Gato

I'm really glad he's going to be ok. Was this reported in the Incidents Forum, Kevin? That said, how do you break 3 suspension "cords" on opening (assuming that's when it happened?) It's amazing that he's referred-to as a "seasoned skydiver" - with a whopping 45 jumps. T.I.N.S.

That depends on what you've set as your goal(s). Are you intending to get your license and carry on as a skydiver? If so, I'd suggest the going on your own with the IA jump. Hell, maybe just do it anyway! T.I.N.S.

That's hot.

Well, as someone intimately familiar with tooth issues (not a dentist, but I know mine VERY WELL - TOO WELL!), if what you are experiencing is a tooth problem, then it's likely trapped gas. When a cavity forms, the decaying tooth matter and bacteria give off gasses, which can respond to heat (expansion!) or barometric pressure changes. I had this happen before I started jumping, and it is no fucking picnic. If your tooth hurts you when you drink something hot, you could have the same thing going on. *Just as a side note, I just had my lower wisdom teeth taken out on thursday, April 28, jumped 5 times on sunday, the 31st with my mouth closed (to prevent a dry socket), then the following thursday, I had a follow-up filling and root canal on 2 adjacent molars - then jumped twice the following sunday. I DOES pay to check with your doctor before you jump!!! T.I.N.S.

One more suggestion: Have an instructor or coach put a radio on you, and have him or her guide you in. I asked our DZO to do this for me when I got my rig - helped tremendously! Just an idea - be safe, have fun! T.I.N.S.

Your logic isn't exactly flawed - the idea is that you can squeeze the air out of it (perhaps) quicker than an all-ZP canopy, and it can therefore pack a bit smaller, or may go in the bag easier, etc. Also, the type of lines either canopy may have can be a major factor - a Silhouette 190 with dacron lines would likely pack the same as (or larger than) a Sabre 190 with spectra lines. All you can do is try it and see if it works. I've attached the canopy comparison chart that comes with a ParaGear catalog. It may be helpful. T.I.N.S.

Happy to report that we had a blast jumping out of the PAC today!

No - it wasn't an honest question. It was a leading question that assigned meaning to my words, and I let it carry me and this thread off-topic. What do you want to discuss? How I've insulted an aircraft owner, or why someone has threatened to sabotage another airplane? Let's sit down sometime and have a beer and talk, because you and I will say things here we would NEVER say in person, and you and I both know it. (For the record, if Tom doesn't care if people talk shit about him, why should I? Flame all you want.) I'm not your enemy - but I think you know more about past events than you're letting on. T.I.N.S.

No. If you want to twist what I said into an insult to someone else, go ahead. There's a reason I wrote what I did, and she has nothing to do with it. T.I.N.S.

You don't need an entire night around the bonfire to know about this. Though I was not a part of the skydiving community at this time, I will recount the events that i think led us to where we are now. Again, this is all second-hand information, so if I get the details wrong and you know better, feel free to correct me - but do it nicely - I'm not the enemy. At one time, there were 4 DZs within a half hour or so of KC, and they were located in Independence, Harrisonville, Lexington, and Butler. Some years ago, there was a crash at Independence that yielded multiple fatalities, and operations shut down soon after. Around that same time, maybe after, maybe before, there was either another crash or fatality(s) at Harrisonville, and it shut down as well not long after. About 5 or 6 years ago, an individual whose initials are P.E., who was trained at Skydive Kansas just a few years before, attempted to open and run another dropzone at Harrisonville. It is known that he operated for at least 18 months under a Cease & Desist order - one of my friends did 3 tandems and got screwed out of a $300 AFF jump before coming to jump at my home DZ. At any rate, during P.E.'s ownership and operation, a cutaway canopy landed in the town power station and knocked-out power to part of the town. There were safety concerns related to proximity to a major highway, as well as the Life Flight helo service on the airport. In fairness to P.E., the city manager, I think, did have it out for him and his operation, and attempted to slap him with a million-dollar insurance requirement if skydiving operations were to continue - something not many DZOs could ever afford. Here's where things get dicey. The Harrisonville city council holds a meeting with P.E. in which they invite 2 other DZOs from the area, Chris Hall from Butler, and Tom Dolphin from the Lexington facility. I'm not sure how long Chris had been around at that time, but Tom's DZ had been in his possession for 25 or so years. Let me repeat: the Harrisonville city council INVITED them to come and give their opinions on the matter. I'm not 100% sure what was said in the meeting, but it's a matter of public record, I think. What was said is less important than the aftermath - there were legendary bouts of accusations, bad-mouthing, name-calling, and general adolescent bullshit behavior. Both Tom and Chris were accused of walking around Harrisonville passing out flyers door-to-door, telling people to vote against the DZ or not to support it, or whatever. Basically, what we have in Kansas City is a group of people who are convinced that the their dropzone is gone because of Tom and Chris. It could not possibly have anything to do with P.E.'s business practices. After all, he ran the perfect operation, and could always be counted-on to have a plane running, with the appropriate people on staff qualified to conduct legal tandem and AFF jumps, and he also kept his plane in tip-top condition. People. Please. I'm going to get a little bit personal now, because I have been around the sport for about 3 years, despite the number of jumps I have. I visited all 3 of these dropzones before I began skydiving - I ended up earning my license at Lexington and learning from some really great people. From my perspective, at the time, I would have been fine with going to any of the 3, but Tom's place was where I met people I felt the most comfortable with - that's also where I saw the best landings, but I WAS a full-of-shit noob. What I DO know is that if you spend 10 minutes talking to Tom, it will be abundantly clear that he could give less than a shit about another DZ opening-up at Harrisonville, or anywhere else, for that matter. Also, Tom has a badass limp, so the idea of him hoofin' it around Harrisonville passing out flyers is just ridiculous. It just wouldn't fucking happen. I've met and talked to Chris Hall, and he's a standup guy, and I think he's got a good operation. I doubt he had anything to do with any flyers, either. In fact, passing out flyers is a bit of a political thing, and sounds more like something some farmer McNasty or servant of the city manager might have done. I've said before that I don't give a shit about what's happened before. All I know is what I've experienced, and my experience in this sport has shown me that there aren't very fucking many of us. It's shown me that we all want the same thing - to safely do what we love without somebody breathing down our necks. I tried this before, and it didn't work, so I don't expect it to work this time, but I officially extend my hand in peace to any KC-area skydivers - can you not let the anger of the past go? Can you not see what this grudge is doing to us? I want to meet you and jump with you - but one of you is still so mad that he threatened to sabotage an airplane to kill me and my friends - because of who taught me to skydive. Let's put this shit behind us, guys - whether we like it or not we are in this together, and all we have is each other. Peace. Love. Good happiness stuff. (Edited for grammar, punctuation, and class.) T.I.N.S.

I believe this particular PAC is bound for Skydive Twin Cities, or some other DZ up north - not to say it wouldn't be out where you are. I wouldn't worry too much about the pilot and the plane - there are a few folks around who will be watching out for anything or anyone weird. And most likely, the asshole who made the call lives in or around Kansas City. "HIM HIM FUCK HIM!" -- We're going to have a great weekend of jumping!! I don't think Homeland Security is going to let him slide on this, though. T.I.N.S.

We had a somewhat similar forecast last weekend, and we jumped. Never underestimate the ability of the Midwest's weather to change in 5 minutes. I agree, we hope this is just a prankster with a grudge. T.I.N.S.

Sorry. My previous post was too emotionally biased so I killed it. I'm done. Again, my apologies. T.I.N.S.

This was posted by Ray at Action Air in the Events forum. This is not intended to be an inflammatory post. This is absolutely real, no b/s. T.I.N.S.

Unfuckingbelievable. My special message to the "skydiver" who is doing this shit: I don't know you, and I'm assuming we've never met, but I have a question for you: What the fuck did I ever do to you? You say you'll sabotage the plane - so you're willing to kill ME because of some grudge you have against the guy who taught me to skydive? REALLY??? Congratulations, Asshole. You just became a terrorist. You just became someone who's threatening mass murder. Do you realize the shit you just tossed yourself into? Do you really think you're helping someone else by doing this? Your adolescent behavior might just land your ass in jail - in fact, I wouldn't be surprised if someone in a black suit comes knocking on your door in the next day or so. If you hate this area and its people so much, please do us all a favor and move the fuck out. YOU are giving the sport a bad name. YOU are giving the KC area a bad reputation. YOU are causing YOUR FRIENDS to be afraid for their lives. Here endeth the rant. Sorry about all this, folks - the KC area, despite what our history and current events would indicate, has a great group of skydivers. We love to have a good time, and we ARE hospitable. Even this asshole who is stirring this shit up WOULD HAVE BEEN WELCOMED TO JUMP WITH US - had he not revealed himself to be a danger to himself and others. PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE - if you know the person who is doing this to us (ALL of us), please turn him in!!!! T.I.N.S.

Holy shit!!! Friday, too? I'm off on friday. Thanks for the update, Tom! See you friday!! T.I.N.S.

I'll never forget that video - that was what made me want to fly a wingsuit, and the reason I started jumping. T.I.N.S.

My understanding is that we just have to keep the bare asses off the benches. Wear whatever you like beyond that!! Hope you can make it out. T.I.N.S.

One of the jumpers at MRVS told me his dad is part of the management team (if I remember correctly) that is actually in the process of pouring the foundation. The process has already begun. I was told they had intentions of finishing it this year, but it may not actually open up until early 2010. Good lord - it's difficult enough to afford skydiving. I don't know how I'm going to afford to become a tunnel rat!! (See you in 2 weeks!! PAC!!!!!!) T.I.N.S.

The foundation, as I understand it, is being poured right now. T.I.N.S.

Ahhh, at last, the REAL Nimbus is among us!! Sorry to hear you won't be in town for the PAC - we'll have to get a few jumps in when you get back! Have fun in Seattle Dude! T.I.N.S.

It's rare to have the PAC - this is a special arrangement Tommy has made with the pilot. Come on out. It's not every day that we get to trade up from a VW with wings (182!) to a - well, I'm not sure - a really fast minivan with wings??? T.I.N.S.

Oh, the hell you say. We already have ONE load. Looking for 3 more. You KNOW we're turbine whores here in the midwest - I personally know 3 or 4 skydivers who would mortgage their own mothers to jump above 10k. Also, farts are less volatile in a larger aircraft!!! T.I.N.S.

For anyone interested: Have you been cooped-up all winter? Do you long to jump your ass off? How about something old-school? Not necessarily a boogie, but you can bet your collective asses we're going to throw down. This is the information I have received from the honorable Tommy Dolphin himself: Saturday, March 28 through March 29 we'll have a PAC 750 for jumps to 13.5k at Missouri River Valley Skydivers in Henrietta, MO. We're located between Lexington and Richmond. This will absolutely be a no-nonsense, no-politics, no registration fee, no free beer, no t-shirts, no bar-b-que unless you bring it yourself event - in fact, let's just call it the "Not Really A Boogie Boogie". It doesn't matter who you are, what your home DZ is, whether you like Tommy or not, or if you agree with anything he says or does. If you'd like to get in a shitload of jumps, fill your pockets with cash, and let's get it on! Jump tickets will be $26, and we can take 8-14 jumpers per load. The pilot is looking to make about 3 loads per hour, for a total of 15 loads per day, so this will be a prime opportunity to make a lot of jumps in a short amount of time. For those of us in the midwest, this is like crack. My understanding is that there will be no ferry fee for the plane, and the DZ isn't taking any profit - Tommy's having the fuel brought in, but that's it. Being a fairly new jumper, I haven't been around long enough to become entrenched in the supposed "DZ politics" turmoil of the past, so I don't really give a rat's ass about what's happened before. I just want to make some new friends and get some high-altitude jumps. Anyone with any questions is welcome to send me a PM. If you've never been to MRVS, you need to come out and hang with us! Plenty of packing areas, camping area with a bonfire pit, hot showers, master rigger on-site, and a huge landing field. Oh, and no adult supervision after hours. I'll post more details as I receive them, i.e. first load of the day, pattern briefings, etc. Let's get it on!!!!! T.I.N.S.

You're 100% correct - and I DID discuss what I was going to do while we were on our way to the DZ. I didn't suggest that he should do the same thing as me, though. There was also an instructor sitting right next to me in the car, and he didn't suggest it, either. I'm not trying to absolve either of us of responsibility - looking back on it now, I think I should have said something. I should clarify by telling you that this was NOT one of his instructors - he got his license at another DZ (A BIG midwest DZ). I don't know if that should make a difference. We were surrounded by instructors and coaches at the DZ we were visiting, and no one asked to see my license, my logbook, or my rig. All I had to do was sign the waivers and assume responsibility for my own safety. I'm one of those weirdos who actually reads the SIM, and I take it upon myself to find out what the uppers are doing, all the hazards I might encounter, potential thermal locations, and anything else jumping at an away-DZ (or home!) might entail. Oh, and I'd like to know a bit about the plane and pilot, as well! There's so much to know and experience in this sport. I think I understand now, why some veterans call us tourists until we're in the 500-jump range. I agree with you, we should watch out for each other. T.I.N.S.