Baksteen

Chill out my freeflailing friend Results gained in the past are no guarantee against the future. I missed all the riots about Shah and when I looked at his post I saw him referencing motorbikes because they cost a lot too - and because he DOES have experience riding. He offered the opinion that spending money on an expensive hobby is better than spending it on trivia. At least, I read it that way and I agree. "That formation-stuff in freefall is just fun and games but with an open parachute it's starting to sound like, you know, an extreme sport." ~mom

It sounds to me as if the OP's friend already made up her mind. She's open to the suggestion, if her partner is to hers. Different strokes for different folks, I guess.. I'll bet that is the same speech you give to couples considering doing a tandem, isn't it? A tandem?? Two virgins being strapped to their instructors 'cuz they are afraid to do it by themselves or alternatively want to try it only once just to be able to say they did it? You live and learn. "That formation-stuff in freefall is just fun and games but with an open parachute it's starting to sound like, you know, an extreme sport." ~mom

watch and learn, kiddo EDIT: Clicky now worky... "That formation-stuff in freefall is just fun and games but with an open parachute it's starting to sound like, you know, an extreme sport." ~mom

Whereas you had to start from scratch. "That formation-stuff in freefall is just fun and games but with an open parachute it's starting to sound like, you know, an extreme sport." ~mom

I think it was the first of the annual Moderating Conspiracy Day (MCD) - the Mods take down the forums on purpose to enjoy at least one day of peace and quiet. Of course, I suspect the amount of PMs and emails increased significantly yesterday and they still had to read those... Perhaps it won't be an annual event after all - it would depend on whether taking down the forums actually did save them some time. OTOH, they could have banned people yesterday without having to explain themselves en public. We'll see - it's a conspiracy.. "That formation-stuff in freefall is just fun and games but with an open parachute it's starting to sound like, you know, an extreme sport." ~mom

Solos and tandems without video are 'the dark side? "That formation-stuff in freefall is just fun and games but with an open parachute it's starting to sound like, you know, an extreme sport." ~mom

Sounds good - that would confine the whining about DZ-politics to that forum. "That formation-stuff in freefall is just fun and games but with an open parachute it's starting to sound like, you know, an extreme sport." ~mom

Well yes, but in concert with the 'galaxy far far away' definition it is implied that the people belonging to the dark side are undesirable. "That formation-stuff in freefall is just fun and games but with an open parachute it's starting to sound like, you know, an extreme sport." ~mom

: 4 : 2 solos, 2 jumps bumping endcells, all from 6k. I made my buddy quite nervous before that last exit - I was spotting and he thought I was taking it way too far. But we made it back to the field at breakoff altitude without any correction being necessary.

So far I've heard it used regarding *freefly *CReW *Hang gliding *evil people in a galaxy far far away *BASE Perhaps it is time that the valued and by general acclaim most respected PWs of the Bonfire established a consensus of what is henceforth to be the proper usage of the aforementioned description.* *I didn't have to consult my thesaurus even once when cooking up that sentence....scary shit...** "That formation-stuff in freefall is just fun and games but with an open parachute it's starting to sound like, you know, an extreme sport." ~mom

Perhaps someone should introduce you to the wonderful world of gear maintenance. "That formation-stuff in freefall is just fun and games but with an open parachute it's starting to sound like, you know, an extreme sport." ~mom

It actually got worse - I'm now afraid to exit higher than 9k and lower than 6k - C&P only, obviously. All the way down I am so afraid that I want to have someone close by (say ten feet or closer) for moral support. EDIT: what about you? Are you able to get stable yet or are you still freeflailing? "That formation-stuff in freefall is just fun and games but with an open parachute it's starting to sound like, you know, an extreme sport." ~mom

Sorry - pet peeve of mine. Define 'scared'. I won't get out of a plane below 2500 feet, or even 3500 if I can help it. I've heard the BS argument What's the added value of exiting 1000 feet lower than 3500 feet (C&P requirement) except that the jumper is 1000 feet closer to their hard deck and thus will have to cutaway their ten linetwists immediately? Since I have 250 exits by now (most of them stable) I am convinced that I can exit stable and safely from 2500 ft. But why should I want to? "That formation-stuff in freefall is just fun and games but with an open parachute it's starting to sound like, you know, an extreme sport." ~mom

even though i fully agree with you, the first thing that comes to my mind is this: "Oh yeah? Well then I'll go to [wherever], because they'll let me downsize now. I don't need to do any crap excercises because I already can land my current canopy in optimal conditions." Let's face it - the people most likely to benefit from your approach are also the ones least likely to listen. Then again, if you can make even one person see sense, all effort wasted on other people is totally worth it

One newbie to another, the exit order did strike me as strange. By all means, ask him why the exit order is why it is. I doubt that he is unwilling to talk about it 'because you have low jump numbers'. If he is, it's not a DZ I'd want to be jumping at. New jumpers seeking information and understanding and asking questions is something that should be encouraged, not repressed.

spoilers below - I'm simultaneously talking about the flick and the book. The helicopter scene as described in the book was a huge disappointment to me. IIRC Langdon grabs a door of the (already exploded?) helicopter somehow and uses it as a parachute. This is what got me thinking - I noticed that Brown goes to great lengths to implicate a certain character while at the same time making it clear that a certain second character could never be the villain. Then, miracolously, the second character is the Evil Genius after all. Who dunnit? Just look for the least likely character apart from the lead character. Unfortunately, I had already bought Digital Fortress and that "polar extraterrestrial life" story (can't even remember the name) so I decided I might as well finish them. The same formula applies there, and in retrospect it also does for the da vinci code. Being a complete barbarian, the cultural aspects of Angels and Demons just whooshed by me - it all looked plausible enough. I had the idea Brown did his research thoroughly but overlooked several details (like the skydiving) and made some hugely ignorant blunders with respects to those details, completely destroying his credibility. When she was watching the film, my GF on the other hand (who'd never read the book) had the entire 'path of Illumination' figured out by the time the second cardinal was killed. According to her, the carabinieri simply needed to guard Rome's biggest attractions to solve the case, instead of going on that wild goose chase. She even predicted that the Church of the Illuminati would be in the 'Angel's Castle' (sorry - I was watching the subtitles) Her literally translated words: "Wow - I can be a professor in symbology too!" In the movie at least the parachute the camer...cama...Father McKenna used looks like a bailout in a bad light - it saved to movie for me. Furthermore, Langdon stays on the ground, eliminating the necessity for a ridiculous improvised parachute. This even had me entertaining the possibility (for about five minutes) whether Father mcKenna was actually allowed to be the hero. As to the extremely intelligent and competent assasin using the actual car his contact supplied for him to make his getaway....WTF - of course the car is rigged. Totally unbelievable act of stupidity. Still, all in all I enjoyed watching the movie - it was much, much better than the book. "That formation-stuff in freefall is just fun and games but with an open parachute it's starting to sound like, you know, an extreme sport." ~mom

Do I dare open that link? "That formation-stuff in freefall is just fun and games but with an open parachute it's starting to sound like, you know, an extreme sport." ~mom

Please don't give the manufacturers any ideas Congrats on the jump and now on to the FJC! "That formation-stuff in freefall is just fun and games but with an open parachute it's starting to sound like, you know, an extreme sport." ~mom

Suck - eeerrr "That formation-stuff in freefall is just fun and games but with an open parachute it's starting to sound like, you know, an extreme sport." ~mom

As long as I can remember I wanted to be a fighter pilot. I work in medicine research. Cue trumpets: Waah-wah-waaaah... "That formation-stuff in freefall is just fun and games but with an open parachute it's starting to sound like, you know, an extreme sport." ~mom

I'm used to a hackey, but the CReW rig I jumped this weekend had one of those plastic whatsits. On the second jump I missed the handle on the first attempt. This surprised me, resulting in a less than ideal body position and hence a few line twists after I did open but I simply hung out in brakes until my instructor could catch up with me. I really don't see what the big deal is - the exercise was that I had to dock him from the 'ideal' setup point and we still managed that five times on this particular jump.

600 jumps? The Dutch requirements for flying a stiletto is 400. Since these requirements are perceived by a number of veterans as extremely strict, I cannot imagine that the Royal Dutch Aeronautical Assosication would allow something that a manufacturer wouldn't. To the OP, just ask your friend how his last jump went, wether he is sure that his insurance covers skydiving and whether he has sorted out his will. "That formation-stuff in freefall is just fun and games but with an open parachute it's starting to sound like, you know, an extreme sport." ~mom

Oh yes - In 2002 I had the flu for the first time in my life. The actual flu - not the 'severe cold' most people think is the flu. It was three weeks before I started to feel "less worse". Those headaches.......I can identify with you. "That formation-stuff in freefall is just fun and games but with an open parachute it's starting to sound like, you know, an extreme sport." ~mom

with the queen of hearts? then he'd[/angelic] better do his divine best, or she will chop his head off... "That formation-stuff in freefall is just fun and games but with an open parachute it's starting to sound like, you know, an extreme sport." ~mom

Fortunately for me people on here know better than that. You can't get away that easily. Exactly - instigating naughtyness is almost as welcome bad as perpetrating naughtiness. "That formation-stuff in freefall is just fun and games but with an open parachute it's starting to sound like, you know, an extreme sport." ~mom