skylord

OK, I'll jump in on this. The bus operates in two dimensions, a pilot in three. If the engine conks out in a bus, you coast to a stop at the side of the road. If it happens in a single, you are now a glider pilot. If it happens in a twin, and you don't maintain the minimum controllable airspeed, the live engine will put you on your back faster than Catherine Zeta-Jones with much less satisfying results. The bus doesn't have "weight and balance" calculations to worry about. Greyhound drivers have a much less complex transportation infrastructure to navigate in. The pilots follow invisible highways, interpreted by instruments, and directed in real time by air traffic controllers (like me). They have to get every clearance right every single time. It isn't like missing a freeway exit. There is a ton more that can go wrong in an RJ than a bus. I mean, really, when was the last time you read about a bus that got too slow on the freeway and crashing? "Yep, I saw it all. The bus was doing 35 in a 45 zone and damn if the sum-bitch didn't rear up and crash front first into the road!" For this argument, let's just assume a situation where there are no emergencies, no ATC, and no other complications. Getting in an airplane, starting it up, getting it airborne at all the right speeds, cruising it properly, monitoring all the instruments, descending it properly, maintaining the right airspeed so you don't corkscrew into the ground, and flaring at the right time so you don't break the airplane, would seem to me the nod goes to the pilot. Maybe I'm a sucker and got pulled into this thread not realizing the personalities involved, but that is my take on it. Aviation, for the most part, is a terribly underpaid vocation. It is interesting, to me, to see the comparison to teachers, since most pilots spend a significant part of their careers teaching. Don't get me wrong, I think teachers are underpaid as well, but I think flight instructors are even more underpaid, and nearly all don't have the benefits the undercompensated teachers get. Same with skydiving. I think it sucks. I tipped very well to do my part to make up for that with my tandem jump. I'll do the same with my AFF-Is later. Hopefully Shark isn't reading this Chris is right here. Bring the underpaid up to decent wages. But I fear the mentality that brought us Wal-Mart will prevail in this country, and we will have pilots making $35,000 a year driving the heavy iron, with no or few benefits. This is why the union movement developed in this country early in the 1900's. Workers got screwed, and it is happening again already. I personally think part of the trend is irreversible in certain industries, but not in many others. You get what you pay for, and the rise of the middle class post WW 2 was due in large part to the INCREASE in pay and benefits to the rank and file. That's what we need to focus on. Anyway there's my treatise for the night. I hope everyone has a great New Year, I know I will since I'll be getting licensed in 2004 by underpaid and underbenefitted AFF-Is Bob Bob Marks "-when you leave the airplane its all wrong til it goes right, its a whole different mindset, this is why you have system redundancy." Mattaman

Darcy, Great to meet you too! That was fun, wasn't it? But they should have started that fire sooner. Brrrr. Bob Bob Marks "-when you leave the airplane its all wrong til it goes right, its a whole different mindset, this is why you have system redundancy." Mattaman

Yep, I kicked my ass! Thanks! Bob Bob Marks "-when you leave the airplane its all wrong til it goes right, its a whole different mindset, this is why you have system redundancy." Mattaman

With my cold cleared up and the stars in alignment, it was time to head up to Elsinore once again for the next part of my little adventure. It had been 28 days since my last jump, so I was rusty and anxious. I knew the weather was going to be cold, so I checked it before leaving the house. At 7 am, it was 37 degrees. That translates into a zero or below temperature at altitude. Factor in the wind chill at 120 mph, and I decided to wait it out a bit. I didn't want the unprotected parts of my face falling off after the jump. An hour later, the temperature had DROPPED to 34 degrees. I concluded that the next Ice Age was upon us, and no one could blame me if I didn't jump with this apocalypse on our heads. I could be discovered thousands of years from now with my logbook in my frozen and then thawed out hand that would tell future archaeologists I had jumped. They, of course, would conclude I sucked since I repeated Level 2 and stopped. So in the joke section of human history, we'd have the Piltdown Man and Bob the Boob. I could not let the human race down like that. I shrewdly calculated that the longer the sun was up, the higher the temperature would get. You can't teach that shit, it comes from pure intuitive talent, people. So I jumped into my fossil fuel burning automobile, figuring the emissions could only contribute to global warming (a good thing at the DZ today) and drove up to Elsinore. Body raged against this decision, and tried to make my palms so sweaty I couldn't steer the Global Warmer. I arrived, watched a few loads go up, met up with Shark, hung around, and went over to sign up for a jump. Shark was already busy, so I got hooked up with Lou and Jonathan. They thoroughly reviewed everything with me as to emergency procedures, and we got on the manifest. We went through the exit drills, the dirt dive, and got ready to go. I felt as ready as my first jumps, thanks to them. We geared up, and here came our ride. The anxiety built, but for me it is the baby step program. Get on, you can ride down. We got on first, got strapped in, did the three point safety check, and here we go. The worst part of the dive for me is the opening of the door. I don't know why. I hate hearing the rush of air, and the cold, cold blast of an unfeeling environment. I tried to acclimate myself on the drive out by rolling my window down and sticking my left arm and head out into a California enforced 70 mph slipstream. Ooops, almost lost the sunglasses. We had a hop 'n pop on board, and it appeared there was some difficulty getting the door open. Hey, no shame in that, let's go land and go out the pilot window! Nope, that wasn't to happen. They were just waiting for the right time, and up goes the door. Out goes the jumper, and down goes the door. Good. The body didn't say anything. At 12,500 AGL, I look towards the back of the airplane. We exchange the secret skydive handshake with the closest jumpers, including a solo student only a few stages along further than me. I see the Maw of Hell open. Why is everyone so happy? I can feel in the pit of my being I need to tell my instructors I have to ride back down. But I also feel a bit of a challenge, and I nurture it. Just me alone. I've done this three times, and I can do it again. Lou's assurances, and relaxation techniques, serve me well. I relax, step toward the door, and then my reserve JM looks down and we stay in the airplane for another run. Shit! I've got to ramp up again. It was a great call, but I just want to get it over with. We come back around, Jonathan grabs my leg strap, Lou grabs my leg and shoulder straps, and off we go to Hell's Door. It feels like a death sentence. Except for a couple crucial items. One, Lou looked me straight in the eye for an extra second or two when I checked in. That (for all you AFF-Is reading this) was worth 20 times the cost of the jump. I looked out to Jonathan, and got the ready sign. I also felt like I wanted to do this, deep inside. Ready, (these are my friends, they won't let me get hurt) (don't soil the jumpsuit, it's not yours). Set, (do this right, they count on you, too!) Arch. This was not the best exit of all time, but I did watch the airplane for about 3 seconds as I fell away from it. I got the shake sign, and immediately relaxed. I hit the arch from the beginning, after the first hips down sign from my main side. It helps with hips down if your knees are close enough together. Anyway, downward we fly. I was shocked at how calm I felt. I worked through the COA, PRCTs, COA all above 10,000 ft. Wow!! Let's do some turns..... I LOVED it!! I turned 90 right, rolled out. Check altitude. Look left, turn left, and off we go. WHOOOHOOO!!!! Plenty of altitude, look right, turn right. Roll out, great!! My main JM gave me the COA sign at about 6,500. No problem. I watched the altimeter, and pulled. 1-2-3-4, check canopy, looks good! Controllability is good. Look down, oh-oh, where am I? The winds at altitude were high, while fairly calm on the ground. I locate the DZ, which is somewhat distant. After about 10 seconds, I realize I'm going to make my first offsite landing. I'm right over a housing tract, and into the wind I am not moving. Shit, I'm going to land in a street! I looked around, saw some potential landing areas, and watched Lou land in one. I decided to follow him. I turned a long crosswind leg in order to make some progress along the ground. No points this time for the "classic" pattern, it was all "get there, get there, get there". I spotted power lines, and performed a de-Lutz maneuver (in other words I piloted the chute well over them). I overflew Lou, aimed long in the field he came down in, and he talked me down to my third stand up landing. Lessons learned, while I was stable initially, at pull time I became a bit unstable. I need to work on that. Always be ready to land off. This was an invaluable experience for me. While I was anxious about going out the door, it was MUCH less than my previous jump. My instructors de-briefed me, gave me some exercises to help with arching correctly, and I just hung around until beer time. I will get there. So on to level three. Bob Bob Marks "-when you leave the airplane its all wrong til it goes right, its a whole different mindset, this is why you have system redundancy." Mattaman

Hi Lori, I know what you mean, I'm headed out to Elsinore this morning for AFF 2 and hopefully 3. Nothing like the sound of that door actually opening. To me, that's the toughest part of the jump. You might as well be aggressive on the exit, because if you're like me, once in the door you're going out. Everyone deals with it, so I just take it one jump at a time. I promised to keep everyone posted in the Safety and Training forum. Hang in there!! Bob Bob Marks "-when you leave the airplane its all wrong til it goes right, its a whole different mindset, this is why you have system redundancy." Mattaman

I will never, ever forget this. I got married in October, 1981. In early December that same year I got a call from my new sister in law. The tone of her voice will forever haunt me. "Bob, bring Elaine to the phone now and stay close to her." Ummm, OK. I heard the conversation on the side of our bed, and the AGONY my new bride had to endure was something no one should have to go through. A drunk driver, twice convicted, had climbed into his car to drive home. My sister in law Diane, her husband Steve, and their two young children (ages 4 and 2) left a church meeting to drive home. As they pulled up to a stoplight, our drunk driver behind them didn't notice the light was red. Prior to impact, Diane saw the impending hit, heard the schreech of the tires, looked back, and screamed. As she was twisted backwards, her spine took the brunt of the impact as she pushed their two children to the ground. Her neck broke and she died instantly. Steve and the children survived. The only reason I tell this is to try and make a difference year after year. For Christ's sake call me or a loved one if you need a ride, OK? I'll pay for it in a heartbeat. Bob Marks cell: 760-458-2153 Bob Marks "-when you leave the airplane its all wrong til it goes right, its a whole different mindset, this is why you have system redundancy." Mattaman

Two fatalities, maybe a third. Very sad. From an ATC standpoint, Santa Barbara Approach had power and intercom failures. Santa Maria airport has some damage, no confirmation as to the severity. They recovered, and as of tonight are running normal ops. My thoughts, hopes, and prayers to everyone impacted by this earthquake. Bob Bob Marks "-when you leave the airplane its all wrong til it goes right, its a whole different mindset, this is why you have system redundancy." Mattaman

I'm an expert on this, and I've got three jumps under my belt to prove it. Here it is. Technically, a stand up landing is one nobody saw you make. If someone was watching, you have to make a tactical decision, and this cannot be taught. Set up for a PLF, as always, right? Balls of the feet, calf, thigh, hip, shoulder, roll, legs up. Repeat up to 7 times on one landing. As long as the bruising momentum from a failed flair is spent by whatever means, including lying, it is a stand up landing. Really, I've lucked out on my landings. The first was a two step thanks to great radio advice. The second was a bit different since I touched down in a rougher area. I landed slower, but tripped on rough terrain and took a knee. Elsinore did not ask for a review of the play, and was not charged a timeout. Stay on your feet, its a stand up, even if you run it out. Bob Bob Marks "-when you leave the airplane its all wrong til it goes right, its a whole different mindset, this is why you have system redundancy." Mattaman

Hi Darcy, No, I had a head cold, so I grounded myself. I popped Suda-fed and Day Quil, and I feel much better, so I think I'll go out this week for at least one jump. Bob Bob Marks "-when you leave the airplane its all wrong til it goes right, its a whole different mindset, this is why you have system redundancy." Mattaman

Dagny, My first job out of high school many years ago was as a busboy and then cook. I saw some of the horrible mistreatment first hand of the food servers. Completely and totally undeserved in almost every case. Since I was in college at the time, I typically worked swings/graveyard shifts. Bar rush was the worst, with all the drunks coming in pissed off about how they got treated at the disco (shows how old I am). They took it out on our people. Anyway, I don't have any sage words of advice, except for the fact that it is a bitter world out there. Find another, better job. Like air traffic control..... That's what I've done most of my working life, and the best part is no one can back talk you. You start at about $35,000 with retirement, health, and investment benefits. If you do well in the screening process, you will get assigned to a busy facility with commensurate pay. The average salary for an air traffic controller is in the high $80,000 range. The busiest facilities pay into the $130,000s. Many of us hired in after the 1981 strike, and almost 2/3 of the workforce can retire by 2010. That is 10,000 controllers. The time for applying is ripe. You have to have a GED at a minimum, and go through a medical and security investigation. You must not have passed your 31st birthday by the time of hiring. You can retire under the current rules at any age after 25 years, or at age 50 and 20 years ATC. Pretty sweet, but it is a VERY demanding job. If you or anyone else is interested, PM or email me. From what I've seen, most everyone here would do well in the job. My decision to leave the Postal Service and go into ATC was the best decision I ever made in my life. So, I hope your bad experience turns into a silver lining for you and others. Bob Bob Marks "-when you leave the airplane its all wrong til it goes right, its a whole different mindset, this is why you have system redundancy." Mattaman

Technical question. How do you find images that meet the requirements of 65X75 pixels? Can you download larger ones and then downsize them? I have a couple of files I'd like to use for my user profile but are twice as large as the pixel limit. The file size is fine. Any help appreciated! Thanks.... Bob Marks "-when you leave the airplane its all wrong til it goes right, its a whole different mindset, this is why you have system redundancy." Mattaman

I'm not really, but I'm so sexy others make me that way. Bob Marks "-when you leave the airplane its all wrong til it goes right, its a whole different mindset, this is why you have system redundancy." Mattaman

I would, but like a few others it will happen after I retire from my profession (air traffic control). I'm four years away, and I'll use that time to get my ratings. Bob Bob Marks "-when you leave the airplane its all wrong til it goes right, its a whole different mindset, this is why you have system redundancy." Mattaman

Darcy, Congratulations! I look forward to catching up with you! Did you jump with Shark? Bob Bob Marks "-when you leave the airplane its all wrong til it goes right, its a whole different mindset, this is why you have system redundancy." Mattaman

OK, I found out why I tense up before a jump. When the door opens, everyone starts doing these Secret Skydive Handshake/High Five/Lay Some Skin On Me shit that confuses me. I end up grossly groping people I just met because I have no idea how your supposed to do it. They look at me wide eyed, like "Let go of me, you perv!" It makes me feel like a virgin, again. So, can someone point me in the right direction? How come this isn't covered in the FJC? Shark, rtf98, anyone? Bob the Befuddled Bob Marks "-when you leave the airplane its all wrong til it goes right, its a whole different mindset, this is why you have system redundancy." Mattaman

Ron, Wow! What a write up on your adventures! Thanks for sharing it with all of us just starting out.... Bob Bob Marks "-when you leave the airplane its all wrong til it goes right, its a whole different mindset, this is why you have system redundancy." Mattaman

Jahk, Go for it. I felt as secure on both the AFF dives I did as on the tandem, you just get to land your own parachute. Bob Bob Marks "-when you leave the airplane its all wrong til it goes right, its a whole different mindset, this is why you have system redundancy." Mattaman

cruzit, True. And the bike isn't falling to earth at 120 mph. My dad gave me two minutes to learn to ride a bike and I'm still in therapy over that. Anyhow, I've thought alot about it, and the dive did go pretty well. I just want to do this right. The objective was turns, and I didn't get there. I'll make the turns next time, and the confidence to step into freefall will come. I know it. That's why I'm doing mirror drills, and the muscle memory stuff Mark told me to do. I am sure the training wheels will come off in time! Bob Bob Marks "-when you leave the airplane its all wrong til it goes right, its a whole different mindset, this is why you have system redundancy." Mattaman

*** Ha! You're a funny man! We had a great dive, and I'll get some pics up when I get the film developed and scanned. The sunset video was AWESOME! Bob Bob Marks "-when you leave the airplane its all wrong til it goes right, its a whole different mindset, this is why you have system redundancy." Mattaman

Rosa, Thanks for boosting my spirits. Also, if that's your picture with your post, I'll have no trouble spotting you on my own I have never trained for such an intense sport as this, and I guess minor difficulties have a way of getting overblown. I realized the exit was not optimal, but I also knew as I saw the horizon go through about 45 degrees my part was to just arch and let my JMs sort it out, which they did. I'll see you at the DZ, and hope to share a ride up when I don't cry during the climb Bob

Rich, Thanks for the encouragement, man! It was fun jumping with you guys. I'm back in Washington DC with my associates for a meeting, but I showed a few of them my DVD from AFF-1. They thought it was the coolest thing in the world, and want to have the other eleven board members do tandem jumps together for team building. If I send you enough business that will help the DZ pay your six figure salaries Anyway, I thought back to some of the AFF dives they have on skydivemovies.com and yeah, it was a good jump. I just didn't get to the turns. Let me know when you want to jump out of my Arrow! Bob Bob Marks "-when you leave the airplane its all wrong til it goes right, its a whole different mindset, this is why you have system redundancy." Mattaman

Jeff, Thanks for that! I needed it after today's jump. Congrats! Bob Bob Marks "-when you leave the airplane its all wrong til it goes right, its a whole different mindset, this is why you have system redundancy." Mattaman

Jaye, Thanks. I'll keep you all posted as I stumble/fall through my AFF progression. Bob Bob Marks "-when you leave the airplane its all wrong til it goes right, its a whole different mindset, this is why you have system redundancy." Mattaman

I bet if you look closely at your DVD you'll see the instructor moving your hand away from the altimeter to the ripcord. Believe me, on level 1s if a student feels something even remotely ripcord like...that's where they'll reach every time. Did you pull successfully and pass the level?? If so, you're doin fine. Keep up the good work and keep us posted. Yes, the DVD is clear, on each practice pull Mark moved my hand to the right position. I eventually pulled successfully, and passed AFF 1, but feeling the altimeter did confuse me. Thanks for your encouragement, see my AFF 2 post, I needed it! Bob Bob Marks "-when you leave the airplane its all wrong til it goes right, its a whole different mindset, this is why you have system redundancy." Mattaman

Good evening all, I went back out to Elsinore today, Sunday, for my second AFF jump. I got hooked up with my JMs, and went through more great training. We covered many contingencies, and I was a little surprised at how fast we were going to go up. I learned about gear checks, and student rigs. Man, there are a ton of lessons obviously learned when it comes to the design of this gear. For whatever reason, I was more anxious on this jump. I knew it from the ground up. We loaded first, and we were going to be the last out. As the door opened, I absolutely dreaded it. I don't know why. We didn't get out on the first pass, and had to go back around. Out goes the others, now it's my turn. Again, I don't know why, but I was much more tense this time. I was OK jumping out, but my reservations led to the always enjoyable "fall out of the airplane" exit. I blew it for me and my JMs. The time it took us to recover from a bad exit (my fault, like I said before, I'm the man on the jump) ate up valuable free fall time. My JMs told me I was very responsive to the hand signals, and I was, but I was getting much more than the first jump. I did grab my main JM's altimeter on the first PRCT, but after that I nailed the location. On the second COA, I still had some stability issues, not major, but time consuming nevertheless. By the time I got the two thumbs up signals, we were at 7,000. There was one to go to the lock on altitude, and I was lost as to how long it takes to make the 90 degree turns. I decided not to make the turns and focus on locking in to the altitude, and pulling. I did just that, and had a great canopy ride that I LOVED on the way down. I released the brakes, turned left, right, and just flew around in my holding area. I even did a deep left 360 at altitude, This parachute was much noisier than my AFF 1 jump, with all sorts of flapping sounds. I checked the canopy 400 times, and it looked good. The winds shifted during my jump, and I saw the windsock was 180 degrees from my flight plan. Robert talked to me on the radio about what I saw the windsock doing. He had me fly the regular pattern, and make a 180 to the downwind for the new winds. I loved it. Solid, and I rolled out on heading. When Robert called for the base/final turns, I was already making them. I made my second stand up landing out of two. While I was walking back, I knew I'd have to do this one again. Elsinore had an 80 way going this weekend, which was really cool to watch. On my walk back, several of these skydivers came up (noticing my student jump suit and the fact I was walking back with the leg straps fully cinched) and asked how my dive was. I thanked them for coming out to watch my death defying three way. That got a good laugh out of them. Anyway, I was pretty down when I left the DZ. I thought this may not be for me. But here I am tonight, practicing exit form in a mirror, and wanting to emulate some of the jumpers I saw who went out "skywalking" and were much more stable than I was. My JMs were incredible. They noticed my mood, and highlighted the right shit I did, including the decision not to do the turns for the sake of pulling. Just step out into an environment, you aren't plunging from the airplane to the ground. I can do this, I know it. It will take time, and I don't care how many times I have to repeat. I want it right, safe, and comfortable. No shame, I'll move up as I'm ready. Bob Bob Marks "-when you leave the airplane its all wrong til it goes right, its a whole different mindset, this is why you have system redundancy." Mattaman