airtwardo 6 #1 November 24, 2009 Recently talking with a friend from 'the ole daze' whose son started jumping a year or so back. My buddy's son asked an interesting question during our conversation...seems we were referring to people we were acquainted with years ago as either jumpers or skydivers. He asked what the difference was... I said it's kinda like pornography, can't describe it but know it when I see it. IS there a difference? Can anyone explain what it is, if there is one? ~ If you choke a Smurf, what color does it turn? ~ Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
topdocker 0 #2 November 24, 2009 Jumpers know how to get out of the plane, skydivers know what they are doing after that.top Jump more, post less! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Andy9o8 0 #3 November 24, 2009 Jumpers started jumping on rounds. Skydivers didn't. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Tolgak 0 #4 November 24, 2009 Jumpchuterist.Dropzones are terrible places for inspiration. What does one think when one looks up for a sign only to see a bunch of people falling? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
stratostar 5 #5 November 24, 2009 Not according to Istel.you can't pay for kids schoolin' with love of skydiving! ~ Airtwardo Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Andy9o8 0 #6 November 24, 2009 QuoteNot according to Istel. Oh, well. Say no more. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
stratostar 5 #7 November 25, 2009 you can't pay for kids schoolin' with love of skydiving! ~ Airtwardo Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
CReW 0 #8 November 25, 2009 It takes a little more to be a jumper. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Chris_K 0 #9 November 25, 2009 A jumper comes from the term "Military jumper" that is, using the jump as a means of getting somewhere. Skydiver refers to civilian "fun" jumping.Downsizing is not the way to prove your manhood. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
CygnusX-1 42 #10 November 25, 2009 Jumper = static line or short delay. Skydiver = going to terminal, can control your movements, know what you're doing, etc. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
popsjumper 2 #11 November 25, 2009 Quote Jumpers know how to get out of the plane, skydivers know what they are doing after that.top Nailed it...no other applicants need apply.My reality and yours are quite different. I think we're all Bozos on this bus. Falcon5232, SCS8170, SCSA353, POPS9398, DS239 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
airtwardo 6 #12 November 25, 2009 It's interesting to see the various interpretations of the terms. They obviously differ somewhat...I'm kinda thinking it has something to do with geographical location & age/era started in the sport. Kind of like the 'soda-pop-coke' thing. ~ Some further discussion with other 'ole daze' friends has come about because of this thread...one of my mentors from the 70's put it quite well I thought. A 'Jumper' can turn a style series & stomp the disk on one jump, close 8th and turn 1/2 a dozen points on the next, do a demo, land a two stack, pack a reserve and sew a patch, has one rig that's perfectly maintained and can do everything with it, can and HAS performed an SCR/SCS ceremony in his sleep...only talks to wuffos about wuffo stuff. A 'Skydiver' does basically the same jump over & over, drives a fancy sports car and has 3 sets of all matching gear - usually with some pink in it...and tells every wuffo he meets he's a 'skydiver'... Going by THAT criteria, I guess I'm a 'SkyJumper' ~ If you choke a Smurf, what color does it turn? ~ Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jackwallace 3 #13 November 25, 2009 "Dropest" I read it in a news paper once. Seemed to drescribe all the crap that falls out of the sky. I figure its how drunk you are, Can't say skydiver when you are really hammered. Jumper comes out even when you're baffin your guts.U only make 2 jumps: the first one for some weird reason and the last one that you lived through. The rest are just filler. scr 316 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
airtwardo 6 #14 November 25, 2009 Quote "Dropest" I read it in a news paper once. Seemed to drescribe all the crap that falls out of the sky. I figure its how drunk you are, Can't say skydiver when you are really hammered. Jumper comes out even when you're baffin your guts. Dropest almost sounds like another term for the pilot...the jumper-dumper. ~ If you choke a Smurf, what color does it turn? ~ Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
robinheid 0 #15 November 25, 2009 Depends on context, airtwardo... for example, "jumper" is a term police and fire officials use to describe someone whose has or is threatening to make a once-in-a-lifetime descent from a tall place, generally for reasons other than to have fun... i.e., "We gotta jumpuh ovuh on toity-toid street..." "Skydiver," on the other hand, is a term generally used in bars by parachutists trying to impress whuffo chicks or get one up on their fellow drunks, or derisively by BASE jumpers who think what they do is a completely different sport. "Parachutist," on the other hand, is the term people knowledgeable about the sport and its history and fundamental characteristics tend to use when identifying themselves or describing what they do, at least when sober. Thus "parachutist" is the all-encompassing term that is properly used in all instances, and other terms tend to be be subsets thereof and thus not appropriate in all situations. Skydiving is a subset of parachuting, as is CReW, BASE, swooping, ground launching, et al; all are subsets of parachuting. As Mo Viletto said long ago: "I am a parachutist. I do things that require a parachute, at least if I want to do those things more than once." d5533 base 44 ccs 37SCR-6933 / SCS-3463 / D-5533 / BASE 44 / CCS-37 / 82d Airborne (Ret.) "The beginning of wisdom is to first call things by their right names." Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
airtwardo 6 #16 November 25, 2009 Quote Depends on context, airtwardo... for example, "jumper" is a term police and fire officials use to describe someone whose has or is threatening to make a once-in-a-lifetime descent from a tall place, generally for reasons other than to have fun... i.e., "We gotta jumpuh ovuh on toity-toid street..." "Skydiver," on the other hand, is a term generally used in bars by parachutists trying to impress whuffo chicks or get one up on their fellow drunks, or derisively by BASE jumpers who think what they do is a completely different sport. "Parachutist," on the other hand, is the term people knowledgeable about the sport and its history and fundamental characteristics tend to use when identifying themselves or describing what they do, at least when sober. Thus "parachutist" is the all-encompassing term that is properly used in all instances, and other terms tend to be be subsets thereof and thus not appropriate in all situations. Skydiving is a subset of parachuting, as is CReW, BASE, swooping, ground launching, et al; all are subsets of parachuting. As Mo Viletto said long ago: "I am a parachutist. I do things that require a parachute, at least if I want to do those things more than once." d5533 base 44 ccs 37 ...and what was the name of the magazine you wrote for again Robin? ~ If you choke a Smurf, what color does it turn? ~ Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
coconutmonkey 0 #17 November 25, 2009 "Jumpers Hit It!" Hearts & Minds 2 to the Heart- 1 to the Mind- Home of the Coconut Lounge, Spa, & Artillery Range Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
stratostar 5 #18 November 25, 2009 Quote ..and what was the name of the magazine you wrote for again Robin? Starcrest or Soldier of fortune......you can't pay for kids schoolin' with love of skydiving! ~ Airtwardo Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
godziller 0 #19 November 26, 2009 Quote Recently talking with a friend from 'the ole daze' whose son started jumping a year or so back. My buddy's son asked an interesting question during our conversation...seems we were referring to people we were acquainted with years ago as either jumpers or skydivers. He asked what the difference was... I said it's kinda like pornography, can't describe it but know it when I see it. IS there a difference? Can anyone explain what it is, if there is one? You are a "Jumper" at the DZ, and you are a "Skydiver" at work Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
timmyfitz 0 #20 November 26, 2009 QuoteMy buddy's son asked an interesting question during our conversation...seems we were referring to people we were acquainted with years ago as either jumpers or skydivers. He asked what the difference was... They are the same thing. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
MikeJD 0 #21 November 26, 2009 I tend to use the words "skydive" and "skydiver" with non-jumpers, since it normally gives them a more accurate idea of what I mean - that is, they associate with freefall. In conversation with skydivers I usually refer to it as jumping - "Are you jumping today?" "Is s/he a jumper?" Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
skyjumpenfool 2 #22 November 26, 2009 Agree with Mike... Jumping can mean anything from bungee jumping, to cliff jumping. Woofos need more information, thus I tend to use diferent words. And, for skydivers, I find it's always best to use "smaller" words... hee hee hee... Birdshit & Fools Productions "Son, only two things fall from the sky." Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
JohanW 0 #23 November 27, 2009 Quote Jumper = static line or short delay. Skydiver = going to terminal, can control your movements, know what you're doing, etc. Guess we're all jumpers here. Johan. I am. I think. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
robinheid 0 #24 November 28, 2009 ...and what was the name of the magazine you wrote for again Robin? Funny you should mention that... Skydiving magazine publisher Mike Truffer and i talked a few times over the years about this and he would have preferred to call it Parachutist. Unfortunately, that name was already taken by a glossy but generally content-free house propaganda organ published by a sporting association that itself still debates changing its association and magazine name to "Skydiving" rather than Parachute or Parachutist, despite the fact that it hosts a "skydiving" championships that includes CReW and swooping.SCR-6933 / SCS-3463 / D-5533 / BASE 44 / CCS-37 / 82d Airborne (Ret.) "The beginning of wisdom is to first call things by their right names." Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
robinheid 0 #25 November 28, 2009 Quote Quote ..and what was the name of the magazine you wrote for again Robin? Starcrest or Soldier of fortune...... ...and Parachutist, and Skydiving, and PIA newsletter, and ParaMag, and Canpara, and Baseline, and the Counterterrorism, Violence & Insurgency Report, and Gung-Ho, and Modern Gun, and Outside, and the Colorado Statesman, and the Rocky Mountain News, and the Delta County Independent, and Westword, and Up the Creek, and Denver Women's News, and Associated Press and United Press International, and several others that don't immediately come to mind...SCR-6933 / SCS-3463 / D-5533 / BASE 44 / CCS-37 / 82d Airborne (Ret.) "The beginning of wisdom is to first call things by their right names." Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
