Deuce

Q, you know I read your stuff and copied your camera suit. Even sewn, the pressure on my thumbs was too high. My cords are now sewn to some 1" webbing with a loop, so they can tighten and loosen as I increase and decrease the pressure. I use the wings on my belly, in a sit, and on my back filming a tandem and it just creates too much tension on my thumbs. My flying is improving, and I don't have to muscle the wings as much, so I might be able to downsize to thumb loops eventually.

Actually, I broke out my David Clark 10-60 headset to trade to my DZO for jump tickets. That's my answer. What's a 172 these days? $80/hr wet? Fly somebody someplace decent for lunch, $200. I prefer skydiving. I'd rather jump 10 times than fly to Monterey or Columbia (Sierra town) for lunch. If you really dig it, why not get your commercial ticket and fly the DZ's plane?

I use palm loops over my gloves. I tried thumb loops, but they hurt cause I really muscle my wings. I've never caught them on anything, but I think that's cause I really tighten them down before I exit the plane. Their snag potential had never occured to me. Thanks for the head's up.

Oh, sure. Sent the picture. I gotta eat a lot less since I'm not moving around, and that should back me off my Doritos right quick.

My apologies. JP

Well, first you'll start hearing little noises,but when you look, there's nothing there. Then the noises get louder, and there's still nothing there. At some point you will turn around and there will be a huge-ass lizard just sitting there looking at you. And it will grow. At the 12 week point it will be so big it will block the view of the sky, and you will see nothing but wrinkled lizard scrotum when you look up. Nasty. The plus side is walking with crutches develops great ab muscles, shoulders, and triceps. I'm glad you decided to post the incident. I ruptured both my plantar fascia (fibrous tissue that connects your heel to the ball of your foot) several years ago, it is a long recovery process. Hey, at least you've got this website while you are sitting with your foot elevated. I'm doing the same thing right now! Here's wishing you a rapid recovery. Oh, and ask your doctor about tramadol/ ultram. It's better than vicodan for long-term pain treatment. JP

Glad to hear it. They put that "fish finder" in while they had you open, right?

Lori, that's taking the whole camera thing to the extreme Horror story, though.

OK that's the reference I think I originally saw. And the Tandem Instructor Rating Course manual says in 4-5, 3. Minimum experience qualifications for tandem video flyers: 300 group freefall dives, 50 jumps flying camera with experienced jumpers. (Page Tandem 26) Then the SIM says (not specific to Tandem videography) in section 6-8 (recommendations)E., 1., c and d, D license and 50 recent jumps on the same equipment. SIM section six, page 137. Clearly there's no concensus, but the Tandem master is the parachutist in command, and could refuse to allow you out, I suppose. I prefer to let the decision lay with an experienced S & TA or similar, who preferably has experience both as a tandem master and as a video flier.

Nice, Phree. Are you using a camera suit for the RW stuff?

lGreat shot of Amy geeking. Always remember to geek the camera, people. Especially when it pisses of your load organizer! Oh, wait, wasn't Amy a load organizer there? That's leadership! Nice shots, Lori. Wasn't your scanner in the trunk of your car when it got hit?

I had a tandem master with a mission show me the section when I first started doing tandem videos. I apologize for stirring the pot without giving the section, but I have read it in black and white. I'll look for it and report back. JP

Damn! Wendy, I'm really sorry we didn't get to share the air again. I spotted you right away on the record picture (Ahem, that I should have taken, but Sensei Quade gracefully took when I sploded myself) I remember several jumps at Eloy where me, you and Bigben were linked up like Dorothy's house in a tornado! It'll be neat to do a jump that goes as planned with you one of these days!

Whatever. You guys are the only folks who have "Eh!" lines on your canopies.

That's him. Lovitz. JT, did I ever tell you that I got my Platinum Penta-Sexta safire wings and 2 week freefall award from MORGAN FAIRCHILD? Yeah, we talked about it, in French. Yeah, I speak French. When I want to.

Yeah, I'll get one and instruction from MonoUno this Christmas. I dunno, Lou, the video of her riding you was pretty cool. Damn. That chick can do everything. She is getting a board this week, I think.

Well, it's common enough that it's funny. John Whathisface from Saturday Night Live had that character that was compulsively lying. We've all had enough experience with liers that it's a joke that's funny to just about everyone. Wouldn't it be nice if you did a joke about a lier, and everybody said "I don't get it"

I was doing tandem videos in rotation at about 250 jumps. I started lurking tandems and doing spec video at about 210. It took about 40 jumps with tandems to get consistent. Those tandem videos are the biggest advertisement for our sport, and they have to be good. Now, the USPA reg for shooting video of a tandem is 500 jumps and a rating of some kind. I believe this can be waived by your S&TA. We've been through this discussion many times, and I don't think there's a concensus. My two-bits is that a responsible person on your DZ should make the call, based on your temperment and skills, and it seems like they have. Again, congratulations.

Deal. 50 yard Pimp-run.

Cajones, Holly is at the tail end of my DZ.Eloy video. I'm panning past Sunny after a DC- flybyand we're all whooping it up and there she is, just laughing along with all the rest of us. My wife and I were watching the video before I went down to Perris and I got all choked up and explained who it was and my wife got choked up too. I was signing the banner at Perris, and saw her name right next to mine and it caught my breath again. You're going to want the Mini DV tape, right? I'll see if I can burn you one, my computer is jumpy. If I get it out tomorrow, will it be any use to you? PM coming.

Uh, the WESTERN HEMISPHERE! And this would matter to you why? I didn't even see a monkey. Just lots of poor women who needed to rinse off in my swimming pool.

Ah, Cornholio, my intelligence has always been held captive by my passion. Yeah, I remember limping around Eloy, JUMPING! I genuinely appreciate your concern, and your reminder. Quade, what the doctor said is I could have either the moonboot thing or nothing. WTF? He was going to let me just walk out of there, and he did get a consult. Hey, for my $10 copay, gimme the free moonboot! My walking on it is controlled only by the amount of pain it generates. My pain tolerance is unusually high, and I told him that, but there is no danger of aggravating the fracture unless I hyper or super extend the ankle. I will butt slide my landings for the next month with both ankles in rigid braces I have from previous injuries. (Emily was staying at my place when she torqued her ankle jumping at Byron and she was astounded at the amount of brace paraphernalia I have. Finally got a pair of aluminum crutches - that SoCal Kaiser rocks! I am highly skilled at being injured) No, I didn't tell him I plan on going skydiving in two weeks. Unless he was a skydiver, I don't think that helps with diagnosis. If I still have pain when I get ready to jump, I probably won't. I gotta get my jump with B-squared! B-Squared in NorCal where the air is clean! On my new PD Velocity 79!

KatieBear and a couple other folks tried to use it, and I don't know what message they got, but it didn't work and they asked for and got my AOL addy, or pm'd me. JP

Ah, Lisa, any conversation that contains the phrase "Listen F*cker!" is worthy of note. The "go fast" stickers. Get me a bunchathem. And come on! If my heart was racing, my pupils were dilated, my mouth was dry, I was sweating, and my Rhomberg clock was short, what would I be on? Tweaker Trivial Pursuit!

Mine hasn't worked when I've tried to use it. I use a lot of PM. I am laughing! The dictator is benevolent today! Must've had a good weekend