HankEllis

Rooting around in the closet recently found a November 1991 issue of Skydiving. In it was a several page report on the 1991 Nationals which I competed in. Right next to it was the issue of Parachutist covering the same. Skydiving covered the Nationals with more detail and in depth than USPAs own Parachutist. Was sad to see it go. Doubt print would even be a starter today.

High desert biker meth lab.

I usually try to get a 2 or 3 round jumps a year in. Just for the giggles of it. My last jump on a Para-Commander was at the 2003 World Freefall Convention in Rantoul. Awesome 3 way with a PC in a Mini-System, a RW PC in a Wonderhog, and myself with a PC in a Wonderhog. Mike Mullins provided the spot and I landed in front of manifest. Rig details: 1981 Relative Workshop Wonderhog container, 1978 Strong 26' LoPo reserve, 1966 Pioneer Para-Commander main. Main packed in d-bag with lines stowed on the underside of the bag and the crown lines stowed on the top side of the bag. Throwout 36" pilotchute in BOC pouch. For what it's worth, I have another PC that needs a small bit of patching and it'll be airworthy again. And there's the 28' Flat 7TU that I used to jump till I got my over 40 weight gain. My other rigs have more conventional canopies. Stiletto 150, Batwing 134, blah, blah. Yes, I will load out the PC as long as you get the proper training on round malfunctions and landings. Till later Hank Ellis

As a newbie Bird-Man, I've got a lot to learn about my GTi. My experience 1800 total jumps, 1 jump with Jari on a Classic (60 mph fallrate), and 5 jumps with my new GTi. For some reason I don't seem to be getting the slow fall rate and forward speed I should. Fall rate feels to be in the 70 - 80 mph range. Tried various body and arm positions without much luck. The one experience that really has my head scratching is the up and down pitching (buffeting) that I can easily get into. Bending my legs only slightly will stop the buffeting. Any ideas? Tips? Till later Hank Ellis