Now swooping into view

THE skies above Perris Valley will be dotted with scores of human snowflakes at the 48th annual National Skydiving Championships, today through Sept. 11. Sponsored by the U.S. Parachute Assn., the event is expect to field 750 contestants in 26 events, including the barnstorming “swoopers,” skydivers who guide their parachutes into maneuvers resembling birds of prey. The stunt requires skydivers to skim along the ground at up to 80 miles an hour as they follow a marked course. The longer and more precise the swoop, the better the score. “We go from a vertical dive to a half-moon or even just a gentle arc,” says swooper J.C. Conclasure, 34, who holds the world record for longest swoop. “You are driving the parachute canopy all the time, but sometimes the perfect swoop comes when you turn just right, at the right altitude.” In the four-way team skydiving event, jumpers are videotaped in midair coming together and interlocking hands in a pose known as a “random” and then moving through a series of stunts called a “block.” If the team’s videographer is nimble enough to catch all 35 seconds of regulation action, judges assess points based on successful randoms and blocks. Celeste Campo of Perris Element, a new local team, is a relative newcomer, with 700 jumps behind her. “We train six times a month and make about a dozen jumps each day,” says Campo, 30. “Some of the teams have made 10, 12, 15 thousand jumps [among them].” Thousands of spectators are expected. For more information, go to skydiveperris.com or call (619) 295-7140.

-- Emmett Berg