posted Jan 3rd, 2007 - More competition jumps of the USPA Nationals 2006 have been added to the NSL-TV page of the event.

New England Skydiving League team Mass Defiance has instantly caught up with the other teams. Round 9 has been added to the currently featured videos, and Rounds 1 - 8 are also available for viewings at the NSL-TV page.

Mass Defiance caught the NSL News attention several times in 2006. The first story on January 19, 2006, introduced the team and its plans to re-initiate the New England Skydiving League. Mass Defiance followed through and gave the league in the northeastern part of the country new life last year.

The story on April 8, 2006, provided an update of the NESL plans for 2006. The story on May 24, 2006, covered the first NESL meet of the 2006 season.

A preview of the USPA Nationals 2006 on October 21, 2006, included Mass Defiance's situation after winning USPA's Advanced Class gold medals in 2005 and the team's chances in the Open Class competition.

Mass Defiance now updated the NSL News with new information and the team's plans for the 2007 season, which include once again the efforts to support the New England Skydiving League and the team's own training and competition agenda.

Mass Defiance continues with the same line-up (Ben Liston - Center Inside, Jim Rees - Tail, John Silva - Center Outside, Brian Stephens - Point, Steve Feldman - Video) and is looking forward to the team's fourth season together and the most aggressive training season to date.

The team members also plan to continue their coaching, organizing, and the direct involvement with the New England Skydiving League. The team's schedule includes weekly tunnel training, two winter camps in Florida, and considerably more jumps than Mass Defiance has done in the past.

One of the the biggest changes for the 2007 season is the extensive cooperation with the team's new head coach, Pete Allum. Team speaker Ben Liston mentioned in the update that the bronze medal winner of the World Meet 2006 with Italy's Sinapsi PD has already provided "a great deal of perspective and direction in terms of technical work in air and also the overarching direction for this year's plan."

Mass Defiance feels confident that the team will be able to make vast improvements this season. Skyventure New Hampshire in the team's back yard and a more "intentional" training plan with Pete Allum's guidance has given the team new and promising perspectives.

The 2007 plans require a very intense time commitment for the team members, who are hoping to get support from other Formation Skydiving competitors in New England to run the league this year. Ben Liston explained this year's situation:

"We're committed to helping the NESL grow, and hope that we'll be able to establish league representatives at each drop zone to help people form pick-up teams or serious teams at each DZ in our area. Anyone interested in helping out should e-mail us through the contact link on our team's website."

The Mass Defiance members have a special plan in the works to initiate the team forming process. The team has committed to provide free coaching and organizing at Skyventure New Hampshire on Thursday nights from 7 - 10 pm. Individuals who are interested in getting ready for the season ahead are welcome to use this service.

This project will continue through May. From then on the team camps will be held on Tuesday nights. Ben Liston explained the simple procedures: "People who would like to hone their skills with us should just book their time with the tunnel directly, mentioning that they'd like to work with a Mass Defiance coach. The Mass Defiance website has more information about our coaching program."

The Mass Defiance members can already look back at a successful 2006 season with their NESL efforts, and they are motivated to continue: "We're excited about the growth of Formation Skydiving in our region and look forward to another great season of NSL meets. There are some VERY talented folks in New England and we wouldn't be suprised to see a stronger representation from the region both in local competitions and in Chicago this year."

The NSL News will follow up on the progression of the New England Skydiving League and the preparations for the 2007 season, as well as with team updates.