ar5000

I had just finished AFF and needed to buy a rig/alt/helmet/etc. however, I didn't have the $4000 needed to make that purchase. I looked around for stuff collecting dust, and realized that I hadn't gone shooting or reloaded any of my own ammo in over a year. I put up for trade on dropzone.com a .22-250 rifle, an H&K USP 45 Tactical, and a Dillon 650 reloading machine w/ lots of accessories. I asked for a beginners rig for a big guy. The offers rained in, and I eventually traded for a like-new Wings/Sabre2-210 w/ AAD, jumpsuit, altimeter, and a few more accessories. I put about 300 jumps on the rig and eventually traded down. If I hadn't traded my guns/etc for skydiving gear, I would have had a hard time ever getting into the sport. BTW, legally transferring firearms across state lines requires someone with an Federal Firearms License (FFL), in both states to send/receive the weapon. They usually charge a nominal fee ($50?), but it was certainly worth it.

I have searched the Interwebs high and low for a review of the Garmin Foretrex 401 written by a skydiver. This wrist mount device (and a few others made by Garmin) have a mode called "Jumpmaster". It allows you to select the type of jump (HAHO, HALO, Static line), set wind speeds at 1000' intervals, display altitude based on barometric pressure, calculate glide angles, and navigate to a specific target once it detects a canopy deployment. Would you please add this to the Gear section so skydivers can review it. So far, most of the reviews that actually mention the Jumpmaster mode on GPS review sites only critisize Garmin for including a feature nobody is ever going to use. Lets not let them get the wrong idea.

I've rented a 30-ft RV from Wednesday night until Monday morning. If you would like to share the cost, and have an indoor place to sleep, cook, shower, and store your gear, let me know. Your half will run about $300 for the entire stay. Here's a link to the model I got: http://www.cruiseamerica.com/rent/our_vehicles/large_rv.aspx

I'm flying into Long Beach Wed around 6pm to attend the boogie. I would like to avoid the expense of renting a car by myself. If anyone else is flying in around that time, I'd be happy to split the cost with however many people we are able to cram in there. If someone already has a car there and will be driving from the LA area to Elsinore that day, I'd be happy to pitch in gas money. Shoot me an e-mail or PM. Alex

How much are the HALO jumps? Alex

I jump the HDR-SR12 w/ no box. Mainly because no one makes a box for it. I physically remove the hard drive when jumping to prevent failure due to the issues with altitude. I got the SR12 because I use the camera for other things and need the hard drive for its massive storage capabilities. I've never had any issues with the screen coming open or zoom being moved due to wind. I also made my own mounting device similar to a quick quad but sturdier. I'm about to add an Rebel XSi to the top too. I'm gonna have to move the SR12 over a bit. I'll probably make one bracket for both. Alex PS: Check out my April fools prank I played on a co-worker (and captured with the SR12/XSi). http://www.break.com/usercontent/2009/4/April-Fools-Foam-peanut-bomb-695940.html

To everyone attending: The weather forecast calls for a beautiful weekend with the exception of Saturday. While I hate to forecast rain on my parade, I'm going to hold out for a better forecast until late tomorrow. If it looks promising, I'm going to head out there Saturday morning. If not, I'll probably head out Saturday evening which brings me to another point. In addition to my birthday party on Saturday night, SDH will be hosting a benefit dinner for Jim Culhane. To those that don't know, Jim is an instructor at SDH, and experienced a rough landing a few weeks ago. He'll likely be out of commission for several more. Even in if you don't plan on jumping due to the weather, please come out and support Jim. Should Saturday's weather prevent us from jumping, I plan on having the chopper come out on Sunday. I'm still waiting for a final call back from the pilot to confirm, but I don't anticipate this to be a problem. I look forward to seeing all of you there... whatever day that is. Alex

This event has officially been moved to Skydive Houston. To those that don't know, there is a great DZ just up the road about 20 miles. Todd, the DZO, has graciously agreed to host what is rapidly turning into a small boogie. More interest existed for this that I could have imagined. We'll need the packing area, manifest, non-class B airspace, additional aircraft, and other amenities that a DZ can offer in order for this to not be one big fustercluck. Stay tuned for more details involving the events after jumping. Its my Birthday damn it, and I'm not leaving with out a party I'll post more once I've confirmed what's going to take place.

I found a variety of sizes, colors, etc. on McMaster-Carr's website. We order all sorts of industrial products from them on a regular basis. Check Part number 5041K13 or just search for silicon tubing to see all the options. Most of them appeared to be about $.90 per foot. That puts your tube stows at WELL under $1 each. www.mcmaster.com In order to glue the two ends together, I'd suggest Sumo glue from the Loctite family. It bonds well with most types of rubber and other flexible materials. Now all you need is a fixture to hold one end of the tube open while you jam the other end in with glue on it. I'm thinking a 4-pronged spreader of some kind would work nicely.

Simon, can I put you down for a few jumps either way?

One of the guys who works with David Lowe (the pilot) said David has about 7000 hours logged in similar type aircraft. You can take that with a large grain of salt if you like but that still doesn't equate to an inexperienced pilot. Not to mention that we are going up with the intention of bailing out at some point. I'd be curious to see how the 27% number breaks down between the 22 and 44. I suspect that the far majority falls toward the 22. Its primary use is training and sounds like anything less than finesse in case of an emergency would likely result in catastrophy. I'll also add that you can commercially insure them for about $5k per month. The insurance companies and actuarials obviously don't plan on replacing your $450k aircraft with any regularity. Its probably a safe bet that it will get us to 6k a few times without any problems.

Are you knocking the R-44 based on reliability or its flight capabilities? While The R-44 is the only chopper I've ever been on, the pilot did do something things on each load that you simply can't do with a Cessna or otherwise. The ride up was as exciting as the ride back down. Besides, when was the last time you rode to altitude in a leather seat

Mike, Thanks for adding your expertise. I hadn't even thought about contacting the airport management. I had assumed the company owning the chopper would handle that. It's no secret what we are going to do with it. Would a phone call suffice, or should I get this in writing? Or, should I leave it to them? I had planned on putting down in the grassy area east of all the buildings. Google Earth shows an area of about 400'x400' clear of any obstructions. I don't see how anyone could miss that.