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The Lunatic Fringe Podcast
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The Lunatic Fringe Podcast
Author: The Pilot
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Description
The Freakin‘ Pilot from Blue Skies Mag talks to some of the worlds premiere as well as unknown skydivers and extreme air sports athletes to get their take on living life to the fullest, their paths to the Lunatic Fringe and how they fit into the mainstream world while living life on the dark side.It’s as much if not more about why we skydive, parachute and BASE jump as how, and it’s endlessly entertaining to climb inside the minds of those living a life less ordinary.
335 Episodes
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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.
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.
By the time he graduated high school, Sean Chuma had already made more than a hundred and fifty skydives. Add to that being an avid gymnast and pole vaulter, and you could say that he started mapping out one hell of a future for himself from a young age. Having attended university studying psychology, which would turn out to be yet another tool he would put to use in the future, his life in airports also continued to expand. Although there would be substantial hurdles to overcome before he could begin his BASE career, the course he would eventually attend set him in the right direction, with a focus on safety and responsibility within his new sport. Now, with more than 8,000 BASE jumps, a highly successful BASE course, and one of the pioneers in Tandem BASE, there is simply no doubt that Sean Chuma has been and will continue to be a proper Lunatic Fringe trail blazer, with a long future ahead of him.
Mad John made his fist skydive in 1969. With initial ambitions pushing him towards becoming a nuclear physicist, it would have been easy for his first skydive while attending UC Berkeley to simply be a one off, But that simply wasn’t meant to be. A lack of money to skydive, and grades not quite up to nuclear physicist levels, John ended up going in a different direction. When the opportunity to get his certification as a math teacher presented itself, John was easily able to complete the equation. Teacher equals summers off! Now with more years in skydiving than most jumpers have been alive, Mad John Has become a staple in many skydiving circles. With events like Lost Prairie being what Mad John is best known for, and travels taking him quite literally around the world, at 76 he’s nowhere near done. A lunatic from start to finish, this is exactly what we’re about.
Back in the can for round 2, professional race car driver, professional skydiver and the first ever NASCAR driver to ever skydive into a race, Matt Jaskol sits down to talk his beginnings in the sport of skydiving, how racing led him to our community and the unique opportunities it's presented him with. With days worth of stories that most "normal" people won't ever believe, it just goes to show, the Lunatic lifestyle works just as well with wheels as it does with propellers.
To say it's been a crazy ride for Daphny Morali would be an incredible understatement. It all started as a kid with a blanket and a window. Then it was aerial acrobatics and the circus. Add a tandem skydive to the mix, and you have a pretty good idea of where this story goes. Jumping and flying in the tunnel in Israel, she was told that making it "big" in airsports was going to be difficult, and when she lost her tunnel sponsorship just prior to the world championships a few years back she would have probably agreed... but with one Instagram post, it all changed. Now living, coaching and competing out of Germany, Daphny has no doubt that her next airpsorts Lunatic lottery ticket is just around the corner.
This guy... It's been quite a while since we've sat down to talk with the one and only "Junior", and man has he been up to a lot… Having transitioned out of his full-time gig in the Middle East, a little bit of luck and a whole lot of skill has taken him in a whole new direction. A Lunatic Fringe OG and sometimes host, he's as experienced a skydiver and instructor as there is - hell... He's got more than 600 rides upfront helping TI's get their ratings. If that's not crazy, I don't know what is...
"The other Morrocan" in skydiving, Youssef Elmajdoub kicked off his skydiving career thinking he was simply going to the dropzone as moral support for a friend. Little did he know, a tandem skydive in Dubai had been purchased for him as well. That as they say wasn't exactly all it took though. Youssef continued in the sport not because he had an incredible passion for his newly discovered sport, but because he didn't think he handled it well enough the first time around. That mentality was a major driving force not only in his skydiving career, but in life in general. How can I be even better the next time around. Not always the easiest mindset to have, especially in a sport where a mistake can cost a lot more than just a little pride, as he would discover. Now, having recovered from an accident that could have easily taken his life, Youssef still approaches the sport with the same 'do better' mentality but now tempered with the realization that perfection isn't the goal. A Lunatic through and through, Youssef Elmajdoub embodies what skydiving is all about.
As a kid growing up in Ohio, the idea of jumping out of an airplane had been something Rich Grimm thought about often enough that when the opportunity to make a skydive came up he didn’t think twice. What did make him think twice was round parachutes and belly mounted reserves. Luckily not only for Rich but for skydiving as a whole, his relocation to Southern California and the advances in parachute technology got him back in the sport. A 30 year career as a professional firefighter probably did a lot to help Rich learn to deal with the stresses of skydiving in general, but as it turns out, also helped prepare him for his now more than 20 year career organizing some of the most iconic boogies in our sport. From Belize to Palau, Costa Rica to the Seychelles, even if you don’t know his name, you’ve seen what he’s created. Helping organize Lunatic parties around the globe, Rich Grimm has organized and inspired an entire generation of skydivers, and he’s not done quite yet.
Back in the can to discuss not just all things nylon, but the work that goes behind keeping it in the air, the Head Honcho of the USPA, Mr. Albert Berchtold catches us up not only on his beginnings in the sport and what it's like to sit in the big seat these days, but about an upcoming worldwide project, World Skydiving Day. A special event around the globe to celebrate the amazing lunatic community that is the world of skydiving on the 13th, the second Saturday in July.
She had always dreamed of dancing and flying. They were two dreams that did not necessarily fit together. At least not until she saw two Titans in our sport dancing in the sky. That moment, coupled with the fact that her father lived only a few kilometers away from a skydiving center, and Roberta Mancino knew it was for her. Balancing a busy career as a model, and her new passion for skydiving, it didn't take long for her to begin combining those two as well. Not only did she find herself working with fashion designers to find ever more creative ways to highlight both their creations and her skills, she began pursuing her desire for competition. Now, the veteran of multiple blockbuster movie stunts, wingsuit competitions around the world and more, Roberta Mancino helps coach not only the upcoming generations of the Lunatic Fringe, but continues to chase her own passions.
Like many long time skydivers, it was a great from pretty much the first jump for Sven Jseppi. With a supportive family, and the early realization that you could actually make money jumping out of airplanes, he had his path. Through luck with timing and weather he met his wife as she and her friend made their first jumps, and it's with her that he's carved out his own little corner of the sport as a successful tandem skydiving operator. Yet the competition bug was always something Sven had in him, and the canopy side of things got ahold just as the blossoming sport of canopy piloting was really gaining traction. Training, working, training, competing. It was a long road that he loved navigating, and it led him to reach the lofty goal of world champion. Now, occupying the top slot and with a little breathing room, competition is still a true passion, but without the need to push the limits no matter what. With his sights set on South Africa and a chance to defend his title, he's aiming once again for Lunatic Fringe gold.
A random off field landing. It happens all the time at skydiving centers all around the world; but this off landing in the early 90's changed the course of Steve Burrow's life. A working man and a father of two sons and a daughter at the time, skydiving may not have been the normal path to take, but it was the one for Steve. With a supportive wife and family, he became an active and passionate skydiver up until 2005, when he made the choice to step away from the sport and give his attention to his loved ones. Cut to almost 20 years later when for 26:40, the equivalent of an A license worth of free fall, Steve Burrow was dead. Coded and laying on a hospital gurney having fallen victim to a massive infection, it was the incredibly hard work of his medical team that ensured he would continue to fight another day. Now, just over a year after surgeries that left him a quad-amputee, Steve found himself drawn back to the sky. With the assistance of the amazing team at Skydive Spaceland in Dallas, Steve showed his Lunatic Fringe drive to live life to the fullest, regardless of what's been thrown in his way, embracing the truth that once a skydiver, always a skydiver.
The son of a previously unrevealed badass, sports like surfing had attracted Mike Brewer from a young age, but as he found himself running track for a military academy he couldn't help but feel that something was missing. As usually happens, random chance and circumstance found him taking the leap on his first static line jump. Then his second that same day. That was pretty much all it took. Realizing that his previous love for photography could aim him toward the top of the pyramid as a... tandem videographer. His almost singular goal moving forward became all things skydiving. Improving his flying skills, the pursuit of film making within the sport and a drive to compete were just a few of facets that drew him in. From living in a tent behind the Paraclete wind tunnel to working as a military contractor and skydiving competitor, to speed skydiving, to taking on the role of a documentarian for the lofty Project 19, Mike Brewer is in it for the long run, tempering his Lunatic Fringe tendencies with a high work ethic and desire to move his vision for the sport into the future.
Born in the Dominican Republic and raised in Canada, Carlo Manuel did all the same things the other kids did. From skate boards to music, he did his best to fit in with the crowd; but when the thought of life in the military appeared on his radar, he knew it was the role of paratrooper that had real appeal. So much so that Carlo went out and made his first jump at a civilian dropzone, just to make sure he and a grip on what was to come. That's all it took. Although it would be many years before Carlo was actively jumping, his time in the military while deployed in Afghanistan would lead to skydiving opportunities one might not expect from someone in his line of work. Skydiving would not only become a passion for Carlo, it was an escape. a way to quiet the voices that constantly reminded him of difficult times. Now, having learned from personal experience that you can only avoid those inner demons for so long, Carlo goes out of his way to put in the work, seek connection, and offer up his take on mental health and well being, all while living the vagabond Lunatic Fringe lifestyle to its fullest.
"Cause who the hell am l" is what most people say when they've got an opinion they either aren't ready or don't think they're qualified to share, and although you'll hear Candice say those exact words, they aren't ones that keep her from sharing. A self proclaimed 'empty Nester' who found herself asking what might come next, it turned out skydiving was. Back in the day there was no way she could have ever imagined doing even one jump let alone going on to get licensed, but now, having raised children under the shadows of canopies flying over her Florida neighborhood she's decided to do something one hundred percent for herself. Learning to overcome fear in dramatic fashion, with a smile from an icon in the sport being what kept her from walking away, Candice Wooten may be a newer member of the Lunatic Fringe, but she's damn sure going to stay!
Friends for decades, Paul Dorward and Ollie Neuberger had a lot in common from the very beginning. A love for skydiving, and a career in law enforcement. As each discovered along the way their love not only for teaching within the sport, but welcoming new people to play, they found themselves regularly traveling abroad with plane loads of fellow police Britts to exotic places like Lake Elsinore, California. Paul was blasting full steam ahead on the canopy side of the sport, while Ollie set his sights early on earning the title of AFF instructor. Now, with Paul a Flight-1 instructor and Ollie having completely embraced the AFF life while juggling law enforcement and a family, the two take time out of their busy schedules to talk all things nylon, travel, and community, sharing shades of a great (and enjoyably insulting) friendship deep within the Lunatic Fringe.
Back in the can to fire off a few questions of his own, A legend in the airsports world who has not only carved out his own unique path, but helped countless others find their own, Ray Kubiak shows not only why he's an incredibly valued member of The Lunatic Fringe, but one who's taken up an entirely new challenge which he'll be making good on in less than three months!
Like a lot of us, Andy "Bad Andy" VanHandel went out to make his first jump with his then girlfriend. How did that first jump go? Truth is, he couldn't tell you. It was complete overload... Yet something in that first experience drew him back. By jump number 3, he knew he'd found his sport. Working toward his coach rating, then static-line instructor, and eventually to a very busy weekend warrior TI, Andy had found not just a passion, but a community to share it with. Still deep in the tandem game, Andy has gone out of his way to support one of the most deserving causes out there. Veterans. Working closely with the veterans group HOOAH on their incredible project Freedom Freefall, it's an event designed specifically to help vets suffering from PTSD find a new direction and passion in life. With this years event falling on July 13th, which just happens to be World Skydiving Day, and July 20th registration will end May 15th. Head to hooahwi.org/freedom-freefall and help Andy and the Lunatic Fringe give something back to an incredibly deserving group!
Although Dawson and Olivier started their journey in skydiving at the same time, it was the tunnel that first sunk its hooks deep in both of them. Growing up in Canada, all the usual sports were on tap for each of them, from snowboarding to rock climbing, but it was the tunnel that showed them something exciting and new. As with most, finding both the time and money to maintain turned out to be the biggest challenge, and although Covid threw a proper wrench into the machine for everyone, both Olivier and Dawson survived the two year long tunnel shut down, pushed forward with the skydiving side of their journey and into the world of competition in the tunnel. Now have their sights set on helping smooth the way for newer generations of both skydivers and tunnel flyers with a YouTube video series designed specifically with them in mind, helping to pass on the Lunatic Fringe way of life.
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