kkeenan

This is why I hate inviting people for a launch. When someone spends a ton of money to come to Fla. and then has to sit around for a week or more, they sometimes get a little testy. We locals are used to it, and besides, we aren't going anywhere anyway. So far every day this week has been a "launch day". Originally, the launch window went to Sunday, but now they are willing to try for a Monday launch, even though the mission will have to be cut by one day. Hopefully we get some good wx by then. kk

Crikey! We're on for tomorrow, 11/4, at 1529 EDT. After perfect wx for over a month, tomorrow's going to be the first stormy day. The ship is all ready, with no problems, so they're going to run the countdown and see what the weather looks like for the 5 min. window. Ballsy, but the best thing to do considering the scheduling problems that the delay of this launch is starting to cause. It's been crazy this week with all the out-of-towners. Usually, with an on-time launch, they are gone by now. Kevin K

More changes. New scheduled launch time is Wednesday, 11/3 @ 1552 (EDT). Various mechanical issues seem to be corrected. The countdown clock is running. Kevin

I did the entire Lost Prairie Boogie on Sick Time, one year. I had to call in sick each morning around 8:00 (Eastern Time), which was 6:00 at LP. Since cell phones weren't working from the DZ, that meant driving a few miles to the lodge by the lake every morning. A pain in the ass, but got me up for the early loads and saved a week of Vacation Time. Kevin K. _____________________________________ Dude, you are so awesome... Can I be on your ash jump ?

Good work on the update, SpaceMama.

I won't speak for John, but I'd add power and stay up in the pattern until the other traffic was clear. I'd listen on Unicom for other incoming traffic and ask the guy who just landed why he picked that runway, if it was downwind. I'm sure you realize that none of these choices is available to a jumper landing a parachute. _____________________________________ Dude, you are so awesome... Can I be on your ash jump ?

Not deadly enough for them. _____________________________________ Dude, you are so awesome... Can I be on your ash jump ?

I'm as big a Sport Death fan as anyone, but those days are mostly over. If you go in on takeoff, riding a plane after knowing about stuff like this, people will still feel bad for you...but they'll also think you're kind of a dumbass for even being on it. Yeah, the tickets are cheap, but it ain't the '70s anymore. Kevin Keenan Titusville FL _____________________________________ Dude, you are so awesome... Can I be on your ash jump ?

I've always thought it would be interesting to see a list of the stunts that Red Bull thought were too dangerous to sponsor. _____________________________________ Dude, you are so awesome... Can I be on your ash jump ?

Thanks for bumping this thread, Twardo. I hadn't seen it the first time, and it was a hell of a read. Thanks for your eloquent description of your visit to the bridge, and of your thoughts about your Dad. Kevin K.

The 5 that I carry when doing CRW are only considered excessive by non-CRWDogs. And the obvious answer to, "Why carry 5 hook knives?" There wasn't room for 6. Kevin K. _____________________________________ Dude, you are so awesome... Can I be on your ash jump ?

Yeah, it looks like half of them are going in, towing a pilot chute. That doesn't look worth a shit. _____________________________________ Dude, you are so awesome... Can I be on your ash jump ?

As a practical matter, Kennedy Space Center and Cape Canaveral Air Force Station occupy a good area north and south of the launch pad, so you have to be a pretty good distance N or S to watch a launch from the beach. To the west, however, Titusville is just across the river, and makes for a pretty good viewing point. 9/11 and the Columbia accident caused the airspace restrictions to get tighter, so that the closest DZ, Skydive Space Center, is grounded during a launch. Once in the air, a Shuttle launch is visible for quite a distance, and jumps are made from Sebastian and DeLand to coincide with launches. The viewing areas on KSC are now open only to badged employees and ticket-buying public. They are about 3 - 5 miles from the pad. Kevin K. _____________________________________ Dude, you are so awesome... Can I be on your ash jump ?

It looks like an additional mission will be added to the schedule. It is planned to launch in June, 2011. Kevin K. _____________________________________ Dude, you are so awesome... Can I be on your ash jump ?

I hear ya. I was there in January. They gave me an exposure suit full of holes. It was just as cold, but held about 30 lbs. of water when filled up.

I went through the USAF Water Survival School at Homestead in 1973. You may have been there then. You are right about being in the water under a hovering helo. It is an experience like no other. I felt like I was in a blender. I think I was breathing more water than air. It would certainly suck to have the aircraft sink down on top of you. Kevin K.

You are right. I should clean my glasses more often. _____________________________________ Dude, you are so awesome... Can I be on your ash jump ?

So, how did one riser get chopped ? It looked OK in the exit shot. Kevin _____________________________________ Dude, you are so awesome... Can I be on your ash jump ?

I'd ask the pilot specifically about that grip. As far as I know, that is used by front floaters on Otters everywhere. If your pilot doesn't like it, then don't do it. A couple of things to keep in mind if you do use it: 1) Get your fingers on the leading edge (front) of the strut. Don't wrap your fingers around it (between strut and fuselage) Your fingers may get yanked pretty hard on exit if trapped around the strut. 2) Watch out for cotter pins in the attachment hardware on and around the strut. They can be very sharp. _____________________________________ Dude, you are so awesome... Can I be on your ash jump ?

Try to make sure that you don't get backwards to the relative wind. As you are in the door, your front arm and leg should come off first, so that your chest is into the wind. This will allow you maintain control and start flying immediately, rather than getting flopped around. A lot of front floating is the timing of your exit - too early, and you drop below, too late, and you land on top of the rest of the exit. If you are taking a 4-way piece off, it takes practice coordinating the timing with the other three. But if your chest is into the wind, you can fly through the exit and maintain your position. You don't have too many jumps, yet, so be hang in there, be patient and keep working on it. You will acquire the feel. Kevin K. _____________________________________ Dude, you are so awesome... Can I be on your ash jump ?

7. Ten-way Speed Star from a Twin Beech. _____________________________________ Dude, you are so awesome... Can I be on your ash jump ?

I have heard from Homicide cops that it is good to rub under your nose before arriving at a death scene that may be several days old.

You mean you want all the rest of us with our panties down around our knees ?

Another case of trying to solve a "problem" that doesn't exist. Many, many people deploy these every day without "groping blindly" for them. Where are you looking when you apply the brakes on your car? If your rig fits properly, then the parts are right where they were when you put it on. Sure, the Cutaway and Reserve handles move after main deployment and need to be looked at for quick actuation, but PC handles and puds seem to work fine. The system has been simplified, eliminating problems. Why reverse progress and complicate it again? Kevin K. _____________________________________ Dude, you are so awesome... Can I be on your ash jump ?

The Highway Dept. that operates the bridge ? _____________________________________ Dude, you are so awesome... Can I be on your ash jump ?