Taking a Whuffo on his first BASE
As I had the patience to learn BASE after learning many valuable skills attained only in skydiving, I’m partial to minimum skydive jump numbers as a pre-requisite to a FJC. I think at this point, everyone at least understands the logic behind such pre-reqs. Of course there is always danger and erroneous actions lurking over every intended jump, many risks can be minimized by the proper time, research, and training invested into something as dangerous as BASE jumping. Last night though, contrary to my beliefs, I took a whuffo with 0 jumps on his first base jump. He was a printer by trade, but decided not to do that work anymore. I agreed, and carried him up to the exit point at 700 ft. I gave him no instruction at all, I figured he wouldn’t listen anyway, and gave a 3,2,1 C-ya’, and off he went. Before even a 2 second delay, he had already over-rotated two or three times. He never even went for his PC, probably out of disorientation and pure adrenaline. It was sheer terror that I felt as I watched my old friend, HP deskjet 5550, burn in and explode into pieces.
Fortunately for me, I had a shovel in my trunk, and I buried him at a nearby graveyard.
You will always be missed my beloved HP, but easily replaced. I will learn from that mistake though… learning, skill, and of all the things in this nature, patience is a true virtue.
~E
