wwarped

did you research the topic? what have you found? what do you think? before we make an effort to help you, please make an effort to help yourself. DON'T PANIC The lies in learning how to throw yourself at the ground and miss. sloppy habits -> sloppy jumps -> injury or worse

given the recent thread, I thought I'd see if we have a consensus. personally, I think the List encourages caution. videos build excitement without encouraging caution. jumpers are thus more apt to act recklessly. I prefer the List. DON'T PANIC The lies in learning how to throw yourself at the ground and miss. sloppy habits -> sloppy jumps -> injury or worse

now really... how many people have jumped with a dead jumper AFTER they passed away? does anybody care to admit it? DON'T PANIC The lies in learning how to throw yourself at the ground and miss. sloppy habits -> sloppy jumps -> injury or worse

HIDGAF? really? DON'T PANIC The lies in learning how to throw yourself at the ground and miss. sloppy habits -> sloppy jumps -> injury or worse

it seems you have suffered a serious loss. (I never met your friend.) the List is simply a tool. it can be used well, or improperly. the user gets to choose. I like that the list exists. remember in the jumgle movies? all the shrunken heads marking a sacred spot? the List serves that sort of purpose. it warns people before entering. youTube (and video in general) typically show the cool stuff and entice the unwary to BASE. the List acts as a balance, as a means to sober potential BASE jumpers. making the page unavailable to the public would destroy this function. the List is NOT really a memorial to the people. you'd need a separated webpage for each individual to do them justice. the List is more about documenting mistakes. it needs the human face to grab people's attention. I'm sure people have been offended by things I've said and done. you obviously know you have offended others as well. before we ask others to "clean up their act," should we not ask it of ourselves first? are you now free of sin? p.s. other sports do NOT compile such a list. most likely because of length and it counters marketing initiatives. USPA publishes fatalities, but it cleanses the reports of all personal info, and does NOT make public an entire list, just an annual one. is that preferable? DON'T PANIC The lies in learning how to throw yourself at the ground and miss. sloppy habits -> sloppy jumps -> injury or worse

great post. DON'T PANIC The lies in learning how to throw yourself at the ground and miss. sloppy habits -> sloppy jumps -> injury or worse

is that like: Batman/Bruce Wayne? Superman/Clark Kent? Spiderman/Peter Parker? DON'T PANIC The lies in learning how to throw yourself at the ground and miss. sloppy habits -> sloppy jumps -> injury or worse

as for myself, I'm NOT trying to take anything from you. I can't. I can attempt to influence you, and the others who would think it's the shizzle to follow your path. it's not. it is more likely to lead to the harsh realities of the sport. your more recent posts display a calmer, more thoughtful side. now that's the shizzle! use those traits to keep yourself upright! DON'T PANIC The lies in learning how to throw yourself at the ground and miss. sloppy habits -> sloppy jumps -> injury or worse

where is the video on youTube? if there is no video, it did NOT happen! DON'T PANIC The lies in learning how to throw yourself at the ground and miss. sloppy habits -> sloppy jumps -> injury or worse

I do not think you and I have met, so you do not know me, and I do not know you. I'm sure you have an impression of me, somewhere between a guru and a twat. (hopefully, close to neither extreme...) you are correct that we all need to give people a chance to be different in person. Andy could well have been so energized and excited from his first jump that his emotion came through on his posts. fair enough. I hope that is the case. I also know non-jumpers and BASE wannabes read these forums. just saying "great job" to anyone who survives a BASE jump is wrong. it can encourage copycat behavior. (note other threads have been critical of Luigi, Felix, Jeb, etc.) do you think it wise to encourage the mentorship Potatohead provides? (I've never met him either...) heck, there is a thread somewhere that attacks me... so be it. I try to like every actual BASE jumper I meet. I figure I can probably learn something from most of them. (it's one of the great things about BD!) and yes, I've done stupid things. you probably do not know about them as I prefer to "keep BASE personal, not public." DON'T PANIC The lies in learning how to throw yourself at the ground and miss. sloppy habits -> sloppy jumps -> injury or worse

everyone must answer that on their own. the same as with whom you choose to jump. personally, I choose to jump with people I trust. people who make sound judgements. people I'd happily take care of in case of injury (even if that means getting busted and possibly ending my career). people who will look after me. with the correct attitude and strong judgement, the other skills can be learned. Andy seems to be treating the BASE community like a coven of vampires from an Anne Rice novel. he wanted to be bitten so he could join the coven. none back home would oblige, so he travellled to the States. now that he has been bitten, he expects we must accept him --- he is now one of us. little does he realize I won't jump with just anybody, and I'm sure some will not jump with me. Andy's judgement and risk assessment skills appear flawed. his post that started this thread had a serious "in your face" attitude toward those that tried to slow him down. it really didn't read like he welcomed advice. hopefully, I'm wrong. he might be a great guy, eager to listen. people can be different face to face. earlier someone posted "Live and Learn." I agree wholeheartedly. but from Andy's posts, I can only tell that he lived... DON'T PANIC The lies in learning how to throw yourself at the ground and miss. sloppy habits -> sloppy jumps -> injury or worse

what I have read is that this jumper wants to brag about his first jump. something failed on that jump, but he has yet to describe that failure so that we can understand. it appears he doesn't know his equipment. (and doesn't he make money packing? yikes.) the jumper appears to have been given advise from jumpers back home in the U.K., and chosen to ignore it. the jumper was "supervised" by someone busted about a month ago in a dodgy situation. that jump also involved a beginner. the jumper is spending a lot of energy on this thread, defending his achievement. energy that could be spent researching and learning. maybe then he could explain better the failure that occured on his jump. I for one have NO desire to encourage this jumper. his enthusiasm appears to greatly exceed his knowledge base. some would compliment him. I view the situation as a statistic likely to happen. I have helped too many injured jumpers already. I'd prefer trying to prevent another. sure, I doubt he thinks he will get hurt. he expects it won't happen to him. but when someone pointed out he assumed more risk than necessary, he replied so? isn't it a risky activity anyway? the attitude I've seen displayed on this thread paints a picture of someone who will only listen to people telling him what he wants to hear. he wants people to facilitate him, not train him. I hope I'm wrong. I do not know him. I hope good things happen to him. but I do not know how to help someone that ignores advise. DON'T PANIC The lies in learning how to throw yourself at the ground and miss. sloppy habits -> sloppy jumps -> injury or worse

I do not understand what happened with the bridle. it sounds like you are using different vocabulary than the rest of us. (or I'm clueless...) instead of posting here, maybe spend your time reading a bit more. you will be treated harshly for entering the sport as you did. it contained elevated risk. many before have done the same, and now do everything they can to prevent it. you'll understand after assisting in the rescue of multiple friends... please stay off Nick's list! DON'T PANIC The lies in learning how to throw yourself at the ground and miss. sloppy habits -> sloppy jumps -> injury or worse

me: you: yep, that is what I said. nope. the way you share your ideas is what breaks the rules and gets you banned. not that I have witnessed. it is the convenient excuse of those that HAVE been banned. oh, and I have seen the moderator appear more lenient to one-off rule breakers (like friends) than on-going rule breakers. huh? the problem I see is those who refuse to deal with reality. this forum has rules. it has succeeded better than what came before. if you do not like it there are plenty of alternative forums. feel free to enjoy them. you apparently do not like this forum, and continue to continue to complain. why? do you stalk ex-girlfriends as well? my advice is to man up and move on. DON'T PANIC The lies in learning how to throw yourself at the ground and miss. sloppy habits -> sloppy jumps -> injury or worse

I'd agree, if they had NOT released video. the release of the video draws attention to ALL of us. it thus impacts ALL of us. (it is hard to pass or enforce laws against an activity of which you are unaware...) this discussion is how we use "peer pressure" as a form of "self-regulation." DON'T PANIC The lies in learning how to throw yourself at the ground and miss. sloppy habits -> sloppy jumps -> injury or worse

sometimes it felt like you and Han were not quite discussing the same thing. you did not place the same emphasis on the same key points. it seems to commonly lead to mis-understandings... but you both made some interesting points. I for one think that is an excellent use of this forum. thank you for giving me something to think about! DON'T PANIC The lies in learning how to throw yourself at the ground and miss. sloppy habits -> sloppy jumps -> injury or worse

congrats! DON'T PANIC The lies in learning how to throw yourself at the ground and miss. sloppy habits -> sloppy jumps -> injury or worse

it depends on which skills you wish to hone... personally, start with an appropriate size that you can land safely. the first skill ought to be survival. the second skill I'd recommend is learning your canopy inside and out. become your own rigger. know how the parts work and are connected. third, learn canopy drills. find out what your parachute can do, at a safe altitude. fourth, start borrowing gear. find out what works for you. I'm not convinced a big BASE parachute is a great idea for a first rig. they fly differently. I've seen small dz's where few even remember how to land the big ones. sad, but true. if you have access to people who do remember (and can coach you), ask THEM about an appropriate canopy. since you are asking the question here, you might stick with a skydiving main. you need to survive and build confidence. feeling out of place at the dz, with no one to ask for advice, is a bad situation... DON'T PANIC The lies in learning how to throw yourself at the ground and miss. sloppy habits -> sloppy jumps -> injury or worse

an environment of hostility and rancor tends to make people act defensively. people shut down into a bunker mentality. any element of threat narrows one's perceptual field. such individuals collect much less information, but focus intently on what they do see. they rarely acknowledge another's key points. an open, supportive mood tends to save lives and be creative. people share ideas and brainstorm. cross pollination helps develop the best ideas. accepting constructive criticism accelerates creativity. some people thnk they were banned from this forum because of their ideas. from what I witnessed, that is simply a convenient excuse. I've seen people banned for how they expressed their ideas, and how they expressed disagreement. when people turn defensive, they rarely acknowledge a weakness... the initial tone of the new forum is common outrage at being banned here. hopefully that is simply a stage that will be outgrown. any sound advice gets buried under the paranoia. DON'T PANIC The lies in learning how to throw yourself at the ground and miss. sloppy habits -> sloppy jumps -> injury or worse

there have been many useful websites containing gobs of useful information. yet there is only 1 sticky thread. earlier in this thread, Tom listed (and linked) to several other forums. why not see if the new venue can stand on it's own two feet and earn a respectable reputation? why should it receive special treatment above and beyond other websites? isn't there an older forum that prides itself on more solid technical discussions as well? why not link to it instead? if the supporters of the new forum can not see these simply, basic facts, what else might they be missing? how else does emotion cloud their logic or muddy their presentations? for people who prefer the civility of this forum, why not discuss technical issues here? are you suggesting it is NOT possible? the hostility and rancor displayed at the new forum probably is NOT beneficial to the sport. when non-jumpers visit (lawmakers, law enforcement, familiy members of deceased, etc.) their opinions will be shaped by how we conduct ourselves. the new forum appears to provide a bad first impression. again, if you support the new forum, fine. bookmark if (or add it to you Favorites...) and enjoy. DON'T PANIC The lies in learning how to throw yourself at the ground and miss. sloppy habits -> sloppy jumps -> injury or worse

so would a browser bookmark! is it really that difficult? DON'T PANIC The lies in learning how to throw yourself at the ground and miss. sloppy habits -> sloppy jumps -> injury or worse

uh, careful. they put those things on crash test dummies as well! DON'T PANIC The lies in learning how to throw yourself at the ground and miss. sloppy habits -> sloppy jumps -> injury or worse

this seems a bit surreal. people seem to get rather bent when Clair and this tattoo come up. if you challenge her on it, expect her to reply HIDGAF. I actually agree with her (except I do not agree with her militant advocacy of HIDGAF). think about it. BASE is about freedom. many will say it is wrong. some don't like how we get our altitude. we do it despite the naysayers. 'course this forum has beat up on the "ooh, look at me vids." who posts many of those? people who DO GAF. that is who. if everyone BASE jumped for their own personal reasons, I think things would be better. too many here really care about the social cache of their jumps. they want to be recognized. they want to be cool. they want to have bragging rights. if BASE jumpers accepted the HIDGAF philosophy, I suspect the petty bickering would decrease dramatically. DON'T PANIC The lies in learning how to throw yourself at the ground and miss. sloppy habits -> sloppy jumps -> injury or worse

now if you got over your aversion to s/l... exit an antenna s/l. wind at your back. you can see the tied off pilot chute inflated already. now have a tail wind exiting from the ironwork of a bridge, holding a shortened bridle with a pre-inflated pc. where is the burble? in front of you! it is a tailwind! if you customize your gear to have very light closing forces, you will likely drop away from the pc and NOT tow it very far. by the time you build up enough speed to have a significant burble above you, the pc is long gone. o.k. it is just more theory. (but I trust greeny's experience...) DON'T PANIC The lies in learning how to throw yourself at the ground and miss. sloppy habits -> sloppy jumps -> injury or worse

Calvin speaks of theory. greeny sounds like he is building experience. that is the point of science experiments; collect data to confirm or refute theory. greeny: good luck! Calvin: sew up a 4 ft bridle. attach a pilot chute. secure it to your back. preinflate the pilot chute. get pulled on a skateboard, jump into a pool, etc. and video the results! DON'T PANIC The lies in learning how to throw yourself at the ground and miss. sloppy habits -> sloppy jumps -> injury or worse