God is far more compassionate than He is often painted to be. If he wasn't, I would have been struck by lightning a long time ago.

I've done some special events for people over the last few years in an effort to better learn my editing skills and to help some friends out. I did the first half dozen or so for free on the understanding there were no promises on results or when they would be finished. Having some experience under my belt, I now do not go for anything less than $25 an hour as that's the absolute minimum I would accept on any of my carpentry or remodeling skills (and even at that I would really have to like the person I was building for). I'm hardly anything amazing on video, but the only reason people pay for anything is someone else's knowledge/skills. As jtval said, the pain-in-the-ass factor can be off the charts if you're trying something new. My point? Heck if I know. If I didn't enjoy the creative process as much as I do, I don't think I would have tried any projects other than skydiving videos. On the other hand, if someone is expecting something from me for skills I've developed and it will keep me from spending time with my wife and kids, I expect to be compensated accordingly. Consider, too, wear and tear on your equipment, set up time, finding angles you like, microphones (because the one built into your camera is not going to cut it), etc. Hell, tell him 200k and negotiate from there.