brewman

Yep, thought I'd get the detailed jump information if I paid my $50 bucks too. However, you only get the details with jumps you make using the new 2.0.8 firmware. All your jumps with the old firmware versions give you no details, just the simulation on the dive profile. See the alti-2 web site for details. Anybody having problems getting Paralog to save? I click save and it seems to just go off forever and not come back. Oh, the joy of new software!

Read the last few paragraphs of the story: ---------------- If there are more infected animals in the United States, the risks to the public will grow — but not significantly, Ropeik said. In an analysis for the USDA, he calculated what would happen under several scenarios, including the worst case: 500 infected animals and only 75 percent compliance with the feed ban. The result: The disease would never spread far and would die out in cattle within two decades. During that time, the risk to people would remain minuscule because of all the existing safeguards. It's lower than the risk, he said, of getting struck by lighting or drowning in the bathtub. ----------------- So, when you look at the risks in a non-emotional, analytical way, it seems skydiving with a garage-sale parachute is pretty low risk after all! But how many people read the entire article? I agree, definite ass-hat material. Does USPA have a media relations person who could contact the reporter and explain the facts??

Hey Aggie Dave, great to meet you in person after reading many of your posts. Yes, I owe beer, both for the A checkout dive last weekend and the new rig jump this weekend. I will pay up, I promise

centrifugal force is not a "true force", but an "inertial force" (some people say "false") that manifests itself inside an accelerated frame of reference. See http://www-istp.gsfc.nasa.gov/stargaze/Sframes2.htm for a good explanation.

Thanks everyone for the information, some useful, some funny and some just wierd.

I had one wisdom tooth remove under local anesthesia and was jumping the next day. The doctor gave me Ibuprofen and Vicodin for the pain. I got by with the Ibuprofen for the first few days, but then dry socket pain set in and I had to switch to the Vicodin, at which point I stop jumping until the pain cleared up a few days later. I've had general anesthesia for other procedures and that usually leaves me feeling "wasted" for a couple of days. Obviously, you'll need to judge your own mental/physical readiness to jump based on how you feel at the time. Be sure to closely follow your dentist's after care instructions, that will help minimize the pain and swelling and speed the healing process. Good luck!!

I'm new to the sport and am curious as to what extra equipment people carry on their skydives beyond the required basics for jumping at a typical dropzone. Things like: hook knife, money, drivers license, insurance card, cell phone, etc. Also, what have you actually had to use that you carry?