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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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| | Issue: #24 Chief Grammar Inspector: Jessica Bernstein | June/2008 |
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 28 June 2008 We are now operating on summer hours: Monday, Wednesday and Thursday 12:00 pm until sunset, Friday, Saturday and Sunday, 8:00 am until sunset. It is going to be a busy weekend at Start Skydiving with the OSU summer class coming out Saturday and a bunch of tandems on the books. We need all instructors that can work to be here both days. ATTENTION!!! 4-Way Scrambles will be going on this Saturday at Start and there are no registration fees, Please arrive by 8am as we want to get things going. Call manifest to signup or email
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Come on out and jump with different people and have a great time, scrambles are a great deal of fun and you should participate at least once to experience it. |
| | Safety First! | Things you need to know . WHAT IS A RESERVE STATIC LINE (RSL)? There has been enormous progress in the field of skydiving equipment technology in the past few decades, much of it focused on improving safety in the sport. One such advancement, created to address the problem of fatalities resulting from jumpers delaying too long between cutting away a main canopy and deploying a reserve, is the Reserve Static Line, or RSL. The RSL is a backup device, intended to decrease the time between cutaway and reserve deployment - and to avoid the possibility of the jumper not deploying the reserve at all. An RSL is a nylon lanyard connected to the reserve ripcord pin on one end, and to one of the main canopy risers - by a disconnectable shackle - on the other. Cutting the main canopy away disconnects the main risers. As the canopy and risers separate and move away from the jumper's rig, the lanyard pulls the pin and deploys the reserve. The lanyard is routed underneath the main riser cover, around the yoke, and under the reserve flap. Like the main canopy bridle, the RSL must be routed correctly to function; it also must be connected to the main riser. If it is disconnected, it won't deploy the reserve. If misrouted, it can complicate, or even prevent, a reserve deployment. Although RSLs are recommended for all experienced jumpers, there are conditions under which their use is not advised. Camera flyers, CReW dogs and skysurfers generally disconnect RSLs, or fly without them, because of the possibility of a quickly-deployed reserve catching on equipment or entangling with another canopy. (It is possible, however, that the use of an RSL might have actually prevented two skysurfing fatalities.)
RSLs can also complicate certain emergency procedures in "normal" skydives, such as a cutaway following a dual deployment of both the main and reserve canopies. There is also an argument that a rapid reserve deployment could be detrimental in the event of an unstable cutaway. However, statistics indicate that the chance of survival is better from an unstable reserve deployment than from delaying after a cutaway. (Remember the Pull Hierarchy from your AFF class?) Of course, it would definitely be unhelpful to have an immediate reserve deployment when cutting away on the ground to avoid being dragged in high winds. It is highly recommended in those situations to disconnect your RSL - done by pulling a tab attached to the shackle - before cutting away your main.
If you do temporarily disconnect your RSL, care must be taken when reconnecting it. The point of connection is a small ring next to the 3-ring assembly; DO NOT CONNECT YOUR RSL TO THE 3-RING ASSEMBLY. If you have any questions about how to reconnect your RSL, check with a rigger. Also, some rigs have a connector between the RSL-attached riser (usally the right one) and the other riser. If your rig came from the manufacturer with such a connector, great. If not, do not try and rig one yourself. This could result in rendering the RSL inoperative and complicating - or even preventing - a reserve deployment.
Finally, remember that the Reserve Static Line, like an AAD, is a back-up device. Once you install it, forget that you have it. You should never assume that something else is going to pull your reserve for you; saving your life is YOUR responsibility. |
| Upcoming Events | We've got some great upcoming dropzone events. 4-Way Scrambles - June 28th Come and participate in 4-way scrambles at Start Skydiving. Teams will be organized on the 28th; everyone is welcome to participate. There is no registration fee for this event, but we would like to hear from you if you are interested in attending at
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. We guarantee a great time. Bluegrass and Barbeque Boogie - July 4th, 5th and 6th Come on out and enjoy an awesome weekend with friends. The Stretch Caravan will be flying along with the helicopter and skydiving events are scheduled for each day. City Barbeque will be catering dinner Friday and Saturday evening. The Ohio State Women's FS Record Attempt - July 12th Calling all RW women! Come on out and help set the Ohio State Women's Formation Skydiving record at Start Skydiving. Our minimum target is the unofficial record of 18; our goal is to build a 30-way. Currently we have 20 women registered. For more information or to RSVP, contact Joan Esson at
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or
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. We would like to have a head count by June 21st, so please let us know as soon as possible if you're interested. And please spread the word to all your female jumper friends! |
| | DZ Happenings | | Here is the scoop! It is time to put your big way plans together and let's set some DZ and Ohio records! Check out the Start Skydiving Events Calendar and mark your schedules accordingly. Big accomplishments this past weekend: Lauren Anderson did her release dive. We also have several other students making their way through the progression. Proud moment Bob, you now have a Son (Jeff) and Daughter (Lauren) to jump with.
Teri, a D License jumper who has not jumped in years, came out and became current.
Almost a dozen women came out for the first of several scheduled practice jumps for the started to practice for the Ohio Women's Record Attempt, happening July 12. With the help of some great coaching from several extremely experienced organizers, the ladies were able to complete some successful formations. State record, here we come!
The MESL Meet had four teams participate and completed 5 1/2 rounds before the weather came in. Remember to take advantage of the free coaching provided by members of Fastrax.
We had no cutaways or incidents, and despite the weather, we did 29 loads - 49 tandems and 416 skydives -all with one plane. Thanks, Jerry and Kenny, for keeping things moving!
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. |
| Marcus shooting a tandem exit |
| National Skydiving League |  Mid-East Skydiving League News Greetings Four-Way Junkies, The next several articles will be dedicated to routines. Great teams have routines to maintain focus, below is a sample of a bad weather training day routine. Please contact me with any and all questions you may have at
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Training Routine 1. Bad weather plan
a. Identify a meeting time. b. Discuss the activities for the day. 2. Always make sure that you are jump-ready a. Prepare gear for the day so it is ready when the weather breaks. b. Warm-up regardless of the weather conditions. c. Creep the first set of dives. d. Mockup the exits for the first set. 3. Extra curricular a. Debrief dives from previous camps or meets. b. Creep angles from multiple draws. c. Exit practice. d. Watch videos from other world class teams. e. Document your team statistics. f. Read a book on Team Psychology. g. Do a team bonding activity. h. Go to a Gym or do Yoga together. i. Go and watch a Movie together.
MESL Schedule 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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