DSE

As an FYI on Nationals; the rules require a C license or better. So...if you're an A-license skydiver with 5,000 skydives, you will not be able to compete. If you wish to compete at Nationals, you've got plenty of time to upgrade your license to a C. It would be a tragedy for someone to travel all the way to CSC for nationals and find themselves turned away for not being eligible for a Nationals competition.

As you look at them, it's relevant to know that not all competitions will recognize all three categories for suits. For FAI world events, there is ONLY an open class, for US Nationals, only advanced and open, and for the US Performance Cup, same as US Nationals.

Good point, but there is a point of diminishing return. We should have asked DougH what his budget is. My thought (likely a wrong assumption), is that this is a short-term project til his body heals. Therefore, spending a lot on a lens with an old body, likely won't pay for itself before end of season. however...good glass holds its value as well as diamonds do, so investing in good glass is never a loss. And that said, I'm turning into an anti-DSLR snob anyway. :) Switching everything over to E-mount, and dang...that's spendy.

A perfect analogy!

Two thoughts for you; A-you've indirectly met Tom Noonan; he's about as top-dog in tandem training as there is in this world. If you're considering Florida, find Tom. Failing that, find Jen. B-the finest tandem instructor I've ever met is 5'3" and 125 lbs. She takes the big guys and ladies, and can pound out 14 jumps in a day with a big grin on her face while making everyone that she takes, like they're part of the best skydive she's ever had. Have fun!

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/549247-REG/Sigma_728101_120_400mm_f_4_5_5_6_DG_OS.html http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/391074-REG/Sigma_508101_70_300mm_f_4_5_6_APO_M_DG.html Since it's a very old, low resolution body, no point in putting high end glass on it.

The memory card did survive, and the police used it in part, as cause for arrest. The owner of the drone was able to show flight tracking information demonstrating that at no point was the UAS below 150', and at no point did it "hover" over the Kentucky man's home. http://www.wdrb.com/story/29670583/update-drone-owner-disputes-suspects-claims-produces-video-claiming-to-show-flight-path

You'd be wrong. I feel any instructor should be held to this. TI's however... *always* are in total control. Ergo, TI's should be held to the standard first and foremost. AFFI's are not always in total control of their students. Each DZ I've worked at has mandatory, random drug tests. I'm a fan.

This should likely be split off into it's own thread Sport competition and tandems fund this sport. Without funding, there would be no development. Without development, the sport would stagnate. Can we agree on that? Development means BOC instead of ripcords, three rings instead of Capewells, squares instead of rounds, and turbines instead of pistons. In short, we NEED manufacturers to be present, part of USPA, part of competitions, and evolving the sport. So..it's good that we recognize their importance to the board, to our sport, to individual members. It's trickle-down politics. I entirely agree, RD's should be forced to vote by name. I've been present when several RD's have voiced a request to vote by name; it usually comes across as a threat. "I ask for a vote by name" so that when the position passes or fails, the RD has to answer to his/her region for voting against them. Unfortunately, that's not often the case. There is at least one person on the board who often flipflops his position, voting for what his friends want vs what the USPA needs. I've watched him do it more than once. For the first time in a while, he's running against opposition, so with luck, he'll disappear from the board. With more 'modern' people on the board, perhaps voting by name could become more common.

Charlie, Imagine that your guy has been given his rating (I've rec'd several PM's from people about your guy, but that's entirely another topic). Imagine that he bounces in a student, whether he's sober or not. Now imagine the USPA having to explain on the morning television show, sitting across from the local director of MADD, that in spite of multiple DUI convictions, our membership organization gave him a license to fly students. That's not going to serve the USPA, our lawyers, nor our community very well. I understand now, that you've got a friend that you want to employ, who doesn't meet the requirements. OK, fair enough. And at a DZO level, I think that's great. At an administrative level for our membership organization, I feel that it is wrong. While personal agendas do make it to the BOD, it's the membership's responsibility to do their best to prevent it from happening, when possible.

What is your source for the above statement? Judy No, there is no manufacturer membership, that's what PIA is for. And...plenty of manufacturers and their people are members themselves, so of course they get a vote that way, too. Bill Booth, Sandy Reid, etc, all members of USPA and they have their own voice. I don't have an issue with BOD members wanting to be "friendly" with manufacturers and whatever agenda a manufacturer may have from time to time, so long as it doesn't interfere with how they represent individuals in their Region. More than once, I've observed RD's go exactly opposite what their region had requested, either in presentation or polls. One RD commented that his region "didn't know what they wanted, and didn't understand what was going on." At the same time, I wonder if the individual members understand how much the manufacturers bring to the table for competitions and overall support for USPA? My bigger concern is that there are BOD members that are on the board simply to protect their turf, their DZ. Those BOD members don't at all represent their memberships, IMO. They represent their own business. Does that best serve the needs of a membership organization?

-Most any tandem issue (tandems before 18 y/o, demos, gear life span, etc) -Manufacturers may decide to require XXX for AFF, static, IAD, where DZO's don't want it. -Insurance conversations -Mandatory AADs nationwide (wouldn't that make Airtec, Vigil, and Mars happy?) -Landing area topics could have them serving individuals differently than groups. There are myriad places where the BOD might serve manufacturers over the best interests of individuals, and very few places where it might serve the other way. Keep in mind that just as many skydivers want manufacturer sponsorship, so do some members of the BOD, just in a different way. Attend a BOD meeting; I recommend every member of the USPA attend at least one. You'll get an idea of which RD's actually do anything, and which ones are there to have a free flight and meals to somewhere other than their homeland. There are BOD members that shake hard, work hard, and come prepared with data from their regional membership, there are those that are there solely for the purpose of making sure no rules are passed that will (in their perception) negatively impact their DZ operations, and there are those that literally sit on their ass and argue about punctuation and spelling, offering nothing but useless drivel. You'll watch a great deal of backtracking, you'll see some empassioned beliefs, you'll see at least one BOD member sleeping (I remember when he once snored loudly in a meeting). It's a great cross-section of society.

So...you don't feel that rated Tandem Examiners represent the USPA either? As an examiner in my own right, I'd like to believe that my action, the training I present, and the goals to which I endeavor represent the USPA. Perhaps I'm alone in that belief?

I appreciate your candor, Charlie. And in one-one situations, I'd tend to agree with you. Do/did you have a way of proposing that you personally get to evaluate every single person with multiple DUI's that wants a TI rating? An organization like USPA is all about dumbing things down to the lowest common denominator while protecting its own, right? If that makes USPA small-minded, then I guess that's what they are from your perspective. I'd like to think of USPA looking at the larger picture, rather than being small-minded.

When was the last time USPA was successfully sued over the actions of a member? USPA would need to be negligent to be sued. Your position on DUI and TI's is over the top. People with DUI's on their record can become professional drivers. There is no room for being under the influence of alcohol for anyone in skydiving. We just don't do it. Even those with past DUIs. I just don't understand how you can think this way. "Successfully sued?" Or "Settled?" A suit was settled quite recently. Both cost a heap of cash, so it makes sense to weigh the cost of settling vs attorney's fees. Relevant to Charlie's agenda; More than 100 tandem examiners said they have no problem with the medical requirement and support the current rule. If Charlie were the "voice of the skydiver," then perhaps he'd have spoken directly to the more than 100 examiners to determine what they wanted, vs promoting a personal agenda in the "voice of skydivers." Had the 100+ examiners agreed with Charlie, that the rule would have changed. There are some sorts of mistakes that can be forgiven in society. Restoring full rights in skydiving (or any other high-risk activity involving others) to someone with multiple DUI's isn't one of them, IMO. I cannot fathom the motivations of a DZO who would fight so hard for the right to hire someone who has been convicted of multiple DUI's.

Sorry Charlie (I've always wanted to have a real reason to say that ) I am 99% confident that I know different. I'd urge you to pick up the phone and call Ed Scott and ask how much money USPA pays out in lawsuits. USPA generally settles, if what I've heard at various boardmeetings in various hallway conversations is correct. I'd very much like to be wrong. Ed Scott would have to disclose if you asked him; would you take his word for it?

RTFM first. You can flip the screen around to keep it on. http://www.manualagent.com/sony/cx115e/users-manual/page-13

Does anyone here remember Al Hoffman? I am doing some work for his family and they're looking for anyone that might remember, have photos, or heaven-willing, film/video.

Charlie, if there were a TI that had been convicted of a DUI, goes "straight" and has a few years of sobriety, and then goes out and harms a tandem student...USPA will likely be forced to pay out for that. Let's say it's a cheap payout at 100K$. Who pays for that lawsuit and payout, if not the membership of USPA? It seems that in protecting the association, USPA rules protect the lay member, too. Do you disagree?

Not quite... Skydive Elsinore hosted Phantom 2-only events in 2011 and 2012. I'm not certain they were the "first in the world" but that didn't matter at the time. I believe there were other Phantom boogies at other locations. Congrats on a fun event.

Laszlo hits the nail on the head...it's not for everyday jumping, and you'd hate it for tandems. The workflow isn't there. It's designed for production. Most are using tools like FFMpeg or Cineform to convert Cinema DNG to Avid dnx or other format. There is no point in editing raw unless you absolutely have to, and have an absolute monster machine that is clean as can be (very rare in the skydiving world, IMO). that said, I've got an Odessy for this sort workflow, and yes, that's the route I'd take. ProRes is fine for 99% of the work out there.

I couldn't tell you. I likely won't load past 11. Since all of Win10 is backwards compatible excepting legacy hardware, I can't imagine it's a challenge for older versions. However...I haven't (and likely won't) try it. Try the 90 day version of 10; see what you think.

Vegas 13 is running smoothly on my Win 10 installs... Haven't reloaded 12, however.

If you think anything has been any different with the current president vs any number of past presidents, you're sorely mistaken. The only difference is, she's a woman and for some, that'll always be a grating fact. Charlie, I'd like to vote for you, but your position on DUI's/Tandem Instructors gives me a lot of pause. Convince me why your opinion is the better one.

I'm hopeful Sandy offers the riser mags as an option and not a standard.