28 APR 2014

		Thursdays have been beautiful most every week this spring, and Elijah Tienda took advantage of the blue skies and light winds to make an awesome coach jump with Wendy. And Gabe Ward came out to knock out his training tandem the same day and is now all set to do his level 1 AFF! While Saturday's winds remained too high for students to jump most of the day, on Sunday, Keith Nevins took the FJC from Beth and got to do his training tandem with Zac and also is ready for his level 1 AFF Finally, Nick Harrison came back out, took a refresher jump from Shelby and now is ready to tear up the skies for the summer!
SKYDIVE TEMPLE 25TH ANNIVERSARY BOOGIE		Planning for the weekend of May 31st and June 1st continues with lots of surprises in store. We will host Spaceland's Twin otter, with load organizers to put you on memorable, fun jumps that expand your skills! And for real excitement: a Hughes 500c Turbine Helicopter (lift ticket $65)! Also on tap: A live band Saturday night, the comic stylings of Austin Catchings, free beer, great food, and a world famous Toga Party. Stay tuned for more details on our Phun Jumpers Facebook page.
		HAVE YOU MET KEVIN? By day he works as an Army Medic, but for fun, he collides his parachute into others, and also packs mains, an is working on getting his rigger's ticket. Kevin Fanning started jumping about two years ago here at SDT, after doing a tandem and finding out how much fun it really was. Besides skydiving, Kevin also does a lot of reading, watching documentaries and scuba diving. Kevin is due to be discharged later this year and is looking forward to traveling the US and jumping at different DZs around the country.
GETTING BACK IN THE SKY		If you are a student (not yet earned your A-license) and haven't jumped in a while and wonder what it would take to get back up, here is a quick guide. To stay current, USPA requires a jump (or training) every 30 days. After 30 days, you'll will need to take a refresher class, which could be very short if you are just a few weeks over 30 days, or it could be a longer course if you've been grounded longer -- the idea being to fully prepare you before jumping out of an airplane. If you haven't jumped in 60 days or more, you'll need a refresher, plus repeat your last skydive before we throw anything new at you to work on. After 6 months, you'll need a refresher and do a Cat B assessment jump, to get your knees back in the breeze, make sure you're stable and comfortable in the air, and see if there is anything we need to work on; if not, you pick up right where you left off. After a year or more, while your previous jumps count toward your total required, you'll need to retake the first jump course and work through the program to make sure your learned skills are still there. We want to help you get to where you want to go in the sport, in a way that's safe, fun and efficient.
		DID YOU KNOW... The United States Parachute Association lists recurrency requirements in Section 5 of the Skydiver's Information Manual As we get into warmer months, many Skydivers return to jumping after a winter layoff. It's a good idea to brush up on all your skills, especially emergency procedures before making that first jump of the season.
SAFETY TIP OF THE WEEK		Staying forward in the aircraft during climb out, during jump run and during exit helps keep the plane flying safely and efficiently. Many jumpers like to stretch out and move towards the tail during climb, especially when the plane isn't too full. But that kills the rate of climb by several hundred feet per minute, and makes it harder to control the aircraft, especially if a loss of power (engine out, fuel starvation) situation happens Many jumpers start to move toward the door on jump run, or during exit. Don't; its dangerous due to a risk of stalling the aircraft. Instead, stay seated well forward until its your group's turn to jump. Move forward, stay forward, keep safe!
Contact Skydive Temple at 254-947-3483 or email jump@skydivetemple.com