skykittykat

My heart goes out to the family and friends of those that died in the Cessna crash in Australia. Liz

I also add my congrats and also had the pleasure of flying with Eric on the formation load yesterday. Hopefully his wrist hasn't got any major bruising on it from my hellish grip (I wasn't letting go whatever!!!). Liz

I was involved in a discutssion today about the validity of the Incidents thead, which has basically become a "Fatality" thread. There are pros and cons for such a thread. When a fatality happens, those posts that say "I know who died" without any information as to how the fatality happened only panic people hoping that the person/people they know skydiving there is not that person who died... Instead of posting "I know who died" and not stating the cause of the death is a little attention seeking. In reply, I said to the person I was having the discussion with, that the Incidents Thread, even though it is more and more about fatalities, showed that in this day and age, people are losing their lives from their poor judgement. Why, in the year 2005 (2006 in the UK, Ausl, NZ when I posted this!!!), are more people being killed under perfectly landable canopies??? I personally think that the Incidents Forum is a great place for people to learn. I do, however, have little patiiance for those threads that discuss a fatility from a low turn. We all konw that a low turn can potentially kill you. Discussing it teaches nothuing rather than turning too low can kill.... Liz

Ok, let me take away the Europeans!!!! Proximity. In the sky there are no walls/net to reference off. In a tunnel there are and in the tunnel it shows how little distance you have to travel to do to make a block the most efficient. The same concept can be used for freeflying, but as I haven't done any freeflying for 2 years, I could not comment. Off topic a little bit, the Airkix tunnel has been the most succesful tunnel in it's opening month than any other tunnel in the world so far. Congrats to all involved. Liz

There's that ol' saying - you can take a girl out of ... but not the ... out of the girl You know there are just some Americanisms I cannot say, like a fanny bag. We from across the pond call it a bum bag... Suspenders are for holding up stockings and not trousers, which you Yanks call pants, which we know them as what you would call panties!!! I'm sure y'all get the drift Liz

Been a bit slack in reading the tunnel forum, hence my "outdated" post US teams, I think, will not come to the UK for tunnel training in a 16footer tunnel (or any tunnel for that matter) because the cost is so prohibitive. Tunnel time in the UK is costing more than in the US, plus the exchange rate is not beneficial to Americans, especially when they have to pay for accomm, food, travel, etc in the UK with the US dollar. Please do not think that I am attacking any tunnel in the UK, coz I am not, but there are 2 reasons why Americans would not travel to the UK to train (or even Europeans): 1. Cost and value, especially for coaching. 3 hours of tunnel time in Eloy with 3 flyers and an Airspeed coach will cost $1,000 per person, plus you can skydive before/after the tunnel. 2. Size - 12 foot is not really big enough and 16 ft is too big. Let me explain... A lot of the moves you do in, for example, 4-way are actually quite small - even the blocks. A 12 footer ususally hoses the tail when doing 4-way - unless you are top world class level. A 14/16 footer allows more room for error and does not hose anyone, however, for accuarate flying of, especially, vertical blocks, a 16 footer allows more space than is what is really necessary when flying a block. Eg, Stardian - you move forward, turn and adjust levels. In a 12/14 footer, that move is more pronounced otherwise you will hit a wall! With that extra space, it is not that efficiant. I hope that all makes sense, if not, please disregard Either way, the UK is very lucky to have 2 tunnels and it will transform UK skydiving for the better (I hope!) Liz

Please, please, anyone coming to Eloy in the next day or so - bring bungees.... Square 2 are out, the packers are running low and everyone else only seems to carry what they think they will need (which is not a whole heap at all). Bungees are more valuable than gold at the moment here! Apart from the bungee prob, the boogie is rocking. Tonight, from a RW point of view, we did formation load and it went sweet. Most people got on and when they did, there was no movement or waves throught it - that is pretty damn good for a boogie formation skydive! Apparently the Freefly loads have been going really well also. Liz

After reading all the posts and also posting my 2 cents worth, there is no "official" outcome of this incident. Shayna, you say this is your one and only post on what happened, but there are many questions unanswered and you are the only person that can answer them. Considering that this is a skydiving forum and ALL skydivers LEARN from other's mistakes, then: Rather than court the media, please spend your time telling the community here what happened and answsering their questions - the skydivers here are going to benefit more from this than the international media. Also, you could probably learn a thing or two as well. If some lost teeth are the biggest of your worries after your lucky escape from death, well I salute you. I know many more skydivers who have had accidents and were not so lucky to have had the lasting effect of not having a full mouth of teeth - they are in wheelchairs, have mobility problems, can't jump again although they wish they could, and the list goes on. Not one of them has sought out media coverage to get help. Please do not think that I am attacking you, but if you post here and court the media, you are answerable to the community. Liz

Same here, although I am here from now all the way thru the boogie. Liz

There are a few unanswered questions here.... Why did you feel the need to speak to someone at PD about the canopy you were jumping/going to jump rather than to your instructors? Did you not trust your instructors? If not, why did you continue to jump with them? If you were jumping a Sabre2 190 then the recommended guidelines stated that this canopy at your wingloading has been successfully been used for students, but by this footnote, is not endorsed per se by PD, so they are not saying that they recommend it, but that they know it has been jumped within a student programme succesfully.... The Spectre 190 is NOT recommended for students. If you were jumping another PD canopy, then it would not have been recommended for students at all. You say you were wearing a PD 170 reserve - there is no PD Reserve of 170 - a 176 is the closest. If you were jumping a PD reserve 176, then that was totally viable for student use with your wingloading. The question I have is, what canopy were you flying before the jump of your incident... Was it the same canopy that you had been jumping for your previous AFF jumps? Same type of canopy? Same wingloading? If you were jumping a different canopy, then any opening characteristics are different/strange. If there are a few discrepancies in the technical stuff, I apologise - please correct. Liz

The Commonwealth thing is: F*** No. Liz

Sweet "Hell No" - that's spooky - I posted after I read Benforde's post and before your's was posted. Liz

Driving - hell no, I'm picking him up!!!! Will be looking out for the guy in the singlet and blue shorts Liz

Xmas Day is supposed to be SUNNY and 77 degrees F. It had better be as my friends are bbq'ing for Xmas lunch (no they are not Aussies). Mornings are still cold so 8am take off could be a bit enthusiastic for those of us that don't "do" the cold.... Liz

Ok, I just assumed you couldn't as the last time I updated my waiver, etc, earlier this year, they were chasing me up for my medical insurance details and I didn't have them on me, although I was insured. Also, a friend of mine just returned here and he had to get medical insurance before he could jump. Apologies for getting the regs wrong, but either way, jumping without adequate medical insurance is just plain stupid as shit can happen. That is a personal choice though and is not an attack on anyone - just my opinion Liz

Sorry, MakeitHappen, but I find it a little offensive that you have named specific people for being, in your opinion, "hyprocritical". Lesley worked her ass off for JFTC and is a very well respected member of the skydiving community and has achieved many records raising money for charity. Thank you. Everyone one involved was there to raise money for charity, set a world record and promote skydiving, which was achieved. Unfortunately, the world of media favours the more dramatic out there. Regardless of Shayna's post here, the skydiving community and the sport itself would benefit from more positive stories than the "horror" ones and it is our responsibility to make that happen. Many people have been seriously hurt skydiving, but very few court the media. As per a previous post about insurance/ World Champs, etc - you can't jump at Eloy without medical insurance and seeing as Eloy hosted the World Cup earlier this year... My 2 cents worth and off to read the rest of the posts! Liz

They are pretty good at getting themselves known - generally introducing themselves to people and asking if they wanna go fly. Liz

I agree. Oddyssey did a little more training in the tunnel and in the air after Nationals in the lead up to the World Cup. On training days, they did some 4-way training in the air and in the tunnel when 8-way training was done and then did a little bit more training after that, but not a whole heap. As a 4-way, they totally clicked on the day(s)! Liz

I hate eggs!!!! B & H Special Filter and you can only get them in UK Duty Free. Thanks again and have a great flight over. Liz

Awesome, now I know who to look for to get my fags! If poss, could you please fit in a jar of Alta Rica instant coffee in your luggage???? I was drinking hard last night and slept in this morning nearly missing my flight, so didn't manage to buy Alta Rica. I just got back tonight and even though the nights are not as cold as London is during the day, it is still cold. Stock up on Marks and Spencer thermals - remember layering is the key!!! If camping does get too cold for you, I do have a sofa bed available. Liz

I could be wrong, but I think Natasha said that Fire only did about 4-5 hours of tunnel time before Nationls. I know that they did not do too much tunnel time, spending more time skydiving. They still kicked ass at Nationals, so if the outcome at next year's Nationals is dependant on which team has the most tunnel training, then that is wide of the mark..... Tunnel training is not the same as actualluy jumping from a plane or dealing with the mental stress of a competition and jumping out. Please do not mis-understand me as I love the tunnel and how flying in it has honed my skydiving skills.

Same here. Maybe Lesley could take on the mantle of organising it, although I think Brit Chicks are set to do another record in 2006. Liz

I take it you won't be wanting to come round for dinner one night then as I am not part of the wingsuit group Liz

Got one of two goals done this year: getting an invite on and being a part of the Women's World Record. The other goal is being passed onto next year. It's a biggie, so I may make it into a 3 year one! Liz

A friend of mine is planning on doing a tandem (with 10 other friends) for her 21st b-day next year. Where is the best dz in Italy for her to go to. There's no preference to location, although a nice scenic one would be better! Liz