wartload

That's "Scare-a-Dactyl"

I was in Hawai'i in the '60s, but wasn't jumping then. The name Dale Orr is very familiar, though. Was he in the Marines and/or did he later jump in NC? I can't quite place him.

*bump*

How do you say in French, "Hey ... hold my beer and watch THIS!"

An early nude skydive is recorded in the links that I posted here under the title, 1970s Skydiving Films (or something like that). Although it didn't catch on, perhaps because they were too far ahead of the times, we referred to those who made nude jumps by their NASIFF number (Naked As S*** In FreeFall) Unfortunately, Sandy wasn't at our DZ back then. Quote

Hey Krip - The canopy that I jumped most of all was a short-lined (36") PC mod that was done by Hugh Bergeron. I did stand-up landings on that as a matter of routine, and before that, almost always did stand-ups on a 7TU "cheapo". Maybe that's part of the reason why I now have problems with hips, knees, and ankles, but the point is that the piglet's landings were a little more like the end of a (round) reserve ride.

Dang, Twardo, I disappear for a year or so and come back to find that you've turned into an ogre. Ok ... into a BIGGER ogre. Yup. That's it.

Jumped a piglet once ... had to borrow it for a demo when my own rig developed an issue. The demo was in the mountains on a hot day. I weighed 180#. The ground was hard and rocky. I thought my hip bones had gone into my chest cavity. Really liked the canopy in the air, and it packed small for its time ... but the openings were "distinct" and the landings for heavier guys were memorable.

Here are two YouTube links to some early Super8 videos that Jim Wisely took at DZs in eastern NC in the 1970s. They were digitized and edited by Gary Holbrook. If you want to see some early sport canopies, and modified US Gov't stuff in action, you'll enjoy these. Yeah ... I'm in there a bit, too. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KzOOjqcssgo http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zT50OdOwAXE&feature=related

I found some of my material about these guys, and others, from pre-WWII jumping in and around DC. One of their exhibition jumps had them listed in the newspaper ads as "Angels from Hell". Drop me an e-mail and I can arrange to get the info to you.

I seem to recall some East Carolina University people making a water jump near Washington, NC, around 1974, then giving themselves "NASIFF" numbers ... for Naked As S*** In FreeFall.

What a pity that he's gone. Early was a really great guy. My condolences go out to his wife, Barbara, and to Mike, Amber, and others who called him "Dad".

I'll have to search for it, but I have some information about Ray Morders. I believe that I posted some stuff about him here a few years back

I got to wondering about Rob Thundercloud, and found this 2007 posting on a Wooden Boat forum. He sounds like one HELL of a man! (There's more info out there about him.) Raise a glass to passing of a true warrior. Robert Goingsnake Thundercloud has joined his fellow warriors in the sky. Rob did four tours in Viet Nam as a member of the United States Marine Corps and is the only man I ever met with a gold cluster on his Purple Heart. He also earned more combat medals than I can count. When the war was over he had a problem fitting into the peacetime Marines so, as he was a brilliant artist, he went to college, graduated with a degree in art and became the art director for a major manufacturer. All this while serving on the gang unit of the Compton CA Police Department where he was wounded twice in the line of duty. He was the only officer to earn both the Compton PD Medal of Valor and the Medal of Honor since 1921. Rob was a man of honor and a true friend to those of us who were privileged to know him. Our country and truly the world is a poorer place without him. Ann Stephens The Passing Of Rob Thundercloud I am very sorry to have to report the passing of Rob Thundercloud. He died early this morning at home, in the arms of his beloved wife, Merrilee. The doctors were never able to determine exactly what was wrong with him. Merri is so grateful for everyone's prayers and support. For those who want to send a card, her address is 600 Dunn Street, Waxahachie, TX 75165. I think she would love it if you could enclosed a note with some kind of memory of Rob. There will be no service, but she thinks she would like to come out next year for a get-together of Rob's friends (Hello Old Farts!) to share memories and stories. If you would like to email her, you can do so at mailto:encoremerri@yahoo.com . Rob was such a huge personality. Our lives are all better for having known him.

1969 ... at a VERY informal club "out in the country": 15 minutes of ground school, most of which was explaining how to judge the wind and how to turn the canopy. There was a brief explanation of how to cut the main canopy away, but the instructor used a Stevens Static Line system for the reserve, and believed that all you needed to teach was the cutaway. 2 SL jumps 1 DRCP on the third jump 3 hop & pops (packed my own main for them and thereafter) 3 10 sec delays Next jump was a 30 sec delay and on my own after that.

$50 for a plain white 28' 7TU in a B12 rig and a 1950s NavCon reserve in a chest pack. The main canopy was actually relatively new--it may have fallen off a military truck--and the mods were done by the wife of a friend who was a rigger. Added another $12 for a new pair of "Frenchie" boots (AKA "waffle stompers) and just used my motorcycle helmet. Made my own jumpsuits.

I've just listed a Handbury chest-mount hang glider rig in the classifieds, in case anyone is interested in innovative old-school gear. Check under Reserves.

Never met your Dad, Eric, but I'll bet I would have liked him. I'm glad that you have great memories of him. I'm sure that he was proud of you!

There was a sport parachuting club in the Washington DC area in the 1930s. I'd have to research their DZ location(s), though. They kept having to move DZs because of legislation attempting to do away with the "suicidal" sport.

That shitty war took a long time to kill some of its victims.

I cut mine off at about 1974. I don't know whether it was put on at the factory, or by a previous owner of the rig, but it consisted of a lead fishing sinker crimped around the cable at a point that allowed the pins to clear the cones, but not for the ripcord to come out of the housing. Until the entanglement issue came up, it probably seemed like a good idea -- especially in the case of my rig, which had a very non-standard and not-replaceable type of ripcord. After hearing about malfunctions involving entanglements of that sort, the potential price of having the rig modified to use a different ripcord seemed pretty cheap (even though I never had to do that). I just made sure that I didn't drop the thing.

I never met him in person, and I don't know when and where he jumped, but in the early days of the Internet (maybe on USENET, before the Internet) I used to exchange messages with (Dan?) Rossi, a blind skydiver whose signature line was, "Flare when you hear the crickets!"

First of all, I really enjoyed reading your posting! Next, I had to smile when I saw you use the term "exhibitions." My first few (intentional) off-DZ jumps were logged as "exhibition jump." At some point, probably about the mid 1970s, these became "Demos." Your age is showing!

Jo - I think that you need to eventually look at the pictures posted by 1969912 . Could the "chain thing" have actually been braided steel cable? How thick was the "chain" that you remember? (Anyone else have shot-and-a-halfs come to mind?)

For what it's worth, Jo, I was jumping at various DZs in the Carolinas during that time period, and I can tell you that he would have really stood out as a "really old guy" at that point--from either photo. Most of the active skydivers were in their 20s, and the typical "old guy" was in their 30s. The POPS eligible jumpers (Parachutists Over Phorty Society) were few and far between ... and tended to be well known by everyone. They were a novelty, if you will, and most had great stories. If he was jumping in that area, at that time, someone's likely to remember him.