10/06/2025
SEVEN QUESTIONS for CAMERON BORIS DEAN
BRETT: When did you make your first jump? Where? Tandem or AFF?
CAMERON: My first jump was at Skydive Awesome in Madras, Oregon. That DZ will always have a special place in my heart. (My first jump) was a tandem, but I had already committed to my license program before my first jump. I had been flying at ifly for several years prior to jumping, so I knew I loved bodyflight and one exploratory tandem just wouldn’t cut it.
BRETT: You are also a snowboard and ski instructor. How long have you been doing that?
CAM: I have been snowboarding since I was 12, but I started working at Timberline lodge as a snowboard instructor in 2014. I also have been coaching for high school freestyle snowboard teams for the last 10 years. Working with kids is very rewarding and I love sharing my passions with others. Snowboarding, mountain biking, skydiving, I can always take experiences from one sport and apply them to another.
BRETT: Adventure sport. How does it compare to skydiving?
CAM: They’re all fun! I do them because they make me smile, not because I want to be on TV. Sharing them with others brings the maximum enjoyment.
BRETT: You’ve been jumping at Skydive Toledo for a couple of seasons now, and we are still finding out stuff about you. Tell us about your musical side.
CAM: I grew up playing piano and saxophone, but really fell in love with music theory. That was my potential career path before I decided to be a snowboard bum instead. Wouldn’t change it for the world. One of my coolest music moments was playing dueling solos side by side with Mic Gillette from the band “tower of power”
BRETT: Your early skydiving mentors. Who challenged you and worked with you in the beginning?
CAM: Tim Hunkler. He was a very great/fun instructor, and just an awesome human being in general. He had a very good combination of being helpful and humbling at the same time. The type of guy who lets you stay at his house the first day that you meet. He is a lifelong friend for sure. Also, Chris Lester. Him and I progressed at freeflying together for the last several years. He helped me get my first rig so that we could continue falling fast together, also a lifelong best friend.
BRETT: You just earned your tandem rating this summer. How many have you done so far? What’s different from your first to now?
CAM: I did just get my rating. I’m somewhere between 40 and 50 tandems now. The biggest difference is the confidence in the gear. The first few jumps with students, I questioned if I wanted to continue pursuing it because that responsibility was a bit terrifying. With a handful more of jumps, it has felt a lot more comfortable.
BRETT: You strike me as a quiet, thoughtful observer Can you put your finger one or two things that might improve the experience or contribute to safer skydiving?
CAM: 1. Enjoy the process- No need to rush to the next stage in progression. Enjoy where you’re at, because you will only be there once. 2. Plan the jump, jump the plan (and then plan it again somewhere in between). I really don’t like it when people are walking to a plane with the prop spinning trying to figure out what they are doing for the first time.
JEOPARDY ROUND: (all answers must be in the form of a question)
CATEGORY: AIRPLANE PLACES.
The green light is on. You need to take a quick break before you jump. You go past the open door. It’s not there anymore!
CAMERON WEST DEAN*: What is… a Go Around.
ALEX TREBEK: No. Sorry.**
Located in the pocket on the seat back in the King Air.
CAM: What are spare goggles for the students.
ALEX: Correct answer.
CATEGORY: MUSICAL SKYDIVERS
A member of the woodwind family… This instrument is played by a fellow Skydive Toledo tandem instructor.
CAM: What is a Saxophone.
ALEX: That’s it! Yotam Barkan plays the Alto Sax. Still your category.
This heavy metal hair band lead singer wanted to… ’Skydive naked from an airplane’.
CAM: What is Motley Crue.
ALEX: No. That is incorrect. ***
CATEGORY: TPC POTPOURRI
Three is the number of generations of THIS skydiving family.
CAM: Who are the Martins.
ALEX: Yes. Mike Martin. Sons David and Brett and daughter Syndi. Grandsons Michael and Jarrett and granddaughters Tina Duncan and Samantha Whittaker.
Sammy’s mom and dad climbed it.
CAM: What is the beacon light at the airport.
ALEX: Yes. The rotating beacon at the South Lewis County Airport. Also know as the Ed Carlson Memorial Field.
CATEGORY: SAFTEY THIRD
Number two in a series of three. Do it high enough. But don’t use a knife.
CAM: What is a cutaway.
ALEX: Correct. Also know as a chop. Select again.
A popular bonfire activity that needs a minimum number of hours before boarding.
CAM: What is drinking beer.
ALEX: Yes. The old pilot saying ‘eight hours bottle to throttle’ applies to skydivers as well.
This popular canopy discipline lies somewhere between a high pull and CReW. Don’t bump end cells.
CAM: Xrw? What is Xrw?
ALEX: Sorry. No. ****
And the final clue in the Jeopardy Round…It’s not skydiving. It’s not a haircut. But duck.
CAM: What is a Buzz Job.
ALEX: Also known as a Low Pass or a Landing Gear Check.
Next up? Randy Fu**in' Wojahn
*his real name.
**the toilet
***Vince Neil
****flocking
