robskydiv 0 #1 December 20, 2009 Just passed Lodi's dropzone going down I-5 a few hrs ago. Question: Do any of you guys ever land in the Vineyard? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
MakeItHappen 15 #2 December 20, 2009 QuoteJust passed Lodi's dropzone going down I-5 a few hrs ago. Question: Do any of you guys ever land in the Vineyard? Lodi is off of 99 not I-5. .. Make It Happen Parachute History DiveMaker Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
robskydiv 0 #3 December 20, 2009 I stand corrected. Yes indeed I-99. Small Dz but affordable. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
TiaDanger 0 #4 December 20, 2009 Yes, there have been people that have landed in the vineyards there. I did AFF there and was told that if I had nowhere to land but the vineyards, I had to make sure I landed in line between the rows!!And for the record: the appropriate ranking of cool modes of transportation is jet pack, hover board, transporter, Batmobile, and THEN giant ant. D.S. #8.8 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
robskydiv 0 #5 December 20, 2009 QuoteYes, there have been people that have landed in the vineyards there. I did AFF there and was told that if I had nowhere to land but the vineyards, I had to make sure I landed in line between the rows!!It sure beats landing on the Hwy! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
MakeItHappen 15 #6 December 20, 2009 QuoteI stand corrected. Yes indeed I-99. Small Dz but affordable. It's SR-99, not I-99. Big difference in the exits. But to answer your question, I landed over on the east side of SR-99 in the grapes many moons ago (on one the access roads). No big deal. All the grape fields have access roads that you can easily land on, no matter which way the wind is blowing. Lemme tell you about this one exit that happened back in 93. Bill had his group in the porter to exit before our 4-way team. Now, one guy on our team habitually pulled low- like around 1500ft. Let's call him 'Andy'. Bill did not particularly like Andy pulling low all the time. So this one day, Stretch was flying the porter, Bill was first pass, as usual. Bill and his group climb out. Then Bill pokes his head back inside the plane to converse with Andy. He says to Andy "You know Andy, you can't pull low on this jump because your spot is going to be way long." Andy says "Well, hurry up and exit then" Bill retorts back "Hey Andy, you know I don't like you pulling low. You know that might mean your team can't jump here anymore." Andy says "Well, we'll just go to skydance." Bill says, "Yeah, but that's gonna cost you guys a bunch more money." Andy says, "Will you just exit now Bill - our spot is going to shit." (by this time Bill and his group had been out on the step for about 30 seconds.) Bill says "Andy will you pull above two thousand on this jump?" Andy says 'yeah - just get the fuck out." Bill pulls himself back out to the center floater slot and gives the count for his group. They exit and all of us immediately stick our head out the door to check the spot. We are right over the top of the DZ! They exited as they crossed the highway (SR-99). We waited another few seconds before starting our climb out. Andy pulled above 2k the rest of the summer. Now that's planning. .. Make It Happen Parachute History DiveMaker Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
tbrown 26 #7 December 20, 2009 I've only ever made one visit to Lodi, where I made 3 jumps. But I learned really fast what's needed to land there. Not only did Bill personally welcome me and take me outside to point out the pattern, but the people I jumped with gave me another briefing with the aerial photo. Then again on the ride up, they took the time to point out the dropzone and surrounding features (hint: the airport is located exactly where 99 takes a slight dog leg). My personal impression, from one short visit, is that Lodi jumpers are some of the most pattern disciplined canopy fliers I've seen anywhere. They're also quite comfortable with flying in close together on final, because they need to be. I decided to trust the locals and was not disappointed. But Lodi's not "that" tight either, there are some large flat fields on the airport surrounding the dropzone that offer perfectly safe outs, if your pride can handle missing the dropzone itself. While I'm at it, Merry Christmas to all of you up at Lodi and thanks again for my short but fun visit. I've still got a ticket burning a hole in my pocket ! Your humble servant.....Professor Gravity ! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
PeteS 0 #8 December 21, 2009 Well, Merry Christmas to you, Tom. While I'm at it the same to everyone out there, especially you Jan! Yes there have been people in the grapes, I've been out there during the tracking contest a couple of times! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Ammon 0 #9 December 21, 2009 I like the tale MakeItHappen, thanks for sharing. Classic! I love Lodi. Oh yeah! What's up Pete? Merry X to you all!!!"Whatever you can do, or dream you can, begin it. Boldness has genius, power, and magic in it." - Goethe Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
diablopilot 2 #10 December 21, 2009 No worries about the spot, I hear the new pilot over there is pretty good..... ---------------------------------------------- You're not as good as you think you are. Seriously. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
BDashe 0 #11 December 21, 2009 If you land south and opt for a dirt road between the main landing area and Peltier rd- be less afraid of the grape vines/stakes and more concerned with the size XXXXL Pteranodon hiding in the big tree there. It's ruthless... I've been told it was a large hawk that attacked me (and others recently), but i got a photo of it, see attached.So there I was... Making friends and playing nice since 1983 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Ironmanjay 0 #12 December 22, 2009 Well Dashe, I heard that if you land in the grape fields you have to look out for large creatures lurking around. One of my buddys caught a quick pic of one before he had to run for his life Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
BDashe 0 #13 December 22, 2009 I believe it... leave your helmet on when landing out, period. Football pads optional.So there I was... Making friends and playing nice since 1983 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Andy9o8 0 #14 December 22, 2009 QuoteQuoteYes, there have been people that have landed in the vineyards there. I did AFF there and was told that if I had nowhere to land but the vineyards, I had to make sure I landed in line between the rows!!It sure beats landing on the Hwy! No, it doesn't. The highway only has cars going 80 mph. The vineyard has poles that will impale you up the wazoo, with wires strung between them that will slice you to ribbons. I'd rather chance the highway. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
topdocker 0 #15 December 22, 2009 QuoteQuoteQuoteYes, there have been people that have landed in the vineyards there. I did AFF there and was told that if I had nowhere to land but the vineyards, I had to make sure I landed in line between the rows!!It sure beats landing on the Hwy! No, it doesn't. The highway only has cars going 80 mph. The vineyard has poles that will impale you up the wazoo, with wires strung between them that will slice you to ribbons. I'd rather chance the highway. You might change your tune when you see these areas in person. While the vineyards are not ideal, they offer fairly wide dirt roads in and through them, few trees, and the stakes run in an orderly fashion with room in between them to land (if absolutely necessary). The State Road 99 offers limited shoulders of gravel and junk, a median of concrete K-rail and asphalt with very little room between you and the vehicles, lots of large fast moving tractor trailers with rearview mirrors that would love to snag a just-landed canopy, and the road runs perpendicular to the prevailing winds. Oh, and the highway has a few power lines that run across it as well. I've jumped there over twenty years and would never take the highway over the grapestakes. There are lots of places to land that are not grapefied, but really you should just land in the main landing area or the student field, then you don't have to make any decisions! topJump more, post less! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
billvon 2,379 #16 December 22, 2009 I've landed in vineyards, and I prefer them to roads. You have to avoid the poles (of course) but there are long runouts, and the wires are in predictable places. YMMV. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
VectorBoy 0 #17 December 22, 2009 I've chased a few cutt aways into the vineyards. The roads are plenty big for a disciplined canopy pilot. I have never needed to test the disturbed air very near the highway. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
wildcard451 0 #18 December 23, 2009 QuoteQuoteQuoteYes, there have been people that have landed in the vineyards there. I did AFF there and was told that if I had nowhere to land but the vineyards, I had to make sure I landed in line between the rows!!It sure beats landing on the Hwy! No, it doesn't. The highway only has cars going 80 mph. The vineyard has poles that will impale you up the wazoo, with wires strung between them that will slice you to ribbons. I'd rather chance the highway. Have you ever actually jumped there? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Andy9o8 0 #19 December 23, 2009 Yes, a couple years ago. I was warned off the vineyards with a description of the poles and wires. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
livendive 8 #20 December 28, 2009 I think I've landed out 3 times at Lodi...once on a wide dirt road, once on a somwhat narrower "road" (e.g. 4-wheeler path), and once in the vines (crosswind at that). It can be intimidating, but isn't too bad if you calmly do what needs to be done. Blues, Dave"I AM A PROFESSIONAL EXTREME ATHLETE!" (drink Mountain Dew) Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
keithbar 1 #21 December 29, 2009 Quote but isn't too bad if you calmly do what needs to be done. amen to that. but isn't that true of life in general? 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
andym148 2 #22 January 6, 2010 Hey Guy's, I read on here a while back that Lodi had all its planes grounded by the FAA, i understand that there leased from a seperate company? Is the DZ still open to jump? I know a few teams from the UK coming over to Lodi to make use of the cheap jump rates for our team training in Feb and Apr. Can anyone shed any light on the situation? Thanks.At long last the light at the end of the tunell isnt an on coming train!!! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Flyinrob 0 #23 January 6, 2010 Lodi is open... Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
andym148 2 #24 January 6, 2010 Cheers Rob, What aircraft are they currently running with mid week and weekends?At long last the light at the end of the tunell isnt an on coming train!!! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Flyinrob 0 #25 January 6, 2010 Cessna Grand Caravan right now Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
