labrys

I know what you mean. It's not that I don't understand the soft vs. d-ring handle debate. I just didn't think that this was the right time to be talking about it. Owned by Remi #?

A few weeks ago I bought a rig with a soft reserve handle. It’s my first rig, new jumper, etc. I decided that I wasn’t all that comfortable with the handle and asked if it could be replaced with a D-ring style handle. I didn’t rush getting it replaced because it’s end of jump season and I wasn’t expecting to use the rig much. Winter seemed like a good time to get it done. FWIW, I practice EPs at least twice on every jump and was actually feeling pretty confident about being able to find and pull the handle if I needed it after roughly 20 jumps in 3 weeks, but was also still planning to replace it with a more accessible D-ring. Yesterday I was on the same load with a guy who was as close to a fatality as I would imagine you can get. Maybe not injury-wise but certainly luck and timing were on his side. It appears (and this is only speculation) that he could not or did not pull and that a Cypres saved his life, and that his reserve opened just barely in time. Before the ambulance had left the DZ there was talk that his soft reserve handle may have been a factor. As I tried to concentrate on packing and hoped for the best outside, a friend of the injured jumper came into the hanger and started talking about how much soft handles sucked. I just listened until he walked up to my rig and started using it as an example. I already felt like shit, I didn’t know the guy who was complaining about my handle, and I didn’t want to be a part of a conversation that seemed useless and inappropriate at the time, but instead of saying that, I guess I got defensive. I told him that I had already asked to have the handle replaced. He immediately came back at me with a sarcastic “When, 30 minutes ago?” and damn did I get pissed. But I didn’t say much about it. I figured that he was dealing with what had happened in his own way. I was wondering if anyone else had had this type of experience and if so, how they dealt with it. Owned by Remi #?

From AerOhio. She brought her pictures to the Halloween Boogie (part 2) yesterday. No jumping, but lots of fun with pumpkins. :-) Owned by Remi #?

O/T but hey! After seeing Amanda's pics from bridge day just can't help asking if the tape worked out. LOL Owned by Remi #?

Vibes, vibes, vibes. And more vibes. PS Vibes Owned by Remi #?

So having never been even remotely involved with a man's ass means I'm not gay? Owned by Remi #?

Plain evil Owned by Remi #?

If you ever find yourself alone at his house try reversing the side the 'fridge door opens on. Most have hinges on both sides and a movable handle. That messes people up. It's my favorite housesitting trick. Owned by Remi #?

Your comments are thoughtful and well written. I think that my cringe reactions to overt displays at pride (pogo man) are caused by the knowledge that HE will be noticed and not the thousands who show up trying to be counted. That is unrelated to the original question, I'll admit. Owned by Remi #?

Define the requirements for "post whoring" Owned by Remi #?

Now you're in danger of having to live a "hetero lifestyle": Go to work, pay taxes, feed the family... Wait a sec. Oh shit! Owned by Remi #?

A REALLY good point. But can you deny that there's some excess compared to hetero displays? Owned by Remi #?

I don't think shaving is permitted. Owned by Remi #?

I'm starting to feel insecure. I scored 50% on the gay test and I had sex with a guy 22 years ago. My fingers are the wrong shape too. Maybe I shoud go get an MRI just to feel better. Owned by Remi #?

I think you'd better go see a show, Keith. Sounds like you're getting dangerously close. Owned by Remi #?

That's a good question. It's my guess that there are an equal percentage of gay/straight people with kinky habits. It's just that the Pride Parade gives the gay ones a venue. I don't feel that being gay has it's true center in who you have sex with and what you do in the process. And I don't think that the parade should be used in that way. It isn't why it started. I cringe when I see the kinky-leather-diaper-guy-riding-the-giant-penis-pogo-stick coming my way too.... and I'd sure as hell not want my kid exposed to that. I think there's also an element of anger in it. Maybe a backlash from social repression. Owned by Remi #?

Bring it. Did you miss your weekly colonic or what? Owned by Remi #?

No opinion on Rodman. Just wondering if anyone ever accused Clint Eastwood of being a pussy for not taking a "real" bullet in a movie. Owned by Remi #?

I know I shouldn't feed the troll or continue the post off topic but I do feel compelled to reply. I'll toss in my perspective on the gay "choice" issue. My opinion only: Human sexuality is all about the bell curve. It's a spectrum also. I think there's an element of nature AND an element of nurture. Some folks are only slightly inclined to be attracted to the same sex and happen to live in or have been exposed to accepting peers or teachers who give them the social ability to "choose" to be gay. Others may be far at the other end of the curve and feel from the first onset of growing sexuality in themselves that they are gay and no social exposure can change that. No choice for them at all. Most people fall in the middle. I don't think it's fair for anyone to say that being gay is or is not a choice. I've never met anyone who was gay *because they hated the opposite sex though. Even though I have met some gay people who do hate the opposite sex. Just as I've met straight folks who hate the opposite sex. And so on.... That's another issue rooted in some other experience. It's unrelated to homosexuality. Same goes for hating lima beans. Owned by Remi #?

I've had a cornucopia of anxiety issues. When I started my AFF progession the door didn't bother me at all, but now after a couple of jumps off student status the door sometimes really freaks me out. My major anxiety on the student jumps was my gear. I'd check my chest and legstrap routings 5 times on the way to altitude. Then I'd check all my handles and do at least 2 emergency drills when I was finished with the straps. Now I'm content with 2 strap checks and 1 drill, but I still find that if anything is different about the jump I'm about to do, I get a little wonky at the door. New gloves, dry mouth at the door. New exit, dry mouth at the door, new rig, extra dry mouth at the door, my first pack job, friggin' everthing is dry at the door. What? You want ME to open the door? Shit. Congrats on the level 4. It sounds like you rocked. Owned by Remi #?

Hi. Nice to meet ya Owned by Remi #?

That makes sense, thanks. Owned by Remi #?

If this happens, why aren't my *legs* broken or dislocated when I open? How is having my legs wrapped in legstraps different than someone having their arms wrapped like that? Is it the extra weight? And if so, I would think that both people would be injured... Owned by Remi #?

I don't think I'd bother to try to compensate for the problem by steering with the risers. Other than that I can't think of anything physical that may have helped or hurt the situation. What got to me the most was the mental wish-washiness I felt. Owned by Remi #?

I had a strange experience yesterday. Not really strange from a gear perspective, but more mentally bizarre for me. I had a good skydive and a nice, soft opening but realized I was in a slow turn after the opening. I've had excess brake line come unstowed before so I didn't worry too much about it. I checked my altitude and released my left toggle and the turn stopped. Then the turn started again in the opposite direction. I reached up to release the right toggle and it wouldn't move. I looked down and thought the ground was really close.. checked altitude again and saw I was several hundred feet above my harddeck. Looked back at the toggle (like it was an evil, chest-popping alien) and saw that the knot above the grip was wedged into the guide ring. Gave it a hard tug and it didn't budge. Another tug, altitude check. I considered compensating for the turn with rear risers and tried it. It worked but then I realized that I would have to flare asymetrically if I tried to land that way. I only have 30+ jumps so I decided that my canopy skills were not good enough to try it. Still slighty above harddeck I reached up and tried to clear the toggle one more time. It didn't give at all. Looked down again and thought "Oh f%^k, I don't want to do this". Harddeck arrived, and I thought I didn't have a controllable canopy. I looked down at my cutaway handle and reached for it. Part of my brain started to do stupid shit at that moment. It was serioulsy telling me that I could correct the problem and NOT have to cutaway. I was afraid to pull that handle because I would have one less safety device. I was also reluctant because it seemed whimpy to cutaway under such a slow mal. I'm pretty sure that if I didn't have time to think it through I could have followed up with the emergency procedures without pause. Some part of my brain was screwing with me and I hated it. Another part of my brain said "LALALALALALALALA I can't hear you" and decided to push forward. My right hand pulled through the toggle going for the cutaway handle and the rat bastard knot cleared. Yep... I actually was disappointed that I didnt have to chop. I was messed up when I landed. I was bummed that I hesitated and I was thrilled that the problem cleared. I was bummed that I thought about it too much and I still am. Owned by Remi #?