davjohns 1 #26 February 9, 2012 Quote Quote The US Army is sending me to England. What do I need to know? Are they going to recognize my parachuting license? Hang gliding license? Driver license? I know they aren't going to be happy about my gun collection. What about swords? Anything is appreciated. David OK... I've been following this thread a bit. I'm amazed that no one has called this guy on his bullshit!! If you want to meet Nataly, just say so. This is, without a doubt, the worst pickup line/story ever! lol - You lose. I am married to a beautiful woman that I am very much in love with. Thanks for all the responses.I know it just wouldnt be right to kill all the stupid people that we meet.. But do you think it would be appropriate to just remove all of the warning labels and let nature take its course. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
keithbar 1 #27 February 9, 2012 Your licences will be fine and accepted but you will have to take out BPA membership which is £116 for the year. O.K. but what's that in real money. and don't give me any of that euro crap in us dollars? ducking and running from flames i have on occasion been accused of pulling low . My response. Naw I wasn't low I'm just such a big guy I look closer than I really am . Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
skydog 2 #28 February 9, 2012 Given the current rate approx $183 (don't shoot the messenger!!!)Journey not destination..... Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
shropshire 0 #29 February 9, 2012 Quote Your licences will be fine and accepted but you will have to take out BPA membership which is £116 for the year. O.K. but what's that in real money. and don't give me any of that euro crap in us dollars? ducking and running from flames You realise that £ and Euros are different right? (.)Y(.) Chivalry is not dead; it only sleeps for want of work to do. - Jerome K Jerome Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
piisfish 135 #30 February 9, 2012 Quote You realise that £ and € are different right? FIFY for the hang-glider thing www.bhpa.co.uk/visiting_pilots.phpscissors beat paper, paper beat rock, rock beat wingsuit - KarlM Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
obelixtim 100 #31 February 9, 2012 QuoteIf you were treated that bad then name names and places rather than generalise. That way people can make a informed choice? Well Nataly, on this very thread, seems to agree with me about the skydiving, for a start.... I'm a big boy, so some rudeness bounces off me pretty easily, but it wasn't hard to pick up the negative vibes at the places I visited. Its not good form to be so specific on a public forum, but lets just say the 3 DZ's I visited were all in the South East. They were all equally bad in their lack of ambience and willingness to get on with jumping. The malaise I'm talking about is an institutional thing, which pervades the whole of British skydiving, rooted in the attitudes of the BPA hierarcy, a bunch of self servers dedicated to preserving their status as guardians of the sport and gravely concerned with minutae.....at the expense of promoting skydiving as an adventure activity for all to enjoy.. They seem to have an attitude that stifles and obstructs skydiving at every turn....big on "You can't do that" Rather than "make it happen". Skydiving is approached in a very negative way, rather than positively, as it should be. This has resulted in many good British skydivers voting with their feet, as evidenced by the many I have met at various DZ's across the world who are consistent in their criticism of the way skydiving is run in GB. I've had a good few PM's on this forum from others who agree with my views. I realise that there are some great individuals, and possibly some good DZ's that I may have missed, but to me overall, British skydiving does not come across in a good light, especially compared to many other countries (9 at last count) I have visited and jumped at, since I started back in 1974.... It is, by some margin, the worst. The BPA's status as the governing body in GB needs to be challenged and an organisation with the interests of its members at heart needs to be set up to run things. Till then it'll never change... But I'm sure you'll feel free to disagree...My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing.... Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
skydog 2 #32 February 9, 2012 I disagree.....Journey not destination..... Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
obelixtim 100 #33 February 9, 2012 QuoteI disagree..... I'm glad you are happy to maintain the status quo....because on a personal level it won't affect me in the least.... I do feel sorry for British skydivers who have to live with it though.My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing.... Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Nataly 38 #34 February 9, 2012 QuoteQuoteIf you were treated that bad then name names and places rather than generalise. That way people can make a informed choice? Well Nataly, on this very thread, seems to agree with me about the skydiving, for a start.... Well, I am sorry to say that I experienced a lot of the "bad vibes" you describe in the UK... (I went to 6 different DZ's - some better than others.) However, I will say this: it's easy to laugh, chill out and generally enjoy the sport when you have good weather, cheap jumps, and big planes... It's also easier to hone your skills if you're able to jump 10 times per day pretty much every day of the year... This is not the case in the UK, and I believe a lot of the "problems" stem from this."There is no problem so bad you can't make it worse." - Chris Hadfield « Sors le martinet et flagelle toi indigne contrôleuse de gestion. » - my boss Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Melliandra 0 #35 February 9, 2012 It seems to me whatever country you go to there will be good dropzones and there will be bad dropzones. Also within a dropzone there will be good people for the sport and there will be bad. The BPA does not control the people you meet at a DZ, nor does it have any influence over the reception you get from the staff there. People need to learn to vote with their feet but also not damn an entire country's jumping scene just because of a few people or a single dz experience. I had bad experiences due to individuals at 3 UK dz's about 4 years ago, I've since been back to 2 of them and was pleasantly suprised at the completely different experience. It all depends on who you meet and how you let it affect you. To the OP: Do you know where you are going to be based? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ianmdrennan 2 #36 February 9, 2012 Hit up a friend of mine, Stewart Meacock - he's a CCI out there and I'm sure he'll help with any questions you may have. Also, be warned, they are STICKLERS for rules/log books, etc - so make sure your paperwork is in order. Even being on the team, I still had to provide a good amount of info and documents before I could jump. https://www.facebook.com/people/Stuart-Meacock/784699329 Blues, IanPerformance Designs Factory Team Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
skydog 2 #37 February 10, 2012 QuoteQuoteI disagree..... I do feel sorry for British skydivers who have to live with it though. Not half as sorry as I feel for the Sports jumpers in NZ......who don't even get a look in at the majority of DZ's.Journey not destination..... Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
obelixtim 100 #38 February 10, 2012 QuoteQuoteQuoteI disagree..... I do feel sorry for British skydivers who have to live with it though. Not half as sorry as I feel for the Sports jumpers in NZ......who don't even get a look in at the majority of DZ's. The golden days of NZ sport jumping are long gone, you missed them. NZ sport jumpers shot themselves in the foot years ago when they tried for many years to get the then fledgling commercial operations to subsidise their jumping to the tune of taxing every operator $5.00 per student/tandem. They tried this on at federation meetings for years, despite being told that the commercial operators would break away and form their own organisation..... Guess what?. It came to pass. And ensued that the bad blood generated meant they were not that welcome any more... They had plenty of opportunities with big aircraft and good facilities popping up.... But then they couldn't organise themselves to take full advantage of those facilities. One of the operators in Taupo organised quite a few sport meets, with some world class skydivers attending....but that didn't last long. Another reason for that is that all of the most experienced skydivers got into commercial operations, so the expertise was lost to the sport scene. And commercial operators do have to work to make their money. The incentive to do sport jumps just isn't there....especially when they've been there, done that, got the T shirt.... So sport jumping is not that good, but I think you'll find that is the case in many parts of the world. The NZ skydiving population just isn't big enough to support a big, sport only DZ. There are plenty of good aircraft available though, all those sporties have to do is organise themselves.....My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing.... Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
