BikerBabe

Thanks....but I think we're in different regions! Never meddle in the affairs of dragons, for you are crunchy and taste good with ketchup!

Oh wow...sending Franck and Carol prayers. Franck rode with us to the dinner on Saturday night...very nice guy and enthusiastic! You're in my prayers, guys. Never meddle in the affairs of dragons, for you are crunchy and taste good with ketchup!

First off, Congrats! Since I'm not in the Southeast region, I'll admit that I don't know much about you...what was the platform that you ran on? What committees are you interested in? What will be your main focus (foci) during the term? You probably posted it somewhere, if so, just steer me in the right direction. Thanks! Andi Never meddle in the affairs of dragons, for you are crunchy and taste good with ketchup!

It really depends on what I'm doing on the skydive (which probably isn't a good thing). If I'm training 4-way, I usually don't. Not because I'm too busy visualizing, but because I want to be as calm and unemotional as possible in the air. If I'm not visualizing the skydive, I'm visualizing my "calm place" and breathing. If I start thinking about malfunctions and EP's, my anxiety level will rise. If it rises even a small amount, I won't do as well on the skydive, guaranteed. Shit, I'd probably do better on the emergency if I am as calm as possible. If I'm just fu**ing around, freeflying, doing big-ways, or coaching, I usually go through it, mainly because I have more time to think about it. Never meddle in the affairs of dragons, for you are crunchy and taste good with ketchup!

But, but...I'm not a DZO. We don't HAVE a DZO/DZM. Don't get me started on the wisdom of that (or lack thereof). True, there is nothing stopping us. Except perhaps logistics and investment, which is a daunting thing. I'm just struggling finding a Coach course within a 1000 mile radius...I can't imagine running for a regional director slot against people who are either DZO's of a bigger DZ or supported by one. My "fan base" in the region would consist of probably 30-40 USPA members who would actually vote. Just to get the petition signatures I'd have to travel to Dallas, and all over west Texas (no offense to you west Texans) and they don't even know me in those places. So true. My DZ is severely understaffed. We hold an FJC almost every weekend, but since the instructors are all tied up with that (we lost two to their tandem ratings this year...no more FJCs for them), the returning students sit on the ground while manifest calls the severely burned out "old-timer" instructors to come throw a 3rd S/L student out of the plane. Seriously, 2 of our instructors are over 70!!! They don't like/can't handle the "all weekend every weekend at the DZ" thing anymore. But read the upcoming ratings courses section in Parachutist, and all of the coach courses in the coming months are on the east coast. We're po' folk in New Mexico, we can't afford to travel that far. Hopefully DJan has one in CO soon that we can go to. I really want my coach rating, but part of me is hesitant. Will I get burned out, too? Never meddle in the affairs of dragons, for you are crunchy and taste good with ketchup!

Are many small DZ's owned by one person? I'm asking because most of the small DZ's I've been to are club operations. Speaking as 1/7th of a "DZO" (I'm on the club BOD), it would be hard for one of us to run, since we're pretty remote, and the base of voters is much smaller. But I agree, since ours is run as a non-profit organization, it would be interesting to have someone on the board who knows the particular trials and tribulations of DZ's that are operated this way, as well as the issues that skydivers who jump at those DZ's face. Never meddle in the affairs of dragons, for you are crunchy and taste good with ketchup!

Is that one of those bikes from "Tron"? (OK, I'm dating myself here...some of you HAVE to know what I'm talking about, right???) Never meddle in the affairs of dragons, for you are crunchy and taste good with ketchup!

try www.cousindave.com Never meddle in the affairs of dragons, for you are crunchy and taste good with ketchup!

Eloy Eloy Eloy!!!! Do grass stains on my booties count? I have those. Never meddle in the affairs of dragons, for you are crunchy and taste good with ketchup!

YAY!!!! Way to go, DJan! uhhh....take some advil to that tunnel camp! Seriously, congratulations. I wish you were in my region so I could have voted for you! Andi Never meddle in the affairs of dragons, for you are crunchy and taste good with ketchup!

It's about f-ing time! Yay!!!!!! Bucks!!!! Biker "displaced Ohioan" Babe Never meddle in the affairs of dragons, for you are crunchy and taste good with ketchup!

Ah, it's already on the agenda for 2003 for this chickie. I just have to decide who to go to and when... As for the $$, it's not quantity, it's quality! I don't have a lot, but what I do have goes to skydiving. I don't think I've gone shopping for myself for a good 6 months! Never meddle in the affairs of dragons, for you are crunchy and taste good with ketchup!

Yes! Go! I personally like Airspeed's style and curriculum, but I think any of the camps that are offered by different folks are probably well worth the money and time. I think about tunnel money this way: 60 jumps (assuming 60 sec of freefall) at ~$18 per jump is $1080. So basically, you're getting the time-equivalent of 60 jumps, with Airspeed coaching for $20. Total. Of course, your time in the tunnel will teach you more than 60 jumps ever could, even if all 60 were made with Airspeed coaching you. If you take the 300 jump number for equivalent skill development stated above (~$5400 without any coaching), I'd say the $1100 is a fucking steal. Excuse my language. Save the money and go. You'll never regret it. You're basically saving enough money over time to buy a complete new rig. It's just like building a retirement account. You have to look at the long-term cost-benefit analysis. Never meddle in the affairs of dragons, for you are crunchy and taste good with ketchup!

WOOOOHOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Never meddle in the affairs of dragons, for you are crunchy and taste good with ketchup!

Hook, you are one of the most sane and rational people I've ever met. Thanks for your thoughts. As for me, my little canopy doesn't like long spots, but that's a factor in it's design...I'm an exception to that one. That's why I didn't do the cross country jumps. I need better arm muscles to be on rear risers for that long! I am still learning my canopy...I only have about 100 jumps on it so far, and I am not giving it up anytime soon. I'm slowly learning how to REALLY fly it, and I'm starting to see results from just taking it slow, experimenting up high, and watching other people land. Now I just need to work on my balancing skills when I try to slide in on my swoop... Any tips? I usually have my weight too far back and sit down on my butt. Then I over-correct, and flop forward on my face. I'm wondering if there's any "everyday" things I can do to work on this while not skydiving. As for the high wind day...here's one of the best pieces of advice I ever got: Land, turn around, take a few steps forward with it, then step on your pilot chute, bridle, D-bag, or even the nose. then you can stow your brakes and unstow your slider in peace, and your canopy will stay put. Finally: So, so true. Someday when I get the computer ability, I'll post video of me flying at the beginning of this year, and a comparison video of me at the end of this year. This year I made a decision that I was going to get better, and nothing was going to stop me. It is a DECISION. I've made almost 400 jumps this year, put in over 6 hours in the tunnel, and started a 4-way team. One of the most gratifying things for me was when two of my personal heroes told me that the work I'd put in this year really shows. I hear this all the time: "But I don't have time, and it's sooooo expensive. I need that money to buy my new SUV or take my trip to the Bahamas. But gosh, I really wish I was a better skydiver! How did you get so much better, Andi? Screw 2-way drill dives, let's go do a 4-way horny gorilla!" You have to WANT to improve, and you have to go do something about it. It's frustrating to me to see folks from my home DZ want to get better then make no effort to do it. Yes, it costs money. Yes, it takes time. Yes, I understand that many folks out there are content to flail around on an 8-way and be happy if they get back together after the exit funnels. That's fine. But it's not for me. One last thing. Read jtval's letter in Parachutist this month. if you're the experienced one, go out and teach! Help people out. Offer to jump with the low-timers, and don't be afraid to help or offer advice. Chances are they are dying for it, but are too afraid to ask you. Trust me, the look on a newbie's face when they finally GET it is one of the best in the world. Sorry to rant there at the end. I had a blast at the boogie, and I noticed that as a group, the dz.commers were some of the safest and sanest people on the DZ, especially when it came to canopy flight and the landing pattern. I'm not saying we were perfect, but I rarely saw a dz.com person landing in the wrong direction, etc. Andi Never meddle in the affairs of dragons, for you are crunchy and taste good with ketchup!

None of the above. I learned to save my life by completing five 10-second solo freefalls (also earned my jump wings). This came after 40 hours of ground training. Only after my 5 solos did I begin a sort of modified AFF/student progresssion as part of a year spent learning how to be on the Wings of Blue. I'm pretty sure the AFA is the only place in the US, and maybe even the world, where the student's first jump ever is a solo, unassisted freefall. Never meddle in the affairs of dragons, for you are crunchy and taste good with ketchup!

Oh my holy hell...we got back last night, and I slept all day today. I think I was running on pure adrenaline by the end, because today I couldn't drag my sorry ass out of bed. ARGH! It's cold here! and windy! I wanna go back to eloy! waaaaaahhhh! That being said, I had a blast, and all y'all that I met and jumped with and talked to are awesome! But methinks TequilaGirl needs to change her screen name to CoronaGirl... Never meddle in the affairs of dragons, for you are crunchy and taste good with ketchup!

woohoo! We'll be leaving Albuquerque early tomorrow morning, so we'll be there by early afternoon! Eloy, here we come! Never meddle in the affairs of dragons, for you are crunchy and taste good with ketchup!

Oh NO! At least you're still coming. I broke my wrist a few years ago (right one, of course), so I know how you feel. Hey! Just get a rigger to switch your BOC around! You can pull with your left! Never meddle in the affairs of dragons, for you are crunchy and taste good with ketchup!

Hi!

LOL...poor Kawi...obviously you've never had the opportunity to turn a 20 point 4-way or hop on a formation load... Try it...I've taken freefliers on a rockin' 4-way, and though they may not switch to RW, they definitely land with a newfound respect for the discipline. Never meddle in the affairs of dragons, for you are crunchy and taste good with ketchup!

I don't know, ending on Gollum's, "We'll let her do it...ssshhhhheeee can do it for ussss..." is pretty good cliffhanger-wise. For the non-book-readers, they leave thinking, "Who the hell is "she" and how can she kill Frodo and Sam??" Yes there were changes, but you have to remember that what works in a book may not work in a movie, such as Faramir's inner turmoil over the ring, his brother's death, etc. Plus, most of Faramir's dialogue was straight from the book. As a matter of fact, the screenwriter, Philippa Boyens, explains this a lot better than I can (this is a paraphrase by a reviewer who spoke with her): "My good friend Matthew went to the NYC premiere and had a personal chat with screenwriter Philippa Boyens afterward. He had the chance to talk with her about the intense changes to Faramir. According to his report, Philippa "had some interesting things to say on the above -- basically saying that Faramir's character is completely static in the books, and thus wouldn't translate well filmically. She wanted to extend his character to give him more of a journey, and also seemed to imply that it would seem incongruous were Faramir immediately sea-green incorruptible; whereas all other Men in the film (even Aragorn) definitely have to wrestle with their conscience to a greater or lesser extent." As for the other changes, they serve mostly as a means to introduce material that wasn't included by Tolkein in the books, but WAS in the appendices or the Silmarillion (yes, I'm a geek). Aragorn/Arwen and Arwen's choice, for example. Book readers know about Beren and Luthien. Movie-goers may not understand the choice Arwen must make, and it needed to be addressed. As for elves at Helm's deep...there was not enough time to introduce the concept of other rangers or have them come to Helm's deep without adding several more precious minutes of film. So they were replaced by people already introduced. I thought it worked. I go in expecting a good movie, rather than a perfect translation from book to film. It CAN'T happen. It would be a horrible film if they tried. Look at the first Harry Potter for a good example. Some will never be happy, because Peter Jackon's vision of a hobbit or of an Ent or of Gandalf is different than theirs. Oh well...if we all thought alike, this world would be a pretty boring place. Never meddle in the affairs of dragons, for you are crunchy and taste good with ketchup!

yeah, but be warned...I'm bringing the hubby, so if the trailer's rockin', don't bother knockin'! Never meddle in the affairs of dragons, for you are crunchy and taste good with ketchup!

I'll be NEAR the tent city...in our little travel trailer. Much warmer than a tent, and more comfy...and electrical hookups at Eloy are only about $5 a night. Wooohooo! one more week to go! Never meddle in the affairs of dragons, for you are crunchy and taste good with ketchup!

woohoo! Good luck! COunt me in for the rig...but be careful, if you get too many replies, you may not have an $$ left! Never meddle in the affairs of dragons, for you are crunchy and taste good with ketchup!