Official Statement Re: BASE numbers

[guest]

Hello BASE Jumpers,

I know many of you are waiting to hear about the status of the issuing of the numbers, so here goes:

I am Joy Harrison, Rick’s wife of 20 years. We were together just before his first BASE jump (a building), and although it true I am not a jumper, I was present for many of the early BASE jumps in the U.S. Then an now, I hold a personal love and respect for this unique community.

Most important, I am an excellent records keeper. I have the time and initiative and that what is needed here.

Jean Boenish has begun mailing me "The Stuff" I need to get numbers to date. I have not completely figured out the organization, but it is coming together. For those of you who have already sent written requests to Jean, Rick or Randy, I am logging in those with complete information. However there are several I will be writing for more information.

In an effort to help things go smoothly, we need the following information from applicants for a BASE number:

(1) Name, address, phone number where I can call you collect, and/or a self-addressed stamped envelope (S.A.S.E.) to insure personal, private issue.

(2) Name and/or location of each of the four objects, especially your most recent qualifying jump.

(3) Month, day, and year of each object, especially you qualifying jump! Also, realize the time would be helpful in cases of multiple qualifying jumps on the same day. (I need to know who went first). It is also quite possible another person somewhere in the world will submit their information for the same day.

(4) Further information could be a typical log of jump facts from the BASE sites. Any additional personal or jump history of observations you may supply also remains confidential.


On the subject of donations, we are requesting $10.00 for issuing your number to
help our costs for processing and supplies. There is a $5.00 fee if you would like a card. All donations are appreciated, but no way will affect the order of the numbers issued. Checks should be made payable to BASE, on a U.S. Bank, and in U.S. funds ($), or (International) postal money orders.

In respect for privacy of individuals, and integrity of the BASE numbers, we will not be issuing numbers by e-mail. Our BASE Constitution requires confidentiality. For the same reasons, a separate, personal note must be received from each qualifying jumper. A list of qualifying jumpers by an individual is not acceptable. This insures the job is being done in as secure a manner as possible.

P.S. Jean tells me she has the following items available as long as supplies last. You can inquire at her present address: 321 West Durian Avenue, Coalinga, CA 93210-1915, USA.

Identification card for El Capitan Jumper Number $3.00 each
Patches for El Capitan BASE Jumpers $15.00 each
Personalized certificate for El Capitan Jumpers $15.00 each
Six 1981 back issues of BASE Magazine $20.00/set


Questions and suggestions always welcome.

U.S.B.A.
Rick and Joy Harrison
7316 Houston Drive
Hitchcock, Texas 77563

Be safe and pay attention to detail!!!!


Joy and Rick Harrison

[imported_mknutson]

I have set up a dedicated forum to discuss any and all issues surrounding the issuence of BASE Numbers.

The new forum:
http://www.baselogic.com/cgi-bin/for...m=base_numbers

[guest]

<center><font size="1" color="#ff0000">LAST EDITED ON Dec-07-99 AT 08:29&nbsp;PM (EST)</font></center>

"I wrote a long letter once, and pressed the wrong button and it all disappeared, I'll never use a computer again."

Jean Boenish, 1989

Since that day I gave up hoping Jean would ever modernize the system so it's very nice to see you folks online. I feel the BASE numbers are in good hands . . .

This is a milestone of sorts as Jean passes on the job of issuing the BASE numbers. So for the folks who have never met Carl or Jean Boenish here are some excerpts from an interview I did with Jean for The FIXED OBJECT JOURNAL back in early 1991.

TFOJ - How did you meet Carl Boenish?
Jean - I met him in April of 1979 during my first year of college. A classmate invited me to a party and Carl is there showing a film. It turned out to be "Skydive" and he was showing it for the first time and it was really neat."
TFOJ - It still is.
Jean - Yes, and he was really enthusiastic, running around and laughing that laugh of his, and I was looking at him and . . . well we kept in touch until I started skydiving. He would give me rides to the DZ in his car. He said it was on his way, but I found out later it is 50 miles out of his way. The fourth time we went out together we became engaged.
TFOJ - You were a bit younger than Carl?
Jean - I am 19 and Carl is 38. We didn't realize it as he thought I was older and I thought he was younger. By the time we figured it out, it didn't matter anymore.
TFOJ - How did you start skydiving?
Jean - After meeting Carl at the party, skydiving was pretty high up my list of things to do. I did it in Montana, it was a round static line jump in the boonies at sunset. Bill Bishop, my Jumpmaster, is buzzing me with his square, and it is all very beutiful
TFOJ - How did you start BASE jumping?
Jean - My first BASE jump is in 1980 at the New River Gorge Bridge in West Virginia. It's my 34th parachute jump ever. I had no square jumps. (This is when you needed a hundred round parachute jumps before anyone would let you jump a square]. So I used a round, a Piglet, for my first BASE jump and it went well.
TFOJ - Tell us about your first building jump. Did the whole concept frighten you?
Jean - No, we were so excited about what we were doing to be too worried. Jim Handbury built us special rigs [the forerunner to Velcro closed rigs that Jim later built. These were large containers with single pins and none of the claptrap skydiving rigs of the day had like pack opening bands and such] and we tested them from Cessna’s using 48 inch pilot chutes. In fact, the airplane jumps made me more nervous that the actual building jumps.
TFOJ - You jumped the building at night, why? [This is before building jumping is as routine as it is now].
Jean - Daylight at first seemed safer, but we soon realized night is better. The winds are still, the traffic is clear, and no one will see you. It just made more sense to jump at night.
TFOJ - Did you, or Carl or Phil Smith ever think BASE jumping would become as popular as it's proving to be?
Jean - When Carl showed his EL Cap film at the 1979 Nationals the response from the jumpers is very positive. I won't go as far as saying it created a mad rush, but for the people who saw it, and especially the ones that got "it" I definitely saw that the Genie was out of the lamp. Skydivers came to El Cap from all over the world after that.

[Carl Boenish is killed jumping Norway's Troll Wall and received the USPA Achievement award posthumously shortly thereafter].

TFOJ- Had he lived, how do you think Carl would have felt about winning the USPA Award after all the trouble between BASE jumping and USPA?
Jean - When the USPA turned on BASE jumping Carl knew it was just that. It wasn't skydivers who were down on it. The rift never bothered him, he was just the Jolly Filmer. This is also the beginnings of the USBA [United States BASE Association] as we realized we needed our own organization. If Carl would have lived to receive the award I'm sure he would have dedicated it to someone else. He is always respectful of all the awards, and I'll tell you something, I suspect he is more interested in numbers and awards they he would have confessed. He probably would have been grateful, but a bit embarrassed. Getting the award was nice for another reason, it gave Carl's family the memorial service they never had.
TFOJ - What's the strangest phone call you ever received from someone requesting a BASE number?
Jean - One fellow called early one morning and said, "Guess where I am?" He was standing on the lip of El Cap with a portable phone [this is right when cell phones made their first appearance] and he said this jump would qualify him for his BASE award. I said fine, call me back from the meadow an I'll give you the number. But he never did, and I never heard from him again.
TFOJ - Well, I guess if anything happened to him they would have found him by now.
Jean - I would imagine so. (Laughter).
TFOJ - What is the last thing Carl ever said to you?
Jean - That will remain forever between Carl and I.

More later if anyone is interested . . .

Nick
BR

[bps]

Hi Nick -

I would love to read more! These stories and information are an important piece of history.

Thanks for posting!

Bryan

[guest]

Nick,

Would love to hear more from the pages of TFOJ!

Keep them coming.

Blue Skies

[kleggo]

i have the first 5 or 6 issues of carl and jeans 'zine from '80 - '81 that i can make available to you if you're interested.

love,

kleggo

[guest]

Kleggo,

I have them all also. I'm now wondering if Jean is still selling them? If not, and if I can get her permission, maybe she'll let me put them online.

BTW, you didn't come by for the TailGates last Friday. No problem. Moe has them for you.

Nick_BR

[guest]

Like the article said, Jean is selling the last sets of BASE magazine.

[guest]

Hi Nick. Thanks for the words of support. I must thank my wife since she has really grabbed hold and organized all of the correspondence. I enjoyed the excerpt about Jean and Carl. I remember reading it years ago. Even though I can communicate on this computer, it is at work and usually all I can do is check it from time to time after work hours. I do plan on getting a home computer this year, but not sure when. Anyway, if you would help spread the word, folks still need to send me and Joy a personal note showing the 4 qualifying objects and the Date and Time of the last one. Our address is 7316 Houston Drive
Hitchcock, Tx. 77563.
Donations of $10. for number are nice but truly OPTIONAL. We'll send paper cards with gold ink for free with name and number. Green credit card sized official cards are available for a $5.00 fee.
Nick, I don't know if you ever had a chance to meet Thor Alex Koppefiell before he hit the wall this summer at Kjerog, but he picked Randy and I up at Stevanger when we went this summer. I was super impressed by the quality of some of the young Norwegian jumpers like him, Chris M. and others. Nice to see the old pioneering spirit still alive both here and there. I glad I don't need quite that much adrenalin anymore, but I still like a shot once and awhile. Troll Spire was a real nice jump with a required 60 degree turn 6 seconds after exit to get good clear air. I just wish that 6 hour hike/climb was easier for us old men. Take care and keep in touch. Rick.