base311

none of you have ever done a nude skydive?? Ride Nekkid!!!! Gardner edited to add: And how are you gonna hold it big if your pantz and underoos are on?

That sucks... have done a few jumps w/him at BD over the years and always looked forward to seeing him and spending time with him there every year. He was one of the nice guys. Man you just never know - do you??? Godspeed Sam Gardner

BPS: I suppose I might as well direct these questions at you since you're in this thread and I figure you have some experience with it. My darling wife and I are planning to stay on in canon city/co springs/pueblo area for a few days post GoFast event. Lately I've been planning our itinerary and am interested in the self-guided tour (since I'm a level 4 visitor) of the USAFA. Can you provide any insider pointers to add value to my visit?? I have consulted the official tour guide offered on the USAFA home page, but have stopped just short of actually contacting the visitor's center. If time becomes a concern, I want to make sure I don't miss the high spots. In the event that BPS does not see this, if anyone else could offer info that would be cool too... :) can't wait!! love and leaps Gardner

These nuts were processed in a facility which also processes peanuts, other tree nuts and legumes. Gardner

Y'know maybe I'm naive and/or uninformed, but it had never even occurred to me that someone might use hot sauce as a punishment. I let my (then 8 mos.) daughter try some as a matter of exploration and she came back for more, so I can only conclude that it wouldn't have been an effective deterrent for her in any fashion. I suppose others' mileages may have varied. I could never condone using a food or spice as a punishment; these things are to be savored not spoiled. Love and vomit, Gardner

you might also be interested in reading this thread on http://clarkhoward.com good luck Gardner

I dunno if I wanna share an acronym with Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy Gardner

Almost any guy can sire a Boy... but it takes a MAN to knock the balls off of it! Gardner

Now I'm gonna have to get a new keyboard 'cause it's got coca cola all in it!!! I actually did laugh out loud enough that an office mate stepped in to see what was so funny. Good one John. Y'know I used to get all hot and bothered by all of this... in fact enough so one time that I and a group of us actually went way out of our way to go and do something about it. I guess my position has changed and I find myself in a constant struggle to reconcile my thought with my prior actions, my BASE history, and my convictions. In other words I don't know if I really have any room to talk. And while I agree that dayblazing objects isn't the best idea for any of us, I'd be lying if I said I'd never done it (and even recently). Likewise, if it weren't for my yahoo-base-newbie-instructor-wannabe mentor Earl (who is/was guilty of exactly the same thing of which you stand accused), I probably wouldn't even be here talking about this. Still further, I might not have been here talking about this if things hadn't gone my way with respect to luck. Long story short: I'm like Ritchie; I did it the other way 'round. There are so many times when I bite my tongue - not because I don't have anything to say - but because I'm one of those exceptions that wouldn't exist in the BASE world if it weren't for the misguided (guided??) efforts of Mr. Redfern to go against the grain. In other words... in some respects I don't have any grounds to make a case around things like how many skydives one should have before taking up BASE.... or whether someone is 'bad' for having jumped in the daytime... or whether jumping with a surfboard is a good idea or not (I've never jumped with a surfboard, btw - no interest in taking sharp and potentially snagging objects with me in freefall or subjecting groundbound folks to them). There really aren't many rules in BASE - the most heavily enforced rules are the physical laws. Then there is the Call the Locals Rule. Don't jump from the rail at the Perrine. Other than that, it's pretty much a free-for-all as Nick suggested... and there's really not a damned thing any of us can do about it. It's as perennial as the grass that there will always be unprepared newbies wanting to take up the sport. It's as perennial as the grass that the newbie jumper will want to jump everything in sight and jump often and in broad daylight and many times against a more experienced someone's wishes. It's also as perennial as the grass that these folks will mature(hopefully), in time, to become the same jumper that many of us older timers now are: they will see the path and the way and they'll take it, and they'll be amazed (shocked)at themselves when they come to the realization that they were just like that young punk that just hucked a 2k footer in broad daylight for god and everybody to see. Growing pains. I take solace in the fact that no matter what happens (base being outlawed, objects shut down), the only person standing in the way of me tossing on my rig and climbing up and jumping off of something is myself. That's the ultimate freedom. Beyond that, I guess someone else here summed it up pretty well: choose carefully the folks that you take with you or that you jump with... it'll be those folks that you have to live/co-exist with if you don't like jumping completely alone (which is cool for those that do). That is not to say that the choices you made are wrong... they just might not have turned out the way you wanted (unintended consequences). Unfortunately (or fortunately depending on your position), any single one of us has little control over which yahoo decides to jump xxxxx in broad daylight or goes in on our favorite local object. Let's all relax. The objects aren't going anywhere, and neither is gravity. bsbd, Gardner

so while we're talking... how about mentioning the tendancy to induce off-headings if the PCA-er is vertically misaligned with the PCA-ee? Even a slightly off-center alignment will induce a heading change to the side opposite the misalignment. e.g. if the PCA-er is 6 inches left of the vertical centerline of the jumper, it could induce a right-headed opening and vice versa. just fodder for those who might be reading. bad heading performance can ruin someone's day just as quickly as a dropped PC. gardner

morphine a big rock to finish 'em off. Gardner

What's hard to get? Starbucks owns the building and the coffee... the breastfeeding women own the mouths and the wallets (money to buy Starbuck's coffee). This is what I meant when I said the women can vote with their feet and their wallets. And if breast feeding women want to piss off Starbucks, I feel that they should have that right. They do have that right... the best way to piss off Starbucks is to walk down the street and buy coffee at some other coffee shop. Seems to me that putting requirements on it would be construed as restricting or limiting. Yes I have to agree with you there... under current law... but I wouldn't be surprised if this weren't challenged at some point. My main point is if the woman doesn't like it... tough titty. I think there outta be a law that says Starbucks doesn't have to serve coffee to lactating mothers. There's always someone ready willing and able to fill a niche market. I'm gonna start a coffee shop that serves caffeine-free coffee to breastfeeding mothers only. No weak-stomached, coffee-drinking, newspaper-reading ogling guys allowed. Gardner P.S. Oh btw I love lactating mothers

Actually I have less of a problem (in fact I don't have any problem with it at all) with breastfeeding in public than I do with a breastfeeding mother leading a crusade to have Starbucks do her bidding. To quote the article, "“Ultimately every ... state should have a law,” said Charkoudian, “We want Starbucks to set a precedent and be a leader, since it is a leader with a claim to being socially conscious.” I guess my sentiment is if the women don't like the way Starbucks treats them and their breastfeeding babies, they're certainly welcome to vote with their feet and with their wallets. But I hardly think Starbucks ought to have to be raked over the coals for having asked the lady to be a little discreet. So after reading the MD law I find it to be a lot bit ambiguous and probably hasn't been on the books long enough for a court challenge. Seems to me if Starbucks wants her to cover up they should have that right. The law does say that the right to breastfeed shall not be limited. Does that mean Starbucks has no say whatsoever? I think not. IF Starbucks wanted to piss of the entire breastfeeding population by not allowing breastfeeders into the building then I feel that they should have that right. Wanna breast feed? Don't go to Starbucks. Want Starbucks? don't breastfeed. If I had a dollar for everytime I heard someone say "there outta be a law..." The Maryland Law: § 20-801. Breast-feeding of children. (a) In general.- A mother may breast-feed her child in any public or private location in which the mother and child are authorized to be. (b) Restriction of right prohibited.- A person may not restrict or limit the right of a mother to breast-feed her child. [2003, ch. 369.]

You're mean. I hope they come back and fork your yard. Gardner

I was under the impression that breastfeeding mothers should limit their caffeine intake, but what do I know??

My grandmother didn't tell me she went for a skydive!!!! LOL Gardner

weird... I wrote that there. Gardner

"donut" = sheave Hope all is well with you... towerpro keepin' ya busy?? Gardner

see this post Gardner

Object in tow?? I can't find it now, but I would swear I read of an incident once where some guy db'd or sl'd a B under construction and somehow the bag lanyard became engaged with the canopy/harness? and he swung back into the B and ended up grabbing steel or something.. then proceeded to unhook and climb down?? Maybe I'm just making this up... Tom: Dunno about the diff. break cord availability, but I built a sandwiched velcro version that does the same thing and the required force to release is infinitely adjustable (well, not infinitely - in the sense that I always managed to get it to release). My tests were not at all scientific, but based on my experiences with PCA-ing folks. Haven't had the occasion to jump it yet, but I would. Gardner

I'm curious to know what sort of 'thump' the weights made when they hit the floor? Gardner

I recently had the distinct honor of meeting Bill Coleman (101st Airborne, D-day minus one). Saw the video of his commemorative jump with the other guys on the load. He is as spry as many younger folks I know (and in better shape than most, probably), and I snickered when he called squares "sissy chutes". He called me nuts when others mentioned my BASE exploits to him. Really great guy. Also had the pleasure of meeting Col. Joe Kittinger, another great, jovial, life-loving gentleman. He and his wife are great! I was most honored and awed. Needless to say I got my logbooks bounceproofed. Gardner

On every jump I carry the ashes of two dead friends and a tiny stuffed puppy that my oldest daughter gave me for good luck. Gardner

Hey folks. I was just lurking rockclimbing.com and ran across a post regarding life insurance for high risk activities that I thought might be of interest to some of you here. Keep in mind that I have not contacted these folks nor do I have anything to do with their company. Just a heads up for those of you who might be interested. YMMV Gardner rockclimbing.com post

crossbracing or dribs are for reducing the overall number of lines and thus reducing drag. with x-bracing (depending on the configuration) you can span a greater number of cells between spanwise line attachment points. e.g. three half-cells between linesets as opposed to two half cells between linesets. It's like how a girder bridge is constructed - placing things in tension/compression. depending on the dribs, one can also maintain a little better rib profile shape across the canopy. xbracing might benefit the BASE canopy in maintaining rib shape, but I doubt it's worth the extra cost to do it, plus it may hinder inflation (though doubtfully if the dribs are drastically cutout http://www.brackenbury.ca/kites/page4/photo39.htm). Finally, I don't really want to place more stress on fewer lines and reduce the overall ability of the canopy to transfer stresses from the risers to the fabric, in the BASE environment, so reducing the number of lines isn't of interest to me personally. I'd rather have a few extra lines for the instances where one or more might fail. Gardner