base689

> Could you post a picture of your special bridle and SL-carry-with-you? See the above post by Faber. Faber posted my photos for me. I think for Dropzone setup, he could not post my original high definition photos. If you are interested in the high definition photos, just drop me an e-mail ( base_689@yahoo.com ) Stay safe out there Blue Skies and Soft Walls BASE #689 - base_689AT_NO_123_SPAMyahoo.com

> yeah no doubt, KISS my man > Keep It Simple and Stupid Actually, my set up is quite simple. Once you have manufactured the Special Bridle and the SL-carry-with-you, what you have got to do is to tie a loop of break cord once on site (=on the exit point). I think it is simple: one knot you have to tie it anyway, once on exit point. I jump and I leave no trace Stay safe out there Blue Skies and Soft Walls BASE #689 - base_689AT_NO_123_SPAMyahoo.com

I do not know how Silva alti watch works, but definitely I can say that my alti watch (Suunto Advizor) when it is about to run out battery energy, stops "highly energy consuming functions" (altimeter, compass...) and just keep the watch functions running. Sometimes the above (not working the alti-comp functions) happens with the "empty battery" sign showing up and sometimes the above happens without the "empty battery" sign showing up. Solution: change the bloody battery immediately!!!!!! > I have had it about a year and never paused it... Definitely: change the fùcking bloody battery NOW!!!!!! Stay safe out there Blue Skies and Soft Walls BASE #689 - base_689AT_NO_123_SPAMyahoo.com

> someone with 500 jumps from a span and someone with 200 jumps from different objects would be much closer, but I might still give the edge to the 500-jump wonder... "But I might give the edge to the 500-jump wonder..." I agree, but it depends to do what.... For sure Mr. 500jumps-off-that-bridge knows how to jump THAT bridge (winds/meteo conditions/whatever, BASE being very object dependent), for sure Mr. 500jumps-off-that-bridge knows how to pack very well indeed, know how to fly and flare his BASE canopy very well indeed and whatever else comes with the 500 jumps experience. Mr. 500jumps-off-that-bridge for sure is a partner/mentor who you can have lots of fun jumping with from "his" bridge. On the other hand, Mr. 50 jumps off 30 different objects is way more expert in different "environments", haviong put his feet in 30 difrerent places, with 30 different visual, with 30 different approaches/climbs, perhaps is more expert in evaluating meteo/logistic condition off a possible "new" object, so could be a good partner when you are about to explore a new exit. so, in my humble opinion, both Mr. 500jumps-off-that-bridge and Mr. 50jumps-off-30-objects have their own "strong" points!!!! And possibly it is a lot of fun to jump with both!!! And possibly each of them can give you a better input/hints in jumping different objects!!!! Personally I can say that at my 55th jump I had 15 (for sure thanks to my experienced jumpoing mates)) different objects (having opened just 1 new object myself with a SOLO jump (with only whuffo ground crew)): all those different objects gave me quite a good "experience", way more that if having performed my 55 jumps off a couple of objects. Just my 0.02€ Stay safe out there Blue Skies and Soft Walls BASE #689 - base_689AT_NO_123_SPAMyahoo.com

> Sorry pal, not trying to beat on you! No worries, mate!!!!!!! Stay safe out there Blue Skies and Soft Walls BASE #689 - base_689AT_NO_123_SPAMyahoo.com

> What you call sensitivity is really the resolution. Yes yes yes, you are right. I did not want to write down an essay on electronic measurements. > Now you have an altimeter showing the altitude typically +- the altitude resolution. Yes, I agree. > The accuracy is the maximum deviation between the true altitude and the altitude measured by your altimeter. Yes, I agree (it is more or less what I wrote...). > The accuracy is worse than the resolution. Yes, in the sense that accuracy is a greater number than resolution. > What is important for the user is the resolution (what is the smallest altitude change I can measure) Yes, I agree. But resolution is important only to a limited extent (=alti watch feels if you climb 1 m higher, but you are NOT sure to be at an actual "readout"+-1 m!!!!). > and the accuracy (How much can I trust the displayed altitude). Yes, I agree again. But my post was meant to alert our friends that an alti watch that has got a resolution of 1 m is NOT "precise" within 1 m, i.e.: an alti watch with 1 m resolution can be as accurate (=precise) as another alti watch whose resolution is 5 m. I.e. again: having a 1 m resolution alti watch does NOT mean that you are "precise" within 1 m. My actual experience with my 5 m resolution Suunto is that within 100 m of range my Advizor is accurate within +-5 m (same as resolution), having once (for example) read 80 m of height of a brdige (zeroed on top, went down the bridge and read -80m) that months later I measured with a laser rangefinder to be 85 m actual height. My message wanting to be: my friends skydivers/BASE jumper, be careful: an alti watch with 1 m resolution does NOT mean that you get readouts accurate within +- 1m!!!!!!!!!!! Reasonable accuracy for those sort of instrument is about 5 m!!!! please, don't come and tell me: "That object is 81 m high!!! I swear!!!". A counter proof showing the "5m accuracy" story can be the one of taking measurement with the "1 m resolution" wonder of a certain object on 10 different days, with zeroing just at the top of the object (or at the bottom) at the very beginning of each measurement. Just my 0.02€ Stay safe out there Blue Skies and Soft Walls BASE #689 - base_689AT_NO_123_SPAMyahoo.com

> no always that could kill you... I even have different ways to pack for even under 400ft (ultra low).. but in big ways yes OK. Do not take me too literally. By "try to pack always the same way" I mean: apart from the (natural) differences due to extra low SL-extra low freefall-low-subterminal-terminal jumps, pack always the same way in the sense to put ALWAYS the same quantity of bulk of fabric in the same place within the container Does it sound better written this way?!?!?!?!? Stay safe out there Blue Skies and Soft Walls BASE #689 - base_689AT_NO_123_SPAMyahoo.com

> To use the table you´ll need to know how much tention your rig needs to open(ie difference in pack jobs can give different results). Ah ah!!!!!! You got a real point with your remark indeed!!!!!! In fact, as soon as I had my Prism in hands, sooooo many years ago, I bought in a hardware shop a spring scale (whose cost was something like 5€) with a handle and a hook, and, after having created a loop (with a knot) in my bridle, off I went measuring opening forces of my container. Without the rig donned and with the rig donned (and leg/chest straps fastened). So, yes, it is really WORTH to measure the opening forces of your containers, under various conditions (rig "alone" on the ground/rig donned and straps fastened) and under different pack jobs, so to get a good number of values. And, after that, please, TRY TO PACK ALWAYS THE SAME WAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Stay safe out there Blue Skies and Soft Walls BASE #689 - base_689AT_NO_123_SPAMyahoo.com

> I'm having a little trouble understanding the organization of the spreadsheet, though. What do you mean? Each row contains all the parameters AT a certain delay, each column contains the information as per column heading: time, distance fallen, speed, acceleration, air pressure, drag force in N for a 48" PC, drag force in kg for a 48" PC, and so on. > Is there an easier way to look at it. or is there just that much info? I don't know about an "easier" way to look at it. Just read carefully the text above the table because there it is explained everything you need to know to read the table and to adapt the table to yourself (=to your exit weight and to your terminal velocity). Just follow the tips. Remember to change in cell C24 the "dimishing factor" from 1 to "something" else (=higher value). Leaving 1 gives you really theoretical values, just as if the PC were inifinitely rigid (=steel disk), perfect manufacture, no burble effects on the border of PC, whatever. These are issues that does NOT exist in real life. To take into account EASILY of these effects altogether, just put in C24 a value higher than 1. In MY personal table I put 1.5: it seems quite reasonable to match "reality". In fact, if you put 1.5 as "dimishing factor", after 1 s of freefall under a 48" PC the table says it pulls with 4.6 kg, that seems really reasonable. In fact, in reality, when using a 48" PC a throwing it after 1 s of freefall, it indeed opens the container and starts to extract the parachute (mine weighing about 4.2 kg): this is the reason that make me think 1.5 is quite an acceptable value. The above situation gives at 2 s a pull force of 17 kg. Really, really reasonable, provided that any force between 4.6 kg and 17 kg is capable (and responsible) to open container, to extract a 4.2 kg parachute and get it open at the 3rd s after exit. This matches perfectly with our experience. That's my justification that 1.5 as "dimishing factor" is a good and sound value. And, lastly, don't forget it is just a table: it gives you a good approximation of reality. In fact, the pulling force after 3 s of freefall of a NOT inflated PC is ZERO, not matter what the table says... Stay safe out there Blue Skies and Soft Walls BASE #689 - base_689AT_NO_123_SPAMyahoo.com

>...but for the sake of newbies I just thought maybe someone could make it a little more clear as to the correct way to do it... Listen to what Dexter says. If you are a newbie and are asking about throwing up PC, probably you are doing something "out of place" for you in that moment. To jump really low objects, as someone much more expert than me says, you have to pay you dues jumping quite a number of jumps off "not so low" objects. Believe me, the traditional "toss PC aside your body" works really well to jump low objects, low down to 65m-213ft/60m-197ft, that, for a relatively newbie, start to be quite an extreme jump, unnecessary for a newbie to jump in freefall. For a newbie, jumping a 65m-213ft/60m-197ft object is looking for trouble. For a newbie, jumping an object LOWER than 65m-213ft/60m-197ft is looking for BIG trouble. After several tens of jumps, possibly passing 50 or 100 BASE jumps, when practice, experience and knowledge will have accumulated on yourself, probably you will have witnessed personally someone who does the "PC throw up" technique. Only after that, you could be ready for the "throwing up" technique granted you are going to freefall a 48m-157ft object and granted you want to jump it in freefall so BAD (when going SL or DB or whatever else would be way more appropriate). Just my 0.02€ Stay safe out there Blue Skies and Soft Walls BASE #689 - base_689AT_NO_123_SPAMyahoo.com

> is it still jumped? Is it still jumped?!?!?!?!?!? I have the "BASE Climb" video. Perhaps you don't realize quite well the "situation" of that jump. They had to hire a whole alpine (high mountain) expedition to get on top of Trango tower, it's not a joke to climb to 5880m, left alone the fact that Trango is a difficult mountain to climb (difficult for expert mountaineers... ). It costed them quite a small fortune to get there, in terms of people, permits and equipment, left alone the fact that they did NOT know that there could be a real exit point once "on top over there". In fact, there was NO real exit point over there, and to do the exit, their alpine crew digged (litterally) a small platform in the snow/ice wall to allow them to put their feet to jump off. The small detail Glenn and Nick DID not consider was that at exit moment, they were wearing high mountain boots, sort of skiing boots, very rigid, very stiff up just below the knee, i.e. giving you very small sensitivity (if not zero...) at your ankles for the jump. Result: as soon as they exited, they went head down in an uncontrollable freefall only meters away from the wall. Add to this the fact that the air at 5880 m or so is much thinner than air at sea levels, yielding much more difficulty (and height and time!!!) to recover stability, which they never did. At a certain point, they someway somehow threw out their PC's and thanks to a perfect packing they parachutes opened well and they flew away down to the landing and they walked away with it. And you ask if it has ever been repeated? Do you reckon the amount of money (and risk...) involved in that sort of jump? Just give me the money (they had at the time) to put a suitable alpine expedition up (and few months to get trained to high altitude mountain climb) and I would go!!!!! Left alone the risks involved with the climb itself... in a way, the BASE jump was NOT the most dangerous issue of the whole adventure. Glen tried last year to jump another famous Hymalaian mountain (I don't remember which mountain) together with his wife (on purpose trained for this jump, trained from the BASE jump point of view, I mean...), but once close to the top, they had to cancel the mission because the two mountaineers that were supposed to take them onto the exit point, on the way up, experienced a snow/ice fall (I don't know the English term for this, when a huge piece of snow/ice falls off the side of a mountain and runs all the way down): they luckily survived but they had to discard their backpacks where they had the equipment necessary to get Glenn and wife onto exit point. Supposing Glenn and wife would have succeeded to do their BASE jump, it would have NOT been the most dangerous issue of the mission by far.......... Stay safe out there Blue Skies and Soft Walls BASE #689 - base_689AT_NO_123_SPAMyahoo.com

> I have a Silva Alta that is meant to be more accurate than a suunto (accurate to within 3ft - 1 m) >...whereas my older Metron (and I guess the Vectors) are accurate to 10 feet - 3 m Be careful not to confuse accuracy with sensitivity. According to Silva website, they try to "sell" accuracy for sensitivity. Accuracy is the capability (once the instrument is properly calibrated) of displaying a measurement that is close to "true" value, plus minus its "accuracy". Sensitivity is the capability of "feeling" (and displaying) a change in the magnitude of the variable under measurement: any variation of plus minus "sensitivity" will be displayed. I do the following example. The barometric altimeter built-in in my eTrex Vista GPS gives the following accuracy/sensitivity data. Accuracy: 3 m - 10 ft Sensitivity: 1 m - 3 ft The above means that, once properly and "exactly" calibrated, once at a certain altitude, your altimeter will display a change in the reading any time you move up or down by 1 m - 3 ft, but that is NOT the "absolute" value, your "actual" altitude is actually within your reading plus minus 3 m - 10 ft. Example: once properly calibrated, if at a certain altitude you have a reading of, let's say, 801 m, if you move higher of 1 m, for sure you are capable to read 802 m, but your "true" altitude is at 802 m ± 3 m, i.e., you are at an altitude comprised between 799 m and 805 m. And that difference between sensitivity and accuracy is NOT a fault of the sensor (even if it is desirable to have the best sensitive altitude sensor around) in itself but instead it is a limit of the kind of measurement. Barometric altimeters simply detect variation on atmosferic pressure: the variation of barometric pressure when you move higher of 1 m - 3 ft is such a small variation, just a "breeth", that you can get such a variation in air pressure either if you start running, or if there is a sudden (small) wind gust, or similar air variation. Of course better sensors and averaging algorithms can improve the accuracy of an altimeter, but there are physical limits to the accuracy of altitude measuremnent when a barometric sensor is involved. Do the following test. Let us suppose you have a barometric altimeter with 1 m - 3 ft sensitivity and a "declared" accuracy of 1 m - 3 ft as well and let us suppose you have a bridge that is 50 m (let's say measured with a laser rangefinder) high from road to field onto its bottom, and both road on top and bottom are easily reachable. Now go on the bottom and calibrate you altimeter to read 0 m, than hike on top and take a readout of your display (and write it down onto a sheet of paper): repeat this calibration and readout on top for 10 successive days. I bet that at the end of the 10 days experiment you are capable of reading: 51 m - 51 m - 51 m......... The reality suggests me that what you will read from your piece of paper will be something like: 48 m - 53 m - 50 m - 49 m - 47 m......... I have a Suunto Advisor (which has got the same altitude sensor as the Vector)(which has got an accuracy and sensitivity of 5 m - 15 ft): when I climb our A (whose height is 115 m laser measured) and I zero it at the bottom of climb, once on top I get "strange" readings, like 80 m or 90 m or 95 m or so. The strangeness here lies in the fact that on bottom of our A we (usually) get zero wind, at mid height we experience quite a strong wind and on top we experience a slightly lower wind: the change in air pressure due to those winds make go "crazy" my barometric altimeter, while I know for sure it being accurate within plus minus 5 m - 15 ft when measuring in "normal" conditions (no wind variations from bottom to top of other laser measured objects). Just my 0.02€ Stay safe out there Blue Skies and Soft Walls BASE #689 - base_689AT_NO_123_SPAMyahoo.com

> I used to have an XLspreadsheet I took from the > net on the drag of various PC sizes and air speeds > anyone recollect where this may have been from... About the end of 2002 I gave Mick my Excel table on Freefall and P.C. drag forces for publishing on the BASE Board for anyone to see/consult it. You can find it at http://www.basejumping.net/cms/deployment.shtml: the table is under the article "Freefall + P.C. drag force" and click on the "Download/View file" button to see it. Remember to read carefully the warnings/tips in my article, and moreover, remember it is NOT the truth but just a table, that is a good representation of reality provided any factor is very close to "perfection", but when something goes wrong it is and it remains a "table"... ...when a P.C. is NOT inflated, its pulling force is 0, no matter which the airspeed is Stay safe out there Blue Skies and Soft Walls BASE #689 - base_689AT_NO_123_SPAMyahoo.com

> What do you mean by “burn”? Space, my friend, don’t hurt my intelligence, please, don’t go too subtle here. Felix is a foreigner that shows up in foreign (for him) nations and foreign BASE sites and shows up with ground crew, TV crew, photographer, whatever. WE DO NOT LIKE THAT. Full stop. We do not show up in Austria jumping “sensitive” objects in day time. If you tell me: “#689, you know, we (myself, Felix, the rest of crew) get some money from Redbull, we still need to live somehow…”, it’s OK, I can understand, still I don’t like showing up with all that “advertisement”, but I can understand what money can do. But then, again, if you set up a very long discussion putting in background the story of money and trying to put a lot of words down to say that the object perhaps is not regularly jumped, TV is for entertainment, and all the rest of bs, please, it is an insult to my intelligence. Let’s answer point per point as follows. > a regularly jumped object Now, how regularly and how often the object is being jumped, sorry, it is NOT a Felix’s business. He is NOT a local. “Respect the local” rule. All this showing up with fanfare simply creates attention where it is not needed and when it is not necessary. Burning? Technically speaking, we would discuss for hours what “burning” means, for sure all this showing up makes the object WAY HOTTER. Clear enough? > Jumpers that can not jump it as before, i.e. new security measures as a direct result of the burner´s action(s). Ah, again, definitely it is hotter, police being smashed in the face (if it is the case, see after…), for sure will give a much more alert eye to the object. High or low profile. High Profile objects are normally non burnable as security or danger is very high. Ah, again too subtle to justify Felix’s actions. For me, high profile means an object that cannot be jumped in full daylight, and, moreover, evident difficulties arising from both exposure and difficulty in the “first part” climb. Ummmm….why is the identifier “Real” in “Real TV” used? As opposed to what? Fake TV. Space, DO NOT, please, INSULT ME AND MY INTELLIGENCE. “Real TV” is just the name of an Italian TV program that shows video shot by “amateurs” to millions of Italian people. Full stop. Then if people think it is fake or not is simply irrelevant, just because the site in question is very real. > Felix has spoken to me about the incident you speak of. There were no Pretending Police, Space, please, DO NOT INSULT ME AND MY INTELLIGENCE. I don’t believe you about “pretending police”. The gate is ALWAYS closed . Full stop. It can only be open for some “maintenance, but in this case “maintenance” people are inside and so you cannot do anything, they would all over the place. And you are coming to me telling me that Felix, coming from Austria that particular day, BY CHANCE found the gate open, he simply entered and climbed up?!?!?!?!?!?!? Do you think I am so stupid?!?!?!?!?!?!?!? And how did Felix manage to get his “not-so-fit-as-Felix” videographer (no offence here) up to the “first part” of climb WITHOUT a quite long ladder being brought inside the area? Do you think Italian people being all blind?!?!?!?!?!?!? But let’s consider the remote case in which he really did NOT get any permit and managed to enter the open gate: first, this event (of showing up from Austria and finding the gate open with NO people inside) has one probability out of one billion, and then, my dear, would it be the case out of a billion, would you jump it at 10 a.m.? Or 11 a.m. that could have been? How would you call to jump in full broad daylight?!?!?!?!? Àsshòlish, I would say. Please, Felix, stay in your country. Thanks. It is simply not possible > My answer is that this was “blatantly allowing publicizing of the jumping of an object”. If this is a crime, then Felix must pay Again, do not insult me. But which crime are you talking about?!?!?!?!?!? There is nothing to “pay”, there is no crime committed, simply “burning” (sorry if I don’t spend half an hour to define what burning EXACTLY means…) an object. He was busted and used his last publicized jump as a “get out of jail free” card. Do you think that in our country, with all the number of policemen invoilved there, a “get out of jail free card” can be spent someway somehow?!?!?!?!? What do you think Italy is? How is Felix to jump within the community if no one will cooperate with him? NEVER. Never in a millions years. As long as Felix will show up with TV crew, photographers, whatever, jumping in broad daylight object that for “high profile” reasons (sorry, again, if I don’t spend half an hour to define in a better way what “high profile” means…), he will never have the cooperation, neither of us poor Italian BASE chaps nor the ones of any other nation. He gets the money (I am NOT jealous, I have my own life of which I am quite satisfied) and while doing so (jumping daylight, ground and TV crew, bla bla bla…) he “burns” objects, and we should cooperate?!?!?!?!? Do you think we are stupid?!?!?!?!?!? For us poor folks down here BASE is a game, is a pastime, is a hobby, is a very important part of our life, a way of living (even if we do not make a living out of it), is a way of thinking, is an enormous way to express our freedom to jump an object, it is right of our to jump OUR objects and to keep discreet the BASE jumping activity, is a way to give and share happiness to out foreign brothers and sisters (whom we share the happiness, simply wanting back their “respect” and to “use” our objects EXACTLY how we “use” them) and then Mr. Felix-the-skygod-I-get-pay-to-jump-and-burn-your-objects” shows up and burns out object? Please, Felix, stay in Austria. Do jump and do burn whatever you like. In your homecountry, thanks. Each to his own. Thanks. Closing this post, I say again: if you tell me: “#689, you know, we (myself, Felix, the rest of crew) get some money from Redbull, we still need to live somehow…”, it’s OK, I can understand, still I don’t like showing up with all that “advertisement”, but I can understand what money can do. Don’t try to put down tons of words trying to stir the situation up, talking about frequency of jumps off a certain site and similar bs. Simply be honest and talk about money. With no offence on you, because I think you are a great chap and a great BASE jump instructor (possibly one of the best in the world). And to close this post really down, we are NOT jealous of Felix and honestly we all think that Felix is a good BASE jumper indeed. Simply we want to keep our objects as they are. With no “burning” and not TV crew. Thanks See you soon at our terminal wall. Stay safe out there Blue Skies and Soft Walls BASE #689 - base_689AT_NO_123_SPAMyahoo.com

> The trick is convincing the general public to pay for the tower "general public" = too few people... (see after...) > You would not believe the numbers of first-skydive students who tell me that they want to take up BASE jumping "1st-sd-BASE-wannabe" = still too few to even think about sharing building and running and maintenance costs... > The trick is develop an idiot-proof parachute that will allow them to survive a single jump... So far away from reality... If such a parachute existed, we (=world BASE jumpers) would use it for ANY jump!!!!! > then charge their friends and relatives an arm and a leg to watch, double if they want to take pictures Still too few for sharing costs of tower/whatever like... > Yes, I know this concept runs counter to BASE philosophy, but it is the only way I can see to convince jumpers to pay for a tower Theoretical. Theoretically it COULD work, in the real world: never in a million years. Building up a tower is tremendously costly, left alone the "cost-of-purchase-the-field-where-tower-is-to-be-manufactured" or even the "rent-the field-where-tower-is-to-be-manufactured"... Left alone all the liability issues anything could go wrong... Left alone all security means that must be put in force to avoid any BASE-wannabe climb it night time in a self-taught BASE jumping fashion ("hey, mate, you saw the tower? Yes? What about this night..."), left alone BASE jumpers in activity which are NOT going to pay to jump it (but they are going to jump it anyway ) Just my 0.02€ Stay safe out there Blue Skies and Soft Walls BASE #689 - base_689AT_NO_123_SPAMyahoo.com

> Felix has not burned anything for some years What what what what what?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!? > Maybe you could post the date of his last burn... Perhaps Kinaa is not capable to tell you the date, but I can. The exact date I cannot tell, but for sure it is about June/July/August 2003, when he recently BURNED an object (a high profile one) for sure It was on Italian Real TV on air around beginning of August 2003, when he jumped the very high profile tower in South Italy (me and you know what I am talking about), PRETENDING he found the gates open ("Oh, policeman, I did not know it was not legal to climb, we found the gates open..."(voice of Felix dubbed on TV)), he pretended to climb over the "first part" only with a rope (well, and how his "not-incredibly-fit" (no offence intended) photographer/videographer managed to climb up as well? because the photographer climbed up to film his exit, this is for sure!) and after the jump:"Oh, policeman, where do I have to sign? Here? Do I have to put my name or do you want an autograph?", PRETENDING the action was illegal, PRETENDING policemen found him by chance, not to mention that when he jumped, from the "light" on video, it looks like it were noon or anyway in the middle of the day... Such a high profile object put on TV? Under the eyes of millions of Italian people? How do you call this if not "blatantly burning objects"? When I will se you in person, #283, possibly when you come to visit our terminal wall, I will tell you what we think about Felix, the "skygod" (as he defined himself after the landing after the wingsuit flight on the beach "on the other part", wingsuit jump (I guess) made in the days of his unhappy exploit on OUR tower... "Hey ladies, here the real man has just landed", forget that if it were not for the help of his right hand pushing against ground, he would have fallen down on his "real man" landing...). We do our things quite quietly, the normal population hardly knows about our existence, until Felix shows up with his Red Bull team and his photographers and his TV crew and puts on TV high profile objects being jumped!!! Thanks so much, Felix!!!!! I understand he is sponsored and the büllshit that comes out his mouth is to make his sponsor happy, fine with that (even if PDG was a much nicer and much more serious guy), but please, if he wants to get videos of his jumps with TV crew and show it to half world, please, stay in Austria. Thanks!!!! We don't need any skygod here in Italy, and moreover, we don't need any burning of our objects, granted they are NOT so many... Thanks again for your understanding!!!!! Stay safe out there Blue Skies and Soft Walls BASE #689 - base_689AT_NO_123_SPAMyahoo.com

> (...in OZ...) there is a tower being built (well more of a building) that will be a little over 1KM High or 3000 feet We all know quite well since few months that this tower is under construction... Apart form the fact that it is located just in the other part of the world with respect where I live (Europe), so it is of relevant interest to me and to other European/Americans/whatever as an object to be jumped "any day", but can you only imagine, granted the value and strategic value of that solar tower, and how precious the sun panel that cover all the bottom (=landing area) are, how difficult (=impossible) is to jump that tower?!?!?!? I think that as soon as you approach the area, there will be someone that shoots in your back as soon as you show up (by far). A remote possibility to jump it would be when under construction, but apparently they are assembling the huge underneath area ALREADY with the (very precious) solar panels, so, I think, someway somewhow they would place in force an outstanding service of patrol, guarding the structure from ANYBODY. Just my 0.02€ Moreover, the theory is that, YES, it COULD be possible to manufature a "fixed structure" suitable for BASE jump, but in PRACTICE it is simply impossible to do it in the sense that the accessibility to people (=BASE jumpers: first there are "few" and second if they have to pay to jump this "man-made-BASE-wonder-object", they would stick to their usual local objects, that costs 0 (zero)...) and the economic outcome would be WAYYYYYY neglectable with respect to money spent to build it and to manage it, left alone ALL the liability issues regarding possible accidents/fatalities/whatever. For me: discussion about building up from scratch an object suitable for BASE jump = game for the mind and nothing more Another time: just my very personal 0.02€ Stay safe out there Blue Skies and Soft Walls BASE #689 - base_689AT_NO_123_SPAMyahoo.com

> ...but the multi bridle grabbed me like an octopus. Yes, I can imagine. > Lisa will be throwing away the multi, and replacing with a standard bridle. Well, this is a very personal opinion and moreover biased on what happened, basically connected to the type of jump (multi way). In my 100+ jumps with Multi I never experienced ANY sort of problem connected with Multi, in fact, I would say that Multi helps so much in having cleaner deployments, slider off (including SL) and slider up. Of course, if you do a particular/stange sort of jump (like a multi way), it is true that Multi does create a potential problem for entanglement if "anything" is envisaged to come in closeness with top surface of parachute: in fact, in this case it would be higly advisable to remove Multi. But it seems unfair passing from an (entanglement) problem experienced in a particular jump to remove Multi for ALL successive jumps. I think it is not wise to get rid of a component, useful in 100% of your jumps, because in 1% of your jumps it could become a problem for entanglement. Just because the 1% of "strange" jumps is known in advance what sort of "strangeness" it is going to be, it would be way more "right" to remove Multi, or any other standard/non-standard component, just for that particular jump, and re-install it for all the other "routine" jumps. Just my 0.02€ Stay safe out there Blue Skies and Soft Walls BASE #689 - base_689AT_NO_123_SPAMyahoo.com

> But I guess you also had 200+ jumps from a plane at one time... Don't take it for granted, my friend... For example, myself, when I did leap off my first fixed object (late 2000) I had jumped 128 times off an airplane and presently I jumped off a plane about 170 times, and at a rate of 15 jumps-off-plane per year (just to keep my skydiving licence... ), it will take me a while to reach 200 jumps off a plane... We BASE jumpers are quite different from each other, each of us following a different learning/training path Stay safe out there Blue Skies and Soft Walls BASE #689 - base_689AT_NO_123_SPAMyahoo.com

D-dog, I feel so sorry for Dwain, for your loss, for our loss. Such an outstanding chap has just left us, and this is the most terrible thing. All the rest, if the event was his fault, if the fault was on organizer, if fault was on who didn't clear people off the bridge, now, it is not important at all. The most important and most terrible thing is that we are left with only the memories of Dwain and what he did, since we have no more future about him... My only regret is to have NOT been able to meet personally Dwain and jump with him, we came close few times, he wrote me: "#689, I am going to jump your terminal wall this weekend" at very last minute, and once for a reason, and later for another reason, we have never been able to hook up personally. But from all the things I have read about him, the e-mail's we have exchanged, articles and posts by him, ALL aimed to improve safety of worldwide jumpers, always keen on sharing his WIDE knowledge about gear and techniques, I came to know him a bit more and realize he was such an outstanding chap, in ALL senses, not only as a BASE jumper.

> Know your limits, jump with a plan, use the best gear and configuration sum1sneaky, I am with on all your points Stay safe out there Blue Skies and Soft Walls BASE #689 - base_689AT_NO_123_SPAMyahoo.com

> but I'll do so as soon as I have the necessary equipment (perhaps the week after next) available

> Open or dynamic corners on a Velcro rig is a very bad idea. Yes, I agree with you. I read all your explanation and I perfectly agree with you. When I wrote "it seems to work properly only either on velcro rigs or on 2 pin rigs" I wrote that ONLY in terms of doability, in the sense that wrap around corners together with dynamic corners COULD be easily done on a Velcro rig. I understand, after your explanation, that wrap around corners together with dynamic corners are NOT a good idea at all on Velcro rigs. In fact, I was thinking about doing dynamic corners mod on my Prism, but my friend Tom refuses firmly either to post or to send me any picture of dynamic corners mod he did on his Prism... Stay safe out there Blue Skies and Soft Walls BASE #689 - base_689AT_NO_123_SPAMyahoo.com

> how do experienced base-jumpers know when to pull? We (the Italian BASE community) do NOT count to pull. When we jump for the first time our terminal wall, we are taught the maximum number of seconds "allowed", usually we pull a little bit earlier . Then, when you have more experience (=more jumps off that particular wall), you start to look exactly where you are, your position with respect to talus, your position with respect to right "pillar", your position with respect to left "sloping talus", whatever. The more jumps we do off a certain terminal wall, the later we can pull because we have become acquainted with "sorrounding rocks" and we know where we are and so we now when it is time to pull Same thing when we jump for first time our subterminal wall: this subterminal wall has got a ledge/talus protruding few tens of meters with respect to vertical of exit point exactly at midheight. We are taught to start tracking as soon as possible and to have a look at the talus: if, along our tracking, we see that we are clearing it, well, we know we can pass it and pull after (=at same lavel as/below) the talus, otherwise (=if we see our track is NOT so effective) we'd better to pull BEFORE the talus (=pull before/within 5 s). The first times, yes, it is quite scary to have to take the decision to pull while on track, but, again, after few jumps, you get acquainted with your position "on the mountain" and so the environment become more friendly and it becomes easier to take the decision of pulling. In our experience, we have witnessed many very experienced foreign jumpers, when they come to jump our terminal wall for the very first time, they do NOT take the same delay we take, but they pull quite earlier than us, because they are not yet acquainted with "where to pull at latest". After few jumps, they are capable of pulling where we pull. Of course, there are foreign jumpers that the very first time they jump and pull after 12 s, but they are an exception. The norm for BASE jumping walls (terminal and subterminal), and any other "high" object, for the "normal" BASE jumper, including ourselves

Please, Tom, please please please... ...few pictures of dynamic corners mod on your Prism... Please, Tom, please please please... Thanks Stay safe out there Blue Skies and Soft Walls BASE #689 - base_689AT_NO_123_SPAMyahoo.com