GLIDEANGLE 1 #1 February 5, 2008 Saturday 02Feb08 was an absolutely terrific day for me at Skydive Dallas! The highlights were: --Great weather... clear skies, gentle winds, and moderate temeratures. (Don't be jealous of us here in Texas.... we will melt in August.) --A 9-way belly multi-point dive with block moves. (Pretty advanced stuff for me!)--A 14-way belly dive which made three points (My biggest jump ever!)--My 100th jump … a hoop dive (A first for me and several others). --A wonderful 4 way belly dive which made 8 points (The most points I have ever turned!) --Nobody got hurt! The jumper with the reserve ride landed safely! (He shall remain nameless unless HE wants to tell his story.) I was thinking about the terrific day and realized that it was the product of a lot of other people working hard and giving a lot of themselves. Some of these folks were on the DZ payroll, most were not. All did a GREAT job and deserve acknowledgement. My list is imperfect and incomplete… for which I apologize in advance. Thanks to: --Larry Henderson for being technically expert and socially smooth when organizing the “big” jumps. It would have been easy to beat up on us novices when we made mistakes….or exclude us. Instead, you taught us and put us in appropriate slots. --The many experienced jumpers, who helped us novices learn to do better. You made us feel welcome on jumps at the margins of our experience. --Brett and Dennis for making the hoop jump a blast. --Roland and Brett for making the 4-way so smooth! Your skills on the ground and in the air made it SO much easier for us two novices to turn lots of points. Your debriefing helped us to grow. --Roland for buying an empty slot to make the aircraft fly when there weren’t enough jumpers! --For the camera flyers (Dennis and two others whose names I have forgotten). Your video work was great! --Ernie and the instructional staff who have built a culture of safety at the DZ and who have taught me to skydive. --Sven for safe, efficient, and accurate aircraft flights all day long. --Becky at manifest for keeping us organized. --And others who shall remain nameless to protect the guilty! I am hopelessly behind in beer … I have a lot of "paying it forward" to do in the coming years! Jim McGraw -- (The guy with the really ugly sports spectacles.)The choices we make have consequences, for us & for others! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
DSE 3 #2 February 5, 2008 Wow! What a great post! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Beerlight 0 #3 February 5, 2008 Quote Wow! What a great post! I second that. And the Republic of Texas did have some beautiful wx on Sat. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
JohnDeere 0 #4 February 5, 2008 Congrats JIm. As you you noted SDD has a great staff. Never had a bad day at SDD, even on bad weather days. SDD rocks Nothing opens like a Deere! You ignorant fool! Checks are for workers! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Reginald 0 #5 February 5, 2008 Jim, It was a good day. And while you are heaping praise on others note that it is people like you that are the up and comers in the sport that also help motivate the rest of us and inject fresh enthusiasm into the dropzone and the sport. Take a second and pat yourself on the back too. Blue Skies, Ron"We've been looking for the enemy for some time now. We've finally found him. We're surrounded. That simplifies things." CP Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
siddacious 0 #6 February 6, 2008 Nice! *shakes fist at rain*A dolor netus non dui aliquet, sagittis felis sodales, dolor sociis mauris, vel eu libero cras. Interdum at. Eget habitasse elementum est. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ladydyver 0 #7 February 6, 2008 I love days like that! Congrats and Happy 100th.DPH # 2 "I am not sure what you are suppose to do with that, but I don't think it is suppose to flop around like that." ~Skootz~ I have a strong regard for the rules.......doc! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
poe62 0 #8 February 6, 2008 Hey Jim! Happy 100th! Thanks for letting me be a part of it. Can I borrow the hoop dive video?...there's ummm...something I'd like to edit out of it. SDD is a pretty dang great place to jump. You're concern for other's safety and positive personality makes it even better! See ya next time you're out there... ps...my 100th should be this weekend. Come play!!! ~Nikki http://www.facebook.com/poe62 Irgity Dirgity Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
