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The real world can sometimes be a tough one for passionate skydivers to navagate, because lets face it, being a full throttle jumper can be demanding; but if you're like Grant Bowen, then it's pretty simple. You work hard at your daily so you can play even harder on the weekends. When a few hours sleep on the DZ couch after a long weeks work is like a solid 8 hours in a 'normal' persons fluffy bed, you know you're in it for the long haul. From a demanding 9 to 5, to AFF, to tandems, to representing Peregrine Manufacturing as an athlete and ambassador, Grant might not have a whole lot of free time on your hands, but he's always got his place deep in the Lunatic Fringe.
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Finding a good balance between the life of a professional nurse and a hard charging, skydiving, wingsuit camp organizing BASE jumper might sound like a lot to take on, but if you're Anna Muller, you manage to do that and have extra energy to spare! an Aussie with as much grit as you might expect, Anna takes on the challenges both the 'real' world and the world of airsports throw at her with a deep desire to not only help advance and guide those around her, but to push the line that defines her own personal Lunatic Fringe.
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A tribute re-release of Katelyn ‘Compton’ Escott and her story of incredible drive and determination. Blue Skies…
It was an easy choice. $300 for a tandem skydive, or $200 for a first jump course and a 3,500 foot instructor assisted jump. Not really a hard decision for a then 19 year old trying to pay for it all. Growing up in a small town in Western Canada, getting started in skydiving wasn't nearly as easy for Katelyn Escott as it has been for others, but from even before that first jump it was something she was drawn toward. From jumping in Canada to shooting video in Australia, it was a series of fortunate encounters that led her to both BASE, and wingsuits, and eventually the challenge of bringing those two together; but Katelyn is busy dealing with her largest challenge yet, and she's not shy about sharing the struggle. The struggle of recovering from an accident that very easily could have taken her life, and probably should have taken the use of her legs. Driven by the desire to once again get back in the air, there is simply nothing that will keep her on the ground even one minute longer than she must, solidifying both her amazing will and her place deep within the Lunatic Fringe.
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Back in the can to talk, boogies, big game and top tear African adventures, it's the one and only Billy Sharman!
Growing up watching his mom huck herself out of airplanes in California, not only making over a thousand jumps on rounds, but earning herself a California State Championship, there was simply no way that Billy Sharman wasn't going to at least try one jump. Of course, as seems to be the case, with a first wonderful experience at Skydance in Davis, CA and a little salesmanship from Ray Ferrell, Billy was well and truly hooked! A few bumps in the road (or ditch) aside, he was well on his way to what would become a lifelong career in the sky, and the windy tubes. Now, the proud owner and operator of Skydive Pretoria in South Africa, Billy has many years under his belt, and twice as many stories to tell about his travels with the Lunatic Fringe.
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Catching up with the one and only Jeff Weatherall, this Kiwi Aussie transplant is still hard charging, even if that sometimes includes potty training and a bit more of a domestic Lunatic Fringe...
As a young Kiwi, starting out with sport was a pretty natural thing, and Jeff Weatherall excelled. Surfing seemed to be a natural fit for him, and competition became the standard at a young age; but as is known to happen when you push for the top, Jeff found himself burned out on the waves, and instead put all of his focus into a sport he'd never considered before, wakeboarding. On his way to becoming an international champion behind a boat, he happened to catch a bit of footage of a guy named Frank BASE jumping, and knew it was in his cards. Years after his first glimpse, and long after that very first skydive Jeff made his first BASE jump, and was off on a new trajectory in his life that would eventually lead him on to become a full-time skydiver, wingsuit and BASE coach, and lifelong member of the Lunatic Fringe.
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As a kid, things like big wave surfing seemed to be his driving force, but if you ask Scott Hiscoe to describe his ability compared to his passion, he'd be the first to say it was lacking. In fact, when it came to surf boards and big waves, his greatest talent turned out to be recovering from gnarly wipeouts. So of course the next logical step for an injury prone beach bum was proximity wingsuit flying. Luckily for the skydiving and BASE communities, Scott quickly came to the realization that to be the hard charging BASE jumper he wanted to be, he needed to become a skilled skydiver first. With freeflying as his primary passion for quite some time, his goals in our two sister sports are many. As the Aussie captain recruiting big way dreamers, a member of Burn Perspective Coaching, and pushing hard as a member of both head up and head down world record attempt teams, there's simply no doubt that Scott Hiscoe made the right choice when he stepped off his surfboard and into the Lunatic Fringe.
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One of the rare ones who saw his path from the very beginning, Phil Webley had his parents consent to his enlistment in the army at the ripe old age of 16. Back then, a 600 foot exit on a round parachute seemed… normal, but his real goal was the almost fabled Red Devils, and all that came with being a member. With a fire for jumping properly lit, it became freeflying, tunnel training, and eventually canopy piloting that drove Phil to hard charge. Now, a Flight-1 instructor and canopy competitor, he’s not even close to done with his travels along the Lunatic Fringe.
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Raised in Mexico City along with his three siblings, it was a pretty normal childhood all and all; with one exception. At a very young age, along with the motorcycles and outdoor adventures, Norman Kent found what would become his lifelong passion. Photography. Making his first skydive at the age of 19, he will be the first to tell you the its as standard a first jump story as any, but his love of photography showed him a side of skydiving that most people don't get; or at least not on their first jump. He saw the incredible potential skydiving had to offer - a dramatic and awe inspiring view through his lens. That was pretty much all it took. From a first attempt was nothing more than a motorcycle helmet, a wind up camera and way too few jumps, to heading up multi-million dollar productions for Hollywood blockbusters, Norman Kent will be the first to tell you it has been one hell of a ride. 49 years into the game, he still possesses as much passion for photography and skydiving as he did at the start, and his desire to continue innovating and learning is what's kept him at the top of the Lunatic pyramid the whole time.
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It's been an interesting mix for Evan Santangelo. Like most kids of a certain disposition, he would go out of his way to try and find new and creative ways to have fun. From trampolines onward, he found a real joy in body awareness; so when skydiving entered the mix... well, there was little doubt that he was all in (even after getting sick on his first tandem.) Balance that with his work as a professional musician, and a pretty solid presence online and you get a guy that not only keeps it coming from all angles, but actively looks forward to the next phase in his Lunatic Fringe travels.
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Back in the can after a busy "summer" off, Jamie Webster brings us up to speed on what it's been like chasing his Lunatic Fringe dreams of flight...
A recap of round 1 - Absolutely horrible. Having passed on the idea of a tandem and gone straight to AFF, Jamie Webster's instructors told him upon landing from his first jump that perhaps skydiving just might not be for him. Luckily, Jamie isn't exactly the type to take no for an answer, and from jump number two on things started looking up. Thousands up jumps later, and years of experience as instructor behind him he's solidly proved those first impressions wrong. Not that he hasn't had his close calls… In one of the most intense experiences shared on the podcast to date, Jamie fills us in on what it's like to spend time staring at the bottom of a 182, snagged, suspended and terribly threatened by gear designed to save lives, not take them. Jamie will be the first to tell you it is all about learning from your mistakes and close calls, proving why sticking with the Lunatic Fringe is his preferred path.
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A second generation skydiver, there was never any doubt in Gonçalo Resende's mind that jumping was the thing for him; or more specifically, that the dropzone was where he belonged. Even from a very young age, it was the organization itself and the inter-workings of a dropzone that truly intrigued him. Small for his age at the time, jumping wasn't an option for him as young as he would have liked, yet that didn't stop him from racking up thousands of jumps by the time he grew out of his teen years. Wanting nothing more than to completely immerse himself in our world, Gonçalo thrived on everything from packing and rigging, through camera flying and instruction, and well into competition. A champion in his own right, his goals might not be what you would expect… Yet it's his goals and his drive to excel in every aspect of our sport that solidifies his place deep within the Lunatic Fringe.
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With aviation as the dream, but without the means, there was a real chance that becoming a pilot would have remained out of reach for Chris Rosenfelt, but he simply wasn't that kind of person. Working multiple jobs and having a mother willing to match dollar for dollar, Chris pushed hard towards his dream of becoming a pilot. Yet in modern aviation in the United States, simply having your pilots license doesn't mean much without opportunity. It was the world of skydiving that offered him a real shot at the career he dreamed of, even though it offered a fair amount of hardship and trouble. Now, after almost countless drop zones and a myriad of different aircraft, Chris not only works as a professional pilot, but helps mentor those looking to take the same path. With websites like skydiverdriver.com, he's working hard to give back to the lunatic community that has allowed him to move forward with his dreams.
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Skydiving absolutely was not on the agenda. It was chemical engineering. That was the direction he had taken, and Brian Naiman was happy with the choice. But as it's been known to happen, skydiving snuck up on him, and a random invitation by a skydiver to join him at the drop zone let him down a new path. When everything from dissatisfaction at work to a pandemic got it the way, the once unthinkable became reality. Enter the new partner of Skydance skydiving in Davis California. Now, handling everything from social media to managing the upcoming scrambles in October as well as their film festival in November, Brian's journey towards the lunatic fringe is complete.
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Twenty seven years and still going strong. When Matt Yount got his start in skydiving, tandems were just becoming a normal way to enter the game, and now… Now not only does Matt find himself a tandem examiner but he finds himself traveling the globe helping to share our sport with individuals and skydiving federations worldwide. With trips to incredible places like Nepal, Iceland, the Maldives, Egypt and many more, he is absolutely one of the authorities on what it takes to make it as an international tandem instructor. A lifelong member of the Lunatic Fringe, Matt may have a bunch of years behind him, but he'll still l be going strong for sometime to come. Now, with his sights set on giving back to the skydiving community as a board member, he wants to put his lunatic past to good use!
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With childhood roots firmly planted in Pennsylvania, Amish country to be exact, the tribe that was Crosskeys in 2005 was about as different as you could possibly get, but different was exactly what Kylie Rhodes was on the lookout for. It was under canopy on her very first jump that she found herself asking her very charismatic and handsome tandem instructor how she could do 'this' for a living. Before she knew it, she was working in manifest alongside Liz Mann, one of the greatest ever to touch a DZ microphone who, in rather short order assessed that Kylie might be a little more high energy than even the CK office could handle. The perfect shift? Hanger master, and the awesome responsibility of being one of the first people in skydiving most of the customers back then would interact with. Yet it wasn't until she found herself working in a Florida tunnel that Kylie would help establish her own version of the CK tribe she had become a part of. Now, almost 20 years after it all started, the memories of her beginnings within the Lunatic Fringe are still as strong and wonderful as ever, even if slightly fuzzy around the edges.
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Spending a solid portion of your first skydive trying to figure out how to get back in the King Air might not be how you’d expect a championship skydivers career to begin, but that’s exactly how it went for Richö Butts. A self proclaimed mellow child, it wasn’t until motorcycles entered his life that Richö Started to see the appeal in a slightly more ‘radical’ lifestyle. Even with motorcycles having become a passion for him, one might think an individual whose profession is risk assessment might be a bit more adverse to it in their own life - yet from skydiving to rally car driving, motorcycles to aerobatic aircraft, BASE and more, there’s simply no doubt Richö Butts has a real thirst for the Lunatic Fringe side of life.
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From jump one, Sherry Schlater Butcher wasn't just all about jumping, she was all about the process of learning - and of teaching. For her, skydiving turned out to be a perfect mix of the two, so when she found herself swimming in the deep end almost right away, it was with a real purpose. From static-line to AFF, Tandem Instructor to Skydive University coach, Master Rigger to AFF Examiner and all the way through to National Judge and DZO, there pretty much isn't any role that Sherry cannot fill. Once again on the path to retain her long held an consequential seat on the board, Sherry Schlater Butcher proves that the Lunatic Fringe has much more to offer than a bunch of one trick ponies.
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Boiled down to the basics, Matt Fry is all about the big stuff. Having learned to balance a productive job in the 'real' world against outlets like skydiving, climbing and mountaineering. He may not exactly leave himself a lot of free time to just do his own thing, but that suits him just fine. From state records to the big 200 way coming up in Chicago, Matt sees his drive for adventure sports leading him from massive groups of friends holding hands at 150 miles per hour, to the solo endeavors deep in the mountains he loves so much. Add to that his desire to help those with similar aspirations, and it's easy to see that Matt Fry will be hanging with the Lunatic Fringe for the long run.
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At 4 years old he was already hooked. Watching his father make a static line jump, the then toddler Connor Figg was all in - like wearing swimming goggles and jumping off whatever he could, in. The fixation with skydiving never left him, and after graduating college with a degree in engineering (even though his real focus during school was always aimed toward the DZ) he did exactly what his parents hoped he wouldn't. Like so many degrees, it worked on collecting dust, while Connor worked toward perfecting all things body flight. A natural in the tunnel and sky, coaching became his focus - and although he would become a champion competitor, its been his desire to teach and to pass on what he's learned both in the tunnel and in the sky that paints the picture of a long and satisfying journey with his Lunatic Fringe career.
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Back in the can for a second round, Laurie Lubbe sits down to talk about her beginnings in the sport of both skydiving and tunnel flying. How a sport and career that in her home country of France was not, at the time, an easy one to navigate led her to move to a less than obvious choice. With her sights set on the French Nationals of skydiving set to take place at the end of August, Laurie points out some of the differences between competing in the tunnel as opposed to the sky, her true love of coaching, and what the Lunatic Fringe might hold for her in the future.
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