normiss 644 #26 August 4, 2006 thanks Tink for that VERY informative post. maybe it's worth a few box more a jump ticket for the increased leg room! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
marcandalysse 0 #27 August 4, 2006 Quotemaybe I have a screwed up perspective hmmm....what makes you think that? Too much hanging around the church of muffmuffmuff? "The reason angels can fly is that they take themselves so lightly." --GK Chesterton Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
happythoughts 0 #28 August 4, 2006 Quote1. Consecutive lack of specialty aircraft and departure of well liked specialty aircraft (Bell 412, B-17, etc...). I agree. That is probably the largest contributor. Amost every dz has an Otter now. Why travel? I was talking to Johnny yesterday. Next year, we are going to revive the Jet 10-way speed competition by organizing it in advance. That was a huge draw. The last time we did it, the all-girls team even did two jumps. I always did 3 or 4 jumps out of the Bell 412. I have jumped the B-17. It is prohibitively expensive. $350 at the time. I doubt it gets a lot of repeat business. "Nah...I did that last year." Having a jet at Rantoul may make things happen. WFFC at Quincy died because the Quincy locals took our great skydiver party and made it their sucky party. Rantoul is a different place. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
flyangel2 2 #29 August 5, 2006 QuoteI was talking to Johnny yesterday. Next year, we are going to revive the Jet 10-way speed competition by organizing it in advance. That was a huge draw. The last time we did it, the all-girls team even did two jumps. Yes, yes! Bring it back. I've always been a part of the girly team for the ten way competition. I remember that year that we jumped twice. We were just trying to improve our time. Some day we'll take 1st placeMay your trails be crooked, winding, lonesome, dangerous, leading to the most amazing view. May your mountains rise into and above the clouds. - Edward Abbey Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
SUPERConnie 0 #30 August 5, 2006 A boogie is only as much fun as the people that are there, reguardless of what the attendance is or what jumpships are there. If you can't have a good time skydiving...go bowling. Quit cha bitching. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
tbrown 26 #31 August 5, 2006 QuoteQuoteCobain made contributions to WHAT??? A drug consuming rock star offers me very little in society or culture...but that is an issue I have with parts of our foolish attitudes toward them to start with! I've never understood that... His band pioneered a new genre of music and wrote songs that will forever stand as pop cultural icons of their day. Those are contributions to culture and society, whether you appreciate them or not. If we were to remove all the art from the museums and silence all the music ever composed, or the drama ever performed, or the literature ever written by people with drug or alcohol problems, the museums would be empty, the concert halls and theaters silent, and the libraries empty. Not to condone unhealthy habits, but they're just not the ultimate criteria for judging anyone's life work. A world without Beatles, Louis Armstrong, Oscar Wilde, Van Gogh or Gaguin, or books like Mary Shelley's "Frankenstein" would be a dull ugly world to live in. Your humble servant.....Professor Gravity ! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
JohnMitchell 14 #32 August 5, 2006 Quote you even sure he committted suicide? Courtney killed Curt . . . . Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
brenthutch 390 #33 August 5, 2006 I'm not bitching. I was just feeling a bit melancholy, recalling the good times that I had in the past with friends from around the world that I only met once a year. Like someone said, "it is what it is and it aint what it aint." I'm just sad that it aint what it was, and I thought that the good doctor Thompson summed up my feelings nicely. Hutch Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
BirdBabe1 0 #34 August 5, 2006 I understand exactly what you're saying. My feelings about past WFFC's, skydiving experiences, and loss of certain friends can be summed up in Bryan Adams' song, "Summer of '69". Things change, but life is not over yet... there are more experiences to come. Olivia ... soon to be Olivia Thompson :) Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
cloudseeker2001 0 #35 August 5, 2006 Quoteyou know what, I will skydive till i die, and until then you will never meet me at the WFFC I've seen too many videos with mains on the tails of otters, and super retarded landing patterns where people ram your canopy and destroy it to ever want to expose myself to that shit. p.s. dude Hunter had drug problems and eventually killed himself is that the line of thinking you want to follow? This was a great post until you slam'd HST. I have read every one of his books, most more than once, and I think your statement is obtuse to say the least.........if you do a little reading, and discover who HST really was, you may be surprised. "Some call it heavenly in it's brilliance, others mean and rueful of the western dream" Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
kallend 1,680 #36 August 5, 2006 QuoteQuoteNew things came along with a fresher approach (Freak Brothers/WFFC for example) and that's where people ended up going for a variety of reasons. Now, the cycle has come around again ind it's time to move on to the next big thing. You know Skyfest had record attendence this year. It was a great time too. Side note about boogies in general: You know anymore it seems that the only people that are getting excited about specialty AC are the low time jumpers that haven't jumped something different then whats at their home DZ. Summerfest is up too, as far as I can tell (I don;t have official numbers, just going by observation of airplane activity). However, USPA membership is down over 10% from five years ago.... The only sure way to survive a canopy collision is not to have one. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
gofast_ER 0 #37 August 5, 2006 Quote skydiving will be around until the Sun goes supernova. UNLESS we get hit by a meteor before that happens. Also, the moon is moving away from us at 1/4 inch a year if I remember right. Once it gets far enough away it's supposed to make the Earth go off it's axis and some junk. Then some bad stuff will happen. Im guess we still have a few years before that happens though.I may not agree with what you have to say but i'll defend to the death your right to say it. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
streaker 0 #38 August 10, 2006 I had a blast at WFFC! Loved the DC9! Enjoyed the parties (too much sometimes). I'll be back....I'm lookin' forward to Couch Freaks. Jay, may even make it to Dallas next summer. Beautiful Landings, StreakerHave a yippee ki ya day! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
skybytch 259 #39 August 10, 2006 Quote you know what, I will skydive till i die, and until then you will never meet me at the WFFC Your loss. If I hadn't gone to WFFC three times, I would have missed out on meeting numerous people I now count as friends. Those friends are far more special to me than any skydive I've done at a boogie is. QuoteI've seen too many videos with mains on the tails of otters, and super retarded landing patterns where people ram your canopy and destroy it to ever want to expose myself to that shit. That argument doesn't wash. You can (and if you haven't yet, probably will in the future) see mains on the tail of planes and super retarded landing patterns at regular dz's on regular jump weekends. If that kind of stuff scares you enough to keep you away from WFFC... well, perhaps you should limit your jumping to solos out of Cessnas. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
billvon 2,476 #40 August 10, 2006 >Also, the moon is moving away from us at 1/4 inch a year if I remember right. It's getting closer actually. Eventually it will get to geosync orbit, and the earth will become tide-locked to the moon. At which point tides will stop, but the overall system will actually get more stable. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
bobg7878 0 #41 August 13, 2006 Now your talking! I have been skydiving now for over 21 years. And have been going to Quincy/Rantoul WFFC since 1987. Life is what you make of it, and Skydiving and meeting friends at the WWFC is what you make of it as well. I had an absolute blast!!!!The DC9 jet, and fun jumps this year at Rantoul will always hold a special place in my memory! blue skys! bob g Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Meux 0 #42 August 13, 2006 My observation is that while skydiving numbers are down from previous times, the sport is getting better. Look at what has happened in the last year. A new record at Lake Wales involving CRW. The new record from Thailand with 400 people jumping from 25,000'. People are now talking of putting 500 together!! Outrageous!! There was a new head down record of some crazy number like 63 or something. Every time I go to the wind tunnel I see people doing amazing things. Recently I had the chance to jump from a plane made for skydiving, the PAC 750. That is pretty cool, Somebody feels strongly enough about the future of this sport to develop and sell a plane like that. From where I see it, this sport will keep me engaged for many years before I get bored with it and move on. I wanted to return to WFFC but didn't mainly because that ultra rich girl I'm looking to marry hasn't found me to fund me yet. I'm saving my dollars to do other jumping that is more significant to my skydiving goals. I'd love to do SkyFest, WFFC, all the POPS events, etc. etc. There just aren't days and dollars enough. As your attorney, I advise you to drink heavily. (Fear and Loathing) It's all good. Looking forward to jumping with all ya'll. At a boogie or not. MH Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
azdiver 0 #43 August 13, 2006 heel i would love to go to all the boogies but they happen at the wrong time of year for me,march to oct its balls to the walls in construction taking 2weeks or more off could cost me 10k or more and that will pay for alot of jumpslight travels faster than sound, that's why some people appear to be bright until you hear them speak Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
bob.dino 0 #44 August 13, 2006 Quoteheel i would love to go to all the boogies but they happen at the wrong time of year for me,march to oct its balls to the walls in construction taking 2weeks or more off could cost me 10k or more and that will pay for alot of jumps There's good boogies over Christmas in the more Southern states (Eloy and Z-hills come to mind), never minding other countries - Picton in Australia has a huge Christmas boogie every year... Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
soberamprat 0 #45 August 14, 2006 Quote>Also, the moon is moving away from us at 1/4 inch a year if I remember right. It's getting closer actually. Eventually it will get to geosync orbit, and the earth will become tide-locked to the moon. At which point tides will stop, but the overall system will actually get more stable. Nope it is moving away at about 1" a year just watch a nova show that said that http://www.swoopstudios.com/videos/videos-rex.php Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
DancesWClouds 0 #46 August 14, 2006 Quote If we were to remove all the art from the museums and silence all the music ever composed, or the drama ever performed, or the literature ever written by people with drug or alcohol problems, the museums would be empty, the concert halls and theaters silent, and the libraries empty. Not to condone unhealthy habits, but they're just not the ultimate criteria for judging anyone's life work. A world without Beatles, Louis Armstrong, Oscar Wilde, Van Gogh or Gaguin, or books like Mary Shelley's "Frankenstein" would be a dull ugly world to live in. I'll drink to that! *Toasts* GRRRR! Damn joint went out again!!! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
