SkymonkeyONE

try PM'ing cobaltdan. If that does not work, then go to the atair site and find any e-mail link. info@atair.com ought to work. Just for everyone's personal edification, Dan Preston's dad started a company back in the day that did scientific glass blowing and that's the background he came from. Interesting stuff.

Nope

Oh, you funny, HA HA! Arlo knows better.

Electric. I was fascinated to find out that I lost no noticeable torque whatsoever. I am sure it's gonna run the batteries down sooner, but who gives a shit; the cart was FREE! I paid a little under $900 for the lift kit, wheels and tires. I painted it myself right after we got back from Rantoul last year.

It's so funny people not recognizing me anymore!

Do you really?

Shimell is my boy, but he can't spell to save his ass.

Raeford is a "golf cart" DZ, pure and simple. We have a lot of shade, perfectly manicured turf landing area, and a nice asphalt road and parking lot. There are at least five golf carts that we run around in. We use them to pick up jumpers who land way out in the landing area, carry our lazy asses to the boarding area, and lastly, to simply roll around in and drink coctails. Others are used to drag airplanes around and haul parts, etc over near the hangar. Katie and I got ours from my dad at Rantoul last year and I promptly repainted it and tuned it up. With my new job I all of a sudden had a lot of cash laying around that I could do something fun with, so I, like a true Alabama Redneck, jacked that mother up eight inches and put on some big 24" ATV wheels and tires. I installed the lift two days ago; it took two hours. The wheels and tires just got here today. What YOU got, fools? Check IT!!!

Yes, a couple of places make prescription goggles. They advertise in both Parachutist and Skydiving.

Not to beat a dead horse, but I have been on a _LOT_ of Cessna loads doing tandems where another Instructor; sometimes even my video guy (also a SL-I); dispatched a student on the way up. I guess it just comes down to what a particular DZ feels is "normal." Remember, I work at a DZ where we regularly train 16 year-olds to skydive and now don't have any problems doing tandems with the same. I grew up on a similar dropzone and I myself began skydiving at age 17. We are fine with the USPA ruling and are more than fine with our aircraft safety procedures as they relate to dispatching students. As our dropzone has been in operation under the same ownership for over thirty years, I think we are fine with the way we do things. Chuck

eighteen to thirteen grand.

You guys laugh, but I know people with both of those (Exit Only, and No Entry).

If you can't take the heat, stay out of the kitchen. On that note, I wonder where our boy Nathan is?

I was one treeclimbing son of a bitch as a kid. I was pretty small and would go WAY up in them and chill out. There were huge pecan and oak trees all over the place in the textile mill village where my grandparents lived. As a child my friends and I regularly built massive tree forts. Chuck

At the grocery store in the shampoo section?

You apparently jump at a dropzone that does not do low passes then. We regularly let out hop and pops on the way up, no matter which airplane (Cessna, Otter, CASA, Twin Bo) we are flying. Tandem passengers are belted in during those times; it's simply not an issue. No, I would not be leaving a tandem passenger in the plane (above 3500 feet). If there were a problem with an SL student, I would simply deal with it (I have had the SL-I rating since I was 20 years old.) If I needed to get out at 3500 feet with my passenger, then I would unbuckle him, hook up at least one top snap, then exit and throw my drogue while holding the passenger around his waist with my left hand. Without the bottom connectors done on my Racer, the rig opens as soon as you throw the drogue. I simply cannot see an issue with dispatching an SL/IAD student on the way up with me wearing my tandem rig, not that I have ever needed to do so nor do I ever foresee a time when I would need to. We have not done SL or IAD progression at Raeford in quite some time since they moved the military club over to Parkton. I don't understand why you think having the door open with a belted-in tandem passenger is a big deal; it's not. In a Cessna, the tandem passenger (at least at our dropzone) is belted in facing the rear, right behind the pilot seat. In an Otter they are all the way up front. chuck

Looks like me and my wife will be there. I will run a BMI course for any interested/qualified party assuming my schedule stays clear. I will be bringing at least six demo suits.

I have three rigs: a swoop/AFF/Fun rig with a Velo in it, a BirdMan/spare rig with a Sabre2 97 in it, and a Racer Tandem with a Firebolt 350 in it. I jump them all quite regularly.

BirdMan will be there as well with demo suits, pantz, etc.

I don't see any problem whatsoever with a Tandem Instructor dispatching an IAD/SL student out low on the way up so long as his tandem passenger is securely belted in the plane when the door is open. This might be more of a hassle with a larger tandem system in a narrow body 182, but I wouldn't have any problem whatsoever doing it with my 38 pound Racer Tandem. It seems totally reasonable to me. Chuck

No, a Coach should not be able to control a static line and dispatch a student. Coaches are for Cat F and beyond.

It was 81 degrees (f) here in NC yesterday and likely will be the same today. Beautiful.

April 23/24 at Skydive Coastal Carolinas is still the date we are trying to hammer down for our first meet, people. The course markers are paid for and will be delivered in time for the meet. Looks like Lyle Presse is going to help us out with setup and judging this first time. We are trying to make this one a beach meet on Sunday the 24th. Details about costs are pretty much the same as all the other leagues. Fifty dollars CPC membership plus jumps for the first meet. I will try and score some prize money from other sources than membership. Both Dave and I have been very busy at our "real" jobs, so that's what the information vaccum has been about. More later. Chuck

I am a PD guy, but simply don't have a use for a Katana. I jump a Velocity 84 and a Sabre2 97. The Velo is a great tool for flat-out swooping, but requires a lot of attention from the pilot due to it's ground-hungriness and speed; it's not for everyone and I only jump mine half the time. The Sabre2, when loaded agressively like mine is, is a fantastic canopy. I swoop the piss out of it (to a complete stop on rears regularly), it opens great, and requires much less attention. The truth of the matter is that 99% of the people flying more agressive canopies have no business under them. If you are not exploiting a canopy to it's full potential, then you might as well be jumping a better-mannered canopy that you can still push very hard and have fun. The Sabre2 is a perfect all-around canopy. If I were the original poster, I would simply downsize to a Sabre2 120. At least demo one and see how you like it. Chuck Blue D-12501 AFF/SL/TM-I, BMCI, PRO

Personally? When dealing with SL/IAD students these days, why not let the SL/IAD-I's do the work for all of it up to the last "45 second delay?" Let the USPA Coaches deal with the "post up-jumper" to "A license" stuff. The "real" rating is still obtainable very early in a jumper's career. Are you that short on IAD/SL-I's? As I read the ISP (concerning SL anyway), you can put them with a USPA Coach after Cat E in any training method, right up to the A-license check dive (which must be administered by an I). Chuck Blue D-12501 AFF/SL/TM-I, BMCI, PRO