SkyPainter

I just learned about this yesterday, and was devastated to hear Gary was gone. I rode many a load up with him during my AFF training, and he was many times a Tandem Inst, and we would kid around in the plane with the students. Several times we went out in a group afterward to share a cold one at the local Jumpers bar. Gary was truly a unique person, with a wicked sense of humor, and a kind soul. Wow. Will he be missed by us all. BSBD, friend, and Fly Free for us. Live deliberately; Dare greatly; Land gently SkyPainter SOS 1304, POPS 10695, DS 118

Sorry ...take the time to study everything ... heal well, then press on! Live deliberately; Dare greatly; Land gently SkyPainter SOS 1304, POPS 10695, DS 118

Wow ...awesome job! Rock On! Stay safe, and WELCOME to the Skies!! Live deliberately; Dare greatly; Land gently SkyPainter SOS 1304, POPS 10695, DS 118

Wow ...long time! WELCOME BACK TO THE SKIES! Live deliberately; Dare greatly; Land gently SkyPainter SOS 1304, POPS 10695, DS 118

Welcome to the skies! Sounds like you caught a good instructor! Yes, it gets addicting, and more fun the more you do it. Live deliberately; Dare greatly; Land gently SkyPainter SOS 1304, POPS 10695, DS 118

CONGRATS! And welcome to the skies! A tweaked ankle happens, but generally not a lot. Stick with it! Live deliberately; Dare greatly; Land gently SkyPainter SOS 1304, POPS 10695, DS 118

Welcome! You CAN do this! I was the same way, but it gets better. Now on the ride up to altitude, I am thinking, "I WANT my minute in the airstream! Get me up there!" That's it! A minute. Approximately 60 seconds in clear air, nothing to hit, just enjoy! I want my minute! I also try to stretch-out the canopy ride, because THAT is just as fun, too! Go for it ..... you will not regret it! BTW - I am planning on doing my "A" license Check Dive on my 63rd birthday in April! :) Who says you can't teach an old dog new tricks! Live deliberately; Dare greatly; Land gently SkyPainter SOS 1304, POPS 10695, DS 118

I am a new jumper who moved over to Jumptown for training. One day, after an AFF jump that I sorta botched-up and had to re-jump, I was sitting at a picnic table grousing about myself. Gary was working on building the new packing hangar, and he walked over to me with simple encouragement: "Learning takes time; learning safely takes longer." In a few words he picked me up, reorganized my priorities, and my determination. He will be missed by many, many people around the planet. Another star blinks into existence in the evening skies, lighting the way for all left behind. Fly Free, D-6969. Live deliberately; Dare greatly; Land gently SkyPainter SOS 1304, POPS 10695, DS 118

CONGRATS! I started at 41. Got my POPS# before my A license. LOL! Me too! I hope to make my check dive on my 63rd birthday this April! Although the (&^$*^%$) WEATHER in New England makes that tough! That is why (mostly) it has taken this long! Live deliberately; Dare greatly; Land gently SkyPainter SOS 1304, POPS 10695, DS 118

QuoteI passed my level 7aff last sunday and am all fired up about it! ****>> CONGRATS, Dude! I was cleared for SOLO status this weekend, too! Saving my first solo jump for next weekend. Now we can begin to learn more! Live deliberately; Dare greatly; Land gently SkyPainter SOS 1304, POPS 10695, DS 118

*****> Hiya O! I have to do some H&Ps in my continued training at our DZ ... we should do some together!! I PLF'd two of three jumps this weekend, and planned to do them...they worked fine, and I walked away from each one unscathed, just dirty. I really do not care if the landings look too pretty at this stage - I am learning - and a well-placed PLF has done me wonders! I landed safely each time, standing or PLFing to me does not matter. No shame in a good safe landing! Let's do some Jump-N-Dumps together! Live deliberately; Dare greatly; Land gently SkyPainter SOS 1304, POPS 10695, DS 118

WELCOME! It deserves a (!), as it is about the eager nervous anticipation of a beginning. You will love it! It can be a sensory avalanche of sorts, as you try to remember all the stuff in sequence, but if nothing else, try to look UP and about, BREATHE, and enjoy! That first canopy ride down alone is worth the price of admission! As a two-skill sport (body flight, and canopy flight) you get two thrills in one jump! Let us know how it went! GET THE VIDEO! Live deliberately; Dare greatly; Land gently SkyPainter SOS 1304, POPS 10695, DS 118

LOL...I wasn't really sure about it all until I did my Water Training with YOU! I figured, Wow! This is gonna be Kewl! Live deliberately; Dare greatly; Land gently SkyPainter SOS 1304, POPS 10695, DS 118

Luck to ya, Chris! Been there, done that, with some other jobs/hobbies, but somehow life moves forward. I have revisited some of the things I left behind, and replaced some others (with Skydiving, for one!). You are adjusting your life to it's current realities - money, responsibilities, etc, but those may change also someday - not to worry. Play on, and jump again if you need to. Live deliberately; Dare greatly; Land gently SkyPainter SOS 1304, POPS 10695, DS 118

DUDE! You forgot ME! Reverend SkyPainter Dudeist Skydiver # 118 Live deliberately; Dare greatly; Land gently SkyPainter SOS 1304, POPS 10695, DS 118

****> CONGRATS, Ryan! Now I need to catch-up with YOU! LOL! We will be jumping together soon .... I did my D1 last weekend. Rock on. Live deliberately; Dare greatly; Land gently SkyPainter SOS 1304, POPS 10695, DS 118

Um....on second thought ......eep! Live deliberately; Dare greatly; Land gently SkyPainter SOS 1304, POPS 10695, DS 118

Hi ...Norm Kent's photos and set-up were pretty cool. But as a prior poster said, you have only about 60 seconds or less, so might I suggest using an end-game problem in stead of blitz? A classic King-Pawn, two Bishop, or Rook ending MAY be accomplished in that time with two good players .... and magnets would need to be enhanced. I dunno....I would hate to have a Bishop drill me on the ground that was lost in freefall..... Live deliberately; Dare greatly; Land gently SkyPainter SOS 1304, POPS 10695, DS 118

Dude! That tune was really, really, good! THANKS! Live deliberately; Dare greatly; Land gently SkyPainter SOS 1304, POPS 10695, DS 118

Hey Don...WELCOME TO THE SKIES!

Thanks! Great to be back in the sky!! Now, to try and find TIME to get back up there more often!

Hooked: Watching jumpers land at the DZ while waiting for my first jump - Tandem. Hooked again: After Tandem landed, signed right up for AFF. Line and .....: Cat A - first canopy flight by myself. Sinker: - First Instructor release for free fall in AFF Live deliberately; Dare greatly; Land gently SkyPainter SOS 1304, POPS 10695, DS 118

Customary? Well, it certainly is for me! I tip waiters, bartenders and others, why not generously tip someone who is training you to save your own life, and who is willing to jump with you and possibly have to try to help you in the air?? This AFFI has been awesome to me, and I have learned a ton from him, including ways to relax during the jump. He inspires confidence every time I go up with him. He is highly trained, and tolerant of my rookie mistakes. Instructors don't get paid a whole lot, generally, for what they do, and I believe that a tip after a successful jump is appropriate. Is it customary? Dunno. I will continue it, tho! I even tip the video guys/gals when I use them. People are, amazingly enough, willing to jump out of an airplane from 13,500 to train me! Yep, I'll tip 'em! Live deliberately; Dare greatly; Land gently SkyPainter SOS 1304, POPS 10695, DS 118

Hi all! Well, after a Looooong winter lay-off, I finally got to the DZ this Saturday - YAY! Did my recurrency training, sat around for a long wind hold for a few hours, then got to jump my D-1 AFF. Did my first Front Floater exit (fun!) tumbled a bit (Instructor had the leg strap), but stabilized, separated, and did 4 good, on-heading 90's, and a coupla good on-heading 180s. THEN - with about 9000 left, I started a 360, lost it, and wound-up tumbling ass over teakettle. AFFI flew over to try and turn me over, but wind knocked him away. I barrel-rolled over, recovered, and felt good! SO - another 360 - and now an increasing flat spin, which for some reason (I think legs) I could not stop with just my upper body. I am thinking that I was fighting myself with my knees/legs ....I did slow it down to almost a stop, saw 5300 on the alti, and pulled before anything else went haywire. NO line twists, so I was fairly stable at pull time. Flew a picture-perfect pattern, and almost stood-up the landing - staged a bit high and bled-off a little airspeed, so the flare was a little weak. Just gently toppled forward to knees and stood up. I will be hitting the wind tunnel a couple of times before D-2 to work on turns and knee positions. I think toe-taps are back on the table. Anyway, I felt sorry I gave the AFFI agita in freefall (left a good tip), but I self-corrected well, never lost A/A, and actually had a ball and felt comfortable in the air - even when head-down for a while while tumbling! But it felt GREAT to be back in the sky! Live deliberately; Dare greatly; Land gently SkyPainter SOS 1304, POPS 10695, DS 118

I gotta say...CONGRATS! I wish ALL young jumpers were as smart as that. Keep it up and pass that great attitude on the other young jumpers! THANKS for calling me a "Young Jumper"! LOL! I am also a member of POPS and SOS! Been down a few roads and didn't get this far being TOO stupid....well, maybe a little! :) Live deliberately; Dare greatly; Land gently SkyPainter SOS 1304, POPS 10695, DS 118