inzite

I've jumped a B once in snowy conditions. It was February, slightly before midnight, -25 celsius, heavy snow on the ground, in very strong winds (over 30 kph). It was lightly snowing at the time. The B was residential, with our exit point at about 165 meters. Both of us did 2-second delays, and landed about 150 meters from the object, under a highway and on top of a large frozen river. Don't know how much this info will help you, as the jump was not done in the USA. However, we didn't give much thought prior to the jump about footprints or the like. However, despite the wind and snow, building security heard our deployments, came out, and gave us a chewing out.

Well, to say that the cops don't care is of course a generalization. There are some cops who care. There are some who don't care at all. And there are a lot who would like to make some extra cash on the side from bribes. The situation however is that, in general, if noone complains and the cops don't feel like they can extort money from BASE jumpers, they're unlikely to do anything. This makes it very easy to BASE jump in Moscow, and makes a lot of buildings and other objects very accessible. However, if people start to complain (residents, building owners, security companies, etc.) or BASE jumping gets more visible, that situation will likely change. Today, if a BASE-jumper is caught before/after a jump, he's likely to get dragged down to the local police station for 1-2 hours, and either he'll have to pay a small bribe to get out (average between $5 and $35), or the cops will get tired of holding him and he'll walk without paying a dime. Of course, this isn't set in stone, and can vary greatly.

And the beer is cheaper than Pepsi.

I haven't watched your video, but it sounds like you're probably referring to this: http://www.dropzone.com/cgi-bin/forum/gforum.cgi?post=2513013;sb=post_latest_reply;so=ASC;forum_view=forum_view_collapsed;;page=unread#unread

The link is in the News section on the Bridge Day website: http://www.leisuresportsphoto.com/mp_client/pictures.asp?eventid=0&eventstatus=0&categories=no&keywords2=no&groupid=52&bw=false&sep=false

That video has also made the evening news in both Moscow and St. Petersburg.

I didn't know the metal detectors had been removed. Good news.

Yeah, a buddy of mine showed me that video a few days ago, and I must say, I was very annoyed to see it. In Moscow there's way too much daytime jumping taking place, and the city is going to crack down on it in the near future. There's no reason not to jump this object at night - in many ways, it's easier at night. Security is very lax, and it's very easy to get inside. However, these jumpers decided to dayblaze the object, and then post their videos online. I came into work yesterday, and within 5 minutes one of the interns at our office, a graduate student at the university in question, sent me a copy of the video above. He doesn't jump and is in no way affiliated with skydiving/BASE, yet he and tens of thousands of other Moscovites have all seen the video. The situation in Moscow is pretty messed up. Locals are way too eager to dayblaze their own objects. Part of this is because it's generally easy to get access to objects. Security can be bribed for $3-$5 dollars. Cops don't really care about BASE-jumping, and can also be bribed. However, if jumpers in Moscow continue calling attention to themselves, that situation is going to QUICKLY change. Laws will be passed, cops will learn that BASE jumpers can become a source of income, and security companies will crack down. Just one month ago metal detectors were installed at the city's best and tallest B because of daily dayblazing. P.S. I'm not Russian, though I do live and jump in Moscow. It's not my place to decide how Russian jumpers should act. However, the trends I see now will cause a serious crackdown over the next 5 years, and it's very sad to know that a lot of the objects I know and love today won't be available tomorrow.

Never have used 'em. Would like to, but never seem to find the $$$. Regardless, the only time I find I'd really need them is when sliding the canopy onto the container. Usually I just beg for an extra pair of hands to control the top of the canopy as I slide it into place.

Nice clips. That Mr. Bill to round reserve sure had me on the edge of my seat though.

:))))))

I'll be flying into Orlando, FL on October 18 and heading up to Bridge Day. Then back down to central Florida from October 23 to 31. If there are any locals willing to share objects or just chill along that route, especially in the central Florida area, please PM. P.S. I've got the B and A out of the way. Will be scoring the S at Bridge Day. If anybody knows an E on the east coast appropriate for someone with just over 30 jumps, I'd be much obliged. Where I come from, we don't have any jumpable E's within 300 miles.

Nah, that's actually the girlfriend's mother. The girlfriend stays locked at home in the dungeon.

It's not painful....the best way to describe the opening is as "brisk". On Sunday I wasn't sore per se, although I definitely felt like I'd given the lower back a workout. Luckily, the girlfriend was willing to help relax things. There are ways to control the point at which the slider starts to descend the lines, which significantly lowers the likelihood of having a slammer. In any case, terminal BASE deployments are a hell of a lot better than a Mr. Bill opening at 14000 feet with a 220 pound sluggo. Now that is painful!!! Never again.

Damn straight! Those things are fun!!!!!! And they can climb fast, too! I got to jump out of one on Saturday. We were at altitude in about two minutes...I felt like I was climbing in the lightweight equivalent of a King Air. Climbed to 2100 feet, cut the engine, climbed out underneath the wing, gave the pilot a thumbs up, and jumped. What is it called though? It's not a hangglider. Is it considered an ultralight?

2:2:2 1st skyBASE jumps. One from a paraglider at 1500 feet, and one from an ultralight at 2000 feet. First jump gave me a 9-second delay and a nice track. The second involved some short-lived sitflying and deployment at 500 feet, under canopy just below 400. Spent Sunday in the office til midnight. Friends came over and kept me company while they packed up.

The thread title says it all. Now, who can be the first to spot what's wrong with this picture?

Moscow is cold in winter...usually February is the coldest, but December/January ain't exactly a walk-in-the-park either. Expect a very dry -5 to -15 celsius. The Moscow Night Life will not disappoint you...trust me .

Most importantly, thanks for the free pack job!!!

Geez - that is one of the worst BASE openings I have ever seen! Does anybody know how she was packed...it looks like that was a slider-down opening? I can't see the slider descending on video. If it was slider-down, it explains why she had such a violent opening and off-heading. On the other hand, she may have packed slider-up and you just can't see it on the video. Also...what direction was the wind blowing on that jump? She closed in on the tower very quickly.

http://www.prince2.com/whatisp2.html

Actually, "Angel Dust" is slang for PCP, not cocaine. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phencyclidine

Will be flying in to Orlando and driving up the night of Oct. 19/morning of Oct. 20. Car is already packed with bodies, so can't offer any rides, but if anyone from central FL wants to caravan up, send a PM.

Last skydive: February 2006. Last BASE jump: 3 weeks ago.

Just going out on a limb...the rangers had reasonable suspicion that the four involved had jumped earlier. Whether seeing four guys with backpacks in the vicinity of reported jumping constitutes "reasonable suspicion" is a matter of debate for the judge. I'm sure practically every second hiker in the park has a "backpack" of some sort. Of course, if the four were wearing GoFast clothing, tracking pants, birdman suits, or other skydiving/BASE parephernalia, the case for reasonable suspicion is much stronger. Also, they could have been detained for some other violation, such as being in an off-limits section of the park.