3 AUG 2014

Students got an early start to a beautiful weekend on Friday when newbie John Todd came out to do his very first Level 1 AFF with Chad and Scott.

And Chris Treyz came out to make his A-Licence check dive with Wendy, and work on finishing up his USPA A-license requirements.
On Saturday Daniel Renkel made a lot of progress, doing three jumps in one day: two coach jumps with Chad and Scott and a hop-n-pop as well.
Also getting up several times Saturday, Spenser Hansen did his first hop-n-pop, along with some solos, and got started on learning how to pack.
Kayla Ramsom got a beautiful level 4 jump in with Steve, working on turns.
And Slayden Howell did his first coach jump with Chad working on docking.
But the big news Saturday was that Chris Treyz finished up his A-License jumps, took the A-license test from Wendy and is now an official licensed skydiver, able to jump with others safely.
On Sunday, Jasper Byrom returned to do a solo and a coach jump with Chad and is closing in on his A-license.
Finally, on Sunday, Ramiro Ibarra and Brian Winfield took the FJC from Isaac and also did their tandem training jumps with Steve and Scott, respectively -- welcome Ram and Brian!


ELIJAH & BRYSON EARN THE SCR

 
On Sunday, our own manifestor, Elijah Tienda and Bryson Shipman earned the Star Crest Recipient award by being part of an 8-way formation in the skies over Salado.
Also participating in the jump were: (going clockwise from bottom) Elijah Ray Schafer, Wendy Faulkner, Sam King, Bryan Cavage, Austin Catchings, Bryson, and Bob McLaughlin
Congrats, Elijah & Bryson!
 


DID YOU KNOW...

The United States Parachute Association Board of Directors met July 11-13 in Memphis, Tennessee, for the fourth meeting of its term. A few highlights:
Beginning January 1, 2015, the A-license requirements will include a written exam in addition to the current oral exam.
The board approved the by-laws for the Skydiving Safety Foundation, which was established at the winter board meeting earlier this year. The foundation will fund board-approved safety initiatives through donor contributions.
A full report will appear in the September issue of Parachutist. The next board meeting will be held prior to the PIA Symposium March 27-29 in Daytona Beach, Florida.
SAFETY TIP OF THE WEEK

Last week, we linked to an article on wing loading and downsizing. This week, the second part on how wing loading affects turns, and how easy it is to hook turn into the ground, and what you can do to avoid that fate.

Contact Skydive Temple at 254-947-3483
or email jump@skydivetemple.com

27 JUL 2014

		Beautiful skies over Salado on the weekend mornings this week allowed a number of jumps before the winds became too strong in the afternoon hours. On Saturday, Daniel Renkel worked on tracking and docking with Beth on an awesome coach jump. And, Estavan McCalley wanted to work on a coach jump with Chad, doing a looping exit, leg turns and tracking. And finally on Saturday Evan+Miller-Jones got to go up with Shelby and work on Docking, fall-rate adjustment and tracking before the winds kicked up. On Sunday, Chris Treyz got a beautiful coach jump in with Chad working on docking and tracking before the winds kicked up. And Shelby taught a FJC, with students John Todd, and Husband-Wife team Justin Beyerl and Rebecca "Sese" Beyerl getting to go up and pass their training tandems with Steve, Scott and Isaac, respectively.
		HAVE YOU MET DZ CHAD? If you were at Skydive Temple this weekend, you may have seen "Dimple" Chad Cogburn, aka "DZ Chad" who joined the staff doing AFF and video and coaching (both free fall and canopy) Chad was most recent at world famous Skydive The Farm in Rockmart GA. Chad started jumping in August of 1998 at Skydive Houston. Chad is actually an Austin native, and a second generation skydiver. His dad was a DZO, holds numerous skydiving accomplishments and was Chad's AFF instructor. Chad's favorite skydive was a jump with his father, ex-wife and daughter, Amillia (in the oven) over Skydive Sussex in New Jersey in 2010. Chad has 5600+ jumps and 2033 tandems, 500+ AFFs, 2000+ video jumps, a number of demos (one in downtown Atlanta) and competes in swooping meets. Chad is looking forward to working with students and hopes to train someone all the way from first jump to competition level skydiving.
		DID YOU KNOW... The United States Parachute Association has published good advice on choosing your own equipment, including a explanation on wing loading and recommendations based on your experience in the Skydiver's Information Manual. If you haven't yet, take a look at Section 5-3.B and see what sort of wing loading is recommended for you.
SAFETY TIP OF THE WEEK		This week, we link to a great article on Wing Loading, and knowing when and how to downsize to a smaller, faster parachute. Once off student status, you will be looking to get your own gear. You may want to get a fast, high performance canopy, but the wiser jumper will instead get a more forgiving canopy. Jumpers just off status still have much to learn and inevitably will make mistakes -- you want a canopy that will allow those mistakes without killing or permanently disfiguring or disabling you.
Contact Skydive Temple at 254-947-3483 or email jump@skydivetemple.com

20 JUL 2014

		Lots happening this weekend: Clouds tried to put a crimp on student jumps, but Jasper Byrom, Spenser Hanson and Brian "Sacajaweea" Lancaster got to make some solos on Saturday, and Jasper and Sac again next day. On Sunday, Joe Braitsch got up to do his Level 1 AFF, liked it so much he turned around and did his Level 2 the same day! But the big news on Sunday, Eric Slater worked on his loops, barrel rolls and tracking with Wendy and got off AFF status and is now cleared to solo and coach jumps.
SDT HOSTS DEAD MAN BOOGIE SEPT 27TH		Mark your calendars for Saturday, September 27th, when Skydive Temple will host the awesome Dead Man boogie! Who died, what's down, man? What is a boogie? Stay subscribed for more details to come!
		DID YOU KNOW... There may be several different groups jumping on your load, perhaps doing different disciplines like formation skydiving (RW), Canopy Formations (CRW), wing suit flying or angle flying. Each group is affected by winds aloft differently, and their exit spot and airspace use will also be different. The United States Parachute Association has published a handy discussion of spot considerations for various disciplines in the Skydiver's Information Manual. If you haven't yet, take a look at Section 5-7.D and get a better idea of exit order and spotting for different kinds of jumps.
SAFETY TIP OF THE WEEK		Ever ask yourself "How long do I wait to jump after the group before me exits"? We want both horizontal and vertical separation between groups so that their free falls don't intermix, but especially for safety during and after deployment. Since everyone is usually deploying around the same altitude then horizontal separation becomes the dominant factor. It comes down to this - the plane needs to fly far enough horizontally between your exit and the jumper going after you to provide that separation. The stronger the wind the more time it takes the plane to fly that distance. Generally 5 to 7 seconds is sufficient, but when in doubt talk to manifest, the pilot, and more experienced jumpers before getting on the plane. You'll find out what the winds are at altitude and develop a good plan to have a safe jump.
Contact Skydive Temple at 254-947-3483 or email jump@skydivetemple.com

13 JUL 2014

		Lots happening this weekend: Saturday, Ilya held a canopy control course, with Brian "Sacajaweea" Lancaster, Courtney Moore and Jasper Byrom, making a series of three hop-n-pops, working on canopy flying, flaring and landing skills. Jasper Byrom also finished up his AFF on Saturday and is now ready to finish coach jumps and to jump solo! Another AFF graduate Saturday: Daniel Renkel, who made his level 7 jump with Wendy, and soloed on Sunday! A third graduate off AFF status Saturday was Spencer Hanson who made a total of 6 jumps over the weekend, and started his solo jumps on Sunday. Making several jumps on Saturday and Sunday, Ames O'Boyle got back up and is working on his release dives. Making several jumps over the weekend, Thomas Harrison got back in the air and worked on refreshing his flying skills. And Greg Smeltzer made a release dive with Wendy, falling free in the air over Salado. On Sunday, Eric "Sparky" Martinez did a fast Level 2 jump with Scott & Steve and is all ready for his release dive.
SDT CLOSED MONDAY		Skydive Temple will be closed Monday July 14th, but will resume regular hours on Thursday, July 17th.
		DID YOU KNOW... Joining the United States Parachute Association gives you more than a monthly subscription to Parachutist magazine. USPA members receive third-party liability skydiving insurance, which includes bodily injury and property damage, as part of membership. And of course, members are qualified to earn USPA licenses which are recognized around the world as certificates of skydiving proficiency. If you haven't yet, you can join or renew here.
SAFETY TIP OF THE WEEK		We've been running a series on equipment inspection just so you can avoid senarios like this dramatic video of a cutaway gone wrong due to a mis-routed three-ring release system. How did it happen? Check out this youtube that recreates and explains the problem. Make sure you understand how your gear works, and keep a close eye on every critical element on every gear inspection you do before every jump.
Contact Skydive Temple at 254-947-3483 or email jump@skydivetemple.com

7 JUL 2014

		Tons of students made a lot of progress over the Forth of July weekend, especially on Sunday when we had no Tandems scheduled and were able to devote all instructors to AFF students! Spenser Hanson made a number of jumps, staying over at the DZ all weekend and making it all the way to his level 4 single-instructor stage. Brian "Sacajaweea" Lancaster completed his AFF portion of the training and made a solo jump besides. Fellow SDT staff member Eric "Sparky" Martinez also got up, finally getting in his level 1 AFF and having a great time. Daniel Renkel also made it to level 4, jumping with Ilya on Sunday. Danny Reyes got back up in the skies, getting to his adrenaline-pumping level 3 independent free fall jump on Saturday Also on Saturday, Dave Garcia, sporting his brand-new jumpsuit, worked on his turns with Scott. After a short hiatus, Greg Smeltzer made it out as well, getting back up in the skies over Salado. Nailing his level 5, Jasper Byom tore it up in the air and was pretty much on cloud 9 the whole weekend. Kayla Ransom also made it back, having a blast working on forward movement in her level 2 jump And returning from deployment to Afghanistan Chris Treyz made several coach jumps with Shelby over the weekend. Slayden Howell and Sidney Hoelscher both got up on the same load, each doing solos with Sidney finishing up her training jumps. Finally, on Sunday, Shelby taught the FJC with visiting brothers from Austraila, Justin and Jeremy Pickham, here in Texas for a bachelor party, along with Joe Braitsch who each also knocked out their Category A Training Tandems with Scott and Zack late in the day. But the biggest news this weekend was that Sidney Hoelscher and Elijah Tienda both completed their A-license requirements and got their A-license stamps and are now official skydivers! Congrats folks!
CANOPY COURSE SATURDAY		This Saturday 7/12/14 Ilya Kats will be holding a canopy course here at Skydive Temple. Please message Ilya or Elijah to confirm or comment so we can get a number of people attending. Learn or refresh your knowledge on how to be a better and safer canopy pilot, including stand up landing techniques for every jump, navigation in various wind conditions, and much more. This class is required for getting your A license (at Skydive Temple). Pre-requisite for this class: AFF graduates and up. Class is normally on rain or shine. 9am - start, settle the payment and secure gear rental by 9 a.m. (if needed). Ground instruction is $45 plus 3 hop and pops (and rental gear if you need that) from 5,500 and 3,500”. Return student (those who have taken the course within the past year) fee is only $15, and is a great opportunity to finish the B-license canopy curriculum (which requires total of 5 jumps)
		DID YOU KNOW... The United States Parachute Association has published short & simple equipment checklist in the Skydiver's Information Manual. If you haven't yet, take a look at Section 5-4.C and review what to look for when doing your pre-flight checks on the gear you'll be jumping.
SAFETY TIP OF THE WEEK		Over the last several weeks, we've been running a series on equipment inspection. Recently, someone discovered in the plane, at altitude that they had not turned on their AAD, so they rode the plane back down. Luckily, that oversight was caught before the jump. But, it should have been caught much earlier! 1. Do a pre-flight check of your gear before putting it on. ALWAYS! This should be among the most obvious tasks imaginable. 2. Be thorough. See the above link to the SIM for guidance. Ask your instructors for assistance. 3. Gear check at least one more person on the load with you. You might actually save a life! 4. Have someone else gear check you -- perhaps the same friend you gear check! 5. Students get three gear checks: when gearing up, before boarding, and before jumping. Soberingly, this incident was only caught at the last stage. Imagine the senselessness of a fatality that could have easily been prevented with… a simple gear check!
Contact Skydive Temple at 254-947-3483 or email jump@skydivetemple.com