Lunatic Fringe - Into the Void

It started with an accident onboard a commercial airliner over Austrailia, or at least the catalyst did.  In an event that will forever be a part of Simon Colmer, part of learning to get past it was a bucket list that happened to include skydiving; yet for someone scared of heights dealing with the after effects of a traumatic experience onboard an airplane, it was one that took a bit of time to get around to.  Now, splitting his life quite clearly between the "real" world of an IT job, and weekends as a freefly coach and up and coming canopy pilot, Simon takes time to tell us about his rough beginnings in the air, lessons learned through injury, experience and travel and a host of incredible characters and mentors, and how he keeps the passion going in a sport with changing trends and appearances as he balances between the regular world and the Lunatic Fringe.

Back in the can for another virtual bonfire, Pablito Perazzoli, Master Rigger, Tandem Examiner, world traveler and a curator of one of the most spectacular handlebar mustaches this side of the 1800's sits down to talk a little about rigging, jumping, travel, loss and life. Join us for a fun catch up and informative chat with another wonderful life-long member of the Lunatic Fringe.

Kēbē Round 2! It wasn't just skydiving that drew Kēbē in to the sport, it was skysurfing. He knew from the moment he saw a board strapped to another's feet while cruising through the sky that he was all about it. Admittedly having gone about things at an accelerated (and proper sketchy) rate, his return to life with the board after years of competition, drive and determination have led him to come up with a training program designed to help those with his same passion go about it in a well thought out and clearly defined way. Add to that a little Lunatic Fringe style creative writing and you've got Kēbē! 

it's kind of an unbelievable list of accomplishments and stunts. X-Games Skysurfing World Champion. Super Bowl Halftime winning Pepsi Commercial  pulling stunts with a goose. First ever to skydive from an exploding aircraft. First ever parachute on fire in flight... The list goes on and on.  Yet if you had asked a young Troy Hartman what he thought he was going to be when he grew up, there was only one answer. Pilot. Unfortunately, as seems to be the case over and over in life, the plan didn't exactly go the way he thought, so on to plan B...  Becoming not only a world champion skysurfer, but the ambassador for skydiving at a time when not only the US but the whole world seemed to be screaming for something extreme. Join us on this edition of Lunatic Fringe as we talk with Troy about more out of your mind tricks, stunts and lucky breaks than anyone could ever imagine, all of which have him forever linked with the Lunatic Fringe. 

It wasn't just skydiving that drew Kēbē in to the sport, it was skysurfing. He knew from the moment he saw a board strapped to another's feet while cruising through the sky that he was all about it. Admittedly having gone about things at an accelerated (and proper sketchy) rate, his return to life with the board after years of competition, drive and determination have led him to come up with a training program designed to help those with his same passion go about it in a well thought out and clearly defined way. Add to that a little Lunatic Fringe style creative writing and you've got Kēbē! 

It's kind of an unbelievable list of accomplishments and stunts. X-Games Skysurfing World Champion. Super Bowl Halftime winning Pepsi Commercial  pulling stunts with a goose. First ever to skydive from an exploding aircraft. First ever parachute on fire in flight... The list goes on and on.  Yet if you had asked a young Troy Hartman what he thought he was going to be when he grew up, there was only one answer. Pilot. Unfortunately, as seems to be the case over and over in life, the plan didn't exactly go the way he thought, so on to plan B...  Becoming not only a world champion skysurfer, but the ambassador for skydiving at a time when not only the US but the whole world seemed to be screaming for something extreme. Join us on this edition of Lunatic Fringe as we talk with Troy about more out of your mind tricks, stunts and lucky breaks than anyone could ever imagine, all of which have him forever linked with the Lunatic Fringe. 

Joined by Alberto, Emma, Olga and Victoria, this second remote Himalayan podcast is a bunch of skydivers most decidedly not skydiving! Recorded after more than two weeks on the mountain, having attempted scaling the 6,100 meter mountain known as Island Peak, situated a rocks throw from Mount Everest, the team recounts this most amazing adventure over a few drinks in the heart of the climbers and tourists district of Thamel, in Kathmandu. Lunatic Fringe with a twist...

Personally I'm a hell of a fan of a good cliché, and I'm willing to bet Tracy Bohm is too. She met, jumped with, stalked, moved away with and eventually got married to her very first tandem instructor, Mr. Tom Bohm. He quickly instilled in her the same passion for skydiving that he had, and they went about making a hell of a life together both in the sky and on the ground. And then everything changed. Voted the number one Load Organizer by Blue Skies Magazine more times than most, take this time to listen closely to the advice, criticism and lessons she's learned along her wonderful, exciting and tragic journey into the lunatic fringe. 

Like so many before him, that first skydive was more on a whim than anything else. Ending up at an operation not too far from his grandparents home, Alberto Avalis may have seen parachutes in the sky before, but it wasn't until after that first jump that he knew. Working a construction job to pay for his new habit, it wasn't all that long before he knew that skydiving was the life for him. Now, after earning all the ratings and working as a professional skydiver and instructor for many years, he's set his sights on competition, and the coveted head down big way world record, of which he was able to earn a slot for this years attempt. Hoping to go back in 2025 to nail it, he plans on continuing on full power down his path with the Lunatic Fringe, competing, working, and loving every bit of it.

You might think that the transition from a working risk management professional to a working skydiver might be a pretty over the top choice, and you'd be right; but to Dave Cicciarelli it was one of the easiest choices he ever made. With roots in skydiving that stretch back to the late 80's, and a career that kicked off properly when he went to work managing the AFP program for Roger Nelson, Dave's career has gone from Illinois, to Florida, New Zealand to Australia. Staring down his 60's and still going strong as a working skydiver, Dave Cicciarelli is the perfect Lunatic Fringe example of longevity in a sport that isn't just for kids!

From skateboarding to rock climbing, Simon Whittle touched all the bases when it came to his beginnings in extreme sports, but the real hook came when his UK parents bought him his introduction into the world of skydiving in the form of a static line course. The UK being what it is, it took Simon a very long time to start racking up any real jump experience, but where the sky failed, the tunnel filled the gap. Working his way through the ranks as a tunnel instructor, by the time Simon found himself back under nylon, it had been close to 8 years, and he was ready for more. With a drastic change of profession and location he headed off to the Middle East, which turned out to be exactly the move he needed. Now Skydiving Instructor, BASE Jumper, and believe it or not, Skysurfer, Simon Whittle is well and truly locked into his path with the Lunatic Fringe.

  For most people, making the decision to start a static line course is an accomplishment all on its own, but for some, you aren't showing real dedication to pursuing a new experience until you've driven across multiple African countries to start it! Just ask Erin Shutes, who did exactly that. Working around the world in the field of epidemiology and doing her best to help those most in need,  it became clear to Erin that finding a balance to such intense work required equally intense play. Skydiving and then later BASE jumping fit that bill to perfection, and she has been embracing both sports and their respective communities ever since. A heartfelt member of the Lunatic Fringe in every respect, Erin embodies what it means to be a lifelong member, friend, and partner to some of the most passionate people around.

Gorazd Lah, AKA Nitka (and fellow Fuckinasshole) took a very European, and more specifically an Eastern European path in skydiving. Starting out on round parachutes then moving quickly into the world of Style and Accuracy, Gorazd managed to put his tough as nails upbringing and exterior to work for him as he became a champion in his chosen disciplines. Yet...  There's a lot more behind this born again hipster than you might think! Nitka is beyond a doubt a poster child for not judging a book by its cover, and it's one of the reasons why you'll enjoy the hell out of this edition of Lunatic Fringe.

Working hard at an incredibly demanding job, Andreas Mosling was looking for a way to entertain himself on vacation without killing himself in party mode, so at the almost offhand suggestion of a colleague he booked himself a trip to Sebastian, Florida and signed up for AFF. He completed the entire course in one day. The next day he basically doubled his jump numbers, and by the time he left Florida he was well on his way to his B license. And that was enough. For the next year he didn't really give skydiving much of a thought at all. He had pretty much crossed it off his list, until... Now, many years and many thousands of jumps later, with championship medals and world travel to his credit, airsports and all that the word now encompasses has happily become his Lunatic Fringe way of life.

Back in the can to talk about his continuing adventures in all things airsports, paragliding, and more, the one and only Jason Moledzki! Skydiving beginnings aren't always blue skies and sunshine as Jason Moledzki can tell you. Sometimes the drive to make that first jump can come from a truly dark place, but it was a place that Jason found the drive and determination to escape through his love of skydiving and BASE. A multiple world champion dozens of times over with world records and accomplishments in competition too long to list, he and his crew were a major driving force in the advancement not only of canopy piloting and its flight out of infancy, but in competition itself. As the co-founder and creative director of Flight-1, Jason has been instrumental in the complete overhaul of canopy instruction both in the civilian and military skydiving world with incredible student numbers going through their courses each year. on top of that, he is the co-creator/host of his own podcast called Trust the Journey with Melanie Curtis offering inspiration and insight along our journey deep within the Lunatic Fringe.  

The son of a world traveling diplomat, it was perhaps a childhood filled with fairly constant change and a need to adapt that made it easy for Max Lesziak. Easy to decide as he was about to tackle a fairly intense college environment that he should perhaps take a break for... well, for a while. It may have had something to do with the fact that he had the tendency to get bored easily, or it may have been yet again, that first skydive. Hooked almost from the get go, it went rather quickly from packing mat, to two years doing  tandems, then video and then eventually to competition canopy piloting. Oh, and just to add a touch of spice, wingsuit BASE. Now, it's a mix not only of the work side of skydiving, but venturing into new territory as he uses his skills in camera flying to pass on the knowledge, the drive he gets through competition, and the rather unquenchable charge of a well executed BASE jump that keeps Max deep within the Lunatic Fringe. 

It's been 4 years since we said goodbye to one of the greatest in his field, and it's well worth looking back at just a few of the stories and experiences of the one and only Jarno Cordia. From a young age he was drawn to air sports, and skydiving in particular, but having an uncle who'd broken his back landing a round years before, it would have been easy for Jarno Cordia to watch his dreams of flying stay nothing more than childhood fantasy; but his desire to get in the air was much stronger than any fears he or his family may have had. After finishing school at 17 and a top notch career for the taking, he was able to use his early start in the professional world to put aside time to pursue his passion for flight both in skydiving and BASE, most specifically with wingsuiting. As has been for many a jumper, the drive to fly found a way to push career aside, and almost without thinking, he found that his passion and profession were now one in the same. With his teammate Jenna Gygi, @teamflylikebrick continued to lead him to almost every side of the Lunatic Fringe.

Pulling no punches has been Alix Raymond's style, as anyone who knows her can tell you, and her time on the Lunatic Fringe with our returning host Mr. Zej Mski is absolutely no exception. Finishing our her term soon as the Southeast Regional Director for the USPA, she's got more than a few words to say on the sport of skydiving, the USPA as an organization with all its pitfalls and upswings, it's new leadership and more.  As a full-time "real worlder" as well as flying camera and instructing, the Director's seat not only helped to keep her more than a little busy, but gave her some insights into the Lunatic asylum that has left her with a whole lot to say!  

Back to talk about everything from the closing of the ORIGINAL Flyaway Las Vegas Indoor Skydiving facility, to the EPIC races in Abu Dhabi, Ray "Ninja" Kubiak shows just how strongly his bodyflight passions run. Total Fuckin' Ninja. In fact, I'd personally go as far as to call him not only one of the first true tunnel ninja's, but one of the prime players who has shaped modern body flight as much if not more than anyone else. Coming from humble beginnings in one of the first public tunnels in the world, Ray Kubiak went from being one of the most difficult students in the Las Vegas Flyaway tunnel to being a pioneer in teaching true human flight. Overcoming adversity and turning it not only into opportunity but in fact a blessing, Ray is the embodiment of heart and spirit in our sport, and a proper all around lunatic.

Although she didn't know it at the time, her father's Judo style antics throwing her around in the sand may have been exactly what started her down her extreme sports path. That being said, one could argue that Chloe Svolakos's first foray into the world of extremes may have been working as a therapist and social worker in New York City. Through a chance encounter with a skydiver while participating in her first love jujutsu, the idea of making a skydive came up. Just as 2 follows 1, her first tandem led to AFF, and that was pretty much all she wrote. These days, her true passion lies in combining her many different worlds through Alta Psychotherapy, which she founded primarily to help extreme sports athletes deal with everything from overcoming basic fear, to coping with traumatic injury. A truly passionate member of the Lunatic Fringe community looking to help all those along their own journey.

Back in the can to talk about a pretty spectacular 2024, and what is shaping up to be an epic 2025 is JYRO's man for all things FLOCKING, Zack Rosser. At an age when most kids are still learning to tie their shoelaces unassisted, Zack Rosser was tossing on his kid sized climbing harness so his father could take him up on a tandem paraglide session; and before he was old enough to know he had choices available to him, he'd already made his. With paragliding not as accessible in his area in Australia, his father took him out to the local DZ when he was twenty, and set him up on a tandem skydive to see if that might be a good fit. In no time at all, Zack became the DZ's "anything you need" guy, pushing hard to find his angle into the sport. It didn't take him long at all to realize the canopy side of things was exactly his fit. Working now as a tandem instructor, video guy, and primarily a canopy coach, Zack's passion for nylon has led him to everything from competition Canopy Piloting to organizing flocking dives all over Down Under, with plans to branch out to New Zealand and beyond as soon as travel allows. Bringing a youth and exuberance to everything he does, you'll understand when you listen that Zack Rosser has only just begun his path along the Lunatic Fringe.

Even though he's been gone for four years, the legend that is Moe Viletto and his brand Tailored For Survival is just as strong as ever. With epic stories for days, if you weren't lucky enough to have known or met Moe, you can still share in a small taste of what an incredible guy he was. Please enjoy one of the most amazing chats we've ever had on The Lunatic Fringe. With one of the most unique stories of how skydiving entered his life, Moe Viletto had just survived an impromptu zero gravity aerobatic flight by the skin of his teeth when he and his pilot buddy spotted canopies off in the distance. Knowing the instant he landed from his first jump that this was what life had been aiming him toward, he embarked on what this year would have been five decades of skydiving, rigging and BASE jumping. Living life on his terms as a rigging gypsy king, scoring a bit of luck here and there and having an incredible time, he did it all without any real plan. From drougeless tandems and AFF before it was a thing, to living in a VW Beetle while trying to find a home for his sewing machines, to BASE jumping with a tent and then on to Hollywood, Moe Viletto and I only scratch the surface of his fifty years of Lunatic Fringe adventures. From his antics to his rigging, Moe Viletto was a trailblazer in every sense of the word and we aren't likely to ever find another quite like him. On what was suppose to be the first of many installments of "Story Time With Moe", he shared with us just a little of what made him such an incredibly loved icon in our sport.  Recorded not much before his passing, I feel nothing but lucky I had the chance to meet the man behind the Lunatic Fringe legend.

It's become apparent that "extreme" simply means something different in Australia, and Vince Jarvis is yet another example of that fact. A skateboarder from a young age, he simply wasn't aware that you could take part in a sport that didn't require getting bloody. Wasn't aware until a chance opportunity led him to make his first jump. One of the lucky ones that figured out from the beginning how to manage a real world job with his new skydiving addiction, it wasn't long before he was eyeing working weekends in the sport to supplement his required level of stoke.  As A follows B, it became coaching, AFF, tandems, freeflying, wingsuiting and BASE; and as a self proclaimed Jack of all trades master of none, Vince is exactly the type of example to look to for chasing your passions. Second only to Matt Munting in his Aussie "Frothing" level, Vince Jarvis has the whole Lunatic thing well in hand.

Because... Happy Fuckin' New Year! Let's just call this one what it is. We all sat down in a very small room with some microphones and got as drunk as we possibly could while trying to talk about skydiving. Chances are you've probably done some version of it yourself, but If you haven't, we highly recommend you try it sometime. Until then, please enjoy this little Lunatic Fringe bunch of idiots having a wonderful time…

Back in the can to bring us up to speed as we enter 2025, it's JYRO's one and only, Mr. Chris Stewart. He'd let his student down in a major way.  Quite literally the last thing she wanted to hear when asking her attractive, worldly instructor what had driven him to become a professional skydiver was "Google".  From a skydiving school with a "work placement" program, you wouldn't necessarily think big things were on the horizon, but Chris Stewart is flying proof that once that passion takes hold...  Champion competitive canopy pilot, instructor, world traveler, cutting edge test pilot for JYRO canopies, and the Dude to call if you're an athlete waiting to be discovered. An all around good guy, and exactly who to ring in the new year with.     Fuck.     Yeah.

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. 

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 airports throw at her with a deep desire to not only help advance and help those around her, but to push the line that defines her own personal Lunatic Fringe.

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.

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.

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.

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. 

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.

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. 

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.

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.

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. 

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.

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.

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!

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.

  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. 

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.  

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.

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...