aj4218

Buddy-buddy jump. 1980, Perris.

Idiot Sighting #3: At a good-bye lunch for an old and dear co-worker who is leaving the company due to "downsizing," our manager spoke up and said, "This is fun. We should have lunch like this more often." Not another word was spoken. We just looked at each other like deer staring into the headlights of an approaching truck. reply] Your manager at The Office wasn't called 'David Brent' by any chance?

It's about ATTENTION TO DETAIL and the miniscule amount of effort it takes to make a difference. And if you spoke to the agency planners who did the research for this ad concept you'd find that the target audience WOULD be likely to recognise mistakes in presentation.

OK, OK - I used hyperbole to make a point. Let's change 'shooting' to a 'severe slap on the wrists' then. Not doing the tiny bit of research necessary to check the presentation of a sportsperson in a national ad is like showing an ad with Pele kicking a rugby ball instead of a football. Unprofessional, slack work by a highly paid employee of one of the worlds' biggest ad agencies. I know, I used to work for them.

23 years after my last BASE jump it's back flowing through my bloodstream just like before and I may well jump again - there's no escape and I'm not looking for one!

Nice one Gus! Hope you've got some nice pics & video to show us all soon. Al

QuoteDumb question, but I can't help it. -How do you get the static line back if you're jumping by yourself? Not that I jumped it solo, but ... you go back the next morning and get it back!

because it takes all of half an hour to search on the internet and actually DO THEIR FUCKING JOB... attention to details is everything... .. which was entirely my point, thanks. PS and they get paid a shedload of money for producing this stuff as well.

I know we've seen this sort of crap loads of times before but pleeeeeese!.... An ad currently in the UK press for MasterCard.

Are there any differences with PCA openings when the exit is almost vertical e.g. off an S, and when the jumper is pushing out as far as possible eg B. In other words, does the angle of presentation of the nose of the canopy influence opening characteristics at low speeds.

I got mine today as well - #1021!! Congrats to you too. (BTW - thanks R & J for the nice note you sent with it)

Have you downloaded the Google video player and installed it? It did it automatically for me but maybe you need to do it manually.

I got 4 results - 1. Base jump bridge 1 jump 2 parachute 2. Base Jump-Une video de dingue... 3. Dan's Base Jump From The American River Bridge and 4. Basejump - LowPull A small capture from a BASE jump lowpull in Lauterbrunnen Switzerland which is in memory of JT

With Tom's approval and for your viewing pleasure, some old cuttings of two land(!)mark events.

Early 80s, jumping at Netheravon, Salisbury Plain, UK. DZ running 2 piston Islanders, both climbing to altitude and the cloud cover went to 8/8. Geordie Laing decides to give the exit by radio from the ground by listening to the aircraft, both now at altitude. Gives the exit to the wrong aircraft that I was in and we landed at Pewsey, 9 miles away, in the midle of a fete that was happening. They all thought it was an official demo!

Check this out - [/url]http://www.kodak.com/US/en/motion/newsletters/inCamera/jan2004/falconP.shtml F......g incredible stuff.

Digging through old photos last night and found this amongst others. It's Nigel S and Mike McC in Spain in 1981. They's heard I'd been invited out to jump at the Spanish Nationals and decided to follow me out. I flew, they hitch-hiked. When they got to the motorway in Kent, they flipped a coin to see who'd take the map and who'd take the pen to make signs - I can't remember who got what. I had a great weeks' jumping and on the last day, half an hour after all the aircraft had gone, Mike arrives! He took it very well considering he'd had 6 days on the road! An hour later Nigel arrives on the back of a motorbike, wearing his jumpsuit and is soaking wet. He'd been caught in a torrential hail storm out in the open and uprooted a metal road sign to cover his head. The noise was so loud from the hailstones he was half deaf! We managed to scam our way on to some demo jumps at the World Aeromedelling championships near Madrid (out of this Buffalo) and then I flew, and they hitch-hiked, home!

Just dug these out. Rhossili 1981 (yes nineteen eighty-one!). An hour and a half later the wind had picked up and I managed to soar for 15 minutes or so. Girlfriend, with camera, bored out of her mind, was in the cafe having tea.

Just don't do the one about 'I stand more chance of dying driving to and from the DZ' 'cos you'll end up not driving anywhere either!

I've forgotten the detail but I'm sure another Brit jumper can fill in for me. There's an amazing story of an old time jumper, Bob Acraman (may have mis spelled) who was an instructor at a DZ in the south of England which ran 2 De Haviland Rapides back in the 70s. Bob had despatched his students and then did a freefall follow out and went through the fabric fuselage roof of the second Rapide which was below! He descended with the 2nd Rapide (obviously!) and I don't record his injuries, but he certainly survived it and jumped again.

Hi I managed to foot launch my Canopy from Rhosshili and soar for about 15 minutes in late February 1981. A photo of my launch was published in the UK's Wings! Magazine in April 1981. The first link gives a bit of history. http://www.homeusers.prestel.co.uk/midflight/RhossiliSTORY.htm and http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/h2g2/A902549

Just remembered something - in 1989 I went to Mam Tor in the Peak District, near where I live, and took my rig (PD170). It was perfect. Plenty of HG pilots, some of who I knew and loads of paragliders. Took the PC off and inflated the canopy to the amusement of plenty of the pilots, and ran it off the edge and swooped down into the car park at the bottom (I guess it's about 600' or so) and landed just as the Chairman or something like it of the Peak Paragliding Club was getting out of his car! He went absolutely f.....g ballistic and banned me from ever joining the Club. After I'd politely told him I wasn't interested in joining, I walked back up and had another go! Great fun. PS I wouldn't personally recommend Devil's Dyke, having flown there for many hours many years ago. It hasn't got the kind of gradient that'll give you any kind of height (if any!) if you get off the deck. Now, there is a popular cliff site near E...b....e which has a nice steep slope as well as the cliffs ....

Interestingly enough, Bill Morris of the BHGPA did an article in Skywings Magazine in 1998 which researched the 'pioneers'. He concluded that I was the 'first' person to foot launch a canopy and soar it; this was late February 1981 at Rhossili in Wales. My launch picture was published in the April Issue of Wings! Magazine. Now, I can't possibly make that claim and wouldn't want to - I can only take Bill's word for it. Nevertheless, if you want to go canopy soaring, you could do a lot worse than Rhossili, especially as it takes prevailing westerlies. There's also several sites in the Peak District and othe rparts of wales that I know of. Check out these sites and you'll see what I mean. Good luck! http://www.homeusers.prestel.co.uk/midflight/RhossiliSTORY.htm and also http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/h2g2/A902549

I got this fantastic email from Rob yesterday and he’s happy for me to share it. I had let him know that there were some great stories being posted as a result of his Dad’s story. Give him a welcome, he's watching. ‘Dear Alan, Well that was certainly a little moving, reading all those stories about my Dad. Whether or not you purposely didn't mention the "suggested stories about Frank column" I don't know but I found it by searching and I thought your account was fantastic and I am very proud to have got a mention. You also mention that you have been in contact with Nigel Slee, via the website I believe and I would be interested to contact him also. I understand he was one of the gang! [I’ve sent Rob his email address – AJ] When I read stories about skydiving / base jumping I long to learn to jump and enter that world. Unfortunately I am probably similar to the "Frank and Alan" of the period in that my ideal entrance to the sport would be from 14,000 feet, rather than the lengthy and costly training program of today. Mainly due to financial reasons, (not because I am too lazy to learn properly) Living in Thailand however does not allow that whatsoever. There is no AFF course here (Although KM is thinking of coming over to run one) and even if there was it would be too expensive. When I read these accounts, I imagine skydiving to have been a fun, free sport back in the day. Alan - How many modern skydivers still camp out in caravans waiting for the wind to change, or clouds to pass? How many pack parachutes all weekend for the thrill of a ten minute jump at the end of the day??? Is this way of enjoying skydiving still possible. Anyways, one day I hope that my situation will allow me to do that, and in fact I have just had the motivation to send KM an email right now. Thank you very much for keeping me in mind, I hope that you and your family are well. I would love you to check out my website, www.thai-dragonfly.com which will give you a pretty good idea of what I am up to over here in sunny Thailand. Thanks again for the mail and hope to stay in touch, BIG HUGZ, Rob ‘

Jumped with Lewis Collins of 'The Professionals' TV series. It was for a charity thing run by the Daily Mail in the UK. I have never jumped with someone with such a fast fall rate in a relaxed position. He's a fairly stocky guy and I'm only 150lbs, but I could only stay with him comfortably in a kind of stand up!! http://www.personal.u-net.com/~carnfort/Professionals/lewis.htm