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efs4ever

Seagoville DZ

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I started jumping at Seagoville in 1968 with Bob C, Jerry S, John Burke, Lupie, and many others. What a great group of people who loved the sport. I can't confirm it but I think Bob was on the first streak jump with John and 2 others in 1969. I was only jumping an old double L with a couple of blow holes that Lupie had put in for extra "drive" but once I had had been cleared for RW I was always treated as an equal when making the manifest.

The DPA jump course was $70 for the first seven jumps to hop and pop. No refunds. Very few students ever quit. A testament to the quality of the training. The club gear was safe but the jumps suits stunk of pee. A side effect of the first time a student climbed out on the step of the 182. They were never washed. Incentive for students to get their own gear and stay jumping with the club. After at clear for FF a jump was $2.50

It was always a wish to get back to Dallas and jump with the DPA again but life got in the way and my jumping days ended in 1972. Sadly before the arrival of the squares but I did have a great PC and packed it in a Crossbow just like Bob and Jerry jumped back in the day.

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I was on a long distance bicycle ride a couple of years ago out by Mesquite Texas and as I was tooling along a country road I had a feeling I had been here before. I looked over to my side and there was the old Seagoville DZ, had not jumped there since August, 1970 in a C-170.
What a great place to jump, my 20th jump was there in April 1969, I had just turned 18 years old and that jump was a C-180. If I remember right the runway was only a dirt strip as I have an old 8mm movie of Gary Lewis's twin beech taking off and I'm pretty sure there was no pavement.
I had to laugh at the movie of the DZ, everyone had parked right by the peas, lots of people and kids hanging out all around the peas to help with the canopys after landing. It was a fun place to jump, use to jump with Harold McElfish whos dad owned the parachute shop at Love Field.
My last jump there was 1970, sure miss all those guys.
Took 40 years off but back jumping every few weeks and loving it.

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I'm sad to say that I seldom view dz.dot com, but I welcome all you maggots to make me a friend on FB and see all my chit.

Russell M. Webb
D 7014

LOTS of photography in a higher res there.
Russell M. Webb D 7014
Attorney at Law
713 385 5676
https://www.tdcparole.com

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Was Seagoville called Southwest Paracenter? If so, the first two jumps in my logbook were there. 8/1/71 & 8/7/71. I was never there, made my real first two jumps in Angleton. A friend gave me the logbook with two jumps already in it to allow him to jumpmaster me and avoid the $35 first jump course. I only had to pay $3 for each of his JM jumps. I remember him coaching me on what I remember as Seagoville but now all I remember is an antenna farm. Right place? Tom Bishop D-591 was forged for the first jump and maybe LF or LT Son C-5098 on the second. I guess my buddy was an OK JM. He had me in freefall on my 6th jump, first RW on 10th jump and SCR & SCS on 44th. I got lots of coaching from others at the DZ 'cause all we talked about back then was RW!

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That may have been the skydiving place out at Roanoke, Texas that was open for a while in the early 70's. I believe Tom Bishop ran it as he signed my log book numerous times.
I see you dont have a license, I never had one either all the time I was jumping back then and dont ever remember anyone asking. I finally got one last year when I resumed jumping, tried to get USPA to grandfather me but no dice, had to start completely over but looking back it was the right call. Sure wish Roanoke was still open, 10 minute drive from home!
Back in the summer of '70 we got the twin beech stuck there with too short of a runway to it get back out until weather cooled down and we pulled it all the way back to the fence line, wasnt sure we were going to clear the trees but we did.

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Roanoke, that was it, thanks for jogging my memory. I was never asked for a license either but I was denied jumping one time in Beaumont because I wasn't a USPA member. It was shortly after I got my 8-man and wasn't a big deal because they didn't even have 3 other jumpers that did RW to make a Cessna load and I didn't unpack unless RW was involved. I had some WUFFO friends in Beaumont that wanted to see me jump so they had to come to V-Mills later. Sorry for hijacking the Seagoville thread.

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Rfogle

That may have been the skydiving place out at Roanoke, Texas that was open for a while in the early 70's. I believe Tom Bishop ran it as he signed my log book numerous times.
I see you dont have a license, I never had one either all the time I was jumping back then and dont ever remember anyone asking. I finally got one last year when I resumed jumping, tried to get USPA to grandfather me but no dice, had to start completely over but looking back it was the right call. Sure wish Roanoke was still open, 10 minute drive from home!
Back in the summer of '70 we got the twin beech stuck there with too short of a runway to it get back out until weather cooled down and we pulled it all the way back to the fence line, wasnt sure we were going to clear the trees but we did.



Was that the "White Whale", Gary Lewis' twin Beech? I made 3 SL and first freefall out of that plane. Many memorable jumps from it after that. Gary loved to fly that plane and he was really good at it. You would never see a better buzz job.

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Yes thats the twin Beech, tail number N6417C. It met its end at Cleveland, Texas when it ran out of gas in the 70's. Right after Gary bought it we flew from A&M down to Baytown and picked up his dad and then flew down to Matagorda Island to do some all night floundering out on the beach. When I got in the plane at Bryan I noticed that almost every instrument had been removed from the instrument panel for service but we were VFR so off we go. Next morning flying back to Baytown it was socked in terrible so we flew down the freeway really low and took a right at the drive in movie as he knew that runway was just next to it. Sure enough there it was.
Probably the diciest landing I was ever in. Last time I saw Gary was at Valley Mills when I flew a Cessna down there and got it stuck in the mud, I believe that was December 1971. I sure miss those A&M buds, they were a fun group.
Whats your name, maybe we have jumped together.
Rick Fogle

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I jumped in V-Mills 11-21-71 and not again till 1-2-72. I only made one jump in December of '71 and that was in Angleton. Those were early jumps and I was just getting the feel of flying. Lots of RW Attempts but a few successes in getting in 2 or later. Spring of '72 is when it all came together and I was making good progress on my RW. You mentioned the A&M group and I was mentored by John Mincher in those days. He got me on the load for my 8-man at only 44 jumps. I wound up finishing college at A&M also but not till '79. I got my pilots license while I was there and wound up with multi-engine and instrument ratings. I also did a stint in balloons in the early 90's. Here is a picture of me from my passport in July '72 after living at V-Mills for several months. John Mincher has a great Valley Mills thread just in case you haven't seen it.

Rick Johnson

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Hi Rick, Sorry for the long delay in my reply.
My last jump at V Mills was 7-17-71 with David Pierce who recently passed away. Gary Lewis was flying a C-180.
I don't believe we have jumped together but here's a picture taken at Roanoke DZ on July 26, 1970. Thats Jeff Gowan already in the plane, probably with Dirty Fred but I didn't log him. Spent yesterday jumping at Spaceland Dallas.
Rick Fogle

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