posted May 18th, 2007 - 4-way teams and competitors generally seem to have the nature of an "all-or-nothing" approach. There is either a lot of training with a serious commitment, hibernation or retirement. However, a growing number of 4-way fans has already discovered that there is in fact a middle way, and this group of "4-way fun jumpers" is getting bigger.

The Florida Skydiving League team Teiwaz is one of the examples in the USA. The Teiwaz line-up currently lists a total of 35 former and current team members who attend meets whenever they feel like joining with other Teiwaz members for a day of 4-way fun.

A 4-way team in France follows a similar idea with a different concept. Two good old friends and former hard-core competitors with the French national 4-way and 8-way teams of the past formed a new team in 2003. Didier Boignon and Jeff Ronzevalle joined forces with Laurent Hayot and Stephane Mattoni and had enough fun to continue with the project year by year ever since.

The team name has changed over the years (Go Fast - Noene - Mandelieu - Monaco Parachute Team), while the team members are still the same and currently prepare for the 2007 competition season.

Didier Boignon and Jeff Ronzevalle competed with the French national 8-way teams between 1986 and 1992 and won gold medals together at several world cups in that time period. They joined forces with two younger "amateur skydivers", Laurent Hayot and Stéphane Mattoni, with the goal of competing at meets in France.

The two 4-way and 8-way veterans have been jumping together since 1986. They are currently the two oldest competitors in the French competition circuit. Very soon they will also become the two French teammates with the longest common team experience together.

Didier Boignon is 48 years of age and has a 10-year old daughter Charlotte. He discontinued with his international skydiving career in 1995 and is now the manager of a fitness center in Gap. He works out and goes snow skiing in the winter, water skiing in the spring. Skydiving is still his activity for the rest of the year.

Jeff Ronzevalle resigned from the French national 8-way team in 1992 and continued as a professional coach. His reference list includes the German National 8-way team, FSC Remscheid, and several French 8-way and 16-way teams. He also worked for a while as the Operations Manager for the French skydiving company "Boogie Performance" and organised events in France and Europe from a Skyvan and a Casa.

The professional career in skydiving has now turned into the position of a manager for the City of Gap. Jeff Ronzevalle is 46 years of age, and he lives with the mother of his two daughters, Camille (14) and Clémence (10), in Gap. He works out with teammate Didier Boignon, plays Squash and Badminton, roller-skates, mountain-bikes and snow-skiis in his off-time. And then there is still the 4-way competition with the Monaco Parachute Team...

The other two team members are involved with athletic activities in their off-time, as well. Stéphane Mattoni works in Monaco as a consultant who help companies to settle in Monaco. He also organises sports and cultural events in sports and culture. As Didier Boignon and Jeff Ronzevalle, he is also a family man and has a 3-year old son. Laurent Hayot is a dentist in Nice. He is the only single in the team and scuba-dives and windsurfs when he is not skydiving.

Didier Boignon and Jeff Ronzevalle still live in Gap, one of the major training centers in France. Stéphane Mattoni and Laurent Hayot have their residences in Nice and Monaco, on the shores of the French Cote d’Azur. The team began training together in Le Luc since the two Gap residents were not allowed to jump there.

The "Monaco Parachute Team" line-up of 2007 will jump in Avignon-Pujaut, which is located between the French Alpes and the Mediterranean Sea. "Close to one of the best, Rosé Vineyard Tavel!" Jeff Ronzevalle added with delight. Wine consumption is a part of the French culture, including the skydiving community.

His team finished in second place of the French Cup in 2003 and was ranked only behind the French national teams at the national championship. The French Cup 2004 brought the first place for the 4-way fun team. Silver medals followed in 2005 and gold medals again in 2006.

France Noene-Mandelieu also competed at the Malevsky Cup 2005 as a guest team and finished with a 12.6 average. The left-hand door in Russia caused more trouble for the right-door Pilatus Porter experts than expected.

The meet average went up in 2006 when the team attended all three events of the French Cup event series (15.3 - 13.8 - 14.0) and won the overall competition.

The French fun team was not done with the 2006 season yet and represented the French delegation at the championship event of the European Skydiving League (ESL) in Belgium with a 14.3 average after the 10-round meet.

The team's scores are obviously not high enough to win any world titles these days. However, the purposes of the former French world-class competitors have changed anyway, as Jeff Ronzevalle confirmed:

"We will keep on jumping and performing in skydiving competition as long as we will take pleasure in jumping out of perfectly flying aircraft and as long as we will keep on kicking butts of other younger teams...!"

Jeff Ronzevalle explained that the current training efforts and appearances at 4-way events depend on the individual budgets and support by any sponsors.

The team was first supported by Go Fast France, then by Noene, a company that manufactures shock-absorbing soles for shoes. The skydiving industry also sponsors the team with equipment, and the "Monaco Parachute Team" of 2007 manages to complete approx. 150 training jumps annually.

Jeff Ronzevalle explained that there is no easy windtunnel access for skydivers who live in the southern areas of France. It is a long way from the Cote d’Azur to the nearest windtunnel in Paris. However, the team members make up with 4-way experience for the lack of in-door skills training, and the 4-way veterans are still posting 14- to 16-point average scores in the AAA Class.

The Monaco Parachute Team has the French Cup 2007 events once again on the team agenda, and the NSL News will provide the updates. There is a good chance that the 4-way fun team in Florida will compete at the same time on the other side of the Atlantic Ocean...