TomAiello
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Everything posted by TomAiello
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That rocked. I watched from the exit. I also got to see James do his last jump while standing in the landing area, and between the two all I've got to say is that he is a psychotically low puller. -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com
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If price were not an issue, the ideal solution would be to purchase 2 BASE canopies--one to skydive with and one to BASE jump with. Just buy one, skydive the snot out of it, then when you are ready, buy a new one for BASE. If the canopies were identical, it would give you a big advantage in knowing the canopy pretty well right off the bat. You could reduce the costs of this strategy by finding a used, older BASE canopy for skydiving. -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com
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Performance Flying - article to download
TomAiello replied to unclecharlie95's topic in Wing Suit Flying
I think the polar curve information is interesting, and does have some bearing on developing maximum performance techniques. Besides, jumping here starts in 20 minutes, so I'm going to go do something more fun than try to weed through this thread. -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com -
I've had good service there with both T-Mobile and AT&T. I've got Verizon now, so I guess I'll find out about that one this year. -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com
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What was the wind? -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com
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Peter K. had a similar experience here, but cleared it before landing. Tailgates are very good--but nothing is guaranteed in this sport. Glad to hear it wasn't worse. How high were you when you released the toggles? Is it possible the line over was still in the process of clearing (and the canopy recovering) when you impacted? Or was it firmly locked on? I doubt that kicking or flailing, no matter how hard, could have popped the tailgate while the canopy was still in the container. How long before had you packed? Is it possible the rubber band was faulty, or somehow broke in the container? Unlikely, I'd think, but perhaps. If you want some pics put up, email them to me and I'll add them to the thread. -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com
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I used a wrist mounted inflatable (single use) with a wingsuit in Norway. I even inflated in when I landed in the fjord. -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com
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If only I had a dollar for every time I've seen that video posted... -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com
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I've got GPS on that somewhere from when I wanted to make sure I could clear it in a wingsuit, back in the day. I'd have to try to dig it up, though. From memory, it's roughly 3000 ft of talus at a 65 degree angle that starts 2000 feet below the exit point. My gut feel is that it's about the same level of track as beating the Italian Terminal Wall, or KT in norway. It's an achievement for sure, and definitely puts JT at the forefront of American trackers. -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com
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Moved from Speakers' Corner to General Skydiving Discussions. -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com
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Did you mean to put this in SC? Let me know if you want it to stay here. Otherwise I'll move it out to General Skydiving. Thanks! -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com
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I wouldn't bother wearing it for the skydives. In my opinion, the best protection is offered by the downhill mountain biking helmets. Some of these also offer good hearing (always a plus when listening for an exit count). In my opinion, they are superior to skydiving helmets for BASE use. As a bonus, they're also cheaper. In terms of wearing an actual face shield for BASE, you'll have to consider the pros and cons and decide for yourself. On the plus side, it can protect your eyes when landing in trees, bushes, etc. On the minus side, the visor can fog up, inhibit vision, and make hearing more difficult (and it could already be pretty bad). On balance, I'd skip the skydiving helmets and go for a mountain biking helmet instead. And I don't think I'd want to wear that helmet on a bunch of skydives. -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com
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They probably meant "flat packing" in the skydiving sense (i.e. stacking everything on top in one direction). This is notorious for producing 90's. Pretty much no one (and not Bill, last I saw him pack) uses this style of pack job for BASE anymore. -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com
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Apex had some last time I asked them. Also, check out Douggs video's on the Cookie Composites site. You can also guy the ABA videos, I believe off the ABA site. -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com
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I've split this off the "Fastest Wingsuit" discussion. -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com
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It might be more feasible if you incorporated things such as personal knowledge of someone, though. Then, even if they hadn't bought or sold, but a large number of members "vouched" for them as a reliable person, you'd have some frame of reference for dealing with them. -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com
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Blue Skies, my friends. And all our other brothers and sisters, as well. Lukas is within a week. -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com
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Met one of those, too. -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com
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That footage is on Masters of Stone 5. -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com
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I know three BASE jumpers with pretty cool jobs. One guy who builds towers. One guy who is a high rise window washer. One guy who is a broadcast engineer at a tower with an elevator. The 2nd and 3rd guys got those jobs because of their jumping habits. -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com
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Buy some bungee cords or surgical tubing. Attach one end to a ceiling, roof, doorway, or whatever. Put some kind of handle in the other end. Practice pulling down repeatedly. You can shorten the cord to create more resistance, or make it longer for easier exercises. -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com
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Actually, I just taught him to hook up the 3 rings. He had taken a reputable FJC (not mine) some months previously. The point I was making was (I think the same as yours) that since we can't cover everything when spoonfeeding, people need to develop the ability/desire to learn for themselves. Before FJC's, the manner in which we learned to BASE jump naturally screened for this (you simply didn't become a BASE jumper without a certain natural curiousity, because there were no instructional courses available). Now, we're missing out on it, quite often, because we've created something of an institutionalized path, and it assumes that you have certain basic knowledge, and has no real plan for addressing shortcomings in those areas. -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com
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BASE jumps or skydives? The latter is not uncommon at all. I knew a guy with over 100 skydives who couldn't attach a canopy to a container without having twists in his risers... BASE Jumps. Virtually all of them here. -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com
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Far as I can see, the Tide did enough Gator bashing for everyone. -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com
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That's very true. I've seen people in BASE now who lack some very basic knowledge because it wasn't spoonfed to them. One guy with over 100 jumps didn't know how to assemble his 3 rings. -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com