VincePetaccio

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Posts posted by VincePetaccio

  1. Tonight's MegaMillions lottery numbers: 4-8-15-25-47-42.
    LOST numbers: 4-8-15-16-23-42.

    Weirdly similar.

    Odds of them being this similar are one out of 8,078,336.
    Come, my friends! 'Tis not too late to seek out a newer world!

  2. A VERY experienced jumper (23,000+ jumps) with a rigger's ticket at my home DZ mentioned that a Cypress can generally be safely jumped for up to six months after its "expiration" date. Of course he didn't recommend doing it, but said he'd be comfortable doing it himself.

    Is this a piece of information I can trust?
    Come, my friends! 'Tis not too late to seek out a newer world!

  4. Quote


    I blame you man :P- I would delete that post, wtf. Next we'll be saying that the first [swoop] death of 2011 was caused by too much experience, but let's be abrasive around distinctions without a difference, eg. camera flying jump #'s lol.

    Jeff



    wait... what? lol, not following you.

    Now you know why I used the qualifier "sheepishly," haha. I'm not proud of it, but hopefully that little lesson can help somebody else!
    Come, my friends! 'Tis not too late to seek out a newer world!

  5. Interesting! I'd never thought of that method.

    The dude who taught me to pack always told me to imagine I was choking an ex-girlfriend who cheated on me, lol, getting a firm hold on the "top" of the canopy before folding it back.
    Come, my friends! 'Tis not too late to seek out a newer world!

  6. Quote


    Unfortunately however a few have decided that america is elite and anything less than the US standard is inadequate, unsafe and foolosh.

    This pisses me off, and I may have overreacted a little but hey, I am allowed, am I not?



    I agree that there a few who cover the rear window of their pickup truck with a banner of the US flag and tout the supremacy of the US, and I further agree that it is annoying, culturally insensitive, and pretty embarrassing. I totally empathize with you and I think you have every right to express yourself in that capacity.

    However, I'm not convinced that it's a purely American phenomenon. :)
    I'll simply say that I do not believe the US methodologies to be better than those in NZ, or anywhere else for that matter. With that said, I'll also say that I don't think that the methodologies in NZ are better than those in the US.

    different != better

    Anyway, I'll go ahead and sheepishly tell a story that's actually related to camera flying.

    Back in December, when I was in Sebastian, I was jumping with a FRIEND who was flying a GoPro (it wasn't even me flying it). And by "jumping with," I mean we were on the same load- I don't have my A yet.

    My friend asked me a few times to check to make sure the light was blinking on his GoPro and that he was recording. Wouldn't you know it, with all that checking I forgot to buckle my helmet on, and lost it when I dove out the door. I blame the GoPro for distracting me, and myself for letting it.

    Amazingly!! The helmet was recovered by a security guard, and didn't have a single scratch on it after falling 14,000 feet. Four days later it was on my head while I was snowboarding in Vermont. B|
    Come, my friends! 'Tis not too late to seek out a newer world!

  7. rhys,

    I don't know you, nor do I know anything about you. But, based on this post, I have to say that you're really sounding like a hypocrite.

    I'm tired of hearing complaints about "arrogant Americans" stemming from the fact that, sometimes, things are done differently in the US than they are done in other places. Combine that with the influence that the US seems to have on sports, international policy, etc etc and suddenly people think that Americans are all elitist cowboys bent on destroying the paradigms abroad. Well, we're not. The only arrogance is coming from those who are so opposed to learning about the US way of life, or to even making the slightest effort to understand it.

    I've been abroad. I've spent months in France, Spain, Germany, Switzerland, Canada, and Mexico. I found that people, no matter where you are, are all the same. We all want the same things, we all smile when we laugh, and we all want to live when we skydive. How it happens, and where the rules come from is moot.

    Jeez, I clicked on this thread to learn about camera flying.

    (edited for grammarz)
    Come, my friends! 'Tis not too late to seek out a newer world!

  8. Quote

    If you wanna stay on the east coast, Whiteface in NY has the largest vertical drop in the east. Great mountain that has everything. Jay Peak in Vermont is also another good one, really good glades, and there never a huge crowd like you get at killington.



    Going to Whiteface in Feb... definitely excited!
    Come, my friends! 'Tis not too late to seek out a newer world!

  9. Quote

    I'm looking for a good place in the US to go spend a week and ski my Russian heart out. Unless I end up close to a big city somewhere where I'll also be able to go to a museum, see the sights, get together with some fellow skydivers for drinks, etc...my schedule would ideally be as follows: get up, eat breakfast, go skiing, get back to hotel room, go to sleep, then repeat for 4 or 5 days.

    I don't want to go to a resort where people go to show off their expensive ski equipment while barely skiing and spend most time in the lodge eating and drinking. I want to go to a mountain with a nice range of black and double black diamonds, some nice terrain/woods skiing (which I want to get into a lot more as I've barely done that), and trails which are at least 5k+ in length.

    Any suggestions?

    Oh and I live in CT.



    I went up to Sugarbush in Vermont two weeks ago- it was AMAZING! Great mountains, lots of fresh powder, lots of challenging runs, not too crowded, 111 trails!

    Not too touristy, either. We had a blast.
    Come, my friends! 'Tis not too late to seek out a newer world!

  10. Quote

    Do I get any "buy back" if I have a photo of myself with a broken leg... that I broke skydiving, err, landing... included on "the wall"? :S:P:D;)



    Yes. Unless, of course, you have an xray hanging.

    "CHECK OUT THIS SWEET BREAK I GOT DOING AN INSANE SWOOP!"
    Come, my friends! 'Tis not too late to seek out a newer world!

  12. Quote

    Is that the CSX company?:)



    ACTUALLY, YES! OH MY GOD YOU'RE A PROPHET!

    haha, how weird would it be for a train/shipping company to sponsor a college basketball team?
    Come, my friends! 'Tis not too late to seek out a newer world!

  13. Last night I had a dream in which a low pull resulted in a reserve ride.

    My reserve flew like a bowl of jello (probably lime, maybe lemon. fully refrigerated). I was in the saddle around 100', then did a radical 90' turn to land on the Oregon Trail, annoyed that I had to pay for a reserve repack.

    Later in the night I had another dream in which the company I recently invested in went under because the college basketball team they sponsored (in my dream) lost a game.

    AM I NUTS?!
    Come, my friends! 'Tis not too late to seek out a newer world!

  14. CSX!!!! I made back all the money I spent on Christmas shopping in one day of trading CSX options.

    It keeps breaking through its price targets. It's got great fundamentals, bla bla bla, etc.
    Come, my friends! 'Tis not too late to seek out a newer world!

  15. Quote

    Sorry, I don't see anything wrong with them making a website about their skydiving. Maybe it's a way for their family members to log on and watch.

    Do you have a FB page with pictures?



    My facebook doesn't list "landings in any aircraft," along with any other stat I could possibly imagine. This is just way too much information, indicative of a strong need to tell everybody lots about himself (and I'm not reallythat interested in how many tube jumps he's done).
    Come, my friends! 'Tis not too late to seek out a newer world!

  16. You don't necessarily need your A- as long as you're done AFF and bring your logbook they'll likely let you jump (solo, of course).

    I did this at Sebastian with 21 jumps (Crosskeys is my home dz). Got to 25, but still need to do 4 coach jumps and a check dive. [:/]

    Come, my friends! 'Tis not too late to seek out a newer world!

  20. haha, Taylor's is always a good time! Was that the night that Bogdan gave those girls a "skydiving discount card," which was actually a 10% off pizza coupon, hahaha?

    Why doesn't everybody on dropzone.com just come hang out in Philly with me?! B|

    Come, my friends! 'Tis not too late to seek out a newer world!

  21. Quote

    Quote

    If the wind is blowing, put on your rig, hook up your snowbaord, Open your main, and go sailing!



    Took my idea. Did it at Xkeys one Freezefest with snowboards, kneeboards, and BigAir kites. Quite fun.



    This year freezefest is on my birthday. :o] Are you coming?
    Come, my friends! 'Tis not too late to seek out a newer world!

  23. OK, so here are the ideas I've already exhausted:

    Packing. I've been packing for myself since I finished AFF, and over the last week my rig has been unpacked and repacked about 50 times. :o|

    Midget porn. Of course that's the FIRST thing I did.

    The internet. I finished it.

    I should also note that I'm essentially broke until Friday. That's what I get for forgetting to submit my hours last pay period. [:/]

    And funny you mention that, skyrider- I had actually considered it, haha.

    Come, my friends! 'Tis not too late to seek out a newer world!

  24. I am stuck in an empty residence hall on my campus for the week. It's cold, windy, and snowy outside in Philadelphia. It's not even my usual building, so I have only my computer, clothes, and a single book (actually I have my snowboard and rig, too, but they're not doing me much good).

    Any ideas to keep me from melting away with boredom?!
    Come, my friends! 'Tis not too late to seek out a newer world!