MikeTJumps

It is with deep regret that I inform the community of the loss of Jim Bates, well known and noted skydiving historian. Jim fought a courageous battle against a multitude of medical problems over the last eight months and finally succumbed to the results of a life threatening infection on July 1 at 1:14 p.m. EST. His wife of 40 years (Marge Bates) will need all of our thoughts and prayers as well as good wishes. She is margepara@hotmail.com Blue Skies to Jim's spirit. Mike Turoff Instructor Examiner, USPA Co-author of Parachuting, The Skydiver's Handbook

It is with deep regret that I forward this information that Jim Bates who is well known in the Skydiving community for historical records of the sport has passed away after a prolonged battle with numerous medical problems. Marge Bates has many friends out there as well and she will need them more than ever now. Her e-mail is Margepara@hotmail.com Live long and prosper, Spirit of Jim Bates. Mike Turoff Instructor Examiner, USPA Co-author of Parachuting, The Skydiver's Handbook

I am now home from the USPA and PIA meetings and the attached JPEG file is the promised article describing the call for an "Intensive Parachute Jump Area" label to be placed on the charts. Mind you, this was published in Parachutist back in August 1980 on page 13. The FAA must have it on a centipede for delivery because it's been almost 27 years and I have yet to see any action on this even though I handed a copy of it to AOPA's president Phil Boyer just last year. I am dumbfounded about the lack of progress on this issue. I guess we're going to have to have a few more fatal collisions before the FAA and the NOAA folks get cracking on this as a major safety issue. That is not what I want, but let's see if a some major government official's kid gets whacked by an aircraft (or an aircraft carrying that person gets whacked out of the sky by a jumper) is what it takes to get this thing off the back burner. - Mike Turoff Instructor Examiner, USPA Co-author of Parachuting, The Skydiver's Handbook

Back in the early 1980's, a proposal was made to have a separate blocked statement on the charts with the words, "Caution, High Intensity Parachuting Activity" in the area of the dropzones. It may have been placed on one chart, but of that fact I am not sure. That was in an article in parachutist which I have at my home and use when giving safety presentations to pilot groups. Nothing has been achieved in that regards since that time in spite of being presented to NOAA (the charting agency) and even giving it to Phil Boyer, the President of AOPA. Right now, I'm at the PIA symposium in Reno, but when I get back home 2/11, I will scan the article and upload it for you folks to see. Perhaps a massive letter writing campaign will move this issue out of the "dead" files. Mike Turoff Instructor Examiner, USPA Co-author of Parachuting, The Skydiver's Handbook

I have been calling Marge and talking with her every week over the past month. She is also in tears and severely depressed. She especially fears that she is losing Jim because of the medical problems and his depression over not getting better. Marge and Jim have been great help at the PIA symposium press room these past many sessions and they will both be missed at this one. It will be very tragic to lose Jim for us in the skydiving community as well as Marge. Let's all pray for both of them. Mike Turoff Instructor Examiner, USPA Co-author of Parachuting, The Skydiver's Handbook

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Rats! I didn't see that you were in Belgium before I answered. Sorry about that. Still, there are 9 DZs listed with this website in Belgium and I'm sure you can find one reasonably close to you with an excellent training program. Mike Turoff

I dontate regularly. My last one was Sept. 1 and sure enough, my mother-in-law needed it 9/11 when she had emergency surgery for colo-rectal cancer destroying her colon and rectum. I dontated a double red-cell package which takes me into a 16-week cycle instead of the usual 8. Usually, you never know who benefits from your efforts until it is after the fact or unless you donate prior to someone's surgery in their behalf. I wouldn't describe myself as "boring" but I am fully compliant with proper health maintenance procedures for blood donations. Oh yes....I'm up to my 7th gallon now. Mike Turoff Instructor Examiner, USPA Co-author of Parachuting, The Skydiver's Handbook

Step one: Go to a library and get a copy of either "Parachuting, The Skydiver's Handbook" or "Jump" as these are excellent resources for you to learn about the sport before engaging in it. Step two: Arrange to make a Tandem Jump (introductory skydive) at a USPA affiliated skydiving center (www.uspa.org). Mike Turoff Instructor Examiner, USPA Co-author of Parachuting, The Skydiver's Handbook

During a recent PIA symposium and USPA Board of Directors' meeting, a rather interesting statistic was presented: the average working tenure of an instructional staff member in our sport was approximately seven years. A question comes to mind, "Why is this so?" Over the past twenty-nine plus years of participation in our sport (twenty-seven of which I have been an instructor), I have had the opportunity to observe the comings and goings of many different staff members at a variety of dropzones. I have been able to encourage and train many new instructional rating holders into the sport in a variety of training programs. I have seen initial enthusiasm turn into doldrums, passive indifference, and I have watched the staffing levels decrease with a diminished interest in people obtaining ratings. So, why is this happening? One primary reason for the departure of staff is that they have taken on additional personal responsibilities in their lives which may not have existed when they started into our sport. Items that are prevalent are marriage, children, and business obligations. As our assets and responsibilities accumulate, we tend to become increasingly hesitant to allow ourselves to be subjected to the risk of "losing it all" by a legal action being brought against us whether we had any direct responsibility for an incident or accident. Only those people who feel the calling to remain in a staffing position being stronger than the warning bells in our heads about the fact that "we can lose everything even if we are right" will get beyond this mental stopping point. There are financial reasons for departing from a staffing position as well. If you examine the average amount of income earned as a staff member at a dropzone, you will find that it is barely above minimum wage when average over the year unless you happen to be one of the exceptions to the rule. Incomes as a DZ staff person are weather dependent, student population dependent, and seasonal dependent. You could be at the DZ for days and have very little business, thus very little "contractor" income. On the other hand, you could have a great day and earn over $200. But those lucrative days are the exception at most dropzones, not the rule. People that are "permanent" DZ residents must have very low living expenses, something that as we get older, we are not necessarily willing to tolerate because we want more and more out of our lives. So in truth, the majority of us must have other sources of income which are more reliable, consistent, and promising than an income from a DZ job will provide. The enthusiasm that first develops as we get into the sport is something that just can't be described to the average person. People like to share their enthusiasm by jumping with their new friends in the skydiving community. Some people pitch in to share that enthusiasm with newcomers by becoming more than a cheering section on the sidelines; they become instructional staff. But that enthusiasm can diminish over time as we settle into the routine of training personnel either through repetitive instructional sessions or we end up waiting through a long period of bad weather days. There is nothing quite so depressing as spending weekends at the DZ waiting around for the weather to clear with nothing else to do. Thus, we find other things to do which are themselves a cost item. This seems to develop into a downward financial spiral where if we can't spend or earn money in our passion of skydiving, we'll spend it and not earn it on something else. Politics of a dropzone are also a consideration in how long someone stays on the staff. The personal lives of DZ management have a trickle down effect on the attitudes of their contractors. When management and ownership sees their personal financial condition deteriorating, they tend to project negative feelings upon their staff members. Cliques that develop as to "resident staff" vs. transient or “part-time staff” can also be a negative influence. The "weekenders" take income away from the full timers by the very fact that they are at the DZ to help when the student load is not sufficient to use all of the staff throughout the day. Personality clashes (prevalent throughout humanity) are always a factor, especially within the "Type-A personality" community of jumpers. There is also another influence that seems to deter staff from renewing their ratings: that of getting over-used. As staff sizes decrease for any number of reasons, the remaining staff gets burdened with additional work demands. This cuts into their “fun jumping” and as such, they get “turned off” to the very reason why they became staff members in the first place (that of wanting to help the student population thus growing the sport). When their playtime turns into work time without their personal wish for it to be so, they decide not to renew their ratings, thus forcing the issue of turning all of their skydiving endeavors back into their own choice and not being at the beck and call of the DZ management for staffing purposes. (You can’t use me because I don’t have a current rating.) Professional proficiency requirements as an instructional staff member require that we be ever vigilant in keeping up with the "latest and greatest" information in our USPA Skydiver's Information Manual. This document, which is "evergreen" is long and hard to read with enthusiasm. Granted, it has very valuable information in it, but reading the entire manual every year to observe the changes that have occurred in it from the previous edition is an arduous task. If you think it is hard on you, consider those of us who work on it several times a year to make sure that it is current and in compliance with the rules of grammar, new information available, and the changing priorities of our sport! (Yes, this is a bid for sympathy for the members of the Safety and Training Committee.) So, what can we do to increase staff longevity? We have got to make being a staff member “FUN” again. We have to find a balance that lets DZ management and both existing and prospective staff have a good mixture of work and fun at the same time. For those few of us that always have fun while we work, that is not a problem, but “we” are not the “norm.” We’ve got to increase the number of available part-time staff by making the obtaining of a rating an attractive goal, not a laborious task. I don’t have all the answers, but I do have observations and questions that can open some eyes if the people who are involved are willing to look into finding viable solutions to the problems stated above. I hope that this helps awaken folks to a growing trend of staffing declines that I have observed over the years. If we can make it fun again, we will grow more staff. If it becomes work, we will see staffing continue to decline. Mike Turoff Instructor Examiner, USPA Co-author of Parachuting, The Skydiver's Handbook

As other people have stated to you, you get to vote for up to 8 NDs. An ND usually gets more than 1,000 votes. B.J. Worth has traditionally gotten the highest vote count in most elections. Mike Mullins won election as a write-in candidate in the ND slot four years ago. Rattle the bushes! Get out and get people to vote! Mike Turoff Instructor Examiner, USPA Co-author of Parachuting, The Skydiver's Handbook

Yes, the lack of interest/participation is pathetic in that there is only one two-candidate slate and two non-candidate slates. This is one of the reasons why I hope to push for a very specific proxy to change the By-Laws so that more participation is possible by removing some of the the hurdles that people have to jump through to offer themselves as candidates. I'm also very upset that my friend, Todd Spillers, is not listed as a Gulf Region candidate. I know that he collected signatures and I specifically put myself up for a national position so as to not split our region's vote between us. Hopefully, he'll have a write-in campaign again; this time winning it. The Gulf Region was not well represented by the last two elected directors who only served one term and were put up as candidates for the Gulf Region position. Mike Turoff Instructor Examiner, USPA Co-author of Parachuting, The Skydiver's Handbook

This just in from USPA's HQ: ELECTION. The next step of the election process is underway and copies of bio forms and personal statements of those who met the September 11th deadline for inclusion in the magazine have been sent to the nominations & elections committee for their review and correction, if necessary. Thirteen individuals are running for national director, only one region – Southern – has more than one candidate, and two regions are without candidates – Southeast and Gulf. ************************************ This is absolutely pathetic! I know that Todd Spillers was collecting signatures for the Gulf Region, but I don't know why he isn't listed (yet). I put in for a national slot. For my position statement, please see the attached word file. Mike Turoff Instructor Examiner, USPA Co-author of Parachuting, The Skydiver's Handbook

Well, I didn't find the edit button for my posting, so I'm replying to myself. Another question that is being asked is what type of plating is on the hardware (if any) and if it is stainless steel. Thanks for all the replies so far. Mike Turoff Instructor Examiner, USPA Co-author of Parachuting, The Skydiver's Handbook

Thank you for all those vital links. I have forwarded them to Ted Strong for his review. The PIA and the USPA are very concerned about this issue which is why a study is being performed. Mike Turoff Instructor Examiner, USPA Co-author of Parachuting, The Skydiver's Handbook

Do you have specific hardware numbers as well? Did you report the same to Ted Strong? He is heading up the ad-hoc committee on this seemingly wide-spread problem. Thanks for your input. Mike Turoff Instructor Examiner, USPA Co-author of Parachuting, The Skydiver's Handbook

Part numbers would be on the hardware. A rigger can identify the type of webbing. As to more specifics, it has been demonstrated recently that even with a proper assembly, the friction adapter is failing to hold the webbing locked in place as it should. Hand pulling in a straight line of force as the harness would normally be loaded caused the webbing to slip through the harness to the stops. This could be a very dangerous situation in that one could find oneself hanging very low in the harness to the extent that one could not exercise control over the canopy (as in not reach the steering toggles), or worse, fall out of the harness! Such an occurence has happened which is why the information on harness slippage needs to be collected to determine whether it is a webbing or hardware or combination of the two issue. Mike Turoff Instructor Examiner, USPA Co-author of Parachuting, The Skydiver's Handbook

If you are aware of any incidents of "harness slippage" (where the webbing pulls through the harness even though it is assembled properly), the new PIA ad-hoc committee formed to investigate any incidents of that occurence respectfully requests you document it with the following information: 1. Type of harness/container and date of manufacture. 2. Hardware part number, mfgr. & date of mfgr. (a 4 digit number like 0508). This will help us identify whether the problem is hardware or webbing, (or both!). Please send that type of information to Ted Strong of Strong Enterprises who is the chair of that ad-hoc committee. Ted's e-mail address is Ted@strongparachutes.com Thank you. Mike Turoff Instructor Examiner, USPA Co-author of Parachuting, The Skydiver's Handbook

Here are the balance of my notes on the July BOD meeting: Sunday, July 16, 2006 Plenary Session – Committee Reports Tom Sanders is being awarded the USPA 2005 Meritorious Service award. Competition Committee: The Skydivers Competition Manual’s rules are being rewritten to comply with the IPC’s rules. The 2007 Nationals were awarded to Skydive Chicago. The 2007 Collegiates were awarded to Skydive Arizona. The Sport Accuracy event will not be continued at the national competition level due to lack of interest and participation. However, it is still very feasible at the collegiate competition level and as such, it will be continued there. Past State Records that can be certified with proper documentation will be accepted for certification under the new State Record program as outlined in the USPA Skydiver’s Competition Manual, Section 12-3 and 12-4. The application form is going to be revised in the near future for the next printing of the SCM. Nothing has changed in the Competition and Bylaws committee. Nominations and Elections Committee: There are fourteen people who have filed for a National Director position. No one has filed for the Southeast Region position. As the election process has already started, no changes to the election process are allowed at this time. Group Membership Committee: HQ is being encouraged to continue progress on an FAA handbook/manual for ATC in regards to dealing with jump operations. HQ is working on a special Parachutist issue directed towards a first time jumper. Safety and Training Committee: 1. No Tandem Wind Limits will be imposed at this time. It will remain at the DZ level for risk mitigation. 2. Three individuals are already certified to conduct this course and five more are in the path to complete their certification as course directors. 3. Tandem Student Harness potential problems in light of the two recent “fall-out” fatalities and other “close calls” that are being reported recently are being investigated by multiple resources. 4. Eleven motions for amendments and corrections to SIM and IRM sections have been put forward and were accepted. Mike Turoff Instructor Examiner, USPA Co-author of Parachuting, The Skydiver's Handbook

All records in the past that can be substantiated will be accepted for recording! That is great news for many groups. Mike Turoff Instructor Examiner, USPA Co-author of Parachuting, The Skydiver's Handbook

I don't know the answer, Paul. I'll ask the folks tomorrow. Mike Turoff Instructor Examiner, USPA Co-author of Parachuting, The Skydiver's Handbook

Here are my notes as of this afternoon: USPA BOD Meeting - July 14-16, 2006 Vice President Mike Perry called the meeting to order in the absence of Glenn Bangs (due to medical problems with his wife). Mike Mullins will also not be here due to a scheduling conflict. Jim Jenkins is also not here (reason unknown). Nineteen BOD members were in attendance. Mike Turoff (S&T Committee Advisor) was present. Minutes and agenda items were approved. Introductions of the BOD and gallery were made. Mike Turoff is now wearing the hat of the official PIA representative to the USPA BOD. Interim actions of the executive committee were discussed and approved. Executive Director’s Report by Chris Needles: Major objectives for the year: • Rejuvenate membership growth • Complete HQA relocation • Implement Membership Service Center (MSC) • Complete association software upgrade • Reduce fatalities and accidents • Lower member insurance rates • Complete instructional rating hierarchy • Implement the state and national records program • Keep pressure to preserve airport/airspace access • Revitalize brand (competition for new symbol) • Increase non-dues revenue • Keep skydiving fun and friendships strong Membership at mid-year is 31,078. This is dropping slowly. Net worth has gone up with the relocation. $2.2M Seventeen people needed to staff up. We have fifteen at this time. Treasurer’s Report: Reserve fund up $46,187 to $2,126,875. USPT Trust Fund gained $20,765 to $435,200. Insurance prospects will be examined to determine if partial self-insurance will assist us with conserving funds. Nominations and Elections: There are fourteen candidates for the eight National Director positions. Three people submitted letters of intent for the Mountain Region but one withdrew. The Southeast Region has no candidate through the letter of intent process. No candidates will be informed of the progress of their petition process until after the deadline of the petition process. Thus, if they are short of signatures, they will not be informed of that until they are truly disqualified from being posted on the ballot. This is consistent with previous practices and with the Constitution and Bylaws. Safety and Training: Tandem Wind Limits: This was discussed in detail and will be left up to the Tandem Instructor to use prudent judgment. AIC: Rob Laidlaw has continued to refine his course presentation and there have been a few people certified and several are in “the wings.” Rob has certified Jay Stokes and Ernie Long as AIC CDs. It is being suggested that effective with the publication of the next IRM (September 2006) that all future/new Course Director Candidates be required to attend an AIC as part of their certification process. A letter has been issued after the previous BOD meeting to all existing AFF CDs that they attend an AIC by publication of the September 2006 IRM as part of maintaining their appointment as CDs. The deadline for that requirement will be extended to allow all AFF CDs adequate time to attend an AIC. Student Tandem Harness: USPA and the equipment manufacturers are taking a very serious look at the current state of equipment in light of the recent “fall-out of harness” accidents that have led to two fatalities. There are four tandem manufacturer programs and a USPA program that need to have a bit more coordination to work on some training standards and equipment standards to share information to prevent the recurrence of such incidents again. Ask the manufacturers of regular harnesses if they feel they should be involved in the training program of students or instructors of those students, specifically harness adjustment protocols. Should there be body profile standards? Should there be specific procedures for physically impaired passengers? PIA: Is there any motivation to perform test jumps with dual square out without releasing any toggles so that we can document this for a possible SIM change? Membership Services: Airport access issues and ATC coordination were discussed. NPRM for 180 day repack cycle needs continuous pressure to succeed. Ed Scott is working hard on the FAA Handbook coordination. A special magazine for first time jumpers was discussed. DZs need to be polled for ways of increasing jumper retention. Sport Promotion and Membership Marketing: Objective: To expand the membership to 35,000 by the end of 2007, and 40,000 by the year 2011. ASSUMPTIONS: • Most recreational skydivers A-license and above belong to the USPA, therefore more A-license qualified skydivers will result in more members, all else being equal. • Economic downwind pressures, particularly brought about by rising fuel prices, will continue for the foreseeable future. • Third party liability insurance will continue to consume a disproportionate part of membership dollars. Things to work on: Sport Promotion Sport Retention Member Recruiting Member Retention Develop and enhanced Public Relations Capability Increase skydiving exposure Survey potential and new skydivers Assist drop zones with PR Think about approaching the military jump schools and academy jump schools about USPA memberships. Regional Directors Meeting: State records are going to be recorded by the USPA. Wings awards: Do we need a place for a signature by an S&TA when they are sent to the regional director. Incident Reports: Still having great difficulty in getting people to submit incident reports. Many DZs simply don’t bother sending them in due to fear of liability. Perhaps having the individual report their own incidents may help. Mike Turoff Instructor Examiner, USPA Co-author of Parachuting, The Skydiver's Handbook

The "WHY" most of the USPA officers or staff won't post on the newsgroup or dropzone.com is quite simple: The "NOISE LEVEL" and attack mode that many posters have created turns them off. This is why personal notes to them is far more effective. The officers LOSE a lot of their personal time and money dealing with issues (they are unpaid officers). All they get is a meeting allowance and expenses. They have personal career jobs just like the rest of us that demand far more attention and time than the USPA activities do, yet they still try to be responsive to the needs of the community. This is one of the things that is evident in the discussions in the committee rooms because they talk out what they have been told in their discussions with the members and DZOs who have contacted them. They do not operate "in the dark." The more information we the membership give them, the better informed their deliberations can become. Mike Turoff

I don't think the USPA offices will post anything to Dropzone.com. What is done is to post an agenda on the USPA website. The S&T newsletter comes out from HQ and goes to all S&Ts and (I believe) all BOD members. Find one locally and ask them for help in opening up the channels of communication. Again, if there is a groundswelling of opinion that makes itself known, the BOD will see it. Mike

I am truly impressed with the number of contributions I've been reading in response to my posting of my notes from the BOD meeting. What I'm wondering is where was all this thought out input prior to the BOD meeting. Time and time again, I've heard that "The USPA does nothing but hand out rules and dictates policy." Well folks, if you have an opinion on something, you should communicate it with your S&TA, your BOD Regional Director, and your National BOD members. In that way, you'll make your presence far more well known than posting here in a newsgroup that is rarely read by BOD members. I've been in this sport for 28+ years and I've been an instructor for more than 26 of them. When the old "3-3" program was about to be thrust upon us, the groundswell of opposition made itself well known and the then S&T committee became very aware of the opposition to the propositions. Get into an active mode and let your BOD members know your opinions personally! Don't just wait for something to happen and then react to it. Call or write them and ask them to keep you informed about what is "coming down the pipe" so to speak. Converse with them. Get their opinions and give them yours. That's what I do and I have been going to the BOD meetings for the last seven years as a non-BOD member. As the I/E rating is now not being issued, one must look towards the future as to what a course director will be and what hoops we need to jump through to retain our course director privileges. The "AIC" program appears to be the way that is going to be implemented. All Dropzones must exercise good judgment as to who can jump with whom. The USPA S&T committee set up "minimum" guidelines, not absolute ones. Again, get involved. Elect someone who represents your thoughts and aspirations. Too many one candidate slates and less than 10% vote turnout gives the impression that the population either doesn't care or can't be bothered to be involved. Blue Skies! Mike Turoff Instructor Examiner, USPA Co-author of Parachuting, The Skydiver's Handbook