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| FEATURED ARTICLE |  | Team Fastrax and
Start Skydiving Offer Wounded Veterans
Tandem Skydive Opportunity "Blue Skies for the Good Guys and Gals" Honors our Nation's Heroes Team Fastrax Professional Skydiving Team and Start Skydiving are proud to announce their new program, "Blue Skies for the Good Guys and Gals," to say THANK YOU to the men and women who serve our country. The program will provide a tandem parachute opportunity for those Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen, Marines and Coast Guard (active duty, reserve or guard) who have been wounded in combat and received a Purple Heart. Team Fastrax has partnered with the Wounded Warrior Foundation and The Thank You Foundation to reach out to Veterans around the country. "These are our nation's finest and brightest and we have an obligation to do whatever we can to lift their spirits and show them how much we care, said John Hart, founder of Team Fastrax and owner of Start Skydiving. "As a Gulf War veteran and 20 year Army service member, I am honored to sponsor an event that will have a special impact on these men and women." The program will kick off at Start Skydiving in Lebanon, Ohio on Memorial Day Weekend as part of the Thank You Foundation Boogie. Selection.com, the nation's premier background screening service, is spearheading the corporate charge to raise the funds to make these skydives happen. For more information on how to help and participate you can contact The Thank You Foundation at : 1-877-280-8893
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The Thank You Foundation is a non-profit organization whose mission is to show appreciation and express gratitude for those who have served in the U.S. Armed Forces, both past and present. The Foundation accomplishes its mission though several programs and activities such as sending care packages, visiting Veterans in care facilities, providing complimentary tickets to sporting and entertainment events, and presenting Thank You Cards and Certificates of Appreciation to those who have served or are serving our military. Donations can be made directly to: www.thethankyoufoundation.org |
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| Dear John,
At Start Skydiving, we place our customers first in everything we do. This newsletter is meant to keep you informed about the latest events and occurrences at our Professional Skydiving Center. Please take the time to email or call us with any comments that will improve the services we provide at Start. You can help us spread the word about Start Skydiving by forwarding our newsletter to your friends. All you have to do is select the "Forward to a Friend" button to the left. |
What's Up This Week | Week ending 5 April 2008 There is a staff meeting this Saturday at 8:00am. Everyone is required to wear the red staff shirt. Photos of all staff members will be taken to post on the web site. Everyone needs to write up a small bio about themselves to go on the website; an additional form will be provided Saturday morning with specific questions such as license number, jump numbers, cut aways, etc.
We are officially open for the season, so come on out and get current! We are now operating on Spring hours: Friday, Saturday and Sunday, 9:00 am until sunset. |
| | Safety First! | Things you need to know Low turns under canopy are one of the biggest causes of serious injury and death in skydiving. A low turn can be premeditated - i.e. swooping - or result from an error in judgment, because of inexperience and/or the inability to handle an unexpected situation. To avoid having to make unanticipated low turns, avoid high traffic areas, select a clear landing spot, free of obstacles and hazards, and fly a predictable landing pattern. If, for any reason, you are travelling in a different direction than the predominant traffic pattern, stay as far away as possible from other canopies. If you are landing away from the main landing area, or anywhere off-field, determine your landing and pattern and target by 1000 feet. Once you have entered the pattern, stick with it until you land; last-minute changes of plan can be deadly. If you do realize that you have made a turn at an unsafe altitude, the most important thing is to get your wing level and stop the dive. Use toggle and/or riser inputs to immediately straighten your flight path, then flare to reduce forward motion. The increased speed will likely result fin a flare that feels different from your normal approach and landing: expect enhanced responsiveness, a longer flare, and an extended glide. As you flare, prepare for a hard landing: keep your extremities in, get your feet and knees together, bend your knees, and get ready to PLF. Remember to maintain toggle control and finish your flare, even if you come in premature contact with the ground. No matter what, KEEP FLYING YOUR CANOPY until you come to a full stop. |
| Treeman Goes Big |  This photo of Dan (Treeman) is our selection for this year's billboard. You will see Treeman's pictures on billboards in Cincinnati, Dayton and Columbus. This particular design will be located on I-75, south of the DZ. |
| | DZ Happenings | | Here is the scoop! We've got some great upcoming dropzone events. Kip Lohmiller will be offering the following rating courses:
Tandem Instructor Course: April 11 - 13
AFFI Course: April 14 - 20. (Note: Tthis is both the Pre-Course and AFFI course) To sign up for any of the courses, contact Kip at
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. We ask that everyone (staff included) park on the grass/gravel area. at the entrance. We are having more gravel delivered this week to eliminate the mud. Mid-East Skydiving League will be holding an all-day Meet 'n' Greeet on April 12, starting at 9:00 am. Fastrax will host a skills camp for any one interested in forming a team for the MESL or learning more about 4-way in general. Contact Mike Ashley at
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. For new jumpers, off student status but not yet licensed, there will be a FREE re-currency training course on April 5th, starting at 8:00 am. Please arrive at 7:30 to complete paperwork. Please call or email manifest to have your name added to the list. You may direct questions to Selena Marks. And always remember, If you're in the market for new gear, make sure you check out our sponsors on the left side of this newsletter. All the manufacturers we support are top-of-the-line. Ask manifest if you are in need of something; Kip or John will sit down with you and explain the benefits of having the right equipment. |
Picture of the Week | Spring 2008 Water Training Participants Schawn Thompson, Scot Howell, Stacy Roberts, Todd Johnson, Tom Duritsch, Dan Barthel, Andy Gruber, Dale Mullins, Steve Grayson, John Hart, Stephan Grosehwitz and Katherine Groeshwitz |
| National Skydiving League |  Four Way Tips John Hart, Team Fastrax Greetings All, Below is the ninth in a series of Four Way tips Team Fastrax is providing at the April Skills camp. Safety & Equipment Fortunately, 4-way is one of the least dangerous disciplines in the sport of skydiving. However, it is still skydiving. Certain considerations should always receive attention, and certain procedures should always be followed. · All jumpers should use AADs. · A pin check should always take place shortly before jump run. This can be completed quite quickly if the team forms a donut. · Break off should take place at or above 4000 feet, for deployment at or above 2500 feet. Some teams from time to time have developed habits of horsing around and "fruit-looping" at breakoff time. This has led to fatalities on more than one occasion. Breakoff is a rule not to be broken. Pay attention to the headings of your teammates as you track. Attempt to track off at 90-degree angles as much as possible. · Make sure that everybody's pin cover flaps are secure. A slight collision on a vertical transition, combined with an open pin cover flap, can result in a premature (and horseshoe) deployment, an extremely dangerous situation. · Everyone should jump canopies compatible with a day of training. When doing 4-way, your priority should be on 4-way; don't waste energy navigating a super-fast canopy through an Otter load of traffic. Physical Fitness Skydiving is unusual among sports, in that practicing the sport does not build all the physical qualities required to perform well in the sport. A competitive skydiver needs to be fit, lean, and flexible. To achieve fitness, the jumper must train when not jumping. Running, cycling, and swimming are all excellent means of achieving and maintaining fitness. Daily stretching is highly valuable, as is a healthy diet. Stretching is an essential first part of a day of jumping. A team should develop a routine that stretches all of the major muscle groups, and perform it on every single jump day. Warming up briefly before stretching, with running, jumping jacks, or the like, is also important. Warm muscles stretch much more effectively than cold ones. If any team members practice yoga, they can introduce the team to an abbreviated yoga routine. This can serve well for a full-body stretch. An effective warm-up and stretching routine will take twenty minutes or so. Be sure to allow time for this in your daily schedule. MESL Schedule Meet 'n' Greet - April 12 Meet 1 - May 24 Meet 2 - Jun 21 Meet 3 - July 19 Meet 4 - Aug 16 NSL Playoffs - Sept 20 - 21 Rain dates are the Sundays. If good weather prevails and the meets complete in one day, we'll have organized big(ger) ways on the Sundays. If anyone has an interest in doing some 4-way this summer, feel free to contact me directly at
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. We're here to serve. Here's to a great season in 2008! -Mike |
Thank you for making Start Skydiving the place where great people become skydivers and skydivers become great! Blue Skies, The Team at Start Skydiving |
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