R00tj00se 0 #26 January 22, 2002 *This is bullshit. Half the people that drive or ride horses haven't had a friend that has died in the activity. Skydiving isn't as dangerous as a lot of people think, but it isn't as safe as a lot of skydivers like to say it is.*Er, ever heard of percentages? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
scottbre 0 #27 January 22, 2002 QuoteSo I say "Nah. If I wanted adrenaline I'd BASE jump." So of course they ask if I would and I reply "Absolutely."Nah. You'd have to be crazy to BASE jump. That's just insane. "Let the rabbits wear glasses. . . " Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
3fLiEr 0 #28 January 22, 2002 Wife?New Rig?Is this not like "well i would but................" just like whuffos say about skydiving.............. does this not make you just a BASE jump whuffo where people laugh at you?!?!?Wife = dont tell her..........Rig = BASE rigs are cheaper than skydive rigs - dont skydive as much and buy one............My point = We are all Whuffos in one way or another!!!!bsbd"In a world where we are slaves to gravity I am pleased to be a freedom fighter" Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Zennie 0 #29 January 22, 2002 QuoteWife = dont tell her..........You're obviously not married. Wives know everything....QuoteRig = BASE rigs are cheaper than skydive rigs - dont skydive as much and buy one............I actually have a line on one and I'm seriosuly considering getting it and hatching some sort of scheme to be plausibly absent some night.QuoteMy point = We are all Whuffos in one way or another!!!!No. I haven't done it because I fear the beatings from my wife far more than anything that might happen on the BASE jump itself. I know why people BASE and I find it appealing. I just can't (at least not openly) and keep my marriage intact. Maybe it isn't for others, but my marriage is very important to me. That's a different issue than "whuffo you jump off dem antennae?""Zero Tolerance: the politically correct term for zero thought, zero common sense." Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jfields 0 #30 January 22, 2002 Heh. I would end up much more broken from the beating than I would in a bad landing. And like Zennie said, some of us find our marriages important.I also disagree about not going BASE jumping being like not skydiving. There is nowhere within a thousand miles that I can do it legally, except once a year for Bridge Day if/when it resumes. I know that the illegality is one of the draws, but for many reasons, that is the very issue that holds some skydivers from doing it.Your chances of getting caught and arrested BASE jumping are substantial if you do it enough. Where I live (near Wash. DC), I don't think there are a lot of remote cliffs suitable for jumping. So that leaves the usual variety of trespassing options. I have no objection to other people doing that, but I'm not ready to call my wife to bail me out and then pay the fines. Getting arrested can be a career-stopper for some people, where others would have no problem working with a bunch of misdemeanor arrests.I'm not anti-BASE. I think equating not doing it to being a whuffo is a little skewed. Just another $.02.Justin Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
3fLiEr 0 #31 January 22, 2002 I think equating not doing it to being a whuffo is a little skewed. just making a point in "I would but.............." as many whuffos do about skydiving as mentioned earlier............... just a point being made................... I know many that say yeah I would ............. but they dont spend the time reading and learning about it that would help them one day get to the exit point........................ read the Blinc board.............. BASE'rs call skydivers whuffos............. its all relative!!! - thats my point............bsbd"In a world where we are slaves to gravity I am pleased to be a freedom fighter" Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
skyhawk 2 #32 January 22, 2002 i laugh cause most of the the wuffos that ask the stupid questions a. dont wont to listen and b. think they know it all they just try to be cool ive got into arguments with ppl that had never jumped befor but they where sure they knew what they where talking about.ive told lots of ppl a bout skydiving seriously you can just tell when they are acctually interested ive had 1 jump so far and another 2 trying to get enough money(o)(o) Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Alienangel 0 #33 January 22, 2002 where is the Blinc board? I'd quite enjoy hearing BASErs slagging skydivers for being whuffos....quite funny...better than WORKING anyway! AAAARGH! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Snowbird 0 #34 January 22, 2002 As a very recent whuffo I'd like to thank Koyne at Okanagan skydive, who took 5 minutes to answer my 'annoying' whuffo questions. Two years ago he was shopping where I work, wearing a jacket that declared him a skydiver. Wow, I was green with envy. I asked, I'm sure, the standard 'stupid' questions. Now, I already had been thinking about trying it out. I'd watched the Canadian Skyhawks, and a skydiving demo at an airshow, and the bug had got into me. But some checking had revealed the $'s neccesary to get started and I just didn't feel I could spend the money. I had a new mortgage, truck repairs, blah blah blah. So I asked Koyne about skydiving. He didn't know that I'd been thinking about it already, but he answered my questions. The vicarious thrill of talking to a 'real skydiver' began to be replaced by first person feelings and facts. It took five minutes of his life and occupied hours of mine. Yes it took two years for the desire to blossom and the money woes to lessen. Yes maybe he went away thinking 'She'll never do it, what a waste of time'. But it happened and I can't imagine having missed this and he was a big part of the path that got me skyborn.So every time a friend asks a question that sounds a lot like the ones I was asking just a few months ago, I answer as best I can cause maybe they will do it, and it's worth my five minutes if they do. And while not everyone I talk to may not agree with my choice, my friends and family who matter respect that I'm doing it and support it. I don't give a rats ass what anyone else thinks.And saying, 'if they really want to do it, they'll find a DZ and check it out,' is bull. I'd checked out the cost and options, and that actually held me off. My next source was a real person, and his willingness to talk made the difference. A lot of whuffo questions are honest misconceptions; why make them worse by being a smartass?No one soars too high, who soars on his own wings. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
TheMarshMan1 0 #35 January 22, 2002 I try not to laugh at whuffos, but I have to agree with the reasons of the people that do. They ask, but dont want to know. They say, "oh, I've always wanted to do that" but never do. Theres a difference between whuffos, and someone who is truely interested in becoming a part of our sport. Sometimes I think whuffos ask stupid questions just to insult us, other times, it seems that they are just plain ignorant. On the other hand, for someone who is truely interested in the sport, the only stupid question is the one you didnt ask (but wish you did as your burning through 1,000 ft. every 5 seconds or so). I do not think that it is hard to distinguish between the two at all. And the one whuffo comment that makes me want to laugh and insult every whuffo that says it is: "How hard can it be to fall through the air?" or the one my dad uses to piss me off: "Oh, I could do that". I used to waste my time trying to describe to them what its like when they would say something like: "well, it would be cool once, but whats the point of doing it so much?" I've gotten over trying to do that...now I just tell them they wouldnt understand unless they tried it. Oh well. Their loss... -Marshall Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
billvon 2,443 #36 January 22, 2002 >I've said it before on here and I guess I'll say it again; jumping out of aeroplanes doesn't make you a better person. >it just makes you someone who jumps out of aeroplanes. Get over it.It does make you a different person, though. It's quite true that there are a lot of people out there who look at the world like we do, but it is far, far from a majority. We do something that requires skill on every single jump to save your own life. Some of us are trained to save other people's lives as well. This has a pretty dramatic effect on our view of the world, and while that doesn't make us gods, we would do well to keep in mind that most people out there see the world completely differently than we do. Better? That's a judgement call. Someone could argue worse, because we risk our lives more than most people, and that's certainly not smart. But definitely different.-bill von Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
JDBoston 0 #37 January 22, 2002 Have you guys ever had a question about fall rates? Some people get totally fixated on that one piece of their first high school physics class about a rock and a feather falling the same rate (in a VACUUM). They can't understand how mass (i.e. weight belts) affects fall rate. I usually don't bother with the physics explanation. I just tell them that it does. Curious if that was a common question. Plus, this weekend I had two separate people ask me how far up you go when the parachute opens. Ahhhhhh.......Joe Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
wildblue 4 #38 January 22, 2002 QuoteI sometimes tell people who ask what my closing pin necklace is that it's a religous symbol...makes sense to me atleast.No no no... it's an old Pamalayian symbol for "Closure"Hehe.. PEBKAC.. haven't heard that one in awhile. I always like DEU, or ID-ten-TAnyway.. I don't think most people laugh at wuffo's to their face, they just add another good story to the list to tell their friends. It does happen in other areas of life. I usually give them a few seconds, answer them truthfully, and see if they want to do a tandem. Here's the funny thing - almost all these conversations start with the exact same wording. "Wow! What's it like? I could never do that!"I've never understood the "I could never do that" part. Why not?!I ain't happy, I'm feeling gladI got sunshine, in a bag Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
magicmx5 0 #39 January 22, 2002 I answer questions all day long to my friends about skydiving cause I love to talk about it. There are moments though when the questions become insane. Some of the stupid wuffo posts are based on sheer stupidity versus lack of skydiving knowledge.If you're not having fun, what's the point Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
fonz 0 #40 January 22, 2002 QuoteI always like DEUNow, I know what PEBKAC means and I know the ID ten T thingy too, but WTF is DEU?Alphonshttp://www.liacs.nl/~avwerven/skydive Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jfields 0 #41 January 22, 2002 Dumb End User Justin Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
AggieDave 6 #42 January 22, 2002 For the UF crowd...right? Gotta love the UFies...Success is how high you bounce when you hit bottom.-General George Patton- Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Keith 0 #43 January 22, 2002 First: Step down off your pedistal for a moment and learn a little about the history of skydiving and you would know where words like whuffo come from. Second: We don't all always laugh at others because they don't understand what skydiving is all about. Sometimes we do take a moment and explain. Sometimes they understand, sometimes they don't. Usually the latter.Third: Sometimes whuffo's come up with some pretty funny stuff. Just like I laugh at me sometimes, I laugh at my friends sometimes and I laugh at whuffos sometimes. Fourth: Lighten up a little. You and Emma sound like you could use some fresh air. Go jump out of a plane, have a beer and relax. Sheesh, life is stressful enough . . . I got over the "Boobie" thing, get over the whuffo thing Let's not forget why we skydive!!! We skydive to have fun and leave the rest of the world behind for just a while.Keith Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
AggieDave 6 #44 January 22, 2002 QuoteI got over the "Boobie" thingWell, I haven't...I still love 'em.Success is how high you bounce when you hit bottom.-General George Patton- Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Zennie 0 #45 January 22, 2002 Boobies? "Zero Tolerance: the politically correct term for zero thought, zero common sense." Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jfields 0 #46 January 22, 2002 QuoteBoobies?You know, the things that are unfortunately so prominent in Clay's DZ.com mug shot. Damn him!Otherwise, they are the extra-altitude inducers women have. If I was a pilot, I would be hell on the fuel bill, but I'd see boobies on every jump. Justin Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
freefallfreak 0 #47 January 22, 2002 Bytch,QuoteThat doesn't make me a goddessDudette, you have ALWAYS been MY goddess...lolTripleF Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
fonz 0 #48 January 22, 2002 QuoteDumb End User Thanks for enlighting me (and please, you don't need the LART here).Alphonshttp://www.liacs.nl/~avwerven/skydive Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
freefallfreak 0 #49 January 22, 2002 Emma,Quotenot everyone has experienced this wonderful thing we have, freefallThank you, dear...lol.Freefallfreak Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Vallerina 2 #50 January 22, 2002 Hey, check my signature. They'll laugh at me 'cause (to quote my dear, good friends who don't like me much now) I'm "wasting all of my money jumping out of a plane when i could be at the bars waiting for creepy men to hit on me." I laugh at them, just because."You laugh at me because I am different, and I just laugh at you." Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
