Jim_Hooper

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Everything posted by Jim_Hooper

  1. And for bargain hunters, Amazon Kindle has a special offer on A Hundred Feet Over Hell through July 11. "#1 Best-seller in military aviation history" http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_ss_i_0_18/180-2919460-5406800?url=search-alias%3Ddigital-text&field-keywords=100%20feet%20over%20hell&sprefix=100+Feet+over+hell%2Cdigital-text%2C172&rh=i%3Adigital-text%2Ck%3A100%20feet%20over%20hell Hoop
  2. *** Whichever book it is, I look forward to hearing what you make of it. Hoop SCR242 SCS90 NSCR26
  3. Used copies as cheap as $10, of which I hope you DO get a few pennies: http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Dstripbooks&field-keywords=Koevoet+hooper With the publication of the new edition, prices for 1988 first editions in Very Fine Condition (collectible) have plummeted to $200-$300. Makes no difference to me, as I get nothing anyway. It's like a car - GM doesn't get a percentage from used car lots when they sell a second-hand Caddy.
  4. Rob-- A few rogues, rascals and ne'er-do-wells (or as Sparky so eloquently described them: "skydivers from the 60's/70’s, the worst variant of the species") from my dissolute past suggested I have a look at this forum, from which I've been AWOL for some time. To answer your question, yes, guilty as charged. Hope it's not court martial time. How did you come across it? Had never contemplated a coffee table work until my publisher dropped in one day and spotted ten feet of shelves packed with boxes and binders of negatives and transparencies - most of which I hadn't looked at in years. "Hmmm, okay," I said. Converting a couple of thousand to high-res files over the next few weeks left my poor ol' scanner coughing, shuddering and riven with neuroses - the electronic equivalent of PTSD. Black Vortex came out last December and is starting to gain traction, much to the publisher's delight. The 180 or so snaps are a retrospective look at four of the African wars I covered, starting with Namibia, where I was embedded with an elite counter-insurgency unit, and which led to my very first book four years after selling Z'hills. Koevoet! became a classic of the bush warfare genre, with second-hand copies going for as much as $1,000 (not a penny of which I got). As a result, a much-expanded and rewritten edition - which now includes my journey from DZO to war correspondent - was launched at the Imperial War Museum in London in 2012. It has been well received by those with a personal, professional or academic interest in COIN operations. I attach a list of comments and reviews for your amusement. In the meantime, sales of A Hundred Feet Over Hell in both hardback and digital editions continue to exceed the orignal expectations of its publisher, Zenith Press. Between Amazon, aviation magazines, military journals, newspapers and book blogs in the US, UK and Europe, it has received close to 150 mostly five-star reviews. Who'da thunk it when I set off from the 'Hills all those years ago. But as Lorelei so wisely observed, "Fate just keeps on happening." Blue skies and safe landings to all, Hoop www.jimhooper.co.uk
  5. Getting to the age where truly memorable people are dying of natural causes rather than hitting the ground is cause to ponder those halcyon days. I swapped a few emails with Larry some years ago, but the last time I spoke to him was in the early '80s, when he and Mary Donnan, both of 'em knee-crawling drunk, called me at about 2a.m. from Salt Lake City. They thought it was hilarious when I told them - rather grumpily - what time it was. There's something rather poignant about how easily forgotten are those who made a real contribution to the sport.
  6. Concur. Set up a special section called "Morons and Whuffos Click Here". Hoop
  7. Jerry's absolutely correct on that point. Can't remember which Turkey Meet/Easter Boogie it was when Dick Morgan came into my office and demanded to know why I was jumping a Paradactyl and not a square. "Pack volume," I told him. "If you had something that fit in your rig, would you jump it?" Coupla weeks later, one of the first 40 blue and white Flyers arrived, gratis. Being a cheap bastard, I was quite happy to test jump a freebie. Unliike Jerry's experience, however, I really liked mine, and put over 800 trash-packed openings on it, with one malfuntion. (Out of the previous 1200 round and triangular openings I'd cut away 24 or 25 times.) Hoop
  8. Jack--With the sewage treatment settling ponds at Z'hills, we were progressive and didn't even know it! I seem to remember one or two students that ended up in there. Upset the alligators no end. Hoop
  9. Being young, immortal and stupid, I short-lined my RWB Mk 1 by six feet, then thought, "What the hell," and removed the stabilizers, too. Not only did I see stars on the first opening, but discovered why they were called "stabilizer panels". Every landing - thump-crash-burn - left me looking like Pig-Pen in the Peanuts cartoon strip. If memory serves, I ended up giving it away. Hoop SCR242 SCS90 NSCR26
  10. Rog--yes, they were record attempts, going for a 30-man round but got only 28 or 29. Even if the 30 had been completed it wouldn't have been official as there was no FAI judge there. I'm guessing it was 1972 or '73. Hoop
  11. The 1974 world record attempt would have been at Sylvania, GA. On another thread, there's a group photo, taken at Sylvania, of mostly Z'hills jumpers with Ken. I wasn't there, but I think photos 85-93 in Andy Keech's Skies Call 2 are of those record attempts. I just checked with Andy. He's not sure, though says the time frame would be correct. If so, Ken may be in one or more of the freefall shots. Steve Noonan would be the person to ask. Although I recognize Ken from the photos posted by Steve, no anecdotes spring immediately to mind. His Greene County team was characterized by Bobby Wilson, one of the more colorful and enjoyable skydivers of that era, which meant they were always welcome at Z'hills. Hoop SCR242 SCS90 NSCR26 www.jimhooper.co.uk
  12. Kim-- Given the gruelling conditions likely to be met on the trek back, one hopes he availed himself of a sustaining pizza from the wood-fired brick oven of Hearth2Hearth. With all the brigands and ne'er-do-wells lying in wait for the sign 'twixt the Ranch and Z'hills, he'll want his wits about him. Hoop www.jimhooper.co.uk
  13. Skratch-- I reckon things would have been lots easier if people hadn't kept stealing all the signs pointing to the DZ. And they wouldn't have been nearly as grumpy if there'd been piping hot pizza waiting when they finally got back! (Just trying to keep everything on thread here.) How you doing, old friend? Hoop
  14. Parachuting and pizza - two worthy pursuits to be passionate about. I think the sign would be a fine addition to the Bird House, another memory-inducing display from those halcyon days. I can see a little plaque underneath noting the return to its birthplace by Hearth2Hearth - and a take out menu. Hoop
  15. Thanks for the thought, Kim. But will the Marinara topping still be warm when it gets here? Actually, I think the suggestion by normiss that it would be best displayed in the new Bird House Bar is right on. Having the one from the '81 WPC would be even more appropriate - especially since Bird was on the winning 8-way team. What do you say, denniscoursey? Hoop
  16. The command "Dead Ants!" (like "Hang it!" when attempting Cardinal Puff) was final and irrevokable, and required lightning-fast reactions to avoid buying the next round. I well remember Phil "The Foul" Smith sitting at the bar in the Wolverine, glass at lips, when the words were shouted. His free hand launched him and bar stool backwards, the resulting thud almost as impressive as the coordination required to come to a stop on his back with glass vertical and still full. To make things more interesting, it was up to the Ant Master to give the order as loudly or softly as he wanted. Saying the two words quietly produced the most interesting effect; those nearest reacted first, followed by an outward ripple of crashing chairs and thudding bodies. Thus, to ensure that one could refer to the game without others overhearing and taking the words as a command - one couldn't risk noting if they came from the current Ant Master - we always used 'expired pismires' in conversation. Giving the formal order when not the Ant Master was considered the gravest of sins, for which the penance was buying at least two rounds for all those thus inconvenienced. No Expired Pismires anymore, no Cardinal Puff - what do they do these days - knit? Whether DZ bum or brain surgeon, 'twas all part of the warp and woof of skydiving. Once upon a time. Hoop (aka Pope James the Lenient)
  17. Kim-- Dorset. That's one county farther - county, not country. You couldn't stretch the free delivery distance just a little, could you? No? Damn. Yes, I do believe the sign you mention is the one in question. May you gaze upon it in good health for many years to come. The Ranch, you say? Crusty - Sir Robert has not been see by anyone I know in close to twenty years. Disappeared right off the face of the earth. Hoop
  18. Having examined your website, I'd say that depends on whether the Marinara comes with anchovies and baby clams, with free deilvery to England. After that we can negotiate. Hoop
  19. 'Trackers Inc' rings a bell. I also seem to remember being told John Wayne said the same things back home. Did any of you take a baseball bat to him at Annawan? Hoop
  20. My fallback was, "Man, Flight Service really got those uppers wrong. Can you believe it?" Trudge, trudge, trudge. "Anyone seen my goddamn sign?" Trudge, trudge, trudge. Hoop
  21. Did you see the signs pointing the way back? Being a Texas girl, at least you wouldn't have been worried by the rattlesnakes, wild pigs and gators. Hoop
  22. She didn't take my sign in retaliation, did she? Hoop
  23. Think how many could be made out of a Navy 26' conical! And transparent when wet! Hoop
  24. Stolen - I think - during the 1981 Easter Boogie. A hundred bucks to have it made, another hundred for a year's rent on the location - pffft - gone. Left me in a moderately murderous mood. Hoop SCR242 SCS90 NSCR26
  25. Actually, mine had almost the drive of a PC, albeit a somewhat higher rate of descent, and turned slow as hell, but had a third of the pack volume of a PC, which was the whole point. Never crossed my mind that I was doing anything silly. Still doesn't, come to think of it. Damn, those were fun days! Hoop