Skydiving scenes

[skr 1]

During the latest thrash here in Colorado I posted this
on the local mailing list. Why are we skydiving in the
first place?


> King Air, Twin Otter, what more do you want?

A skydiving scene, a jump story, a feeling of special times.

People who have been there know what I'm talking about, and
for people who haven't it's like freefall, no way to explain
it in words.

It's vibes and feelings and friendship and personal journey.

To look only at the mechanical infrastructure is to miss the
whole reason why we jump.

I've experienced it at Cessna dropzones. I've had the really
good fortune to be right in the thick of it several times,

Oceanside, Elsinore, Z'hills, The Gulch, Pope Valley,
Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Germany, Australia, New Zealand

come to mind from the 60s and 70s.


The experience was so good that I studied the process, the
ingredients and how they come together in order to enhance
the chances of helping another one happen.

I think Steve Woodford knew about this and tried to do it
at Brush, but it's not easy, it's delicate. It's like a
complex chemical reaction using emotions instead of chemicals.

It's delicate and easy to trample or derail.


Jeff and I didn't just argue, we talked about a lot of stuff
too, and I told him several times that he should hire me
to help with this. Several times we took a tentative step
down that path, but the gap between us was just too great
to bridge.

I started to try at Brush when it opened but I found Brush
depressing, something about the vibes of the town and that
horrible cattle meat grinder place just down the road maybe.

Plus, for me, the dogs and blasting music are such an unpleasant
environment that I gave up and went to Calhan for a couple
years. Calhan started well but in the second year the weather
and disintegrating dropzone ended it.


After last year at Mile-Hi I started feeling a lot of hope
that maybe this year it would happen. It's been trying to
happen in Colorado for years but it needs fertile ground.
It's a delicate, emotional chemistry reaction, much easier
to destroy than create.

Maybe it's still possible, I don't know, it's out of my
hands, but it would be really wonderful for both new and
old to experience one.

There's really nothing like it.

Skr

[CanuckInUSA 0]

Quote

Maybe it's still possible, I don't know, it's out of my hands, but it would be really wonderful for both new and old to experience one.

Individually I'm not sure how much each one of us makes a difference. But it also does start with the attitude that each and every jumper brings to the DZ. But don't count whatever influence you can have short Scratch. You are one of the ambassadors to the sport that newbies like myself need to listen to.

I think I know "this wonderful" thing you speak of as I experienced something pretty darn neat at SDA last weekend and have had good times in CO as well. Thanks for the good read ...

Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

[tattoojeff 0]

Quote

I think I know "this wonderful" thing you speak of as I experienced something pretty darn neat at SDA last weekend

i couldnt agree more. my first trip to eloy sda was a year ago this month. ive been back 7 times since. i love the people the vibe and the air. i feel very appreciated as a customer there. i almost refer to sda as my home dz. maybe someday it will be.

[mjosparky 3]

Scratch,
I have seen and felt it, Perris in the 70's, Elsinore in the early 80's.
I don't know what causes it or how it starts. I would just like to see it one more time while I am still jumping.
Thanks,
Sparky

My idea of a fair fight is clubbing baby seals

[bozo 0]

Quote

Scratch,
I have seen and felt it, Perris in the 70's, Elsinore in the early 80's.
I don't know what causes it or how it starts. I would just like to see it one more time while I am still jumping.
Thanks,
Sparky

Last time I really felt what you speak of was at the old Coolige....before Larry bought it.
As one of the posters refers to himself as a "customer".....nope...that aint it......we were family.

bozimbo

bozo
Pain is fleeting. Glory lasts forever. Chicks dig scars.

[tattoojeff 0]

Quote

As one of the posters refers to himself as a "customer".....nope...that aint it......we were family.

that must have been great!! my home dz has gone threw some radical changes the past 2 years since our former dzm quit. the facilitys are nicer than ever but the feeling of home and family have all but vanished.

[RkyMtnHigh 0]

I was there today..I missed so many of you. We used to have Saturdays full of energy and excitement. Today was beautiful! Warm, Sunny, and beautiful blue skies..AND NO MUD after our recent snow storm. You at MileHi have been my family since Oct '03 and I can't thank you all enough for being the most amazing people I've ever met with such unconditional love. Hopefully it was only the forecast that kept you away today, regardless if we had the surprise of beautiful weather, instead of politics. Hey...BTW..I actually held a sitfly and landed in da peas for "a price"...

_________________________________________

[CanuckInUSA 0]

Quote

Hopefully it was only the forecast that kept you away today

I stayed away on Saturday because I was playing in a volleyball tournament (we finished 3rd out of 16 teams but wanted to win it all). And I thought about dropping by after 5 pm, but the winds seemed to have picked up (not that they were ultra strong, just strong enough to slow down loads?). But this mornings rainy overcast weather is rather disappointing. Wasn't it supposed to be nice today or did that change since Friday?

This is you last weekend in CO right? Hmmm ...

Quote

I actually held a sitfly and landed in da peas

Awesome ... congrats ...

Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

[skr 1]

I was thinking about a sentiment I've heard here
and in other discussions in today's skydiving world,
variously expressed as:

"We are selling a service for $22."



No, what you're selling is a human experience,
freefall, friendship, feelings, family ...

The $22 plane ride is logistics, a means to an end.

What people want most is family, feeling included,
and self esteem, feeling empowered.

You create that the way a gardner creates flowers,
prepare the garden, plant the seeds, water the vibes,
make it possible, then stand back and watch as the
flowers do the growing.

There are techniques, prune here, nudge there,
but the flowering is inherent in the flowers.

It's what they naturally do in any conducive environment.

The DZO and her Boogie Mechanics are gardners.

The planes and manifest and business are the shovels
and rakes and watering can.


So, if you don't push the analogy too far, that's what
you're selling.

That's how it's worked at all the really successful
skydiving scenes that I've seen.

Skr

[sdgregory 0]

Quote

What people want most is family, feeling included,
and self esteem, feeling empowered.

I could not agree more.


The idea that this is a close knit community is what I find most attractive about being on the DZ. That somehow, because we all jump and really love this sport and have a bond that few in the planet will experience, we are somehow connected.

I skydive because I have this burning yearning to do so. I have forever looked to the sky wanting to fly, to have wings and soar. To look down upon the earth as a bird would view it, or an angel . . .

I hang around after the jump day to enjoy my fellow skydivers. What is it that makes this so hard to do? How long do you have to be around? How good do you have to be? How many jumps must you have? before you can be a part of the community?

Honestly, I still feel like an outsider, most of the time.

Is it me? Am I missing something?

What you wrote about would be great to see skr. I hope someday I see it.

[skr 1]

>Is it me? Am I missing something?

No, I think it's that a lot of people don't realize
that this can happen, so you either stumble on
it accidentally, it happens spontaneously, or you
just don't get to experience it.

To do it on purpose you have to have a DZO and
a web of experienced jumpers who want it and know
how to make it happen.

Even then it can be elusive because you can't
just go directly at it or stand around proclaiming
that it's happening.

You have to kind of open the door for it and then
let it. And you have to let it have you too because
the very act of trying to control it makes it go away.


I didn't realize the first one I was in, it just happened.
All I knew was that I was having the best time I had
ever had in my whole life. That was Oceanside in the
early 60s.

Another spontaneous best time was the Gulch in 1975.

The first time I really got that you could do this on
purpose was the summer of 1976 in Norway, Sweden
and Denmark.

That was when I realized a really fundamental insight:

It's not about maneuvers and hot dives and records
and stuff, it's all about how people feel while they are
doing it, and all that other stuff is just tools to produce
feelings.

The fundamental reason we skydive is to feel feelings.

Actually I started to put some of this stuff on a web site
once. If you go to

http://indra.net/~bdaniels/ftw/index.html

up near the top, the Oreo Cookie and freedom and
frameworks stuff and the next section down, the jumpstart
and profile stuff has more on this.

I oughta get my butt in gear and finish those sections.

----

As for experiencing it yourself, you know it's possible
because other people have experienced it, so maybe
if you go looking for it you will find it too.

You will know it when you see it.

Skr

[RkyMtnHigh 0]

Skratch,
You and DeJan are the most inspiring people I've ever met! You are the most generous, centered, and amazing people..I love your outlook on life and skydiving...why we do what we do. You two are my idols, if I could ever be so fortunate! I'm so glad to know you both! Thank you both for your positive influence in my life.
Mega Hugs..
K

_________________________________________

[skr 1]

>You and DeJan are the most inspiring people I've ever met!

OK - All you guys out there .. Listen Up!

If you go down this path it attracts pretty girls!

Now what else do you need to know ??

Get moving !! :-) :-)

--

Well Kalyne, it was obvious to me that you were already
in tune with this kind of stuff.

When your ankle gets better lets talk canopy stuff and
then make some more jumps.

Skr

[CanuckInUSA 0]

Quote

No, what you're selling is a human experience,
freefall, friendship, feelings, family ...

I showed my ugly mug today at MH and experienced a day that hasn't happened to me all that much in my limited time at the DZ. People talked, they did a little skydiving, they talked more. There are hurt people on both sides of the fence and each side isn't having an easy time understanding the other. But what did exist today was the mutual respect among most people there. It was a small family, but the people who were there tried to do their part.

I don't like the circumstances surrounding the price increase. But it's not the end of the world. To me attracting people who want to jump, to have fun jumping and hopefully make some bad ass skydives is what counts. MH will never be an Eloy, or a Perris or one of the big DZs like you may find in FL. But it still has potential if management is honest to their clients and the clients appreciate what the DZ offers them. A DZ with good airplanes.

For the first (oops beer) time in my skydiving life, I let a new skydiver's enthusiasm really serve as a wake up call to me. Amongst all the politics at MH right now, I got to talk with an AFF student who couldn't stop smiling thanks to his new found experiences. How could I let the negative vibes get in the way of what this guy was going through. I think he took a piece of cloud nine and put it in his jumpsuit pocket as he was grins from cheek bone to cheek bone (he ... he ... we got to jump near some clouds today ... something that doesn't happen to us often).

Each jumper must do their part to make their DZ a better place, no matter where it is they jump.

Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

[mustard 0]

Quote

For the first (oops beer) time in my skydiving life, I let a new skydiver's enthusiasm really serve as a wake up call to me. Amongst all the politics at MH right now, I got to talk with an AFF student who couldn't stop smiling thanks to his new found experiences.

Yeah! That's one big reason I love to teach: the contact high I get from the students. I have experienced it again and again. And Kaylyn, thank you so much for your kind words (above).

I really am amazed at how much good has already come out of the thrash we've been going through. Every once in a while I think I hear in the distance that unmistakable laugh of Jeff's echoing through the hangars...

Years ago, 13 of them now, I began jumping at Loveland. One of the people who inspired me back then was Mary. I remember her family coming up to the DZ (the kids were little then) and wondering how I would ever fit in to the skydiving scene. People all seemed to be in their own cliques. But Mary let me jump her rig (it was a PD 210!) and I was overwhelmed by her generosity. To me it was a huge deal; to her, she was helping a newbie.

I am amazed at how the smallest little thing of reaching out to another at the DZ can be interpreted as a major affirmation by the recipient. Getting outside of my own bubble of concern and empathizing with the journey of another has always made me feel better about things. There will always be people at the DZ who are less experienced than we are, who think they don't fit in because they can't [fill in the blank], who will someday look back and laugh at their early days in the sport. sdgregory, I truly hope this will happen to you.

***
DJan

[flyangel2 2]

Quote

Years ago, 13 of them now, I began jumping at Loveland. One of the people who inspired me back then was Mary. I remember her family coming up to the DZ (the kids were little then) and wondering how I would ever fit in to the skydiving scene. People all seemed to be in their own cliques. But Mary let me jump her rig (it was a PD 210!) and I was overwhelmed by her generosity. To me it was a huge deal; to her, she was helping a newbie.

What I remember is the look you gave me on a cold winter day when I said that I was so horny for a skydive, that I didn't care how cold it was.

I could throw in some other memories, but I think they would be best shared over some s

Wow, we have been around each other way too long. Do you realize that one of my babies is graduating High School next month. It brings tears to my eyes, cause I know just how proud Jack would be of him.

May your trails be crooked, winding, lonesome, dangerous, leading to the most amazing view. May your mountains rise into and above the clouds. - Edward Abbey

[mustard 0]

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What I remember is the look you gave me on a cold winter day when I said that I was so horny for a skydive, that I didn't care how cold it was.

That's funny, Mary, that you remember that moment, because I sure do too! That was the first time I had ever heard that line and I was astonished at your panache. And Jack! He would go out on the coldest day of the year and do his swimsuit jump, and I will *never* forget the first time I saw that!

***
DJan

[skypuppy 1]

Hey Skratch! You don't know me but I just wanted to say Hi! I felt some of what you're talking about down in Zhills in '80, '81... (I wonder if it had anything to do with some of the salad going around at the time.) Since then it's appeared once or twice (copious amounts of alcohol may have helped), but you don't necessarily realize it till it's gone. How's the song go 'Call someplace Paradise, kiss it goodbye'...

And as for you youngsters feeling alone and left out, it happens to lots of the older guys after a while too... It might have something to do with your mind not letting you forget that you have other things to do than skydive, and you just don't have the same passion (or opportunity) to do it as much as you would like to anymore...

If some old guy can do it then obviously it can't be very extreme. Otherwise he'd already be dead.
Bruce McConkey 'I thought we were gonna die, and I couldn't think of anyone

[riddler 0]

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What people want most is family, feeling included, and self esteem, feeling empowered.

I'm not sure that's what everyone wants, but I know I do, and I get it from great people at the DZ that sacrifice time to help out a newbie like me. Funny thing about this sport - you can be in it three years, have close to 300 jumps, and even have a coach rating and still feel like you know nothing about the sport. But I have people in my life like Skratch and DJan and Mary who all take time to try to help me improve, just because I want to. And there's people like Kaylan and Tak at the other end of the spectrum who remind me that there's more than one way to look at things, and share my passion for jumping.

Just a few hours ago, the staff at Mile Hi did a memorial jump for the founder, who died in a plane crash one year ago today. It was a beautiful day and a good jump. No, it wasn't a good jump from the perspective of Airspeed, and it's probably nothing you'll see in Parachutist. But despite the fact that we didn't build the formation, we were safe and shared the most basic bonding experience you can have as a skydiver - we jumped together. Yes, I blew by the base like a man breaking out of prison , but at least I got two seconds of camera time!! And after the jump, I wasn't criticized by the other jumpers - the only concern we had was if dsbbreck was OK, because we saw his cutaway (and he got good video of it ). I realized that I have a LONG way to go before I get any good at this skydiving thing, and I may never get invited on a big-way again , but the point was the same as it always is. I had fun today jumping with my friends.

Hey Riddler, err ... why were you sit-flying past the formation?

[livendive 8]

Quote

I had fun today jumping with my friends.

Fuck the hokey-pokey, THAT'S what it's all about.

Blues,
Dave

"I AM A PROFESSIONAL EXTREME ATHLETE!"
(drink Mountain Dew)

[skr 1]

>>Riddler
>>I had fun today jumping with my friends.
>
> livendive
>Fuck the hokey-pokey, THAT'S what it's all about.

But actually there is no need to restrict ourselves to fun.

There is a vast range of experiences to be had at the
dropzone.

Skr