marks2065

what if you went up and the clouds came in and the pilot decided to bring the plane down - should you be charged ? we were charged even with out the jump

i have flown with good and bad pilots - there are some that just scared me - i think you can usually tell the bad ones but sometimes the bad ones can trick you into thinking they are good - there are 2 pilots that flew at the dz's i have jumped at that i was glad to get out of the plane - i try to ride right seat with most of the pilots at my dz to talk to them and ask them questions about flying jumpers - i may not be a pilot but if the pilot can't give good answers quickly i wonder how fast they can fix a bad situation if it should happen - i like pilots that can feel even the smallest of changes in flight caracturistics - some can't feel a 500 fpm change - these little things bother me - i want a pilot that can feel small changes in flight attitude and know emergency procedures without a long thought process

depends on the dzo - until 2001 we were never charged for coming down in the plane or if told to get out low for an emergency - we did get charged for a hop n pop if we got out low because of clouds - since 2001 we get charged if the plane gets off the ground

use to be free style now is formation skydiving

but that doesn't mean eloy doesn't have something planned for the airport - morris didn't get rid of sdi then plan expansion - they planned expansion then found the reason to get rid of sdi to make room for the plans - eloy may have some plans for the airport that they need revenue from sda or sda may just be in the way - polititions never tell the whole story they tell you what they want until they get what they want - something has changed in eloy that makes them think they need more money or the space - what is eloy really after and why was sda picked to cover it ?

i don't know all the details but when skydive illinois was escorted off the airport in morris il for a violation of their contract the city had equipment moved in by that weekend and and dug up the entire landing area within 2 weeks - was 1 week from violation to equipment moved in - there might be something else going on and eloy wants sda to help pay for this or move out to make room for it

yes - sdc was one of the first when roger was there - csc was not far behind - most students start of on a zp170-190 wich is ok if the student can handle it - but there are afew that can't and for that reason i think all should start larger to weed out the ones that can't handle the smaller chutes - and from what i have seen nobody can predict how a student will handle themselves untill after they are tested in real life - if they pass let them downsize slowly - would you rather see a student on a zp170 or a manta in 10 mph with a downwind no flare landing ?

it is refreshing to see a dz use big safe chutes with students - i've seen to many busted students because they fucked up on landing zp 150-180 chutes - after they freak out it is to late to upsize - i jumped everything from a 300 to 96 sq ft and i'm glad i started big - if a student freaks on a manta not much will happen but the same student on a zp 150 under the same situation will probably need a good stay at the hospital

you say the students return rate seems to be higher when they pull and share in the whole experience - if that is so why not give evryone the opertunity ? if they don't you'll still be there - when a student would say "what if i don't remember everything " i would say don't worry have fun what ever you remember is a bonus and i'll do whatever you don't - it is that simple

nobody ever gets paid what they are worth but in 2003 (my last tandems) at sdi we got $30.00 a tandem (packers got $10.00 a pack) and $5.00 to train each student up to $30.00 max training $ a day

if the studen t pulls high who cares you get a little longer ride - if he pulls to low the ti has already pulled - if he pulls on time great job i see no cons only the posibility of good for the student

if the number of bikes dropped and the number of deaths per accident rose slightly i would say the helmet law had a negative impact

i've seen a tandem leave a baloon ta 9500

remeber fear is good and skydiving is fun - watch some video get excited and go have fun - i still get nervous after 2200 jumps

they say that helmets save lives on motorcycles but the safest states to ride in (lowest accident and deaths) have no helmet law. the increase in states with helmet laws is partly caused by wearing a helmet but the government won't post this because it will hurt the way the stats are viewed. so forget the stats and jump more

a minor adjustment that is definatly worth the extra hands on training the student will get under canopy

what does the exit have to do with progression ? exit anyway it is safe

i have had students that have done tandems at other places and said they didn't get to do anything wonder why i let them help with everything.you are right that some don't want to do anthing but fall - but that is their choice. the dzo and ti have taken that option away. how many of these students would have had a better jump? out of 600 tandems i had over 500 pull, fly and land and the look in their eyes was worth every minute of training. tandems were my way of giving back to a sport that took me in and giving any less to the student imo is wrong.

imo a tandem is safer for first jump and that makes it easier to train a student for aff because they have a related experience to teach from

with all the seriousness and tension that these competitors put on themselves it good to see that some can still have fun - remember this sport is suposed to be fun - keep it up

ps do we get to see the video ?

why is it that students get less and less for their money every year ? when most of us started we got more training and we were more involved with the jumped from the first jump. it seems to me that the more the tandem costs the less the student gets to do and less training on the first tandem. i'm glad i started when i did because i was the student being trained to become a skydiver from the first jump. i was given the instruction needed to save my life and i did save it on the first jump by pulling the rip cord. i know i came back because i was given the feeling i was a skydiver and could do it myself. i know that most students would ask each other if they pulled and felt good about it when they did. after the jumps students would hang out and ask eacher other " did you pull ? " or "did you fly and land the chute? " if a student can't say yes to both he was robbed of part of the experience

every ti will have a student take you for a ride - i had one put me in a spin right after drouge throw and got it stopped at pull time - he came out for a second tandem adn requested me and put me in a worse spin wich i got fed up with and dumped at 7500 ft - exits are important to not be lazy - a lazy will get you in trouble fast

when i started things were a little cheaper first tandem was $145.00 each jump after got cheaper the last solo was $70 - i'm sure things would be a little more now i think it probably would run $200 to $120 now - this is a progression i haven't seen used in over 10 years

we did do exits from the strut but with everyone having otters that is not that big a deal anymore
the legs thing was worked on on the 4th and 5th tandems with forward motion - the first solo was a little rough but was corected by the second solo - by the time i was on solo i had 1 on 1 actual expeience on what was needed to exit, be stable, alt aware, body pos on opening,contol check on canopy, finding the dz or good landing area, and landing the canopy. when i started we did not have radio for landing so it was important to know how to set up and land before solo. i also got 15-20 min with the ti for instruction, before gearing up and getting on the plane. by the time i was on solo i had alot of instruction and what was needed to be safe

imo all students should be given the chance to pull - but to many dzo's forgot that the student is an important person and they end up as meat rides for dollars - all the dzo's and alot of ti's are interested in is how fast they can pull the money out of the students pocket. quality tandems and teaching have slipped away - therefor why give the student that isn't trained properly the chance to pull