freeflight6

Damn! Hate to see you go Chromy but fly free my friend. Enjoyed meeting you and the SA team in Z-Hills circa 1990, what great friends to have. Saw you in DeLand a few years back while you were coaching RW - will miss you amigo. Frank D-8200

"Will the person who sat on my face last night please report to manifest" - Freak Bros Convention 1980s "Weatherhold" 40 way team in Z-Hills 1980s - every time our team's name was called, "Weatherhold - 20 minute call" people in the loading area started taking off their rigs, thinking it was a "real" weatherhold. Never saw George Kabeller that mad, clutching his clip board and screaming "That's a team, not a weatherhold" - caused enough confusion the to interrupt the DC-3s to stop loading until it was sorted out. Frank

Fly free my friend - many good times with you over the last 40 years. "I'll see you in the next life, and don't be late" - Jimi Hendrix. BSBD - Frank, D-8200

Call the DZ - plenty of coaches, staff, freelance instructors, etc. at the airport. PS - good call starting back slowly and planning for safety. Highly recommend 15 - 30 minutes wind tunnel time with your coach (one in Jacksonville - 2 hours away). Have fun - Frank D-8200

All good advice here. Practice PLFs - absolutely; simple skydive - solo exit from 6,000 ft., and consider a water landing in a nearby lake with a big docile canopy. When a good friend got a terminally ill disease in his 40s and could barely walk, he really wanted to make one last skydive. I have a large lake about 2 miles from my DZ, so I arranged a boat and ground crew. He and I did solos from 6,000 ft., landed next to the boat on a beautiful sunny Florida day and drank a cold beer with a toast to life. A water jump will reduce the mental stress of the skydive, you'll get aired out for 15 seconds, pull at 4,000 and don't worry about a crash landing. Very hard to injure yourself on a water landing. Jump with flotation gear and know how to use it. Get an Instructor to jump with you (no RW, focus on the solo skydive) and give you a water jump briefing in a swimming pool, jump a C-182 to minimize your distractions on the way up to altitude. Mentally rehearse the entire plan for the skydive; door opening, spotting, exit to landing the simple solo jump, then skydive the plan. Feel the cool water. Life will be good. Frank D-8200

Yes, it is allowed in USA. Look for a DZ that has a AFF/wind tunnel program. Other DZs allow several tandems then AFF with one instructor. I used to offer wind tunnel time, five static line (or IAD) jumps then jump #6 was AFF with one instructor. The wind tunnel AFF programs are best, getting 20 to 30 minutes tunnel time before your first jump will lower your stress when the door opens at altitude, you'll have practiced basic skills for stable free fall and your awareness will be expanded. Continue your wind tunnel time and air skills will advance quickly.

"They simply do not know how their reserve system or components exactly work and what potential problems they can cause them." Well said; lack of hanging harnesses in the FJC used in training malfunctions fails to give a realistic experience since the "walk around" and "leaning against the wall" harnesses do not get the student off his/her feet to feel the drop and see the handle locations shift on cutaways. Some DZs allow students to graduate without knowing how to pack a parachute or do a gear check other than ensure the Cypres is on. Great article - Frank D-8200

Fly free Arch! Thanks for the great times in the mid 1980s with the Miller Light Beer Demo Team - we were very well paid for demos into amazing venues - Clear Lake, TX unlimited hydroplane races with the Golden Knights demo team was one of many - too much fun. When I heard you made 40 jumps on your 40th birthday in 1974 (or 1975?), I was inspired to make 50 on my 50th birthday in 2003 - I did not realize you were 21 years older than me until I saw your age of 88 in the news article. The Cypress Gardens, FL jump with the double malfunction into soft sand and survived always was an amazing story, having heard it a few times after some night time beers. Will see you in the next life and don't be late (Jimi Hendrix) - Frank D-8200 - BSBD

See you in the next world Ian; loved your bar in Z-Hills 1993 - 94 and the murals on the walls from Rickerby - fly free amigo - BSBD - Frank D-8200

Damn, first Gary, now Flip. Enjoyed skydiving with you over the years and your jokes, mi amigo - fly free - BSBD - Frank D-8200

Fly free Gary - I enjoyed our time at WFFC with your Load Organizing tent next to my AFF tent 1993 - 1998. Thank you for inviting me for input with the single AFF instructor/wind tunnel training approval in the USPA regs last year. You gave a lot to our sport and we appreciate it; sorry I did not see you recently but at least we spoke on the phone in the last year or so. BSBD - Frank, D-8200

Update: My trip was very cool and fun. Was not able to fly in all 6 WTs due to mega-malfunction of my laptop/video equipment, but was a good first trip and I plan to do another one in the future to fly in the other 4 WTs. Flew 15 minutes each in Bedford, UK and Roosendaal, Holland - both machines are amazing - large flight chambers and fast, smooth air wall-to-wall. They make my local Orlando WT look like a toy, but am glad to have it 45 minutes from my house and DZ. Special thanks to the staff and owner Paul Mayer in Bedford and Roosendaal staff - very professional. Thanks also to Flemming for his offer to meet in Copenhagen, Kate Bjerrum, CEO of Copenhagen Air Experience, Jan in Prague and the German and French WT staff I was in email contact - I will make it another day in the future. If any skydivers are in central Florida, please stop by my airport with new DZ Florida Parachute starting in December in Coleman, FL and we can make some jumps and fly in the Orlando WT - (352) 748-6629 or [email protected] - blue skies, Frank

Just flew in Bedford WT - great machine - very fast - Aerokart next - Frank

Thanks - appreciate your offer; I have 15 minutes booked on 2 October 2013 at 2 pm (14:00). I fly in from Amsterdam on the 1st - I'd love to meet another skydiver for tips in the city, I've never been in Copenhagen. I won't have a phone but will have my laptop so you can email me - [email protected] - for contact. Please send test message when able to establish link to your email, and I look forward to flying with you - Frank - PS - I leave US tomorrow for UK Bedford tunnel -