textandstage

Car was locked, they broke the back window, rig was in plain view.

My rig was stolen from my rental car at the main beach landing area north of the Xtreme Divers DZ in Arecibo, Puerto Rico. The container is a blue 1994 Vector 2 (Vector stitching on the yoke very worn, but legible). The main is an Aerodyne Research 11 cell (AR-11), multi-colored, with black end cells (see attached photo). Reserve is a Raven II, last packed by John Donahue at Sky's The Limit in East Stroudsburg PA. Has an almost brand new vigil (serial number to follow when I return home from PR). I'm working on getting the serial number from the previous owner. This is (was) my first rig, it's got a ton of sentimental value. Despite opening a tad harder than I'd like, the canopy flies wonderfully, and is, due to it's rarity, pretty irreplaceable. If you see it, or suspect you see it listed, please let me know.

Sky's The Limit in East Stroudsburg PA (1.5 hours from the city) will be open this coming weekend, then closed until January 11th. I don't think The Ranch (in Gardiner NY, also about 1.5 hours from the city) is jumping regularly anymore this winter, but if the weather's jumpable and there are jumpers, they might put some loads up, just give them a call. There's also Skydive Above the Poconos which is a little further from the city (never been, but I think it's about 45 minutes past STL in PA) and should be jumping all winter, weather permitting. Closest wind tunnel is in New Hampshire (I know, blows, right?) Hope this helps!

I was thinking along the lines of a modified version of the technology that could somehow be incorporated into a jumpsuit to provide a full body airbag that could be deployed by a jumper approaching impact at a high rate of speed (a reserve-main entanglement for instance). I don't begin to know enough about the technology to know if that's a practical idea, but it would be awesome to add ways for jumpers to mitigate the risk of death in less than ideal situations where other avenues have been exhausted (everything's already out and he/she is still plummeting....)

By no means was I suggesting that one shouldn't wear a helmet. I was more thinking in terms of a wearable, full-body, airbag....

Came across this today. I'm a total noob (38 jumps), so I don't really know if this sort of technology could be practically applicable to skydiving, but I thought it was interesting and that folks here might like it.... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0aX-WXBMI8I Edited to Add: Perhaps in a full body configuration as a sort of final measure if one finds themselves still falling at a high rate of speed (with as much nylon as they can get out over them), under 1000 ft. ?

Hey Revvy, Thanks for the info. I checked out STL this past weekend and loved it. They had a wonderful vibe and the instruction staff made me feel really safe. I'm going to finish up my AFF there, but I'm still looking forward to checking out SDLI and The Ranch once I'm on self-supervised status. I'm just incredibly stoked that there's such a vibrant community out here. Can't wait to explore it all! Thanks for the welcome, hopefully see you around the various area DZs soon! -Daniel

Thanks SkyMama! I'll definitely give them a call! You seem to really know what's up, any other advice for me?

Hey Guys thanks for the responses. I've heard great things about The Ranch, and I look forward to diving there once I'm licensed. It's my understanding that in order for my current progression in AFF to carry over, I need to complete my training somewhere that does AFF (I think I read that Skydive The Ranch does an IAF program that requires tandem jumps, which I'd like to avoid...),which is why I chose SDLI. I was also wondering at what point skydiving shuts down for the winter on the east coast (it seems that the season is year round in CA...). What are the nearest DZs that don't shut down?

Hey Everyone, I just got into the sport/community, I took my AFF 1 and 2 dives while visiting home in California this past week (I went to Skydive Perris). I just got back to NYC (where I now live) and I'm incredibly excited to finish up my AFFs and start work towards my A license. I know that Skydive Long Island does AFF training, and weather permitting, I'm going to jump there tomorrow (I was going to jump today, but there was too much cloud cover, wind, and the possibility of rain....). I was wondering what other outlets there are in the area for skydiving. Are there any windtunnels that are accessible from the city? Are there other things I can do in or around the city to train when actual jumps aren't an option? For that matter, are there bars or other locations that skydivers hangout where I can further engage with the sport? Basically, I'm completely hooked, I can't stop thinking about diving, and I'm looking for ways to increase it's role in my life. Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Hope to hear from you all soon!