Flying with weight

A few weeks back I decided to open my wallet for a piece of equipment that I’ve been told time and time again I would eventually need to fly with, but I’ve been too stubborn to purchase.

I don’t like being told that I’m going to need something in order to accomplish what I want in freefall. Sure, we all need parachutes, that’s a given. But when I was told I would need a weight belt (or vest) to keep up with others in freefly (and on my belly too, though you’ll rarely catch me there), the stubborn ass in me came out.

“I can just stand and catch up if I need to.”

Well, that didn’t prove to work as well as I thought it would – even standing I’m still pretty floaty.

“Well then, I’ll go head down to catch up.”

Turns out my head down skills aren’t where they should be to stick with a group of sitflyers.

“Well, what’s 10 pounds going to do anyway?”

Turns out…a lot! I’ve been flying with the belt off and on the past few weeks, forgetting it at home once, doing some solos another time, but for the most part the belt has been on. Though until this weekend, I didn’t really realize just how much of an effect it has on my fall rate.

(The first jump I did with a weight belt at Zhills. You can see a little bulk in my lower back, but nothing too terrible. In fact, it’s the same jump as my blog header – you can’t even tell I’m wearing weight there! *Photo by Aaron Stocum)

Jump #1 at The Ranch entailed me in a sit, looking down at my buddy Tom. Once I realized a stand was going to be necessary, he was too far gone and I, for the life of me, couldn’t stick a stable stand .

So for jump #2 I strapped on an extra 10 pounds around my waist and off we went. On this jump, I was only very slightly above him, in fact, if I would have kept a better heading and focused on driving my hips forward we could have easily made a couple good docks.

I think I was in awe of the difference the weight really made.

The rest of the weekend I worked on my fall rate changes and focused on the differences the weight makes on my skydive. I was even surprised how much I could feel the difference under canopy and coming in for a landing.

Needless to say, I’m incredibly happy with the weight. Who would have thought a girl could get so giddy about putting on 10 pounds?!

Best part is, in freefall, I don’t really even realize it’s there. I tuck the buckle back between my rig and lower back and, aside from the little jelly roll appearance it gives under my clothing, I’d never even know it was there on the skydive!

For all you floaty skydivers out there, I highly recommend strapping on a weight belt and giving it a go. It might just make all the difference in the world!

Blue skies!

Ashley

Brief SDC Update

Given that I was completely MIA last week, I owe y’all an update on my life in the skydiving world.

Last Friday was my birthday, so my incredibly awesome freefly partner decided to take me to the Blue Sky Ranch in New York for the weekend. Any excuse for us to travel is a good one!

We met up with our buddy Tom who was traveling for work on our first day there, met some great people, promoted Jump for Diabetes to the best of our abilities, ate some great food, and overall had an incredible time. More to come in a later post .

This weekend I also fully realized just how much difference flying with a weight belt can make in keeping up on a multiple-way sitfly.

I was also extremely happy to get my new slider from PD just in time for this trip. It’s oversized and has already made all the difference in my openings on my Sabre 1. Plus it’s collapsable, so needless to say I had  quite a few peaceful canopy rides this weekend!

And to top it off, I even got to spend some time yesterday afternoon out at Skydive PA with our regular peeps. We took off late morning from NY since the weather wasn’t cooperating – what with the low cloud layer at 1,300 ft, and as we got closer to Grove City the weather got better, so we took a detour to jump! Can you say addicts or what?

Now it’s back to the grind and my Monday’s are always incredibly hectic. But I promise to fill in the details later.

Blue skies!

Ashley

BASE Week: Rick Simenc

Well, this is the last day of BASE Week, and after an interview with Miles D, how can it get much better?

Let me tell you how…with an interview from my freefly partner! He’s also a former BASE jumper so it ties in .

*Photo by Ashley Mead

Y’all have heard so much about Rick in the past 9 months or so, it’s only fitting that you have a chance to hear the facts straight from him. Some of you may have read the article in the Jan/Feb issue of Blue Skies Mag that discusses diabetes in the world of adrenaline sports – this interview is nothing like that. We’re keeping the topics on the lighter side today.

I struggled with these questions, Rick, as the regular readers pretty much know the basics about your current skydiving career – aside from those days you sneak off to jump without me

That aside, I think I’ve come up with some compelling questions to get your wheels turning and keep the readers entertained. So, here goes nothing!

SDC: Let’s start with the standard question – how did you get your start in skydiving?

RS: To make a very long story short, from day one on this planet I’ve been the epitome of spontaneity and this was one of those last minute choices .  I told myself I was going to go skydiving. So I did a static line jump for my 18th birthday.

SDC: Obviously we know your favorite discipline is freefly, but tell us why.

RS: I guess because I’m the black sheep.

SDC: Ah, “dark side” – black sheep. Makes sense. Regular readers know that we travel a lot, tell us about your favorite trip, dropzone, experience – whatever.

RS: Here comes the cheese….I will have to say that my first date with Beans (aka SkydiveChick, aka Ashley) is my most memorable skydiving trip. We went to the Work Stinks boogie last September. Too much fun! All beer has already been drunk! Our first 2-way head-down, first Heli-jump, Ashley’s first sit-fly, my first otter and our first boogie.

SDC: Aw, that’s sweet! Y’all remember this picture I assume!

*Photo by Norman Kent

SDC: You were once a regular BASE jumper. What triggered the switch to skydiving?

RS: I wanted the dirt to look smaller.

SDC: Alright, now I’m really going to put you on the spot…what’s your favorite part about being my freefly partner? (yep, I’m making this one about me…I know you can respect that )

RS: Reverse cowgirl.. LOL! I love when you ride me out the door!!

SDC: Hahaha! For those who are unaware of what he’s talking about, see the video below!

SDC: We’ve had a lot of great opportunities over the past year, what are some of the things you’re looking forward / hoping to accomplish to this season?

RS: My 500th, D license, coach and pro-rating

SDC: Jump for Diabetes is fast approaching! Tell us a little about where the idea came from and how you made it work last year.

RS: The idea came from another fundraiser that was held at a DZ in Omro,Wi while was still a student. It involved jumping out of planes, raising funds and promoting awareness for Lupus. It was fun for all and it was a good cause. I told myself, when I’m able to stay on my feet when landing, I will coordinate an event like that one and try to do the same as them. And I gave it a shot…WTF, ya know?

I’m really looking forward to this years event. I’m very lucky to have Beans and Apt3 Studios on the Jump for Diabetes team. This years event would not be happening if you guys didn’t step up.. PROPS!!

SDC: What is your most memorable skydiving experience so far?

RS: Probably sit’n relative with you.

SDC: So as one of those freeflyers who falls into that oh-so-subjective “intermediate” category, and the person who taught me how to sitfly, let’s hear your advice to all those aspiring freeflyers out there.

RS: Challenge yourself and don’t give up. When you think you’ve done everything you can to get it.. and don’t, push yourself to keep going and achieve your goal. Once you get it, you get it.

SDC: Anything you’d like to add?

RS: It’s been 3 days and I’m jones’n for some ff (freefall).

Thanks, Rick. This was fun.

For anyone who was curious about something and didn’t find out in this interview, feel free to send questions my way. After all, we do live under the same roof.

Blue skies!

Ashley

BASE WEEK with Miles Daisher

Welcome back to BASE week! Today we’re going to hear from one of the most visible characters in BASE jumping.

If you’rve heard of BASE, you’ve heard of this guy. That’s right kids, it’s Miles Daisher!

*Photo credit unavailable as I borrowed this from his Facebook page. Hope that’s alright. But this is one wicked picture!

I feel so honored to have the chance to chat with Miles and find out more about what makes him tick. So let’s have at it shall we?

SDC: So let’s dive right in with the standard first question: how and when did you get your start in skydiving? Tell us your story…

MD: I became addicted to skydiving September 6, 1995.  I’d always wanted to try it and when my roommate Frank “The Gambler” Gambalie (skydiver, BASE jumper and hero) told me where to go, I booked an AFF (Accelerated Free Fall) course at Skydance Skydiving center in Davis, California. Three days of classroom and coached jumping while passing all of my 7 level jumps to begin hucking my monkey from scareplanes on my own.  Since then I’ve quit all previous jobs I’ve had (a variety of all types) and focused on keeping myself in the parachuting world.

SDC: That’s pretty incredible! I’m a huge believer in following your passions and doing what you love, all the time. Your story is a great example of that. I’m sure a lot of people out there envy that – and I’m sure you hear that all the time

SDC: So when and how did you transition to BASE?

MD: Watching Frank’s BASE videos was always really cool.  When I saw one in particular of a jump from the Troll Spire on the Great Troll wall in Norway where Frank jumped and tracked away from the wall for 26 second before pulling his pilot chute to open his parachute.  He was flying his body away from the wall and this sparked my interest to get involved with fixed object parachuting.  From the EARTH!  I’ve lived my dream and have had the opportunity to jump the Troll wall from Frank’s exit point, the Troll Spire.  This was one of the pinnacle jumps that I’ve ever done!

I started on bridges that were the safest things to jump in case your opening faces a direction other than the heading that you choose.  If you have a 180 degree off heading opening on a cliff or a building you will have only an instant to correct the direction your parachute is flying before you strike or hit the object you jumped from.  With a 20 MPH forward speed on these canopies we fly, things can happen fast and usually do.  Bridges are the safest way to start.  I take baby steps with every goal I have so I may enjoy the ride to conquer each challenge as safe as possible.

SDC: Do you frequently get to skydive these days or are you all BASE all the time?

MD: I still Skydive quite a bit.  I LOVE it.  Compared to BASE jumping, Skydiving is a fun time, walk in the park where you get to dance in the sky with your friends.  Also you can train to do many things for BASE jumping while having a safe amount of time in the air as well as more time to dial in tricks and ways to fly your body more proficiently while skydiving.  I also perform Demonstration jumps with the Red Bull Air Force from aircraft.  I’ve even started a new sport called Skyaking (see picture above) that involves skydiving while in a kayak.  The freefall can be tricky but I think I’ve got a good handle on this now and the landings are really fun.  Swooping into a lake, river or even a ditch while strapped in a Skayak is always a great time!

SDC: That’s incredible – I’ve seen some of the videos of this and you can’t help but smile while watching you having a blast up there, in a kayak! Where do you do most of your skydiving these days – where do you consider your “home DZ” I suppose?

MD: I’ve had a few different home DZs.  I started in Skydance Skydiving then moved to Lodi for years.  Then I learned to do tandems and packed a bunch at Skydive Lake Tahoe when I became a professional parachutist. It is hard for me to call one place my home DZ.  Nowadays I’ll call the Perrine Bridge in Twin Falls Idaho my home DZ as I do more BASE jumps than anything else.  Or anyone else, because I can here in this BASE jumping friendly environment.  At 2,669 BASE jumps I’m catching up to the 3,100 skydives I’ve done. Last spring I’d call Sebastian Florida my home DZ.  I must say that I’ve been SUPER fortunate to be able to call Lauterbrunnen Switzerland my home DZ last summer as we’ve (Red Bull Air Force) been shooting a 3D movie called Human Flight for a few months.  Check out humanflight3dmovie.com to see some of what we were up to.  Mostly big wall proximity flying with squirrel suits. I’d have to say it is tough to point a finger at one DZ to call home when I love to visit them all.

SDC: We’ve all seen at least one Miles D video and there’s always one common denominator – you are very high energy! What’s your secret?

MD: The secret to the high energy I have while skydiving and BASE jumping is this . . . When you do things you are passionate about, you do them 115%, or put everything into them.  When you love what you do, you get excited about it.  For me and this instance, I find it really easy to get excited about flying parachutes and my body through the air.  It is super sensory overload for me.  I love it!  Then there is the rest of my life where my mom would always tell me to settle down and stay still which I’m still not truly understanding why and what she really means by this.  As well as the fact that I love the Red Bull energy drink that keeps my vitamin B levels up to where I enjoy them.  Caffeine is good for you too if you like to get after stuff.  I guess the ADD in me is a good thing and I’ve harnessed the power of it and sustained for life with some help drinking the right stuff.

SDC: What is one of the most memorable experiences you’ve had in this sport?

MD: I’ve had many super memorable moments in the air with my friends.  One that really let’s me feel that I can conquer anything and do anything if I put my mind to it as well as enjoy each moment to the fullest, is when I did a 2 way with Shane McConkey (my best friend and BASE partner) from the Troll wall in our squirrel suits to actually live the dream and experience the reason I’ve been driving so hard and learning so much to safely get to where I am today.  We jumped together at sunset after our Norwegian friends showed us the way to the top and flew for what seemed like forever.  Shane shot video of me and I just looked around and soaked it all in.  I didn’t even fly well and wasn’t really trying to.  I was enjoying the moment the entire day!  Shane was yelling at me to Go man Go! and was buzzing around me like a bee trying to get me to fly faster but I just smiled and thought about The Gambler and the good times we’ve all had together.  Then after we landed in a field by the road, I hid behind a hay stack because the jump we did wasn’t exactly legal.  Shane made fun of me and did the most hilarious John Belushi impersonation while in the wide open field, running side to side and diving on the ground to hide.  Then he’d get up again and run side to side and dive on the ground to make fun of how stupidly paranoid I was of getting caught. We laughed for hours on this while we had pizza in the landing area with our Norwegian BASE tour guides toasting a few beers as the sun disappeared on us.

Ahhhhhh the stuff dreams are made of. That’s for sure.

SDC: That sounds amazing. That’s one thing about parachuting I’ve come to love the most – experiencing these moments with good friends. There’s nothing quite like it! Aside from Bridge Day, what are some of the must-attend boogies and events in the skydiving and BASE world?

MD: If you ever get a chance to go to Malaysia to jump the KL Tower, DO IT!  To me this event is the funnest.  That is a word too. It’s a multi day BASE boogie with cultural celebrations and all the jumps you can handle off the 1,000 ft tower.  There is an organized multi week tour that travels the country and has demonstration jumps at many different buildings.  I’d like to have enough time to do this someday but the KL Tower is the crowned jewel of the trip from what I hear.  I’m trying to get myself organized up on this adventure again this year.

SDC: Malaysia has always been a place I’ve wanted to visit. Maybe now there’s another reason…What’s the best piece of advice (related to skydiving/BASE jumping or not) that you’ve ever been given?

MD: The best advice I’ve gotten in my life is “Pay Attention!”  You can learn a lot by observing.  Keep your eyes open and your mouth shut.  Unless you have a question of course.  Many people want to get into BASE and start hucking flips and do cool tricks right away.  Best thing you can do is to get your FUNdamentals dialed in and perfected before starting to get rad.  When you do want to learn something new, break it down into pieces and practice each part so that your motor muscle memory can save you when your brain doesn’t.  Baby steps take longer to do but will get you to your goals safer than going full tilt taking chances and missing out on the Journey that is ever so important and a big part of the whole big picture.

SDC: With the amount you have on your plate you must have a very supportive family?

MD: I gotta give huge props to my wife Nikki and children.  I don’t know where I’d be without their support and trust and faith in me and what I do.  My lifestyle is kinda crazy in the (not so) real world of normalcy.  I have a crazy schedule that is subject to change at a few days notice.  Hard to make every soccer game, gymnastics meet and even birthday party.  We all support each other like a team.  I’m super blessed to have such an understanding and helpful family who has my back no matter what.  The same thing said for me to them.  I don’t take unnecessary risks even when I’m doing the “crazy” stuff I do. There is a method to my madness. I plan on sticking around for years and years to be able to brag up the good times with great friends and give my kids as much grief as possible unless they remain the almost perfect angels that they are for the rest of their lives.  I try to surround myself with good people and abide by the great words of Bill and Ted on their adventures “Be excellent to each other.”  This would be the one moment where my wife would not support me in my cheesiness as she thinks I’m a dork sometimes.  The thing is, she is right and I’m glad she can keep it real too.  I can handle it when I’m right and she can’t seem to appreciate the goodness of a quality movie I believe in.

SDC: So for all those aspiring BASE jumpers out there here’s one you’ll appreciate: If you could give one piece of advice to newbie BASE jumpers, what would it be?

MD: If you would like to learn to BASE jump, come check me out at Miles D’s BASE Camp and learn a safe approach to a dangerous sport. Or at least take your time while you PAY ATTENTION to the do’s more than the don’ts of the sport.  Know what can go wrong and be ready for anything but plant the super positive seed in your head to ready yourself for the perfect outcome of every jump.  Not false confidence but know what you have to do to make the perfect landing happen every time you step off the Earth.  The biggest thing is to know your gear, it’s tendencies and how to make it do the right thing . . . land safe.

Blue skies!  Rock On!

Thanks Miles! This was a treat!

I highly recommend checking out any and all of Miles’ videos – it’s some good stuff.

Blue ones!

Ashley

BASE Week: Marko Markovich

I’ve deemed this week “BASE Week” here at SDC.

Why? Well let me tell you – I’ve done some incredible interviews the last few weeks and all of them are / were BASE jumpers. So I’m dedicating this week to the experts out there who know what they’re talking about. Because let’s be honest, if you’ve been here before, you know I clearly don’t have a clue .

So on with the show!

Today we’re talking to a BASE jumper that I met at the Everglades Boogie this January. I turned to him on the first Otter load and asked him his name…he looked really familiar. Turns out, we didn’t know each other, but had some BASE friends in common.

So we kept in touch (oh the powers of social media) and after reading about his BASE trips in Blue Skies Mag, I was excited to chat with him about all this.  Today we’re talking to Marko Markovich!

*Photo credit unknown. I borrowed this from his Facebook page

So let’s start out with a few generic skydiving questions to get the ball rolling, shall we?

SDC: How long have you been skydiving?

MM: Since 2007

SDC: Tell us a “your story.” What brought you into the sport and what has kept you here?

MM: Well I always wanted to go skydiving, once I finally said screw waiting for a bunch of people to go with me I went with 2 buddies. And when I landed I was back in less then a week! So much fun, so many places to jump and so many people to meet! I love how challenging it is!

SDC: What’s your favorite skydiving discipline and why?

MM: My favorite skydiving discipline has been freeflying but since this winter and all the boogies I have been to Luis Prinetto turned me onto tracking a lot! It is by far my most favorite in the sky! There are so many types of track dives you can do and constantly switching up the dive in the sky!

SDC: Moving on to BASE…when we met at the Everglades boogie, I quickly found out that we have some mutual friends in the BASE world. What turned you on to BASE?

MM: BASE is a totally different world and thats why I love it. When I first took the APEX course I took a year off since it scared me up pretty good. Then I got back into it and love it more then anything. Every BASE jump is like my first skydive, so scared that I can’t really enjoy it yet, and when I do start to enjoy it I always see myself pushing the boundaries and trying harder and harder things on base jumps. I would like to take a step back and just enjoy it but love pushing and testing my limits! One thing about it is that I can go do it whenever I want for the most part, and I can go alone and do it for myself!

SDC: So what are you more passionate about, BASE or skydiving. Why?

MM: That’s a tough call, since you have to work for BASE and not pay for the jumps I think it will win for now!

SDC: You recently got back from a couple cool BASE trips, one that was chronicled in Blue Skies Mag… and the more recent trip to Twin Falls. Tell us a little about those experiences.

MM: This winter was the funnest winter I’ve had in my life. Had a blast in Cali and met so many people, same as in Florida and Twin Falls. California definitely has some of the sickest scenery for BASE jumps! Idaho was an amazing trip as me and 2 buddies went and we had a blast jumping non stop for 6 days!

SDC: What’s the best memory you’ve made as a BASE jumper?

MM: The best memory I have is actually from this past weekend at Twin! I taught my buddy how to jump and got him into the sport, we did a nice 2 way with him doing video of me doing a gainer on a sunset load at the bridge. It was by far one of the best jumps I have ever done!

SDC: What’s one of the scariest things you’ve seen in the sport?

MM: Well lucky me I havent seen much carnage in this sport. Just seeing people do some low turns and stab out at the last second…thank god!

SDC: Okay, now back to skydiving. Planning on attending any boogies or traveling anywhere this season. Maybe back to Everglades perhaps?

MM: Yeah this winter that just passed was my first with a lot of traveling, my next winter is getting planned out much differently. I will be at almost every boogie in the US if things go according to plan!

Thanks Marko! It was great chatting with you. Be safe out there on those static objects.

Stick around, we’ve got some more BASE jumpers to hear from this week – and you WON’T be disappointed!

Blue skies!

Ashley

*NOTE: This was my 100th post. Yay!

False alarm

The forecast didn’t look favorable for last weekend – not one bit. With a 60% chance of early afternoon thunderstorms, the crew pretty much assumed Saturday would be 1 and done as far as skydiving goes. Sunday looked even worse, with an 80% chance of storms all day.

Lucky for us, we were only weathered out for a short burst of cloudiness on Saturday and still got 15 loads up.

I was especially thankful as I had not been in the air since South Carolina – so I was jonesing BAD.

At sundown on Friday night, the 2nd annual Tom Watson party started. It included catering, gun shooting, couch burning, good friends, and a beer fire truck..seriously, look!

*Photo by Mary Margaret Briggs

Oh, and there were also lots of great skydives! Joe Lunardi was the load organizer for the day, and he put together some great group freeflying and a fun tracking dive.

Here’s some proof from the weekend

This was also the first weekend for me and my 10 pound weight belt. That’s a story for another day.

Sunday’s weather panned out as expected – with lots of rain. But it was still a fun time at the dropzone, hanging out with friends, watching videos and chatting the day away!

Hope y’all had a good weekend! Looking forward to doing it again soon!

Blue Skies!

Ashley

The Skydiver Diet with PhytoBurst

A couple weeks back I was contacted by this awesome chick Suji who had recently spent some time in the tunnel. Bad ass!

Apparently she came across my blog and noticed a couple posts about the “skydiver diet,” as I like to refer to my inability to eat and skydive. I don’t recommend this, it’s unhealthy and honestly very unsafe to let yourself get low on fuel during a sport like skydiving.

Adrenaline will only take you so far before you hit the floor from lack of energy.

So she recognized the need here and suggested I give these little nutritional chews a try. They’re called PhytoBurst (sold by my friends over at Guaranteed Wellness), and as the name suggests, they pack a HUGE nutritional punch.

As I passed on lunch at the dropzone, I remembered that I had these chews to try out instead. They certainly don’t fill you up, but that’s not the point – at least, not for me. The last thing I want is a heavy meal sitting in my stomach as I’m plummeting to the Earth at 140 mph working on my freefly skills.

But the typical dip in energy I experience on a day without lunch nearly disappeared thanks to these little jems. And they are freakin’ tasty! As I was eating the mixed-berry flavor the other day I was trying to put my finger on the flavor; it’s like Flintstones Vitamins without the chalky texture.

These things are THE BOMB!

Check out what they have to offer:

I even gave them a try yesterday as I was sitting at my desk, busting away on the never ending pile of work, realizing I didn’t have time to eat lunch. One chew got me through the afternoon without feeling like I was going to pass out on my keyboard.

So they’re certainly not just for athletes, though I recommend them for anyone who is training. They sure beat that disgusting power gel in the packets. And they’re gluten-free! With a best friend who’s a glutard (cute little pet name, eh?) this one hits close to home.

Thanks, Suji, for recommending PhytoBurst. These will be a dropzone staple from here on out! Give ‘em a try, y’all. If you’re interested in getting your own free sample, check out their website or let me know and I’ll hook you up!

Blue Skies!

Ashley