NoShitThereIWas

I did my course in July at Skydive Chicago with Glenn Bangs, Range and Dave Ciciarelli. All in all I spent around $2000 to do it right. I did about 10 practice jumps with GOOD instructors which was very costly but well worth the money. $20 for my slot, $20 for their slot, $30 for their time and $20 for the video guys slot plus another $20 for the video guy. Basically $110 for every practice jump and then about $850 is what I believe the course itself cost. The course also included a full day of practice jumps WITH the evaluators before the actual evaluated real jumps and the 2 practice jumps you could elect to take if you didn't go hot for your eval jumps. This of course does not include beer, food or any travel expenses. Roy Bacon: "Elvises, light your fires." Sting: "Be yourself no matter what they say."

$21 to 12,ooo feet AGL? Dude, you need to move to California. Skydive Monterey Bay frequently offers 18,000 foot jump tickets including oxygen for $18.00 and $15.00 to 15,000 feet. It is ALL GOOD and our freefalls generally last 75 seconds per jump.

Spank You Roy, I am beginning to feel a little bit of love here. Have fun in 90 degree San Carlos while the rest of us are freezing our booties off (ya little bastard). Just kidding . I expect to see some pretty pictures when you get back. Have fun and be safe! Roy Bacon: "Elvises, light your fires." Sting: "Be yourself no matter what they say."

It's also the only event I know where a bunch of weekend warriors have a realistic chance to stand on the podium next to Airspeed (which was WAY COOL). Yes it was John, Amen to that. Let's go back and do it again this year! Any knowledge by the way on when the team intends to start practicing? Are you going to be our captain again? Roy Bacon: "Elvises, light your fires." Sting: "Be yourself no matter what they say."

Thanks KingBunky, I really do feel so much better now. As for being well and/or sick ... I guess I am a little of both but they say variety is the spice of life Roy Bacon: "Elvises, light your fires." Sting: "Be yourself no matter what they say."

Now that is what I call a party! Those pictures of those girls are just wrong. Funny, but wrong! Roy Bacon: "Elvises, light your fires." Sting: "Be yourself no matter what they say."

I second the Dr. Pepper and rum mixture but would go for the regular Dr. Pepper (not the diet). Roy Bacon: "Elvises, light your fires." Sting: "Be yourself no matter what they say."

I guess I am a very naughty bad bad girl because this test says I am a danger to society. I guess that means I am going straight to hell? Should I take that as a compliment? At least I will have plenty of good company and friends to hang around with when I get there, that is if I ever make it to the front of the line. For all you low scoring individuals who end up in heaven, it sounds like heaven would be a pretty boring place! Roy Bacon: "Elvises, light your fires." Sting: "Be yourself no matter what they say."

Hey in that kisspass picture is Raff kissing your helmet? Roy Bacon: "Elvises, light your fires." Sting: "Be yourself no matter what they say."

Hi Roy, Loved the pictures, loved the video (especially that way cool kiss pass to your honey). Let's face it, that looked good! Nicole rocks, lets work on turning her into a whuffonomore, too! Blue skies & hope to see you two out soon! Roy Bacon: "Elvises, light your fires." Sting: "Be yourself no matter what they say."

Wow I can't believe you all have had so many problems with airlines and CYPRES's. Last year I flew all over. From California to Hawaii, Hawaii to California, California to Texas, Texas to Illinois, Illinois back to Texas and so on and so on. Never had a single problem. I just bought one of those big plastic tubs from Target, put my rig and all of my gear in it and tied a rope around it. Just make sure you put it in a container that is hard to open or put your rig in a big plastic bag and then in a container. The one time I did not use a container, Aloha Airlines returned my rig to me with my pilot chute & bridle hanging out and minor cosmetic damage. I was not happy about it to say the least. But those big plastic tubs work great and you can just check them in with the rest of your luggage and not have to worry about dragging them through the security checks, that is if you feel okay parting with your rig. Roy Bacon: "Elvises, light your fires." Sting: "Be yourself no matter what they say."

Hi everyone, I too am a camera flyer that had similar concerns. My helmet has a built in cutaway system. Check out the lightweight Paralight camera helmet. Originally I bought this set up because I was living in Hawaii and wanted a set up that would be open and not claustrophobic. Even though it may not be the design you are looking for, it does have a handy dandy safety feature, a mechanism that allows you to grab a handle which when pulled releases the entire system from your head and allows you to jettison the entire thing. This is the other feature that attracted me to this system. The only thing I do not like about this system is that it does not provide much protection for your actual camera equipment but maybe you can somehow use the idea to modify your own system. The helmet is sold by Skydance Photography and usually can be found advertised in Parachutist. So far I am very happy with mine, it is simple yet effective and I feel safer knowing that I can get rid of it if need be. Good luck and feel free to ask me any questions. Blue skies, Jen O'Hara AFF/I & Videographer Roy Bacon: "Elvises, light your fires." Sting: "Be yourself no matter what they say."

Those are some nice pictures at SMB but I have just one question. How come I am not in any of them? Don't you know who I am? Roy Bacon: "Elvises, light your fires." Sting: "Be yourself no matter what they say."