Greaseball

I also failed level 3. Back in the late 90s, the late and great (make that Heroic) Pat McGowan, who was one of my instructors on that jump, said something to me as we were walking across the grass at Perris after that flail fest of a jump : "Don't worry. Your going to get certified and will be able to make as many jumps as you want, even if it takes a couple more in AFF than you planned. Learning to skydive is a cool goal and you'll get there" Hundreds of jumps later with some of the best free flyers of that era........Pat was spot on.

You know waht would be sweet? If they would use these timeslots to air Chronicle I, II, III, every Taylor Steel movie, every TGR and Steve Winter movie, and every John Holmes movie.

Got that right. When I moved to that town 1.5 hours North of TF in 1980 (when a giant arse Hydroslide was THE adventure attraction in Twin) the drinking age was 18- If I recall correctly the legislature moved it to 21 right around the same time. I got my liscence at 14 there and could barely see over the wheel. And Im sure you know about the "liberal" open container laws Best state in the nation.

How ironic that print media is advocating accountability. Small town print media no less (dying a faster death than any faction of the media). Kettle meet pot...or however that saying goes. Cant even believe Im responding.....

Most likely because the "real" news doesnt "sell" that well. My thoughts exactly. Im stating the obvious but the issue here is the US media, not necessarily the individuals involved who are labeled as "skydivers", and how desperate and imbalanced traditional media outlets (all the ones cashing in on this story) have become as the result of ever increasing competition from gloabblization (blogs). Katherine Grahmm (sp?) eluded to it best in one of her books- Americans love reading garbage like this (I stopped reading the story halfway thru as its so predictable) for whatever reason.....stories like these $ell.

Mongoloid forever!!!!

You forgot to mention under postives "intense underlying sense of optimism". I havent jumped in 4 years, and only for 4 years but my first aff jump was, well....you know- all the verbage about facing one's fears and whatnot. I dont know anyone that is successful in any industry or sport that doesnt have some sort of risk taking trait in them whetjer it be Yvonne Chouinard from Patagonia, the Pope, Dr Ruth, Donald Trump, SHANE MCSHLONKEY, George Bush (not that I agree with anything he has done but successful nonetheless), etc. If some potential employer doesnt want to hire a potential employee who is known to take calculated risks I sure as hell wouldnt be too confident working there under that type of management attitude. In my own soapboxed opinion, the only people that think skydivers are "crazy" are those that dont take any risks (fit the derogataoty whuffo stereotype) and we all know how far those people go. The Chose One has spoken

It's a local charity founded by Miles wife. All the money is administered through the Magic Valley Regional Medical Center foundation. The other co-founder (along with Nikki Daisher) is a local pediatrician. My wife is also a doctor who sees a lot of disabled patients (including children) in Twin Falls, and I can say with certainty that the charity is totally legitimate. I personally think this is a great way to give to charity here because; (a) It's targeted very efficiently, (b) The money stays local, (c) The charity gives notice by it's name that this is a way that BASE jumpers (mostly Miles, but maybe in future that can be expanded) are giving back to the local community. That's great PR for BASE in Twin Falls. I know you asked the question already but...is this specific "disabled children" program going to be ongoing, like open for donations in December/ January? I searched the Magic Valley Regional Medical Center Foundation but couldnt find anything specifically about disabled children, only at-risk kids and Im interested to hear more about the charity and what exactly it entails. Of course I could call the number which Ill probably do but I just want to know if its a sustainable charity. Thanks ahead of time for any replies

Idiot? Well that there is the understatement of the millenium Mr ClifeHuckable but nevertheless I was thinking the exact same thing! I know Peeps arent supposed to use names here but I think I recognize that guy from when I was skydiving a few years back and I think he goes by the alias Binko Begnini- great tracker by the way. Im with you Mr Blueballs, err Rubberballs, I also check out these boards once in a while to see what some of the guys that got me interested/ taught me to skydive are up to- and what a treat it is to read a couple of the priceless, heavilly viewed entertainment threads- just like Survibor but on the internet.

Ive never really gotten the jackass type humour so I have no commnet on the mace in the 35 year old dude's eyes trick. You kinda look a little nervous right before the guy sprays you- whats up with that? I have Standard Issue on the Flyboyz compilation and I enjoy watching it- the in flight footage off that tower is unique- same as the footage off the tower in the Radix teaser. I dont BASE jump but I can understand the point of view of some that get pissed when they see that bike smack into that tower. Speaking of bikes, get rid of the "stunts with props" junk and show pure BASE and pure skydiving...much more interesting. I like Standard Issue for what its not- one of those cheesy surf/ skydive/ ski flicks that is directed primarily at the mainstream (that doesnt do any of it and never will) in a an attempt to somehow "grow" the sport (i.e Good Stuff, surf movie Step into Liquid, any warren Miller movie, TGR (borderline) ski films starting to go that way, etc). Just imitate the Chroncle series and peeps will buy.

I had to do level 3 twice when I was learning. Ill repeat what my instructor told me 7 years ago when I went thru aff and was some of the best advice I can remember (although I remember a lot of good advice). Its not a matter of "if" your going to get it but "how long" its going to take..

Hello, 320 jumps (almost all freefly except aff) 4 years last jump was Fall of 2000 I could call square 1 and get a quick response but this is easier. Possibly a dumb question coming.... Ive been out of the sport 4 years now (marriage, carreer, house, etc....you know the drill) and am seriously thinking of jumping back in and I am calculating the cost to make the huge committment that this sport requires... I used to weigh 165 and jumped a 150 sabre with a javelin 2 container. Now I weigh 175 and would want to jump as conservative a canopy as possible getting back into the sport. My question is: Am I going to have to buy a bigger container? I cant remember If I ever jumped a 170 with my j2 so cant remember about the fit/ difficulty of packing. Im guessing the answer is going to be..."if a 170 fits then yor fine" Thanks ahead of time for any replies, Greaseball