tkhayes

yes they are. for all the reasons stated in this and dozens of other forums already.

I have done AFF classes in 2.5 hours before. One on one with a student who is heads up and you are on a time crunch. before you critique, you would have to actually watch the entire training process and see what is missing or not missing. I would easily argue that I did not miss anything. malfunction videos? optional. written tests? optional. huge amounts of time on every possible malfunction? too much time. If you do it as a practical skills training class, it is not that hard. You spend most or almost all the time actually walking through the parts of the skydive with the proper props. The student does, and therefore learns. If they do it 3 times, they have learned it, move on. Aircraft exits, freefall and body position, deployment, canopy flight and landing. Walk through the malfunction pictures and rehearse the cutaways. While you are gearing them up, you talk about aircraft emergencies. Go to the plane. At most dropzones, there is at least an hour of readiness from the time they manifest until you are exiting the airplane. what are you doing with that time? I spend it with my student reviewing and rehearsing anyway. TK

Spectre with dacron lines. 1000' openings and flies and lands great. I have had two of them and swear it is one of the best canopies around (especially for old farts with crippling arthritis....like me)

10 Way competition gets underway tomorrow, THursday. Janine is serving dinners every night, all week long. 8 Way on Friday (beginning with TK's free Pancake Breakfast. 16 Way on Saturday. Load organizers available, we have 1st/2nd/3rd place medals to hand out and we will help to organize pick up teams for those who want to play. Night Jumps and a band on Saturday night, and a high altitude load on Sunday 8am, http://www.skydivecity.com TK

We are NOT calling it what we want - we are calling it by its accepted DEFINITION in all and EVERY accepted dictionary in the world. YOU my friend, are calling it what you want. Atheism defines NO such things, apparently you have some issue with reading and understanding plain English definitions.

EXACTLY! From Webster: And then Agnostic: Atheism is NOT a religion, it is exactly the non-belief in ANY religion and it irritates the shit out of me when anyone tells me that somehow I am religious when I am an atheist..... When atheists organize, it will be an 'association' a 'society' a 'movement' or 'club'. It will not be a religion

Some Presidents work with Congress. Some wield their power like a machete and use it to intimidate not only the general public, but Congress as well. "If you ain't on my side, then you ain't never getting in my office or in front of me" GWB was the latter. Forcing his hand on people, no one really wanted to cross him. So he got his way and look at all the friggin' damage that was done. Obama is only one man, but depending on how he uses the power he has, he can accomplish a little or a lot - yet to be seen. Certainly more hope than with the alternative I think.....

taking your date to "His Majesty's Feast" in Toronto, a Henry the VIIIth type dinner theatre where you get to play with the singing and eat with your fingers, etc. Problem, is that they treat your women (jokingly of course) like 16th century women were treated. My date did not think it was that funny. way to impress the chicks TK..... that was the lfirst AND last date......

yes I do. If you made Jesus out to be a politician instead of the 'son of god', he would be somewhat left of center with some decent views on social justice and sharing, caring,feeding the poor, etc.. It all got fucked up when someone decided he was the 'chosen one' hundreds of millions of people over centuries have come to the same conclusions without ANY divine intervention.......myself included.....

actually I had my 'epiphany' when I was 14 years old, sitting in church and realizing what a load of bunk it all was. I continued church, bible study classes, etc until I was 18 or so, mostly because that was the family thing to do. Can you all imagine me, reading the lessons from the bible? I did it all the time, since I was a good speaker, Rev Reid always asked me to do that almost every week in church. wow, scares me now. glad I woke up when I did.

take 'Jesus' out of it and replace it with 'common sense' or 'good ethical behavior' and you have the same argument. You do not need the teachings of one man to come to the same conclusions as he did or does. But if that is how you finally get there, then so be it......

who gives a shit about his church goings, religious beliefs or otherwise? That is his private life. I have been going to church (the same church) for 45 years......I just have not been there in 27 years.....

we have not seen a change in Jet A yet, so our prices stay the same right now. I think it dropped 10 cents a gallon last time we bought.

I have no issues getting life insurance - I don't really need it, but I can get it. The system is still fucked. System or not, it gives me a choice - no choice. There are hundreds and thousands of skydivers out there with health insurance. The fact that I am being excluded for that is both biased and fucked. Can't fight city hall - but you can burn it to the ground...... Skydiving is only part of it anyway. They did a physical as well. My sugar level is high - not too high, just at the high end of normal - they are adding that to the list. Of course now that I have be 'denied' by a company, if and when I apply to another company, I have to answer the question "Have you ever been denied Health Insurance?" Well yes, now I have - and the alarm bells start going off setting off the whole process again for probably two months at a time with each company so I can go through a process just to probably get denied. So you know what? I stand by my original post - the system is actually fucked...... Better idea, I will go back to school and be an accountant. Low risk, take public transit to work, go home every day and sit in front of the TV. When i have a cardiac in 10 years, at least I will have the health insurance to cover it.

in other words - the system is fucked, just like I said. I pay more for health insurance than a 2 pack a day smoker - tell me that is right....?

Hate to bring up this thread again, but guess what? Humana today DENIED my application for health insurance. I pay $750/month for my wife and I each month. I am 6/2" 230lbs. Recently lost 25 pounds taking better care of myself. I have no health issues, low/good blood pressure, my doctor says I am fit as a fiddle. My family has no history of cancer, diabetes, heart disease of ANY kind. I have never been seriously ill. My wife takes thyroid medication and will for the rest of her life. Yet they are offering her insurance but not me. Now I pay $750 in a Blue Cross group plan because that is all we can get. I applied again to Humana for an HSA plan. They left my wife alone, but ran me through a battery of tests, requests for records, physicals, glucose tests, you name it. I complied with everything they asked for and today I got denied after two months of going back and forth. Now for all of those that suggest to me that I should 'shop around' you can all kiss my ass. This system is fucked. i am fucked. i can no longer afford ANY healthcare and will probably drop the plan and take my chances with the 'I might have to declare bankruptcy someday' plan, because $9000/year is simply too much. I cannot even sue these fucks to force them to sell me coverage. don't suggest a 'broker' already done that don't suggest Aetna, already been there, they will not cover me because I skydive. (as it is with most companies) Don't suggest going back to Canada, although as I get older I just may have to. My job and career is here. this system is FUCKED. TK

And what if this said 'original birth certificate' does not actually exist? Not everyone has their original birth certificate, so it may not be available. No court can make you produce a document that does not actually exist in the world. Therefore, some tangent would take place in the courtroom. i.e., the court would have to decide what to do assuming the birth certificate does not exist. I doubt that they would rule that he is NOT a citizen due to the lack of it. The likely answer? Go get a new copy of the birth certificate - a relatively easy thing to do. I can apply for and get a renewed copy of my birth certificate and should the original records not exist, I expect some court clerk simply issues one with some rudimentary investigation into where I was actually born. Either way, birth certificate or not, he is going to be the next president, because the act of producing the birth certificate would be pretty easy to do. And if this case had any merit, someone higher up that this asshole Phil Berg would also be looking into it, probably someone at the Justice Dept. This country is filled with frivolous lawsuits, this being one of them. No wonder Obama seems to have little interest in responding to it.....

heroin is 'natural' to, does not mean it is good for society to partake in it on a regular basis. I think pot would be legalized if they have a similar roadside test and standards for THC blood levels that could determine 'impairment' Without such a test, it remains illegal. I bet if someone came up with a breathalyzer and a level of potency for pot in your system, it could easily be legalized and managed. If you just legalize it, nothing to stop people from smoking a ton of weed and getting on the road. They already do I know, but I am still nto interested in some guy who smoked 10 doobies driving behind on a Saturday night......

READ the link i sent you, no it is not an additional 5 coach jumps, it is 5 coach jumps, part of the 25 total jumps. You seem locked in on very specific requirements. Skydiving is not such a sport. People progress at different rates. Some have all the requirements finished before they get to 25 jumps and simply have to complete the few jumps. Some 'suck' and have skill level difficulties and take a few more umps, time, money, whatever to finish everything. I was a lousy student and took more time to learn in a few different ways. But the goals and the end result are the same. But if you go to any dropzone with the idea of EXACTLY 25 jumps and EXACTLY 'this much money', I think you will probably set yourself up for disappointment. If you do well, it goes well and easy, but there are any number of things that can alter your training and progression, only part of which is our own skill level. Weather, illness, motivation, fear, money, travel time, available time to complete, instructors, everything can have an effect on how you progress. You will 'solo' after finishing the 7 AFF levels You will still be a student, but at least you can solo. A license shows the world that you have demonstrated a given level of proficiency to someone of some qualification, and at least can take care of yourself on a skydive. And you are no longer the school's 'liability'.

we do not force the coach jumps, but as the previous post said, there are aerial skills you have to learn and demonstrate. A coach jump is the easiest way to do all that. We build 5 into our program, which is usually enough.

Hey John - are you complaining by chance? Let me get this straight - You asked for and got - Bush in the White House 8 years ago. You asked for and got - right wing republican economic policy You reiterated that you want all this again in the White House 4 years ago. (and got it.) Now we are in a shithole and Bush policymakers are the ones deciding to put huge amounts of taxpayer dollars into corporations. And not only are you complaining, you are trying to make this an 'Obama' problem? wow TK

http://www.skydivecity.com/html/students/aff/AFF1through7.htm at the bottom of the page is a link to our PDF file that steps you through typical progression to finish your license....

wow, tell us how you really feel. Personally, I love my imac and macbook. does everything I need it to do and very simply. and it works. If you want a complex video mastering application, then you have to spend the $$ on expensive video mastering software.

they have no reason to file for bankruptcy if they can get $25B from the government. (OUR money) The govt should pull any offers, then yes, they should and would file for Chpt 11 and the processes would solve themselves over time. Shares drop to $1/share for GM and someone buys the company - the way it is supposed to work.....

and the difference between a true democracy and a republic would be.......? insofar as voting rights goes? If you want to set rules for voting, then somewhere along the line we have to vote on who makes those rules or what the rules are. My point is that is that it is simply easier to say that everyone has the vote. period. NO exceptions. It appears from the 'outside' that the only people that want rules about who can vote are the people that think they might lose without those rules. They have already lost their perspective on the system. If you truly believe in it, then you truly believe in the majority rule. And if you do not, then you have demonstrated only that you have some other agenda (like not letting 'niggers' vote for for example....) If we are a 'republic' then why is the 'Republican Party' trying to spread 'democracy' around the world...... it is all bullshit. I am a layman. I speak as a layman. Let the people vote, or eventually, you will have the French Revolution here on your soil......