TomAiello

Thanx Ed, I really don't have the spare time plus.... the puctuation /vocabulary comprehension thing down to the level that Sangiro would like to see in his quality product. What you don't realize is that moderating is actually the punishment that Sangiro works on the worst offenders. What? Banning for a month didn't get you to calm down? Well, then, you try being the moderator... -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com

Somewhere, I have a video of one of the Norgies taking fins and a snorkel off exit #6. It's pretty amusing, but it really is a heck of a track. -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com

You are correct. My apologies. I think I must have sorted it out wrong in the first place, and then just kept copying the error. The "intentional" bit was reported to me by jumpers there. I didn't ask about it, but just assumed that it was either (a) because he said something before the jump, or (b) because he was observed not to make a pull attempt until he was very low. I'd guess it was the latter. -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com

If it were me, I'd wait for the Phantom. Part of that might be a desire for the latest-greatest, though. And to be fair, part of it is definitely because I like Robert and want to see his company be a resounding success. He really impressed me once (when he was part of Birdman) when someone asked him why he didn't just hire more workers to cut delivery times and he answered something like "well, when you hire people they trust you to look out for them, so I don't want to hire more people unless I know I'll be able to keep providing work for them in the long term." UncleCharlie, can you give us an estimate as to when the pre-ordered Phantoms will be delivered? -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com

Honestly, I think it's a silly debate. With the internet I can get my news from anywhere in the world I want. Heck, my Dish TV gets both BBC and Canadian news broadcasts. As long as there is a bunch of different media available, I feel like I can survey a bunch of news sources, and decide for myself. If I read something on CNN, and think "hmmm, I wonder what the other side is?" I can always pop over to the Al-Jazeera site and read their take on it, and then find some third source that's from a relatively unrelated place (I've actually found that South African papers are good for this, since they're in English and tend to take a more distanced perspective) to cross check. In this day and age, I don't feel like being an American, or living in the US prevents me from getting my news from anywhere I want. -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com

I have a jump in my log book where I used this technique on a very low jump (it was indoors, and I was scared enough about it that I dragged over foam pits from the gymnastics area and put them below the exit). I was too lazy to build a structure, but just clothes pinned the canopy to the handrail of a catwalk. I think I'm going to have to go back and write in "Hoop and Poop" or maybe "Coney Island" where I've noted the deployment method. It's all personal anyway. If you think it was a BASE jump for you, then call it such. If you don't feel like it counts, then don't. I've even talked to at least one person who thinks wingsuit flights ought to be logged in a separate book, because they're so different from "regular" BASE jumps. -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com

I'd recommend doing a search in this forum for "Smoke Pants" also. That's a pretty cheap option, that outperforms the Birdman Pantz for a tenth the price. Be aware, though, that you ought to test your smoke pants out of a plane first, as I can think of two cases in which experienced jumpers (ironically enough, myself and Douggs) found themselves spinning out of control when their smoke pants failed on their maiden voyage (he lost the waist band and ended up with pants around his ankles, and I popped a leg, and ended up with one inflated leg spinning me in circles). I've got no personal experience with the Pressurized version. I've heard that they perform in the same general range as the Phoenix Fly version. Either of these, in my opinion, will perform better than the Birdman version, which, from personal experience, is noticeably worse than an ultra-cheap pair of smoke pants. -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com

Congratulations! What specialty do you want to go into? -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com

Now where's Ivan when we need him? -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com

A better question would be: "Was it fun?" -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com

I will cheerfully retract that statement, and defer to Douggs experience. He has far more terminal experience than I, as well as far more experience teaching beginners doing terminal jumps. -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com

So, when will the first "dock n' chug" event be held? -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com

You know who actually flew that suit, don't you? -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com

I just got this from Douggs, who asked me to post it for him. Those who know him will recognize that I've done a bit of editing on grammar and such (at his request). For those who don't know him, Douggs is a full time BASE instructor in Norway, very experienced skydiver, and has made more than 1000 BASE jumps. In my opinion, he is the best technical BASE jumper on earth at present. He's rarely on-line, so I doubt he'll be able to answer questions about this here, but the next time you're in Lysefjord I'm sure he'll be happy to share his thoughts with you. Lots of stuff to consider and discuss there. -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com

Many skydivers have very limited experience making low turns. The most experienced group in this is the swoopers, who, of course, are experts at making low turns, but, unfortunately, on canopies that are very different from BASE canopies. In BASE, you often have to make your entire canopy flight below the altitude that you'd make your last turn on a skydive. This difference has resulted in accidents when beginner BASE jumpers (and not so beginners, too) are thrown into the unfamiliar environment of _having_ to turn low when their skydiving training screams "no low turns!" -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com

just because you have a large landing area does not mean you are any better off.................. many people get hurt not being able to fly a canopy at low altitude............ Also, many people who figure "well, I'll just do easy stuff now, so I don't need to practice" find themselves on harder objects before they find the time to go back to the DZ and practice with the canopy. -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com

Let's try this discussion again: Overall Question: Is the ABP the most effectual entity to support in pursuing the goal of access to public lands? Issue: The ABP has reorganized and declared itself a top-down organization, in which the dictates of the leadership will determine policy without reference to the membership. How will this effect efforts for access? Will the ABP be more effective as a smaller group that rejects volunteers? Will ABP fundraising be reduced as a result of the organizations policy of non-responsiveness to member input? Will people give money to the organization knowing that they will never be allowed input into how that money is used? How effective will efforts for access be without group funding? Issue: The ABP seems unable to overcome the personality issues of it's founder. Will this eventually scare off every person who has put time and energy into the organization? Issue: The ABP has offered to refund money to those who donated. Will people actually try to get their money back? If they do, will it actually be returned? Could this potentially return the organization to operating out of the personal funds of the leadership (bearing in mind that many operating costs were born by a member who has been ejected)? Issue: Is there any alternative to the ABP? Can some kind of group protest activity evolve into a greater movement? Will Abbie actually become the savior of BASE on public lands ()? If another organization were formed with similar goals but a different structure, would it be more effective? Would an alternate organization split the energy of the BASE community, or improve efforts for access? Is there really any problem with splitting things, since the ABP has stated that it does not wish to represent or respond to the BASE community? Are people just too tired of all this to get involved in a different organization? Thoughts, anyone? -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com

I was trying, somewhat ineptly, to express that he was (politely, I thought) removing the IRA from the list to try to present an accurate picture of terrorism that might be in response to the war in Iraq. Remember that his position was that there was plenty of terrorism in the UK before the whole Iraq thing started. Leaving the IRA incidents in the list would only have supported his position, albeit somewhat artificially. I thought it was a good effort to avoid bias in his own favor. -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com

I think maybe the common usage varies on either side of the Atlantic. -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com

I assumed because the list was put up as a response to issues of Islamic extremist terrorism. If it had included IRA bombings, that wouldn't have been a fair portrayal, and would have arguably over-emphasized terrorism in the UK. -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com

There is a remembrance page here. -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com

Check out Adam Filipino's Consolidated Rigging Canopy Drills. I think that Jimmy will send you a set of drills he wants you to practice as well. For packing, there's no substitute for practice. I'm a big fan of the uber-controlled pack job, but I'd recommend just learning what Apex teaches you, and sticking with that until you've got it down. Lots of different pack jobs work, and you're better off to get good at the one you learn before you start trying variations. If you have a local rigger, watch some reserve pack jobs. That'll give you some good ideas for how to start into a BASE pack job. -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com

If memory serves, the chronological order was: 1) The Magician's Nephew 2) The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe 3) The Horse and His Boy 4) Prince Caspian 5) The Voyage of the Dawn Treader 6) The Silver Chair 7) The Last Battle But I agree with you, and prefer the original sequence. -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com

Well, me. I've got the keys, you see... -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com

Press report here now includes the jumpers name. -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com