Jumpers say goodbye to their friend Vern McGarry, D-7054, during his ash dive at Skydive Perris in California.

In “Wings and Things” in the June issue, Greg Marcinkowski, D-31253, received his 96-Hour Freefall Badge.

Organizers Matthew Fry and Melissa Nelson Lowe recently scheduled attempts to set the Fédération Aéronautique Internationale World Record for Largest Two-Point Head-Down Formation Skydive for June 25-28, 2020, at Skydive Chicago in Ottawa, Illinois.

The dynamic duo—Julie Kleinwort and Amanda Kubik—organized the annual Sisters in Skydiving event at Chicagoland Skydiving Center in Rochelle, Illinois, June 7-9.

It’s true what they say: Everything is bigger in Texas. On Memorial Day weekend, a group of 45 jumpers converged on Skydive Spaceland–Houston in Rosharon, Texas, with the intent of setting a state record for largest head-up formation skydive. Sara Curtis, Steve Curtis, Matt Fry and Konstantin Petrijcuk organized the attempts.

In order to help save highly endangered rhinos, Red Bull sent its athlete Jeff Provenzano to Limpopo, South Africa, to help the Eco Defense Group (EDGE) raise awareness of its efforts in the area.

In celebration of their recent engagement, Adam Elkin and Amanda Kubik exit from a balloon over Van Horne, Iowa.

Can jump-plane safety be improved? Yes, absolutely. The goal should always be zero accidents. USPA has already shown the NTSB that we are ready to implement sensible actions that improve safety.

Jeremy Dubansky is a fun-loving guy who has become a large presence in the Midwestern skydiving scene. He travels extensively to events, has a genuine love of his sky family and helps out jumpers in any way he can.

I would jump from the low parts of our roof with a shaky umbrella or quartered-up bedsheet, neither of which worked. I always crashed with a thud. But the seed was planted, and it wouldn’t be long before I’d try it for real.

I had worn an open-face helmet with goggles for many years, but after starting to wear glasses, I decided to get a full-face helmet that could accommodate them. I used this helmet on skydives and in the tunnel for more than a year before I had any problems.

Thank you very much for the wonderful and informative article and interview of Dr. Anna Hicks by Annette O’Neil (“Thin Air—Busting Lingering Myths About Hypoxia,” May 2019 Parachutist). It is indeed very important to inform our fellow skydivers about the risks of hypoxia.

“Cool Swoop, Hot Sun”
Digital illustration

Ismael Iribar | B-45880
Tallahassee, Florida

gravitystudiollc@gmail.com

Photo by Gustavo Cabana | USPA #80952

Will Penny (bottom) leads a jump during the Euro Fly4Life Camp at USPA Foreign Affiliate Skydive Algarve in Portimão, Portugal.

At its summer meeting, the USPA Board of Directors made a number of changes to the Skydiver’s Competition Manual and the Competition Committee discussed multiple topics that resulted in no action.

“The Front Office” answers questions about jump pilots and piloting. You’ll learn what pilots do behind the scenes to make your favorite time of week happen, and you’ll get a one-of-a-kind view from the one seat in the airplane you never get to be in.

The USPA Board of Directors held its second meeting of the 2019-2021 term in Arlington, Virginia, July 12-14. The Virginia location gave directors, including those on the board for the first time, the opportunity to visit USPA Headquarters, an hour south in Fredericksburg, prior to the meeting.

You asked, we listened! Finally, you can now renew your membership and ratings online at the same time with one payment!

Skydivers and fighter pilots share a unique characteristic: Both can eject from their aircraft. They also share a common reason for fatal accidents: a delay in the decision to do so. In fact, according to the U.S. Air Force, it’s the single most common cause of fighter pilot fatalities. Similarly, in the past few decades, failure to cut away and pull the reserve ripcord in time has been a major factor in skydiving deaths.

There have been five skydiving fatalities in the U.S. as of May 15 of this year. Four of those involved spinning malfunctions. To raise awareness of this problem, USPA is initiating an educational campaign: Don’t Delay, Cut Away!