DSE

Mediums don't all claim to see the future, they are channels for the now, between two worlds or more. They shouldn't be lumped in the same class as psychics. And psychics can't be completely dismissed either. I know of more than one instance where a police department has hired a psychic, and she's been right every time with them, or at least right enough to point them in the right direction. Life is varying levels of energy. Some folks are sensitive enough to understand that energy for whatever bits of it may be left from time to time. My grandfather could tell a lot from standing in the middle of a clearing, or being inside a particular home. I can accept that others have the same abilities, while some pretend to have those same abilities.

Since a verifiable license number is required for the vote, it shouldn't matter if the vote is submitted on a paper napkin, with Crayon as the writing instrument. All the more reason for the online balloting needing to be a top priority.

Matt, I always forget the Century. It's another great option, and has a higher MTF value than the Raynox. It's definitely better balanced than the Raynox. http://www.schneideroptics.com/ecommerce/CatalogItemDetail.aspx?CID=1069&IID=1754

5050 definitely has more resolution than the Royal. I'd love it if Royal, Cookie, Waycool, would create a single element, high resolution lens, and it can be done. I've seen em in larger sizes. Either way.... It's a question of what you're looking for. Sometimes, seeking the highest quality may not be in your best interests. There are a few advantages to the smaller lenses that might outweigh the couple hundred greater lines you get from the 5050, weight distribution and size being two of them. I'm not quite understanding the connection of "5050 + Huge=Need Flatlock?"

Editing software for the CX7, you're somewhat limited...because a lot of apps can't manage AVCHD yet. There are converter softwares available, however, for both Apple and PC-based applications. All the gear you're asking about will work together just fine. Not sure exactly why you're using the Flatlock if you've got a box and plan on jumping with cam most of the time, but that's just my opinion. Were it me, I'd forego the Flatlock and mount the box straight to the helmet, reducing snag points/height. I haven't put my Raynox 5050 on the CX7, mostly because I like how small/light it is with the Royal Lens .5, but it will definitely fit. How it will fit the Cookie box, I don't know, as I haven't seen the cookie box. If you're going with a top mount, the Flatlock is as good as anything else in the skydiving world, although there are better non-skydiving solutions. You'll definitely want extra batteries no matter what. CX7 goes forever if you're not using the LCD panel, but you'll be using that for walkup, a/c, and post jump interviews. I'd keep a microfiber cloth in your helmet for lens cleaning. An extra card is a very good idea for those "O shit, my card is full and I want to shoot/can make another load" moments. If you're planning on analog edits using existing DZ gear, you'll need to hand the camera over with the card, or plan on using camera when editing, as the cards can't play on any hard-good devices. Planning on a few jumps without camera is good planning, just be sure to play with the camera on the ground with the helmet on, so that you're familiar with how the lens is going to weigh in on your openings. How many jump tix did I earn, boss?

Why would you say such a thing? Stock footage is recorded/shot specifically to fill a wide need. To the majority of the world, seeing someone falling on their back would indicate an uncontrolled fall. Do you think anyone believes the Remax commercial featuring 40+ skydivers were all Remax agents? Do you believe that a car can really drive along the edges of buildings? It's all about grabbing attention, and while there are many industry-coined stylistics in which attention is grabbed, this one is called a "Startling Statement." It's something people don't expect to see, which is exactly what the skydiving stock footage was aimed at suggesting. Something unusual. Skydivers make up a miniscule percentage of the television-viewing world. As a producer, I would never, ever consider accuracy or form over function in the process of creating a :30 or :15 spot. A film...yeah. Look how many people LOVE "Point Break" even with its 5 minute, conversation-enabled freefall...Wait'll you see "Get Smart" with a similar gag. I'm sure skydivers will bitch about that, too, but the fact that it's entertaining overrides any need for accuracy, particularly given the context in which it's presented.

If it weren't for Larry Hill, Eloy as it's now operating, would likely close down and be a dust fart in the wind. Eloy figured that out a while ago, Skydive Arizona is an extremely significant revenue stream for the city. If subsidized power helps keep that revenue stream in-town, all the better for the citizens.

I can't argue with that, but closed meetings are important for some actions. Howeverr, it seems that in the absence of information, the human brain often substitutes it's own imagined information. And sometimes it's even correct.

My original thought about a year ago was that a tunnel cost approx 5M. One of the windtunnel managers piped up and claimed it cost 7M to get their tunnel started. City of Ogden claims approximately the same for the tunnel at the Solomon Center in Ogden, Utah. I tacked on another mil for inflation. If you build it, they WILL come.

A couple hundred. But on my website, there are only a few. As far as a flute maker, I recommend The Oregon Flute Store They deal in every major maker of flutes, and nothing they have is poor quality. Easily the best out there.

You missed the Native American Flute... This was for a Native Soldier that didn't come home under his own strength. It's the only wind instrument that the USA can call its own.

It's competely possible and even quite easy, and costs very, very, little. Problems are that the meeting can't exactly be kept in order, and having a confirmed license number is difficult too. Only current members of the USPA can count as part of the quorum.... But in short, Jan Meyer had the idea of one life stream, then eventually adding incoming chats (they'd be silent), etc. For now, having the video stream seems to be OK, I don't know what the USPA should expect, but if the numbers of viewers of what streams I put up don't reach out like the PIA streams, theyre sure not gonna push for an online presense, so if you want on-line/streaming video in one format or other continue, show your support by watching the full hour + that we all watched in real-time. Numbers folks...numbers of views. That's what carries the weight.

Not a swooping monster by any means, but my next canopy is a Katana. I have jumped em' both, and it's probably my PD bias, but I liked the Katana best. Plus, my DZO jumps one, as do a number of my friends.

You're bitching about $50 for 2 mins, but have an extra 8M lying around? Could I beg a long-term loan?

Stream Seven Stream Eight (Last one for the time being).

Not from the early morning/9 a.m. session. A little bird had whispered a couple days ago that the gallery would be dismissed in the first 5 minutes, so I didn't bother to go down. Glad I didn't. Rather than spending 7 hours sitting outside the doors, I actually accomplished some work in my room.

Wow. Only took me two years (almost) as a skydiver to reach the point that I've gone from; "Hey, you did that really well for only having 5 jumps" (and that was a bullshit line). and "You're surprisingly good for an old guy" (Heard from manifest in Hawaii). to "You're an asshole" "You fly like shit" "You're an arrogant tool" "You're like a twenty-dollar whore." Not quite down to Stratostar's level, but working on it. A man's gotta have SOME aspirations in life.

Perfect example of why the USPA is having problems relating to the members, IMO. Everyone wants someone else to do their work for them. Watch the video. The comment you're looking for is in either stream 5 or 6. We all sat through it, why not get the info from your own perspective instead of our colored opinions?

I'd suggest you are overanalyzing. Or perhaps you have misconceptions of the discipline. I've met people who have labeled wingsuits as "deathtraps" but that's only because they remember wingsuits from PdG's death, "Gypsy Moths" or maybe the very early history of flying with wings (nearly every pilot died in the very early days). In other words, they're ill-informed. I would submit the specifics you were given as to why wingsuits don't have higher incident #'s are correct. FWIW, I'd never suggest that I have "above average" skills. But I surely do enjoy wingsuiting.

No. It was not Glen who said that about pot-stirrers with nothing better to do.

please be a little less inflammatory in how you interpret this. No one cited security/privacy concerns. My *response* was that it was a public meeting, but that doesn't mean someone suggested it was private or a security issue. I'd really hate for that to become an issue, particularly if we're going to see this sort of event streamed live in the future. There were members of the USPA staff that felt very good about the meeting being streamed, just as there were BOD members who felt the same. Without suggesting this as any sort of reason I was given, we all know that people behave differently when cameras are around. ALL people. That's just normal. Sometimes a room will fill with assholes and idiots (witness all the camera geeks in the background at the Superbowl, flipping off the camera and lifting their shirts), and others simply don't say as much if anything at all. A camera is a permanent record which may be referred to at a later point in time. Therefore, the meat of a discussion may be picked at more delicately than it otherwise may be picked at. So keep in mind that cameras do have an impact on events, both negative and positive. Having attended at *least* 100 of these sorts of meetings in my life, I'll tell you that this group isn't *much* different. You can immediately tell who is there to do a job, who is there as a retractor/brake system, who is there to step on the gas, and who is there to further themselves. Everyone has an agenda, including you and I. Like everything else in life, people take on a different dynamic in real-person vs internet or print. I was very impressed with a couple of people that I hadn't expected to be impressed with, and less than bowled over with a couple of people that I had previously been impressed with. And I'm sure that I left some of the same impressions with a few of them, too. We likely all did.

Stream One Stream Two Stream Three Stream Four Stream Five Stream Six

Stream One Stream Two

uploading video now. There are several files, it'll take a while. Broken down into several 10 min chunks. As far as "reaction"...a couple BOD members had problems with it, but I pointed out, it was a public meeting. Most of the BOD folk that did take a second to speak with me had no problem w/it, and other than two, everyone was quite gracious.

JP already tried really hard to break a sculpture by tweaking it's nipples. Then he realized it wasn't really mounted well on the pedestal.