touch hands before exit

[dan0kun 0]

what is the meaning for slapping / bumping hands with every jumper on the plane before the door opens?

One in four people have mental illness. If your three friends are okay, then it's you.

[AggieDave 6]

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what is the meaning for slapping / bumping hands with every jumper on the plane before the door opens?

"Good luck, have fun and goodbye if one of us doesn't make it."

--"When I die, may I be surrounded by scattered chrome and burning gasoline."

[steve1 5]

I didn't see anyone do this in the 70's. I'm glad to see this becoming a tradition now. In a way it brings us all closer together, every jump.....Steve1

[airtwardo 6]

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"Good luck, have fun and goodbye if one of us doesn't make it."

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WHAT?!


You mean it's not about everyone wanting to
touch a 'Sky God?'


They do the EVERYWHERE???



It's not just about MEEEE?!?!?

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

[calledisrael 0]

can i ask a dumb question? (yes, i am a student)
and i know it may just be local tradition.

on our plane, we don't touch 'hands' but touch two fingers to everyone within reach. is there a reason for that? do most people?
it's very ceremonial - i like it alot.

just curious.

life is either a daring adventure or nothing at all.
(helen keller)

[wmw999 2,150]

I don't remember seeing it in the mid-80's. When and where did it start? On rowdy days, we'd sing "Shall we gather at the river" during takeoff.

Of course, exit counts took longer too
"one potato two potato three potato four
five potato six potato out the fucking door"

Wendy W.

There is nothing more dangerous than breaking a basic safety rule and getting away with it. It removes fear of the consequences and builds false confidence. (tbrown)

[wartload 0]

Geez ... were you at Louisburg then? That's the first place I heard the potato count, but I think it might have been before the 80s.

[wmw999 2,150]

This was in Houston, in the very early 80's.

It's particularly memorable because we were doing girly jumps one afternoon, and the guys on the pass before us gave the same count in a falsetto

Wendy W.

There is nothing more dangerous than breaking a basic safety rule and getting away with it. It removes fear of the consequences and builds false confidence. (tbrown)

[kelel01 1]

I was told it means, "Have a good jump" (palms together), "and don't forget to pull" (the point).

[RogerRamjet 0]

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I don't remember seeing it in the mid-80's. When and where did it start? On rowdy days, we'd sing "Shall we gather at the river" during takeoff.

Of course, exit counts took longer too
"one potato two potato three potato four
five potato six potato out the fucking door"

Wendy W.

Gee, in a 1000 jumps in eight years, I only ever heard 3, 2, 1, go! ... I like your (their?) count much better
The only signs I saw going around in the '70s were people "bagging" each other. You just didn't want to be bagged! Anyone remember that?

-----------------------
Roger "Ramjet" Clark
FB# 271, SCR 3245, SCS 1519

[airtwardo 6]

Or how about...

"HEY ASSHOLE!"

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

[AggieDave 6]

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Or how about...

"HEY ASSHOLE!"

I got one of my tandem students to yell that at about 12K two weeks ago. She thought it was the coolest thing and I got a kick out of my tandem student being so motivated about skydiving.

Sort of like another student I got to yell "Get 'Er Done!" on exit a couple of weeks ago as well.

--"When I die, may I be surrounded by scattered chrome and burning gasoline."

[eUrNiCc 0]

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Or how about...

"HEY ASSHOLE!"

SAFETY BRIEFING!

Egad, A BASE life defiles a bad age.

[slug 1]

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I don't remember seeing it in the mid-80's. When and where did it start? On rowdy days, we'd sing "Shall we gather at the river" during takeoff.

In the 70's in Ks

We used to sing "Off we go into the wild blue yonder, Clinbing high into the sun"...... If I remember correctly

Glad we're still getting older to
R.I.P.

[PROGRESSIVE 0]

When I started skydiving, everyone would yell on que, "blues skies..black death," during take off. I thought this was hilarious, especially jumping at Cooledge in the early 80's.

When I recently got back into skydiving I got the impression that was frowned upon. Initially I was caught off guard when I'd get my helmet on and start checking my handles, and going over the dive in my head on jump run, everyone would start getting all touchy and feely...its like, don't bother me, I'm thinking!

No one did this hand slapping when I started skydiving in 79. Now, everywhere I go, I just bite my tongue and slap the hands, or snap the fingers, or some combination there of, with some other shmuck that's about to huck themselves out of a perfectly good airplane.

Back then, blowing a low hook turn meant getting the wind knocked out of ya.

Times have changed.

[mr2mk1g 10]

The one I've almost always been party to is a dragging of the palms across one another, then a knock of the knuckles, then pointing at each other.

I’ve been told that this is a mimic of your reserve drills...ie: "peal, punch, pull".

But what do I know... I certainly wasn’t there at the inception, just what I’ve been told.

[JeffSkydiver 0]

I agree with you Progressive. I'm trying to get used to it to be friendly etc., but, at least for now, as I'm getting used to jumping again after 23 years off - I wish it would all happen in the boarding area, or after 1000 feet when the helmets and seat belts come off - not right before exit. On a 13.5 jump, everyone starts moving around at about 10 k or so, helmets, gloves, equip checks etc etc. I did for awhile too then found that I'd be ready way too soon, then the ritual, after which I would check myself anyway because of all the moving and shuffling around on the plane.

Now, since I mostly do solos or 2 ways, I'm usually out last or right before tandems & AFFs. I try to wait until all the ritual is done, then do my 10 point check, goggles, helmet and pin check.

I'm not out to change anything - I WILL get used to it. It's just right now, it's a little bit of a distraction only because of WHEN it's done.

jt

*

Let's all do this safe enough that we can still do this in our 90's.

[airtwardo 6]

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everywhere I go, I just bite my tongue and slap the hands, or snap the fingers, or some combination there of,

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LOL!
I hear ya...More physical contact than I usually
get without dinner and a movie.

Couple weeks ago, a guy sitting next to me pulls
off his glove and studies his hand for a moment...

Sticks a couple fingers into the face of someone across from him and asks...

"This smell like BUTT to you??"



For some reason no one wanted to do the finger snappy thingie with him anymore!!


I'm gonna have to try that!

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

[riggermick 6]

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When I started skydiving, everyone would yell on que, "blues skies..black death," during take off. I thought this was hilarious, especially jumping at Cooledge in the early 80's.

When I recently got back into skydiving I got the impression that was frowned upon. Initially I was caught off guard when I'd get my helmet on and start checking my handles, and going over the dive in my head on jump run, everyone would start getting all touchy and feely...its like, don't bother me, I'm thinking!

No one did this hand slapping when I started skydiving in 79. Now, everywhere I go, I just bite my tongue and slap the hands, or snap the fingers, or some combination there of, with some other shmuck that's about to huck themselves out of a perfectly good airplane.

Back then, blowing a low hook turn meant getting the wind knocked out of ya.

Times have changed.

It kind of makes me uncomfortable. I feel awkward doing it because I'm never sure exactly what I should be doing. Old school I guess.

Mick.

[hottamaly 1]

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Or how about...

"HEY ASSHOLE!"

WHAT?

Skydiving gave me a reason to live
I'm not afraid of what I'll miss when I die...I'm afraid of what I'll miss as I live

[steve1 5]

I had a jumpmaster in the Army who had a habit of saying, "F--- God and stand in the door!". (How's that for being touchy feely!). Everyone expected to see him struck dead by lightning, but it never happened.

Another jumpmaster I knew would give you the boot if you took too long in the door. A friend of mine landed with shoe polish all over the back of his fatigues. We got a great laugh out of that.

Maybe Army jumpmasters, back then, just needed a little sensitivity training....Steve1

[stratostar 5]

Hell I just thought they had boogers on the fingers and were trying to get them off.

~

you can't pay for kids schoolin' with love of skydiving! ~ Airtwardo

[itllclear 1]

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When I started skydiving, everyone would yell on que, "blues skies..black death," during take off. I thought this was hilarious, especially jumping at Cooledge in the early 80's.
.

In 1986, a group of jumpers had about half the seats on a Mexicana DC-9 leaving from Tijuana to Mazatlan. On rotation, someone yelled out "Blue Skies" and got the traditional response.

The whuffos on board were somewhat puzzled.

Harry

"Harry, why did you land all the way out there? Nobody else landed out there."

"Your statement answered your question."

[stratostar 5]

We used to sing "Off we go into the wild blue yonder, Clinbing high into the sun"...... If I remember correctly (quote)

That's because you guys watched the gyspy moths over and over and over and over, just because hackman did it into the mic on T.O. you know life imitating the arts.

~

you can't pay for kids schoolin' with love of skydiving! ~ Airtwardo

[slug 1]

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We used to sing "Off we go into the wild blue yonder, Clinbing high into the sun"...... If I remember correctly (quote)

That's because you guys watched the gyspy moths over and over and over and over, just because hackman did it into the mic on T.O. you know life imitating the arts.

~

Hi SS

Damn so that's where it came from

BTW "back in the day" we only got to see the movie Gypsy Moth's in the theatre once. Pre VCR's,& DVD's, Waivers wind tunnels,cell phones, computers, pocket calculators...... what were we talking about

Maybe thats why we forgot where that song came from.

Off we go into the wild blue yonder, Clinbing high into the sun
R.I.P.