SimonBones

It's really tough to get a real answer posting this online for several reasons. We're only hearing your side of the story and not the reasons the instructor(s) had for making these choices. I am an AFF instructor and I have made the choice before not to jump with a student. I have also broken the news to a student that "this sport may not be for you" which can be a way of asking them not to come back to this DZ. Many instructors have been through this for a variety if reasons. I've worked with students who just flat out scared me. Their attitude, their competency, their ability to safely operate a parachute, or whatever. Being a skydiving instructor is not like being a tennis coach. You're taking direct responsibility for someone else's life. Instructors have been responsible for student fatalities and injuries. It's not really fair to instructors to start asking whether or not it's fair to fail you or ask you not to come back. Maybe you scared the shit out of the guy. Maybe he doesn't feel comfortable being responsible for your life after seeing the way you operate. Maybe he believes he is saving your life by asking you to not persue the sport. It's a tough call to make and no instructor likes making it. No instructor wants to go around booting students from the sport, that's not why skydivers become instructors. It usually saddens the instructor to make that call. I've felt like shit for doing it. But sometimes it's necessary. You may disagree with his call, but in all reality, he's been doing this longer than you and has seen more things go ugly. The DZ does not want a fatality or an injury their. They're a business that can't afford the reputation of students pounding in and dying. They're a community of jumpers who don't want a fatal event to change the atmosphere there. An incident can really scar the whole group and traumatize the people who had to see it. You can try going to another dropzone and getting a second opinion by evalutation. But it's not really fair to put his judgement in question. He probably made the difficult choice for the sake of your safety, the business, and their community. 108 way head down world record!!! http://www.simonbones.com Hit me up on Facebook

Wait, so is Skyride officially gone? Is that what I'm reading? Did some event happen that I missed? 108 way head down world record!!! http://www.simonbones.com Hit me up on Facebook

I've been told that one jumper was a tandem master from Skydive the Point, West Point VA from a west point skydiver. It's too damn funy. 108 way head down world record!!! http://www.simonbones.com Hit me up on Facebook

Thougheveryone is different, I've always disagreed with that philosophy. I started playing with the dark side before I even got my A license. It wasn't long before it's all I would do. I never did any kind of 4way team or any of that nonsense. When I first stepped into a tunnel, I did 15 minutes on my belly. It was easy, but I stayed there and let them teach me a couple of tricks. But that's all I did. I got my coach rating without any bell skills preps, and later on my AFF rating without any workups. I can catch a flailing AFF student no problem. Of my 1600 skydives, probably less than 40 have been spent on any kind of belly skills. Every now and then someone has their 100th jump and wants me on a belly way. I'm always in fast, never go low or take anyone out. Being a freeflyer made me a better belly flyer without me ever being on my belly because I learned the theory behind air deflection and using it to move around. Again, not everyone is the same, but I'm not the only one out there. 108 way head down world record!!! http://www.simonbones.com Hit me up on Facebook

Every time I've visited CSS from Thanksgiving 2006 to this summer has been a wonderful time. The community is full of great people. I'm really sad to see CSS close down. I sure will miss that awesome hill and that beer line at the end of it that approaches way to fast. I suppose the gang will slpit between Raeford and Suffolk depending on proximity. You guys are always welcome up here with us

You could probably take an inch or two out of the legs and maybe an inch out of the arms for more comfortable flying, but the jumpsuit shouldn't be holding you back much. Ask your local rigger if he can sew a quick line up the inside. 108 way head down world record!!! http://www.simonbones.com Hit me up on Facebook

First, it's hard to accurately respond without seeing some things for myself. For example, I'd want to see how baggy your suit it. Saying it is more or less baggy on an online forum doesn't really paint me an accurate picture. I'd want to see what your height/weight is like. Posting a video online doesn't give me an accurate view of your height/weight and whether the jumpsuit as a result is too baggy or not. A neptune is not really all that accurate of a device for freefall speeds. Few of them really are. I can exit an airplane docked with another freeflyer, both wearing neptunes, protracks, etc, and remain docked the duration of the freefall only to find that both of our computers read different values. They may be somewhat close, but really not very accurate. I will tell you from my experience that you are only wearing weights as a crutch. Freeflying is the most difficult discipline. That means it is hard to get good and will take hundreds to thousands of jumps. There is no short supply of people with low freefly jump numbers who bitch back and forth about this person being "too fast" and that person being "too slow". It's kind of like the spaceball that backslides, right?. In a sit I can range in speeds of high 120s to well over 190 without changing weight or jumpsuit. I'm 6'1" and 150lbs. I'm a tall skinny bastard and fall rates, too fast or too slow are not really an issue. I work with a student who is a very small framed girl. She is short and would probably push 100lbs soaking wet. I have set a 170mph spaceball in front of her and she can sit relative with it, as she can with one that goes 140mph. Changing speed is not an accessories issue. Stop worrying about changing suit configurations (unless it's just absurdly baggy) and stop worrying about adding weight. All sorts of speeds can be achieved by simply fine tuning body positions. But that takes time, experience, and training. Though I've never flown with you, I can imagine from your listed jump numbers that you've probably become comfortable with a pretty static position that sets a fall rate for you that you don't like. In time working with more experienced freeflyers you'll get over this hump. But seriously stop blaming it on weight or jumpsuit handicaps. Freeflying is hard and will take time. If all you care about is instant result speed by adding weight without learning how to do it yourself, you'll only stop your learning and will never get any better. 108 way head down world record!!! http://www.simonbones.com Hit me up on Facebook

So back to the Obama's accomplishments subject... Bill Clinton was quoted yesterday: “Suppose for example you’re a voter and you have candidate X and you have candidate Y,” Clinton said. “Candidate X agrees with you on everything but you don’t think that person can deliver on anything. Candidate Y disagrees with you on half the issues but you believe that on the other half, the candidate will be able to deliver.” Hmmm... (shamless self-promotion: check out my new posted video http://www.skydivingmovies.com/ver2/pafiledb.php?action=file&id=7213

It's not my home DZ, but here is a promo video for Skydive Chicago I made from Summerfest 2008: http://www.skydivingmovies.com/ver2/pafiledb.php?action=file&id=7213 Hope you enhoy and leave a nice comment on it -Simon 108 way head down world record!!! http://www.simonbones.com Hit me up on Facebook

I just posted my short edit from Summerfest 2008 on skydiving movies. Check it out here: http://www.skydivingmovies.com/ver2/pafiledb.php?action=file&id=7213 Don't forget to give it 5 stars and leave a nice comment 108 way head down world record!!! http://www.simonbones.com Hit me up on Facebook

Well I can say that freeflying was pretty healthy over at SKydive Chicago for Summerfest 2008. I just posted a short video from it. Check it out: http://www.skydivingmovies.com/ver2/pafiledb.php?action=file&id=7213 And don't forget to give it 5 stars and a nice comment 108 way head down world record!!! http://www.simonbones.com Hit me up on Facebook

Free money buys votes. You only have to be 18 without a felony to vote. You don't need a work ethic. 108 way head down world record!!! http://www.simonbones.com Hit me up on Facebook

You can call it moral obligation. I'll agree with you. Even still, we didn't have to. Sticking around was a completely separate decision presented to congress repeatedly. Given our presence in Germany and Japan still, nobody can deny knowing what the decision to stick around and rebuild would entail. I wouldn't call that part hindsight really. Congress never put together the vote to leave Iraq. We elect congress members every two years. If that's what the people wanted, they could have done it. We voted for the people who voted to stick around knowing it would take years and thousands of more lives to do so. Yeah, not really hindsight at all. 108 way head down world record!!! http://www.simonbones.com Hit me up on Facebook

I agree with Kelp here. Using a number like 3000 is a bit of a twist. More accurately would be to use a number from initial invasion to the capture of Sadam based on your original question. I bet that number is far from 3000. After that point, how much can you blame on the slow progress in building the new government and them trying to take their time and milk us for every dollar and resource they can get. According to http://antiwar.com/casualties/ there were only 306 combat related deaths in that nine month period. On average the military suffers almost 300 off duty fatalities per year in privately owned vehicle accidents alone. Not saying that it's great to kill 306 people, but your numbers tend to misrepresent the truth. 108 way head down world record!!! http://www.simonbones.com Hit me up on Facebook

So I guess some TN skydivers should be calling the police and reporting Skyride? Who's on it? 108 way head down world record!!! http://www.simonbones.com Hit me up on Facebook

Many of us may not be able to do anything to directly get him out of the house, but he did list his email address on his website: [email protected] And those of us who have a free moment can take that email address and sign it up everywhere online for some stupid newsletters, porn sites, spam, etc. You mess with a skydiver, you mess with the whole community right? Let's wage some online warfare and clog up this guys email with crap. 108 way head down world record!!! http://www.simonbones.com Hit me up on Facebook

I had a similar problem when I accidentally cracked the plastic plate that holds in the battery on the side. I couldn't keep it tight. Every now and again it would reset from what I assume was the battery getting jiggled around. I used a temporary piece of duct tape to tighten it down, and then got my hands on a new plastic piece and screws. Works like a charm now

I've got an old BASE canopy up on my wall. At first it was just for decoration, but I've realized that it is very useful for teaching packing classes to have it there. It clearly shows how the canopy is constructed. You can show all the line groups, seams, ribs, and all that jazz. At the dropzone we've got an old canopy we attached to a radio flyer wagon and use it for days we're winded out. You can also use it for conducting water training. Hell use it as a blanket to sleep at night. Or maybe a hammock. 108 way head down world record!!! http://www.simonbones.com Hit me up on Facebook

Skydive Suffolk VA still sporting the cheapest jumps on the east coast. $23 per jump for the first 5 jumps in the day $12 for every subsequent jump made that day. 10 jumps in a day averages down to about $17.50 per jump. PAC 750 all the way to 14K. Like I've said, the PAC is the new way in skydiving. It is more fuel efficient than any of the other classic jump planes and keeps the jump prices down. And then there's the staff discount... 108 way head down world record!!! http://www.simonbones.com Hit me up on Facebook

Yeah it can be an awkward situation. Imagine this scenario. A group of advanced freeflyers ask an organizer to put together some difficult and challenging points for some 8way VRW because they want to give themselves a good challenge. Along comes an intermediate freeflyer who wants to move up to a more advanced level and asks the organizer if he can be organized. The LO is being paid by the DZ to organize the jumpers who want it and is obligated to do so. All he can do is warn the jumper that the next dive is going to be some really difficult points. The jumper insists to be on it. The jumper drops his $24 ticket, the LO gets his free, and the other 6 pay their $144 and the dive is planned. On the dive the newer freeflyer never makes it in and the other seven hold the initial incomplete formation waiting for the newer freeflyer to get in so they can move on to the second point. They wait for the entire duration of the freefall. On the ground the six freeflyers are annoyed, but used to it. Some freeflyers get together and ask the organizer to put the same dive together as they want to try it again. Again the newer freeflyer brings over his ticket and wants on. What should the organizer do? If he allows the jumper on the dive, he knowingly throws the other jumpers $144 away. If he turns the jumper away, he's a dick, he's not helping out newer freeflyers, and he's not doing his job right? It's kind of a sticky situation. Should the LO change the dive to make it easier for the newer freeflyer? Should all the other freeflyers spend the rest of the day catering their dives to the one guy? Some of them traveled long distances, paid hefty registration fees, and then throw $144 per dive on top of that. Since the DZ can't have 50 organizers, the LOs that they do have should keep switching up the dives for flyers of all levels. But by the same token, the freeflyers have to honestly examine their own skill and not get on dives they know is too advanced for them when the dives come up. That's a selfish thing to do and wastes the money of all the other skydivers who came to seek challenge and improvement as well. So when will they get a chance to do their challenging 8way? Ever? Those guys want to challenge themselves too. Is that a wrong attitude? I certainly get annoyed when I drive 16 hours to an expensive boogie for some challenging stuff and the same person keeps taking out the formation every time. It's hard to make everybody happy I guess. -Simon 108 way head down world record!!! http://www.simonbones.com Hit me up on Facebook

Good call. I've seen this before at several events. I think what causes a situation like that is a lack of organizers. A dropzone/boogie/event can't just assign one freefly organizer. There are different levels or organization needed. An organizer will very quickly get grabbed up by the advanced group to do 8way VFS (which he will be happy to do so because he'd rather organize that than 3 way sitfly jumps). This leaves all the intermediate and beginner freefliers SOL. There needs to be at least two groups of organizers available. One for intermediate/advanced and one for beginner/intermediate. Ideally there would be an organizer for each level but it's tough for a DZ to shell out the costs of three organizers for freeflying. I would say that a good solution is for you to press your DZ management to have more than one FF organizer available to keep the separate groups happy. And make sure the organizers know their assignment! They'll all want to be the one organizing the big cool kid stuff. I've seen far too many boogies/events where there is only one FF organizer. Freefliers get left out as a result and in the long run, threads like this start popping up 108 way head down world record!!! http://www.simonbones.com Hit me up on Facebook

Whether or not a new jumper wants to learn freeflying is not really the focus of the subject. The question is whether or not freeflying as a discipline on its own is starting to reach the beginning of its end. Advanced freeflyers have limited places to go in the discipline. Once you get those freefly skills, there seem to be less and less things you can do with it. Fewer competitions. Fewer advanced freeflyers to create something with. Fewer advanced freefly organized events. Fewer freeflyers showing up to them. There are loads and loads of people who want to learn advanced freefly, but it takes sooo long. For one reason or another, very few of those jumpers who really wanted to learn actually stick with it. 108 way head down world record!!! http://www.simonbones.com Hit me up on Facebook

Awesome. 108 way head down world record!!! http://www.simonbones.com Hit me up on Facebook

I'll see you guys there!!! Haven't been out to OSI in almost a year 108 way head down world record!!! http://www.simonbones.com Hit me up on Facebook

Sweet just a couple of days left! See you there 108 way head down world record!!! http://www.simonbones.com Hit me up on Facebook