BikerBabe

Check out Big Air Kites...they're made by the same folks that make the Samurai and Lotus. A guy at my DZ has a few of them and we fly them on windy days... They look like little canopies, and I've seen them lift 180 lb guys off their feet! www.bigairsportz.com/bakites Never meddle in the affairs of dragons, for you are crunchy and taste good with ketchup!

Van Gogh is my fave, but my most amazing art experience was seeing Picasso's "Guernica" in Madrid when I was there. It's absolutely breathtaking, and pictures of it can never do it justice. It literally brought me to tears. If you're ever in Madrid, go see this work! I hesitate to call it a painting, because it's really, a wall-sized mural...It's in the Reina Sophia museum there. Never meddle in the affairs of dragons, for you are crunchy and taste good with ketchup!

Riddler...you won a T-shirt Saturday night in the raffle! (Plus you get a second free t-shirt ust for being there) How can I get it to you? Send me a PM and we'll figure it out. Never meddle in the affairs of dragons, for you are crunchy and taste good with ketchup!

This weekend, to be exact! Actually, I stuck around on Sunday and made 4 more jumps in the cold...I recall saying to Spencer that I wasn't exactly sure why I was being such a jump whore, since I'd be in Eloy in a week! See you Saturday! Never meddle in the affairs of dragons, for you are crunchy and taste good with ketchup!

You probably need to lengthen (stretch) your hip flexors. Especially if you have a job where you sit most of the day. A good stretch for that is the following (I'll try to describe it as best as I can): On the floor, start with your right knee down and your left foot in front of you. keeping most of your weight on your left foot, arch your hips forward untill you feel the stretch in your right hip flexor. (your hip flexor goes from the top of your quads up to your abs, over your pelvis). hold it for 20-30 seconds, then switch. Look at the attached picture. I'm not fully stretching in this pic, it's more the starting position. Sorry for the attire...it's my day off! Never meddle in the affairs of dragons, for you are crunchy and taste good with ketchup!

No, we didn't make it. We had made some switches and subs for Sunday, but the weather was crappy in the morning, and a lot of folks went home. Too bad they did, because it cleared around noon and we kept jumping. Yes, there were some stupid safety issues, by people that are very experienced, and we're doing the best we can to take care of it. This was the first boogie that I have planned (sheesh, who'd have thunk I'd be helping to run a DZ?) and even though the weather sucked on Sunday, I think most people still had a good time. Some people had a little TOO good a time, judging by the evidence left outside the hangar! We'll do it again next year, probably a week or two earlier in the year, and we'll definitely have balloon jumps next time. Never meddle in the affairs of dragons, for you are crunchy and taste good with ketchup!

Woohoo! I'm off to help get the DZ ready for tomorrow. NIce to hear your coming down...and TG, I'm sure there will be plenty of apple pucker at Eloy tis Christmas! Never meddle in the affairs of dragons, for you are crunchy and taste good with ketchup!

No Friday jumping, either, since the Otter can't get there until around 8 pm. However, we'll be starting bright and early Saturday morning! Never meddle in the affairs of dragons, for you are crunchy and taste good with ketchup!

I'm a Christian, too Never meddle in the affairs of dragons, for you are crunchy and taste good with ketchup!

Our CFC $$$ mostly go local, but one that's really good is Big Brothers/Big Sisters. Mentoring of at risk kids. We actually do it, and it is a blast...and they always need help, not just $$ but volunteers. I also give to the Red Cross and Earth Share. Never meddle in the affairs of dragons, for you are crunchy and taste good with ketchup!

I totally agree with you. For example, my parents came to the 4-way competition at Nationals this year. It was a relatively short drive, and it was a chance for them to see what I enjoy doing. Now, please imagine, if you will, the biggest whuffos on the planet. They wouldn't jump out of a plane if you paid them, and they had no clue what competition FS was about. As a matter of fact, when I told them I'd be at Nationals, they said "Nationals in what? They have that?" They were positively RIVETED by the competition! The spent the vast majority of their time in the auditorium at SDC, watching the judging. They didn't care who the teams were...they were genuinely interested in it, and I think they learned a lot, too. Omniskore doesn't hurt, either... LOL...they kept coming up to me between rounds and making comments on the Open class standings, and how close some of the rounds were...I started relying on them for updates on the scores! They even picked favorites. Anyway, they spent more time watching that one meet than they have watching golf in their entire lives, yet golf made the Olympics. I know the full ten rounds made it much more enjoyable for them, and they certainly didn't get bored. And why would TV have to show all 10 rounds, anyway? They don't show all of the heats of the 100m dash. Heck, they don't even televise a lot of the sports at all. Dressage, anyone? Never meddle in the affairs of dragons, for you are crunchy and taste good with ketchup!

We have the 3-account thing going on. Actually, 4. We have a joint account for our living expenses, and we each have an individual account. It's working really well that way, especially since we both know exactly how much discretionary $$ we have to spend on things like skydiving, motorcycle racing, gifts, etc. For things like vacations that we are saving for together, we have a separate savings account that we pad with a little each month just in case. As for life insurance, we had a big argument over this before we got married. He was of the mind that I didn't need to be covered by life insurance, because if I died, he could still live well enough without the insurance payout. However, he said he should be covered, since I would have a harder time, especially once we have kids. Argh...to me this is very sexist....I am the exact same military rank as him, and make only slightly less than he does. Why would I have a harder time making $$ if he died? I think this conflict stemmed from our respective upbringings, but needless to say, neither of us have life insurance right now, and we'll both get it when we have kids. Never meddle in the affairs of dragons, for you are crunchy and taste good with ketchup!

You're right, 4-way requires eye-contact, communication, etc. However, I consider a lot of that to be "running"...and you need to learn how to walk before you can run, if you get my analogy. Yeah, you can make hundreds of skydives (which will cost more than tunnel time, in the end) and go low on every single jump. Then you can go to the tunnel and spend 6 minutes practicing EXACTLY what you need to do with YOUR body to control your fall rate and expand your range, without having to worry about anything else. And on your next jump, you'll know...and if you go low, you can handle it. I don't think that's a waste of money at all. If anything, it's a bargain, since you just saved yourself a bunch more jumps learning how to control your fall rate. To me, the bottom line is that you are never going to be good at 4-way (or anything else, for that matter) if you aren't a good body pilot. Some people just choose to spend $600 for an hour in the tunnel as opposed to $1100 or so for 60 jumps (Ok, that depends on your jump ticket prices). Personally, due to the elevation of my DZ, 60 minutes of freefall would cost me around $1700. The tunnel is a steal if I want to work on my individual or even block flying skills. If you can't do a center-point turn, then no amount of eye-contact, fall rate control, or communication is going to help you turn more points on a 4-way. The tunnel is unforgiving that way...if you don't do a good turn on center, you're into the wall...instant feedback. The mirrors are cool, too! Never meddle in the affairs of dragons, for you are crunchy and taste good with ketchup!

LOL...I need lasik...I saw it as soon as I posted. Don't worry, I'll wear my contacts when I jump! Never meddle in the affairs of dragons, for you are crunchy and taste good with ketchup!

guess I don't count. I'll be there. Formation load? Never meddle in the affairs of dragons, for you are crunchy and taste good with ketchup!

I'll be there, jumping and watching my hubby go through AFP. Can't wait! Never meddle in the affairs of dragons, for you are crunchy and taste good with ketchup!

oooh...you're bringing jello shots? You're gonna be a hit! oh, and read hooknswoop's PM's... Never meddle in the affairs of dragons, for you are crunchy and taste good with ketchup!

Stacy, that is absolutely gorgeous! I have a couple, but the only one that's skydiving related is my former team patch. I haven't thought of one that I like enough to tattoo on me, but I will eventually. Never meddle in the affairs of dragons, for you are crunchy and taste good with ketchup!

LOL...I wish we could jump in there...the balloon fiesta goes on at a special park right in the city of Albuquerque, and they file the NOTAMs for it months in advance, so unfortunately, no. I really would be an easy demo, though, since the park is large enough to hold 800 inflated hot air balloons. Our drop zone is far enough away that it won't matter, anyway. As for balloon jumps, they are still very tentative, leaning towards probably not, since the pilots all stick together up there most of the time. We're working on it. Never meddle in the affairs of dragons, for you are crunchy and taste good with ketchup!

I have some really awesome news about the boogie next weekend. Not only will we have an Otter and a state record attempt... if you come to the boogie, your name will be entered in a drawing. The pirzes include 50% off a brand new Infinity rig, 50% off a pair of Firefly freefly pants, a new ProTrack, T-shirts, and other cool stuff. Well, you won't win the rig because I plan on winning that, but the other stuff is up for grabs! The weather report is looking good, with clear skies and highs in the mid 70's predicted for next weekend, so if you live around here (or even if you don't), come on over and check it out! Never meddle in the affairs of dragons, for you are crunchy and taste good with ketchup!

I'll second everything Arlo said. I only have about 4 hours of tunnel time, but I can already see a drastic improvement in my flying. I can't even stand to watch tapes of myself from before I got super-current and came to the tunnel. Becuase of the tunnel, I went from a poor body position and almost no leg awareness to a much better arm position and being able to fly with mostly my legs (how it should be). Side-slides used to be the bane of my existance...not anymore. I was just there again this past weekend, and I can't wait to get in the air and try everything out that I practiced. No, the tunnel can't help with exits or canopy control, but it can really help that freefall bit. If you're ever in Orlando (or Phoenix, pretty soon), take some time to fly in the tunnel. I watched people this weekend who were AFF students, and I could see an improvement in them after literally 6 minutes in there. As a matter of fact, Arlo, can you just give me SkyVenture's bank account number, so I can have my paycheck directly deposited in there? It would be a lot easier... Andi p.s. A lot of folks out west here give me the following reaction when I say I'm going to the tunnel: "Oh, I did that...it sucked. I hated that big baggy suit and I kept falling off the air." UGH. Not to bash the tourist attraction in Las Vegas, but out here, that's all we've had. The tunnel in Orlando is MUCH BETTER! The one in Vegas SUCKS. Don't go there. It's not worth it. Go to Orlando, you can wear your own gear and don't have to worry about "falling off". Never meddle in the affairs of dragons, for you are crunchy and taste good with ketchup!

Yay, Arlo! nice to see skydiving in the good news column for a change! Never meddle in the affairs of dragons, for you are crunchy and taste good with ketchup!

LOL...see you in two weeks...or at the holiday boogie! yep...he should be just healed enough by then to jump. Never meddle in the affairs of dragons, for you are crunchy and taste good with ketchup!

AP--NEW MEXICO In a marked change of climate today, Mr. BikerBabe, spouse of BikerBabe, announced that he plans to take the AFP course during the Holiday Boogie at Skydive Arizona. Mr. BikerBabe, currently healing from two broken ankles which he sustained while racing his motorcycle, decided today that he "won't be sitting around on his ass all week watching you skydive", in reference to BikerBabe. BikerBabe considers this to be a most fortunate turn of events, considering the fact that motorcycle racing is ten times more expensive than skydiving. Since Mr. BikerBabe's motorcycle racing cost the BikerBabe family a month-long vacation to Australia and New Zealand this year, she feels it's only fitting that he repay her in this manner. __________________________________________- WOOHOOO! Never meddle in the affairs of dragons, for you are crunchy and taste good with ketchup!

Woohoo, only a week and a day and the Otter will be here. Anyway, I wanted to share that there will be lots of local media coverage of our state record attempt (22-way...don't laugh) and we even have sponsorship! The airport has a really yummy little cafe, and we'll have plenty of food on Saturday night for grilling. Right now, long term forecasts for Belen look VERY nice, with highs predicted in the mid to upper 70's and no clouds. Never meddle in the affairs of dragons, for you are crunchy and taste good with ketchup!