Minor attempting to buy BASE gear
Apex BASE recently received an order for a Summit container that was ultimately declined and refunded. The order was placed by, we believe, a minor. After seeing BFL #361 last month this is troubling, and we hope it's not the start of a new trend. https://www.blincmagazine.com/...ex.php?title=bfl-361
I am posting to notify everyone with used gear for sale. In most cases it's very easy to verify the experience of a prospective buyer. Check them out on FB, look for mutual connections, ask for a reference. Here's how this order unfolded, which is pretty common among our "rejected" orders:
1. Customer places order for a container with adequate experience. 263 skydives, 52 BASE jumps.
2. We follow up with customer. Their weight (170 lbs.) didn't jive with the stated canopy (size 210). We also inquired about canopy construction and fabric to get a better idea of the canopy volume we're building for.
3. Customer replied with a less-than-knowledgeable reply regarding his current canopy, and a request to build a canopy that is appropriate for his size.
4. We followed up with the following e-mail:
In reply to:
Thank you for your order, and thank you for providing the additional information requested.
I want to preface the next statement by saying that Apex BASE always does everything we can to be a responsible vendor of BASE equipment. BASE jumping is extremely dangerous and requires a lot of training, skill, and a conservative approach. Most of our customers are known to us and/or share a lot of mutual contacts. In some cases we have no mutual connections and ask customers for a reference to verify parachuting experience.
I see you have 263 skydives and 52 BASE jumps. If you don’t mind, would you please provide us with a reference or two? Ideally we would like to chat with an instructor from your Local DZ and/or your BASE FJC instructor. Please provide contact information and we will contact them before proceeding with your order.
My apologies for the inconvenience, and I hope you understand that no offense is intended here. We just want to make sure we’re being thorough and vetting all of our customers before sending out parachute equipment.
5. The "customer" then called into the shop, exposing both his very young age and a confession that he has exactly ZERO parachute experience.
6. Customer's order was cancelled and his money was refunded.
After the order was cancelled I discussed with this young man his best path forward: Dropzone, 150+ skydives, BASE FJC, etc. I am posting here because I am not convinced that he took my advice seriously. I told him, word-for-word: "If you try to BASE jump with no experience or instruction you will die." I am not confident that message was well received.
We have sent an e-mail to our manufacturer contacts with this person's e-mail address and full name. I don't want to make that information public, but if you're dealing with someone on a used gear sale and would like to confirm that they are not this individual, please PM me and I will verify whether or not your buyer's e-mail matches this one. I will say that our "customer" is from Canada and if you FB his name you will see a profile that is telling of his age and experience.
He was obviously clever enough to figure out some of the right things to say to get his order through. Maybe he's clever enough to put together an even more thoroughly convincing story now. Sellers, please help protect our sport by asking a few questions before shipping gear.