WISC 2015 - tunnel rats

www.tunnel-rats.com
A Quarterly Publication for Tunnel Flyers and Skydivers / Issue 2 - March 2016
FEATURED EVENT:
WISC 2015
Results & Photo Gallery
ALSO SPOTLIGHTING:
MAD RAVENS
OLGA BAKULINA
INKA TIITTO
JOSH EVANS
2015 CLASH OF CHAMPIONS
- INFLIGHT DUBAI
Photo Credit:
USPA NATIONALS 2015
iFLY SAN DIEGO
FLY4LIFE
TUNNEL MICE - RESULTS FROM THE IBA
NATIONAL KIDS COMP
@TUNNELRATS
TUNNEL RATS
A Quarterly Publication for Tunnel Flyers and Skydivers / Issue 2 - March 2016
CO NT E NT
6
iFLY CHICAGO - NAPERVILLE
8
WISC 2015 - RESULTS & PHOTO GALLERY
12 MAD RAVENS - INTERVIEW
14 OLGA BAKULINA - INTERVIEW
18 INKA TIITTO - INTERVIEW
20 JOSH EVANS - INTERVIEW
24 2015 CLASH OF CHAMPIONS - INFLIGHT DUBAI
- RESULTS & PHOTO GALLERY
26 USPA NATIONALS 2015 - RESULTS & PHOTO GALLERY
28 iFLY SAN DIEGO
30 TR SPONSORED ATHLETES - SPOTLIGHT
32 FLY4LIFE - INTERVIEW
34 JDF AND BONES SIT CAMP
36 TUNNEL MICE - RESULTS FROM IBA NATIONAL KIDS COMP
Jason David Frank
CEO
Laura Denio
Project Manager/Editor
Angela Bains
Editor
Tammie Frank
Content Advisor
Harrel Kimball
Content Advisor
Alex Rosas
Shannon Marchand
Ktahime Studios
Layout and Design
Cover: Inka Tiitto at WISC 2015
Photo Credit: Vania Da Rui
©2016 TUNNEL RATS
www.tunnel-rats.com
TUNNEL RATS STAFF
www.tunnel-rats.com
JASON DAVID FRANK
Jason David Frank was introduced to the skydiving sport
during his run as a Power Ranger during Mighty Morphin
Power Rangers: The Movie. Although he did not actually
jump during the movie, it did spark his attention toward
the sport. Now he has been in the sport for 15 years with
over 1200 freefly jumps, 2 balloon jumps, 2 helicopter
jumps, and 15 BASE jumps. His skydiving license is D24460
and he is sponsored by ChutingStar, Infinity, ALLMAX, iFly,
and LiquidSky. In 2013, he mixed his love of skydiving and
martial arts to break a Guinness World Record. He broke
seven pine boards with his fist in freefall. In March 2015,
Jason became a Certified IBA Instructor.
TAMMIE FRANK
My passion is skydiving, tunnel flying and Muay Thai. I have 900+ skydives and 70+ hours in the tunnel, 5 helicopter
jumps, 2 balloon jumps, 2 BASE jumps and 3 state records. My 2016 goals are to compete in 2-way VFS with my
husband/partner Jason D Frank and also the women’s head down record this next fall. If I had to choose between
dynamic and VFS, it would be a really hard decision, but I probably would have to go with dynamic. Yes, I am obsessed.
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04
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iFLY CHICAGO
www.tunnel-rats.com
iFLY CHICAGO
NAPERVILLE
10. 23. 15
Photo Credit: Chris Goller
The instructors at iFLY
Naperville in Chicago
pooled some of their time
together and gave 2 hours
to the first 25 skydivers
that signed up,
4 minutes per person.
06
07
Featured Event:
WISC 2015
Photo Credit:
FAI World Indoor Skydiving Championships
WISC
2015
WISC 2015 Results
FS4 Open (Formation Skydiving)
1. BELGIUM - HayaBusa – David Grauwels, Andy Grauwels, Dennis Praet, Jeroen Nollet
2. RUSSIAN FEDERATION - Black Cat – Alexander Kvochur, Valentin Ilin, Evgeny Stashchenko, Vasily Korotkov
3. FRANCE FLY-IN - France – Damien Gouriou, Laurence Hervel, Charles Rommel, Kévin Mansion
FS4 Female (Formation Skydiving)
1. USA - Golden Knights Female 4-way – Dannielle Woosley, Angela Nicolas, Laura Davis, Jen Davidson
2. FRANCE FLY‐IN – France – Sophia Pecoud, Christine Malnis, Clémentine Le Bohec, Anais Maillet
3. GREAT BRITAIN – Fly Like A Girl – Claire Scott, Laura James, Kate Lindsley, Lynne Murray
VFS4 (Vertical Formation Skydiving)
1. FRANCE – Transfert – Emmanuelle Droneau, Mickael Melo, Edouard Henry, Gregory Magal
2. RUSSIAN FEDERATION – Flystation VFS Russia – Maksim Rudenko, Timur Asanov, Dmitrii Beliaev, Dmitrii Lednev
3. POLAND – FlyDefinition – Dariusz Filipowski, Damian Piotr Bereda, Rafal Poplawski, Sebastian Raczyńsky
D2W (Dynamic 2-Way)
1. SWITZERLAND – Team SUI I – Filip Crnjakovic, Fabian Ramseyer
2. GREAT BRITAIN – Floh Well – Ben Broad, Luke Warren
3. USA – Antigravity XP – Josh D’Annunzio, Zach Mullins
D4W (Dynamic 4-Way)
1. FRANCE – Windoor Warriors – Raphael Coudray, Léo Blanchon, Clément Ducloux, David Petracco
2. CZECH REPUBLIC – Mad Ravens – Ivan Farbák, Václav Dědek, Martin Dědek, Radek Meduna
3. UNITED ARAB EMIRATES – Inflight Dubai Skynamic – Simon Whittle, Daniel Roman de la Blanca, Ryan Dudderidge, Matthew
Munting
FR Open (Solo Freestyle)
1. FINLAND – Inka Tiitto
2. NORWAY – David Reader
3. RUSSIAN FEDERATION – Leonid Volkov
FR Junior (Solo Freestyle)
1. POLAND – Maja Kuczynska
2. POLAND – Andrzej Soltyk
3. FRANCE – Mateo Limnaios
for more information on the event:
www.wisc2015.com
MAD RAVENS
Who are the members of the Mad
Ravens?
How can you be contacted
for coaching?
We are four good friends: The Dedek
brothers - Václav (Venca) and Martin
(Mesa), Radek Meduna and Ivan
Farbák.
There are a lot of ways to
contact us. You can do it
through our Facebook page,
Mad Ravens, or you can send a
private message to each one of
us on Facebook. Right now we
are working hard to launch our
website, www.madravens.cz. It will
be ready in the beginning of 2016.
You can also join our camps on the
webpage www.tunneltime.net.
How long have you been a team?
The team itself was formed in
November 2012 by Radek and Venca,
but the four member team started in
March 2014.
Where do you train?
Each of us started as instructors
at the Hurricane Factory Prague,
Czech Republic, tunnel (formerly
Skydive Arena Prague), and we
mostly train in Prague or Hurricane
Factory Tatralandia, Slovakia. Before
a competition we usually train in
the tunnel where the competition is
taking place to get used to the new
tunnel.
Where do you coach?
We only coach in Europe. We are
primarily organizing tunnel camps
at Hurricane Factory - Prague
(Czech Republic), Hurricane Factory
- Tatralandia (Slovakia), Fly-In - Liege
(Belgium), FlyStation - St. Petersburg
(Russia), Bodyflight - Stockholm
(Sweden), and Fly Spot - Warsaw
(Poland).
How often do you host tunnel
camps?
We organize tunnel camps every
month during the tunnel season
(September through April).
12
www.tunnel-rats.com
How much time do you dedicate to training for tunnel competitions?
Everybody from the team has a lot of individual training hours. We trained around 35 to 40 hours for our first team
competition. The goal was to show what we can do best in both free routine and speed round. Our training consists of
several training camps (3 to 4 days each).
Do you have any advice for teams wanting to compete in D4W?
Just do it like team JDIA (Elke, Anna, Peter and Lika). The best might be to start with D2W, where you can practice organizing
your trainings with 2 people. Later you need to have the motivation, free time, and the same goal with 4 people, which
might be a bit more complicated, but not impossible. It is really fun in the beginning to create some free routine parts and
new moves. You will love it.
Photo Credit:
What are your future goals?
To fly and do what we love!
What was it like competing at the
1st WISC (World Indoor Skydiving
Championships)?
with MAD RAVENS
We had two major competitions this
season: The White Nights dynamic
competition in St. Petersburg and the
WISC 2015 in Prague. We had the highest
expectations from the team for both
tournaments. It was special in Prague
because it is basically our home tunnel.
Here we have a lot of friends who created
a really nice atmosphere for us. In the
end we took the silver medals in the D4W
discipline, which was the best success for
the Czech Republic.
Do you also skydive?
Q&A
Photo Credit: Marat Daminov
Yes. The Dedek brothers have been skydiving
since they were 15 years old. Radek and Ivan
have been skydiving for two years.
What awards have you won?
As a team we have won gold medals in St.
Petersburg (Russia), at the White Nights 2015
competition in D4W, and took silver medals in
Prague (Czech Republic), at the 1st FAI World Indoor
Skydiving Championship 2015 in D4W. Apart from
this we have some individual achievements with
different teams.
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OLGA BAKULINA
www.tunnel-rats.com
How long did you train for the World Indoor
Skydiving Championships?
Q&A
WITH OLGA BAKULINA
When did you begin tunnel flying?
I flew for the first time at the end of 2005, at
Skyventure Arizona wind tunnel. I already had
about 1,500 jumps back then and I got hooked
right away.
Photo Credit:
FlyStation Wind Tunnel Staff
Photo Credit:
FlyStation Wind Tunnel Staff
Do you do any camps?
What are your disciplines?
My favorite tunnel disciplines are Freestyle
(Neo-freestyle) and Dynamic (2-way/4-way).
Freestyle gives me all the freedom for
creativity and self-expression and dynamic is
perfect for team flying, working on precision
and mastering flying technique.
Do you coach skydiving or just tunnel?
I used to do a lot of freefly coaching in the
sky. Now I am more concentrated on tunnel
coaching because, in my opinion, it is more
progressive, understandable and efficient, and
it does help a lot in skydiving.
Where do you primarily coach?
I work full time at FlyStation wind tunnel in
St. Petersburg, Russia, so I do most of my
coaching there. Once in a while I do some
camps in other tunnels too. It is always fun to
travel to new places!
Yes, of course! Last year (2015) I was very busy. I had
big groups coming from Israel, South Africa, different
parts of Europe and Chile! We did 4 big camps here
during the summertime with Chilean flyers. I even
gave them a name, “Red Hot Chile camps.”
How can someone contact you for coaching?
Probably the easiest way to reach me is through
Facebook, either through my personal or athlete
page. Most people do that. You can also easily reach
me by e-mail ([email protected]) or at phone
number +7 (921) 421-7723.
What is the best piece of advice you can give to a
student?
Be patient. Learn properly and try not to skip steps,
because you will have to return to basics later
anyway if you skip them in the beginning, and it is
way more disappointing to return back when you
are already far ahead and then to learn step-by-step.
Do not think too much; feel! Most important, do not
forget to have fun! This is what it is all about in the
first place!
Actually, I did not finish my training process
because I broke my ankle a month and a half
prior to the event. I could not participate,
which was very sad and disappointing for me
because I really wanted to be there and it was
the only freestyle competition in a whole year!
It took me few months to develop the elements
for the routine, but I did not get a chance to
work on the routine itself. Well, next time. I did
compete in FAI Indoor Skydiving World Cup in
2014, at iFly Austin, though. I took 3rd place. I
also spent some months learning the elements
and put the routine together for that event.
What is the next competition you are
training for?
Right now I am training for Wind Games, which
will take place in Empuriabrava, Spain, at
Windoor wind tunnel. They have a new, very
exciting format for the freestyle competition,
which is way different from FAI. Also, I really
hope to be in Belgium for Charlewars 2.
What are your future goals?
I definitely want to grow in the professional
and competitive level, to sharpen my flying
technique and develop my personal style, to be
creative, and to come up with something new.
It also would be nice to compete in Dynamic.
I am still looking for a teammate who would
have the same goals and intentions, who is up
for the game and ready to take it to the next
level.
How do you come up with a freestyle
routine?
I use my imagination, I suppose. I constantly
try new things. I also get inspired a lot by
different athletes in different sports, not just
tunnel flying or skydiving. I even get inspired
by music sometimes. I follow my feelings, my
emotions, and try to apply them to flying.
Is there anything you do outside of the
tunnel to train for tunnel flight?
Well, I believe regular fitness helps you to stay
in shape, especially if you need to train hard.
Yoga and stretching can be very helpful too.
What awards have you won?
I took 3rd place at FAI Indoor Skydiving World
Cup in 2014, and I won gold in our local national
tunnel competition in Neo-freestyle discipline.
Photo Credit:
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INKA TIITTO
www.tunnel-rats.com
Photo Credit: Nicholas Lott
Q&A
with Inka Tiitto
Q What drew you to freestyle?
A I am pretty sure I would fly like
this even if such a discipline as
freestyle would not even exist. I
started dancing when I was three
years old and before I started
working as a tunnel coach, I
was a dancer, dance teacher,
and choreographer. I just want
to dance in the wind and that
happens to fit under the freestyle
discipline pretty nicely!
Q Is there anything you do outside
of the tunnel to train?
A Lots of yoga and stretching,
running and working out. I try to
stay fit to fly and I am working
hard to get more flexible so that
I can push my flying forward. I
watch a lot of dancing, figure
skating, acrobatics, and pole
dancing to get inspired and
sometimes take classes too.
Q When did you begin training
for WISC (World Indoor Skydiving
Championships)?
A Impossible to say. For sure there
were hours dedicated to creating
the routine and training for the
compulsories, but at the same
time, I have trained since the first
minutes I spent in the tunnel.
Q How did you train for WISC?
A I spent a lot of time playing
in the airflow, testing out new
body positions and cool ways to
link them, and outside the tunnel
I made sure I was strong and
stretchy enough to fly all of what
I wanted.
Q Do you have any advice for
anyone who would like to compete
at the world championship level?
A Train hard, and find the right
people to learn from. Dream big,
but stay humble on your journey
toward those goals.
Q What are your future goals?
A To push myself past my own limits and the
sport further. I have a lot of projects coming
up that are all about the artistic way of flying
and creating something new. I want to do
choreographies in the tunnel for competing
teams, for shows, and for video projects.
Q How often do you coach? How can somebody
contact you to arrange coaching?
A For two years now.
A Coaching in the tunnel is my main job and I
coach a few camps every month. All my camps are
posted on my athlete page on Facebook and you
can contact me on Facebook or by email to book
coaching.
Q Where do you train?
Q Are you planning to compete at WISC next year?
Where else can we see you compete in the future?
Q How long have you been a
Turbolenza athlete?
A I am a freelancer and I travel
around the world for work, so a
little bit of everywhere. Flyspot is
my home tunnel at the moment
and they sponsored me for the
WISC.
A I definitely want to compete. I am planning on doing
the Charlewars in April and WISC whenever that happens
the next time.
Q Do you also skydive?
A I skydive as well. I actually started jumping before I did
any tunnel. I have around 1,100 skydives at the moment.
“Dream big, but stay humble on your journey toward those goals.”
Photo Credit:
18
INKA TIITTO
19
JOSH EVANS
www.tunnel-rats.com
Q&A
WITH JOSH EVANS
How long have you been in the industry?
I have been skydiving since 2001 and flying in tunnels since 2008. Before embarking
on my journey as a tunnel instructor, I worked as an AFF instructor and videographer.
I have 5000+ skydives and around 8000 hours in the wind tunnel.
How long have you been at iFLY Denver?
I began my training at SkyVenture Colorado in March 2008 and have been working
there ever since. SkyVenture recently went through a change in ownership when it
was purchased by iFLY, so I now work at iFLY Denver.
How can somebody contact you for coaching?
Anyone interested in coaching can contact me at [email protected].
What advice can you give to tunnel students?
Before beginning tunnel training, students should realize exactly what they are
getting into. Tunnels can be much more physically demanding than skydiving, so
students should be prepared for that. It’s a lot of cardio and endurance.
Also, at this point in the game it is common industry knowledge that tunnels are the shortcut to becoming a master of the wind.
Because of that, many students expect that they will build skills at a blinding pace in the tunnel and that is not necessarily the
case. Mastering all 4 body positions, 5 if you count side flying, which I do, takes hours in the wind and once those positions are
mastered, that’s when the real learning begins.
I wish I could take credit for this great
competition format, but it’s actually the
brainchild of Waz Choudry at iFLY Austin. We
have tweaked the formula a bit here and
there, but it’s all based on his vision. Anyone
who has enjoyed the Weekly Warriors
program at iFLY Denver has Waz to thank
for it.
Anyone who is interested in getting involved
should check it out on our Facebook page;
IFLY Denver’s Weekly Warriors VFS.
What are your disciplines?
Over the past six years I have competed in
2-way VFS, 4-way VFS, D4W, and 4-way FS.
I love it all, but I’ll always be a 2-way VFS
flyer at heart.
Are you a part of any teams?
My past teams are: Collective with Mike
Silva (2-way VFS and Artistic –Tunnel); Static
with Mike Bohn, Colby McNeil, Lee “Kiwi”
Hamilton, and Nate Roth (4-way VFS – Sky);
and Ascension with Mike Silva, Mike Bohn,
and Colby McNeil (D4W). I am currently on
Revolutionary War with Rusty Lewis and my
wife, Melissa Evans (2-way MFS – Sky) with
hopes of competing at Nationals in 2016.
Wind tunnels may be the shortcut for freefall training, but there are no shortcuts in the wind tunnel. You have to put in the time.
Do you compete in any tunnel or skydiving
competitions?
What is Weekly Warriors and how can somebody get involved in it?
I have competed in over 20 tunnel
competitions with Collective and podiumed
every time. That’s what being on a team
with Mike Silva does for you.
The Weekly Warriors program is a weekly 2-way VFS competition held every Wednesday at 6:30 p.m. at iFLY Denver. Our program is
designed for three skill levels of competitors: Sit Class, Mixed Class, and Open Class. All participants compete against each other in
three rounds of fast-paced VFS.
We create our draws with equal difficulty for all three classes in mind, so that everyone is competing against everyone else. This
allows people with beginner freefly skills (sit fly basic movement and front flips) to compete against pro flyers and still have a
chance at coming out on top. We have tunnel time prizes each week; winner take all. Our competition nights have been steadily
growing over that last four months with our most recent comp capping out with eight teams.
Mike Silva and I act as judges, and occasionally competitors, since a lot of our students participate. It’s cool getting to bring
someone up from the beginning and mold them into a medal winning VFS competitor. It’s even cooler getting to win some of those
medals with them occasionally.
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Also, I competed with Static at USPA
Nationals in 2012 and in Seattle in 2014 with
Ascension.
What are your most memorable tunnel and/
or skydiving moments?
So many good moments over the last 14
years.
21
JOSH EVANS
www.tunnel-rats.com
I was a participant in the 108-way and 138-way head down world records, plus the 142-way Illinois state record.
Static winning gold at Nationals in 2012 in 4-way VFS advanced.
I got to design the logo for the 1st FAI Indoor Skydiving World Cup held at iFLY Austin in 2014. I competed with Collective in Artistic
Freefly and placed 2nd. The medals we were awarded were made from the logo I designed. That was awesome!
I’d say the most unbelievable was having to help catch a hypoxic, unconscious skydiver in freefall. I think every skydiver has that
stress fantasy about having to catch someone that is knocked out in the sky at some point, so it was a mind blower when it
actually happened. It was the kind of scenario where I felt that without my time as an AFF instructor and a tunnel instructor I
wouldn’t have been able to help in the way that I did. It really was a defining moment. You can find video of it by searching Friday
Freakout: Skydiver Passes Out From Hypoxia on YouTube.
What advice can you give to tunnel rats that want to start skydiving?
Tunnel rats looking into getting into skydiving must understand that a high level of freefall skills does not make you a skilled
canopy pilot.
I’ve seen it too many times where tunnel rats with very few jumps think that the normal progression and rules do not apply to
them, especially with canopy flight. It’s a very common sight to see freeflyers with smaller rigs and high-performance canopies, so
sometimes it seems like those things go hand in hand. This is not the case. One of the biggest mistakes any jumper can make is
getting on a high-speed, cross-braced canopy without putting in the proper amount of training and time to do it correctly.
Take the years that are required to get on a fast wing. No one is impressed with how
quickly you downsized if you hook in and kill yourself. Do it right, and stay alive.
What are your future goals? We’ve heard you also have talents in graphic design. What
kind of work do you do?
Nationals again in 2016. That’s a year-long process that could always fall apart at the
last second.
I work freelance as a graphic designer to give my body a break from the tunnel, so
another goal is always growing that business. I’ve worked extensively with iFLY and
Chicagoland Skydiving Center designing print and digital media. Anyone interested in
seeing my work can view it at joshevansdesigns.com.
JOSH
EVANS
Anyone interested in commissioning design work can contact me at [email protected]
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2015
Clash of
Champions
www.tunnel-rats.com
INFLIGHT DUBAI
CLASH OF CHAMPIONS RESULTS:
AAA 4-Way Formation
1. HayaBusa (BEL)....................................313
2. Arizona Airspeed (USA).....................305
3. Weembi Lille (FRA)..............................295
AAA 8-Way Formation
1. Golden Knights (USA)..........................324
2. France Weembi (FRA).........................279
3. Tanay (RUS)...........................................267
AAA 4-Way Dynamic
1. Windoor Warriors (FRA)......................51
2. Inflight Dubai Skynamic (UAE).........48
3. Viss Vind (NOR).....................................35
AA 4-Way Dynamic
1. Hurricane Factory Chicks (CZE).......194
2. Asaar Girls (UAE).................................185
3. Flyspot Chicks (POL)..........................181
A 4-Way Dynamic
1. Flying Circus (CZE)..............................217
2. Amnesya (ITA)......................................204
3. SkyBlockers Singapore (SIN)...........194
2-Way Dynamic
1. Mini Maktoum (UAE)............................157
2. HF Ravens (CZE)..................................152
3. Team Firefly (SIN)................................142
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USPA NATIONALS 2015
Air Force Rendezvous
www.tunnel-rats.com
USPA NATIONALS
2015
4-WAY INTERMEDIATE:
RESULTS:
3 AIR FORCE ALLEGIANCE
Air Force Smolder
1 SKYDIVE MIDWEST NEXT
2 RAGNAROK
4 SOUTHERN MIX
Team FLO
5 4MATIVE
Airspeed
4-WAY VFS ADVANCED
6 DEORBIT BURN
1 FROSTY MONGOOSE TIME
7 TEAM SPEED XF
2 FORGY
8 SHOCKWAVE
3 TAFT TOP SECRET
9 AZ DEFIANCE
4 BUST A MOVE
Animare
Taft 50 Shades of Black
9 SDC JETSTREAM TANGO
11 DELAND FLASHPOINT
12 DALLAS DISTURBANCE QUAD
13 ZHILLS TRANZEND
4-WAY OPEN
14 HOT
1 ARIZONA AIRSPEED
FlightShop
Eagle Bear
3 GOLDEN KNIGHTS
Frosty Mongoose Time
Skydive Midwest NEXT
16 2ND GENERATION
17 EXIT STRATEGY XP
4 CAROLINA TURBO XP
18 .38 SPECIAL
5 HG XP
19 HOLOGRAMS 4.0
6 PRESTIGE WORLDWIDE
20 PIIA
7 DALLAS 350
21 RHEMIX
8 VERVE XP
22 L4S
9 SPACELAND LITE
Motiv8 XP
22 SPACELAND TOXIC
24 SA PLATINUM
10 CAMDAK.IS
24 STF VEGA
26 FOUR SHADES OF GREY
27 PERRIS FRANZ
4-WAY ADVANCED
Golden Knights (8-way)
2-WAY MFS OPEN
1 FLITESHOP
2 CAC XP
3 MEGA MONGOOSE
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Golden Knights (10-way)
2-WAY MFS ADVANCED
1 EAGLE BEAR
2 RADIAL
3 ELSINORE HAWKS
4 BIFROST
5 HARD POINTS
6 DELAND BEFORE TIME
7 TEAM NANO
8 AIR FORCE TNT
9 AZ BLAST!
10 TEAM DYSFUNCTION
11 CAROLINA CHAOS
4-WAY VFS OPEN
1 SDC CORE
2 ARIZONA ARSENAL
3 ARIZONA X-FORCE
4 GOLDEN KNIGHTS
5 SUPER SERIOUS
6 AZ MOVEMENT
1 AIR FORCE SMOLDER
28 GRAND THEFT OTTER
SDC Core
29 ELSINORE AIRSCREWZ
29 NETFLIX AND CHILL
2 PERRIS QUATTRO
3 PERRIS DAUNTLESS FIVE
4 EVENT HORIZON
USPA NATIONALS 2015
RESULTS:
5 CT CENTERPOINT
31 DON’T FEAR THE CREEPER
32 LUAU CONFUSION
33 THE FILTHY FIVE
6 TEXAS CRUSH
7 FLASH MOB
8 VORTEX
9 4 LOST MONSTERS
10 DALLAS DISTURBANCE FOUR
11 DALLAS KHAOS KHOBALT
16-WAY:
1 AIRSPEED
2 DALLAS DISTURBANCE
3 DEGUELLO
4 LITE 350 MONSTER MASH
15 SWIFT FS
2 SDC RHYTHM XP
Arizona Airspeed
8-WAY INTERMEDIATE:
1 AIR FORCE RENDEZVOUS
2 SDC OCTOMINO
3 BLOCKSMITHS XP
4 DALLAS KHAOS
5 BAD TOUCH
6 COACH K APPROVED
7 LIMITED FINANCES
8 LIGHTNING 8
9 LOOSE ENDS
8-WAY OPEN
1 GOLDEN KNIGHTS
2 ARIZONA AIRSPEED
3 AMPHIBIOUS ATTACK TIGERS
4 MOXIE
8-WAY ADVANCED
1 MOTIV8 XP
2 SUGAR FREE HARIBO GUMMY BEARS
3 SPACELAND LITE 8
4 PERRIS PRIME8
5 SPX8
6 SERENITY
10-WAY SPEED:
1 GOLDEN KNIGHTS
2 AIRSPEED
3 BUTTERFLY KISSES AND DANDELION
4 THAT’S MY SPOT
FREESTYLE SKYDIVING:
1 ANIMARE
2 MALOLO XP
3 SHIBUI
4 AZ DREAM
5 FLYING TRAPBREEZE
6 MYSTIFLY
7 FLIPPING FLOCKERS
8 SUPERIOR WASTED POTENTIAL
FREEFLYING OPEN:
1 TEAM FLO
2 ZULU FOXTROT
3 DALLAS SKYCRAPERS
4 MAGPUL
5 TEAM DYSFUNCTION
FREEFLYING INTERMEDIATE:
1 TAFT 50 SHADES OF BLACK
2 ITALIAN DINGER GLITTER PANTZ
27
San
Diego
iFLY continues its aggressive expansion with the
newest location in San Diego. The latest generation
tunnel features a 14’ flight chamber with 18 foot
www.tunnel-rats.com
iFLY San Diego is proud to support and welcome the local San Diego
military community with training for all levels and branches.
iFLY San Diego is located in Mission Valley near
the Fashion Mall by the 8 and 805. For more
information visit: iflyworld.com/san-diego.
tall glass for unparalleled flying and spectator
viewing. The tunnel is the perfect venue for
freestyle, 2-way and 4-way flying. With
Photo Credit: Chris Miller (iFLY)
more than 7 million people flown
around the world, iFLY continues
to lead the way in growing
and developing the sport
of bodyflight.
The new iFLY San Diego tunnel is
the 15th US location and will soon
be followed by new locations in
Oklahoma City, Ontario (Calif.),
Loudoun (DC), Lincoln Park
(Chicago), Sacramento, San Antonio,
Philadelphia, Baltimore, Atlanta,
Tampa and Fort Worth.
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29
TUNNEL RATS SPONSORED ATHLETES
www.tunnel-rats.com
QUARTERLY SPOTLIGHT
Jay Veenendaal - Lead Tunnel Rats Instuctor
Harrel Kimball
started jumping in Tennessee at Music City Skydiving in 2009.
After serving in the US Army, Harrel moved to the drop zone
and became a full time skydiver. He now has over 1,500 jumps
and is a USPA Coach, Tandem and AFF Instructor. Harrel is an
IBA rated level 4 tunnel instructor and works at iFLY Houston
USPA: D-32861
Container: Mirage
Main: PD Velocity 90
Reserve: Precision R-Max 118
AAD: Airtec Cypress2
Suits: Vertical Viper, Tunnel Pro, Viper Swoop Shorts
Helmets: Cookie G3/ Fuel
[email protected]
The first time that he ever took a step inside a tunnel, he was
well into his skydiving career, logging 5,000 jumps. Jay started
skydiving at the age of 16. He has traveled all over the U.S.
skydiving, finally arriving in Houston in 2010 to start working
at Skydive Spaceland full time. After becoming the Chief of
Skydive Spaceland, Jay worked with the help of others, to
improve their student training program. He traveled to Florida
to set up and train instructors at Skydive Spaceland Clewiston
and then at the end of 2013 left to start working at iFLY. While
working for iFLY, he travel to 5 different tunnels before settling
at iFLY Houston. Now back in Houston, Jay continues to work
at Skydive Spaceland to help close the gap between tunnel
and sky. On any given day, you can find Jay training skydivers
and instructors at iFLY Houston or in the sky at Skydive
Spaceland Houston.
Photo Credit: Nicholas Lott
[email protected]
Photo Credit: Guru Khalsa
Jesse “Tex” Leos
always knew he would be a skydiver after looking up to his
paratrooper dad growing up. Prior to skydiving, Tex was a
college soccer player and later spent time becoming the first
Texan (and American) to play Australian Rules football in Geelong, Australia, as well as representing the US National team
abroad. Tex made his long-awaited first skydive on September
1, 2013. After nearly selling off all his possessions to skydive,
Tex began work as a tunnel instructor in November 2014 at
iFLY Austin and can no longer imagine a career doing anything
else but flying. Tex recently made the move to Houston to be
a part of a new world class tunnel and help grow Spaceland’s
solid freefly scene. Tex has trained athletes most of his life in
various sports and fitness, but has never been more passionate about coaching than when he is free flying. Tex’s immediate
goal is to assemble a 4-way VFS team ready to challenge elite
teams in both tunnel comps and skydiving nationals.
[email protected]
30
Photo Credit: Nicholas Lott
Stats:
Former Assistant Manager & Chief instructor of
Skydive Spaceland Houston
IBA Expert Pro Freeflyer
IBA Level 4 & Trainer at iFLY Houston
USPA Coach/Tandem/AFFI/Pro/S&TA
USPA Tandem Instructor Examiner
UPT Tandem Instructor Examiner
USPA AFF Evaluator for TheRatingsCenter.com
USPA Coach Evaluator for TheRatingsCenter.com
High Performance Canopy Pilot
7000+ skydives
2000 AFF
3119 Tandems (32 on the front)
1001 hop n pops
1100 Freefly
600 camera jumps
75 night jumps
167 demo jumps
400 belly
37 Wingsuit
2 BASE jumps
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FLY4LIFE
www.tunnel-rats.com
Q&A
WITH FLY4LIFE
What is Fly4Life?
Fly4life is a group of professional skydivers who joined together to promote
safety and advanced flying techniques while in a relaxed and fun environment.
The team caters directly to the skydiver, providing organizing, coaching, media,
and demo services.
When was Fly4Life created?
We were founded in 2012 by Luis Prinetto and Manuel Guevara as a collaboration
to spread their love of flying by pushing their limits, as well as teaching others,
and to create exposure for the sport.
Who currently makes up Fly4Life?
students. Lately, due to our busy skydiving schedule, we have not been able to do as many tunnel camps as we would like,
but it is something we want to do more, as it is an incredible tool to teach freeflying super fast.
How can our tunnel skills translate into angle flying?
All flying can be trained in the tunnel. We are angle flying when we are carving inface or outface. It is just that in the tunnel,
due to lack of space, we have to go in circles, but the techniques are the same. The really important part is to not confuse
being able to fly in the tunnel with being a good skydiver. There is so much more to it than just freefall in order to make it
safe, so make sure to find a good mentor that can take you through the safety considerations to put your tunnel skills in
the sky.
What do you tell the skydiver interested in learning angle flying?
As far as the flying, go at it and have fun experimenting, as this is not the most dangerous part. Please make sure you
choose a highly experienced coach to teach you the safety aspects of it, and take it seriously (we are not playing with toy
cars up there). Learn how to deal with wind at all altitudes, and consider the type of plane, jump run type/speed/offset, and
DZ specifics. Most importantly, design flights based on the lowest skill level person in the group.
How can people contact you?
Contact us at [email protected], or directly at [email protected], [email protected],
[email protected], and [email protected].
Luis Prinetto, Manuel Guevara, Claudio Cagnasso, and Richard Scheurich.
Do you have any upcoming camps?
Where is Fly4Life located?
Fly4Life is based at Skydive Deland, Florida. The team also travels extensively to
camps, boogies, and DZs around the world, especially during the summers.
The next planned Fly4Life camp is the warm-up camp at the end of February (dates and registration coming soon). Our next
big camp is coming up on March 15, 2016, through March 19, 2016 (registration at:
https://www.facebook.com/events/1706436502921411.
What skill levels do you teach?
We teach everything related to skydiving, including freefall in all positions, static
or dynamic, as well canopy flying. We enjoy working with all skill levels from
recent AFF graduates to high-level flyers.
Tell us about the camps you hold.
Our camps are mainly focused on movements, but we also like to include a bit of
other disciplines, as well as doing other smaller camps for different necessary
skydiving skills.
Do you hold tunnel camps as well?
Yes, we do. We love flying in the tunnel and use it as a tool to teach our
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33
JDF AND BONES - SIT CAMP
Photo Credit: Stephen Eriks-Angelos
34
www.tunnel-rats.com
TUNNEL MICE
www.tunnel-rats.com
Results from IBA National Kids Comp
Article and photos courtesy of International BodyFlight Association.
SOME FUN FACTS ABOUT THE VERY
FIRST NATIONAL KIDS COMPETITION:
1. iFLY Toronto featured 5 teams, all of
which made it into the top 10.
2. The youngest person in the top
10 was Yusra, age 8, from Toronto’s
team Chicks That Rip.
3. The youngest competitor was
Alyssa Lemmon from iFLY Dallas at
age 6. Her teammate, Cason Cromer,
was second youngest at just 7
years old, and their team name was
Lightening Birds.
4. There were 3 sets of twins in the
competition - C-Squared from Austin,
Squared from SF Bay, and Twinning
from VA Beach.
5. There were 2 teams named Tunnel
Devils - one from Toronto and one
from Dallas.
The IBA is making plans to organize
a National Kids Competition again
in 2016. You can expect additional
disciplines with class divisions, bigger
prizes, and of course, even more
tunnels participating! Kids can start
training for cheap now by signing up
for their local Kids Club sessions. Find
one near you by visiting:
www.tunnelflight.com/kids-corner.
36
Walking into any wind tunnel on October 13th might have felt
like an ordinary evening if you didn’t know any better. If it
was your first time, perhaps you thought there were always
this many kids and adolescents hanging around, perhaps you
thought there was always an upbeat and exciting atmosphere,
maybe the kids in matching bootie suits and helmets looked
like any other flyers. However, for the participants and parents
of the first National Kids Competition, it was anything but
ordinary. The kids taking part in this monumental event were
given the chance to pursue a goal in the sport that they love.
They were given the chance to perform on a grander stage
than ever before. They were given the chance to shine!
If you did know better, you would know it was a special
evening. Some tunnels had DJs blasting beats on the flight
deck, some had news cameras filming the flying, and others
had cotton candy machines spinning up sweet treats, but
what they all had in common was a room full of passion and
determination. For months leading up to the event, dedicated
parents were driving their kids across town to their nearest
wind tunnel. Kids were joining forces to create two-way
teams, working with their coaches on generating dive flows
and engineering them for maximum efficiency. The majority
of kids (and likely adults too) would prefer to spend their
flight time doing fun stuff like flips and tricks, but formation
skydiving requires patience and focus. The discipline required
to perform in this event is substantial. Memorizing the blocks
and randoms of the dive pool and the specific grip placements
is not easy - much less performing them.
The training required to achieve this kind of skill is massive.
Toronto held scrambles events to prepare kids for a
competitive atmosphere, while others offered extended Kids
Club sessions. Team C-Squared from Austin participated in two
back-to-back Weekly Pass specials where they flew over 3
hours of tunnel time in just 2 weeks. Dallas offered discounts
at their weekly Kids Club league with registration in the event.
National Kids Competition Final Results:
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
FlashPoint - SkyVenture Montreal
C-Squared - iFLY Austin
Tunnel Devils - iFLY Toronto
Squared - iFLY SF Bay
Air Devils - iFLY Toronto
Scared Chuteless - iFLY Toronto
Grom Squad - iFLY VA Beach
Chicks That Rip - iFLY Toronto
J2D2 - iFLY Chicago
Ozenne - iFLY Houston
Tunnel Mice - iFLY Houston
Leopards - iFLY Dallas
Blazing Bananas - iFLY Dallas
Wild Wing Girls - iFLY Denver
Tunnel Devils - iFLY Dallas
Twinning - iFLY VA Beach
Kendra & Kaitlyn - iFLY Denver
Blast to the Future - iFLY Houston
Mean Greens - iFLY Dallas
Billy Madison - iFLY Houston
Shooting Stars - iFLY Houston
King Creepers - iFLY Houston
Daring Duo - iFLY VA Beach
Junior Hawks - iFLY Seattle
Lightening Birds - iFLY Dallas
Sydney & Lance - iFLY Denver
Miguel & Victor - iFLY Hollywood
Little Ninjas - iFLY Seattle
Becoming a proficient formation flyer isn’t just about getting
the most tunnel time, but also getting the best coaching. Jett Davis of J2D2 was coached by various Chicago-area
FS champions such as Eric Bambach from Jettstream Tango. Kids in Virginia Beach were coached by multiple world
champion Chris Wagner and kids in Denver coached by VFS extraordinaire Josh Evans.
In the end, an astonishing 28 teams from 11 different wind tunnels participated. No one could have guessed the
enormity of the skill that was involved. The top team, FlashPoint from SkyVenture Montreal scored 228 points with
a 38 point average. Amazing considering they’re only given 35 seconds of time in which to be scored! Second place
was grabbed by Tunnel Devils of iFLY Toronto with 185 total points and a 30.83 point average. In third place came
iFLY Austin’s Team C-Squared with 160 points and an average of 26.6!
37
HURRICANE FACTORY
TATRALANDIA
TUNNEL CAMPS WITH
IVAN FARBÁK
chief instructor at HF Tatralandia
member of team MADRAVENS
White Nights St. Petersburg 2015 /D4W 1st place/
First FAI WISC Prague 2015 /D4W 2nd place/
580 EUR per hour*
*COACHING INCLUDED
PRO-FLYERS PRICE LIST
HURRICANE FACTORY TATRALANDIA
HURRICANE FLYERS CLUB
OFFICIAL PRICE
Off peak (Su 12.00 - Fri 12.00)
429 EUR
479 EUR
479 EUR
529 EUR
On peak (Fri 12.00 - Su 12.00)
www.hurricanefactory.com
Contact: [email protected]
Tel.: +421 911 533 354