zoobrothertom

Yep, seriously not for sale! Chuck, BTW, once I finally make some serious money over here, you've been on my list of good people to conatct for WS training. I guess it's the ex-military, airborne attitude and Raeford experience. See ya in a year or 2. ____________________________________ I'm back in the USA!!

Was Dan already at Paso Robles in early 1990? I spent about 4 months there but can't quite recall if he was there yet. ____________________________________ I'm back in the USA!!

Looks like fun! Nowadays, there's no such thing as an after star or looping a 2 way at break off anymore. ____________________________________ I'm back in the USA!!

Didn't Mirror Image provide the cover of a Journey album where they put the band member's faces on the jumpers? I'm really not sure if it was Mirror Image but it was a cool cover. ____________________________________ I'm back in the USA!!

I gave up years ago on trying to sell skydiving to my friends. If everybody skydived, we wouldn't be cool anymore. ____________________________________ I'm back in the USA!!

I've got no beef with cow related puns. ____________________________________ I'm back in the USA!!

What year was it built? Open cockpit but internal seating for the passengers! Looks like fun. "Don't worry about the weather folks! I'm just gonna land in that there field and come sit with you for a while!" ____________________________________ I'm back in the USA!!

Personally, I don't feel there is a minimum jump number to become a skydiver. IMO, it's a combination of knowledge, skills and reaching that moment of transition when jumping becomes part of your soul. For some people it is almost immediate. For others, it takes a while. What measures can be used for "part of your soul?" Are you comfortable? Have you learned to balance the rewards and risks in your mind? Do you constantly look skyward and day dream of jumping? Do you look forward to that next challenging skill set you're learning? Maybe something else... So, whether it's immediate or later, everyone of us woke up one day and realized we had crossed some imaginary line in our minds. "Hey, I really am a Skydiver!"

Exactly, "Ciao, Luciano" ____________________________________ I'm back in the USA!!

As of this post, it was 10:05 AM in England. Let's hope it's a go! ____________________________________ I'm back in the USA!!

Should we declare Dave & Stump as MIA?

Hey Jerry, I'm not old enough yet to be in a museum. ____________________________________ I'm back in the USA!!

Hey, my mirage is 24 years old and I'm medically retired from the Army. Any chance .....? Edited to add: I went and checked the data panel. 12/83 - Hell, almost 25! ____________________________________ I'm back in the USA!!

or maybe somewhere in the middle - Kids: get an education, job and save money. Then buy your toys before you get married. ____________________________________ I'm back in the USA!!

Looks like it was pretty nice place. Also, sounds like heaven for being the late '70s. ____________________________________ I'm back in the USA!!

BUMP!! Here's one from about 10 years ago. I love night jumps! I guess I have about 30~40 counting military. My 1000th was a night 10 way from 13.5 at Skydive Houston. It was also Dan the Treeman's 1000th. I convinced Dan to wait in the plane with me for a 10 - one thousand count after the other 8 exited. This is one of my favorite things to do on SCR/SCS loads. I had never done it at night. I had a similar night jump experience years earlier when the base funneled on an 8 way. I really wanted to do it on purpose. After 10-one thousand, we exited together and dove side by side like F-16s. Treeman was holding a Chem-lite in his mouth. We caught them at about 7~7.5. I looked over at Treeman and he still had the Chem-lite in his mouth! He was so amped that he had bitten through it and was streaming Chem-lite juice in freefall!

Sounds like fun. Be sure to learn a 4 line check. It's pretty simple and is the best way to ensure the canopy is not tangled or inverted somehow. You should do this check after every jump. With tension, just separate the canopy into left and right riser groups. Walk it up to the skirt and in the middle will be the center front and rear panels. Reach under with your arm and lift the 2 center panels as you drop the lines. The two panels should be clear to the apex. Walk the 4 lines back to the risers. They will be the inside line(s) on each riser. If not, untangle and recheck. Pretty easy! Once you get used to it, it's a whole lot less intimidating than meeting a square for the first time!

Petition signed! South Korea Good luck! ____________________________________ I'm back in the USA!!

Hey Bill, Here's a wonderhog story for you. My second rig was a used wonderhog with a 26' round reserve and Strato Star in it which I bought in '83. When the reserve came due, I took it to the rigger at Raeford. The TSO tag was so worn that all we could make out was that the serial number was 3 digits and (I think) the first number was a 2. The rigger (a blond haired lady whose name I can't remember) called you in Florida to figure out the serial number. It was black para-pak. Apparantly, you checked your records and figured out the number based on the single digit and color. She said it was built in your garage! Ring a bell? I kept that rig until around '89. When I sold it, it had a Safety Star reserve and a Nimbus XL in it. I had also had it converted to a leg strap by then. Great rig! ____________________________________ I'm back in the USA!!

------------------------------------------------------- Hey Nick, I have wondered about the % of General Aviation incidents versus Skydiving operations. The FAA/NTSB has their annual report on GA incidents that include (I thought) skydiving aircraft incidents. Has anyone ever done a study of GA vs. Skydiving? As for swooping, we (loosely the USPA) 'fixed' things in the past with AADs, increased training standards and minimum pull altitudes. I personally don't think swooping will ever be solved as it has always been a hot dog part of landing since squares were finally accepted as mainstream. Hell, in '83 I used to watch the Golden Knights do early morning dew downwind sliding tennis shoe landings that were quite impressive. I'm really curious and apprehensive to hear what comes out of this 'hearing.' ____________________________________ I'm back in the USA!!

If you can't make it to some sort of dedicated accuracy/training event, take a hard look around your own DZ. Look for a crusty old fart with lots of skydiving patches on his (nowadaze) gear bag. Without patches, look for the old guy/gal organizing a 20 or bigger way. He/She might be jumping ZP now, but he can probably give you some good advice on applying old techniques (read: 1.1 ripstop nylon, F-111, etc.) to accuracy using a ZP canopy for casual accuracy. Note: Check with a "mentor" first before trying this. After breaking a leg on a Demo practice jump many years ago, I use a technique that has been suitable for ZP accuracy with something like a Sabre at an intelligent wing loading. I call it swoop and flair. Not a hook turn!!! Over an open landing area, you practice going into half-brakes or a little more and aim short of your intended target. At this point, you should reserve more than enough flare power to make a soft landing. Select a point short of your intended target. At a lower, but still safe altitude, let up gently on your brakes. The canopy will gentlly surge/dive (that's the swoop part). The trick is to time and ride your glide to the target and flare like a normal landing. It takes some time to dial in and learn your canopy under different weather conditions (winds, humidity, density altitude). This is a technique for guys (like me) who just can't risk riding deep brakes with a flare all the way to a solid surface target. It is not a "dead center" technique! It's for putting you close enough to the target to look good on a Demo. It also rocks for off landings. So, don't be shy! Ask the old timers, they'll be flattered and willing to help. If you're at Skydive Houston, look for John Rich. He's been doing Accuracy long after it went out of Style. Good luck! ____________________________________ I'm back in the USA!!

Dude, you've got the coolest job in the world! Just for fun, I'm so jealous that I have to throw in some good natured ribbing here. I can just see you in a bar swooping on a lady. "So, what do you do for a living?" "Uhmmm, I Uhhh, well ... let's just say you would KNOW I'm bullshitting you if I told you. So, let's just say I'm a piano player in a whore house." Cool pics! But seriously, does it work telling the ladies you test jump new BASE wingsuits? Enquiring minds want to know. LOL ____________________________________ I'm back in the USA!!

I've seen it but I lost that particular brain cell with a name in it! Split stabalizers and looks around 240 sq. ft. is my only help. (maybe a Titan?) ____________________________________ I'm back in the USA!!

I've done some CRW with folks that considered a cutaway over the landing area a mandatory low reserve pull. When someone is coming right at you, pulls, has a 10~15 second ride and has his free bag land next to him, it is something to see. Just not too often! I've had 9 reserve rides out of 10 malfunctions/wraps. I think maybe one or two of them could've been low... Hey fastphil, I bet we get flamed! ____________________________________ I'm back in the USA!!

Yep, there were some problems with accuracy of information. I'm not old enough to have spotted the all. But overall, it was a good read. I did some of my student jumps at Lakewood in '82 and enjoyed reading about the history while I was still pissing in diapers and doing my dutiful best to deprive my mother of sleep. ____________________________________ I'm back in the USA!!