Summerfest 2004 and Rantoul 2004
The perfect timing in 2004 for Summerfest and Rantoul enabled
especially foreign skydivers to pay the expensive airfare to the boogies
just once for two major events: Summerfest at Skydive Chicago and the
former Quincy-Boogie at Rantoul. Here are my (journalist´s) impressions
of the two events:
Summerfest 2004 Perfect jumps (freefly
and RW) in a family like environment are the characteristics for me
of the Skydive Chicago Boogie. Just choose the size of group you want
to be in, your favorite organizer, plane (mostly Twin Otters and Skyvans)
and have fun up in the air. Dropzone rules for landings are quite safety
concerned and that is good. Shaded packing area in the large hangar,
clean restrooms and the best food available on a dropzone (especially
the "Helga special salad") freshly prepared adds up on my
scale. Quiet and shaded tent areas even for small tents make foreigners
feel welcomed. And of course meeting all the nice skydiving friends
from all over the country every year. Looking forward to seeing you
guys and girls next year again!
Points to improve: What I miss are educational seminars in the evening.
There are enough world class skydivers present of every discipline to
share their knowledge with others.
Rantoul 2004 Bad (in this case stormy
and unbelievable cold) weather is not within the responsibility of a
boogie organizer. So making only 7 jumps in 5 days (about one each morning
before the weather turned really bad) was not the fault of organization.
But getting told at the entrance that tents are not allowed at the regular
camping site is kind of arrogant. There is just no way to put a trailer
on a 747.
And being told by a non-skydiver at registration on which
arm you have to wear your plastic wristband for a week of skydiving
tops the "not allowed on a campsite"-arrogance. Considering
safety it makes more sense to welcome thinking and self deciding humans
to a big boogie than to treat skydivers as dogs on a leash.
What was even worse was the complete mess in the ladies
showers and bathrooms. They had not been cleaned even once within the
whole week. And with all the nice ladies vomiting their food after eating
and the mass of long lost hairs and other things that do not belong
in public spread everywhere this place turned out to be the dirtiest
shower/bathroom I saw in my whole skydiving career. Just disgusting.
It is not the civilization I miss in Rantoul – I
enjoy staying in my small but clean tent for weeks when skydiving. But
setting reality in relation to the boogie fee and other things you have
to pay for, and to the proud words the organizer characterizes the boogie
himself, there is (to say it with my British friends) "a slight
gap".
The good points of Rantoul: Gary Peek and his LO staff
are doing a fantastic job every year and the skydiving friends from
all over the world you are sure to meet let you forget the environment.
I have jumped the jet (727) years ago and jumping off the other specialty
planes does not get me excited any more. Regular planes waiting for
skydivers are the same as in Skydive Chicago. Besides the King Air which
I consider a very nice plane as a pilot but completely off topic as
a jump plane. Especially when there are other jumpships available.
Very nice was also the PD-staff in informing about new
products and having gear available for test jumps. Thank you Kolla for
the T-shirts!
Also the evening seminars are worth going to Rantoul.
If you find out who talks when and where in reality (not as written
in the published schedule) and if you are so eager to listen to the
worlds best skydivers like the Captain from Arizona Airspeed that you
forget all participants are sitting for hours on the cold floor of an
ugly hallway in a desolate building.
Another year, another chance.
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