The Lunatic Fringe Podcast

Back in the can with the Fuckin' co-host Junior Ludvic, he's got some good tips and advice on taking care of your gear while it's down for the winter months, keeping or getting current, dealing with injuries and what the future holds, this time around on The Lunatic Fringe.

She knew from a pretty young age that she was in a rather unique position. She also knew from a pretty young age that her dad was, well…  cool! Luci Martyn has all the normal childhood memories that most kids do, but those memories are also forever intertwined with her earliest memories of skydiving, it's community around the world and her fathers prominent position in it. It wasn't a question that skydiving would someday be a part of her life, only how much of her life it might occupy. Now one of the directors of Jyro, an incredibly successful canopy manufacturer, Luci Martyn has the pedigree one would expect for a person in her position, right along with the wild streak needed to hold the reins of a company with a reputation for pushing boundaries (and sometimes buttons) with their line crossing antics and add campaigns to match. The Lunatic Fringe is most certainly strong in this one. 

You'd be hard pressed to find many professions where twenty-five was considered a late start,  but at the top of that very short list would most certainly be Freestyle Motocross, yet late to the game was exactly what Scott Fitzgerald A.K.A Toppdog was.  From Mini's off massive ramps at the very beginning of his Lunatic journey, to the real deal with none other than the world famous Nitro Circus, Scott has gone big, almost from the start. With legends and friends riding along with him, the idea of skydiving went from something he might want to do someday, to his new (and most certainly safer) stoke. Join us as Toppdog and I talk about everything from backflips with 5 on a bike, to playing the old man while hucking a scooter off a ramp and how to avoid shredding yourself with a weak flare at the one and only Funny Farm on this edition of Lunatic Fringe

Across multiple generations and varied backgrounds come the European branch of the PD Factory team to share not only the individual paths taken to reach one of the longest and most successful skydiving teams in the sports history; but to share hard lessons learned, paths to future successes through hard work and team training, the future of canopy piloting though hard earned experience and innovation, and a few laughs along the way over spilt drinks and thick accents. Sit back and enjoy Mr. Pablo Hernandez, Brian Vacher, Armando Fattoruso and brother Mario Fattoruso.  

It’s yet another instance of skydiving saving a life. Fighting through difficult times and a past that wouldn’t let go, Dan Blakeley turned to skydiving with a doesn’t matter if I die attitude. Doesn’t matter, right up until he found himself in freefall wanting to live every second of life he could, having just literally fallen into his purpose. With luck in the sport that only a 90s skydiving newbie could appreciate, Dan was handed opportunities that allowed him to carve out a successful career as a camera flyer and instructor for many years. Now retired from the sport and on a different path, Dan looks back on a fulfilling career happily knowing that regardless of what the future holds, he is and will always be a member of the Lunatic Fringe for life.

20 years is a long time for any profession, but especially when its one as physically demanding as working with concrete. Having made his first tandem skydive years back, Grey Milner thought it was just about the most amazing thing he’d ever experienced and was ready to go all in, but as it has a way of doing, life got in the way. It wasn’t until not so long ago that he found himself back in the air on tandem number two, and just like the first, his immediate desire was to go all in. This time, getting at it was exactly what he did, and a week-long trip from Oregon to Arizona and their accelerated program found Grey going from Tandem Passenger to “A” Licensed skydiver. Now comes the really scary part… Sell the house, buy an RV and hit the road to find his way in the big little world of skydiving on his own path toward the Lunatic Fringe. It’s an adventure that so many have dreamed of but never done; but it’s not one that Grey is going to let pass him by.  

At 13, Sydney was the youngest tunnel coach out there; and although she's not much on bragging about her skills and doesn't really share what she does with her classmates at school, she's got her eyes on being a world champion, and has a pretty good handle on just how good she really is. Soccer Mom and Dad to be sure, but on a whole new level are Sydney's parents Michelle and Andrew. As a retired skydiver himself, Andrew loves seeing his daughter embrace that which gave him so much over the years, and both he and Michelle have a pretty good handle on how to balance the still "wild" skydiver side of tunnel flying with the teenager they've let loose in our world! This one's a great listen! 

A Kiwi born and raised, Antz Hansen had been around aviation from a very young age, so when the daydream of making a skydive finally presented itself, the outcome wasn't quite as he'd expected.  As it turned out, round parachutes weren't his thing...  But then, after he'd already established himself as a professional photographer, the chance to try the new "Square" design presented itself, and boom! Working behind the lens his entire adult life, specifically as an "extreme" photographer, Antz has gone out of his way to put himself into some seriously sketchy situations, and is happily not only still here, but happily is sitting down to tell us about his path with the Lunatic Fringe.

Intimidated by the sport. In his own words "lacking natural talent"...  Words that only Ernesto Gainza would use to describe himself because nobody I know would use anything other than "Calculated" or "Driven". Maybe "Forward Thinking" or even "Fucking Crazy" (that was me...).  Currently holding the record for the smallest canopy every landed, the man has taken on challenges that very few ever would, and he's done them with success and professionalism to say the least. Join me as I get the wonderful opportunity to catch up with my friend Ernesto, and find out how he ended up with all of us deep in The Lunatic Fringe.

At 17 he knew. Well, he knew after he talked his mother into signing the release anyway. Marat Leiras showed his dedication to the sport of skydiving almost right away with a 400 kilometer drive one way to the dropzone just to get through AFF. With some serious skill, some wonderful luck and a whole lot of great timing, Marat managed to travel the world, train and jump with some of the best the sport had to offer and even marry the Iowa girl of his dreams; all without ever overstaying his visa!  join us as we talk about everything from wind tunnels and BASE jumps to what a crowd of 70,000 looks like from above.  All on this edition of Lunatic Fringe Into the Void.