Jump #5 - last jump of the day - takeaways from Rook

Jump 5 started out good. I made a judgement call halfway up to switch jump run to North to help get the sun out of the floaters eyes. Unfortunately, by doing this it made the climb to altitude considerably longer.

The jump itself started off pretty good. People were taking their time and were disciplined which was nice after such a long day. We'll have to refer to the videos to see how big it built—Either way it was a safe day which is ultimately goal #1.

What a day! Everyone has landed from jump #4 of the Vertical World Record attempts and are now headed up for 1 final jump of the day—but not without belting out some Eye of the Tiger, of course. The talent and drive of all participating is truly unreal here and as you can see by the picture below (taken today), there have been a number of REALLY close ones. We'll continue to keep you updated in real-time here and on our official facebook page.

"As the formation built it was a little rough. There were some level issues and broken grips. Then it seemed to rebuild... but it was definitely a bit of a rodeo. Not sure as to the success. Everybody feels the same way. Now it’s time to dig deep if we didn’t get a record and do one more today."

"Man, everybody is performing really, really good. Everything in front of me was built and built for a long time. Unfortunately as I looked across the formation, the people in front of me were shaking their heads due to someone getting popped out of the formation behind me. The team needs to not be frustrated and look more towards the success of getting a record on the next jump."

[walking in] “… soo close. That was SO close."

"The jump started out really good everybody was kinda riding the high from the success of the first jump. Pilots in the aircraft formation are crushing it. Lotsa people landed thinking that we got it. Unfortunately, after chatting with some of the other captains, 1 or 2 people may have been out. Everybody knows we’re close. It’s going to take discipline and solid flying but today feels like the day."

Jump #5 - last jump of the day - takeaways from Rook

"The jump started out smooth with a really solid airplane formation. We switched aircraft around [from the previous jump] and the guys crushed the new positioning. The formation built quite large and then again some waves started to flow through. Everything in my view was very close to completing, unfortunately everything behind me… wasn’t.

Break offs have been going real well all day, no close calls or intense canopy traffic. Donovan and his grounds crew team are doing a fantastic job picking people up and keeping the planes stocked with O2.

Look forward to reflecting on the video tonight then waking up and crushing the record!"

"Jump 4 started off pretty good. Airplane formation was good, exit timing was good, and all airplanes exited together. Started to build up really strong. As the formation built, however, tension grew and a few people popped out up above the formation. Seems like fatigue is starting to play a factor in the team. Going to push on for one more jump today."

Rook:  "Weather has gotten perfect. The jump started out really strong. The airplane formation was super tight—everyone got there. There was a misqueue for one of the floating trail planes. The plane may have arrived just before breakoff. All the other sectors looked really, really strong. Today could be the day."

[as he's walking away] "gaaa that felt so good though!"

Rook: "Airplane formation was the best it's ever been. There was a lot of time to build the formation however there was a bit of off-level flying that caused some waves to go through the formation. Look forward to debriefing the video from today so that we have a solid plan ready to go forward with in the AM."