Just excited
So I just had to tell someone who's not sick of me counting down the days..... I'm really freakin excited about my Fjc in September. Can't wait to see you all at the exit point sometime!
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Can't wait to see you all at the exit point sometime!
Re: [alexafox] Just excited
I gather you've got your Aura on the way and have been watching plenty of flips n shit to get ready?
Re: [alexafox] Just excited
alexafox wrote:
So I just had to tell someone who's not sick of me counting down the days..... I'm really freakin excited about my Fjc in September.
Can't wait to see you all at the exit point sometime!
Re: [underseaash] Just excited
underseaash wrote:
I gather you've got your Aura on the way and have been watching plenty of flips n shit to get ready?
Sure do! Got it in kahki green. Hahaha
Re: [Omelette] Just excited
So it was fekking amazing!!! Here's my token trip edit! :)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XF7PRkukfYg
Re: [alexafox] Just excited
good job! I remember how pumped I was when I did my FJC. I wish you a happy and healthy career in BASE 
Never stop learning.
Re: [alexafox] Just excited
alexafox wrote:
So it was fekking amazing!!!
Here's my token trip edit! :)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XF7PRkukfYg
Good cinematography. Enjoyed the video! A poppy/brisk-opening canopy and some good tracking. I'm pretty jealous of your big cliff jumps. I'm hoping to get out to Europe in the next year or so
Re: [madprops] Just excited
madprops wrote:
good job! I remember how pumped I was when I did my FJC. I wish you a happy and healthy career in BASE
Never stop learning.
Thanks!
Re: [Zebu] Just excited
Zebu wrote:
Good cinematography. Enjoyed the video! A poppy/brisk-opening canopy and some good tracking. I'm pretty jealous of your big cliff jumps. I'm hoping to get out to Europe in the next year or so
Thanks!
I definitely felt it's 'briskness' haha... Being from Australia I was stoked to able to do my first jumps there. Such an unreal place!
Re: [OuttaBounZ] Just excited
OuttaBounZ wrote:
FJCs ruined BASE
I would maybe amend that a little and say "Commercial FJCs available to general public ruined BASE". Why do I say that?
It is because commercial FJC´s have ruined the mentoring culture from BASE. People no longer seek for mentorship and take the "long way" to get make their way into the sport. People look at few youtube vids, decide they want to fly like Jokke, make 200 skydives, take commerical FJC and BOOM, they are BASE jumpers. Ready to roll and rampage on any object they see.
I know TomA and (some) others take their effort to teach old school ethics on their FJCs (kudos to that) but is the audience listening? I also was sitting in a lot of classes in school because I had to, not necessarily because I wanted to learn what the teacher was telling me.
Before the time of commercially available FJCs it used to be a long road to get into BASE. You couldn´t buy yourself into the sport (of course if you had a pair of good boobs that used to help as well). You actually had to know people, convince them that you actually are a good guy and you have good approach. You have the patience to take it slow and you have the intelligence to respect for other people and not to fucking burn everything you see just for your own glory. Now, you can just fork over the 2k USD and off you go to become a BASE jumper, no questions asked. This "development" has lead into a new generation of people coming into the sport who actually 1) don´t know anyone so they don´t get any solid advice and 2) don´t know anything because of 1. And quite often they end up either fucking them selves up or ruining a completely good object which has been quietly jumped in the past by plenty of people because they don´t know the local jumpers in the area and end up dayblazing the shit out if because their gopro just doesn´t perform that well in the dark. Or quite often as well both.
Dwain Weston wrote in his article "Getting into BASE" (which I still consider probably the best article I´ve ever read about BASE) : "Hang in there and don’t be discouraged by the knockbacks. All things of great value are difficult to obtain. It took me two years of trying before I broke into the sport which has given me some of my life’s greatest experiences (thanks again Pete)." Think about that for a second? How many jumpers today would take 2 years to get into the sport? I recon if it takes more than 2 weeks to get your FJC booked (once you have the skydiveds), that´s too much because youtube desperately needs your rad footage so let´s check the next school. Maybe they are more responsive.
Re: [maretus] Just excited
maretus wrote:
You couldn´t buy yourself into the sport (of course if you had a pair of good boobs that used to help as well).
That's so 2009. If you have boobs you can now completely skip the FJC and go straight to the big walls. If you've got boobs and a nice face, you can probably milk your "mentors" for a free room and drinks, too. :)
Re: [alexafox] Just excited
Welcome to base jumping. You should fit in well with all of the other narcissist. 
Re: [maretus] Just excited
I have a hard time believing someone doing an FJC has any impact on your BASE experience. If they arent jumping your object right than fix them since its "your" object. Most new jumpers ive seen are eager to listen/learn from people who have been around the block. There will always be idiots in this world, but FJCs are not the issue. It hasnt ruined the mentoring culture either, if someone takes an fjc and doesnt know anyone they just need to do what you say and will eventually make friends and learn more about BASE. FJCs became popular because there are not enough mentors to keep up with the people coming into BASE. Its not a bad thing, im sure the FJC instuctors are filling the roll as best as possible and make themselves available even after courses to help their students. Basically I see your perspective but in my opinion FJCs are not the issue. You can say stupid people ruin BASE, but they tend to ruin everything so if they ruin your shit punch them in the face and ruin their face.
Re: [Lucid] Just excited
Lucid wrote:
...There will always be idiots in this world, but FJCs are not the issue... You can say stupid people ruin BASE, but they tend to ruin everything...
I also think youtube probably ruined base (if you're someone who feels it's ruined).
Making a sport that should be 'hard' to get into look accessible and awesome online is like a beacon to idiots… If only we knew who put all that footage online when youtube started!!……
P.S. I did a shit load of ground crewing (even travelled overseas just to ground crew) before i did my fjc.
Re: [dustenjones] Just excited
dustenjones wrote:
Welcome to base jumping. You should fit in well with all of the other narcissist.
Sorry I couldn't hear you over the sound of me complimenting myself over and over again.
Re: [alexafox] Just excited
It's definitely not ruined!!!! Its still a relatively small community compared to most activities.
Re: [Lucid] Just excited
Oh I wholeheartedly agree from my limited experience. I'm just saying if you did think it was ruined it was probably YouTube.
Re: [maretus] Just excited
maretus wrote:
OuttaBounZ wrote:
FJCs ruined BASE
I would maybe amend that a little and say "Commercial FJCs available to general public ruined BASE". Why do I say that?
It is because commercial FJC´s have ruined the mentoring culture from BASE. People no longer seek for mentorship and take the "long way" to get make their way into the sport. People look at few youtube vids, decide they want to fly like Jokke, make 200 skydives, take commerical FJC and BOOM, they are BASE jumpers. Ready to roll and rampage on any object they see.
I know TomA and (some) others take their effort to teach old school ethics on their FJCs (kudos to that) but is the audience listening? I also was sitting in a lot of classes in school because I had to, not necessarily because I wanted to learn what the teacher was telling me.
Before the time of commercially available FJCs it used to be a long road to get into BASE. You couldn´t buy yourself into the sport (of course if you had a pair of good boobs that used to help as well). You actually had to know people, convince them that you actually are a good guy and you have good approach. You have the patience to take it slow and you have the intelligence to respect for other people and not to fucking burn everything you see just for your own glory. Now, you can just fork over the 2k USD and off you go to become a BASE jumper, no questions asked. This "development" has lead into a new generation of people coming into the sport who actually 1) don´t know anyone so they don´t get any solid advice and 2) don´t know anything because of 1. And quite often they end up either fucking them selves up or ruining a completely good object which has been quietly jumped in the past by plenty of people because they don´t know the local jumpers in the area and end up dayblazing the shit out if because their gopro just doesn´t perform that well in the dark. Or quite often as well both.
Dwain Weston wrote in his article "Getting into BASE" (which I still consider probably the best article I´ve ever read about BASE) : "Hang in there and don’t be discouraged by the knockbacks. All things of great value are difficult to obtain. It took me two years of trying before I broke into the sport which has given me some of my life’s greatest experiences (thanks again Pete)." Think about that for a second? How many jumpers today would take 2 years to get into the sport? I recon if it takes more than 2 weeks to get your FJC booked (once you have the skydiveds), that´s too much because youtube desperately needs your rad footage so let´s check the next school. Maybe they are more responsive.
I agree with all that was said.
There is a lack of etiquette, lack of side skills related to base, and a sense of entitlement that resembles a DZ culture. To the OP, stay humble, seek out friends who have been in the sport for a while, don't get in over your head, and learn as much as you can.
Re: [OuttaBounZ] Just excited
This isn't directed to anyone in this thread (or any specific person at all), but rather as a general response to the attitude that new jumpers are happily opting out of mentorship in order to go the cheaper/faster/easier FJC route: If you're an experienced jumper who is capable of mentoring, and you don't have a "mentee" (or at least open to taking one on), then I feel you have zero room to complain about FJCs ruining BASE culture and ethics. It's akin to complaining about politicians and then refusing to vote.
I know a lot of experienced jumpers. A very small percentage of them are willing to take on the responsibility and risk of a student. This is very understandable. I wouldn't want to deal with the burden of mentorship either. It's their choice (and right) not to mentor someone. But exercising that right, in my view, takes away your ability to complain about FJCs and new jumpers skipping steps.
Re: [bluhdow] Just excited
I, for one, would like to see a bit more effort by the ones wanting to get into BASE jumping. Why would a jumper mentor someone before some sort of bond was formed? One "NO" and they find another avenue. So be it, it is what it is, but I feel BASE is a lot less special because of it. Some instructors do a really good job facilitating curriculum and teaching ethics. I still feel It still caters to the YouTube crowd of instant gratification, low work ethics, and poor equipment understanding. I rarely hear anyone talk about BASE jumping with the same passion and vigor that my mentor did. But apparently this isn't reflected on the BFL so I guess I'm probably out of line. Just feeling conflicted and wanted to write it down. Stay safe out there, and remember that life is more than a screenshot.
Re: [OuttaBounZ] Just excited
Not everyone has/had access to a mentor! When I started jumping there were two people I knew that had any BASE experience and that was limited to using Fury's and Sharpshooter's to do some big A's locally. There are several 900 ft A's and a 2000 ft. here that have only been jumped by a few people as far as I know. When I moved to another state in the Midwest I got some mentoring but they were not really active very much. I borrowed a couple rigs from him before buying my own and went at it alone. Then when I moved again I was jumping at SDC and met a guy that is a very well known BASE jumper that almost all here would know well. We had several conversations over a few months about BASE and also about CRW and xbraced crew as he had been made aware that I was doing some there and was interested. Everytime I saw him out late he had to ask me my name and then forgot who I was the next day. I attended small parties he was at and crashed on his couch one night shooting the shit and he still didn't know who I was. I get it is a big DZ but I was hardly invisible there. Hell Roger let me swoop the retention pond at night. Everyone knew who I was except him and I had STAYED at his place. He was always so wasted at night though. I fucking gave up on this man. Good well known jumper that used to teach out in Idaho but was only interested in having people go to TFs for one of his courses first before going local. I read Dwain's article and it did reach out to some people when I traveled and wanted to do some midwest A's and respected the sport as much as I could. I would have loved to have a mentor but it just did not work out that way. Had I done a FJC I would have had a good chance in meeting good people that could have hooked me up with people in my area that I may have been unaware of. It would have hardly hurt the sport for me to attend a FJC. Jeesh. Rant over.
And look how far gear and especially suits have came over the past decade with the increased popularity. That can hardly be considered a negative.
Re: [craddock] Just excited
You feel increased popularity was the driving factor in improved Wingsuit design??? Interesting.
Re: [OuttaBounZ] Just excited
More effort is required by both parties. I've befriended a lot of very qualified potential mentors, but none of them want that responsibility. It's very understandable and I wouldn't want to mentor either. As a result, I've used FJCs, additional training courses, reading, and networking to create my knowledge base (no pun intended). I think FJCs are succeeding where mentors have failed and this grinds a lot of people's gears around here.
The mentor system worked when the sport was smaller. It's too big now. Mentors are rare and the few I know still insist that their mentees attend an FJC as a prerequisite for mentorship (I agree with this practice).
Re: [OuttaBounZ] Just excited
I don't know how to feel about it actually so perhaps that comment was not well thought out. But would people be building all these different designs if no one was buying them? I may be way off here so I apologize. Looking at the Valleys site used gear section it is amazing what is available both new and used for someone like me that has not paid attention to suits for sometime. I just assumed the fact people are buying them are why there are so many choices. Just scratch that part of my post if it is way off.
Re: [bluhdow] Just excited
I guess it's good to use both because they are there, and some are good at teaching the basics. Almost all my bros took Toms course and they are super solid jumpers. I've learned a lot from one in particular. I still feel the sport is growing to fast because FJCs have made it to easy for people to get into. It is no longer one awesome community, and that is sad to me. Objects get raped without "other" locals knowing. And you show up to an object only to find 5 other new know-it-all strangers there. It's fine I guess. It will be like this well after I quit or go in. BASE jumping has become less unity, and more professor of adventure. Could be entertaining I guess.
Re: [craddock] Just excited
It wasn't a bad post. You're probably right to some extent. Just never assumed it was because of numbers sold, but a desire for higher performance and safety. It's all linked by demand I guess.
Re: [bluhdow] Just excited
bluhdow wrote:
Mentors are rare and the few I know still insist that their mentees attend an FJC as a prerequisite for mentorship (I agree with this practice).
I agree too. Since returning from my fjc I've reconnected with locals who are experienced base jumpers.
I don't want to go out trailblazing on my own but I understand that they don't want the responsibility of mentoring me... Now that I've done a good fjc and have plenty of object knowledge and a few jumps on my belt, they are happy to take me on jumps and watch out for me/help me out.
I fully understand that position
Re: [StraightEdge] Just excited
StraightEdge wrote:
I disagree with your sentiment.
...
Not everyone who takes a commercial FJC is an idiot or a careless object burner.
You misunderstood me. Idiots and commercial FJC´s are like gay men and hairdressers. Not every gay male is a hairdresser but every male hairdresser is definitely gay. Same goes for idiots and FJC´s. Not everyone who takes a commercial FJC is an idiot but every idiot in the sport definitely took a commercial FJC (as nobody would help them other ways). The problem with the commercial FJC´s available for pretty much anyone is exactly that, it offers a fast track or an easy way in for morons who would never ever be taught by any other experienced jumpers if it was not for money. Sensible, polite and respectful people like yourself would always find they way into BASE without commercially run FJC´s as if you are polite, respectful and show that you are willing to take your time and make friends, people will teach and mentor you without financial benefit.
Re: [maretus] Just excited
maretus wrote:
StraightEdge wrote:
I disagree with your sentiment.
...
Not everyone who takes a commercial FJC is an idiot or a careless object burner.
You misunderstood me. Idiots and commercial FJC´s are like gay men and hairdressers. Not every gay male is a hairdresser but every male hairdresser is definitely gay. Same goes for idiots and FJC´s. Not everyone who takes a commercial FJC is an idiot but every idiot in the sport definitely took a commercial FJC (as nobody would help them other ways). The problem with the commercial FJC´s available for pretty much anyone is exactly that, it offers a fast track or an easy way in for morons who would never ever be taught by any other experienced jumpers if it was not for money. Sensible, polite and respectful people like yourself would always find they way into BASE without commercially run FJC´s as if you are polite, respectful and show that you are willing to take your time and make friends, people will teach and mentor you without financial benefit.
Just because I did not take an fjc does not mean Im not and idiot either.
Re: [alexafox] Just excited
Congrats! Glad you finally go to do it. Awesome job tracking, too! :P Not sure why everyone is using this thread to whine and bitch about their opinions on FJC's... I'm sure there is thread for that elsewhere. :|
Tacos.
Re: [Shredex] Just excited
Thanks! :) All good, it's been entertaining reading the back and forth! :P
mmmm tacos
Re: [OuttaBounZ] Just excited
OuttaBounZ wrote:
Objects get raped without "other" locals knowing. And you show up to an object only to find 5 other new know-it-all strangers there. It's fine I guess. It will be like this well after I quit or go in.
So speaking of raping objects, a few months back me and a fellow jumper made our way to a popular S here in Nor Cal. As a courtesy we called ahead to talk to the locals to get the 411. As we were told that standard protocol still prevailed (we hadn't jumped there in 6+ months, Get on the object before dawn and jump at first light.) So as we were nearly geared up and the sun was just poking its head out, a group of 3 more jumpers showed up, wow ok a lil late but whatever! Then moments before we were to be the first ones off, here comes 4 more. The two of us quickly jumped, and then boom the sky looked like a dropzone, not wanting to hang around we gathered our gear and bounced. As we were walking away this dready kid lands right next to me, and I said to him jokingly "wow, guess you need to take a number up there." He cool guys me and says, "welcome to BASE jumping bro!"
Re: [alexafox] Just excited
Just like in all walks of life there are DB's everywhere! Sorry to get off subject, glad you had so much fun on your FJC, keep learning and forever be a student of BASE!! You can never ask to many questions, and if you can sift through the BS on these forms there is valuable nuggets of information to be had.
Re: [goinin] Just excited
That's happened to me every time I go there. One time was met by 12 people with stash bags coming back from the landing area. Not to mention one time I arrived to find kids on the steal with rangers running to their rescue and some dude from Mississippi standing on the bottom point in broad daylight.
Re: [base698] Just excited
Yeah I consider that always "hot" and try to jump accordingly! I was coming back from Lodi this summer and decided to make a solo sunset jump, just as I got my rig on I heard a canopy open, so figured it was dark enough to jump. I started walking out and heard the CHP chopper overhead! "Oh great," so I retreated and tried to wait him out, but he kept circling! Paranoid that they might be coming to get me or looking for jumpers, I waited for the chopper to loop around and climbed down and bounced! 12 at one time? That might be a record, what got me was the dready kids "welcome to BASE jumping" comment, that was hilarious! Speaking of which, I'm officially taking a number for this weekend! Firsties!
Re: [maretus] Just excited
When I watched the first commercial FJC ( that I am aware of ), evolve, it was out of necessity. An early equipment manufacturer would kindly mentor her customers for free, but this consumed so much of her resources she had no choice but to apply a charge to compensate her for her time. That was more than 20 years ago and she is still doing FJCs today. That was before YouTube and the explosion of interest in BASE. It was before Patrick had developed the modern WS.
The sport has evolved in ways we couldn't imagine, but I don't think it is because of commercial FJCs.
Once again we are on track for a yearly record number of fatalities.
Blame the media, blame the evolution of Wingsuiting, but change is constant in everything, so let's just all try to use good judgement ( most of the time anyway ), and be safe....
Regards, B.