Re: [hollyhjb] 730 jumps in 2006
Carl Boenish made the statement canopies had to be packed into a container in order to differentiate between what he then called fixed object jumps (and later BASE jumps) and something else people had already done many times and that was “pull offs.” A pull off was originally a way of exiting an aircraft by standing on the wing, pulling the ripcord, and letting the relative wind and the deploying canopy pull you off. This practice is later adapted by some to tall towers in stiff winds. If you’ve ever been on a 2000-foot tower in a 70 mph wind you can see how well that would work.
Also, some of Carl’s early adventures in ultra low BASE jumping involved already opened round canopies attached to metal hoops with clothes pins, sort of Coney Island style. Freedom Bridge in Arizona is first jumped that way, as it seemed the only way possible at the time, while nowadays people routinely do 2-second freefalls there.
So the idea that Carl was trying to get across is BASE, is not only a new sport at the time, but also quite different from what had preceded it.
I believe had Carl lived he would have kept pace with the times and probably modified that position to include Tards and such as real BASE jumps. My reasoning is this; while there is a fine line between “packed” and “flaked” if we use the two words interchangeably it makes a big difference.
When people are Tarding they don’t just pull a wadded up ball of nylon out of gear bag, toss it over the edge, and follow it over. No, they hang it, jiggle it, and caress it to the point it becomes a pro-pack hanging on a hook. To a large extent that’s packing and reefing even though it doesn’t get put into a container. Throw in the measure of control this type of launch requires and I’m pretty sure Carl would have considered that BASE jumping.
On the point of do these types of launches count towards a total number of BASE jumps, well, be careful, as chasing numbers is something about 90% of BASE community shouldn’t even be thinking about. That’s that other sport . . .
It also may be because as yet, no one has been killed doing these kinds of launches, so somehow it becomes suspect. It was the same reaction direct bag received when it was first developed. I was really scratching my head the first time I heard jumpers saying direct bag wasn’t BASE jumping with the rational being it was too safe. If anything, that way of thinking, is re-“tarded!”
NickD
BASE 194
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but i will some day
