skyjump11

May I please make an observation to you?
Everyone at your DZ that is an excellent jumper
and you watch and go 'wow'....well, guess what?
They were all lousy when they first started out
and you never got to see all the 'face plants' into
the ground when they all were learning to land
and the horrible body positions they had when
they were learning to fly.
It takes many jumps to become 'good.'
Please be patient with yourself. It will come for
you as it did to all those 'wow' jumpers.
Be nice to yourself with the knowledge that 'one day'
you will be there too....OK?

greetings young methodist preacher....
I have always believed that Isaiah 40:31, was
telling us all to skydive..."they will soar on wings
like eagles...."
however, my preacher responds with a sweeping
hand gesture at his knees and says, "Jesus said,
"and lo, I am with you always."
I always find myself closer to God as I climb out
that door into His 'Breath', than on my knees to
pray. (my favorite hymn from your songbook is #261)

greetings, young female 25 year old...
way to go for you for jumping from an airplane.
you are 25 when you first did, I was 28 and some
36 years later I am still doing it.
fly while you still have your wings.
enjoy.

Thursday, 25 December 2008
If you are from the Boston area, may I ask some
questions? This summer I will be 'passing through'
that historical area and (if possible) wanted to stop
and make a couple of jumps along the way.
What are my options? Where are the 'good' DZ's in your area?
grace, peace & blue skies
4 stack canopy 221

N/A

Sir: For whatever it is worth, the FBI is still looking
for a 'Dan' Cooper and not a 'DB' Cooper.
It is an interesting read if you have the interest to
research it. This information will not 'stick.' Why?
Because, Sir, we live in a world of 'perception' and
not one of 'truth'.
grace, peace & blue skies
sep

Seldom, do I ever feel the need to write in the
forums but yours is an exception. If your older
brother were still around I think he would say,
"Way to go for you, younger brother. Way to
go for you." Savor the moments at the drop
zone, perhaps, those memories and those
friends will be the best part of your life.
Perhaps, if you are lucky, they will be.
grace, peace & blue skies, young jumper

Yes Sir,
you are qualified to talk about the PC since you go back the 1970's. Around the mid seventies I put 200 plus jumps on my PC. That has become a 'by gone' era that most don't know about.
WDI's and (for the most part) long walks back to DZ over barb wired fences bcause seldom was the spot any good but those were days that have become special and so few can remember them. You probably have an SCR & SCS. (Me too) I even have a 4stackCRW number (221) I can't believe I am still jumping after all these years. It is always nice to see a fellow 'old' person out there!

My fellow camera jumper,
If you can profit from my mistake I would like to
help you save some money. Over the years I have
purchased and worn out three different PC100's.
I always kept trying to have them 'fixed.'
The Authorized Sony repair store in Memphis
loved to see me walk in the door. They would
take parts from one camera to 'fix' the other.
I finally got a Sony DCR-HC32 & a Sony DCR-HC42.
(One of them is for 'back up' in case one goes
down.) They are 'lighter' and work great and both
have the LANC (local area net command.)
Also, please remember the reason
as to 'why' there are always cameramen that
bounce.....it is 'very' easy to get distracted when
you are after that perfect video or 35mm shot
with those clouds in the background of those
jumpers. Good Luck & Success.
(I still use a .5 wide angle on the video because
it matches well with a 28mm on the 35mm.)
(The CH is by far, one of my most favorite places
of all....lucky you get to live there!)

All Tennessee is divided into three parts.
Memphis is the western, Nashville is the center and
Knoxville is the eastern. Knoxville is in the Eastern
Time Zone, whereas the other two are Central Time.
Interstate 40 was only completed going into
Knoxville back in the 1970's. (Why the delay?
Because 'that' part always voted 'Republican' and
the other two parts were 'Democrat' and contolled
the money.) Knoxville is an hour's drive from
the birth place of Davy Crockett and is also near
the home and burial place of the 17th. president
of the U.S. (Andrew Johnson from Johnson City.)
Stay out of town when the university of tennessee
plays football...their statium holds 106,000
enthusiasts (and yes, that number is correct.)
You will be at the gateway to the great Smokie Mountains. They will take your breath away and
when the leaves change color in the fall, it will be
a memory to keep. They are really not set up
to deal with ice and snow...but that's how it is.
It is about 200 miles from Memphis to Nashville
and another 200 to Knoxville. Tennessee is the
only state in the U.S. to be boarder by 7 other
states. Al Gore used to be our US senator and he
voted 'yes' for every tax increase there ever was.
There are several good areas to live just a short drive from the city. Be patient, it will be different living there. Since everyone from the northeast
has to travel through Knoxville going South, traffic
is always a factor of time.
grace, peace and blue skies

Your posting began with, "Greetings, left my wheelchair @ the DZ @ went sky diving."
From where I sit, you 'left' that wheelchair a long time ago. Your 'mind' and 'attitude' and commitment to 'move on' has taken you from that chair a while back. And I also understand the thought of, "Boy! I wish I was the 'one' writting this, instead of the 'one' receiving it."
Way to go for you! I am proud of you!
grace, peace & blue skies
Merry Christmas
sep

11/2/07
Well, sir,
that's an honest question.
Having almost retired from the
'real' world myself, this is what
has worked for me.
Jumping and shooting video & 35mm
of tandems is not only a lot of
fun but also keeps your flying
skills sharp. With 800 jumps under
your belt, you should have a friend
that does video and I have not known
one cameraman that will not go out
of his way to share the knowledge he
has learned to help another cameraman.
By doing this, you get a jump paid for,
make some money, but most important
of all, you will give someone a DVD of
their tandem jump that will give them
great pleasure and smiles when it's
shown again and again. Don't tell the
pilot that pays me, but I'd almost do
that for 'free' because of the enjoyment
I get for being able to share what I love
with someone that probably will only
make one skydive in their life.
Good luck in whatever you decide.
Please remember, that all of the good
cameramen (and girls too) started out
shooting poor videos and stuck with it
and became good.
grace, peace & blue skies
sep

11/2/07
just 'kidding' about the use of
the word 'mature'....you know
how us jumpers like to 'pick at
one another'
way to go for sticking with it
grace, peace & blue skies
sep

11/1/07
your answer
was 'clever' and 'funny'
I laughed out loud.
thanks
sep

11/1/07
your 'best' friend had best
be the one that packs
your reserve parachute...
you are trusting your
'last chance' of living to
that person
grace, peace & blue skies
sep

11/1/07
Wow!
Not only a jumper, but an RN as well.
(Both of those impress me.)
Your home is only a short distance
from the Schiphol Airport (jumping
off point to many historical places
in that part of the world) Reading
your post gave me a 'smile' thinking
about your beautiful country...thanks.
Don't forget to double glove in the ER.
(Your English is very good!)
grace, peace & blue skies
sep

11/1/07
I'm sorry, I forgot to say this.
The fifth post down, mentioned about the
'mature' POPS...throw out that word 'mature'.
Mature people are in nursing homes, we
jump out of airplanes. On page 75, November
issue of Parachutist, gives you the information
on joining POPS. And guess what? You passed
the test. You're in! (Tandems count too.)
Besides the Parachutists Over Phorty (POPS),
there is Jumpers Over Sixty (JOS) and Jumpers
Over Seventy (you can work up to those)
You will note that they call it jumping instead of
skydiving. That was the term used back in the
1960's and early 1970's.
grace, peace & blue skies, young 57 year old
sep

11/1/07
Oh, Good Grief!
"Not too old, I hope"......
first off, 57 is young
I am 60
Now the people that jump
that are in their mid seventies
and early eighties, well now,
they are 'really' old. And I
love them all.
grace, peace & blue skies
sep

10/22/07
I'm sorry. I understand your loss. My West Highland
White Terrier was with me for 16 years and he left
me 14 years ago. There is not a day that has gone
by that I still don't miss him. Outside of my son,
he was my best friend. I do believe that he is in
Heaven waiting for me. When I die, both of our
ashes were be scattered by friends on a skydive.
Won't that be a jump for them to remember?
Way to go for you, to be there at the end for your
friend...his spirit knew you were there for him.
grace, peace & blue skies
sep

10/16/07
Here's a thought for you.
Why not have a camerman/friend,
video your opening? That way, you
won't have to guess.
grace, peace & blue skies
sep

10/14/07
Sir, may I take a turn at answering your question?
Dec. 31, 1999, 11:59 PM, 14,500 feet above the desert in Coleridge, AZ, when Mike says, "exit,exit,
exit." The cloud cover was above us, so no light from the stars. The desert was totally black except
for the car head lights that shown on the LZ.
Six of us went out and we had glow sticks on our
altimeters. Coming in, that was all you could see.
After docking, I couldn't even see the faces of the
people I was holding. At breakoff, we had to trust
that each of us would do a 180 and track. At that
time, at the turn of the century, I was between the
heavens and the earth. (Yes, I am aware that the 'true' turn of the century would have been that time, the next year.) But, it's my story and that's how I tell it. grace, peace & blue skies! sep

9/29/07
Mr. White,
It does my heart good when I
see an old person, like you,
with so many years in the sport.
It gives me hope.
grace, peace & blue skies
sep 4stack 221
(I responded to Joe by email)

it's just another skydive

24 August 2007
Please, do yourself a big favor and wait until you have 200 jumps before you start thinking about a
camera. Your attention span changes when you've
got a camera on your head and (honestly) can get
you killed in a hurry. There will be a lot of good
choices when you are ready but first, get to be a
good flyer and that will keep you safe.
Since my son is not around to tell me not to talk
about the 'old' days I will say, My first camera helmet
was a motorcycle helmet with an 8mm camera
bolted to the top. The days of a pre-made camera
helmet were far off.
(And one of these days, if you stick with it, all of
your friends will have your photographs in their
homes and offices and that, my friend, is a great
feeling of satisfaction.) When I started jumping with
a 35mm camera, I took a jump glove and attached
metal rings to the thumb and index finger, ran a wire inside my jumpsuit, up to the camera as a make shift shutter release (little did I realize that
my hand touching the metal on the plane would
complete the circuit and fire off all my pictures...ah,
we live and learn.) And yes, you probably weren't
born when that happened.
grace, peace & blue skies

17 Aug 07
Since you enjoy taking photographs, one of these
days, after 200 jumps, you might want to consider
jumping with a camera. For a some of us, that's
the reason to jump. Having a friend display one
of your photos in their home or office is a great
feeling knowing that you took that! And one of
these days you just might get one of them
published in Parachutist.
grace, peace & blue skies