The Lunatic Fringe Podcast

DJ Marvin, host of Gravity Lab, founder and owner of the Ratings Center, long time skydiver and professional shit shooter sits down to talk to me about his beginnings in the sport, the podcasting world and where it's all led him. A love not only of skydiving itself but the community in which its based have been the driving force behind his desire to educate and expand the wonderful Lunatic Fringe in which we live, and he takes the time to tell me why.

Revisiting exactly what a modern version of the American Dream really is, Sydney and Barry Williams "gave the middle finger" to an antiquated idea of happiness that just didn't fit, and hit the road in a van with no regrets and no looking back. Both retired professional skydivers, they've taken the lessons they learned in and out of the sport, both happy and tragic and used them to help both themselves and others as they hike and talk their way across America on a motivational speaking tour that hits the real issues of our time. Listen in now as they share their path along the Lunatic Fringe.

The Father of Freefly.  Was he the first person to be on his head in the air? of course not, but he was most certainly the first to go out of his way to stay there! Dancing around the clouds like Peter Pan for the last 30+ years, Olav Zipser has been "freeflying his mind" and traveling the world encouraging others to learn to do the same with not just technical ability, but with heart and passion. With ambitions that range from catching his shadow and its rainbow on every cloud he could find, to looking for ways to blast into outer space, Olav has led his best version of the life he almost didn't choose.

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. 

Billy and Ange Sharman have each come full circle to say the least! Having both worked as "Safari Guides" to one degree or another, both are second generation skydivers that have traveled the world chasing their passions, enjoying life, and managing to get in and out of a little trouble along the way. Now that they find themselves the owners and operators of the oldest skydiving facility in South Africa, the shoe is most certainly on the other foot though and they work hard to create a one of a kind destination skydiving dropzone with experiences that have to be seen (or heard for now) to be believed. 

Semi Professional snowboarder turned professional competitive skydiver, Mr. Mike Wittenburg has a whole lot to brag about with more medals and championship teams than most; yet if you were to ask him what his greatest accomplishment was, he's more likely to start telling you about his kids accomplishments than his own. Listen in to find out just how a world champion dad not only put himself on track toward air-sports greatness, but helped guide his children to not just national but world gold in the wind tunnel.

With a degree in accounting and a solid job in the real world, Albert Berchtold had the standard American Dream laid out right in front of him; and then he went and made a skydive! A professional in the sport for more than 20 years, he's covered all the bases. Gear sales and support, representative for one of the biggest manufacturers in skydiving, canopy pilot competitor and competition organizer, he's seen skydiving from every angle, and still loves it all. Take a listen and find out why.

Great moments in Skydiving history.  Seminole moments in our sport and in our lives. Deep, meaningful conversations on the events that helped to shape our sport, our careers and our futures, and like so very many of these conversations that have taken place, its all done while shitty ass drunk!

As Lunatic Fringe Into the Void surpasses twenty episodes, we have the return of professional skydivers Pat "Patches" Kaye, Mirko "Mas" Di Siena and the one and only David "Junior" Ludvik talking about skydiving and life, playing a raucous round of "Never have I ever" and taking countless shots for horrendous party fouls like checking their phones, it's an episode that may not make a whole lot of sense in the end, but it's a hell of a good laugh! Grab a bottle, hit play and enjoy right along with us!

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.

Having covered skydiving from almost every angle, Andrew "Fordy" Ford had the opportunity to compete at a world class level in Skysurfing in its heyday courtesy of a proper military grooming, watch the creation of wingsuits from the beginning, and earn and exercise instructional ratings all over the world. As the story goes, "It all started with a beer. It always starts with a beer!"