LloydDobbler

Was down at Perris today, and they're still rebuilding theirs (if what I've heard is true, they bought two Porters and are cannibalizing one to get the other one flying - a "FrankenPorter," if you will). On the plus side, the DC-9 is down for maintenance, and I was told it was queued behind the Porter, so it looks like they're making it a priority. Didn't get an ETA, though. Signatures are the new black.

Odd, DSE. Works fine on my Mac, in Safari 3 and Firefox 2. :-? Nice-looking site. The only oddness I'm seeing is that the Flock U logo is pushed out to the far right at the top of the page...to the point that it isn't visible, and I have to scroll over in order to even see it. Is it supposed to be centered? Seems like that could be just a mix-up between absolute vs. relative positioning, but I haven't dug into the source enough to say for sure... Ah, the joy of CSS inheritance and browser compatibility. Regardless, the site style is sweet. And beautiful photos...stunning.

Thanks for sharing that. Always cool to see a historical pic. Michael Abrams' book (the on that Howard mentioned) is excellent, if you're interested in this sort of thing. Aside from the people jumping off of buildings and trying to flap their 'wings' (and inevitably plummeting to the ground), the book suggests that the first person to jump from an airplane in a wingsuit (or a 'bat-wing,' as it was then known) was Clem Sohn in the 1930's. After working on it for some time, the book states that the first time he made a public exhibition jump in the wings was February, 1935. Afterwards, airshows began clamoring to get people flying bat-wings...and a number of daredevil-types took it upon themselves to chase the fame and glory associated with it. Anyway, thanks for the pic. Good stuff. Signatures are the new black.

Wait, did you see the video of the guy who sets his parachute on fire? It's totally crazy!! Signatures are the new black.

Good call! I don't have any other recommendations except what you've already done - narrow down the helmets you think you're interested in, then find one and try it out for yourself. Every head is different, so you'll never really know 'til you try one on. Good luck! Signatures are the new black.

I jumped one at Chicks Rock, and it was pretty nice. Felt solid. I appreciate the full forehead coverage (compared to the Hurricane- & Aviator-style helmets). There isn't a skydial tightening system, but that didn't really bug me, since it fit my head really well. In fact, the only thing that's ever fit my head better is a Bonehead helmet. As far as how it feels, to me the HR2 was very comparable to the Bonehead Mindwarp or the Allsport. One thing I like slightly better about the Bonehead helmets is their ultra-padded chin strap (I also found Bonehead's helmets to be a little quieter when I was under canopy...but that's probably just the shape of my ears that leads to that). All-in-all, seems like a good choice of helmets, if you're looking for an open face (and don't plan on modding it to fly camera...though that might be possible. Couldn't really tell.). It feels light, but well-constructed & solid. (And of course I can't speak to the crash-worthiness, as I didn't bang my head on the door on *that* particular jump.)

This is a great post. Spot-on. When I first got into skydiving, I budgeted for my student jumps...but didn't even THINK about gear. It really hurts when you reach that realization of "Hey, I can jump more than once in a day"...which then progresses to, "Hey, I want to jump as many times as I can in a day!"...which quickly progresses to, "Damn! Gear rental fees are eating me alive!!!" Be sure and budget a few grand for some used gear in addition to your student jumps. You can find used gear for cheaper...but best to plan for more and have extra cash onhand that can go back into your jump fund (which you'll find empties pretty quickly). As it was, I waited until I had about 50 jumps or so before I could finally afford gear. I wish I had planned ahead, because once you get that license, you'll want to be at the DZ every weekend...and it sucks when you don't have the cash. It's an expensive sport to get into...but once your basic gear is taken care of, you can proceed at your own pace. Signatures are the new black.

Yep...that was Troy. Incidentally, if you've read the threads in here about Skydive California City closing down, you guessed it...that was the place where the clip was shot. The Desert Express (from the video) flew its last loads over that DZ last weekend. Heck, half of Troy's "Senseless Acts of Video" show was filmed up there. Ever see a vid of a piano dropped out of an Otter?

Hey, Lori! Glad you all changed plans so you can make it!!!

That's incredible.

This is me, resting my case. Signatures are the new black.

I agree. Lots of rumors floating around...I'm not so sure it's going to happen, though. The closest thing I heard to that rumor this weekend was the suggestion that the regulars get together and rent a turbine plane to fly jumpers at Cal City once every month or so, just for old times' sake. A nice dream, if we skydivers weren't such a flaky bunch.... Still, I agree that it's going to be a lot harder for skydiving to ever take root there again, unless someone keeps something going. Kinda sad for the town, too...a lot of whuffos I've met from the area associate California City with skydiving. Heck, even the waitresses at Foxy's were bummed out about it this weekend. Signatures are the new black.

Yeah, but the commute's a bitch... Signatures are the new black.

Ah, I gotcha now. I was thinking of 'wrist-mount' as basically 'anything that mounts on your wrist', whereas you were drawing a distinction to 'hand mount'. Makes sense. But the distance thing still holds - it'll be sllightly tougher to read an analog from a distance, IMHO. Yeah...when I moved to a digital altimater to wear on my wrist (er, hand), I grabbed a mudflap mount from Bonehead and put my analog altimeter on that. (Of course if you do that & mention it, people on this forum will flame you for not "using your EYES" as your altimeter, but I just found it much easier to look at when learning to sitfly. YMMV.) But I'd still recommend grabbing a Galaxy, anyway, for longevity/utlity's sake. Signatures are the new black.

Actually, I've found that the Viso and the Neptune are much easier to glance at during tracking. They're small, sure...but the numbers are big and contrast-y enough to see from near full arm extension. (Then again, I'm a short guy, so I probably have short arms). I think you'd be more likely to have that problem with an Alti-III/Galaxy or an Altitrack than with a Viso. The Alti-II wristmount actually has a bigger face on it than the Alti-III or the Altitrack, doesn't it? (it's been a while since I jumped an Altitrack). And again, the Viso may be small, but its numbers are much bigger than the section of an analog altimeter you have to focus on in order to determine your altitude. The difference is with a digital, you'll spend more time processing the numbers you just read, whereas with an analog, you'll spend more time actually reading. That being said, I'm gonna contradict myself here: I'm a strong supporter of getting an Altimaster Galaxy to start with, then upgrading to digital later. The thing'll last you darn near forever, and you'd be surprised how you'll need it when your digital alti runs out of batteries and the gear shop just sold out of the last ones in stock... Signatures are the new black.

Yeah, I figured there'd be quite a few of these... Signatures are the new black.

Hey, folks. So you've probably heard, Skydive Cal City is closing its doors as of November 25th. My friends and I (who all started jumping there) have been pretty bummed about it since hearing the news yesterday...and for me, the only thing that's really taken the edge off is reading some people's good vibes and memories from the thread in the General forum. So since the firepit at the DZ will soon be dark, I was just wondering - anyone have any good/crazy/scary stories from back in the day they feel like sharing? I'm always amazed at how much history there is up there...and I know I haven't heard anything close to all of it. Since I won't be able to hear the stories sitting around at Foxy's on a Saturday night anymore, I thought I'd ask. Perhaps it'd be a good 'memorial' to the DZ to collect some of them here. I'm curious about it all - what planes they used to fly, the 2 DZ's thing, what it was like jumping rounds in Cal City winds, the shooting range, the Peckerheads, crazy movie shoots, memorable jumps...just about anything, really. The place has seen a lot of changes in the sport. (oh yeah, & if it's something for which that the statute of limitations isn't yet up, y'know, feel free not to post it ...sure there's a few stories like that...) Of course, if you'd rather, you can always post it to the thread in the General forum, too...but if you've got a good memory to share, please do me a favor and share it. The bonfire isn't going to be around much longer, and history is lost when it's not told. Thanks, KC Signatures are the new black.

I'll say. And you'll save their life again, and again, and again (and it's really the "save that keeps on saving"). When I had about 50 jumps, one morning I had rushed to make one of the first loads. On the way up, one of the TM's looked over at me and grinned, then frowned. Looked closer, and pointed out that I had mis-routed my chest strap. In my rush (or my early-morning grogginess) I had missed it when I was checking my gear. Like a moron. I of course thanked him a TON...and I'm now certain to give my gear a thorough check on each load, and to glance around at people around me on the way up. In the past 70 jumps or so I've caught two mis-routed RSL's that could have led to big issues if someone had tried to cut away. So yeah. Definitely better to speak up than to not. If they're a shit-don't-stink skygod type, better to be alive with a bruised ego than to bounce with an intact one. ...and to David: What he said. Props, man.

Yeah, Cary...me, Alethia, Brian and the rest are all pretty torn up about it, too. We definitely don't have the years there that you do...but it definitely feels like home (and family, too). I'm glad Van & Alberta have kept the place going for so long, and hope they enjoy whatever they move onto. My only wish (not counting that the place would keep going) is that they'd given it a bit more notice so we could really get used to the idea, then send the place off with a bang. It's gonna be tough to let go. Planning to make the best of the next 3 weekends. Signatures are the new black.

SPOTTING?!? What's that, again? You mean, people still DO that over there? (BTW, I'm just kidding...at my DZ (where we still spot the old-fashioned way, with our eyes), we get a lot of mileage laughing about our experiences at other DZ's, watching people file out of the plane like lemmings when the green light comes on.) (Of course, sadly that DZ full of peeps who know how to spot is closing...). /end thread hijack/ I'd love to see a copy of the BPA mag - do they offer copies/subscriptions for sale? Signatures are the new black.

Hey, Andy - I don't own one of the new Aviators...but I wanted to chime in with a thought: from my experience, if you're going to have to import the helmet (or pay a lot for shipping), I would think twice about buying one that you haven't gotten to try on yet. It can get really costly. Reason I'm saying this is that I did own one of the new Aviators (briefly). Problem was, I couldn't find an Aviator that fit me quite right. The M was too loose, and the S was too small to even get over my ears (even though I wear an XS in Bonehead helmets - go figure). Luckily, I was able to go down to Square One and deal with them directly, so I wasn't out a lot on shipping. & for the record, I believe that Arrow Dynamics no longer has an interest in the helmet - I think Square One bought the patterns and the rights to the helmet from the OM, and has revived the line. (Which is one of many things that kinda makes you wonder if the DZ.com Reviews section is ever going to be updated with current gear...) Anyway, on the review side, a close friend of mine owns one, and she loves it. She's only put about 50 jumps on it so far, but hasn't seen a problem. Of course, that's secondhand knowledge... Regardless, you might give a thought to the fitting thing - if someone around has one, try that sucker on before paying for shipping. Knowing how much the sizing varies (and how loose a helmet can be even if the size chart says it'll fit you), I won't buy a helmet I haven't tried on again. Signatures are the new black.

... Tonto, I never met you, I only chatted with you on the forums on occasion...I don't think we ever even shared a PM back-and-forth. But I valued you quite a bit, nonetheless - I've admired and appreciated your insight, your never backing away from difficult questions, and your humility and reflection, even after years in the sport. Your posts challenged me to think harder about a lot of things in this sport, either changing my opinion or confirming it only after it had been through the difficult questions you raised. Thanks for being a great teacher, whom I never even met. To Tonto's family and friends, my most heartfelt condolences. If I'm going to miss him just for his perspective and his posts, I can only imagine what a force he was in person. I wish you all peace and comfort. BSBD Signatures are the new black.

Say...that's a nice site there... Signatures are the new black.

Here's the People magazine cover story.