Skydive Spaceland has announced that “the host’s marketing group will not allow sponsored teams or individuals to promote sponsors onsite during Nationals. This means sponsored teams/individuals cannot set up any tents, flags, airblades and more showing any company logos. If you have a packing tent you want to use during Nationals but it has a sponsor logo then you must completely cover up the logo on both sides of the material.” In addition, “The host will have an onsite marketing team patrolling the venue taking care of our partners making sure there is no ‘ambush marketing’ onsite.”
Ed Scott, Executive Director of USPA says, “USPA has just learned of the DZ’s policy. We’re currently reviewing the agreements and past history of Nationals sponsorship so we can come to a conclusion. But we’re not there yet.”
From www.uspanationals.com/Partnerprotection.htm:
For immediate release: Team/Individual athlete sponsors
Event: USPA National Skydiving Championships
Contact: eric@newstepmarketing.com
For the 2009 USPA National Skydiving Championships, sponsored teams or individuals will be allowed to wear their sponsored gear and sponsor clothing but they will not be permitted to hand out any sponsor products, literature or advertisements about these companies.
Skydive Spaceland is building strong partnerships for the USPA Nationals scheduled for Oct 12-25, 2009. The host will have an onsite marketing team patrolling the venue taking care of our partners making sure there is no “ambush marketing” onsite. In an effort to protect the investment of our exclusive partners we must make sure any non-sponsoring company does not promote themselves during the event.
For this reason the host’s marketing group will not allow sponsored teams or individuals to promote sponsors onsite during Nationals. This means sponsored teams/individuals cannot set up any tents, flags, airblades and more showing any company logos. If you have a packing tent you want to use during Nationals but it has a sponsor logo then you must completely cover up the logo on both sides of the material.
If your team sponsor happens to be one of our event sponsors then you can display these these logos without restriction. Thank you for supporting our efforts to build stronger more productive partnerships within the skydiving industry. If you have any questions please contact us at the address above. We look forward to seeing you at this year’s big event.
The minutes of USPA’s summer board meeting are up – download here .
First, a brief guide to reading meeting minutes: the board of directors follows the parliamentary procedures of Robert’s Rules of Order. According to Robert’s Rules, any time you want to get something done, a member brings it up as a motion. Any motion has to be seconded—that is, at least one other person on the board has to be interested in talking about or voting on whatever it is the first person wants to talk about. The person who seconds may or may not agree with the motion.
So, in USPA’s meeting minutes, each motion’s informal title is first listed in bold. A short explanation for the motion is on the second line. The third line, in bold, lists the results of voting as x/y/z where x=votes for, y=votes against and z=abstained (no vote). The person who brought the motion to vote is in parentheses. Voters can opt to have their vote specifically listed at the end of this line, but this is not required or common. The fourth line, in italics and quotations, is USPA’s official action if the vote passes.
A. Resignation of Pacific Regional Director.
Mr. Chris Quaintance submitted his resignation as the Pacific Regional Director. The following motion results: ….. Motion 10: Passed, 17/2/0 (Mr. Stokes) Farrington opposed “Move to accept the resignation of Chris Quaintance as the Pacific Regional Director.”
So this bit means that the board accepted Chris’ resignation, after a vote of 17 for, 2 against, including Jessie Farrington against.
So, now for the highlights (Blue Skies Mag’s comments/synopses are in blue):
Item
Page
1. Call To Order
3
2. Approval of the Minutes of the Previous Meeting
3
3. Adoption of the Agenda
3
4. President’s Report
3
5. Interim Actions (Mr. Stokes)
3
6. Treasurer’s Report (Dr. Schlichtemeier)
4
7. Executive Director’s Report (Mr. Scott)
5
“Mid-year member activity indicators are up in every category, and are ahead of numbers for the same period last year, and for the last several years. Financial information is complete through the end of May, indicating that USPA is in a much-improved financial condition compared to the same period last year. Fatalities are way down for this period.
“USPA has contracted with Unitrin/Kemper insurance to offer discounted home and auto insurance policies to our members. Rigs are specifically covered in the agreement, and new policies will result in royalties to USPA.
“Finally, USPA is near agreement to offer an affinity credit card to our members. There would be no annual fee for the rewards card and a competitive interest rate. Members will be able to select from a variety of skydiving photos to go on the card, or even upload their own photo. Again, royalties can be earned by USPA.”
8. IPC Delegate Report
6
“The Full BOD gave the IPC Delegate direction to support future World Air Games and World Games but not in the same year.”
“The Completion [sic] Committee has formed an ad hoc committee to gather information and explore ways to voice our strong objection to the out of competition testing portion of World Anti Doping Association. ” [Ed.: likely the Competition Committee]
Marylou Laughlin, as the U.S. delegate to the IPC, will put an item on the 2010 IPC agenda to include Wingsuit Largest Formation as a new performance world record category.
9. Old Business
A. Resignation of Pacific Regional Director
7
B. Selection of Pacific Regional Director
7
Chris Quaintance resigned; Craig Stapleton was elected by secret ballot to replace. (Any USPA vote having to do with a specific individual is usually done by secret ballot.) J.P. Furnari and Krisanne Combs were also nominated to replace Q.
10. New Business
A. Dates And Location of The Summer 2010 USPA BOD Meeting
7
Boston, MA, on July 16-18, 2010
B. Site Selection of 2011 USPA National Championships
7
Skydive Arizona was awarded 2011 Nationals over Skydive Spaceland (host of 2009 Nationals) by secret ballot vote.
C. Site Selection of 2010 USPA National Canopy Piloting Championships
7
“Move to award the 2010 USPA National Canopy Piloting Championships to Skydive Spaceland [the sole bidder] with the addition that jump costs are based on a fuel cost of less than $3 per gallon. In the event that fuel rises above that, we reserve the right to raise jump costs in proportion. Each one dollar in extra fuel costs adds about $1.50 to the jump price.”
D. Site Selection of 2011 USPA National Canopy Piloting Championships
8
Same as 2010 CP Nationals.
11. Meeting Of The U.S. Parachute Team, Inc.
8
12. Committee Reports
A. Competition Committee
8
With help of Taya Weiss, a new record category for largest wingsuit formation was created. 2011 Collegiate Nationals awarded to Skydive Arizona. “Discussed writing into the Nationals contract between USPA and Host DZ policy for handling future sponsorship money raised by the host DZ or USPA.”
B. Constitution and By-Laws
10
C. Executive Committee
11
Cindy Gibson’s individual membership and ratings were revoked, as well as her drop zone’s USPA Group Membership, based on the Executive Committee’s (EC’s) investigation. Ms. Gibson did not appeal. Thomas Lieberman, USPA #228870, had his licenses revoked and USPA individual membership suspended for one year from May 14, 2009.
“The Mid-Atlantic Regional Director discussed further action in a 1-6* regarding a tandem incident in his region. In an agreement with the Mid-Atlantic Regional Director, the member elected to no longer exercise the privileges of his tandem rating and has waived the one year statute of
limitations for disciplinary action.
“The Northeastern Regional Director discussed a possible 1-6 action for an instructor in her region. After much discussion, all agreed that the instructor would be given the option for continued training with a current AFF I/E. After options were discussed with Mr. Stokes per phone call, the instructor has decided he will not renew the ratings.
“In an interim, the Executive Committee acted to revoke Mr. Mark Schlatter’s USPA individual membership and ratings based on the findings of a 1-6 investigation. Mr. Schlatter did file a timely appeal so the action so was brought to the full board for final determination. Mr. Schlatter did not appear in person before the board. Mr. Schlatter’s letter of appeal was read to the full board and discussed. The following motion resulted as a final determination.
Motion 18: Passed, 19/0/0 (Mr. Stokes)
“Move to uphold the EC decision to revoke the USPA membership, licenses and ratings of Mark Schlatter.”
* Governance Manual Section 1-6 deals with disciplinary actions.
“USPA member Jan Meyer made a request that the following motion be added to the Executive Committee agenda: ‘Move to allow Jan Meyer to receive a written copy of the settlement agreement between 1800Skyride et al and USPA.’ After discussion no action was taken in the Executive Committee. Mr. Peek put the following motion forward to the full board:
Motion 19: Fails, 5/10/4 (Mr. Peek) Mr. Peek for, Mr. Gozwitz against.
“Move to release to Jan Meyer the Skyride Settlement Agreement.”
Sports Promotion Task Force discussed using USPA’s existing social media outlets to recruit new jumpers, sponsors for Nationals, J. Walcher Associates’ results (they are the PR firm contracted by USPA), the possibility of hiring a USPA staff member to take the place of J. Walcher Associates and more.
D. Finance and Budget
13
E. Group Member Committee
13
“Headquarters has expressed concerns about the practical ability of the Director of Safety & Training to investigate allegations of Group Member [Pledge] violations…Mr. Hill objected to any loosening of standards for foreign drop zones as related to the Group Member Pledge. Discussion ensued that resulted in consideration of a change to the pledge that would allow modification of the commitments to permit ‘foreign equivalent’ provisions for FAA and USPA rules.”
“The second item considered was changes to the Group Member Pledge in response to the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) Special Investigation Report on the Safety of Parachute Jump Operations, which was published in October 2008 and has been a focus of significant activity by the headquarters Director of Government Relations Randy Ottinger.” More info here: USPA News, USPA Blog.
“Motion 21: Passed, 20/0/0 (Mr. Allison)
‘Move to authorize the Group Membership Committee to amend the Group Member Pledge to include the following:
Each Group Member will ensure that all pilots employed or utilized for the purpose of parachute operations in association with the Group Member hold a current Commercial or Airline Transport Pilot certificate and a Second Class Medical certificate.
Each Group Member will ensure that all aircraft utilized by the Group Member for the purpose of parachute operations comply with commercial maintenance requirements described in FAR parts 91.409 (b) – (f) as applicable.
Additionally, each Group Member will submit to USPA Headquarters, on an annual basis in conjunction with Group Member Renewal, a completed Aircraft Status Sheet for each aircraft utilized at the Group Member drop zone.”
“It is the USPA Headquarters and the committees intention to publish and disseminate to the membership a jump pilot training syllabus based on work accomplished by Chris Schindler, although this work is incomplete at this time and is expected to be finalized prior to the Winter 2010 meeting.”
Motion 22: Passed, 17/3/0 (Mr. Allison) Mr. Peek & Mr. Smith against.
“Move to authorize the USPA Executive Director to negotiate with Initia a proposal to develop an electronic commerce-based marketing system for Group Member drop zones, including a proposal for a pilot program. Any interim actions are to be reviewed with the Executive Committee and require approval the full board prior to implementation.”
F. Membership Services
15
Foreign lifetime membership cost was raised to $2,500 to cover lifetime postage. Auto-renewals and/or multi-year memberships were suggested by HQ; the committee will continue discussion at the next BOD meeting.
G. Nominations and Elections
16
Photocopied ballots will continue to be accepted.
An online voting system is ready to be presented and tested, but USPA by-laws require an original signature for every vote. Also according to the by-laws, any change to the board election procedure must be approved by the full membership. Because it’s unlikely that enough of the ~31,000 members will vote, the board will attempt a proxy drive. Keep an eye out for an official notice from USPA with more details about this proxy.
“For years many have complained that petitions were too difficult, discouraged members from running for regional director and should be eliminated. While it is not within our power to do that today, we should do what we can to make them easier. What we decided was that we can allow a candidate to turn in petition signatures early, be told how many valid signatures he/she has and then be allowed to get more.”
H. Regional Directors
19
“Disciplinary actions were discussed. This is an unpleasant duty of regional directors. While maintaining safety and integrity within the sport is foremost, sometimes taking disciplinary action is complicated. The idea of an agreement between an instructional rating holder and the regional directors was discussed as an alternative option. In the event of an accident or incident, the regional director may be willing to accept an agreement with the rating holder in lieu of a disciplinary action. The agreement could include the rating holder agreeing to not exercise the privileges of his rating and waiving the statute of limitations for a disciplinary action in the future. The regional directors agreed that there may be cases where this type of agreement may be in the best interest of the sport and should be pursued. A proposal will be drafted in the interim for further discussion as the next board meeting.”
I. Safety And Training
20
The committee discussed a lot; some of which no action was taken on. See the full meeting minutes for all discussion topics. Actions taken included:
“Considering a minimum time requirement to hold a USPA Coach rating prior to obtaining a higher rating. This will be an agenda item at the next board meeting.”
The tandem instructor/examiner (I/E) requirement for tandem evaluation jumps was lowered from 50 to ten, by unanimous approval.
“A proposed syllabus was presented for USPA to create a USPA wingsuit instructor rating.” The committee approved the syllabus as a first jump syllabus to be included in the SIM after a public review and comment period. The proposed syllabus is posted at: www.uspa.org/USPAMembers/Safety/WingsuitSyllabusDraft.aspx.
A motion was proposed that would have both eliminated the requirement for tandem students to wear altimeters and extended the hard helmet requirement to them. It failed by a vote of 2-18.
The range of naked skydiving experience is far and wide. For some, their only skydive ever was naked courtesy of a tandem jump sans clothes, perhaps with Fast Eddie of Huntsville, Ala. Fast Eddie Grantland has taken 111 naked tandem passengers since 1991. Number 111 was two weeks ago.
For some, it’s just something to do to change it up a bit. Warren Cleary of Atlanta makes one naked jump a year on his birthday and has done so for the past four years. Says Cleary, “Me and my buddy’s birthday are one day apart and one year we just said, ‘Lets go jump naked.’” He’s been doing it once a year ever since. Yet for others, it’s a regular occurrence. Jeff Dawson of Wisconsin has made 2,436 jumps to date, of which 325 were naked. He has made at least one naked jump in the past 95 consecutive months. Jeff says he is the world record holder for naked jumps.
But whether it’s your first jump, or you are working to get a world record in naked jumps, there are a few things to consider when it comes to rigging and the gear-up. “I own what I believe to be the only rig that was specifically designed for naked skydiving,” Dawson says. “When Mr. Booth and Company made my Vector 3, I had them add an ROL pocket on each leg strap. One is for my cell phone…the other is for my shorts which I put on after the naked jump.”
Safety rules don’t go the way of your clothes when it comes to naked jumps. Wearing shoes, goggles and a helmet is encouraged. Grantland insists that his naked skydiving students wear tennis shoes to reduce the chance of injury if they do decide to walk or run out the landing. For slide-in tandem landings, Grantland (who, as the instructor, does wear a jumpsuit for his passengers’ naked tandem jumps) puts his legs together to give a lap for the passenger to sit on during landing. Eddie doesn’t want to give his students any road rash.
Being without a jumpsuit is a big enough change, so adding any other new variables to the mix such as a different rig, new canopy, new helmet or the first time in sandals is not recommended for naked newbies. “Keep as much of your normal stuff as constant as your can,” Dawson says.
Freefall speeds will be faster and the rig may position itself differently on your back. Practice touches are a good idea. Prepare your openings by packing for a slower opening, as getting “spanked” by your canopy hurts more sans suit. Your rig will “generally feel loose” on a naked skydive, says Dawson. “My leg straps are tightened about one inch more on a naked jump…and be especially careful your male equipment (if you are so equipped) is clear of the straps.” If you can’t tighten your leg straps tight enough for a naked jump, go see your local rigger to see if an adjustment can be made.
For women, the chest strap is the bigger issue. Grantland says he does position the chest strap centered or slightly above the breasts so on opening the chest strap doesn’t dig up under the breasts, or slide across the nipples, which could be painful…especially with piercings. “There are stories of piercings being ripped out during opening,” Dawson says. “Small band-aids placed vertically over the nipples will help protect the piercings from the chest strap.”
Clothing either before boarding the plane, during the climb to altitude or after landing is optional. It will depend on your comfort level, others at the drop zone and local DZ rules. If covering up before the jump, Dawson has seen the following options, although not all are necessarily recommended or allowed. So ask your local DZO, S&TA and pilot for the best option for you.
• A pair of oversized shorts can be worn over your leg straps during boarding and the climb to altitude. These can easily be removed before exit. Dawson sticks his shorts in his extra ROL pouch before exit.
• Wearing only your jumpsuit under your rig and then disrobing on the way to altitude or during a separate pass. But the danger is that you have to remove your rig and re-gear up after taking off the jumpsuit. Dawson has seen this done on a separate pass after all the other jumpers are out of the plane.
• Wearing a large t-shirt over your entire rig is another option; the shirt can be removed at some point prior to exit. Dawson doesn’t like this method as it can be dangerous in an aircraft emergency if you are unable to get the shirt back off.
• Lastly, a t-shirt and pair of loose shorts worn under your rig that can be cut off carefully is Dawson’s favorite method. This allows you to gear-up normally and not have to adjust any straps later.
For after the jump, the skydivers at Sky Knights Sport Parachute Club have an alternate landing area behind some trees where they stash some clothes. Then it’s a golf cart ride back to the hangar. “I have seen a pair of shorts carried in a fist from exit to ground. I have seen clothes ‘secured’ to leg straps and chest straps,” says Dawson. “I even once saw a guy pack his parachute with a pair of shorts inside the tail of the center cell. They were still there when he landed.” Of course, if you can stay naked the whole time, clothes are not an issue at all.
Finally, always remember the “Mo Rule,” says Dawson. “No matter what you are doing on skydive you still need those things necessary to accomplish the skydive safely.” According to Dawson, the story goes:
“Mo is a young lady who was making her first naked skydive, a hop & pop from 5k. Prior to exit she was sitting on the bench nearest to the door. She forgot to unbuckle her single point seat belt and exited. The seat belt was long enough that she got out of the door and bounced on the underside of the plane. Two jumpers managed to haul her back in the plane and she landed with it. Her only injury was a big knot on her forehead. Scary, especially with the knowledge that she was not wearing an AAD.”
So, on a naked skydive you still have to do all those things that you normally do on a clothed skydive—including all those things that save your life.
Skydive naked, baby!
[Ed: Possibly NSFW. Pictures may be unsuitable for boss, kid and/or bare-bum-hating eyes; in other words, click play at your own risk.]
There are a lot of specifics that apply only to PACK’D; feel free to modify and edit so that it fits your team. If it helps you or you found helpful additions or changes, let us know!
Hidden behind flaps, under grommets and inside your container are tiny pieces of metal that can end your Sky God status in a hurry. In an ideal world, all the metal in skydiving is polished, shiny and smooth as silk. But manufacturing issues, abnormal wear and just plain sharp edges can lead to frayed and broken loops in your main and reserve container. The inspection is easy; a little bit of time and some basic knowledge on what to look for will go a long way in keeping your container closed when you need it to be. You can also save yourself from having to constantly replace your loops.
The majority of main closing loops are set and anchored through a washer, which then rests against a grommet. Behind the washer are knots in your loop. The first hidden sharp edge to check for is in the washer itself. It may be smooth on one side, but it can be sharp on the other. Take the closing loop out of the washer and run your finger around the edge of the hole on both sides. Smooth the washer out with emory cloth if needed, or replace it with a washer that has no nicks.
Grommets in the main container are the next item to check. Start with the one in the main closing loop anchor, which may be separate from or part of the container flap. Just like the washer, run your finger over both sides of the grommet and into the hole, feeling and looking for sharp edges. Sharp edges are created by an improper “set” during manufacturing or from the high tension during closing, which can open a previously-set grommet. An industry-wide bulletin in the 1990s dealt with the outside edges of grommets not being set flush or into the fabric, which could then allow a line to catch on the grommet.
08/08/2004: “Recent stabilizer, grommet, cable and closing loop inspection issues”
But there are also wear issues with grommets where the inside edge rolls onto the opposing side of the grommet. This edge, if unseated, won’t necessarily catch a line, but it will cut and damage loops. Fixing this usually entails your rigger or container manufacturer resetting the grommet back to its original shape/setting with a grommet inserting die. If resetting the grommet doesn’t remove the sharp edge, then your rigger should replace the grommet entirely.
Grommets in the reserve container have the same issues, and are more likely to distort their shape or pop-up slightly and expose a sharp edge. This is due to the high tension on the closing sequence for most sport reserve containers. Riggers check each grommet during an inspection and repack for exposed sharp edges. A sharp grommet edge can nick and completely cut a reserve closing loop during closing when a flap is brought into place over the closing loop. Any sharp edge, combined with the tensioned loop, can lead to a spring-loaded pilot chute in the face and/or fraying of the loop. A frayed loop has lost strength, and must be replaced.
Just like a sharp edge on a main closing loop washer, a rigger can encounter a sharp edge on a reserve closing loop washer. Checking for nicks or rough spots before threading a new loop through the washer will prevent unexpected damage later. Riggers should also check the closing loop anchor grommet(s) for sharp edges.
One other culprit for a frayed or broken reserve closing loop is a nicked or rough temporary pin. The temporary pin is inserted in the closing loop after each successive flap is pinned. If that pin is not smooth, the high tension of the loop combined with the rough pin will damage the loop immediately.
So, jumpers and riggers–check those loops, washers and grommets. Smooth out the rough edges or replace them if needed.
Oregon rigger Jerry Baumchen has produced an instruction manual detailing how to build your own soft links, using less than $5 in materials and with no sewing involved.
By downloading the pdf from our website, you agree to take total and complete responsibility for your skydiving and/or rigging decisions and actions. You agree to indemnify and hold harmless Blue Skies Magazine, LLC, its affiliates, agents, writers, staff, and principles for any skydiving and/or rigging decisions or actions you make. The password to open the pdf file is “Iacceptresponsibility”.
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