My Last Jump - by DrEco

[BIGUN 1,069]

Received in an email from Dr. Eco and posted by Bigun

"My Last Jump" - by Dr. Eco

Quote

I am retired now living in Florida, but I still think about and miss my good old skydiving days in Texas and specially in Califorina.

About 4 years ago, I had not jumped in about 37 years when I got the hots to make some more jumps while I was still alive and kicking. I went out to Flagler County AP where two character named Rocky and Fang ran the DZ. I ask someone who the owner/instructor was and they pointed out Rocky who was standing not far from me as one of the owners. I go up to Rocky and said, "I would like to make some 60 second freefalls". Rocky asked, "when was your last jump". I said, "It has been a while."

Rocky said, "Oh you have not jumped for a while, we will have to put you through a refresher course and you should start with some static line jumps".

I said," Wait a minute Rocky, I got over 500 freefall jumps and I have never made a static line jump and I not going to start now."

Rocky said, over 500 jumps! Got any licenses? I said, "yea, a "D" (expert) license. Rocky said "Yea, what is you D number.

I said, "D-115" as I took out my D license and showed it to him. Then I showed them my log books.

Rocky got all excited and said "D-115 !!" Fang come over here, this guy is D-115. Rocky's and Fang's "D" license numbers were in the thousands and I was informed that they were both on the US National Skydiving team some years ago. Then they look at all my log books and saw all of my old jumps that were signed off by some of the true skydiving pioneers.

I had between 20 to 50+ relative work jumps with the following D (Expert) license holder except were noted.

D (Expert) License No., No. of signed off jumps, Location (State), Name, Comments

D 42 TX Jacks, Clyde E. I had about 50 jumps with Clyde who had Gold Wings License No. 2 or 3. Bee Line and Midway DZ near Houston, Texas. Clyde was kill in the late 1960 doing slow roll in his aerobatic airplane. Flying is risky.

D 63 CA Simbro, Henry L. 12 Jumps with Hank / Muriel at Lancaster, Taft and Arvin DZ's

D 78 CA Muriel, Jean Simbro Wife of Henry (Hank) Simbro D-63

D 84 CA Cupp, Jack M. 10 Jumps with Cupp at Lancaster, Taft and Arvin DZ's.

D 89 TX Fitch, Edward D. Dr. Fitch (C-198), a close friend of Clyde, was a Heart Surgeon in Houston. I had about 30 jumps with Dr. Fitch at Bee Line and Midway DZ's near Houston, Texas

D 95 CA Molitar, Don, 10 Jumps with Molitar at Taft and Arvin DZ's.

D 115 TX Economy, Richard

D 196 CA Carlyn Olsen 20 Jumps with Carlyn Olsen

D 251 TX Jeannie McComba ~ 22 jumps with Jeannie (the jump mistress) McComba. Jeannie went in at Elsinor.

D 272 MI Sinclair/Bob Camera man for some of the Rip Cord TV series. (5) jumps with Sinclair at California City and Lake Elsinor DZ's. Bob was a good cameraman but did he did not participate in large relative work jumps.


Plus, I had about 40 jumps signed off by Bob Buquor (and a lot more jumps with Bob that were not signer off by Bob). That really got them excited. It seem like every old skydiver knows who Bob Buquor was. Bob is a legend.

After that they treated me like Charles Lindbergh at an AOPA convention. Rocky loaned me one of his new para-wing chutes and I made 4 relative work jumps with Rocky and Fang and they even repacked the chute for me.

My Last Jump It was just before sunset and Rocky was taking a couple of students up. There was enough room for one more jumper so I went along. Rocky put one student out low and then went up to 7500 feet where he went out with the other student for about a 35 second freefall jump. With only the pilot and me in the plane, it was climbing good, I decided to go on up to 15,000 for about an 85-90 second freefall. At 15,000 the sun was shinning bright but it was dark on the ground.


For once, I made a leisurely jump. No maneuvers, e.g., fast turns, flips, etc., I just enjoyed the scenery. I had never done that before. All of my previous jumps were either:

1) accuracy jumps, e.g. mainly at exhibitions and special event where you are trying to get into a tight location. In accuracy jumps you correct for your position over the ground by tracking during freefall,

2) most they were relative work freefall jumps with other jumpers making stars, shooting photos, etc., where you don't worry about your position with respect the ground until you open.

It was great. I just made a slow turn and watched as I fell through the sunset. At about 8,000 feet the sun was just touching the horizon. About ten-second later as I fell past about 6,000 feet the sun had completely set. By the time I open at 2000 feet it was completely dark. I had free-fallen from bright sunshine to total darkness in about 85-90 seconds and 13,000 feet.

After I opened, I headed for the target in the center of the airport as I descended into and landed in a sea of blue taxi-way lights surrounding the Drop Zone.

This was one of my most memorable jumps and it was a fitting last jump. I still get the urge to jump some more and I am thinking about.

When it was all over, both Rocky and Fang ask me to sign their log books.

Nobody has time to listen; because they're desperately chasing the need of being heard.

[jonstark 8]

Rocky Evans was a "Hog Flop" champion along with Ken Coleman (inventor of AFF). He survived the balloon crash which killed Ken. He is alive and kickin I imagine.

Fang, Richard Fennemor, is deceased. He was the court jester of the Herd and Deland and was one of the most naturally talented jumpers of his day.

jon

[wartload 0]

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1) accuracy jumps, e.g. mainly at exhibitions and special event where you are trying to get into a tight location.

First of all, I really enjoyed reading your posting! Next, I had to smile when I saw you use the term "exhibitions." My first few (intentional) off-DZ jumps were logged as "exhibition jump." At some point, probably about the mid 1970s, these became "Demos." Your age is showing!

[htrammel 0]

I have lots of jumps at Falgler back in the day. You are correct Rocky and Fang were definitely "characters".
Great story

[councilman24 36]

The two other team members were Don Carpenter and Sam Brown. Don is a good friend and was just over the other day. The last jumps he made were about 3 years ago on some of my gear. He gave it up rather than replace his 1982 rig. His son has MD and he spends a lot of time lobbying for that. Don was always willing to jump with anybody, 20 jumps or thousands of jumps. I learned back loops from Don. Nothing like learning from a 3 time national, two time world champion.

Sam still jumps and now one of his sons (at least one of his kids) has jumped. I expect him to call sometime soon to get his rig repacked. He doesn't jump a lot but I know he's got down to Rantoul once or twice.

I'm old for my age.
Terry Urban
D-8631
FAA DPRE

[skr 1]

A few years before this, early 1964 at Lancaster,
Eco was the one who gave me the idea that
flying no contact was a worthwhile activity
in its own right.

It was always wonderful and surreal to see
other people out there in freefall, but there
was also an urge to try to make contact if
anybody was close by.

One day Clarice and I went to Lancaster.

It was a little windy and there was only a
C-170, which didn't climb all that well, so
I got out just over 5,000 ft and Eco and
Clarice went up to 7,200 and flew facing
each other with their finger tips only a
couple inches apart.

It was called hovering.

Then Clarice and I did it and I was hooked.

Like new converts everywhen I went on
a crusade, determined to turn the whole
world on :-) :-)


I didn't think to ask at the time but I've
wondered since then what made him
think of it. Did he just think of it one day,
or was it a standard activity down in
Texas in the late 50s early 60s or what?

Skr

[DrEco 0]

Relative work without contact was a requirement when jumping with a cameraman. Any contact with the cameraman would screw up his ability to compose and frame a photo shot. So both the cameraman and his jumper subject developed hovering abilities.

If you wanted to be in the picture you learn to stay close but not make contact with the cameraman. It started there and then spread to doing the same thing with other jumpers. [email protected]

[patworks 5]

Staying close was required to do multiple baton passes. In Texas from 1964 until '63 or '64 a triple baton pass with three people was a big deal. It required staying close to move the baton from person to person. Staying on level was important. "Close" being 5-15 feet. We usually used a foot-long piece of garden hose as the baton. In May '62, at the HPC Beeline DZ, I exited 4-th and watch Clyde Jacks and Carlos Wallace made 6-baton passes with Tommy Foster who had just moved from static line to freefall about two weeks prior. We made 2 attempts. Tommy had about 9 jumps when they got the 6-way pass. Knowing it was a record for one with so few jumps, Clyde sent it in to PCA. We got castigated instead of praised. It got in the PCA newsletter as a "dangerous stunt" with a thick black box around it. Oh, well.

Seems like that is sort of like what you guys started with. However it is nothing like where SKR took it. Skratch made no-contact, and 'lurking' and no-touch dancing into one of the most poetic things one can do. Lovely, fun, and a great head trip. Thanks SKR! It adds a great dimension to our sky play!

Pat Works nee Madden Travis Works, Jr .B1575, C1798, D1813, Star Crest Solo#1, USPA#189,

[BIGUN 1,069]

Received an email from Bill Newell asking me to post this to Dr. Eco's thread... He better show up at SkyFest for me doin this

Quote

Subject: Re: Bob Buqour and My Last Jump

Hi Eco,

What a pleasant surprise to hear from you after 42 years. I'll bet you don't remember the incident, but you had a big influence on my desire to encourage up and coming jumpers, because you did that for me early in the game.

On March 8th, 1964, I made my first jump at Arvin, and it was just you and me. Here's how it went down: The night before, Ed Fromberg and myself stumbled into you and Walt Scherer at the Stine House in Bakersfield.

I didn't know you guys and so you all decided to have a little fun with me. I had 55 jumps, a couple at Piru, but the rest at Taft. Ed introduced you and Walt to me as whuffo's and me as a pretty experienced skydiver.

You and Walt were going "Wow, no shit", and "tell us about your close calls" and stuff like that. I started telling a few of my jump stories when I noticed Walt snorting and you guys trying to keep from breaking up. Then I got it, and said "You sons a bitches" just as everyone broke into laughter.

Later, you said that was a pretty dirty trick and you'd make it up to me the next day by showing me some good RW if I'd show up at Arvin. Well, I showed up about noon and you said hi, to hang on and you'd jump with me when you weren't too busy. Well the Howard was going up and down all day with you, Ted Ingram, Bob Buquor, Mitch Poteet, Bob Paaren, Don Henderson and the like, and I just waited and waited.

It was the last load of the day and getting close to sunset. I figured you'd blown me off when you came over and said "Are you ready". I said "Hell yeah". As we were boarding the Howard, your pals were trying to get you to jump with them this last dive. Poteet gave me a dirty look and asked you "Who's this guy" right in front of me. You said "After you guys go at 12,500, we're going on up to 13,500, and I'm going to show him a little RW.

I couldn't believe it! Putting those guys aside to jump with a novice like me. Anyway, you told me that I might fall slower than you, and if you ever went below me, to tuck up and fall tight. The sun was setting as we exited, and I remember your silhouette in freefall to this day. You flew around me, we made several hook-ups, and you somersaulted me over your head a couple of times as we barrel rolled out. I beat you on target, and that just completely made my day. Driving home with my young wife, that's all I could think of, and even today, I refer to those thoughts as "sugar plums in my head". I was 22 years old.

I had seen Buquor over at Taft, but had yet to be introduced to him at Arvin, so you were the first "Good Guy" I jumped with at Arvin. Fred Rinke wrote me that Buquor did the same thing for him at Lancaster, and sent me pictures of Buquor and you at Lancaster. I wanted to include them here, but I guess they were deleted from my files somehow.

Anyway, I never forgot the benevolence of you and Bob, and vowed the day that Bob drowned, that I'd try to carry on that kindness and never let skydivers forget where it came from.

I've jumped with everyone you've mentioned below except Clyde Jacks, Ed Fitch and Jack Smith. I think Jack died right after Arvin opened in 64, because I got a second place accuracy trophy in the Jack Smith Memorial Meet somewhere around that time.

So your last jump was similar to the only one we made together. Just relaxing at sunset. Actually, I've made quite a few of those, as I became a little disgusted over the years at how serious skydivers were beginning to take themselves and whatever "first" they were trying to make. After all, it all boils down to jumping out of an aircraft and falling through the sky.

We are currently working on the aesthetics of our data base. Was it up when you viewed the site? And did you read any about the Arvin Good Guys? It was also published in Parachutist, and you were mentioned in there twice.

Till next time,

Take air,

Bill Newell
SCR# 3, D-2644

Nobody has time to listen; because they're desperately chasing the need of being heard.

[skr 1]

Oh .. Hey Pat ..

I was going to email you about this thread,
but I see you found it. I'm just too dang
sporadic here.

I was really moved by Eco's explanation
of where hovering came from.

It closed some circuit that's been open
in my mind for 40 odd years (*very* odd
years if I may say so :-) :-)

That was such a fork in the road event
for me, and I didn't know where the
original inspiration for hovering came
from, so over the years it took on kind
of mythical mystical proportions in my
mind.

And suddenly, there it was!

It came from camera flying!


And I had this feeling like a kid running
to tell his friend over in the next block,
"Hey Pat! Hey Pat! Remember all those
times we talked about ... Well guess what!"

I was still mulling the impact on me and
trying to formulate some kind of thanks
to Eco.


I think I'd like to thank Sangiro for making
this place where we can all get together
again and ...

Skr