Zing

A free lifetime membership???? Hell I paid for a lifetime membership to USPA in 1974, and it expired in 1975! Zing Lurks

There's one version called "Proof" and I think you can download it from skydivingmovies. Zing Lurks

Man, Howard, you sure come up with photos of some obscure stuff. I think I know what it is, but I want to see how many others give it a go before I prove I'm wrong. Zing Lurks

Man, does that photo bring back some memories. That'd be me with the green Wonderhoh at the top of the stairs, making sure the 125 people on the load had tickets. There were always a dozen or more who tried, and often succeeded, in sneaking onto the big plane loads. According to the pilot/owner of the DC-4/C-54, we ran out of room for jumpers in the main cabin long before we got anywhere near the gross take-off weight of the airplane. For the history buffs, that airplane's military career included a couple years service after WWII as Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower's personal transport. Sadly, the airplane's final appearance as a jump ship ended its availability as a jump plane. Jim Blumenthal told me that on one of the loads he flew at the WFFC, a video guy took of his seat belt during the taxi to the runway and walked around shooting video of the takeoff. About a month after the convention ended, Blumenthal got a call from his insurance underwriter telling him that his coverage on the airplane was canceled and they would no longer insure him. When he asked why he was being canceled, the insurance company said they had a copy of the video that showed people moving around the cabin during takeoff, which violated the terms of the insurance when hauling jumpers. He was unable to obtain insurance on the C-54 antwhere else, and was forced to sell the airplane. He still has his C-123, but he swears no sport jumpers will ever get on one of his airplanes ever again. Zing Lurks

You've got me stumped on that one, Howard. It almost looks like something out of a Jules Verne novel. Perhaps a precursor to the venerable AN-2? Zing Lurks

I think his rig is one of those ParaTwin Pro rigs that had a reserve that could be mounted in a conventional manner (up front) but could also be mounted on top of the main container as a piggyback rig. Zing Lurks

Thanks Harry Zing Lurks

Any updates on Al, Linda? Zing Lurks

Yep ... the old steel trap had a bit of rust stuck in the memory banks, again. Went and paged through the Skies Call books and found the photo of the Nord Atlas that I was thinking of, then went googling and found a photo of the Argosy. I thought the gear, helmets and jumpsuits looked sort of circa mid-70s. Re: the C-119 Flying Boxcar. It had clm-shell doors at the rear that could be removed before flight, but troopers usually exited the side doors for paradrops. Cargo drops were made out the rear flying with the clam-shells removed. Zing Lurks

Off the top of my head, I can't recall the make and model, but I seem to recall that airplane as one used at a World Meet, possibly held in France, sometime in the mid-70s. I'm sure somebody here will recognize the aircraft type. Zing Lurks

"I'm hoping someone can explain the tradition of bringing beer for firsts." Traditionally, skydivers are bunch of cheapskate beer swillers who spent all their money on jump tickets and now want you to buy them beers. Zing Lurks

I've been watching manned launches ever since they fired Sputnik up there ... and I still get psyched up like a little kid everytime! Zing Lurks

Somewhere in my pile of skydive crap is an exact duplicate of that letter and my mambership card as a DZW. For the life of me, I can't remeber my number, but it was fairly low and I think I got it around 1978 or 79 at Ghoulidge. Zing Lurks

Some of those of us who have bounced might disagree with that statement. Zing Lurks

"... is there not some sort of requirement? " A requirement is one thing, compliance is a whole 'nother ballgame. Zing Lurks

From one of the Team Flail flyers Johnboy and I did about ten years ago ... "Hmmph, it ain't free, and it ain't falling." Zing Lurks

Skydiving ... You're dead until you pull. Zing Lurks

"Or take me to jail just 'cause I LOOK guilty!" But ... you do ... and we are! Zing Lurks

I heard about this shortly after it happened. I found out today that the pilot who died was Gerry Beck. He was a jumper back in the 60s and early 70s and ran a cropduster operation in the town where my dad lives. About 15-20 years ago, he began manufacturing replacement parts for warbirds, then built his business into a restoration/rebuild operation for warbirds. At the Wahpeton Airport and a museum in Fargo, his airplanes and those belonging to several friends comprise quite a collection. If you're ever in Fargo, be sure to go to the museum there at Hector Airport. The pilot of the other P-51 is the son of an ex-jumper friend from whom I bought my first square parachute, a Paraplane, back in the early 70s. When the accident at Oshkosh happened, Gerry was flying a P-51A that he essentially built from the ground up, not a restoration. I used to go out to his shop whenever I was there visiting family and rub against all the great airplanes he had. He was a good man, and I'm going to miss him. Zing Lurks

Be even more interesting to see if Phoenix has a similiar procedure ... since that's where this collision happened. Zing Lurks

My dad was cleaning out a room where the brother of two little old spinster sisters lived, and died, prior to some renovations being done on the house. My dad's a doctor and provided house-call medical services to these folks, and did favors for them ... things these sweet little old ladies couldn't do. They were terrified of having a gun in the house and insisted my dad "get it out of our house!" In a closet, wrapped in an old blanket, he found a Civil War issue 1863 Sharps .50-caliber rimfire calvary carbine. My brothers and I all played with that thing during our Cowboys&Indians days, it was taken to school for show-and-tell, used in a school play, and laid around our house in one closet or another for years. About 10 years ago, I went to a gunshow in Tombstone, Az, and one of the vendors had an amazing collection of CW-era firearms, mainly long guns. He had several that were close, but not the same ... didn't have the right hammer, another had the hammer, but the bolt wasn't right. I described the gun to this fellow and he suggested I take in the other displays, and stop back at his table later. He had some reference books he wanted to consult. When I returned an hour later, he picked up one of his firearms encylopedias and pointed out a couple possibilities ... sure enough, there it was. One of 300 firearms contracted to Sharps for the single-shot, bolt-action rifles and issued to a particular Ohio or Illinois calvary unit. According to his references, there were less than 10 copies still in existence. He offered me $5000 sight unseen for the rifle on condition that it was complete as I described it. Hell, in the late 60s, a gunsmith looked it over, declared it fit for firing and was able to locate some ammunition. It hasn't been sold. Zing Lurks

BINGO! ... Spaceship One was a proof of concept vehicle, now that Rutan has demonstrably proved civilian space launches are possible, I'd bet he's ready to move on to other aviation projects. He's got a few other ideas up his sleeve. Zing Lurks

I was gonna say that, but you got the attribution wrong ... that's one of Bullit Bob's random babble theory of flight blurb's. Zing Lurks

Longjohns ... it was damn cold up there! Zing Lurks

But, the difference between the dry heat and the wet heat is same as the difference between the dry heaves and the wet heaves ... they're both damned uncomfortable, but on is a little sloppier than the other! Zing Lurks