Local skydiving team SDC Core has won their fourth consecutive National Championships of Vertical Formation Skydiving last week. The team took gold Friday at the 2018 U.S. Parachute Association National Skydiving Championships at Chicagoland Skydiving Center in Rochelle. SDC Core now heads to the 2018 World Championships in Gold Coast, Australia, next month, where it will try to defend their two-time world champion title as part of the prestigious U.S. Parachute Team.
In vertical formation skydiving, four-person teams exit the airplane more than two miles above the ground and perform acrobatic maneuvers in freefall to complete as many pre-designated formations as possible in time. A videographer jumps with the team to capture the maneuvers for the judges on the ground.
SDC Core team members are husband and wife Jason Russell and Stephanie Strange, Dusty Hanks, Rook Nelson (owner of Skydive Chicago) and videographer Jake Jensen. The team trains at Skydive Chicago. (USPA | David Wybenga)