skybill 22 #1501 March 3, 2017 Hey "frog!!!!!!!," Great "NS" story!!! "Teddy Bear And Flowers!!!" Good stuff!! At Least.... all's well that ends well and thank GOD for "WHISKEY!!!!" BSBD, skybill-outSCR-2034, SCS-680 III%, Deli-out Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
steve1 5 #1502 March 9, 2017 I didn't know that Stinky ever flew jumpers. I jumped with him a lot during the early 70's. I hope he is still kicking. He was one of my best friends in the Osprey Parachute Club, back in the day. I heard his son jumps, but I've never met him.... Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
godfrog 2 #1503 March 15, 2017 yeah stinky is still around and kicking, lives out at the prairie, and his kid Adam is jumping, my son, Adam and I did some jumps together summer of 2015, Adam falls the same as stinky did, like a bowling ball!Experience is a difficult teacher, she gives you the test first and the lesson afterward Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
BobBurnham 0 #1504 June 16, 2017 Well, this isn't really a scary story, but it's from the old days. We jumped at Issaquah WA in the late 60's I think. One of the guys had some older relative that gave him a WWI (I think) flare parachute, and he wanted to find something fun to do with it. He secured a rock to it somehow, possibly in a little bucket, for weight. Some of us were going up for a jump and he wanted us to throw it out and he would be on the ground to go get it. So, during climb out, at about 500 feet we opened the door and pitched this thing out, aiming to have it land in a dusty open field on the other side of Hwy 10. Somehow the chute gobbed up and went whistling down and thumped in prettly dramatically. There were cars stopping and people getting out and running out to where it came down. My buddy was there and was picking it up when several whuffos came running up and yelling "is he ok?" He made motions like dusting himself off and just said "yeah, I'll be ok" Everybodies jaw hit the floor, and when they recovered they all walked slowly back to their cars shaking their heads in amazement. I don't remember any news stories in the paper, but I bet that somebody reported it. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
skybill 22 #1505 June 26, 2017 Hey Bob!!!! Thanks!! I needed that Laugh!!!!!!!! 'Good Timing !!! skybill-outSCR-2034, SCS-680 III%, Deli-out Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Niki1 1 #1506 December 13, 2017 BobBurnhamWell, this isn't really a scary story, but it's from the old days. We jumped at Issaquah WA in the late 60's I think. One of the guys had some older relative that gave him a WWI (I think) flare parachute, and he wanted to find something fun to do with it. He secured a rock to it somehow, possibly in a little bucket, for weight. Some of us were going up for a jump and he wanted us to throw it out and he would be on the ground to go get it. So, during climb out, at about 500 feet we opened the door and pitched this thing out, aiming to have it land in a dusty open field on the other side of Hwy 10. Somehow the chute gobbed up and went whistling down and thumped in prettly dramatically. There were cars stopping and people getting out and running out to where it came down. My buddy was there and was picking it up when several whuffos came running up and yelling "is he ok?" He made motions like dusting himself off and just said "yeah, I'll be ok" Everybodies jaw hit the floor, and when they recovered they all walked slowly back to their cars shaking their heads in amazement. I don't remember any news stories in the paper, but I bet that somebody reported it. Some what similar story. It's the early 90's in DeLand. I'm driving south on Marsh Rd that runs just east of the airport. I look up and see a cutaway canopy coming down. I go around a curve just in time to see it land right in the middle of the road. I stop, get out and as I'm taking a few steps to the canopy a pickup comes screeching to a halt. A guy jumps out yelling, "Don't touch him! Don't touch him! I'm a medic!" I'm looking at this crazy person wondering if he's panics easily or if he's overly excited to use his medical skills. I stand back not saying anything as he tries to find the body. He finally stands up with a very puzzled look and I explain it's just a canopy. The jumper has landed at the DZ under his reserve. He gets a very sheepish look on his face and as he goes back to his truck his wife/girlfriend is giving him hell for driving like an idiot to get to a bunch of fabric. I wish I had had the wherewithal to do what BobBurnhams' buddy did. Bump.Most of the things worth doing in the world had been declared impossilbe before they were done. Louis D Brandeis Where are we going and why are we in this basket? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Bob_Church 7 #1507 December 14, 2017 We were getting one last load in as the sun disappeared and I was in the kneeling in the student position. They'd been doing work on the airport all summer so I didn't think anything of the new lights at the far end of the strip. I said "damn, those runway lights look the same as wingtip lights" just joking around. From the sound John made I assumed the they weren't runway lights. John mushed the 182 barely into the sky and as the incoming plane passed below us by maybe three feet, tops, I could see the other pilot's face, even in the low light conditions. And he was pissed, as you would expect. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
skybill 22 #1508 April 6, 2018 Hi Bob.... Only thing I can say after 54 yrs + of doing this stuff is "Thank GOD someone invented/Discovered/ or what-ever........ WHISKEY!! If it wasn't for "Whiskey" and "Skydivin'" I'd a been a "Basket case years ago!! It keeps me sane and my BP... 113/59...64 this morning!! skybillSCR-2034, SCS-680 III%, Deli-out Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Bob_Church 7 #1509 April 6, 2018 skybillHi Bob.... Only thing I can say after 54 yrs + of doing this stuff is "Thank GOD someone invented/Discovered/ or what-ever........ WHISKEY!! If it wasn't for "Whiskey" and "Skydivin'" I'd a been a "Basket case years ago!! It keeps me sane and my BP... 113/59...64 this morning!! skybill Ain't it the truth! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Bob_Church 7 #1510 April 6, 2018 skybillHi Bob.... Only thing I can say after 54 yrs + of doing this stuff is "Thank GOD someone invented/Discovered/ or what-ever........ WHISKEY!! If it wasn't for "Whiskey" and "Skydivin'" I'd a been a "Basket case years ago!! It keeps me sane and my BP... 113/59...64 this morning!! skybill I remember when I first started and Gary W warned me about drinking beer and skydiving. He said it was a rainy day so he drank a shitload of beer, then the skies opened up and they put a load together. He said "Bob, as I exited," and then he had to stop and choke back a tear and start again, "Bob, as soon as I exited I was stone cold sober". I thought he was going to start crying when he said "I wasted all that good beer!" Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
skybill 22 #1511 April 30, 2018 Hi Bob!!! Only thing I can say is "10-4!!!!" ill' the moning!! skybillSCR-2034, SCS-680 III%, Deli-out Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
skybill 22 #1512 June 26, 2018 Hi Bob......!!, WIND & BEER!!! Back in the Day......OLD Elsinore..... sometime in 1967-early 68.... the "Santa Ana Winds" started to blow through!! Everybody "Kicked dirt" for a while then retired to the "RUMBLESEAT TAVERN!!" ran by Dickie and Marilyn Webb!! I eventually hooked a ride and got there later in the afternoon!! JOHN "MAGPIE" Forsythe!!! was already heavy into his cups!! later I found out he blew a "POPE" Demo and had to "HANG" a 64 oz. Pitcher of cold beer till he drank it "A-L-L-!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"........lo and behold the winds subsided and everyone scrambled back to the DZ for a "JUMP!!" "That's why we do this..REMEMBER???????" 'Managed to get on a 3 way out of the Cessna 180.. (Beech loads were already full) it turned out to be "ME!!!!!!," MAGPIE!! (Remember Magpie, there's a story about Magpie!!!!) So!!!!! "ME!!!!" and "Stanley Troller" and "MAGPIE" end up being the 3-way to 3-5 in the cesna180!! We were going to doa 3 way fro 3-5 untill magpie missed, we went low!! about 15-200' and watched magpie open down in the misquite!! I think th opening of his canopy kicked up dust!!....Meanwhile, back at the Ranch, Stanley and I are walkin' in after that fiasco and Stan says to me,"I hope nobody saw that??? All anybody saw was MAGPIE's almost BOUNCE!! Jerry Meyers was at the target when Magpie hummed it and he said,"I thought he was going to bounce so I turned around so I didn't have to see his splatter......."THEN" his chute opened!!!! ....Stan and I thought for sure we'd be grouunded for piulling beLow minimums but THANK Again skybllSCR-2034, SCS-680 III%, Deli-out Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Divalent 119 #1513 May 25, 2019 Bump. (Because it is a very entertaining thread) Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
CharlieK 1 #1514 August 25, 2019 We were doing a two plane shot with two 182's at Minier back around '81 or '82. I was in the second plane and going from the step. The lead plane opened the door to spot and we all climbed out. Our que to go was the lead plane exiting. The base and hanger left followed by the guy facing backward on the step. Then the guy diving the door went out and.... he was wearing a well worn Shooby suit. The Shooby had a heavy webbing around the cuff and the suit had worn fabric around the webbing. Long story short the webbing caught on the step and the jumper was blowing in the wind at 10,500, just him and the pilot. Me, I was still on the strip in the tail plane starting at the show. The jumper in the door was screaming at me to go, I finally did but the dive wasn't going to get together and I'd never seen what was going on above us. Neither the pilot, plane or the jumper hanging from the step had a knife. They flew around for a while with the jumper in tow. The pilot finally broke the glass on one of the instruments and used that to cut the webbing. As he described it he'd stabilize the plane, then lean out the door to cut some webbing and then go back in, level the plane and cut some more. The jumper got down, the plane got down, we went drinking. 1 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
skybill 22 #1515 April 10, 2020 Back in the Day... I think around '78-'79 when we were still doin' the S/L Program at Perris before Hank made all those godawful red and yellow Hankpigrigs!! we'd have an average of 30 or more FJC students on a Saturday or Sunday morning Class!!!! Hooodogies! So at least a DC-3 load.. GOOD FUN!! One Sunday.. or was it a Saturday?? either way.. Got the load geared up, a couple of extra J/M helpers in the plane and taxi out!!! Ron Lay does the 30 inch check on starboard ..OK.. then PORT..... POPPOPPOPOP..no go taxi back!!! run everyone over to the other DC-3 ...taxi out, take off.. turn around and land!!!!! Don't remember what the gig was but we were down!!!!!! They had Howie warm up this cargo door Beech 18 we had at the time so I took up 10 students at a time!! First group... OK.. Second group ....well some "Chatter" in the starboard engine!! Students were eager to get out is an under statement!! We got the 3rd group up and 3 to a pass and 4 on the last.... As 2 and 3 go ... Howie starts workin' the throttles yelling...."GET OUT!!!!...GET OUT!!!!" Stu #4 didn't even wait for me to say GO!!! He was "GONE!!!!" Funny how that goes!! skybill Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
SCS422 26 #1516 April 13, 2020 (edited) Quote Back years ago when Steve Fielding was organizing the night record attempts we had one going for the night 16 man record. I can't remember everybody that was on the load but Bud Kruger was Base, I think Allen Kruger was 3rd or 4th, Jim Wallace, Sam Marshall was on the load Allen Babick I think, naturally Steve was last, I lost my log book with all the record attempts I was on and a lot of the big day jumps anyway, we had two beeches (that was really the scary part) over Elsinore one dark winter evening and Bud was spotting, it went together fairly well, a little up and down but settled in nicely and we were waiting for the last guy to come in and I look at Bud and he shook his hands, turned and split. Everybody turned and tracked away. I had borrowed Dale Thurber's Piggyback and had a heck of a time getting the ripcord handle out, I look down and thought "Damn we are over the Ortegas" but it was actually the ground. When we got opened I was either low man or 2nd to low and I was only about 300ft high, Allen was next, there were about 4 of us REAL low, the rest were about a 1000ft. Allen Kruger walked up to me and said "Larry, don't you ever tell anyone how low we were. Edited April 13, 2020 by SCS422 1 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
SCS422 26 #1517 April 13, 2020 On 6/16/2017 at 1:24 PM, BobBurnham said: Well, this isn't really a scary story, but it's from the old days. We jumped at Issaquah WA in the late 60's I think. One of the guys had some older relative that gave him a WWI (I think) flare parachute, and he wanted to find something fun to do with it. He secured a rock to it somehow, possibly in a little bucket, for weight. Some of us were going up for a jump and he wanted us to throw it out and he would be on the ground to go get it. So, during climb out, at about 500 feet we opened the door and pitched this thing out, aiming to have it land in a dusty open field on the other side of Hwy 10. Somehow the chute gobbed up and went whistling down and thumped in prettly dramatically. There were cars stopping and people getting out and running out to where it came down. My buddy was there and was picking it up when several whuffos came running up and yelling "is he ok?" He made motions like dusting himself off and just said "yeah, I'll be ok" Everybodies jaw hit the floor, and when they recovered they all walked slowly back to their cars shaking their heads in amazement. I don't remember any news stories in the paper, but I bet that somebody reported it. I remember jumping with the "Clear Eye Express" from there great bunch of guys Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
skybill 22 #1518 August 18, 2023 Scary to today's jumper's.... have to check my log's .. think it was March of '66 me, Don McQuattie and Pat Larkin's did a "Double Baton Pass!!!! My friend Jim Day .. an aspiring Photographer was at the DZ and shot me under canopy!! YUP a "7-TU!! 28' C-9!!" .... OH yes... Check out our Altimeter's!!!!! skybill SCR-2034, SCS-680 3 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
wmw999 2,370 #1519 August 18, 2023 It may not have been as safe, but those of us who survived do have better stories... Wendy P. 3 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
johnhking1 93 #1520 August 23, 2023 We did a 3 point 4 way from 2100 feet. Millennial skydivers freak out if they have to exit below 5000 feet. 2 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
johnhking1 93 #1521 August 24, 2023 On 8/22/2023 at 9:33 PM, johnhking1 said: We did a 3 point 4 way from 2100 feet. Millennial skydivers freak out if they have to exit below 5000 feet. We dragged off a stair step, turned to a donut then a round, split and open at 1600 ft. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
wmw999 2,370 #1522 August 25, 2023 I can believe it. Worst I did was drag off a diamond from a 182 right at 2000. But we split after that. Very few dirty low-pulling women out there. I don’t think it was our thing Wendy P. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
riggerrob 622 #1523 August 30, 2023 On 8/24/2023 at 5:04 PM, wmw999 said: I can believe it. Worst I did was drag off a diamond from a 182 right at 2000. But we split after that. Very few dirty low-pulling women out there. I don’t think it was our thing Wendy P. It helped that back in the good-old-days, our main canopies (e.g. Cruiselite) opened promptly. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
skybill 22 #1524 December 4, 2023 Well, it's been a while... but mentioning pulling off pieces at low altitudes.... Back "in the Day" at Scare-Us-Valley in the early mornings with the cloud ceiling around 3 to 3,5K and no holes.. Bob Webb would get on the Mike and say he'd take a load to the cloud base f anyone wanted... Well "GOOD FUN" we called them TORPEDO RUN'S!!! the Otter throttles Ballz2Dwall and above the DZ we'd Launch.. Donuts, Diamonds, Rounds .. trying to "Frisby launch" the piece!! We'd get a good 10 to 15 seconds and a couple of points!!! Did I say "GOOD FUN!!!" .. The Best of times!!! foto: anybody remember this place?? Note!!: no Rock Crushing plant in the background and YOU may be in the foto .. if yer' old enough!!!! skybill 5 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
dudeman17 320 #1525 December 10, 2023 Yes I'm old enough to remember that place. That picture is BS! Actually, two BS's - the Bomb Shelter and a Brick Shithouse! On 12/4/2023 at 1:14 AM, skybill said: with the cloud ceiling around 3 to 3,5K and no holes... ...take a load to the cloud base... ...the Otter throttles Ballz2Dwall... ...trying to "Frisby launch" the piece!! We'd get a good 10 to 15 seconds and a couple of points!!! What's "Frisby launch"? Putting a spin on the formation so it stays flat in the high airspeed? Or trying to do the whole thing successfully so that Al wouldn't have to get involved in the aftermath? Ha!! - tacos and hobbits! 1 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites