Special Sub-Topic: Skydivers Say What? Click Here To Play: Skydivers Say What?

You've just agreed to be "Mr. Bill" on a parachute jump. What have you gotten yourself into?

Jumping while holding on to another jumpers harness while he opens his parachute. While all of these choices are things that have happened at drop zones, the "Mr. Bill" jump gets its name from what people generally say before they let go, "Oh no!". Unlike jumping from a fast moving plane, you do get a very intense sensation of falling when releasing from the relatively slow moving parachute of your partner.

What is the name used to refer to a soft leather helmet worn by some skydivers?

Frappe hat. They were originally made in France, and "frappe" in French refers to a strong impact. Skydivers have a dark and twisted sense of humor worldwide. A hard helmet worn by skydivers is often called a "brain bucket".

Which of the following common skydiving terms refers to a common freefall formation?

Meeker. The Meeker is a four-way formation in which each jumper takes one grip on an adjacent jumpers leg and two opposing jumpers also grip each others arms. A spot is the location where you should exit the aircraft to easily land in the desired area. Winds and jump altitude determine where this will be. Twotter is a shortened version of the name for the DeHavilland Twin Otter, which is a very popular jump ship. The Triple Lindy is Rodney Dangerfield's signature high dive.

Which of the following is not a type of parachute malfunction?

Screamer. A Baglock is a nasty malfunction in which the parachute remains locked in it's deployment bag. It's bad because you will acutally fall faster with this problem than you would with no parachute deployed at all. A Streamer is only slightly better. The parachute has come out of the bag but that's it, it's just a wad of fabric not opening. A Spinner is usually a fully opened canopy, causing any of several problems causing an uncontrolled turn. Any of these malfunctions can be caused by poor packing, or in some cases, poor body position during deployment. In all cases, the solution is simple, get rid of it and open your reserve!

What is a dirt dive?

Formation skydiving rehearsal on the ground. Dirt dives are often done on your feet in a crouching position to somewhat simulate the airborne geometry. In some cases, they are also done while lying down on mechanic's creepers for a better simulation.

You over-hear another skydiver mention that the "Industrial Haze" was pretty thick on the last jump. What were they referring to?

Jumping through a cloud. It's technically illegal to skydive through clouds. "Industrial haze" is occasionally found at drop zones all over, even in unlikely spots like the North Shore of Oahu.

Who or what is a whuffo?

A person who does not skydive. Whuffo is a contraction coming from, "What for you jump out of a perfectly good airplane?" Poor grammar but still a common thing to hear around the drop zone. It can be used as a derogative or a term of affection, or anything in-between depending on the context.

You're at the drop zone and you hear a skydiver talking about a 'Three Ring Circus'. What are they talking about?

A main parachute release system. Bill Booth invented this simple yet very effective and reliable device in the early 1970s. It has even found some industrial uses. Remember the seaplane pilot with the ZZ Top style beard in "The Firm"? That's Bill.

What is a burble?

Turbulent or dead air in the wake of a body moving through the air. If you fall through somebody else's burble, you might get "funneled". The sudden low pressure in the burble will cause you to fall faster and generally with little or no control. One out of control person can easily take out a large formation of 4 to 10 people. Viewed from the side, it looks like they're being poured down an imaginary funnel. This is also referred to as being "flushed" at times.

For skydivers, a "boogie" is essentially a skydiving party, sometimes involving dozens of aircraft and thousands of jumpers, lasting as long as a week. Which of the following is not a well known boogie?

Boogie Nights. The Couch Freaks Boogie is held in Iowa each year. West Tennessee Skydiving is known for their "Boogie 'til You Puke" events in which you make as many skydives as you can stand in a two-day period for one fixed price. The Freak Brothers Convention was the first big boogie and began in the 1970s in Illinois. It later became the World Freefall Convention.