TomAiello

More to the point of this discussion, the Prodigy will likely also be in much greater demand on the second hand market than other "beginner" suits, because it will still have a use for "advanced" jumps--BASE jumps with near-object openings. So, back to the original question, the Prodigy would be a good choice because it will be easier to sell it when you "trade up" to a higher performance suit. -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com

Yuri Kuznetsov has also been using this packjob for at least 6 years (since the first time I saw him pack). And I believe there was a post here somewhere about a rigger in Europe who had written it up and called it something or other. Perhaps DexterBASE can scan and post the write up he did of it? -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com

More info can be found here on the Apex/BR web site. -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com

We had around 8 or 10 jumpers in attendance. Kudoz to everyone for dressing and presenting professionally, and making a good impression on the park management. I think the board was especially impressed by the number of concerned Utah jumpers who were able to make it, and the statements they made. Alliance of Backcountry Parachutists board member Jason Dawson gave a good presentation on jumping, and statements were made and questions answered by several local jumpers, and by myself. What started out as a 10 minute agenda item ended up stretching to over an hour, and discussions continued with park staff after that, as well. The results were fairly positive. The board took no immediate action, and will now begin discussing the inclusion of BASE in planning process for both this specific park, and for the overall state park system. This is likely to be an ongoing process that will involve state park staff, local jumpers, and some support from the ABP. It promises to be a fair amount of work, including review of specific sites in specific parks, and decisions relating to the impacts at each location. The good news is that (a) they know we're concerned, and they want to work with us, (b) they didn't just make a decision, (c) jumpers came out to the meeting, and will now be involved in the planning process, and (d) the park board and staff are both open to jumping, and interested in learning more. There should be an official ABP statement sent out to members in the next couple days. I'll try to post that into this thread as well. -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com

Have you seen "The Siege"? If you haven't, rent it sometime, and pay particular attention to the march at the end of the movie, and the terrorist's comments about it. Quite thought provoking. -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com

Will you alter the size of the "rig box" to fit various different rigs when custom ordered? The "box" for my rig is going to be a very different (and smaller) shape than the "box" for something I'd use out of an aeroplane. -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com

What are these handles of which you speak? -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com

If it did, I wouldn't be discussing them on an internet forum. -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com

Can you elaborate on the singular "healthcare institution" you mention? In the US, healthcare is provided largely through the private sector, resulting in a multiplicity of different providers, with most funding provided by private insurance--not public tax money. Your argument appears to be based on the idea that the government has a duty to protect us from ourselves. While this is a common thread in much European jurisprudence, it is _not_ (at this point) an accepted ethic in American law. If I want to go out and ride a motorcycle, or go whitewater rafting, or jump out of an airplaine, I have a perfect right to do so. -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com

Um, two separate questions? But I think you can't overdo the security bit. -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com

That's it, in a nutshell. No logical policy differentiation between paragliders and BASE canopies. -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com

I know 2 or 3 I'd vouch for. -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com

I bet it takes less than five to just fill in the blanks on the ABP web page. Honestly, though, I think this discussion is about some kind of direct action, rather than a letter writing campaign. -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com

Ok, I have temporarily uploaded the briefing document to my public folder here. -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com

Hmmm. I missed the attachment. Let's try that again. Ahh. It's too large for the attachment limit. PM or Email me if you want it. I'll send it by email to everyone I've heard from that expressed interest. -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com

That's funny. I think you were typing this post at the same time I was typing the post here. -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com

As discussed in this thread, the Utah Board of Parks and Recreation will be meeting at Soldier Hollow Day Lodge tomorrow (Friday, July 8th). A discussion of BASE jumping (and it's place in the State Park system) is on the agenda between 1:00pm and 1:40pm. The Soldier Hollow Day Lodge is located at Soldier Hollow Golf Course, in Wasatch Mountain State Park, on Route 113, approximately 3 miles south of Midway, Utah. (Map) The Alliance of Backcountry Parachutists has submitted a briefing for the board, and ABP board members will be attending the meeting to present this material to the Board of Parks and Recreation. I encourage jumpers to attend the meeting, although time for public comment is expected to be minimal (there are 5 items on the agenda for that 40 minute time frame). If you are attending the meeting, please keep several things in mind: 1) This is not an adversarial situation. Our goal here is to convince the Board that jumping should be considered in their planning process. Attacking them would be counterproductive. 2) You will be taken by the public, the board, and the media as a representative of our sport. Please dress professionally and conduct yourself appropriately. 3) The most positive result we can hope for is an open planning period in which the park system works with jumpers to create a management plan covering jumping. Our biggest goal for tomorrow is to open discussions with the park system, so that public input (including ours) can be heard before a decision is made regarding the future of jumping in state parks in Utah. I have attached the ABP briefing document to this post as a .pdf file. -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com

Conspiracy to commit a misdemeanor can be a felony. If I recall correctly the judge has wide latitude in determining the fine amount, and could jack it up if he thought poorly of the offender. -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com

I did do some cannibalizing, but I can probably get the bar back on there with relatively minimal effort, before you get here. I'll tell Cheri your doctor said it's ok. Hopefully she won't try to strangle either of us. -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com

I've got no idea, actually. Did 3 this morning, and 3 yesterday morning, though. That damn old guy keeps doing 4 every day, though. -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com

as long as you live in the US - it didn't like my UK pastcode! What about the rest of us? I don't have a congressman or senator but those of the states with the toys in and the NPS can be written to by us. There's actually work being done on getting the system to allow foreign letter writers. Just after that on the schedule is getting it to send letters to non-U.S. officials (think about the Mexican hole, for example). But you have to remember that the whole thing is put together by a bunch of people with real lives, real jobs, and limited time. I'll make sure that this gets noted (again), but I can't promise any kind of timeline for you. -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com

So true Kevin, but it's not the manufaturers that are causing the anomosity, just a few people that fly wingsuits. So true. I have yet to see Jari, or Robi, or Cate, or Maria, or anyone else who actually makes the suits, getting on here talking smack. It's all coming from much lower down the food chain. I think the folks making the suits are probably too busy building better suits for us all. I even once had a private conversation with a manufacturer in which I tried to get him to say negative things about another. He just wouldn't do it. -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com

I jumped a hugely oversized Sugar Glider, and still had no trouble getting the PC at pull time. Even worked fine when I borrowed a left handed BOC (and didn't realize it until I did a practice pull in the plane ). I admit I was worried about it, but my experience was that even in a way-too-big SG, there was no obstruction of the PC. -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com

All, Speaker's Corner is not the flame-fest forum. All of the standard DZ.com rules apply here. If you find yourself starting a thread specifically about another poster, I strongly urge you to reconsider. Personal threads are silly, usually pointless, and mostly devolve into flame fests. Such threads are viewed with the utmost skepticism by the moderators, so be prepared for them to be removed without notice. Also, trying to dress your attacks up as a poll (poll: is Joe an idiot? poll: should Jack admit he's wrong?, etc) is a not very clever way to disguise a personal attack, and will not be tolerated. When discussing in this (or any) forum, a good rule of thumb is the one we learned in 2nd grade soccer--play the ball, not the player. If you find yourself directing things at a person rather than at what they say, chances are you are out of line. -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com

Go here. It's very easy. -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com