wildfan75

Nicole, If you want to come out Wissota, I will be leaving the Plymouth/Maple Grove area Friday after work (I leave about 5ish) and coming back Sunday night. Free ride there and I can drop you off at the airport on the way back if needed. Jumps from 10k are only $15, you can stay at our clubhouse (so no need to get a hotel room or pay for lodging). If I know you're coming, I'll do something nice for dinner on Saturday night (pot roast, lasagna or something like that). The fridge is full of beer and if we head to the bars after awhile, drinks are about $3 (cheap), but being a guest and being a female, you'll probably won't have to pay for any. Let me know.

Did anyone catch tonights episode? Apparently one of the boys claims to be a skydiver. Anyone know or heard of Kameron Bink from Coral Springs, FL? The picture that they showed of him under canopy seemed seemed like he was a under a pretty big canopy, maybe someone who did a few AFF jumps somewhere?

Do you jump in winter? If so, consider getting a full face that has flip up shield so when things start to fog or ice up in winter, it's easier to lift up than something like a Factory Diver. I have a Factory Diver and love it, except under canopy in winter (I jump in Wisconsin). Although I'll prop it up on my head when needed due to icing or fogging, I'm always scared that its going to go flying off. Two people at my DZ jump with Z1's and they hate them because they are so hard to get geared up with the cloth around the bottom, then the chin strap snap, then tightening this, etc. One recently bought a used Factory Diver. The other lost her helmet on deployment about two months ago and is saving up for something different. As soon as I get a few hundreds bucks laying around I'll get an Oxygn.

Here were mine: 1) C license--Yep 2) Bigger than an 8 way--Yep 3) WFFC--Obviously that's not going to happen but its not my fault! 4) The house has been on the market for about 2 1/2 months so I'm still working on this one. 5) CReW--Hopefully this weekend! I guess I'm doing alright.

And we'll see how you feel the next day after drinking a 1/2 bottle of tequila(literally), two Bacardi Cokes, a So Co 7 and 2 Jaggar Bombs! There was no way I could jump on Sunday. I heard Bob say "8 way" and I broke out in a major sweat just thinking about pushing it. We will get at least one jump in next time we're both there...I promise!

Brad (right?)--You could easily get together with Paul, Chad, and Lamo, etc and do rookie. You should. Six Baldwin jumps with 1/4 of your videoagraphers jump is $190, plus $25 each for league fees, so its not too terribly expensive. You'll get free coaching before each jump to help you guys. Bill's right--you need to seriously think about it. A third Wissota team would be awesome!!!

Or there's always skydiving. There's at least 6 dropzones that I can think of right off the top of my head located in the wonderful soon to be my home state of Wisconsin!

See attached (I don't know how to make clicky in the thread).

Isn't this why we jump with gloves and full face helmets?

I'm sure if I sat down and looked at it I would get it but handicap schmandicap. If it gets us tunnel time, I'm all for it! But in my mind, if we didn't turn the point in time, we shouldn't get credit for it.

Marcus!!! It was great competiting against you and the rest of "I Don't Know" and you're right, Solly did a great job! SDTC did a great job hosting (especially manifest--our loads were timed perfectly for us). I don't get the handicap thing and I was a math major for 2 1/2 years.

Thanks everyone. I can't speak for everyone else but I had a blast. I grew up playing 13 years of competitive soccer and 18 years of competitive hockey. It was nice to compete again and be a part of a team.

Standing offer, for anyone... Skydveraz--let me know if you set something up. Skydemon--Yes, happily taken, but that doesn't mean I can't have fun!

If anyone is interested in escaping the heat, feel free to fly north to Minneapolis. I can pick you up at the airport and bring you out to Skydive Wissota, Chippewa Falls, WI for the weekend. Saturday's forecast is a high of 86F, mostly sunny and pleasant and Sunday's forecast is high of 86F, partly sunny. I can pick you up at the airport and get you back for your return flight. You can stay at the clubhouse (so no lodging costs) and jump tickets are only $15 from 10K (182 dz). Lots of belly flyers to jump with, don't really have any freeflyers. Plenty of debauchery at night: Liquor, maybe we'll burn things, possibly skinny dipping and HOT SKYCHICS!

The picture of you guys looking at each other in freefall is priceless.

Thanks for reading my mind.

Woo hoo!!! First competition out of the way and we are all VERY happy with how it went. Ended up with 32 (but really should have been 34--long story)(and it was 38.4 with the handicap but whatever). In case someone digs this thread up looking advice, here is the best advice that worked for me for me this weekend: 1) "On an arousal level from 0 to 10, 10 being completely aroused and 0 being dead, I want you at a negative 2" (Thanks Bill). It kept up from getting too hyped and too tense. We kept telling each other "Negative 2" through out the day. I will add that there were some teams that were really pumped up, joking on the plane, etc, but the "Negative 2" approach worked best for me/us. Find your way to stay relaxed. 2) Don't go to get coaching from Solly Williams after dirt diving. Go get coaching from Solly Williams BEFORE you dirt dive . It only took us 5 rounds before we got that in our heads. If you have world class coaching available, take advantage of it! We wouldn't have done as well as we did without it. And its better to get that help before you think you have it down. We had a few points wrong and we had a few that we were doing inefficently. Solly corrected us. Easier to have 15-20 minutes dirt diving the right dive than it is to dirt dive the wrong dive for 15 minutes and then relearning it for 15-20 minutes. 3) Take it one dive at a time. On Friday we got help figuring out what exits we were going to do (again...we're from a 182 dz so Otter's are foreign to us) for each dive and got coaching (thanks, Bill) that night. We looked at the dive pool and made comments on what we think, but didn't dirt dive anything. The first dive was three randoms (not hard) so we waited until the AM to start engineering and dirt diving. 4) Once we were done with one jump, we sort of did a "thumbs up, meh, thumbs down" with each other walking off the landing area, but as soon as we started packing, it was all about the next dive. It helped us stay focused. And in case anyone is interested, it is possible to launch a unipod, flip it and stay together. I have video to prove it. It was our worst exit and our best round. We thought maybe we should have flipped more of the exits.

Thanks everyone! Keep it coming! We are planning with going with an easy exit. Faster to stay together on exit and then go to the first point than trying to launch something complicated and funneling and then getting the first point. We talked about the meeker. We did take two dives from the meet in Iowa that we missed to practice last weekend. We did the dive that had the most points and the dive that got the least point so we could see how we stack up. We were right on the nose with points for both dives. And I'll be the last one to point fingers at anyone, but I guarantee that I'm the first one to point fingers at me. I sort of hope that everyone screws up at some point so I won't feel so bad when I do it. Bill--Dank is Dan Kluge. We have three or four Dan's at Wissota so each has its one nick name. As far as dirt diving the night before, it will be more for engineering purpose (who is what in which dive and where--we have our positions but figuring out what is o/s center, i/s center, etc). Going backwards makes sense.

I'm from a small Cessna dz too. We don't charge for coaching or instruction or video, blah, blah, blah, but maybe try this: Is there a swooper vidiot there? Next time s/he's planning on doing a hnp because s/he just wants to swoop and not do any RW, ask them if they can throw their camera helmet on (or any vidiot that's just doing a hnp), go to full altitude and video your jump. Tell them that you'll pay the difference in their jump ticket. Get the video burned and ask any instructor that will give you their time to look over it with you.

Yeah...we just got to get Dank on board with the Skimmer Suit and then we'll be set

Yes...I said 1st...I know...beer. Just a year ago I was rockin' the big o' manta, celebrating doing my first four way at FF #15 and trying to figure out door diving (from a 182). This weekend I embark in my first 4 way competition in class A. For three of the four, it will be our first competition. My biggest obsticle is staying relaxed (I'm nervous) and I've been telling myself that I need to take it one dive at a time and pretend that its like every other 4 way I've done...just have fun. Any experienced 4 way teamers out there have any tips that they wished someone would have told them before their first competition? What to focus on while dirt diving? Tips for preparing the night before with the dive pool? Mental tips? We are most concerned about our exits. We all come from a 182 dz and we'll be leaving the Otter. Obviously we'll be taking advantage of free world class coaching, getting help from our dz's more senior team, and everyone else willing to help. Thanks in advance (especially you, Bill, because I know you'll respond).

"Who owe the Chiefs?" "Ownsssss. Ownsssss." "Oggie O-go-torp?!"

I was called for jury duty once. I even got on a civil case. Some guy broke his ankle on a city bus and was sueing for $1.5 million. Hard to say what happened because I couldn't tell which one of his three stories was true, the one at his deposision, the one he told on examination, or the one he told on cross-examination. Needless to say he didn't get a penny (but he did get a promotion at work because of his injury so it wasn't a complete loss for him). Have fun!