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12000 feet and 2 don't work.

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Thanks for your comments guys. I am still buzzing like a bee!

Here are a couple of pics. Didnt get any in freefall. Next jump i will.

Re harness and my legs, I am trying to keep it as simple as possible at the moment. A harness that pulls my legs back would be very hard to operate in the door of aircraft as i need to shuffle across the floor and sit on the edge. I cant do this with my ankles around my ears!

As you can see in freefall, my legs are pointing down quite a lot. This is because I have been sitting in a wheelchair for 6 years and my ligaments have shortened and are set in that position now. I will need to do lots of stretching if i am to fix this. But i can work with it, its just a matter of trial and error. I wear some carbon fiber knee braces that i made in order to keep my knees at 90 degrees. (see attached pic) I had to put my legs in plaster BEFORE I jumped in order to make a cast for these braces. Quite a strange sequence of events really!

My canopy control needs to be very good or I could easily put my a$$ through my head. If i damage my legs or butt it will take me months to heal as I don't get the blood circulation through my lower body that I used to. It would be really bad actually.....and if the landing didnt kill me my wife would!

It has been a great journey to do this. When I first started thinking about jumping again even I was very skeptical. There were just so many things to consider. None of the training manuals really applied to what i needed to do so it was all new to everyone involved.

I must thank Peter Hewitt in Sth Africa. He was the first paraplegic (L1 complete) in the world to do solo freefall. I was the first in Australia and second in the world and Peter's long chats to me over skype were great.

Remember,If you think you can or think you can't your probably right.

Rock on!

D
Get busy living or get busy dying!

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My canopy control needs to be very good or I could easily put by a$$ through my head. If i damage my legs or butt it will take me months to heal as I don't get the blood circulation through my lower body that I used to. It would be really bad actually.....and if the landing didn't kill me my wife would!




In the vid of jump 5 it looked like you kind of stuck a foot on landing and jammed a knee a little?
I was thinking the same thing, ya gotta be pretty good with the accuracy side to put it down where and the way you do.

I humbly submit, your determination and skill are truly an inspiration.

...your recent accomplishments remind me of just why I love this sport so much, the number of absolutely amazing people that are a part of it...Blue Skies!










~ If you choke a Smurf, what color does it turn? ~

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Way to go!

You remind me of one of the survivors of the Perris Twin Otter crash, who returned to skydiving after losing control of his legs.

On a practical note. foam padding on your bum might help a little bit to reduce landing jolts, but you should seriously investigate some of the air cushions developed by para-gliders. Some of those cushions are two feet thick. They absorb shock by slowly venting air during impact.
You could easily strap a para-gliding cushion to a skydiving harness. The challenge would be to install an extra handle that would hold it closed in freefall, but allow it to inflate after you inflate your parachute.
I am thinking of a yellow cable that laces the cushion closed ... similar to cutaway cables on wingsuits or two-handled BOCs for AFF students.

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I like that idea RR, anything that reduced the chance of injury gets my attention. Ill look into that....

If your after a bit of a laugh, this is something else i do http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zNmK2fM4_F4

I am writing some new material about dropzones and skydiving and plan on doing a tour called "Hook it in!" to various dropzone to raise money for their social clubs.

If I come to the US, would this interest anyone? lol

Rock on!

D
Get busy living or get busy dying!

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Wow man, that's absolutely incredible!
Enjoy life!
www.theflystyle.com

"When once you have tasted flight you will always walk the earth with your eyes turned skyward: for there you have been and there you will always be." -L.D.

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Dale,
After having seen your entire presentation, heard the passion in your voice, met your instructors...wow.
What a series of challenges that most of us never would have considered. Congrats to you for researching so you could teach your instructors so that they could teach you.
Very inspirational.
Intensely educational.
Looking forward to getting you into that wingsuit!

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Marios, there are some things in life that are a certainty. That is one of them.

I owe you some beers for carrying me down the stairs and grabbing my jacket too!

Rock on brother! I'd like to jump in Cyprus with as well one day!

The D
Get busy living or get busy dying!

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