FunBobby

Funny to most, yes. I'm surprised they can get away with something like that in this day and age. C'ya - Bobby

Congrats to you! I got video on levels 5 and 6 (take one). I barely passed level 5 - I got waaay out of control, and people fall down laughing watching the tumbling and wild gyrations on my video. Of course, I usually don't tell them that my shoulder partially separated on exit..... But I laugh at it now and oblige the folks happily when they ask me to pay the video for entertainment at parties. By the way, say hi to Jim Cowan for me. I flew a "company" aircraft into St. Louis years ago and spent a weekend jumping at Quantum Leap; I liked the DZ, jumpers, staff, and atmosphere so much that I even came back for a return visit and then hung out with the Quantum Leap Folks at the WFFC. I've jumped all over the country and even around the world, and I tell you that you are in great hands out there at QLSC. Hope to jump with you someday. Happy Holidays - Fun Bobby

I like it. I'd buy one if I was wandering by! FunBobby

The folks in Hollywood do a lot of unrealistic stuff that looks really cheezy to folks in the know - and not just in skydiving. If you reallyw want some good footage, might I suggest "Good Stuff" or some of the other professionally made videos (many on DVD!). On rainy days at my old DZ in FL, we would play one of those, and it would keep veterans and whuffos alike entertained for hours. Most DZ gear stores have some videos, but if yours doesn't try paragear.com. If you're wondering which videos are best, anything with footage from Norman Kent will be very good. Swoop competition footage always draws ooohs and ahs. Ask around, too... Cheers- Blue skies FunBobby

Skyvans, Casas, or even a C130. Anything with a large tailgate ..... fuuuuunnnnn! FunBobby

Good calls all the way around. Involve a third party - a rigger or a DZO, call the owner's DZ if you're nervous about the transaction, and see if the owner will be willing to take a deposit that's half of the cost of the item in question. I personally have bought all my equipment to date from folks advertising on the classifieds at dropzone.com. I've put together 2 awesome rigs over the past few years (a Javelin/Triathlon/Firelite and a Vector3/Stiletto/Crickett - probably about $4000 or better worth of gear) from ads in the classifieds, through some smart dealing. Good luck. Blue Skies - FunBobby

I did AFF, and when it came time for the Hop n' Pop, I swore I could read the names on the mailboxes. Good on ya'! Cheers - FunBobby

Congrats! FunBobby

7/10 for me. You know, the sense of touch would be very helpful here. FunBobby

Wow. Looks like it works well. Can it make everyone look that good? FunBobby

Subway doesn't tell us in its commercials that Jared actually lost all that weight because he stopped eating altogether when Subway started serving sandwiches like this. Cheers- FunBobby

Hey - isn't that guy who has the "I BEAT ANOREXIA" bumper sticker on his car? FunBobby

Cold as Hell. FunBobby

Sex is like the best pizza you've had. When it's hot and steamy, it's greeat. When it's not hot and steamy, It's still great. Blue skies - FunBobby

I should say thanks for your kind words there, Art. No kidding - that was a great team effort all the way around. Great planning and great execution. Hey RJ and Joyce - nice job working with those ESPN guys to get the skycam wires out of the way for the team. And Patty - awesome effort getting us to the stadium before the game past the crowds and downtown traffic .... and then for preventing a certain someone from getting busted by the cops downtown for taking swings out of an open bottle of champagne. HAHA! FunBobby

Hey Art - that's a pretty good angle of bank for you and your passenger there, and unless my eyes deceive me, it looks like the two of you guys have already descended into the stadium. Must have been a sporty landing! Just kidding. Awesome job to all you guys. Like John said, Yay team! FunBobby

Like others who have said things here, I'm a pilot and also work in the field of aviation safety. Whenever I fly, there is almost always an "out," and I've had to use that last out once - a rocket assisted aircraft exit from an aircraft in extremis. When I climb into an aircraft, I need to be confident that it will get me to a point where I can get out of it, or until it reaches that point, it will hold together and perform well enough to keep its occupants alive. When an jump aircraft takes off, until it reaches a safe, jumpable altitude, the occupants are putting their lives in the hands of the pilot and the folks who have done the maintenance work on that aircraft. FunBobby

Christian is a good guy, good skydiver and good friend and he deserves all of our support!*** Hear, hear! Thanks for all the info for all the chuckleheads like me who have been out of town but think highly of Christian and were wondering how we might help. FunBobby

"Slightly tapered" and "semi-elliptical" are both marketing terms and have absolutely no standardized meaning. One company's slightly tapered is another's semi-elliptical. In fact, no skydiving canopies even approach being true ellipses. True, but the closer a canopy is to an elipse, the more it will fly like one. FunBobby

Lots of good stuff has already been posted here, but I’ll give you my two cents’ worth anyway… Years ago, when I was shopping for my initial rig and main canopy, I tried both a Spectre 150 and a Triathlon 160, and I felt very comfortable with both. The Spectre, being a shaped canopy and slightly smaller, was more maneuverable. I chose the Triathlon because its owner was asking for $400 less, and I didn’t think that the extra money I would pay for the Spectre would translate into that much better performance. Also, I had sought advice from lots of experienced folks at the DZ; one of them, a good buddy of mine who had close to 3000 jumps, was flying a Triathlon 135, and he swore by it and affectionately referred to it as “big pink.” I figured that if he was happy with the canopy after all his years, I would be too. I put about 300 jumps on the Triathlon and was very happy with it. I now fly a Stiletto 135 and have several hundred jumps on it; I enjoy front riser swoops with the Stiletto, but I’m not an overly aggressive canopy pilot. Still, I have hung on to my Triathlon. Though the Tri and its container have been relegated to backup duty, I still enjoy flying them, especially for demos with tighter landing areas and during gusty or more turbulent conditions. Friends who have borrowed the rig to make the sunset load have all commented that they were surprised at what a nice canopy the Triathlon was. A Triathlon may not turn quite as crisply or give you as decent a swoop / surf as a Spectre (but hey, we’re talking about seven cell canopies here, which won’t give you as good a swoop as a nine cell would), but it’s a solid performer that’s also very forgiving. For me, it has been a great initial canopy that kept me interested and entertained for hundreds of jumps. Blue skies – FunBobby