Skydiving wish inspires jack-of-all-jobs aircraft
The first year's production of a new plane built by Hamilton-based Pacific Aerospace is sold out. The maker of military training and topdressing planes last night unveiled the PAC 750XL at a gathering which included Deputy Prime Minister Jim Anderton.
The company hopes the new plane will become a multimillion-dollar export earner. It is expected to generate $20 million a year in sales.
Staffing will have to expand by nearly 50 per cent at the company's Hamilton Airport base to cope with the new aircraft, which will be in full production within a year.
The first 10 have been sold to United States skydiving operations, and the Australia Army is also interested.
Pacific Aerospace managing director Brian Hare said the 750XL would be capable of fulfilling roles undertaken by the New Zealand Air Force's Iroquois helicopters in East Timor.
Operating and maintenance costs would be well below those of the helicopters.
Other uses include sightseeing, and there are plans for a floatplane version.
General manager Graeme Polley said the 750XL was based on the Cresco topdresser, and could lift two tonnes of freight or carry up to 17 skydivers or nine passengers.
The single-engined aircraft, which will cost just over $2 million, has short take-off and landing capability and can use unprepared airstrips.
Mr Polley said Australian Army officers had been to Hamilton to look at the aircraft.
Able to cruise at 150 knots for five hours with nine passengers, the turboprop-powered plane is expected to make an impact in remote areas in First and Third World countries because of its landing capabilities.
It also has a high climb rate - it can carry a full load of 17 skydivers to 14,000ft in 12 minutes.
Ultimately, the production rate will be one a month, and Pacific Aerospace hopes to make 10 in the first year.
However, a driving factor in meeting demand would be getting trained staff, Mr Polley said.
Pacific Aerospace needed another 20 sheetmetal workers to meet demand for its existing aircraft types, he said. A further 20 to 25 staff would be required for the new plane.
Pacific Aerospace employs 100 staff and has an annual turnover of $25 to $30 million. That is projected to increase to up to $50 million once the 750XL is in production.
Mr Hare said inspiration for the new plane came during a discussion "over a beer" in 1999.
An American visitor, impressed with the Cresco, told Mr Hare it was too bad that it could not be adapted for skydiving.
"By February 2000 we had plans on the drawing board," Mr Hare said. "But as the design evolved we realized that the 750XL's performance characteristics would be such that it would meet a lot of other needs as well."
As well as the Cresco, Pacific Aerospace makes the Fletcher topdressing plane, and the Airtrainer basic military training aircraft, which is used by the RNZAF and other air forces.
The company already makes components for Boeing 777 and 747 planes, as well as for the Airbus A330 and A340 and the McDonnell Douglas F18 Hornet jet fighter.
It has produced components for the Anzac frigates and United States Marine amphibious armoured personnel carriers.
Skydiving Video Games
With the recent release of Grand Theft Auto V, we've decided to take a look at some of the video games out there that offer players the ability to skydive in their gameplay. While dedicated skydiving games are few and far between and mostly awful, there are some big budget games out there that provide in game base jumping or skydiving. The introduction of these activities usually take place during missions when playing the single player campaign or story modes. Other games tend to introduce the activity only when playing multiplayer.
Grand Theft Auto (Series)
The GTA series is perhaps one of the most controversial video games series made to date. The game has seen protests, attempts to ban sales and mothers up in arms over the content. In a game where you run the streets killing, hijacking and beating anyone who you come across, it's easy to see why. For those who are less inclined to rob stores and toss dollars at pixelated strippers, the game also offers some great aviation related missions.
Parachuting was introduced into the game with the release of GTA: San Andreas in 2004 but was then not present in the retail copy of GTA IV. Later the GTA IV expansion, "The Ballad of Gay Tony" reintroduced the parachute and fans were once again finding buildings to base jump off of. In the latest release of the game, GTA V once again offers players the ability to skydive and base jump. The parachuting gameplay is introduced in the story line when one of your characters is required to undergo aviation training (airplane, helicopter and skydiving) in order to complete one of the missions. You begin by having to land on a moving target, so essentially your first handling of the canopy is an accuracy jump. You will also then be able to make jumps with your parachute outside of that mission training, whether you're hijacking an aircraft to jump out of, or finding a building to make a base jump from.
When it comes to the skydiving gameplay, you're able to track during freefall and once you open your canopy (rather hard usually too), you're then able to navigate with regular turns or sharp turns - and flare for your landings. The canopy design is somewhat disappointing with what someone on our social media page aptly called an "Air-Unlock" canopy, with both front and back of the cells being open. There is a slight delay on the canopy opening, as to be expected for realsm, but it still opens quick enough for you to get some fair low jumps in.
Finding locations that are high enough to base jump off of is a challenge sometimes, but rewarding when you find that perfect exit point and maybe do some proxy tracking. While this game extends so much further than just skydiving, the gameplay of the skydiving make it one of our top recommendations. As stated before, this game is definitely not for the sensitive type.
Videos of Skydiving and Base Jumping in GTA
Saints Row (Series)
Another game aimed at the maturer audience, Saints Row offers gamers the chance to do some couch base jumping. Skydiving and base jumping have been available in the series since Saints Row 2, but only in Saints Row The Third did the gameplay of parachuting become really fun. The 2013 release of Saints Row IV also saw the act of base jumping and skydiving being kept. The base jumping in Saints Row The Third is somewhat similar to that of GTA San Andreas, where the canopy is quick to open. In fact it becomes a little bit annoying just how quick they open, you are able to base jump off 50 foot objects with ease. The skydiving experience otherwise is quite standard, you're able to track your player before pulling and then control your canopy once it's open.
Unlike GTA, where your jumps are either mission related or purely because you want to throw yourself out of a plane, or off a building or cliff side - Saints Row The Third allows you to set a target once you have jumped, and steering your canopy so that you land as close to that mark as possible will earn you reputation in the game. Saints Row IV, which was only recently released also allows for naked base jumping.
If you're looking to perform dirty low jumps, buying Saints Row The Third is definitely a good option. The game is now quite old and you can pick it for quite a reasonable price.
Videos of Skydiving and Base Jumping in Saints Row
Battlefield 3
If you're looking for some skydiving game action without the senseless street violence or sexual content, then Battlefield 3 may be better option. While the Battlefield 3 campaign mode was entirely too short and didn't include skydiving in it, the multiplayer mode which is still played by thousands of people offers the ability to also both skydive or base jump. Unlike the previously mentioned games where you are in an open world environment and can joy ride to your exit points, Battlefield 3 is an intense military combat environment where you are taken on fire and in turn having to protect yourself when you are mobile. There are a good number of exit points in the game should you choose to base jump, depending on the map you're playing.
Unlike Saints Row and GTA, Battlefield 3 is set in first person view. Personally I always find first person views much more appealing, as I find that they tend to be more immersive.
There are a few large cliffs in Battlefield 3 that allow for impressive freefall times. If you have a few friends that also play the game, it is easy to arrange with them for some 3 or 4 way base jumps - or go extreme like the video below with a 64-way! With Battlefield 4 coming out in a couple months, there is still a lot up in the air about just what gameplay will be included in the new release. At this stage we will have to wait and see what they do with regards to the skydiving and basejumping in the game.
Videos of Skydiving and Base Jumping in Battlefield 3
Base Jumping
Base Jumping is a game developed by a small company called D3, though judging from their websites the name is in the process of being changed. The difference between this game the games listed above, is that this game is a dedicated BASE game, where all the focus is on the sport and not on the strippers or on shooting the enemy. Here you will be presented with exit points and a challenge for that exit point. It's been a while since I played this game, but I remember it being a little confusing to navigate at first with regards to the menus. However the gameplay is good fun and if one is looking solely for a dedicated base jumping game. It's definitely worth giving Base Jumping a try.
The "Pro Edition" is still receiving regular updates and fixes, so the game may well be better than when I had last given it a go. You can view the development update information and more information about the game itself at the development page.
It also appears the company may be working on a skydiving game similar to Base Jumping.
Videos of Base Jumping
Go! Sports - Skydiving
The Go! Sports game series has been somewhat of a disappointment with difficult to use controls and usually extremely repetitive gameplay. Go! Sports Skydiving tends to slot in with the other Go! Sports titles, but does offer a few redeeming qualities that distance it from games in the series like Go! Ski.
The game offers two general modes, there is formation skydiving where you control your model into the position to fill a formation and then there is the landing mode, which is pretty much accuracy landing. In the formation mode, while the concept doesn't seem too bad - there are several issues that cause controlling your player to be extremely frustrating at times when using the required SIXAXIS controls. The game is not unplayable by any means and can still offer the gamer some fun, but apart from the tough controls - this is the kind of game that can get old fast. The only thing that will keep a user playing is the fact that there is an online ranking system. But given the good price, it is definitely worth considering giving a go, there isn't much to lose.
Videos of Skydiving in Go! Sports - Skydiving
Which of the games listed above is your favourite for your bedroom skydiving experience? And if you know of any other skydiving or base jumping related games, let us know in the comments below. We'd love to give them a try.
Skydiving Rings in New Year on a High Note as Safety and Popularity Soars
Fredericksburg, Va., Jan. 11 -- Things are looking up for the skydiving industry.
According to the U.S. Parachute Association (USPA), America's premier skydiving association, 2007 made history as the year skydiving took a dramatic turn upward as one of the most popular adrenaline sports in the nation.
USPA reports that 2007 was one of the safest on record with 18 skydiver fatalities -- out of over 2.5 million jumps. That number surpasses a 1962 record for skydiving's fewest accidents.
Considering that in the early 1960s, USPA was only about 10% of its current size with 3,353 members and the aggregate number of jumps was considerably less than today's 2 million+ jumps, this record stands out even more as a testament to years of strict safety standards, training policies and programs.
"This has been a group effort," said Ed Scott, Executive Director of USPA. "USPA policies have been applied by every skydiver in the nation, as well as coaches, instructors, safety/training advisors, drop zone owners, riggers, pilots, manufacturers and gear distributors. We should all take pride in the strides we have made in skydiving safety the past half century."
And the good news doesn't end there. Significantly more people are taking up the sport.
USPA membership soared in 2007, with a significant number of new skydivers joining its ranks. USPA ended 2007 with more members (31,264) than the previous year for the first time since 2002. The total number of new members in 2007 was 4,900, reversing a five-year downward trend; it's also the highest number of new members since 2003.
The skydiving industry also saw an unprecedented upturn in the number of skydiving licenses issued by USPA; more than at any point in the last four years.
USPA's 2007 Skydiving Review with additional stats/demographics will be released in early spring.
USPA is dedicated to the promotion of safe skydiving nationwide, establishing strict safety standards, training policies and programs at 200+ affiliated skydiving schools/centers. The Federal Aviation Administration recognizes and supports USPA's successful leadership role in the self- regulation of skydiving.
USPA hosts the National Skydiving Championships, the sport''s largest and most exciting annual competition, October 18-25, 2008 (Skydive Arizona).
Information: 1-800-371-USPA, http://www.USPA.org.
Source: U.S. Parachute Association
Discuss it here!
Skydiving Plane Crashes near Estacada
Beaver Oaks, Oregon - A team of skydivers leaped from a crippled airplane Saturday, moments before it crashed into a stand of trees near Estacada. The four trick-parachute jumpers aboard and the pilot survived without injuries. Their small Cessna C-182 crumpled into trees near Highway 224 and burned before Estacada firefighters arrived.
The plane was flying at 10,500 feet over the “drop zone” for the parachutists. Investigators believe the second jumper’s parachute opened early as he jumped, wrapping around the plane’s tail. The plane then began to drop as the pilot lost control.
The jumper, Rick A. Liston, 46, of Clackamas, cut himself free and used his secondary parachute to escape. The other skydivers – Craig N. Wilwers, 50, of Portland; John C. Allen, 49, of Tillamook; and Chris I. Lattig, 42, of Tualatin – then bailed out. The pilot, Travis William Marshall, 23, of West Linn, followed.
The plane crashed shortly before 7 p.m., about 200 feet from Highway 224. Nobody else was hurt.
The plane belongs to an Eagle Creek man and had left a private airfield at Beaver Oaks.
The Oregon State Police and the Federal Aviation Administration are investigating. The state Department of Environmental Quality will oversee the cleanup of a small amount of fuel that spilled into a nearby pond.
Skydiving plane crash kills four
JEANNETTE, Pa. June 16 — A Father's Day skydiving trip turned tragic when a small plane crashed shortly after takeoff, killing four of the five people aboard. Witnesses told authorities they heard the Cessna 205's engine sputter and cut out before the crash about 1:15 p.m. Sunday at Greensburg-Jeannette Regional Airport.
The aircraft apparently clipped four trees when it crashed about 100 feet from the runway, said Ron Supancic, chief of the Claridge Volunteer Fire Department.
The plane is registered to Charles E. Bryant, of Greensburg, Federal Aviation Administration spokeswoman Arlene Salac said. Bryant, 61, was among the dead, Westmoreland County Coroner Kenneth A. Bacha said.
The coroner's office did not immediately identify the pilot, a 52-year-old Pittsburgh man. The other victims were David Ray, 49, of Seward, and Terry Blanish, 52, of West Newton.
"My world has fallen apart," said Marla Goodlin, 48, who was to marry Blanish next summer in Switzerland. Blanish had 15 years of skydiving experience and was approaching 2,000 jumps, she said.
Blanish, the father of three children, planned to spend Father's Day skydiving before meeting Goodlin for a boating trip, Goodlin said.
Bryant's son, Rodney, 37, said his father, who retired as a machinist about a year and a half ago, had 30 years of skydiving experience and had made more than 3,000 jumps.
Charles Bryant had operated Chuck Bryant's Skydive Bouquet in Greensburg for about 10 years and had the plane for about the same amount of time, his son said.
The plane, built in 1963 and designed for up to five passengers, had taken a skydiving flight earlier in the day and was on its second flight when it crashed, authorities said.
"That airplane was one of the best-maintained jump planes in the sport," Rodney Bryant said. The pilot was experienced and had made skydiving flights with his father before, he said.
An autopsy was to be performed on the pilot, as were toxicology tests required by the National Transportation Safety Board, he said.
The lone survivor, who had apparently been thrown from the plane, was found 10 to 15 feet from the wreckage. The extent of his injuries was not known Sunday night.
The cause of the crash is under investigation. The National Transportation Safety Board sent an investigator to the airport in Jeannette, about 20 miles southeast of Pittsburgh.
Skydiving Plane Carrying 22 Crashes in Texas
DECATUR, Texas (AP) - A single-engine plane carrying 21 skydivers and a pilot flew into turbulence and crashed shortly after takeoff from an airfield east of Decatur on Saturday, injuring five people but killing no one, the pilot and a Department of Public Safety official said. Pilot Tom Bishop, 58, said the takeoff was normal until the 1956 Dehavilland reached about 300 feet.
He said a wing was caught by a "dust devil," a whirlwind that normally travels along the ground like a small tornado and becomes visible because of the dust it sucks into the air.
"It just got under my left wing and rolled the plane to the right. I counter-acted with the rudder and aileron in the opposite direction, but there wasn't enough altitude to recover," said Bishop. The pilot said he had flown for 45 years - 30 for Delta Air Lines.
Bishop said he planned to climb to 14,000 feet, the altitude from which the skydivers would jump.
One of the skydivers was in the cockpit with him and was unconscious after impact, Bishop said.
"We got everyone else out. I didn't know what was wrong with him, just that he wasn't breathing, and I began giving him mouth-to-mouth resuscitation. Then I noticed his seat belt seemed to be cutting off his air, and when I released that, he immediately took a breath," said Bishop, who suffered a broken rib.
Bishop and his wife, Jean, own Skydive Texas which is based at Bishop Airport, a private airfield east of Decatur, about 40 miles north of Fort Worth. She was not aboard the plane.
"It was traumatic. But I was expecting to see a lot worse," said Danny Timmons, a jumpmaster who was in the hangar at the private field from which the plane took off.
Timmons said he heard the crash at about 12:30 p.m. and ran three-quarters of a mile through mud, losing both shoes, to find most of the skydivers already out of the plane.
Timmons said if anyone had been flying but Bishop, who flew competition aerobatics for 10 years, "I believe there would be dead people. He brought it down in the safest manner he could."
Timmons said most of those on the plane were experienced skydivers who jump each weekend. He said injuries were mostly broken legs and ribs.
Texas DPS spokeswoman Tela Mange said the injured were taken to hospitals by helicopter. One person was listed in serious condition, three were stable and one was fair, she said.
"My heart just fell," said Renee Thrasher, a Bishop family friend who drove to the crash site. "They're wonderful family friends. Jean has been there when I've needed anything. The whole family has."
Marty Deiss, who lives less than a mile from the field, said she had seen many skydiving trips taking off and landing. "I would have no problem flying with them," she said.
Skydiving Gift Ideas for Christmas 2016
It's that time of the year again, where we pull out the credit card and bite the bullet to bring some festive joy to our friends and family. But we've spoken to the guys over at Para Gear and ChutingStar and had them send us over some options for Christmas gifts that will get your family or friends grinning without breaking your bank.
Golden Sky Closing Pin Earrings - $40
These custom Golden Sky Closing Pins Earrings are like no other.
Available in Sterling Silver, 14kt Yellow Gold and 14kt White Gold. Earrings are 1" in length.
Sterling Silver earrings in stock. Turnaround time for the 14kt Gold closing pin earrings is approximately two weeks as these are made to order by Golden Sky Jewelry.
Available at ChutingStar
GoPro LCD Touch Bacpac - $79.99
The LCD Touch BacPac™ is a removable LCD touch screen for GoPro Hero3, Hero3+, or Hero4 cameras. (*Limited compatibility with original HD Hero and HD Hero2 cameras, requires firmware update. Touch functionality is not compatible with HD Hero2 and older cameras).
As a removable accessory, the LCD BacPac keeps your camera as small and light as possible, yet provides the convenience of an LCD screen when attached. Camera not included.
*US Only
Available at Para-Gear
LEGO Skydiver / BASE Jumper - $9
The perfect companion for the home or office of any skydiver or BASE jumper.
This LEGO minifigure is all geared-up to jump, and that adrenaline is coursing through his body. Time to jump!
This is an official LEGO Skydiver/BASE Jumper Minifigure. The packaging has been opened to verify it is the skydiver, but the item is brand new.
Available at ChutingStar
Limited Edition Robin's Egg Blue Alti-2 Altimaster Galaxy Altimeter Gift Package - From $161
Unique . . . Thoughtful . . . Perfect!
Every gift giver wants to hear those words from the skydiver they love after the present is opened and the treasure inside is revealed. Just in time for the holidays, we have made your shopping effortless! This limited edition galaxy makes a perfect holiday gift.
Fresh out of the Alti-2 workshop: a Limited Edition Altimaster Galaxy. Crafted exclusively in Robin's Egg Blue with a Swarovski Crystal pointer setting, this once in a lifetime offering is limited to 100 altimeters. It comes elegantly wrapped in a matching color gift box to add style to any occasion.
Available at Para-Gear
Available at ChutingStar
Cookie G3 Helmet - $379
Welcome to the G3 headgear, Cookies latest release full-face headgear and a result of significant refinement of the previous full-face headgear.
The G3 features the original VMech Visor Locking System that works unlike any other in the industry. The system makes for easy opening and positive locking of the headgear visor.
The visor is 2mm polycarbonate and features a complex curved design for extra strength, unsurpassed field of view and an anti-fog coating.
The headgear's cinching system is simple and secure, adjustment can be made to customize the headgear fit and once locked down just throw the headgear on and jump.
Available at Para-Gear
ChutingStar eGift Card - From $25
The ChutingStar eGift Card is the perfect gift for your buddy, family member or sweetheart! Available in any denomination and it never expires. The ChutingStar eGift Card is sent via e-mail and can be used at anytime for any products online at ChutingStar.com.
Vouchers available from $25 to $1000
Available at ChutingStar
PG Headgear Bag - $35
The PG Headgear Bag is designed for today’s full-faced headgear. Made from cordura. It features a padded contoured shape to snugly fit most full-face headgear, a clip strap for easy hanging, strong zippers, and a protective pocket for gloves, goggles, altimeter, etc.
Available at Para-Gear
Parachuting Flipping Santa Musical Christmas Ornament - $19
This large parachuting Santa Claus sings Jingle Bells while he performs front flips and back flips under a round parachute! The perfect skydiver Christmas ornament!
Available at ChutingStar
Kroops I.K.91 Goggles - $24.95
The I.K. 91 is an ultra lightweight and very comfortable goggle. The multilayer foam sinks into your face like a soft pillow making it very easy to wear for long periods of time. The spherical lens gives you a great distortion free view with totally unobstructed peripheral vision.
The mirrored blue and the red lens color is a gradient to provide sun protection from above while still allowing you to see the ground clearly below. The narrow headband easily fits over or under your headgear.
Available at Para-Gear
Happy shopping!
Skydiving From a Drone - A World First
The world’s first human jump from the drone is accomplished
Latvians have accomplished the world’s first human flight with the drone and jump at high altitude. On May 12, a 28-propeller drone built by Aerones has lifted a skydiver Ingus Augstkalns at a height of 330 metres, from where he accomplished the planned jump and landing with the parachute.
Successful achievement shows the reliability and lifting-ability of the drone technology that approves unlimited possibilities for its use in saving people, fire-fighting, sports and entertainment.
Ingus Augstkalns, an author of the idea and skydiver: “Emotions are fantastic. Both feeling how easily and quickly the drone lifted me, and because Latvia proves itself in innovations of technology. It is obvious that we will experience an increasingly important use of drone in our everyday life. Definitely also my friends skydivers all over the world will be excited about these new opportunities. We live in an exciting time.”
Jānis Putrāms, a chief engineer of Aerones and a pilot of the drone: “Already in the near future, our technology will save human lives, will help to fight fires and carry out other challenging and significant work. With this project, we show that we are ready for serious tasks in the field of civil defence and sports.”
The jump was accomplished in Māļi, rural area of Amata, Latvia, in cooperation with the State JSC Latvian State Radio and Television Centre (hereinafter -– LVRTC), whose communications tower of 120m was used as a platform for the jumper. In order to reduce potential risks, the drone took the jumper from the tower of 120m and then lifted up in the height intended for the jump.
Preparations lasted six months, at which time the payload of the drone increased up to 200 kg and a number of tests were carried out, including the flights with the jumper over the river Daugava.
Aerones is the Latvian drone manufacturer that is focused on the development of drones with high lifting power.
Ingus Augstkalns is an experienced skydiver and a wind tunnel flyer. He also is a co-founder of innovative technologies companies AERODIUM Technologies, Cube and Captomatic.
We thank our partners Latvian State Radio and Television Centre, FILMORY, FlyVision, SABI, f64, AERODIUM, Civil Aviation Agency and Skydive Latvia for cooperation and support for project implementation.
Editor's Note: With the exit altitude being just 330 meters, some may consider this more of a BASE jump than a skydive. Whatever you classify it as, we classify it as awesome.
www.aerones.com
www.facebook.com/aeronescom
www.twitter.com/aerones_com
Skydiving couple tell of Tandem Emergency
A SKYDIVER who plummeted 13,000ft to earth with his bride after their main parachute failed to open spoke yesterday about the accident. Kevin McIlwee, 47, said from his hospital bed in France: "I didn't have time to think whether we were going to get through it or not."
He said, however, that as he fought to control the descent over the town of Vannes in Brittany, he confided to his wife of six weeks, Beverley, 44, who was strapped in front of him: "We might not make it."
Watching colleagues did not expect them to survive, but the couple, who had regularly skydived in tandem, crash-landed on grass, escaping with severe leg injuries.
Mr McIlwee, a maths teacher from De la Salle College, Jersey, said that their main parachute failed to open at the regulation 5,000ft when they made their jump on Sunday.
He said: "I found I just couldn't jettison the chute. I tried to engage the reserve chute but the two couldn't fly side by side."
Mr McIlwee, a skydiving instructor who has made more than 4,000 jumps, said: "The parachutes were continually tangling and I was doing my best to control them. I have no idea at what speed we hit the ground. We were very lucky. We could have been a lot worse."
Mr McIlwee suffered a badly broken leg and his wife, the manager of the Seabird Hotel chain in Jersey, suffered broken bones in both feet, and a broken knee and shin bone. The couple are expected to travel home to Jersey by air ambulance in about a week.
Mrs McIlwee, who has enjoyed skydiving for about five years, told her father, Dennis Murtaugh, by telephone that she intended to give up the sport. She has had metal plates inserted in her legs and will be in a wheelchair for many weeks.
Mr Murtaugh, 67, a theatre critic from Burnley, said: "She said she felt so lucky to be alive. She's usually such a bubbly person, but was understandably talking in a weak tone. She was very shook up, and was only just starting to realise that what had happened could have cost her life."
"She said she was looking out of the window from her hospital bed enjoying seeing the daylight and the birds outside."
Mr Murtaugh added: "Kevin is a hell of a fellow, and he knows what he is doing. I put it down to his experience as a skydiving expert that they are here today at all. It's a God-given miracle that they are both alive."
Skydiving and the Recession
I have noticed in my travels that many drop zones are a little slow these days.
The student numbers are down, and we are blaming it on the economy. We have
convinced ourselves that there is no way to get blood from a stone, and if the
students feel broke, they will not want to spend the money to jump out of an
airplane. I’m not buying it.
It is true that the world is caught up in negative thinking. It is true that people are scared. But the question I would ask is this: What do people want more than anything in a time of worry? They want a feeling of release. They need to let go of their mundane perspective, filled with
limitations, and do something that shifts them into a state of absolute joy. We have exactly what they need.
So, now that we know we have the solution to all the world’s problems, we have a job to do. Unfortunately, just because someone needs something doesn’t necessarily mean they will take it. We need to get the horse to water, but we also need to make them want to drink. In other words, we
need to inspire them. In order to do that, we need to tap into our own authentic inspiration.
Do you remember what it is about skydiving that you love? If you are like me, there are a great many things. There is the social aspect; the people that skydive are the coolest bunch of weirdoes that I have ever met. If the world was made up of just skydivers, life on this planet would be a lot more fun. Then there is the unbridled euphoria that we experience when we are up there. Let’s face it, there are very few experiences that make a person feel like that. Beyond that, there is the never-ending process of learning that makes
us realize that we are not done living. The more you learn, the more you want to learn. It is this kind of passion for more that draws a person out of the depressing feeling of “today is yesterday” into a deep desire to push forward
into the exploration of what is possible.
Once we reconnect with our true love of skydiving, all we need to do is share that feeling selflessly and fearlessly. There he goes again, droning on about fear. Yes, fear is the only thing that is holding us back from talking about skydiving with everyone we meet. Yes, part of what stops us from bringing it up is because we get a bit tired of the feeling of rejection when a die-hard whuffo gives us that eyes-rolled-back “you are crazy” look. If you think about it though, even that aversion has fear at its root. We are afraid of the feeling of rejection.
If you hate being told that you are afraid, as I do, you will get off your ass and talk about skydiving to strangers. You will accept that you are in love with the whole thing, and come out of the closet. You know that this is the source of your joy. The more you talk about it, the happier you will be. Hang posters at work and hold informational meetings, perhaps with a few short videos and a real rig for them to see. Sit in a booth at a fair or university and talk about the experience to those who have not yet been there. You will be deeply glad you did.
Then I often get the response: “what’s in it for me?” My DZ doesn’t have a finders-fee for bringing in new students. I’ll tell you what’s in it for you. You will get to be your higher self more often than before. You will get to keep your head in the clouds by talking about your true passion. As a secondary benefit, you will inevitably bring in more students. They will help to pay for the aircraft, the repairs to the hangar, the new bunkhouse at the DZ, the new fire pit, the new creeper-pad and even keep the jump prices reasonable despite rising gas prices. Imagine that.
We can alter the worldwide trend toward fear-driven hoarding, at least in our little corner of the world. We have the antidote to fear and unhappiness. All we need to do is remember what we have, and share it. The world is in your hands. Get out there and be yourself!
--BSG
Transcending Fear Specialist Brian
Germain is the author of several books, including Transcending Fear,
Green Light Your Life, The Parachute and its Pilot, and Vertical
Journey. His psychology background, combined with over 14,000 parachute
jumps makes Brian uniquely qualified to discuss the important and pivotal topic
that he refers to as “Adrenalin Management”. Learn more about Brian Germain
here:
www.GermainSeminars.com
and here:
www.CanopyFlightInstructor.com