TomAiello
-
Content
12,507 -
Joined
-
Last visited
-
Days Won
2 -
Feedback
0%
Everything posted by TomAiello
-
Dude, posting someone else's home phone number on an internet forum without permission is not cool. -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com
-
And for that, you wouldn't even need jumpers. My aunt bessie could put on a rig. Then when they busted her, she'd claim she never woulda had no intenshun of jumpin' nohow--and it would be believable. -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com
-
I don't think it's that simple. If it was, Tom Clancy would be in jail for conspiracy to commit the 9/11 attacks. -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com
-
Brilliant! Or, what if we all just drove in, got out of our cars, put on unpacked rigs, and started milling around the meadow? What would they do? What if we started packing? 200 rigs being packed in El Cap meadow? I can imagine the pure befuddlement in the Ranger station... "I dunno, Ron, I don't think they're breaking any laws." "But Jack, we've got to _do something_." "Sure, what you want me to do?" -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com
-
What do you want to see in a wingsuit? Cue the smartass with "landing gear", but let's ignore that and be serious. What I want is a wingsuit that is totally integrated into the harness and container (or vice versa, if you prefer). So that there's no extra drag from riser covers, no oddness with handles, and no aerodynamic problems where the container meets the wings. Just seamless integration. I bet it'd be pretty pricey to do it with a skydiving rig, but not impossible--and I bet Birdman has the contacts to launch such a thing. The market is smaller, but the legal hurdles less (and I know Phoenix Fly has the established partnerships for this) if you did it with BASE gear (plus, imagine the drag reduction with no handles). So come on, who's going to step up and make this thing? Oh, yeah, and I want it to have CARBONFUCKINGFIBER! -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com
-
All right. I admit that this stuff is freakin' hilarious. And Birdman probably does deserve a certain amount of good natured ribbing for the "if you name it, they will buy" marketing strategy. But let's stop before it becomes personal, ok? -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com
-
Would it work better if we all got busted, or if we all got away? -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com
-
What is this 'alti' of which you speak? -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com
-
Dude, make this BASE related... -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com
-
We've even got a date for it. Check BASE 428's signature line. -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com
-
I generally agree, but I also know rangers who didn't become rangers wanting to be cops. Backcountry rangers and climbing rangers, for example, generally become rangers because it's a job that allows them to live their chosen lifestyle (hanging out in the backcountry for weeks on end, climbing big walls, etc), rather than because they want to catch law breakers. While they are deputized for law enforcement duty (the Yosemite climbing ranger hauls his gun up big walls, believe it or not), I don't think it's where their real passion lies. No doubt. I'd love to be a ranger if all I had to do all day was keep yogi from steeling picka nic baskets. What a life that would be. As soon as the NPS de-criminalizes BASE, I'll be first in line to apply for the job of Yosemite BASE Ranger. -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com
-
I generally agree, but I also know rangers who didn't become rangers wanting to be cops. Backcountry rangers and climbing rangers, for example, generally become rangers because it's a job that allows them to live their chosen lifestyle (hanging out in the backcountry for weeks on end, climbing big walls, etc), rather than because they want to catch law breakers. While they are deputized for law enforcement duty (the Yosemite climbing ranger hauls his gun up big walls, believe it or not), I don't think it's where their real passion lies. -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com
-
You should be able to. Last I heard Robi was planning on attending, and I'd bet he'll have some demos. -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com
-
Wow. That's crazy ballsy. I've been on that bridge on the 4th. I once stood on the rail there on the 4th with 13 other jumpers, just looking at all the heat. I probably wouldn't have tried to pull that off, but damn, that's serious balls. My hat is off to them. I hope the fines are light. -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com
-
A note to all (just responding to Zennie because it's convenient): Let's try to keep the political discussions in Speaker's Corner, ok? I'd hate this thread to turn into a long diatribe about Indian rights, gaming on reservations, or whatever. -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com
-
Remind me to tell you the story about the guide we hired when hiking at CdC... -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com
-
If you guys want good answers to these kind of questions, I've found that the folks at many rope manufacturers are quite helpful, and usually available to answer questions. -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com
-
In the same way that we don't like all of "us" being lumped together, and many of "us" being punished for the actions of a few, it's probably best not to confuse "rangers" for "NPS policy" or "NPS establishment." There are plenty of individual people working for the NPS, and other governmental entities, who are friendly to BASE in general. I even know a couple cases where the two groups ("us" and "them") overlap in a single individual. Have I told you the story about my friend who wanted me to wear his Ranger uniform for photos jumping in NPS land? Of course, since they made it illegal, I've been too scared to jump there. -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com
-
If you take an extra length of line, you can also just pull yourself (and the injured person) across to the main structure. This is a good backup plan if the rope won't reach the ground, but will leave you having to rig a series of rappels down the tower to get the jumper to the ground. -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com
-
Reproduced with permission: I've jumped with the Hungarians a couple times. Very cool people. -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com
-
Sorry, I wasn't trying to comment on that particular site. Just saying that it doesn't matter if the entire structure is on private land. The landing area is going to have to be private (or permitted of some kind). -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com
-
I think the lowest pull I've seen in a wingsuit is Yuri off the tower in Moscow. Pretty much line stretch into water, even with the "forward reduces required altitude" effect of the wingsuit. Lowest I've seen over dry land has got to be one of the "not enough time to cut away wings or get toggles" jumps. I've seen a couple of those from various people--Jimmy F., Dwain W., Robert P. I'm having trouble imagining that you could pull much lower than that and avoid hospital time. I know that you're not going to beat Denis L.'s pull without actually landing the suit. -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com
-
Not a chance. The landing area is what counts for aerial delivery. -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com