Ducky

Ya know it's funny I was specifically thinking of Clay when I posted this. So how amazing he was first to respond. kwak Stupidity is a crime.

Can't wait to get there! I'll be rolling into town early Friday evening, heading for my sister's place. I will be out at the DZ Saturday morning. Then away again on Sunday going to New Orleans for Bacchus and perhaps back at the DZ on Monday. Let's give one last call on who will be there when and a good meeting place. If I recall Kreg (sp?) said he will have a banner on his Pop-up?? I'll be armed with the digital camera so we can all pose :-) kwak Stupidity is a crime.

WHY I MUST DRINK BEER>SLOW CELL REPLENISHMENT THEORY!!!!!!!!!!!! I have not seen anyone explain this as well as Cliff Clavin, on Cheers. One afternoon at Cheers, Cliff Clavin was explaining the Buffalo Theory to his buddy Norm. Here's how it went: "Well ya see, Norm, it's like this... A herd of buffalo can only move as fast as the slowest buffalo. And when the herd is hunted, it is the slowest and weakest ones at the back that are killed first. This natural selection is good for the herd as a whole, because the general speed and health of the whole group keeps improving by the regular killing of the weakest members. "In much the same way, the human brain can only operate as fast as the slowest brain cells. Excessive intake of alcohol, as we know, kills brain cells. But naturally, it attacks the slowest and weakest brain cells first. In this way, regular consumption of beer eliminates the weaker brain cells, making the brain a faster and more efficient machine. That's why you always feel smarter after a few beers." Kwak Stupidity is a crime.

I think this past weekend and the experiences I had fall right into this category... I did jumps 11-19. I was a lucky one who went straight AFF and graduated in 7 jumps (that was 3 weeks ago). Since then I have been focused on getting my A license, but more so on enjoying the amazing sport I have come to love in such a short time. My coach said it best "In AFF they taught you to jump safely, I wanna teach you to FLY" That's how I see it, I am learning to fly, how many whuffos spend their weekend doing something that cool? I felt amazing things this weekend: Fear like I have never known when my HopnPop occured unexpectedly in a minor emergency. A sense of belonging when I spent the night at the DZ on Saturday with people who all have a common bond. A feeling of Victory when I stood up all my landings (except the one in the weeds across the road, ugggh oops) Pride when I accomplished what was planned on a particular dive or pulled off an accurate landing. Insanity when I tried front riser dives, got the shit scared outta me and then did it again and again and again. I felt confident when I took my first ride in a Cessna 205 and was trusted to spot for the load, then lept out at 3800ft. into snow and sleet. Oh yeah and that was the first time I had jumped my own pack job too. Now I feel like something is missing, as I sit here dreaming of the next opportunity I have to leap from a "perfectly good airplane" That's how I see it... Kwak Stupidity is a crime.

Oooh So Close.... (sorry its a long one, and a bit of a whine) Wow, what a weekend! I arrived at the DZ with 10 jumps on Saturday morning and the intention of returning home tonight with a completed A lic. proficiency card and 20 jumps. I got 19 jumps and 3 blanks on my card :-( The weather today was horrid and I rode all 4 loads, the highest being only 6,000ft. the lowest 3,500ft. I'll say I am damn sure cleared on my Hop n Pops! I also did the spotting on all 4 four loads and learned to pack (that's not as easy as it looks!!)Everything went perfectly yesterday, I spent the entire day with a coach. We worked on fall rate control on one jump. The next I followed him out, he set base and I had to dock on him which I did ok at. I think break-off and tracking for separation was the predominant theme on every jump though. I seem to be doing fine with turns and a good neutral arch, stable on heading belly to earth is not a problem for me. We also "practiced" my Hop n Pop and did my accuracy landings, along with tons of safety review. I have to admit it was kinda psycho today, it was sleeting and snowing at about 1500ft, that crap hurts even under canopy! So I am not sure what will happen for the boogie, the weather here does not look like it will cooperate for me to finish up my A before heading down. Fast Eddie will be down there and he was at the DZ all weekend, he and I may be able to finish my card up on Friday at Gold Coast. Worst case scenario I won't be able to jump, but WILL hang out. I have been told that just the environmet of so many different people and a new DZ will be very condusive to learning. Anyways enough babble for now, again I hope to meet all of you this weekend :) Kwak Stupidity is a crime.

OooH ooh Oooh almost forgot, Ugh one more thing, as for jump suit and gear. I'll be renting and am STILL looking for a used jump suit. Something that looks good with grass stains!! I'm 5'11" 140, very skinny indeed, if anyone going to the boogie has something they wanna get rid of let me know. kwak Stupidity is a crime.

Sounds Great! I hope to meet alot of you guys. As for a record?? I think I'llhave to watch from below, I'll probably roll into town with my brand new A license and 20 jumps. Maybe I could ride the load?? Who knows, but let's definately decide a place to hook up on Saturday. Noon at Manifest sounds good to me. Though I have never been to this DZ?? Kwak Stupidity is a crime.

I'm sorry Jess, Now what were you saying?? I was looking at your Boobies, that new jumpsuit is nice! kwak Stupidity is a crime.

Oh yeah, As for me.. Hmm how to recognize me?? I'll be the skinny dude with rental gear? Probably be wearing a New Orleans Saints hat if we don't decide otherwise. That way I look like a local :) Stupidity is a crime.

I'll be there! Sparkling new A license and all. Probably all day Saturday and stay for the night. Might come out Friday night instead. Who is gonna be there WHEN? Also since we tried to get some DZ.com t-shirts made and that bombed, and then I suggested hats and that bombed... I can still get hats made for us for the boogie and hand deliver them. Any suggestions?? Kwak Stupidity is a crime.

No but i think that is the case with any "ex" It's them, not us! kwak Stupidity is a crime.

"Where do I apply for that job? Of course...this usually means putting up with a psycho stripper girlfriend though....." Oh how lucky I was to dodge that, I had a sane girlfriend (who later went psycho) before, during and after my 2 year tour of duty. I did however amass a kick ass CD collection and a painful liking for free booze. Why is it that guys in a strip club always like buying the DJ drinks?? In case your wondering guys it's not really that great of a job. I could probably convince you to never try it in about 5 minutes of conversation. There are things we guys just shouldn't know or have to deal with concerning women, their bodies, personalitys etc. kwak

UPDATE! I will be completeing my A license porf. card this weekend, so the pressure is on sista! Skeared?? I ain't skeared. kwak

I'm sorry, but I call BullSh*t, I have spent most of my life as a pervert and actually had the opportunity to live several of those years as PROVERT.. Pervert: Guy who pays women to take their clothes off Provert: The guy who gets 10% of all the money the pervert spends and the show is free. kwak

broke?? I once heard a guy say "A woman is only as broke as she is ugly", not tellin where i heard it though. Kwak

ok the last time this plane was mentioned. I told the story of my Mom's first trip out to the DZ and how she commented she was scared to see the plane we jumped out of. I wasn't worried cuz we normally jumped from a kingair that looked good. Suprise!!! Frankenotter shows up.! But now this statement>>> "holy crap is that thing safe??" Got me thinking. "whuffo you jump out dem planes?" umm hey dumbass look at this thing I'm friggin amazed it takes off and my faith doesn't run deep so I am damn sure not gonna try landing in it!! kwak

I was thinking we could incorporate a climbeing harness into the rig or wear it under neath and attach the rope to it with a beaner. In that case we coud release easily if needed. Just watch out for powerlines!!!! kwak

Oh and btw, for a little humor perhaps. If I am not mistaken Jess was teasig me about being a newbie in the Pub last week. So if I get my A before her, does that mean I can give her shit about it? boobies! kwak

"you don't need your A to get your B you just have to pass the exam (or did that change too?) Not to be a pain, but I do think this is affected beacuse there IS NO EXAM for the A license anymore, only the proficiency card. So I am under the impression that you have to do the card in lieu of the exam which puts it all back at square one getting the A. kwak

Hmmm here's one for ya... A sorta whuffo friend proposed this idea to me the other day as we were cruising on the lake in my boat. I had bored him to death all morning with skydiving babble and all of a sudden he gets the gleam in his eye. He says "hey can you get a really cheap like old used parachute ya think?" "um yeah I suppose so, why?" he responds "Well ya got me thinking of the one time I tried parasailing in the bahamas, and was thinking this boat has enough power to pull of something like that. So why don't we give it a try this summer, you can be the test dummy" I guess the scarey part is I actually have been contemplating the idea. I'm sure someone would get killed or arrested before we ever succeeded, but what's the fun if their is no risk??? If nothing else I'll get my water training signed off!! Kwak

"I always wondered about how different a tandem must be for a true submissive - get strapped to some guy who then tosses you out of an airplane." I saw the funniest thing yesterday.. Manifest called out a TM's name saying he had a "passenger" he comes running across the building jumping and skipping while yelling "Yippie who is it? who is it?, who do i get to through outta the plane?" Only moments before I was standing next to the "passenger" as he made one final attempt to convince his wife that she should jump also. The look on her face was classic, she looked straight at him and said "your fuckin nuts" and walked out the door. He gave chase, I'm still not sure if they ever came back. kwak

Hey Skyrose and anyone else.. "That was beautiful. I wish my whuffo friends could read that so they could find an inking of understanding into why I love skydiving." If you'd like, feel free to pass it along, if ya think that much of it. I am currently working on a lil piece for a new newspaper here in GA, that will be printed in March. I plan on doing a whole feature on my experiences and also taking the editor out for a tandem to get his input. It's a bilingual paper geared to the hispanic population. I met a good TM who is bilingual and excited about getting the word out that the language barrier is not an issue if you want to experience the amazing things we all do. Kwak

Umm did i really mispell boobies??? Clay would shoot me! kwak

SheeesH!! I asked a simple question and started a war! well not really.... To bring the topic up to date, I did my first 3 solos today. No coaches and no pressure and I think it was the best way. I was immediately approached by 2 different AFF instructors I had jumped with upon arrival. They both took time to remind me of things and answer questions. One offered to radio me on my first jump cuz I was worried about my landing. The winds were light but changing alot. I had amazingly fun jumps and managed to get a few things signed off. I think one of the guys is gonna jump with me next weekend if the student flow is low. He said he would be glad to help me all he can. Now that's what I like. And yes I will jump with a coach in the very near future as I start to concentrate more on RW skills... Kwal

If you did AFF and can still contact the instructor(s) who trained you they may be able to help. ALOT of what is on that card is covered in AFF. They may not remember you, but if your log book shows the info and their signature they would be more than happy to sign off. I was handed my proficiency card after my AFF grad jump. I realized I had done quite a bit of the stuff on it already so I did exactly as I am advising. I actually made a post on this forum recently about it > "Import Student Info" i think it was called. Good Luck! KwaK