You guys might remember Kevin Burkart from two years ago, when he put on an event called a 100 Perfect Jumps.  He did this in order to raise awareness and funds for Parkinson’s disease, which his father Gary Burkart suffers from.

This year, Kevin is upping it a bit, and going for 200 jumps in a 24 hr period.  This is taking place at Skydive Twin Cities, in Baldwin, Wi as we speak.  Kevin’s goal is to raise $60,000 – and if you would like to help, you can make donations or buy some swag through their website.

Right now morning fog is keeping them grounded, so everyone please send some fog-lifting-thoughts Kevin’s way, so he can get started.

Best of luck Kevin – we’ll be watching for updates through the day via Twitter (@PerfectJumps)!

Jump 4 Heroes

See the TV interview below and a short edit of the jumps below that.

On June 16, Kevin Burkart will attempt 200 jumps in 24 hours to raise money and awareness for Parkinson’s Disease research. The project is 200 Perfect Jumps and there are three excellent reasons to donate: 1) be a good person, 2) Mirage container and 3) PD canopy.

Mirage Systems is donating a complete container (a $2,800 value!) to be auctioned off. Bidding closes March 31 and proceeds will benefit the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research. If you win the auction, you get a 100% free Mirage Systems complete container with 100% options, all for free! Mirage Systems has committed to manufacturing the container within 8 weeks, so you’ll have it in time to jump at the Perfect Jumps event on June 16! Bids should be submitted to kevin@stepstonegroup.com.

In addition, Performance Designs has donated a canopy (excluding cross-braced models) to be raffled off. Kevin is selling 100 $100 “chance tickets.” Contact Kevin, Nick Grillet at PD or possibly someone in your area for one of these coveted tickets.

Good luck Kevin, and the future winners of that rig and canopy!

Mum! Topless! Haiti! Skydive!

We first learned of Kat Mager’s charity skydive from this headline bait: Mum’s Topless Haiti Skydive! I was very scared to open the link, fearing…well, the worst. But, Kat is super hot and, as it turns out, super sweet. She is trying to raise £2,000 (~ $3,000) for Haiti relief, and if she does, she will indeed skydive topless.

We think it behooves all of our subscribers to support this worthy cause. Donate here and now! And be sure to kick in a little extra so she can afford to hire a videographer. (UK Skydiving videographer, you might find a publication willing to print those photos. We just can’t think of which one that would be )

The Jump for the Cause 181-way women’s world record has been ratified by the Fédération Aéronautique Internationale! Record

Jump for the Cause 2009 | Photo by Willy Boeykens

Jump4Hope was founded in July of 2009 by Frank Shisler, in memory of his father Milton F. “Butch” Shisler, Jr., who battled cancer for five years until his passing on June 18th, 2009, at the age of 62.

The goal of Jump4Hope is to raise funding and awareness for The American Cancer Society. They will be holding the First Annual Jump4Hope at SkyDive Chicago on September 12th, 2009. For more information, visit http://www.jump4hope.com.

BASE for the Cure

I’m sure you have heard about Jump for the Cause before, and should probably prepare to hear about it a lot more in the coming weeks as the women’s world record event draws closer.

But, the chicks are not the only ones using extreme air sports as a way to bring attention to cancer and raise funds to support cancer research.
Two crazy guys (by their own admission) had the idea to use Bridge Day 2009, now in it’s 30th year, to raise funds to benefit VCU Massey Cancer Center.  You can follow the journey of James Bennett and Christopher Anderson by visiting their website, where you can also show support and donate to their cause.
We wish them all the best and hope that both the fund raiser and Bridge Day 2009 will be a great success.

Photos by Jason Bell, Vertical Visions, LLC