DrDom

Jeez, not sure there is anything that goes to Lodi. Its a speck on the map with a town basically in ranching, wine grapes, agriculture, and a small airport with a cool DZ on it. You MAY be able to find your way to Stockton which is close but IIRC you're closer to Sacramento than SF (my CA geography may be off a bit). You are not the contents of your wallet.

That data is actually considered fairly accepted as true. Scary but certainly true. Now, here is the reality... We are most likely being exposed to lead fumes, yes. But the exposure is rather short if you think about it. We are not really in direct of the exhaust and there is a LOT of airflow diluting the airstream. The downside is that lead is removed VERY slowly from the body. Its often stored in the bones if it gets high enough. Then it slowly releases over time. So, is there exposure? sure. Its probably why you can attribute airport workers as having more health issues and shorter lifespans. Should we as passengers be concerned? It would probably take a LOT of skydiving to get there, and rest assured that over time they will probably come after the last leaded gasolines and remove it in favour of other compounds. You are not the contents of your wallet.

this is a fairly unusual problem and I'd try to get a second opinion. Sounds like the tubes are helpful for preventing the compression/decompression injury and I'm uncertain why they would not put them back other than insurance not covering them. You are not the contents of your wallet.

+1 Silly string?

You are correct ChrisD on the SNE dates... I will be out of town so trying to hook up with Sacramento for safety day but... anyone who can should drop into SNE. I don't know when Pepperill does theirs, that may also be an option and although I have no experience there I've heard they also have some great people. You are not the contents of your wallet.

Ah, I was thinking about this all wrong then, it has to do with chord length and aspect ratio since the same sqft remains... THAT makes a lot more sense than I had considered. Just curious, I think my student canopy (navigator) was 9 cell, no? You are not the contents of your wallet.

Local PD will probably not retrieve it since it is a client/service issue that's place is more akin to a court room. You could get a lawyer to contact them and send written (certified notice) of intent to file a claim. At the cost of a rig it could be considered grand theft. First option: have someone pick it up for you and they can ship it. Buy them beer. You said you were in Maine so I was going to offer to do it (I'm in NH) but you say its in NY which is too far for me to do. I bet someone out there would pick it up and send it. FOr beer ;) I'll admit if someone had a few thousand dollars worth of my stuff I wouldnt let it go so easy or go to the message board until I was ready to out them publicly. You are not the contents of your wallet.

My advice as a pragmatist: If you have a bunch of money, invest it all. Seriously. If you do not need it right now go invest it and let it make money for you. Keep working. Do a few jumps and see what happens. Maybe you'll love it maybe you wont. Get life insurance. Seriously. That covers skydiving. I am the breadwinner in my house. Suffice to say I make an unreasonable amount of money (I'm an ER doc and hospital administrator) and yet I didn't go out and buy gear and go gung-ho into it... I did a few jumps. I loved it but havent been back since fall. If I bought $5000 worth of gear and left it 1/2 a year, maybe I'll have $5200 by now with good returns. Maybe more. THats jump cash. Plus you don't get used to having it. Live like you have no money, and you'll never worry about it. But remember if you get injured in the sport you better have enough money awaiting you in the bank to cover expenses. Your kids and significant other depend on it. You are not the contents of your wallet.

Neither are explosives but god damn they're entertaining. I thought there was no problem that couldnt be solved with suitable application of high explosives? You are not the contents of your wallet.

i was told "the butterflies never go away, they just learn to do RW" You are not the contents of your wallet.

To the trained eye, it is fossil pollen, Sparky. Not dust. Don't you dare say "dust". 9 years of college and grad school, buddy. 9 YEARS. I study fossil pollen. Got it? Now THAT is one fascinating career... The things we can learn from studying the smallest clues from history. Ahhhhh science... You are not the contents of your wallet.

Its not stupid, its training. I still visualize road courses for my racing and landing patterns for flight school. I go to the tunnel every chance I get. Its good to keep your mind engaged. You are not the contents of your wallet.

1) Be a pilot and drop jumpers 2) own a DZ 3) rigging 4) AFF instruction 5) Tandem instruction 6) Photography 7) Gear sales 8) Tunnel training (if one is local) 9) Packing there are probably more but most of the roads to get there probably cost as much as a year in school, some more than an education (i.e. DZO or piloting). I have to agree with the other guys, get your degree and skydive for fun. You are not the contents of your wallet.

If your heart is set on a 7 cell then take a good look at the PD Storm. Personally I would recommend a Sabre 2 or Pulse - both 9 cells. Be the canopy pilot you want that other guy to be. . ............................................................................. Agreed! Nine-cells have a larger flare-window, meaning that they are more foregiving of poorly-timed flares. Thats good to know... seems like 9's would be better for beginners overall then? WHats the plus of a 7 cell? You are not the contents of your wallet.

I just went through USPA and had great results. First, I have "regular" life insurance which is $300/quarter ($1200/year) because I have had heart surgery. So I had 1/2 mil of coverage if my heart gives out or something. USPA got me hooked in for $75/month for another $500k of coverage for both skydiving and private piloting. This was about 5x cheaper than adding a rider to my existing policy. You should talk to your insurance company if you already have a policy otherwise contact USPA's insurance and ask, you can likely get a regular policy that also covers skydiving. You are not the contents of your wallet.

I dont get the rush to mount a camera. Seriously. I don't. If you want pics to show all your friends what you do as a student talk to your instructor and see if they video you. You wont have the skill to fly safely AND video someone else for a while. I may only have a few jumps, but I can say with certainty the LESS "things" the better. Simple analogue altimeter is about all the gear you need aside from your helmet/rig. If I had one more thing to pull my mind away while dealing with the fear, adrenaline, and sensory overload of exiting a plane... I'd probably not be here. The folks on here have a ton of experience and GREAT points: snag risk, distraction, snag on your friend, and all kinds of unpredictable events. Why the rush to add more risk to a dangerous sport? If you want to show off what you did have someone video you. Seriously. If you want pretty pictures of scenery from altitude... have someone bring you up in the 182 and take some pics out the door. You'll get better pics and less risk of your life. I stopped caring about my YouTube videos when I realized I was jumping out of planes for my own experience, not someone else's. Maybe once you're in the sky the importance of video-evidence will be mitigated. You are not the contents of your wallet.

I know with things like steroids if the problem settles you may have less issues but would need to keep using the meds. The vassal a fixes the symptom not the issue so I'd imagine you would not see any decrease over time... Admittedly I'm not an ENT specialist though. You are not the contents of your wallet.

In a very technical sense the things you sprain are the ligaments and/or tendons... That support the MTP joint. If it is improving... Not much to do :) You are not the contents of your wallet.

I think you can stall ANY wing with enough AOA. Its more the way the wing behaves under such stall conditions. Inflatable wings, if I understand them correctly, have the possibility to actually collapse under zero forward movement or even go backward. Paragliders and parachutes have the difficulty that the wing is flexible AND the weight (CG) rides like a pendulum under it. The physics are definitely interesting. You are not the contents of your wallet.

I have never seen anyone hyperventilate in their sleep. Just saying. Well played indeed. But the adrenaline and cortisol keep me awake. Its fight or flight the whole way up. I just could not imagine sleeping on the way up, seems like such a high stress environment. Funny, the excitement of new jumpers. I am bored to the point of yawning most of the time although I don't sleep. A fully loaded Otter with all it's seat belts in use is a boring ride up. Although I've always disliked flying, recently a caravan I was on was flying above, below, and then back up behind a impressive fast moving cloud front... that was enjoyable it made it more exciting.

I could totally see me losing my lunch overdoing that... You are not the contents of your wallet.

If you land on the front portion of your foot (the "ball") and roll forward your toes will extend (move "up) and one of 2 things "can" happen... 1) you can strain the muscles, tendons, and/or ligaments that support the extension of your toes (like rolling an ankle, but your toes!) 2) you can fracture the metacarpal bones usually at the "head" which can range from microfractures to severe displaced fractures. Worst case is a nasty thing called a LisFranc fracture but the mechanism is not quite the same as you described Anyhow, if its still bothering you the easiest way to find out is an x-ray. If you're getting better usually NSAIDS (ibuprofen or naproxen) is usually enough along with preventing re injury while healing. You are not the contents of your wallet.

Your handle cracks me up! You are not the contents of your wallet.

Shouldnt there be a second video "After you poop you host the Olympic Games then promptly roll tanks into Ukraine"? You are not the contents of your wallet.

I guess "The Hunt For Red October" got it right when they said "Russians don't take a dump without a plan". Just as an aside, I don't buy it. If the toilet is dirty enough that you don't want your shlong bumping into it... do you really thing a piece of wet paper is going to protect you from that which is nasty? You are not the contents of your wallet.