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A young man who learned to skydive at Raeford this year has moved back to Lafayette, LA and is looking for a place to skydive. I am trying to help him out. Where do you folks from the Lafayette area go to skydive on a regular basis? Arrive Safely John

That's only a mile and a half from the DZ. Arrive Safely John

I asked one of the Moderators for this forum to add NSFW to the subject line - I forgot. Please don't hijack the thread. Arrive Safely John

Bonfire (7) Revival (7) One more . . . Arrive Safely John

The value of coaching . . . I got some this week, and I'm getting two days worth this weekend. Arrive Safely John

Missed that one - have taken care of it as well. Thanks for pointing it out. Arrive Safely John

@ DocPop: [warning] Personal attacks are prohibited in the forums. [/warning] Arrive Safely John

I jump in Gatorz now mostly, but the goggles that I like best are Sorz goggles. They fit great and are easy to keep adjusted. Their only disadvantage is that once the foam starts to break down it may leave a little residue on your face, and once it starts peeling from the lens it's all over. They come in clear, dark grey, yellow, mirror silver, and mirror blue. The Benny is a super helmet - far superior to a Pro Tec, and well within your budget. Doug Park (Owner of Sky Systems USA) is a good friend of mine and he takes good care of his customers. Arrive Safely John

Creeper. Arrive Safely John

I trashed another thread that was a blatant advertisement. This one is OK - please don't turn this into an ad string. This is a cool piece of kit and I hope it fills to the point that they get produced. Arrive Safely John

His Red Hot Forkness is celebrating a birthday today. Happy birthday, mate. Arrive Safely John

All of the USPA license requirements can be found in Section 3 of the SIM. Page 241 (255 in the PDF) has a study guide for the B and C license exams. http://www.uspa.org/Portals/0/Downloads/Man_SIM_2012.pdf Any DZ that trains students should be able to organize water training for you. It is very simple, and does not require your own gear. The DZ should have an old harness/container and main canopy they can use to get wet. Enjoy! Arrive Safely John

"Real savage-like" Arrive Safely John

You have a unique situation that requires using the DZ offset feature. Give me a call after 5 PM and I will explain (not enough time to type it all here). I PM'd you my phone number. Have the CYPRES2 manual with you when you call so I can show you where to find it. Arrive Safely John

Celebration of Life in Honor of Gene Paul Thacker Saturday, 20 October 2012, 4:00 PM Raeford Parachute Center This will be an outdoor event. So please dress appropriately. We also welcome the National Skydiving Museum to this event as a fundraiser for the museum. Arrive Safely John

I have a good one for wake turbulence - CHECK! Arrive Safely John

Perfect for dust devil - CHECK! Thanks. Arrive Safely John

A little help? I am putting together a class/presentation on turbulence. I could use some help finding some videos of the effects of turbulence on skydiving canopies (I don't want to use paragliders or airplanes). Clear air turbulence, mechanical turbulence due to objects on the ground, wake turbulence, dust devils, etc. If you have found some good ones, please post a link. Note: I would rather not use videos of collapses that resulted in serious injury or fatality. Shock and awe are not what I want to convey with this class. Many thanks . . . Arrive Safely John

This is a great thread . . . there have been a lot of really great answers given here. I would like to personalize my answer . . . I have been jumping since 1984, having first been trained as a US Army Paratrooper jumping non-steerable round canopies. I am nearly 48 years old and will hit the 5000 jump mark this year. I have experienced only minor jump-related injuries; the only ones that have kept me from jumping are a bruised tailbone, a couple of bruised heels, a sprained ankle or two, and a perforated ear drum. I love to learn - picking up new skills and improving the ones I already have. I also love to train - practice is not boring to me, and the results are always worth the effort. Although my tolerance of risk is very high, I am methodical by nature . . . I tend to do a lot of homework, formulate a plan, and make informed decisions. I also use my results - both good and bad - to make myself better. I can learn from anybody, regardless of their experience level. I often learn things by watching and listening to jumpers with far less experience. I am also good at looking for resources that help me make those informed decisions I talked about before. If I am looking for gear advice, I talk to manufacturers. If I am looking for teaching advice, I talk to other teachers (Examiners). If I am looking for canopy piloting advice, I talk to competitive canopy pilots. These are just some examples. In each of those areas, there are some super-experienced people with a lot of information to offer, as well as peers that have found something that works for them that might just work for me as well (at least there is fun for me in trying). Sometimes I pay for advice (coaching, books, courses, etc.) and sometimes I get it for free. Credibility and reputation are important. A truly credible and reputable teacher or coach should not mind giving you a little bit of their background to bolster your confidence in them, but that conversation should not turn into an "I love me" speech. A teacher's ability goes far beyond numbers and ratings. As a teacher myself, I far prefer spending time otherwise used to run through my laundry list of experience conveying something useful to those who have showed up in front of me to learn. Compatibility of personality types is also a factor. A good teacher will recognize that they are not getting their point across and try coming at it from different angles until it lands. In some cases, having another teacher step in to work with that particular student is the key to their success. It may have nothing to do with the original teacher's ability to teach or the student's ability to learn, it's just about hearing those "magic words" that cause the "AHA!" moment that everyone was looking for. Naturals can be great people to learn from, with one caveat: they need to be able to convey what makes them so good to others, metered in steps that keep the recipient of that information safe and on track. I have met natural jumpers that are stellar at a particular part of the sport that (although they understand it completely) cannot effectively express the elements of their successful performance to others. Check people out - ask around about them. Those very reputable and credible teachers won't mind that a bit. Nor will they mind a direct question like "what makes you the right person to teach me this stuff?" I am a huge fan of direct communication. They will also not mind if you choose to train under somebody else - they should not take it personally. I hope you keep asking great questions like this one, especially in person to those who you choose to seek advise from. This two-dimensional forum of ours has its limits . . . Arrive Safely John

That was VERY well stated. I knew I liked you! Arrive Safely John

As usual, my brother, you have delivered advice that is helpful to everyone who reads it. You just gave me two more points to add when I teach Student Harness adjustment. I owe you a Zima. Arrive Safely John

My thoughts on Student harness adjustment . . . BACKGROUND: the old (Vector II) harness was much less comfortable than the Sigma harness, both under canopy and walking around on the ground. The Sigma harness, for the majority of Students, is comfortable enough to completely fit/adjust/tighten all points of adjustment on the ground before boarding the aircraft. For the minority of folks that find it uncomfortable, I have found that they are either 1) not of the body type that will allow ANY properly adjusted harness to be comfortable (i.e. high body fat & overall lack of musculature), or 2) they don't like the "squeeze" or restriction of a harness in general. I simply tell those people that the harness has to be adjusted this way, and that the discomfort will be worth it in the end. It is quite common that TIs leave the upper part of the harness, specifically the main lift webs and diagonals, generally loose until the hookup process begins -- for the sake of Student "comfort." I don't teach it that way, nor do most of the Examiners I ask about it. OVERALL ADJUSTMENT PHILOSOPHY: I am a firm believer in completely fitting/adjusting/tightening all points of adjustment before boarding the aircraft. I have had two tandem emergency exits in which I was hooked up and tightened down sufficiently to exit the aircraft in less than 30 seconds. In those situations, thankfully, and immediate exit was not required - we exited a couple of minutes later. Had an immediate exit been required, I would not have had time to finalize adjustment - completely fit/adjust/tighten - before needing to un-ass the "sinking ship." The other reason I don't like the "loose upper cage" method is that it is difficult to adjust that part of the harness properly with the Student sitting down in front of you. Very experienced TIs can do it blindfolded, but they learned through trial and error that was unnecessary - you can see how a Student's completely adjusted harness fits when they are standing in front of you, and/or as you stand behind them and partially hang them from the upper attachment risers. My Tandem Students board the aircraft with a completely fitted/tightened/adjusted harness. During the hook-up process, I snug down the diagonals a bit more because I find that they loosen up after initially putting the harness on the student as they walk around or sit/stand repeatedly. THE CHEST STRAP: on men (as in the OP's example) I usually put the chest strap just below the sternum (breast bone). If the man has very broad shoulders or is generally a wide-body, it has to go a little higher than that to encourage the main lift webs to stay vertical. On the majority of women, I put it just under the breasts. On women with large, low-riding breasts, I put the chest strap directly on top of them. On both men and women, I reach around under canopy to loosen it and make the canopy flight more comfortable. I have a technique I use for women so as not to be invasive and remain professional. RECOMMENDATION: UPT has a Student harness fitment video in the works. Mark Procos showed us a rough edit at the TME conference in April. Hopefully that video will follow now that the updated waiver video is out.That harnessing method emphasizes the lower cage to eliminate escape routes for students to fall out of the harness. Incredibly that has happened twice now, and almost happened a third time with the little old lady in CA (who stayed in the harness because she held herself there). I am also told that the FAA has told USPA in so many words that if another Student fatality occurs because someone falls out of a harness, tandem jumping in the US will cease to exist. None of us want to lose another Student this way for ANY reason. Completely adjust the harness when you put it on the student, check it again before boarding the aircraft, and again after you have hooked up and tightened down. Arrive Safely John

Windmiller's suit gives me nightmares and acid reflux. Arrive Safely John

For all: please keep the conversation pointed at the OP's specific question (which is fine in this forum). Please use PMs for conversations about actual employment so we can respect the "no advertising" rule. Many thanks . . . Arrive Safely John

Course is full! Arrive Safely John