{"id":20839,"date":"2019-09-19T11:50:40","date_gmt":"2019-09-19T15:50:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/skydiveperris.flywheelsites.com\/?p=20839"},"modified":"2023-11-01T08:15:08","modified_gmt":"2023-11-01T15:15:08","slug":"fully-in-frame","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/skydiveperris.com\/blog\/fully-in-frame\/","title":{"rendered":"Fully in Frame: Dennis Sattler Interview"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1937\" height=\"2048\" src=\"https:\/\/skydiveperris.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/dennis-sattler-3.jpg\" alt=\"dennis sattler\" class=\"wp-image-20843\" srcset=\"https:\/\/skydiveperris.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/dennis-sattler-3.jpg 1937w, https:\/\/skydiveperris.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/dennis-sattler-3-1920x2030.jpg 1920w, https:\/\/skydiveperris.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/dennis-sattler-3-1760x1861.jpg 1760w, https:\/\/skydiveperris.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/dennis-sattler-3-1600x1692.jpg 1600w, https:\/\/skydiveperris.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/dennis-sattler-3-1440x1523.jpg 1440w, https:\/\/skydiveperris.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/dennis-sattler-3-1280x1353.jpg 1280w, https:\/\/skydiveperris.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/dennis-sattler-3-1120x1184.jpg 1120w, https:\/\/skydiveperris.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/dennis-sattler-3-960x1015.jpg 960w, https:\/\/skydiveperris.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/dennis-sattler-3-800x846.jpg 800w, https:\/\/skydiveperris.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/dennis-sattler-3-640x677.jpg 640w, https:\/\/skydiveperris.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/dennis-sattler-3-480x508.jpg 480w, https:\/\/skydiveperris.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/dennis-sattler-3-320x338.jpg 320w, https:\/\/skydiveperris.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/dennis-sattler-3-160x169.jpg 160w, https:\/\/skydiveperris.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/dennis-sattler-3-80x85.jpg 80w, https:\/\/skydiveperris.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/dennis-sattler-3-605x640.jpg 605w, https:\/\/skydiveperris.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/dennis-sattler-3-454x480.jpg 454w, https:\/\/skydiveperris.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/dennis-sattler-3-303x320.jpg 303w, https:\/\/skydiveperris.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/dennis-sattler-3-227x240.jpg 227w, https:\/\/skydiveperris.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/dennis-sattler-3-76x80.jpg 76w, https:\/\/skydiveperris.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/dennis-sattler-3-250x264.jpg 250w, https:\/\/skydiveperris.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/dennis-sattler-3-768x812.jpg 768w, https:\/\/skydiveperris.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/dennis-sattler-3-700x740.jpg 700w, https:\/\/skydiveperris.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/dennis-sattler-3-120x127.jpg 120w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1937px) 100vw, 1937px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><style>img.attachment-post-thumbnail.size-post-thumbnail.wp-post-image {display: none;}<\/style>If you\u2019ve frequented Skydive Perris in the last few years, you\u2019ve probably seen our interviewee milling about. He can be spotted pretty easily, just look for the notorious zoom lens and camera. Both are usually blocking his face from view as he captures image after image: a portfolio of smiling faces, once in a lifetime moments frozen, saved within a digital image, each a testament to the palpable energy that fills a skydiving drop zone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>After providing Skydive Perris with over 30,000 photos, it\u2019s high time we get the man behind the camera fully into frame. His name is Dennis Sattler, and after hearing his story, you\u2019ll see it\u2019s no wonder he has found himself back in the mix at Skydive Perris.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Dennis has been around skydiving for quite a while, and in a most interesting way, you can revisit landmarks of the development of skydiving within the trajectory of his skydiving career.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"alignleft\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"662\" height=\"700\" src=\"https:\/\/skydiveperris.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/Dennis-Sattler.jpeg\" alt=\"Dennis Sattler\" class=\"wp-image-20840\" srcset=\"https:\/\/skydiveperris.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/Dennis-Sattler.jpeg 662w, https:\/\/skydiveperris.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/Dennis-Sattler-640x677.jpeg 640w, https:\/\/skydiveperris.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/Dennis-Sattler-480x508.jpeg 480w, https:\/\/skydiveperris.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/Dennis-Sattler-320x338.jpeg 320w, https:\/\/skydiveperris.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/Dennis-Sattler-160x169.jpeg 160w, https:\/\/skydiveperris.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/Dennis-Sattler-80x85.jpeg 80w, https:\/\/skydiveperris.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/Dennis-Sattler-605x640.jpeg 605w, https:\/\/skydiveperris.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/Dennis-Sattler-454x480.jpeg 454w, https:\/\/skydiveperris.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/Dennis-Sattler-303x320.jpeg 303w, https:\/\/skydiveperris.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/Dennis-Sattler-227x240.jpeg 227w, https:\/\/skydiveperris.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/Dennis-Sattler-76x80.jpeg 76w, https:\/\/skydiveperris.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/Dennis-Sattler-250x264.jpeg 250w, https:\/\/skydiveperris.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/Dennis-Sattler-120x127.jpeg 120w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 662px) 100vw, 662px\" \/><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n<p>\u201cI started jumping when I was a junior in high school, the week I turned sixteen. I turned 16 on Monday and made my first jump the following Sunday. I\u2019d been visiting the dropzone since I was 15 and a half. I got a motorcycle and started going out. We\u2019d moved from Santa Monica to a small town outside of San Diego. And on the way to church one day, I saw a sign in a store window that pointed out to the San Diego School of Sport Parachuting.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Dennis had known from that first visit to the San Diego School of Sport Parachuting that he had to take flight. He didn\u2019t have to wait around to be convinced to jump:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cI knew right away I wanted to do it. My dad, an Air Force pilot, was a member of the Sky Blazers, based in Germany. They were an early jet demonstration team similar to the Thunderbirds or Blue Angels. Unfortunately, he was killed in an air show in England in 1952, when I was 2. So, I guess it was just sort of in my blood.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>As was the typical progression at the time, Dennis began with static line from 3,000 feet\u2014a far cry from our jumps from 13,500feet\u2014but captivating nonetheless:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cI tell ya. The way it felt to put your feet out to get all the way out and go. You were independent from the very first.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>How did this static line progression work? As Dennis remembers it,<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cIf you did well, you made 5 static line jumps. The first 2 were just static line and then the next three you practiced pulling your rip cord, and then if you did that satisfactorily, you started doing clear and pulls and then you just kept lengthening your delays, went to five, 10\u2019s, 15\u2019s 20<br>\u2018s 30\u2019s. 7,500 feet and 30 second delays was typical of jumping at that time. Once in a while we had a Twin Beech and you\u2019d go higher, but most were from 7500 feet\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Dennis has been pretty committed since the start: \u201cI made my first jump and bought my first rig the first week.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This was 1965 and just the start of a lifetime love affair with skydiving.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cIn July 1972 I went in the Army hoping to join the Golden Knights. A buddy I\u2019d started jumping with, Ed Parrish, had enlisted a year before and made the team. So, I thought if Ed can make the team, I can make the team. I missed tryouts that November because I hadn\u2019t been to Army Airborne school yet, a requirement for tryouts.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Right before Dennis joined the Golden Knights tragedy struck: \u201c8 March 1973, the Gold Demonstration Team was leaving on their first demonstration tour of the year in March. Their C-47 was caught in a thunder storm, lost a wing, and killed all 14 members on board. I escorted Ed\u2019s body home to San Diego for his funeral, and when I returned to Ft. Bragg, there were orders waiting for me to go to Airborne School. The Knights had a team to fill, so several at Ft. Bragg with prior experience from the 82nd Airborne and the 7th Army were recruited to fill the vacancies. I completed Airborne School and reported directly to the team.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"alignleft\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1645\" height=\"2048\" src=\"https:\/\/skydiveperris.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/dennis-sattler-4.jpg\" alt=\"dennis sattler \" class=\"wp-image-20844\" srcset=\"https:\/\/skydiveperris.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/dennis-sattler-4.jpg 1645w, https:\/\/skydiveperris.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/dennis-sattler-4-1600x1992.jpg 1600w, https:\/\/skydiveperris.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/dennis-sattler-4-1440x1793.jpg 1440w, https:\/\/skydiveperris.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/dennis-sattler-4-1280x1594.jpg 1280w, https:\/\/skydiveperris.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/dennis-sattler-4-1120x1394.jpg 1120w, https:\/\/skydiveperris.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/dennis-sattler-4-960x1195.jpg 960w, https:\/\/skydiveperris.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/dennis-sattler-4-800x996.jpg 800w, https:\/\/skydiveperris.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/dennis-sattler-4-640x797.jpg 640w, https:\/\/skydiveperris.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/dennis-sattler-4-480x598.jpg 480w, https:\/\/skydiveperris.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/dennis-sattler-4-320x398.jpg 320w, https:\/\/skydiveperris.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/dennis-sattler-4-160x199.jpg 160w, https:\/\/skydiveperris.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/dennis-sattler-4-80x100.jpg 80w, https:\/\/skydiveperris.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/dennis-sattler-4-514x640.jpg 514w, https:\/\/skydiveperris.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/dennis-sattler-4-386x480.jpg 386w, https:\/\/skydiveperris.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/dennis-sattler-4-257x320.jpg 257w, https:\/\/skydiveperris.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/dennis-sattler-4-193x240.jpg 193w, https:\/\/skydiveperris.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/dennis-sattler-4-64x80.jpg 64w, https:\/\/skydiveperris.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/dennis-sattler-4-250x311.jpg 250w, https:\/\/skydiveperris.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/dennis-sattler-4-768x956.jpg 768w, https:\/\/skydiveperris.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/dennis-sattler-4-700x871.jpg 700w, https:\/\/skydiveperris.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/dennis-sattler-4-120x149.jpg 120w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1645px) 100vw, 1645px\" \/><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n<p>Dennis thoroughly enjoyed his time as a member of the Golden Knights: \u201cMy years on the Golden Knights were always spectacular, the best gear and aircraft, and hundreds of demos all over the country and competitions from Hawaii to Yugoslavia. During this time, I jumped Hueys, Chinooks, C-47\u2019s, Caribou, and C-130\u2019s. Just imagine 10 people doing a demo into a huge air show or a high school on a recruiting tour out of their own C-130. Nothing beats standing on the tailgate of a C-130 with a few of your closest friends\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>During the 80\u2019s the Cold War began to flare and tensions between the US and Russia were evident. Within many realms, the competition was on to prove who the superior nation was. Who would have guessed, Dennis\u2019 skydiving trajectory includes a piece of Cold War history?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cWhen I left the army, jumping probably slowed down, I had 1100 jumps when I went in the Army and about 3600 or something when I left. And I jumped off and on. And then in the early 80s, there was a project to attempt to break a Russian record by 10 men and 10 women making a jump 10 miles high, about 50,00 feet.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>While eventually the venture went bankrupt, what an unreal record attempt to be a part of.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>After the record attempt, Dennis took around 20 years off, what we will call a \u201cskydiving sabbatical.\u201d During this time, Dennis got married, had children, and worked as an airplane mechanic in Pittsburgh for 13 of those years. He focused on his life outside of skydiving. Dennis recalls: \u201cIn the time between \u201883 and \u201903, I only made two jumps\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>So, after 20 years without jumping, what got him to spread his wings and take flight once again? His son.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Dennis says, \u201cWhen my son was 20ish he decided he wanted to skydive. So, I got qualified again and joined him. We made a couple hundred jumps together mostly. Some of these two ways are my most memorable skydives\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>While his son no longer jumps, Dennis does. In fact, since returning to jumping, he\u2019s almost made more skydives in this part of his life than the first half! Despite sustaining a few injuries in this half of his skydiving career, Dennis is still at it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The best part? Dennis has every intention of continuing for a while to come: Dennis turns 70 September 20th? What\u2019s he doing to celebrate? He bought a new rig of course!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>If you see Dennis around Skydive Perris, don\u2019t be shy! Flash him a smile and who knows? You might end up in one of his portfolios!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>If you\u2019ve frequented Skydive Perris in the last few years, you\u2019ve probably seen our interviewee milling about. He can be spotted pretty easily, just look for the notorious zoom lens [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":14,"featured_media":27160,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_price":"","_stock":"","_tribe_ticket_header":"","_tribe_default_ticket_provider":"","_tribe_ticket_capacity":"0","_ticket_start_date":"","_ticket_end_date":"","_tribe_ticket_show_description":"","_tribe_ticket_show_not_going":false,"_tribe_ticket_use_global_stock":"","_tribe_ticket_global_stock_level":"","_global_stock_mode":"","_global_stock_cap":"","_tribe_rsvp_for_event":"","_tribe_ticket_going_count":"","_tribe_ticket_not_going_count":"","_tribe_tickets_list":"[]","_tribe_ticket_has_attendee_info_fields":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-20839","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-skydiving"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/skydiveperris.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20839","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/skydiveperris.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/skydiveperris.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/skydiveperris.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/14"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/skydiveperris.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=20839"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/skydiveperris.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20839\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":27161,"href":"https:\/\/skydiveperris.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20839\/revisions\/27161"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/skydiveperris.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/27160"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/skydiveperris.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=20839"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/skydiveperris.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=20839"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/skydiveperris.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=20839"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}