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RogerRamjet

What are the odds?

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In formation (l. to r.): Bill Zuchelli, Upper Darby, a Bell Employe; Jerry Bradley, Glenolden office worker; Tim McGrath, Narberth, parachute rigger.



These guys are all from where I grew up...not more than 6 miles from me. Both the name McGrath and Zuchelli sounds familiar. I'd love to know what DZ. Did he tell you where he jumped?

I'll have to check my log book; I can't remember where I was jumping in '64.

Cool pics. Brings back lots of memories. Particularly the two-shot Capewells. I hated them.



He said he jumped with the Army Parachute team, I'll have to ask him at what dropzone.

He and some of his family have seen this thread so maybe he'll sign up and leave some information for us all...

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

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In 1975, before heading to Casa Grande for the winter, I purchased a SST piggyback container. It was beautiful compared to my military surplus equipment. Unfortunately, my Paracommander would not fit in the small container. I bought two 26' Navy Conical reserves for $25 each, that fit easily into the containers. I used a diaper deployment and rigged the back four lines to release on rings(Four line release). To steer the canopies, I used opposite front risers to steer and used the rear risers to flare.
Standups were not a problem, when I wasn't backing up too fast. The turns were a little slow. I crossed a highway and a power line at Casa Grande, before doing a hook turn. It would have been impressive, if I hadn't grabbed the wrong front riser, turned downwind with no time left to correct.
I jumped these canopies at the big Turkey meet in Z-Hills in 1976. The organizers reported the number of reserve rides taken during the meet. I was not the only jumper jumping a reserve as main, so their report was probably inaccurate.
I finally bought a Strato Star, while in Z-Hills and didn't have to walk out of the swamps as often.
Those were fun times. Paul Juel

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Always wondered what the Navy 26 ft Conical would do as a main, now I know. My one reserve ride on that canopy was great and the ldg was waaay softer than my USAF C9 28 ft round ever gave me. Shoulda bought a second Navy conical and used it as my main. I NEVER was able to do a standup on my C9. It landed hard hard hard every time. Guess it was very porous.
2018 marks half a century as a skydiver. Trained by the late Perry Stevens D-51 in 1968.

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I weighed 140 pounds at the time, so standup landings were easy. At that time, a small rig was more important as was the freefall. The canopy was just to get you to the ground so you could make another freefall.
I remember the jumpers, that winter of '75 at the Gulch, didn't like to have square canopies on the load. Way too dangerous. Pretty funny now, looking back.
I remember one opening on the 26' Navy conical, where the front right lines were tangled a little and shortened, causing the canopy front skirt to fold under and reopen. I thought I might be able to land it without getting hurt but looking for a rush, decided that this was a good enough excuse to cut away. Unlike the main canopy with four risers, the 26'navy reserve was on two risers and that made steering more difficult. I had to grab groups of lines to steer the canopy. It was unmodified, but I think it had a Four-line release.
I made a few hundred jumps on the canopy. It did the job. It was stable. It was small. It was cheap. It was strong. I continued flying it even when it was full of holes from lines burns. I might have gotten more forward speed if the holes hadn't been in the front.

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In formation (l. to r.): Bill Zuchelli, Upper Darby, a Bell Employe; Jerry Bradley, Glenolden office worker; Tim McGrath, Narberth, parachute rigger.



These guys are all from where I grew up...not more than 6 miles from me. Both the name McGrath and Zuchelli sounds familiar. I'd love to know what DZ. Did he tell you where he jumped?

I'll have to check my log book; I can't remember where I was jumping in '64.

Cool pics. Brings back lots of memories. Particularly the two-shot Capewells. I hated them.



Here is a part of an email I received from Bill concerning where they jumped (and who they were):

==================================
A little info about the army parachute teams back
then.
There were 2 parachute teams back in 1960. One
with the 101st Airborne at Fort Campbell, Kentucky &
the other with the 82nd Airborne at Fort Bragg.(Golden Knights). Both teams were pretty new at the time. We occasionally jump with each other on demo's. I was with the Screaming Eagles team at Fort Campbell. We billed our team as, The Famed Army Parachute Team.
Enclosed is a picture of one of our posters and
a team picture. Your friend jim may like the poster.
===================================

He sent several more pictures that I will have to downrez to post, but I will in case Jim wants some more art :ph34r:

Edited to add the images....

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

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I thought I was the only one who carried a big ole butcher knife next to his dash board of instruments (back in the good old days). I think hook knives were available back then, but they were harder to come by....Steve1



The knife in the picture was pretty hard to come by as well. Looks to me to be German Issue, WWII. It's the model they gave SS and Hitler youth. :o

I've got one at home. Bought in Austria.



My Karma ran over my Dogma!!!

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