The video above is the 32nd jump of our final camp … we were getting a little punchy by then, but it was a fun, great way to end the season of training and get fired up for Nationals in a few weeks. In case you can’t figure out which one is me - I’m wearing a black jumpsuit with gray grippers, my rig is mostly black with some gray. (more…)
The original plan for my 8-way team was to do one three-day tunnel camp and three four-day skydiving camps. We decided in May to add a fourth skydiving camp, but only a two-day camp. (more…)
This year’s trip to Lost Prairie was the wettest I can remember - by a long shot. I think maybe one year in the five previous years, I remember a little bit of drizzle …. but nothing like the storms Mother Nature unleashed this boogie. (more…)
It’s been way too long since I’ve written - another Blue Ice camp has come and gone, along with lots of other stuff. Summer is, as always, wonderfully busy. In early June, my parents came out to visit - we kept busy with a trip to the DeYoung Museum, exploring and wine tasting in Sonoma, and a Giants game, among much catching up and hanging out in Oakland. (more…)
Seems like a lot of what I do lately on this blog is bitch about being tired, usually from too much work or too much travel or too much stress or too little sleep. So this time I’ll say I’m glad to be tired because it means I really pushed myself in a good way the last few days. (more…)
… I worked my ass off, learned a lot, and ended the weekend exhausted, sore, and happy.
This weekend was the first training weekend for my 8-way team - Perris Blue Ice. I’m one of four new members this year, who joined with the four returning members (including our player-coach). Our first weekend was in the wind tunnel in Raeford, North Carolina. (more…)
The rest of the trip was relatively uneventful - I did wind up getting three more jumps in on Sunday, culminating in a sunset load that turned out (with clouds and wind rolling in on Monday) to be the last load of the boogie. The Otter did a spectacular fly-by of the landing area, and our group opened a little high to enjoy the sunset and the views on what turned out to be our last canopy ride. (more…)
I feel the need to start to write about Belize lest I forget it. The sights, the sounds, the flavors! Our trip started off well enough, but quickly turned into a bit of a travel hassle. On Friday we flew from SFO to Miami, hopped a shuttle bus to our airport hotel, and had a mediocre dinner at the only restaurant within walking distance. Up the next day, and over to the airport a few hours earlier to make sure we were comfortably at our gate in time for the flight. No issues there - security was quite quick. Settled in at the bar near the gate and texted our friends John and Laura who were coming in from Knoxville. Met up with them and another friend John from Nashville, and caught up and anticipated our trip. (more…)
… is back in town this weekend. Despite an iffy forecast, yesterday’s weather turned out to be pretty good, so I headed up to Skydance. I got 4 jumps in fairly quickly, and spent the last couple hours just hanging out and chatting in the (not-too-cold) sun, drinking a tasty adult beverage (Captain Morgan Silver and Diet Coke) in a nondescript blue cup (since it was still before the “beer light” went on). At the end of the day, I got measured for, and ordered, a new jumpsuit. I’d been hoping to hold off till I reach my goal weight (whatever that may be) but I seem to be in an extended holding pattern at or near this weight, and I’m getting to the point where I’m fighting my old suits since they’re a bit baggier than I need right now. (more…)
Yeah, yeah, I know everyone else is doing it, but I’m home, sick, and bored on New Year’s Day and it’s a new decade, so let’s look back at the last. (more…)