apley

Beautiful desert views, friendly staff, air conditioned packing, party atmosphere at green light, a great HOME feeling you can only get at a small DZ. For those that know of Andy Whitcomb, I don't have to explain. He is applying his attitude and vision as much to Skydive Imperial as he did in San Diego when he turned that place around. He knows how to make experienced jumpers feel welcome, and provide facilities that will entice you back over and over. If you like a DZ that feels like the intimate fraternity Skydiving should be, this is the place! The facilities are still a bit rough in its first 6 months of operation, but you will find everything you need, and new improvements every time you visit. Remember, "it's a DRY heat!"

"Refreshes the Angry Hobbit Other Beers Cannot Reach." it's perfect. i think it must be a MOOSEHEAD ad! the angry hobbit

don't bother with skydive san diego, pretty boy... it's been hyjacked. thanks for the amusing jump at eloy, kid. it was fun! the angry hobbit just another dz gypsy

improvements made by buzz were whatever was required for the military contract. no more, no less. i have helped with some of those improvements and most of them were initiated by andy. buzz's generosity included selling a camera and helmet to a jumper with 20 jumps, at a price he couldn't resist. he has been jumping the camera since jump 21. it scares me that a business decision may end that young man's life. i don't intend to use a public formum to slander buzz, although i have been known to get carried away by emotion at times. i have been hearing negative comments about the man for years, and always reserved my opinion for my own observations. he has always treated me well, and is a fairly likable person. i am merely stating that there are 2 sides to this story, and none of us has ALL of the details, and each of us has a unique perspective. i will also say that with less than 200 jumps, your history is much shorter than most of us, so you would obviously have a different opinion. you might reserve your call to Bullshit, and open your mind a bit more as well. i believe your point is well taken that we should be careful with baseless accusation, but airing our grievances can also invite enough participation to separate the fact from bullshit. It also allows us to grieve. we can save the positive thinking for when andy has something else going.... the real story here is that there has been a drastic change in the dynamic of our favorite playground. people are hurt and angry, and need release. this should be clear in some of our posts. when these emotions burn off, there will be time for clear thinking. this may also serve as a challenge to buzz to maintain the legacy of a great skydiver and managing dzo. i look foward to meeting you, speer. elsinore will likely be my most frequent hangout for a while. perris is not my favorite place... the angry hobbit

i have spent nearly every weekend at sdsd for the past 4.5 years. i don't know who you are, russ, and sorry we never met... but we definitely don't see things the same way. perhaps there is another dz during the week?

nate, you ROCK!!! thank you.

Where is the new dropzone going to be located? i knew i was going to bait someone with that statement. until the negotiations are complete, however, i won't publicly post any details unless andy approves of it first. i would not want to be responsible for inadvertantly sabotaging anything he has going on. know that he will create another first class dz. in 2 years andy turned a dry, nasty tandem factory into a world class operation that served funjumpers with the same status as students and tandems. his love of this sport and the people in it, and his generosity, are unparalleled.

NONE of the instructors who were there when I started in 2001 are still at SDSD. Except for Adam, who is now a jump plane pilot. THANK YOU Phil. Your post was accurate, fair, and expressed my views and emotions well. I, too, will follow Andy wherever he goes. (It is a 2 hour drive to his new dz, but I'll be making a weekend of it as often as I can! I will also be there to sweat and slave over making sure he has as much help as he needs to get it up and running by February.) the angry hobbit

san diego has been my home dz for 4 years. i have seen it grow into a world class dz under the prior management. unfortunately, a business deal went bad, and the old owner, who put absolutely nothing into the facility, has taken the operation back. a mass exodus of fun jumpers has occurred. i am deeply saddened by our loss. you can expect the porta potties to return...

yo mommo's so fat, the back of her neck looks like a pack of hotdogs! my second favorite is a visual... attached the angry hobbit

Yes angry hobbit... then he can use your javelin dammit! i love my odyssey! well, except for the fucked up main flap/pin cover, lack of full riser protection, and slipping leg strap clamps... makes me wonder which hole their head was up when everyone else added these features for freeflying. glad i got a great deal on it... or did i?...

I don't know if shes ready for the bonfire ... might not be a good idea ... hmmmm... let me get this straight. we want the media to know the truth, but only the part we want them to know.... this forum is representative of US, whether we like it or not. we are human, have flaws, and sometimes react emotionally and hang our stuff out there to be slapped and kicked around. if i wrote an essay on the media's attention to this story, objecting to their selective reporting, it would be just as easy for them to pick key sentences out of that essay and make me look any way they wanted in order to slant the story. that danger is always there. this forum is open for ANYONE to view, like it or not. that is one reason there are PREVIEW POST and DELETE buttons here. if you don't want someone to read it, don't post it!

great idea! i'll buy an infinity and i won't have to worry about my jumpbuddies' flaps any more!

mike is in ARIZONA now! dammit. i hear he is starting his own military training biz out there in the desert. the finger is perfect, and it does sound like him... the coolest of the cool.

i did my part. i have invited oprah to read these forums and talk to REAL skydivers for accurate information. i like the idea of making our reaction bigger than the story.

officer: "do you know why i stopped you, son?" driver: "because you thought i had donuts?" - : meat

i STRONGLY disagree. if you can get a guy out of freefly position and on his belly, his chances of injury from a premature deployment are almost nothing. i've seen enuf premies in freefly to know that they are likely to cause injury and/or death.

telling them to pull is not really necessary, which is why i was concerned with the type of signal i give them. on your belly, rather than in a freefly position, you are pretty safe with your flap a flappin... in a freefly position, however, you're asking for trouble of the hurtin kind!

you hit the nail on the head. i have witnessed many prematures in freefly jumps, and the results are disastrous. they have almost always been the result of lack of proper gear maintenance. i realize i have to leave this responsibility for gear on the individual jumper, but i can't resist this last chance to save them from serious injury. i think your advice is sound, don't get me wrong.... some pills are just hard to swallow. i like the idea of signalling them in freefall, but then i have to determine what a good signal would be that can be universally understood.

You 2 under cover, I gotta see this. Sparky what??!!! nick and airtwardo under the covers? what happens on dz.com, stays on dz.com... seriously, excellent idea nick. you are the Man!

i'm almost embarassed to post this, but i will lay my ego aside because it surprises me that i have never heard any advice on the subject, and i'm sure this is not an uncommon occurance. twice now i have been on the camera step of the otter and noticed the main pin cover on another jumper flapping in the wind. as this was a freefly jump, i wanted to warn the skydiver to avoid the chance of a premature deployment, but i couldn't decide how to make him understand that i was not prompting an exit, but directing him back inside the aircraft. it was a feeling of helplessness that i have discussed with several others on the ground, and not really received any good advice. believe me, this won't happen again. both instances were uneventful skydives, but i was left with the feeling that i was irresponsible in allowing the dive to continue. i thought about climbing back into the plane and pulling my buddy after me, but i've attempted it before and it is nearly impossible. (many would be capable, but i'm an old fart and a little out of shape) as of now, my plan is to kick the jumper in the ass if i can, shake my head profusely, and point back inside the aircraft. i'm hoping this will be universal body language enough to get the point across. unfortunately, this will only work with the rear jumper (no pun intended), and if it is one of the others outside my reach, i have no solution except for the furious shaking of my head and wagging of the finger. any other suggestions from other cam flyers, or anyone else for that matter?

in case you haven't heard, skydive san diego will be closing it's doors as of 1/1/06. rumor has it that the previous owner will take over on 2/1, but i haven't talked to anyone who will choose to patronize it under those conditions. andy whitcomb put his heart, sole and financial well-being into building an incredible dropzone, and for reasons i am hesitant to discuss, lost it all. for years, andy has been the core of one of the most friendly, beautiful and fun dz's in the country, and this serves up an incredible blow to our close comminity in san diego. here's hoping kharma really works... the knife is still dripping with blood.

thanks, arthur. i just might do that. having a hard time @ work right now. thurs was supposed to be the 1st day of my vacation (to vegas), but i may have to cancel it for now... keep in touch. it would be great to get some air time with you, buddy.

it is impossible to express the sorrow i feel for andy and the loss of my home dz. andy is THE #1 skydiver in my book. he has given more to this sport than anyone i know. his sacrifices and genuine love of the sport and its people is amazing. his generosity is legendary to any who have met him. i wish i knew the details of the deal he made with THE FINK, but since i don't, i can't honestly say that he got screwed. i do know that THE FINK called him FRIEND, and i cannot think of anything a friend would do to me that would cause me to hurt him this much, and take advantage of the incredible sacrifices andy made to make this dz viable. i have $400 in jump tickets that i am willing to sell for $15 each. they have to be used up before 1/1/06, the day that skydive san diego dies. i would give them away before i would ever let andy buy them back. if you want some, let me know... i save my tears for special occasions. i'm using a few now... the very sad, and very angry hobbit

this sounds reasonable to me, crackpipe. be prepared, however, to feel my feet on your back if you're blocking my path while trying to prepare your gear for exit!