Meet The Oranges

Larry “Pinecone” Waite

Pinecone is a Tandem Videographer and a Freefly Organizer at Skydive Orange. If you chose to do your first skydive with Skydive Orange and purchase video and/or photos, you may get the opportunity of jumping with Pinecone and have him shoot you video and/or photo’s! Pinecone also has his USPA Coach rating, Pro Rating and 1000+ jumps. 

Why did you start skydiving?:
I started skydiving when I was 19 years old.  At the time, I hadn’t really given it much thought and simply stumbled upon the sport when I followed a friend to the local drop zone.  After one tandem jump, I was immediately mesmerized by the sensations experienced during body and parachute flight…it didn’t feel like falling at all…it was FLIGHT.   I just HAD to do it again as soon as possible.  I scheduled my next jump before leaving the drop zone and after my second jump I was captured by the comradery shared by all of the experienced jumpers.  Naturally, I began to pursue the sport and it has been a huge part of my life ever since.

What has skydiving taught you? Skydiving has heightened my awareness of the world around me and solidified my appreciation of the people with whom I share it.  It has taught me to never let go of my dreams, whatever they may be.  I’m so very grateful for what this sport has provided for me: friends, family, love and a lot of sensational experiences.

Why should everyone try skydiving at least once in their lifetime? “Why should everyone make a jump?” To me that’s a silly question and a more debatable one would be, “Why should anyone NOT make a jump?”  I feel that too many people allow fear to drive their decision making in all aspects of life (work, socializing, sports, travel, etc).  Making the commitment to accomplish something awesome, facing your fears, getting the proper training and staying focused is what skydiving is all about.  That behavior is a great model to accomplish anything in life.

Why choose Skydive Orange?
Skydive Orange is THE premier drop zone in the Mid Atlantic.  Skydive Orange is home to many great people and is an excellent place to learn and grow into the sport.  First time and return tandem/AFF students receive high quality training and a genuine drop zone experience.

Advice for first time jumpers:
Your first jump is a very special experience because you only get to do your first jump once!  Ever since I made my first tandem, I’ve always recommended that everyone get video of their first jump.  While, sure, it is cool to be able to revisit the experience via watching the video later in your living room or posting it on Facebook, the main reason that I recommend getting the video is to be able to share your free fall experience with another person.  You truly feel the sensation of flying when you have another person flying closely with you in freefall.  Otherwise, it is just you and the horizon, which is still awesome, but not nearly as cool as getting to watch someone fly around you.  As a tandem videographer, I get to witness people’s reactions throughout their freefall experience.  I get to share with them that moment in which they realize that skydiving was nothing like they thought it would be.  I absolutely love it when I fly up in front of a student for the first time, make eye contact with them and see the huge smile on their face when they realize “Wait…we’re flying.  This is AWESOME!”

Purchasing the video/photo option means that you are upgrading your skydive to an enhanced experience.  The only thing better than jumping out of an airplane is jumping out of an airplane with other people!