kudos to the hanwags

[sum1sneaky 0]

conditions seemed ideal. wind speed, direction, and a nice moon all spelled get my kit and get the hell up a tower! good direction for my neighborhood tower so i grab gc and head.

driving out there, i can’t see a bit of the nice moon we’re supposed to have tonight. maybe it will rise while i climb, or maybe it won’t matter - so onward i go.

sneaking up to the fence, i notice some new stuff hanging around the base of the gem... i climb into their little compound and survey the situation. looks like someone’s been here recently and i figure they’re just doing maintenance or adding a dish again or something (that’s the only problem here – they keep bolting more and more crap onto it). it’s really, really, dark and hard to even see my arms – so i think twice about the little maneuver i’m up to. looking around and realizing the winds are ideal, i decide to climb and see how it looks from above.

once above, i find a new stinger right below where i wanted to jump – plan modification time. i can hardly see the ground, so it would be nice to have plenty of altitude to setup and that would also provide a chance at flying around the guys and landing near the gc’s car headlights – but this friggin stinger is now blocking that plan. i could go way higher and free fall it, or i could just static line from where the stinger starts and land in the pitch dark. it’s heating up hanging out by this transmitter so i decide to get after it and go SL from 220’.

the winds are cranking between the wires, perfect direction but a bit heavy. as i wait for my ride to light up a spot on the road nearby so i have a alti reference, i tie off my pc with breakcord and start wondering if when i let it inflate if it will be pulling close to 80lbs! i decide to just keep it collapsed until i’m outside with it between my feet, then i’d be ready and i’ve got enough alti for a free fall with this pc – i’d just have to downwind the landing. so my ride pulls up and i climb out and release my bridle, it immediately wraps itself around my leg and the pc slips out and inflates, whipping around and going crazy. i untwist my leg, climb another 6’ up and jump my arse out of there.

it’s a nice launch and on opening i see the canopy is heading right @ 30 degrees – do to my proximity to the wire and nerves, i slightly overamp or correct too soon with a riser. so this slightly stalls my opening and i see tower flying by behind my feet – i get the toggles, let it fly for 1 second – now i’m clear pretty far with the winds – look down for my lz and can’t see shit. so i flat turn while focusing on the car’s headlights and i get about 100 degrees closer to being into the wind. however, there’s not with enough altitude to complete the turn, so i keep turning slowly from half brakes, looking down now for the flare but can’t see shit. I flare just from instinct but that’s a little too high, ooooooooo time to plf! sinking straight in, a bit crosswind and bingo, i feel the ground hitting me so i collapse like a rag doll as i notice my right foot is a lot deeper than the left and entering a friggin ankle eating gopher hole! the landing wasn’t too bad, but it was hard and i felt it in my back. my ankle was fine though! so this is why i’m really glad i wore the hanwags tonight!

if you’re new to base and think your tennies will work – think twice, buy some ankle gear – some day, you may wind up really happy like me!

[BASE813 0]

aint that the truth............

if your jumping without any boots that give ankle protection, then I would think again. Recently my boots although did not stop me busting myself, it stopped my leg coming through the side of my foot and giving me a compound fracture........... not nice seeing your bone pushing outward on the side of your foot.......... but better than seeing the actual bone itself!

glad all was cool mate - that could have "turned" nasty............

[Faber 0]

Quote

not nice seeing your bone pushing outward on the side of your foot.......... but better than seeing the actual bone itself!

huh? sure its nice to look at your bone,that way you can see if its a clean break or if it is complicated

just rember to replace it after you had a good look at it

Stay safe
Stefan Faber

[donkeyboy 0]

Sum1 , glad you had a safe jump. Hanwags rock the house. They are a bit pricey , but nothing compared to a consult and xray. I just got back from my FJC with JU. While scoping the LZ at TF, I asked if there are any gopher holes? They all laughed at me.

[ojf1982 0]

Quote

They all laughed at me.

We're still laughing at you. Just kidding, Mike have you made any jumps since you got back from ID?

The edge ... there is no honest way to explain it because the only people who know where it is are those that have gone over - Hunter S. Thompson

[KMonster 0]

Sum1,

I was contemplating whether or not to purchase these pricey HanWags (or as we call them, the "Woo Tang" boots) when I read your post and called Jimmy to place my order. All I've heard is awesome things about them and how worth it they are. Thanks for the post.

Katie.

[JohnnyUtah 0]

Just got my new Hanwags delivered to my door and Im wearing them right now as a matter of fact.
Man are they sweet!
This will make my Norway adventure all that much better.

Thanks Jimmy !!!!!!!

Have Fun, Don't Die!
Johnny Utah
My Website
email:johnny@johnnyutah.com

[peterk 0]

I can always think of things to buy other than boots for $240, but I've never regretted buying my HanWags at the Turkey Boogie.

I can't imagine jumping without them, and every time I land, I think about how little I need to hurt my ankle, putting myself out of BASE for months, and forever having a weak ankle.

---------------
Peter
BASE - The Ultimate Victimless Crime

[hookitt 1]

Good one sum1! What a grand investment huh?

250 bucks is cheap compared to 20 grand for new titanium and screws. The boots are light, have a nice curved sole to make walking and climb easy. They are water proof up past the foot so that's a nice touch as well.

Mine have saved my ankles at least once. They grip the sandstone in Moab extremely well. Also the stiff sole keeps the bottom of your feet from bruising when climbing 1700 foot ladders.

If you don't own a pair already, do yourself a favor and just get some.

My grammar sometimes resembles that of magnetic refrigerator poetry... Ghetto

[NathanL100 0]

How are all you freaks tracking with these boots? I've got a pair and love them, but I can't seem to get my track dialed in with them since I can't get my toes pointed. My buddy points his toes outward to his sides to track, but that seems a little goofy any ideas??

Base # 942
The race is long and in the end, its only with yourself.

[peterk 0]

Kind of along these tracking lines, has anyone tried the smoking pants or the Birdman BASE pants?

---------------
Peter
BASE - The Ultimate Victimless Crime

[hookitt 1]

Just point your toes and they'll get pointy enough. I can track just fine wearing mine.

Go skydiving and practice

My grammar sometimes resembles that of magnetic refrigerator poetry... Ghetto

[NathanL100 0]

I made a pair of the smoking pants and they made my track better. I was able to out distance someone with the birdman track pantz, but the only problem is that they made me chip like crazy. I think that the chipping came from the pants inflating and deflating rapidly, but the jury is still out. I'm in the process of designing another pair, but I'm having problems implamenting my design on the sewing machine. For now I'm going to stay with my freefly pants b/c I have a really good track with them.

Base # 942
The race is long and in the end, its only with yourself.

[hookitt 1]

Hey Nathan, when you get back from Norway, maybe I can help out with the sewing part. Let me know.

My grammar sometimes resembles that of magnetic refrigerator poetry... Ghetto

[KMonster 0]

Yo Johnny!

Mine were delivered today, I was sporting em around the house for awhile. I'm glad I'm not the only one who does that. I can hardly wait to brake them in tonight...

Katie.

[mdbase 0]

Any recommendations on where to get these for a good price? uhhh.....jimmy.....turkey boogie.....nevermind.......I guess I'll call to order


edited yet again due to stupidity

-Bryan

I love base like a fat kid loves cake

[Spiderbaby 0]

Vertigo (435)259-1085

"It takes a big man to cry, it takes an even bigger man to make that big man cry"

[ultraviolet 0]

You can custom the fit on your Hanwags with a pair of insoles from you local climbing / hiking store. I use Superfeet insoles and they add a little extra cushioning as well , for those um hard landings.

[NathanL100 0]

That'd be great I'll let you know. I've got a pretty good idea, but my sewing skills leave much to be desired. I can sew a parachute patch well enough, but when it comes to weird stuff that I think up I get kind of lost.

Base # 942
The race is long and in the end, its only with yourself.

[Zennie 0]

HanWag's are the bomb! I've had mine pretty much since day 1 and used them on pretty much every jump.

Like others said, they're extremely lightweight, have great ankle support, have NO DEATH HOOKS, and are waterproof. Well... one of mine isn't waterproof anymore after it got torn open by some razor wire.

Never had a problem tracking with them.

We just got a new sewing machine and I'm working with ramon on some tracking pants ideas as well. Since I'm fond of camo, I think my first project will be modifying some army fatigues to be tracking pants.

- Z
"Always be yourself... unless you suck." - Joss Whedon

[cpoxon 0]

Quote

My buddy points his toes outward to his sides to track, but that seems a little goofy any ideas??

The "penguin track" is cool; much more surface area than pointing the toes!

Skydiving Fatalities - Cease not to learn 'til thou cease to live

[hookitt 1]

Super early saturday morning, I found myself tracking away from a 2000 foot "A" and the person I did a 2 way with (my 2 way partner did arials so I had the initial advantage). I thought to myself, "My toes are pointed and these Hanwags aren't hindering the track at all"!!!

Up until yesterday moring, I'd never thought about a silly thread during freefall. hehe...

I have to disagree that the penguin track offers any benefit unless you just don't point the toes at all. They flatten out enough just by pointing. Also the legs are strong in the usual position so throwing down a good track position is easier.

After much tracking practice out of an airplane, including a few competitions, I've surmised* that tracking is all about proper body position. Toes sideways and toes forward doesn't make much difference if you have a weak track to begin with. Just point em, flatten out, push down and go!

The jump was stellar by the way. Nice soft on heading opening on my Ace 260. (i will roll the nose much less from this day onward.

Lesson learned.
* If puking or nearly puking is your goal, I highly suggest waking up at 2:30 am after only a couple hours sleep, slamming a double shot and a power bar then climb a 1700 foot ladder as fast as you can.
---- I was in the nearly category----

----------
*sur·mise ( P ) Pronunciation Key (sr-mz)
v. sur·mised, sur·mis·ing, sur·mis·es
v. tr. - To infer (something) without sufficiently conclusive evidence.
v. intr. - To make a guess or conjecture.
n. - An idea or opinion based on insufficiently conclusive evidence; a conjecture.

My grammar sometimes resembles that of magnetic refrigerator poetry... Ghetto