Frenchy68

Indeed, Perris on Sunday was far from being just another day at the DZ. Not mentioning a couple of dust devils... Nice big way, Bill, I trust it was even more fun in the air than watching on the ground! Stay safe out there, people Nick "For once you have tasted Absinthe you will walk the earth with your eyes turned towards the gutter, for there you have been and there you will long to return."

2 years ago. Shooting a commercial in NZ involving Kiwi and Aussie BASEjumpers. Did my first tandem the day after the shoot... "For once you have tasted Absinthe you will walk the earth with your eyes turned towards the gutter, for there you have been and there you will long to return."

I totaly agree with you. But the key word is "PM", which implies that it is meant for you only. And I agree with that. One case at a time... Cheers, Nick "For once you have tasted Absinthe you will walk the earth with your eyes turned towards the gutter, for there you have been and there you will long to return."

In my experience, I second what Aggie D. wrote. I see newbies getting slammed for asking the wrong questions on DZ.com, but have NEVER been slammed for asking questions at my DZ to an experienced skydiver or instructor. One on one is crucial when dealing with issues that could be mis-interpreted and could cost someone his/her/someone else's life. Besides, the rite of passage for a newbie is to get spanked by Ron at least once! My ass already hurts... Blue skies to all, and props to Ron for being Ron! Nick "For once you have tasted Absinthe you will walk the earth with your eyes turned towards the gutter, for there you have been and there you will long to return."

Congrats. Haven't packed my own rig yet, but wished I had yesterday when it took me 1 hour to get a pack job! Twice!!! Hell, that's what the silver handle is for... If you ever head to Perris, drop a line, and we'll do a 2(+?) way. That'll be a first, and I'll buy the beer. Blue skies with winds blowing the friendly way, Nick "For once you have tasted Absinthe you will walk the earth with your eyes turned towards the gutter, for there you have been and there you will long to return."

Half of the mileage on Tim's truck is imputable to my landings... Props to him. Nick "For once you have tasted Absinthe you will walk the earth with your eyes turned towards the gutter, for there you have been and there you will long to return."

Any idea how much horizontal ground he covers on his tracking? That ledge looks freaking looooooooooooooooong. Crazy MF Nick "For once you have tasted Absinthe you will walk the earth with your eyes turned towards the gutter, for there you have been and there you will long to return."

So if you pull at 3,500 and your hard deck is 2,500, and your canopy takes 5 seconds to open (now you're down to around 2,500ft); ooops, line twists! Do you automatically chop? Just wondering Blue skies, nick "For once you have tasted Absinthe you will walk the earth with your eyes turned towards the gutter, for there you have been and there you will long to return."

Michele - Not only a great story, but great narrative skills... Ciels Bleus a toi aussi nick "For once you have tasted Absinthe you will walk the earth with your eyes turned towards the gutter, for there you have been and there you will long to return."

Better start flying 90° to the jump run, especially if the plane turned around for a fly over after dropping you off, or if there is another plane dropping of jumpers a few minutes behind... Gave you as much canopy time as a dozen jumps would have though! Blue skies Nick "For once you have tasted Absinthe you will walk the earth with your eyes turned towards the gutter, for there you have been and there you will long to return."

Opening at 3k? After 10 Jumps? I am probably out of line (and will be spanked I am sure; Ron?), but can't help wondering what your hard deck is after 10 jumps? BS, N. "For once you have tasted Absinthe you will walk the earth with your eyes turned towards the gutter, for there you have been and there you will long to return."

My 1.5 cent as a (more than) newbie, based on my experience from yesterday: picked my landing pattern at 2,000ft, confident that I had identified the wind direction. Found myself on final straight away approach realizing I was about to land crosswind, as my canopy was crabbing right. Due to my lack of experience, I couldn't tell whether I was 50ft of 150 ft AGL. The little devil on one of my shoulder was telling me I should do a very soft (whatever that means) left turn into the wind. The good guy dressed in white on the other shoulder was saying "if you have to even think whether you can wing it or not, it's not worth it". So I commited to a PLF about 10 seconds before touchdown. I did PLF, good roll but a little hard, my ass still hurts. Moral of my story as I can ID it: the famous "I think I still have time to..." will make you or break you. And the chance of a break is not worth 1,000 close "make". In my humble unexperienced opinion. Then again, ask me when I have a couple more ks under my belt, I may/will have a wiser POV... "For once you have tasted Absinthe you will walk the earth with your eyes turned towards the gutter, for there you have been and there you will long to return."

Couldn't agree more with your picks. I would have to ad Gary, Stu, Alex, and the ultimate Große Schmetterlinge: Uli. I made a point to never request any specific instructor, which lead me t realize they all have so much to teach in their own way. Props to all of them... "For once you have tasted Absinthe you will walk the earth with your eyes turned towards the gutter, for there you have been and there you will long to return."

Did my first solo jump last Saturday (Jump #9). After a fly over, I'm first up, pulling at 4,500, followed by a woman pulling at 5,000 and 2 tandems. I started spotting as soon as the green light went steady, and 3 seconds into it, the woman yells "go, go, go"; feeling I wasn't done with my spotting (checking the airspace after id'ing the dz), I took another few seconds to make sure I felt ok with the airspace, then went. Couldn't find her on the ground though. I would have loved to talk to her. "For once you have tasted Absinthe you will walk the earth with your eyes turned towards the gutter, for there you have been and there you will long to return."

Totally agree. On my jump number 9 (last week end), it felt like I had all the time in the world. Didn't know what to do with myself. Figured it out on jumps 10 & 11 though... "For once you have tasted Absinthe you will walk the earth with your eyes turned towards the gutter, for there you have been and there you will long to return."

"When do line twists become a malfunction where you would have to execute emergency procedures of cutaway and pull reserve?" At decision altitude is what I'll stick by until I hear otherwise from one of my instructors... Nick "For once you have tasted Absinthe you will walk the earth with your eyes turned towards the gutter, for there you have been and there you will long to return."

...and everything you've experienced, in my humble extreme newbie opinion, was only foreplay... Solos will blow your mind away. Congratulations, and stay safe. Cheers, Nick "For once you have tasted Absinthe you will walk the earth with your eyes turned towards the gutter, for there you have been and there you will long to return."

Congratulations. I'm at the same level you're at, and loving it every bit as much it seems! I'll race you to 100... Keep the grin on the face and stay safe. Blue skies Nick "For once you have tasted Absinthe you will walk the earth with your eyes turned towards the gutter, for there you have been and there you will long to return."

Major congrats. Your next jump (solo) will be 1000 times better than anything you have experienced so far. Just did jumps 9, 10 & 11 yesterday (AFF is 8 levels here in SoCal), my first solos ever. Blew my mind away, especially with the gorgeous 70° weather and the snow capped mountains in the back ground... See ya'up there. Blue skies "For once you have tasted Absinthe you will walk the earth with your eyes turned towards the gutter, for there you have been and there you will long to return."

Pulled at 5,000 ft through AFF IV, then 4,500 for AFF V through VIII. I'm planning on getting 5 or 6 jumps this week end, planning on pulling no lower than 4,000. "For once you have tasted Absinthe you will walk the earth with your eyes turned towards the gutter, for there you have been and there you will long to return."