PORKr

Scanned the whole thread and never found the answer I hoped that someone else has noticed about the BENEFIT to the customer using back-flips (or front flips) on exit. DISCLAIMER: my 1299 tandems were mostly from Cessnas, mostly poised from the step and ALL before 1996. I was only a Tandem Examiner for 10 years or so. TI's: Can you relate with the concept of reading the back of the customers head to interpret his or her level of awareness. (The tell-tale-pre-puke-head-bob is perhaps the most demonstrative of their head-cues.) But there are others more subtle. For the last several years of my tandem career, back-flip exits were OFFERED to every passenger and nearly ALL opted to DO the back-flip, especially if the first customer in a group had done so and reported the enjoyment. I could tell when a student was mentally present - not in sensory overload - and enjoying the freefall by head movements; looking at landmarks, responding to the cameraman etcetera. I noticed that back-flip passengers were instantly alert after the backflips while poised stable passengers took longer to "wake up" and get into the amazing new environment. Here's the theory. The sensations of the poised exits were NOT what they expected to feel but flips were EXACTLY as expected. So rather than begining the descent stable, but with an inexplicable sensory experience and the time-space disorentation of that sensory overload delivered then, the flippers entered space with blue-green-blue-green visuals - AS EXPECTED - and the remaining experience was instantly more conscious, more conected, more memorable, less overloading, etc. It's only a theory. Just like the carnival pony analogy that burned me out. Tip the plane of the carnival pony's path 90 degrees and the saddle 180 degrees and you have the job description of the TI. Here we go round stop & round stop & round stop. oof Yike's I'm a pack animal. been there done that

Andy Neuman sings: "Short people ain't got nobody to love." Stability begins in the womb and becomes a state of mind ... if you're lucky. ... or not. Your longevity allows you to seek power from a place much further from the center of your gravity. Be grave. Tell short people where they belong. Your discipline of choice might someday be influenced by your lengthy posture. Maybe laying belly base is better left to the rounder types. m~

Ed Scott was weak at Government Relations. When Colonel Needles stepped down and your BOD moved Ed up, eD hired his own replacement. "Weak" is woefully inadequate to describe your future representation in the face of Uncle Sambo. You got soldiers, a pencil pusher and ... uh ... Randy as poster children ... no, make that RECEPTIONISTS for the FAA's views on your hobby. And I'll do MY part to help FAA understand what's actually going on. I write to FAA almost daily nowadays. Watch for articles on how to DEAL AROUND USPA and stand firmly in aviation as an EQUAL with the AVIATORS who ARE FAA. We are mistaken if we believe USPA is not one of TWO big balls and chains keeping our sport SMALL. Please stay tooned for now. I'm just getting tuned up. m~ Think about your Gold Standard. Coincidence? I think not. Learn to soldier. Become a marketer ... I mean a skydiver. ... nawww that's one won't fly yet either so much time sew few seams

In winter of 1983 as DPRE Joe Smith handed me my Master Rigger Certificate he said: "Mark, this industry is made up of a bunch of cutthroat, backstabbing mother fuckers. Be safe. And don't forget where you come from." rip Joe you were right

Concerned teams should contact Mark Schlatter to get a team supply of eDo-onward-porrk-r CUSTOM EMBROIDERED PATCHES to stitch onto their jumpsuits in protest. Yes the Knights ARE Army and by extension, it has become almost synonomous with USPA. Become a soldier or you just won't ever quite ever reach ... uh, real ... skygod status. Marketing is all American capatalism at it's finest. There is a new book out about the subliminal and illegal tactics Uncle Sam is using to recruit soldiers. Army funds popular video games for example for children. Anybody know the title?