30 MAR 2014

		Some crazy weather this week to recap. For most of March, we've had great weather in the week, and awful jump weather on the weekends. But on Thursday and Friday, the trend reversed. Friday had some beautiful weather in the early afternoon, by by 4 pm, ominous clouds started to roll in. Soon, we had a downpour, followed by walnut-sized hail -- a first, according to Mark Mark, who says the DZ owes beer. Austin spotted some large ones he wanted to keep, but they melted. Once we got the precipitation out of the way, and the runway dried and rolled, we were crazy busy the rest of the weekend, with many students jumping on Saturday, once the winds died down. Sunday was too windy for students to jump, and almost too windy for even Tandems, but we got them all up before the winds kicked up too high. On Saturday, David Garcia waited out the high winds most of the day, and got back up in the skies with Scott and L'il Buddy and completed his level 3 release dive and is all set to practice turns on level 4 next! German Martinez also returned to the skies on Saturday, getting back in the air with Ilya and L'il Buddy. Also completing level 3 on Saturday, Jasper Byrom had a great jump with Ilya and Steve. And finally getting to go up and do his Category A Training tandem, Robert Lowe spent the whole weekend at the DZ and helped out catching Tandems. But the big news this weekend: Sladyn Howell graduated off AFF status and is now cleared to jump solo! Congrats Sladyn!
HOT AIR BALLOON JUMPS SATURDAY		April 5th Skydive Temple will be hosting hot air balloon jumps for jumpers with at least a B-license. Cost is $125 per jumper per jump, and you must arrive at the DZ by 6:00 am! To sign up, go to SDT's Phun Jumper page on Facebook and accept the event to RSVP. There will be a drawing this friday at 5:00pm to determine load & jump order; jumpers will be notified of their placement. Balloon jumps are not high altitude, but you do get something of a falling feeling on exit; they are very rare, cool, and highly memorable experiences! RSVP ASAP!
		HAVE YOU MET BRIAN? Two years ago he was a living the pirate life in California on a sail boat, drifting between LA and San Diego, but one day, perusing dropzone.com he found Skydive Temple, and now wants to learn to free fall. Today, you might catch Brian Lancaster mowing, cleaning, doing auto mechanic stuff, and a host of other chores, as he is working at SDT. Thank him personally next time you appreciate a clean restroom. Brain is a local, growing up in nearby Georgetown where he owns a motorcycle repair & customization shop called Sun Ciy Power Sports. While he still likes everything in cycling, injuries prevent him from competing in motocross and area cross.
CANOPY CONTROL COURSE THIS SATURDAY		Learn to be a better and safer canopy pilot and land standing up on every jump in the canopy control course this Saturday, April 5th. This class is required for getting your B license (A at Skydive Temple). Pre-requisite for this class: AFF soloists and up. Class will be rain or shine, starting at 9am. You must be paid up and secure gear rental (if needed) by 9 a.m. Cost is $45 (plus rental gear if needed) plus 3 hop and pops from 5,500 and 3,500”. Returning students (those who have taken the course within the past year) cost is only $15 for the class (plus gear and jumps) Please email Ilya@Skydivetemple.com or facebook Ilya Kats to confirm
		DID YOU KNOW... One of the benefits of joining the United States Parachute Association is getting a monthly subscription to Parachutist, the magazine of the USPA. This week, we link to an informative and useful article on density altitude. If you've never quite understood it, or were unsure how to apply knowledge of density altitude to your canopy flying, don't miss this short and sweet explanation.
SAFETY TIP OF THE WEEK		Springtime winds can be tricky; often at the high end of your limits, and often in variable directions at different altitudes. After opening and checking your canopy and locating the DZ, turn into the wind and look down between your feet to determine ground speed into the wind. Note any sideways push, and turn into the prevailing winds. Move to a position directly upwind of your target. This is called getting on the wind line -- the wind is now blowing you directly back to the DZ. Next, if altitude, position, and traffic permits, turn downwind and look down to check ground speed. Once you know your penetration into and with the wind, it's much easier to hit your pattern entry point at your target altitude. Note any changes in wind speed or direction on the way down -- spring winds can surprise -- and adjust accordingly. With just a little practice doing this, you can get quite accurate and consistently, safely hit your target!
Contact Skydive Temple at 254-947-3483 or email jump@skydivetemple.com