RaulR

Thank you April. It is a credit to Xtreme Divers (Jason/Viviana) that despite the windy conditions we had a great time. I also wanted to thank all that participated. I enjoyed jumping with Jim R, April S, Jorge F, Edward R, Mike W, and Mark K. Our newest CReW Dawgs Jorge and Edward made a lot of progress and did all kinds of new things including multi point sequential, piece flying, beach landings, etc. I'm also glad I had a chance to work with others that had interest in CRW. Hopefully I'll be able to set up a training camp for Antwan, Victor, Anibal, Will, and Greg in the near future. The pilots were fantastic, so I want to give a big thanks to Neil, John, Mark (Cross Keys) and Rook (Chicago). They were very accommodating and did everything we needed when we needed it, including separate passes, change of headings, coordination with the other plane, passes under the clouds, beach passes, etc, etc. etc. We were never at risk in the freefall area and never missed the landing zone. John even provided us with a little extra excitement when he circled his twin Otter around us a few times and then flew so close that we could see his big smile just before he banked into a dive as he cut accross in front of our formation. I thought for a minute he wanted to do CRW with us. We had fun with Mark when he docked his Velocity 103 on top, wing and bottom of our formations as we were doing sequential with the lightnings. I also enjoyed working with the wing suit guys (Justin, Mike, Scottie, Chris, etc.) and the PD Factory Team guys (Jon Taggle, J.C. Colclasure). I'm sure we'll get to play in other events. Liz on manifest was terrific and very patient, helping us get in the right loads and helping with the changes when we needed them. And a big thanks to Jason and Viviana for once again being great hosts. We had excellent aircrafts, nice facilities to pack and jump, free Red Bulls during jumping hours, free Medalla beer at the end of the day, an outstanding boogie pack with a bottle of good rum among many other goodies, fun parties every night with life bands and great food, etc. etc. All and all a great time. Those who didn't come really missed out. You should really plan for it next year. Blue Skies Raul

Hello Dawgs: We’re only a month away from the Puerto Rico Skydiving festival. The event is scheduled for February 13-17. As you know, this year Jason and Viviana are going to have two Super Otters, and Mike Lewis and I would like to have two 16 ways to do some fun multi-point sequential dives. And you won’t need your cold weather gear. So, come and join us. For more information email me your questions or post them here. You can also check out the following links: http://www.xtremedivers.com/ http://www.myspace.com/xtremedivers In addition, look at the information that Viviana posted above Blue Skies! Raul

April is correct. The "XC" is PD's designation for eXperimental Canopy. PD usually takes quite a bit of time testing new canopies before bringing them to market. These are the next generation of CRW canopies from PD. Sometimes they refer to them as "Lightning II" or "The Storm" which, at the moment, are the tentative marketing names for the canopies. We jumped them at the 2004 World Championships in Croatia. The same thing happened back in the 1980's when we were jumping the experimental version of the Ligntnings long before they had a name. As in 2004, back in 1990 we also had a chance to compete at the World Championships in Thailand with the canopies before they had a name.

Thank you Saskia! That was an interesting and memorable jump. As far as I know I think that's the only time that formation has ever been built. We built it with PD XC-107's during an 8-way speed practice in Lake Wales in 2004. It wasn't easy.

Jojo, I would second what both Saskia and Chuck tell you in the messages above. They are steering you in the right direction. I would add that, at the begining, it is best to work with experienced CRW jumpers on a one-on-one basis. There are several jumpers around the country that can train you the right way. In Georgia, I don't know of anyone near Augusta. However, if you jump in the Atlanta area, look up Mark Gregory, Chris Gay, or Chris Warnock. Further south, Mike Lewis or myself can put together a training program for you in Zephyrhills or Lake Wales, FL. Let me know if interested. Raul

Mike, It's great to hear that there is interest in CRW at your DZ. To get you guys going, I'll be glad to organize a training camp for your group at Z-Hills. The first step would be to work on the basic skills and the new techniques that have been developed in the last few years. The idea would be to give your group the foundation to continue safely on their own. Regarding equipment, it is best to go with the Lightnings since they will allow the group to participate in CRW camps everywhere For the training, we might be able to obtain demos depending on the number of participants. Also, their level of experience with CRW and Skydiving in general may determine the need for one-on-one or small group work. But those details can be discussed further later. Raul

Hello CReW Dawgs: After the awesome experience of the 100-way World Record, it is time to let the dawgs out and start celebrating. And what better way than going to the Puerto Rico Festival in February? We are planning a week of fun jumps and nightly parties. Those of you who have been there know how good a host Viviana and Jason are. They know how to throw a party and they love the CReW dawgs. Besides, where else would you be able to do CRW in T-shirts and shorts in the middle of February? By the way, you should know that the few times that the dawgs have come to this beautiful Caribbean paradise has sparked local interest to the point that now there is a small group of Puerto Ricans that bought Lightnings and that want to work on CRW. Like Chris G, Eduardo G, and Shireen K all said recently, we need to continue growing and continue having these camps. I, for one, am really glad to see this kind of interest reaching even remote and isolated locations like this one. Maybe we’ll get a Puerto Rican team come to the next Nationals. These guys are a great addition so please, welcome them to our family (Wendy, I’ll be giving you email addresses and the such soon to add them to the email list). This year Jason and Viviana are going to have two Supper Otters, and Mike L and I would like to have two 16 ways to do some fun multi-point sequential dives (and maybe even a Puerto Rican Record). The event is scheduled for February 13-17. There are also other activities that we can plan for after the camp, like hikes into “El Yunque” rain forest, or cave hiking, or scuba diving, sailing, etc. For more information about this event check out their web sites: http://www.xtremedivers.com/ http://www.myspace.com/xtremedivers So, add your name to the list and join us Here is the current list: 1) Raul Ramirez 2) Mike Lewis 3) Annie Dekoker 4) Mike Woods 5) Jorge Fernandez 6) Edward Rosario 7) Antoine 8) Jim Rasmussen 9) April Schultz 10) Jackson Hoffman 11) Robert Reger 12) Jeni Gordon 13) Peter Hormuth 14) YOU Blue Skies! Raul

On the World Record jump there were at least 3 that I'm aware of. On the second attempt there were 14 substitutions

Thank you T. Good hearing from you. This is a a very good forum and a great way to communicate. I'm sure I'll be posting much more although it will probably take me a while to get 100. By the way it's been a while since we last saw you down here. Maybe you'll make a trip to sunnny Florida soon. Even better, you should plan to join us in Puerto Rico in February during the 2008 boogie. We always have a great time there and it is a perfect place for CReW during the winter. Take care

I'm available for training, coaching, organizing in December. Send me an email at [email protected] if still interested. Raul