Skydive Spaceland San Marcos, Author at Skydive Spaceland San Marcos

July 21, 2014

Free Skydiving Adventure is Only a Fundraiser Away at Children’s Cancer Recovery Foundation’s Jump! Shout! Skydiving Event

THE WOODLANDS, TX — July 7, 2014 — Children’s Cancer Recovery Foundation (CCRF) is hosting an adventure fundraiser that gives individuals the opportunity to raise funds for a good cause while taking an unforgettable life-changing plunge from a perfectly good airplane at Skydive Spaceland. This hair-raising experience comes at no cost to those participants, who raise between $300 and …

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July 16, 2014

Long Hair? Avoid This Skydiving Malfunction

Ah, the feel of freefall on your face, your hair whipping in the wind… wait a minute! If you have long hair (past your shoulders), hair whipping around in freefall is actually a bad thing. Aside from the Gordian knot that often results from 120mph of wind whipping your hair around, hair that is very …

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June 23, 2014

Skydiver Training Tip: Practice Before You Leave

When I was still in school, I was a serious last-minute crammer before tests. Study ahead of time? Not my strong suit. So there I would be at 1 a.m. before a big exam, studying my tail off. 5 minutes before the test, still reviewing. At least I studied, right?! When you are learning to …

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June 16, 2014November 21, 2023

Movement Dive Policies

Horizontal movement dives are fun… free flowing… and inherently potentially much riskier than dives that fall straight down. Any dive in which jumpers plan horizontal movement other than tracking for separation after breakoff requires good planning and execution to minimize the additional risks to everyone on the load. Above photo by Daniel Angulo! That responsibility …

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June 16, 2014

Skydive Spaceland to Host Jumps for Kristina Fundraiser in July

Rosharon, Texas (June 16, 2014)—On August 23, 2010, Chad and Melissa Barrett had to hear some of the worst news a parent can ever hear—that his 8-year-old daughter Kristina had cancer. And not just any cancer, but a rare, painful form called clear cell sarcoma that had already spread to her lungs. Despite a poor …

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June 12, 2014

Skydive Spaceland to Host Second Annual Houston Firefighters’ Memorial Event

Contact: Chris Lee, Houston Fire Department 832-405-3769; chrislee5479@gmail.com Rosharon, Texas (June 12, 2014)— On July 5, skydivers/Houston firefighters Chris Lee (HazMat/22-D shift) and Clint Meade (firefighter/paramedic in training) will organize a memorial skydiving event at Skydive Spaceland for the Houston firefighters who were killed or injured battling the deadly hotel fire in Houston on May 31, …

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June 11, 2014

Skydive Spaceland Transitions Events for Recent Grads

For recent skydiving graduates, there is often a no-man’s-land between the A license and getting on good dives. Skydive Spaceland-Houston has been turning that no-man’s land into free coaching central with its monthly Transitions events. On or near the first weekend of each month, organizers and coaches collaborate to provide free small-group coaching tailored to …

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June 11, 2014

Check Off a Bucket-List Item: Be part of a Guinness Book of World Records Tandem Skydive

Looking to check off an item on your bucket list? Or, perhaps you’re a thrill-seeker looking for adventure, or you’re an experienced skydiver wanting to jump again. The Children’s Cancer Recovery Foundation’s “Jump! Shout!” skydive event is the place for you! While experiencing a breathtaking jump from 14,000 feet at an astonishing 120 miles per …

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June 3, 2014

Propeller Safety

There are a lot of things in life we sugarcoat, such as when answering questions like, “How do I look in this dress?” Or “How does this resume sound?” But some things in life just don’t take sugar well–they are what they are. So it is with safety around propellers, be they of the aviation, …

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June 1, 2014

Whose Airspace Is It, Anyway?

Skydiving often seems like one of the most dynamic, chaotic sports in existence. People are falling from the sky every which way, for cryin’ out loud! 🙂 In reality, the chaos is highly engineered to allow us all to enjoy our dynamic freefallin’ fun while staying safe, and that engineering starts with ensuring that each …

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May 23, 2014

Exit Separation Between Skydiving Groups

As skydivers, we tend to like to do things together. We like to skydive with our friends, give each other grief about any minor mistakes during the dive, celebrate our successes, and enjoy brews together after sunset. Some people prefer solo skydives on occasion so they can work on skills or just enjoy the sky without …

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May 9, 2014

Skydivers Over Sixty Texas Record Set at Spaceland—Again

Rosharon, TX–Unsatisfied with the 14-person record they set in December 2013, Skydivers Over Sixty (years of age) returned to Skydive Spaceland in Rosharon, Texas, to set another state large-formation record on May 3. This was the group’s third attempt at building the largest skydiving formation comprised of only skydivers aged 60 and older over Texas; …

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May 2, 2014

Skydive Spaceland Introduces the Safety Stand

What if every drop zone posted their safety policies and daily notes conveniently in one location in the loading area for all jumpers, old and new, to browse and learn while waiting for aircraft? Check that box for Skydive Spaceland! We’ve just posted our own Safety Stand in the hangar, complete with information on: Basic …

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April 28, 2014

Do it Right: Visualize Your Skydive

If you’ve ever played sports, chances are good that you’ve heard a coach tell you or someone on your team to visualize doing it right when they were struggling with something. Some call this practice mental rehearsal, and it’s a completely valid strategy to increase performance, because you’re training your brain to perform to the …

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April 18, 2014

Local Couple Gets Engaged, Celebrates Easter with Skydiving

Rosharon, TX, 4/18/14–“Skydiving! She’ll never suspect that!” So says Houston firefighter Clint Meade of the way he chose to propose marriage to his longtime girlfriend Whitney Greco last weekend at Skydive Spaceland. “I could have asked her at McDonald’s and she’d have said yes, but this was much better,” he said with a grin. “I …

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March 14, 2014

Skydiver Training Tip: When to Learn to Pack Your Parachute

Hello student skydiver! As you progress to ever more awe-inspiring feats of skydiving skill in our Skydiver Training Program, do you ever wonder about the magic that happens before you strap your gear on for the next jump? I refer of course to the magic whereby the billowing parachute, hundreds of square feet of nylon, …

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January 7, 2014

Old Farts Texas State Record Set at Spaceland

I have officially turned old… well, old enough to join Skydivers over Sixty. Actually, I tried to join earlier but then it was explained to me that “sixty” was age and not IQ! Upon receiving my official SOS information, badge, and secret handshake, I noticed that the state formation record for Texas was only nine …

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November 11, 2013

Skydive Spaceland to Celebrate Veteran’s Day with Local Medal of Honor Recipient and Friends: “Airborne to Skydiving”

“Nobody signs up to win the Medal of Honor. You earn it at the intersection of happenstance and hell, and you’re there because that’s what your country has asked of you.” These poignant words from the book Medal of Honor: Portraits of Valor Beyond the Call of Duty summarize the situations combat veterans know all …

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November 5, 2013

Head-Down Skydiving Formation State Record Set at Skydive Spaceland

Contact: Stephen Boyd, 281-369-3337, Stephen@SkydiveSpaceland.com Thirty-four skydivers set a new state record for the largest head-down skydiving formation on Sunday, Nov. 3, at Skydive Spaceland just south of Houston. Their smooth skydive eclipsed the previous state record of 31 head-down skydivers linked in a single formation, and brought the record home to Houston. Not only …

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October 14, 2013

Women’s State Record Set at Skydive Spaceland

October 14, 2013 Contact: Kirsten Hardmant, Jump for the Rose Event Coordinator, Kirsten@JumpForTheRose.org (Rosharon, Texas)—Four skilled skydiving women set a new head-up state skydiving record at Skydive Spaceland last Saturday, Oct. 12, during the Jump for the Rose PinkFest Boogie. The annual charity event has so far this year raised more than $10,000 for The Rose, Houston-area …

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October 14, 2013

You’re the Pilot: Take Control!

Ask any group of non-skydivers what they think would be the scariest part of skydiving, and at least a few will answer, “The landing.” Ask a group of skydiving students, or even experienced jumpers, and you’ll get the same answer from a few of them. We have the guts to throw ourselves out of airplanes in …

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October 8, 2013

Skydiving Tip: You’re Not THAT Good…

Skydivers tend to be pretty confident people. We trust ourselves to save our own lives while throwing ourselves out of (ha) perfectly good airplanes towards the planet, right? We trust that we have the skills to succeed in the dives we plan. We trust that our gear will work, and even if it doesn’t, we …

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October 1, 2013June 13, 2018

Tracking Dives: The Fun and the Danger

Ah, the sunset tracking dive. What could be more fun than flying along with your skydiving friends in a flock with a beautiful sunset? After all, all the cool kids are doing it! Graduation jump tracking dive, anyone? Just kidding!!!! If the dive goes wrong, a whole lot of things could be more fun than …

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September 23, 2013

Skydiving Tip: Predictability = Safety

Plan the dive, dive the plan. You’ve been practicing this since your first student training jump. There are two reasons for a dive plan: SAFETY! Engineering the dive so you can get in maximum learning and/or performance from the jump. Once you have graduated from a skydiving training program, there are SO MANY things you …

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September 5, 2013

Parachute Dirt Diving

We dirt dive the freefall portion of nearly all of our skydives, but do you dirt dive your landings? Do you check the wind speed and direction at all altitudes, which way the wind will shift as you descend, etc.? If the wind direction changes, how will that change your landing pattern? As we develop …

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August 27, 2013

Helmets: Secured for Takeoff

We don’t have a lot of bad words in skydiving (regardless of what you might hear after the beer light comes on! ;), but there is one we can all agree on: Complacency. com·pla·cen·cy n. — A feeling of contentment or self-satisfaction, especially when coupled with an unawareness of danger, trouble, or controversy. In skydiving, we say someone …

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August 19, 2013

Skydiving Advice: Listen With Care

Skydivers come in all shapes and sizes and from all walks of life, but If one word could be used to describe nearly all of us it would probably be “passionate.” This is a sport we love dearly and deeply, and we love to share that passion with others. That passion, unfortunately, can cause problems …

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August 6, 2013October 22, 2021

Landing Patterns and Winds

One of the best things about skydiving today compared to some decades past is that we jump steerable parachutes. We have the ability to change our flight paths and land on target, which makes it a lot easier for us to land near the hangar and make lots of jumps in a day without quite …

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July 30, 2013

The New Beer Line

Ah, the beer line–that line close to the hangar that causes all skydivers in sight distance to yell “BEER!!!!” with glee if you land on the hangar side of it. Did you know we now have one of these in the student/A-B license landing area at our Houston location in addition to our regular beer …

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July 22, 2013

Skydiver Training Tip: To Land Off or Not?

Scenario: You’re under a good canopy at 2000 feet. You are downwind of the drop zone and aren’t sure you can make it to the landing area. Between you and the drop zone are trees, brush, power lines, and likely all manner of unpleasant critters. Behind you is a wide open field. What do you …

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