13 Aug 2007

I arrived in Kolomna yesterday. Aerogard is a fantastic DZ. It is also very popular. Yesterday, 20 or so Brits arrived. I met 3 people from Brazil. Aerogard claims to be the busiest DZ in Europe. They have 2 Lets, a helicopter and some other plane (I forgot the name of it.)

The landing area is HUGE and has nice grass covering it. It's very flat too.

On site facilities include a snack bar, restaurant, hotel, outdoor gym, camping, video debriefing rooms, 4 computers for internet access, large covered packing areas, clean bathrooms, plenty of creeper area, benches for the spectators or waiting for your load. PA announcements are done in Russian and English. The food in the restaurant is great.

The flooring in the judges room is being laid today. It's a big room with lots of windows that let the early morning sun in.

The weather is beautiful. There is a storm system coming in on Thursday and Friday. The competition starts Saturday. They expect around 20-22 4-way teams. They have 4 events: 4-way, open and intermediate, 2-way and 10-way.

My wireless connection was doing something weird, so I was set up with a static IP address. This is good news because it should mean that scores can be posted in real time. Stupino's wireless was spotty at best and only worked well first thing in the morning before everyone got on. The wireless in the hotel should be up tomorrow.

Olga will give me a tour of the historical sights around Kolomna. That should be fun. Read about the tour.

Today's sights:



Camp grounds


First Jump Course


Outdoor Gym


Hotel (top floor) and restaurant (bottom floor).


The original building when the DZ opened 5 years ago.


An empty packing area.


Signposts to various places.


Tower