My adventures in skydiving began in 1968 while visiting my aunt and uncle, Pat and Ches Judy. On the mantel was a photo of Uncle Ches, D-1281, skydiving. Unknown to me at that time, that photo would dictate my life.

I would jump from the low parts of our roof with a shaky umbrella or quartered-up bedsheet, neither of which worked. I always crashed with a thud. But the seed was planted, and it wouldn’t be long before I’d try it for real.

On March 10, skydivers across the U.S. and around the world made their way to one of the hundreds of drop zones that hosted a Safety Day event. Now in its 22nd year, Safety Day continues to be a favorite event that draws jumpers both new and old to the drop zone for a day geared toward making everyone smarter and safer. Whether attendees listened to presentations about managing canopy traffic and avoiding collisions, practiced emergency procedures (in a hanging harness using traditional methods or the virtual reality videos newly available on USPA’s website) or learned how a main-assisted-reserve- deployment (MARD) device works to extract a reserve, those who attended Safety Day thoroughly enjoyed it.

Photo by Zach Schroedel | D-29163
Ted Chen flies his wingsuit at Bay Area Skydiving in Byron, California.

Photographer Roy Muller took this shot of a rodeo-freefly hybrid jump over Bay Area Skydiving in Byron, California.  Holly Umbel rides on J.P. Kelly, who docks on sit-flyer Chris Quaintance, while Keith Myers flies head down.

This month's cover was shot by Dave "Bluebaker" Hancock, 32, a five-year member of the Australian 8-way team with more than 3,500 jumps.  It shows the American CRW sequential team practicing over the lighthouse at Byron Bay, which, as the most easterly point in Australia, is roughly equivalent to America's Cape Hatteras.  A complete report on the World CRW Championships in Australia begins on page 16.