SkymonkeyONE

Dude, you didn't just refer to the S-Bird as an "introductory" suit did you?

I STILL have a whole box of that stuff in my teamroom in Raeford! Handing that stuff to unsuspecting people NEVER gets old.

Personally, I am always most stoked when we do big "flying vagina" formations with multiple penetrations. Fun 3D stuff is where it's all. That is all Chuck PFC/E, BMCI, Man About Town

Big suits work great right up to the point that your wimpy arms wear out. Smaller suits are much smarter for weaklings and out of practice guys

I made my first skydive on 12 January 1981. I was 17 years old. SL progression out of a Cessna 182 with the door off. 28 foot 7-TU in a B=12 container. I weighed 110 pounds and was five foot two. Today, I made four jumps in my new job. I was JMing all day today and didn't spot anyone off the DZ (thank God..LOL) While there are a ton of people out there with more than my seven thousand jumps, few have spent more than twenty years in the service and have managed to keep it up for that long continuously. I consider myself terribly lucky not to have suffered any debilitating injuries during that time. I also consider myself incredibly lucky to have met so many fine people and to have made so many incredible demos during my tenure. It has not sucked. My advice to young jumpers: Don't be a "tourist", make as many friends in the sport as you can, and be safe enough to continue doing this great thing all of your life. I am 47 and have been jumping for 30 of those years. How cool is that? Chuck Blue D-12501 AFF-I, SL-I, TM-I, PRO, S&TA, BMCI, PFC/E

I am not there, but I am with you all in spirit from Eloy, AZ. By the way, the weather sucks here and we are drinking like vikings in Casa Grande, AZ. I brought my Road Glide, my old lady, and three wingsuits with me. Feel free to get amongst it with us.

Though all have Skyhooks retrofitted, none of our Sigmas have Wichard hardware. I wish they did, though, because half of our rigs have "slippy" legstraps and that bugs the hell out of me. I spent quite a bit of time at the Wichard booth at PIA six and four years ago checking their stuff out. Their hardware is fantastic. Chuck Blue D-12501

Original Classics are still great suits. The best mod to update them is to simply add two additional front zippers off to the sides of the original one which terminate down close to the knees. Any "suzy-wan" sewing shop will do the mod for around $25. That, or you could beg your rigger to do it. Chuck

As the MINUMUM requirement for wingsuiting in the UK was/is 500 jumps, I always make sure that students who do meet the US requirements get a very-thorough sign-off from me stating exactly what they have accomplished, where it was done, and all of my contact info. I have never had any former UK student (or from any other such country) call back and report that they were forbidden from jumping in their country. It probably helps that I know most of the CCI's in the UK. Chuck

I do all of my wingsuit jumps with my Sabre2 97 loaded around 1.8. Never had a problem with it. Mine does not turn on opening by the way. Chuck

I'm sitting in my teamroom drinking a beer nursing a broken toe. What are YOU doin?

Really? 5 supervised jumps to start flying a wingsuit? Is there a 'logbook' endorsement now too??? _justin There has always been a logbook endorsement.

I rarely visit this site anymore, but this thread really hits home. To Avery: isn't it ironic that such a BASE bad-boy (old preconception by me) like you should have to post something like this. Odd how our attitudes change when we are about to lose our ability to jump at our home dropzone. You have given so much in money and spirit to the wingsuit community there that I can't imagine you guys losing your ability to flock freely. to Eddie: You ought to be stomping mudholes in the asses of these pricks who can't navigate. Land off here at Raeford and I hope you have got a GPS. I am not about to police your sorry ass up. To everyone: this problem is ANOTHER reason why it's not prudent to break the rules and start jumping wingsuits before you have the minimum mandated amount of jumps. Hell, for that matter, I can't begin to count the number of SUPER experienced jumpers who simply would (or could) not navigate back to the DZ on their first flights because they were so stoked to be cruising around the sky and geeking the camera. Ultimately, it's an INDIVIDUAL mandatory task to get your sorry ass back to the DZ. There is simply no excuse not to in a wingsuit. The spot ought never be too long or off-heading for a wingsuiter. Police your own or pay the price like these brothers at Lodi are doing now. Peace, Chuckie

Nice video. The soundtrack on the first one is excellent and relaxing. the POV "Telletubby" video looks great with the loops and barrel rolls. Nice stuff. Chuck

It is my personal opinion that people who are so concerned about potential liability issues should refrain from instructing. It's all about your personal risk analysis. I choose to accept the bad with the good and that makes me a more confident instructor. AFF is VERY challenging and you ARE going to have some bad jumps. Being willing to work through those problems, though, makes you a FAR better instructor. Chuck

The way I relay it to my students is this: "your first purchase in skydiving should be a three-tone audible altimeter" Back in the day, before the creation of that device, my advice was: "your first purchase in skydiving should be a properly fitting jumpsuit" I see no reason whatsoever to NOT use an audible, even for AFF students. One of the military contracts I do is to train the Canadian forces to freefall (Trenton, Ontario). Those students all use audibles. I don't think any of you who would argue against audibles has probably ever worked a program where they are in use from the beginning. Chuck Blue D-12501, AFF/SL/TM-I, PRO, S&TA

What he said. I own and fly wingsuits by five different manufacturers. Each has it's own merits.

I second what Scott said. Do not confuse skydiver yahoo high altitude jumps with what the military does. Much of what the civilian bigway considers "safe" is complete nonsense and utterly unsafe for most of the people who participate on those jumps. Chuck

Not sure what planet you live on, but there are quite a few of us on here who legally started jumping at age 16. Likewise, there at a ton of dropzones which have packers under the age of 18. Never mind the fact that I was flying a plane at six years old. Chuck Blue D-12501

I will second that fact that Pookie is one solid motherfucker. What a great guy to have around. Chuck Blue

I am a very-strong supporter for booties for tandems. My "regular" tandem suit is my oldest RW comp bootie suit. Let power is MUCH more important than arm flap in my very-experienced opinion.

looked like fun to me

He will totally replace your "old style" arm wing with a "new style" one. You will not regret the cost of the modification.

All of you pricks are killing me. I am one of the "chosen few" who have actually been fully sponsored by each and every manufacturer who's gear I jump. It's not a roll of the dice for the manufacturers; they all want to support the INSTRUCTORS and PROFESSIONALS like me who DO THIS FOR A LIVING. Emphasis is all mine. I LOATHE the people on here who think there is only one way to get the job done. EVERY manufacturer has production problems at one time or another. I will never, ever come on here and motherfuck a manufacturer. ANYONE who spends their own money to produce something that they feel is right for the market will ALWAYS have a spot on the rack at my school. Chuck Blue, D-12501, DragonFly Wingsuit School BMCI-4 (since there was such a thing), PF C/E (in this new world) Dealer for every single wingsuit manufacturer Flying production wingsuits since the VERY FIRST boogie they were brought to in the USA Stop motherfucking your brothers, you fucking morons. SERIOUSLY. You all are just making yourselves look bad.

this means nothing without video, fool. VIDEO please.