wilmshurst

It's always good to agree on one person being the base - especially if you make an unlinked exit. In other words, one person just falls stable and lets the other person come to them. Otherwise, you can both spend the whole jump adjusting fall rates in the hope of meeting in the middle. The only thing worse than a cold toilet seat is a warm toilet seat.

"It's another attempt at scare mongering in the style of the old "duck and cover" advice after WWII." I assume that this is referring to the public information campaign during the cold war that featured a turtle in the ads. If so, "after WWII" is a little inaccurate, and rather than an attempt to scare monger, this campaign - which suggested that ducking down and and covering oneself would offer protection from a nuclear blast - was an attempt by the government of the time to calm the public (that is, to assure them that there was something that they could do to protect themselves from a nuclear attack *sic*). The only thing worse than a cold toilet seat is a warm toilet seat.

I read in Time that given the reduction in passenger numbers and increase in oil prices, it has been estimated that half of the major US airlines would be bankrupt in one year if there was another gulf war. Also, the US only paid for a fraction of the cost of the last Gulf War (I think the figure was 10%). I believe that other countries pretty much ended up paying the US to fight. It would seem that things may be different this time. What's the deal?? Does Bush have brass balls or is he two ants short of a picnic? The US economy is already struggling. What happens when the body bags start coming home and the economy turns to custard. Why is the US so very keen to fight??? The only thing worse than a cold toilet seat is a warm toilet seat. The only thing worse than a cold toilet seat is a warm toilet seat.

The only thing worse than a cold toilet seat is a warm toilet seat.

Not impressed by the first one. It would appear as if a car with its brake lights on has just moved out of the frame and is illuminating the car exhaust and smoke from the lady's mouth. Also what appears to be at least one double exposure shot among the others pics. The only thing worse than a cold toilet seat is a warm toilet seat.

Should you take into account whether the behaviour represents a risk to others? If, for example, a person was at risk of bouncing due to consistently going low, then the behaviour may really only pose a risk to that person. The DZ management may well be more than a little concerned about the negative publicity from a fatality, and fellow jumpers could remind the individual involved of such a possible implication and that there may be individuals who care for them and would rather that they continued breathing, but apart from that... Is skydiving about personal responsibility and freedom, or should skydiving be like the 'real world', where others determine what is good and bad for us?? Just playing Devil's advocate. The only thing worse than a cold toilet seat is a warm toilet seat.

OK - am I coming out as a BASE wuffo?...what for you jump off of fixed objects? Maybe motivations for participation isn't a hot topic for BASE jumpers. However, I was more interested in the comments made on 'risk free' BASE jumping and BASE jumpers as "rebels" than in specifically asking why people BASE jump in the first place. Would people still participate if BASE jumping was risk free and/or considered a more mainstream activity? - that is, if BASE jumping developed a similar status in society as golf. The only thing worse than a cold toilet seat is a warm toilet seat.

I cannot comment on The Search specifically, but I have done a number of Sky U jumps and I found the experience to be most excellent. You jump one-on-one with your coach and the jumps are tailored to your skill level, strengths and weaknesses, and speed of progression. All basic RW skills are covered - including different exits and tracking - in a simple and straightforward manner that really aids understanding and the learning process. After returning to my home DZ - I did do an Airspeed tunnel camp as well - I was able to hold my own with jumpers with several hundred more jumps than myself. "It's not a question of if...just a question of when!" The only thing worse than a cold toilet seat is a warm toilet seat.

Gidday Tom "...when they disappear BASE jumping will be just another pastime like golf and bowling." Why?? Because people will only be making legal BASE jumps? I can certainly see the attraction of being a rebel in today's 'standardised' world, but what about the skill, risk, and comaraderie of BASE? What about the extreme personal challenge and the opportunities to grow as a person who very much holds their live in their own hands? Are not these things the essence of BASE, and the excitement of making illegal BASE jumps just an add-on?? Maybe not...I have a sum total of 0 BASE jumps so may be talking crap. What do you and other BASE jumpers find most attractive about the sport? The only thing worse than a cold toilet seat is a warm toilet seat.

"If you start in ten years, the technology may have advanced enough that it's as safe as golf or bowling." ...in which case go bungy jumping or ride Superman: The Escape at Six Flags. That's a pretty depressing scenario. I hope you're only half serious. Does that mean skydiving will be as safe as knitting (those needles are fairly pointy). "Golf!!!!!" The only thing worse than a cold toilet seat is a warm toilet seat.

"...the mice will walk away from it" - yeah right I have heard of chickens being thrown out of jump planes - apparently they try to fly for a moment...then their wings snap off. Yeah, I know, it's a bit harsh. The only thing worse than a cold toilet seat is a warm toilet seat.

Like many things in skydiving, I find things easier to learn when I break them down. This is what has worked best for me: 1. Legs out and pressing down. 2. De-arch. Thinking "stick your butt up in the air...stick your butt up in the air...you can track" [like the song but with "butt" instead of "hands" ]. This seems to be the key and it takes abit of work at first to get into a body position that is the opposite to our good friend the arch. 3. Arms back to side of body. Once you nail a good track you can sure feel it. I used to find that instability in a track was seemingly due to hurrying and throwing everything back at once without de-arching - the result was an unstable dive. When learning to track I would suggest doing things "slowly" and one at a time. Also, jump with a RW coach who can follow you into the track and then "get out of dodge" while you continue to track away. "Sometimes you kick; sometimes you get kicked" - INXS The only thing worse than a cold toilet seat is a warm toilet seat.

I wasn't referring to the players, but to the fans. ...and, real men play league P.S. Apologies to all those who actually have something intelligent to say about BASE ...over to Yoda - "Do, or do not...there is no try" The only thing worse than a cold toilet seat is a warm toilet seat.

That little Ocker - I assume you mean "The Crocodile Hunter" - makes a shit load of cash these days (ie, several million dollars a year). For mine, anyone who runs on to an American Football pitch from now on must surely have balls of steel. The only thing worse than a cold toilet seat is a warm toilet seat.

Have not bungy jumped but would imagine that the ground rush would be insane - especially if you asked to touch the water. However, NO REAL RISK + NO SKILL = the equivalent of an amusement park ride IMHO. Regarding the risk involved, I have heard of the odd person being blinded, but that would appear to be extremely rare. The only real risk is if the people running the show incorrectly set the length of the bungy cord given your weight and you hit the ground at pace before the recoil. Apparently when bungy first started you could walk into a toy store and buy a bungy cord. This was quickly stopped due to injuries - as mentioned above, it does require some 'skill' and experience to correctly set the length of the cord given a person's weight and the distance from the jump point to the ground. "First we gave up giving, and then we gave up living, and replaced it with reality TV" - Seth Lester The only thing worse than a cold toilet seat is a warm toilet seat.

"All I know is that why should I pay someone to pack if I can do it myself." I find packing expends at least as much energy as jumping. That is not a big issue at a small DZ where you may make 3-4 sport jumps a day. However, at a large, turbine DZ, packing 6-8+ mains on top of the jumps would, I imagine, be very tiring. Having someone pack for you just makes the day so much more mellow and enjoyable and you don't feel totally washed out when the beer light comes on. "Don't just stand there...go berserk!!!". The only thing worse than a cold toilet seat is a warm toilet seat.

__________________________________________________ well, you can take Pavlov's idea to the next level. audibale is not worse or better then visual altimiter. you can have Pavlov's reaction to visual signal (visuals altimiter) or audible (audible altimiter). how does it make visual alitimiter better ? why do you trust your sight, but don't trust your hearing ? i don't suggest replacing visual altimiters to audible, i just wanna justify audibles. why not make them more useful then just "PULL!" device ? if there is a fear that aidible can malfunction, then one can you two. stan. __________________________________________________ Yeah - some good points. I guess that ultimately you should take into consideration the circle of awareness taught in FJCs and refer to the ground and horizon to check your height - maybe that's an 'ideal world' scenario. Also, perspectives on the use of audibles may well vary by skydiving discipline (I fly on my belly). Still, I do look upon my audible as a 'back-up' (that is, any sound means "do something NOW") as opposed to a decision-making guide for break-off etc. Maybe it's because I started jumping before audibles were available. I remember reading about a guy who was experiencing problems with stability at pull time so ended up relying on his Cypres. He recounted being somewhat worried when he was still in freefall but could see the facial expressions of people in a train travelling past the DZ. An extreme example I know, but I think it's good to draw a 'line in the sand' between inputs to decision-making and devices that are used to 'tell' you to act now or even to make something happen for you. I personally see my audible (like an AAD) in the second category. The only thing worse than a cold toilet seat is a warm toilet seat.

For me an audible is a back-up/safety device in case I lose altitude awareness. Thus, I set all of the alarms below a height at which I should at least have deployed. Any alarm - unless the situation dictates otherwise - means "PULL!!" I do not want a Pavlov's Dog situation (I think that's right) where I only act in response to a noise. Otherwise there is the danger that if there is no noise then there is no action. I determine whether I am at break-off height by reading my visual altimeter - my audible is my back-up in case I have gone 'low'. The only thing worse than a cold toilet seat is a warm toilet seat.

Re windtunnels versus skydiving. As has already been said, skydiving has the big advantages of visuals and freedom (ie, not flying in an oversized metal can). Re risktakers, I saw a TV show that stated that males who take risks (engage in risky activities) are more attractive to the opposite sex as such behaviour communicates an ability to provide (think 'dawn of time' when the male was responsible for the hunting and gathering to provide for the family). "Sometimes you kick; sometimes you get kicked" - INXS The only thing worse than a cold toilet seat is a warm toilet seat.

It appears that the plane crashed during climb-out after taking-off, not in performing a "beat up". It is not uncommon for airfields to feature glide paths over 'build up' areas. "Sometimes you kick; sometimes you get kicked" - INXS The only thing worse than a cold toilet seat is a warm toilet seat.