Above: Photo by Nikko Mamallo.
Braden Roseborough’s passion for skydiving has grown steadily since his first jump in 2007. A dependable instructor and rigger at Kapowsin Air Sports in Shelton, Washington, he has spent most of his time there after “cutting away” from the corporate world in 2022. Roseborough has been on three wingsuit state records, one of which was also a world record, and shows no signs of slowing down. Most recently, he traveled to Libya to help with the grand opening of Skydive Benghazi.
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"Braden is as dedicated to the sport as they come—seriously, the guy might be part skydiving rig. Always leveling up and helping others do the same. He’s the kind of person you actually want to be stuck in a plane with.” —Keri Bell, Parachutist profile #126
Age: 36
Height: 5’7”
Birthplace: San Bernardino, California
Marital Status: Happily taken
Children: My Siberian husky, Canyon
Occupation: Software engineer, AFF instructor, tandem instructor, rigger
Transportation: 4WD Sprinter Van
Pet Peeves: I hate cardboard. I hate touching it, I hate it when other people touch it.
Favorite Food: I love hibachi-style cooking so much, I’ve got my own full-sized griddle to cook it myself.
Team Name: Dauntless PRO Skydiving Team (demonstration team with Nikko Mamallo)
Container: Mirage W-Series and G4 MX
Main Canopy: Fluid Wings Gangster 107, Squirrel Omicron 150
Reserve Canopy: Performance Designs Optimum
AAD: Advanced Aerospace Designs Vigil II and Vigil Cuatro
Discipline: Wingsuiting
Home Drop Zone: Kapowsin Air Sports in Shelton, Washington
First Jump: 2007
Licenses/Ratings: A-65754, B-38915, C-44241, D-36606; USPA AFF and Tandem Instructor; FAA Senior Rigger
Records: The wingsuit vertical-formation world record, as well as state records in California and Washington
Total Jumps: 3,500-plus
Camera: 2,000-plus
Wingsuit: 1,700
FS: 900
Freefly: 100-plus
Largest completed formation: 38 wingsuiters, for the world record
Cutaways: 2
How did skydiving make you decide to leave your dream job?
It was a big decision to leave my corporate job. I had been working for Amazon nearly eight years, working on a drone delivery program. It was my dream job—a mixture of engineering, geospatial software and flying robots. I had been obsessive about it and was really proud to be a part of the program in its beginnings. I had placed a large part of my identity in my work there and had finally reached a point where I felt like I needed to move on to grow. I joined a startup company working on geospatial software, was able to start working fully remotely and moved down to Shelton to be closer to the drop zone. Before moving, I had been a weekend warrior, working full-time in the city during the week, then driving every weekend to the drop zone to focus on skydiving. Now I’m much closer and more embedded in the community, and I have more to offer both with my time and space.
What jump stands out the most?
Our team, Dauntless Pro Skydiving Team, did demonstration jumps into the Formula-E races in Portland, Oregon. Nikko Mamallo had a live broadcast camera rigged up to his helmet and we had an audience of 30 million live viewers around the globe. We had to time everything perfectly with the broadcast, and the amazing air traffic controllers who held jet traffic for us, to hit a 30-second jump window. The logistics of the jump were so nerve wracking that once we were in the air the actual demonstration felt natural and easy!
Who has been your skydiving mentor?
Keri Bell has given me so much. She’s helped me through most of my ratings and enabled me to observe and learn from the Highlight Pro Skydiving team. Andy Farrington seems to know how to always fly just above my skill level. Flying with him pushes me more than flying with anyone else, and I’ve grown because of that challenge. Ben “Verde” has opened the world for me BASE jumping. His input from the start has been fundamental to my experience in that extension of our sport.
Any suggestions for students?
Don’t give up because your friends do. I think a lot of us who have stuck around in the sport have gone through that transition where our friends who we thought were going to come along decided not to. It’s totally acceptable for this sport to not be “your thing,” but if it is something you are passionate about, don’t let going alone stop you.
What could everyone do to make the world a better place?
Listen with intent. Turn arguments into conversations and build connections. Wait for the loud opinions to quiet down so the wise opinions can shine through.
What has been your strangest thought under canopy?
Is that my dog running around down there on the road? He had been in the van near the landing area with the windows open. I thought he had jumped out of the window and was running around. It wasn’t him. It was a street sign.
Suggestions for USPA:
Embrace a little bit more technology to make what you are doing for the sport more transparent to the members. I’ve had the privilege to participate in a few of the board meetings and I’m pleasantly surprised by the actions the board usually takes.
But when I talk to members, they have a wildly different idea of what the board cares about. Almost nobody attends the meetings or participates, and they just build an idea in their head about what the board is like. I think making the meetings more accessible would garner respect for the board and boost participation. Specifically better audio for online attendees, as well as a display showing the agenda item being discussed and the status of the discussion/vote.
What was it like to be part of the vertical wingsuit formation world record?
Marie Clark deserves all of the respect for putting this event together. It is a huge logistical undertaking, and she deserves so much credit for the work that she put in. All the participants were top-notch pilots and it was interesting to see the adjustments that we needed to make during each attempt.
What’s crazy is that, right off the bat, the whole group was flying super close, tight and comfortably together. In fact, it was so close that it was difficult to put a grid on. There were so many technical aspects like the camera lens distortion that we had to account for, and everyone had to be flying the slot perfectly to make it work. I don’t think I’ve ever been in the middle of such a high performing group of people like that. I’m looking forward to doing it again.
What advice would you offer to other skydivers looking to step away from “normal” life to pursue skydiving?
Be very intentional about building your life in such a way that allows you to fill in the gaps for other people. My goal is to be the type of person who can be thrown at any problem, whether that is AFF, hucking drogues, rigging or popping behind a manifest desk. I think taking joy in the value you bring and being willing to move around to learn from different places/lifestyles will take you far.