Wet Wet Wet was the met for the last quarter of the year, but we snuck in a few openings when the stars aligned and the tide was out, so it wasn’t a complete washout. December was our annual celebration of all the high times this year with a decent turnout from locals, and it was great to see some mainland-based crew drop in especially for the occasion.
Some really positive things worth mentioning were the two excellent boogies, a couple of weekends dropping in Guernsey, demo jumps into the boat show, delivering the game ball for the local rugby club derby, some water jumps and obviously the continuing demand for tandem skydiving and fun jumps.
So, the awards this year as always went to some well deserving recipients. Hedi Green scooped the most progressed jumper award for polishing her skills in the 4-way competition scene as part of the Jersey Beans team who landed a win in their first year.
There wasn’t much competition for the Prix D’Aviation as Brian Heath smashed it again, racking up many hours flying our trusty Tango machine with a smile on his face, whilst feeding the local need for some altitude. We salute you captain!
The Skydive Jersey club member of the year went to… Mark Gatt. Always enthusiastic to jump and help get the flying circus in the air, Mark clocked up the most fun jumps this year and was one of the key players in getting everything set up and just as importantly getting things packed up. Congrats Mark!
A quick discussion found a clear winner for the potato head award in 2019. The July boogie attracted a few lesser spotted jumping donkeys to the island. A donkey being the friendly name for our friends from Guernsey. It was a pleasure to welcome the guys to our club and for them to help us fill up the French Caravan during the heatwave. Richard Baum was clearly enjoying himself and feeling super generous, either that or he forgot to secure his trouser pocket sufficiently to keep his cash in, scattering multiple £20 notes over Jersey from about 12,000ft. If anyone found the cash, we can only hope it was spent on jump tickets or alcohol and not wasted on something sensible. Top bombing Richard!
A few Channel Island locals have been away honing their skills and acquiring stickers for their books so congrats to those progressing over the winter.
Operations are due to kick off towards the end of February and there’s already a boogie planned for July 20-23, with everyone welcome to come and catch some Jersey air and feel the sand beneath your feet.
There are several other people who help behind the scenes regularly, I won’t mention names through fear of missing someone, but all assistance is greatly appreciated by everyone who enjoys our magical sport and island drop zone.
Blue Skies
Nigel O’Brien
Achievements: FF1 Pierre Mahy, Oliver Hutcheon TR1 Pierre Mahy FF2 Drew Moon
Find out more about Jersey: https://skydivejersey.net/
Photo: Jersey Archive
