SkymonkeyONE

Likewise, back in the 60's and 70's at some DZ's in the states SL students were dispatched from 2800- 3000 feet out of cessnas without Altis. Oddly, I still know "older" jumpers who simply refuse to jump an alti because they still rely on their "primary alti": their eyes. They still hum it to 2000 feet (or thereabouts) on every jump as well. Hell, one of them doesn't wear goggles! Guess who that is.. Chuck D-12501

I supported an effort in Z-hills a few years ago where one of my USSOCOM buddies did over 100 in 24 hours with the same passenger. It was hard-core. Me? 14 in a day with me packing. It wore me out. Chuck

Haven't been back on the site in many months, but make no mistake: I love all of you old guys. Visit me in Raeford if you get the chance. SM1 sends

As much as I hate it, this ain't happening unless I win the powerball. Azul sends

Actually, I said it about eight years ago. The smartest way to live through it is to surf it out on your belly with a half a snowboard attached at an angle to your torso and match the angle of a speed skiing slope. You can, by the way practice it on an olympic ski jump slope. Totally safe from take off to landing. You young guys kill me. The only pisser nowadays is that the huge Apache- type suits fly at a much flatter angle than the suits that would have previously been perfect for that ~ 50 degree slope. In this case, in my opinion, biggest is definitely not the answer. Chuck

I have been back at Raeford for two years, still have 11 suits, and still skydive (AFF/Tandem, Wingsuit) for a living. I will never forget the time you showed me the video of you turning that muscle inside-out at Palatka. Nor can I forget the fabulous docked gainer exit we did at that boogie....perfectly executed.

Now THAT was some funny shit, James! An excellent post to read after an eight month break from the site. Chuck

Sorry I missed you, old buddy! Glad to hear you are back at it! Chuck

Good old Debbie! Damn, she was FUN!

Tom Noonan hit the nail on the head: Ted was extraordinary. This was a tremendous blow to the sport and industry alike.

I, for one, am glad we finally got closure on this. I liked Dave and we used to spend a lot of time together on the road. He definitely had his demons, but he was a truly nice guy and he influenced a ton of people. BSBD, Chuck

I am pretty sure I finished 9th in the nation in 2001 points-wise (Butts might have actually been 9th..) and I have only ever broken two knuckles on my right hand swooping (at the WFFC PST meet in 2003). That might seem like a lifetime ago for you new guys, but I am still hard at it at 48 years old and still jump an 80 square foot canopy. Chuck

I have twice found myself in positions where I was slightly

Not sure how Monroe is now, but back when I worked there the airport commission didn't want campers or camping. Has that changed? Chuck

While, no, it's not "neccessary" to improve the inlet, most people in the USA did it anyway. Let me see if I can explain it without making a diagram: The inlet is a triangle with a vertical bar run down the middle. The stock slits run diagonally down the insides of either side of that triangle and are about four inches long each. The "mod" is simply to make an additional cut from the bottom of each slit horizontally toward the inside (center) about an inch. This turns each slit into sort of a flap and really does help with inflation if you DO happen to be flying with your knees bent a little and experience a lot of leg flapping. I know people who actually cut out the triangular flaps as well with great results. The S-Fly Expert is a great flying suit that requires very-little effort to fly efficiently. Older, single-zipper models are a bitch to get in and out of, but adding two additional main body zippers down each side (like all modern suits) fixes that and even gives you an opportunity to make the suit fit fatter people. Also, as stated in another post, it's easy to shorten and lengthen the booties. Chuck

For me, it's three things really: 1) The joy I get teaching people to skydive, even if it's just a tandem. I live for the reaction I get right after the canopy fully opens and they are hooting and hollering (or perhaps hurling..) 2) The challenges you sometimes have to overcome to safely deliver these students/passengers back to the ground in one piece. Those challenges change every single jump depending on your student/passenger and the type of gear you are jumping. 3) I get paid to do it, and that doesn't suck. Chuck D-12501, TM-I (Vector/Sigma/Racer/Eclipse), AFF-I, SL-I, PRO, S&TA

All of mine used to be white/orange, now almost all of my personal suits are red/black.

What they said. I always added another piece of plastic stiffner to the backs of all of those handles to keep them in that slot, but adding a bit velcro is a big help, even then.

You say that, but have you tested that theory? Have you ever failed to stay up with a flock in a GTi? I know I haven't. Never failed to stay in slot in my P2 either. While it's true you might be at the limit of your forward speed range, it's very rare that it's going to end up "too slow" for an accomplished pilot. Note that I added "accomplished" as a caveat... C. Blue, esq.

Totally depends on the AC. I routinely have students outside front float out of the PAC, but they do not deploy their wings until the tail passes over their head. Out of an Otter I teach both ways: stepping out from inside with your wings pulled in to your handles (or hands slightly crossed); or standing outside in the front float position. Both have always worked fine. Chuck

Now THAT was some funny shit!! "Here, let's just hook the bumper to that stump and tug it back out"

I have never, ever had a problem flying comfortably in ANY flock, whether small or large, jumping "smaller" suits. A GTi is a fine suit for the average person who "sometimes" jumps a wingsuit. It's great to learn in, easy to modify, and cheap to buy. I still know where my original GTi is! As far as suit comparison goes: a GTi with wingtip mods isn't really any smaller than a Phantom. Chuck a guy with a lot of suits

I like it!

I checked all of the links and noticed that my home DZ is misrepresented or omited from two of them. Here is my corrected contact info: Chuck Blue, D-12501, PFC/E, BMCI-4, AFFI, TMI, SLI, PRO, S&TA Dragonfly Wingsuit School Raeford Parachute Center 143 Airport Dr, Raeford, NC 28376 Phone: (DZ) (910) 904-0000 I have 11 suits from all manufactuers and am on the dropzone seven days a week. For the record, I think it's a smart idea to start a "sticky" post at the top of this forum to put everyone's info in so that people can stop this bickering. Chuck

You cannot use top rings if you have slink protectors and if you are not running top rings on a swooping canopy then you are out of your mind. If you do not KNOW what top rings are and you are using a full or partial RDS then you are really in the dark. Chuck