mark 102 #1 July 23, 2005 The corn adjacent to the landing area is 8 or 10 feet tall. What should I teach my students about landing in it if Plan A (avoid it) isn't working? Would the technique be different for faster canopies, like my X-VX 93 loaded at 2.x? Mark Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
IanHarrop 37 #2 July 23, 2005 I really don't have any great ideas other than... Flare when your feet touch the corn!"Where troubles melt like lemon drops, away above the chimney tops, that's where you'll find me" Dorothy Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
billvon 2,396 #3 July 23, 2005 >What should I teach my students about landing in it . . . Same thing whenever they can't judge landing distance; go to half brakes at 50 feet and prepare to PLF. >Would the technique be different for faster canopies, like my X-VX >93 loaded at 2.x? 1. Wear a full face helmet and a good jumpsuit; corn can cut you to shreds. 2. Don't try to land on the dirt. The corn will stop you and you'll end up pitching forward. Plan on landing on 'top' of the corn or a few feet below the tassels. Stall the canopy there (minimum speed) and prepare to PLF. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
sundevil777 93 #4 July 23, 2005 QuoteI really don't have any great ideas other than... Flare when your feet touch the corn! Wrong. You want to stop your forward speed at the top and sink in. edit - that is for experienced jumpers, bill's strategy is probably better for students.People are sick and tired of being told that ordinary and decent people are fed up in this country with being sick and tired. I’m certainly not, and I’m sick and tired of being told that I am Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
GravityGirl 0 #5 July 23, 2005 QuoteWrong. You want to stop your forward speed at the top and sink in. What if you get a corn cob up your a$$? I'm surely not an athority here. Not much corn in our area. Ask me about grapes though! ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Peace and Blue Skies! Bonnie ==>Gravity Gear! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
sid 1 #6 July 23, 2005 Quote What if you get a corn cob up your a$$? you probably wouldn't want to eat it afterwards Pete Draper, Just because my life plan is written on the back of a Hooter's Napkin, it's still a life plan.... right? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
mark 102 #7 July 23, 2005 QuoteAsk me about grapes though! Okay, I'll bite. What about grapes? I'm thinking down the rows crosswind would be better than across the rows into the wind. Mark Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
bodypilot1 0 #8 July 23, 2005 QuoteWhat if you get a corn cob up your a$$? I'm surely not an athority here. Not much corn in our area. Ask me about grapes though! Ok Bon, tell us about the grapes up your ass? Be safe. Edwww.WestCoastWingsuits.com www.PrecisionSkydiving.com Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
GravityGirl 0 #9 July 23, 2005 You're right Sid. I don't know anyone who fancies chocolate covered corn cobs, but another visual comes to mind now. Eddy. This one time at band camp, I took some grapes..... As far as landing in grapes (stakes), Eddy will know better. They have a better variety in Lodi. But what works for me is with the rows. Plane out feet level to the top of the grapes and stakes, then drop in. Now in Byron, when you land out, watch out for the little brown discs. Oh and then there are winds mills. But you would have to have a REALLY bad spot for those. Otherwise, it's mostly cow shit and pot holes that we worry about. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Peace and Blue Skies! Bonnie ==>Gravity Gear! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Newbie 0 #10 July 24, 2005 I guess if you don't already do it, seeing as it seems close to the landing area, you could walk them out there to help them visualise just how far it is from the top of the corn to the ground? "Skydiving is a door" Happythoughts Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Andy9o8 0 #11 July 24, 2005 Quote...you could walk them out there to help them visualise just how far it is from the top of the corn to the ground? Aw, that's easy. The corn is as high as an elephant's eye. Flare around ear level. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
skydiverton 0 #12 July 25, 2005 QuoteQuote...you could walk them out there to help them visualise just how far it is from the top of the corn to the ground? Aw, that's easy. The corn is as high as an elephant's eye. Flare around ear level. It's high . Corn can easily make a chopped main or freebag disappear ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Using your droque to gain stability is a bad habit, Especially when you are jumping a sport rig Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jurgencamps 0 #13 July 25, 2005 I have landed several times in a cornfield (other option was a tree). First time I flared too low and it was rather painful (you could still see the streams on my legs one week later). After that experience, I flare higher, so to land on top of the corn and then sink in it without any forward speed. The ground in the cornfield normally is soft enough to do this. I believe that is necessary to have (almost) no forward speed anymore when you hit the corn or whatever you land in. Last time I did this with a Vengeance 120, WL 1,65. Jurgen (Sorry, but english is not my native language) Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Designer 0 #14 July 25, 2005 Don't hit any?(lol) Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
bmcd308 0 #15 July 25, 2005 >>Flare when your feet touch the corn!<< I disagree with this. In Rantoul last year , I was privileged to have two corn landings. I would advise taking the advice I was given before I left for the boogie to flare as if the top of the corn was the ground and then sink in with as little forward speed as possible as the canopy stalls. The ground in Rantoul was very soft under the corn. The worst parts were getting my canopy down from the top of the corn and not cutting it away and running screaming out of the field when I saw how big the spiders were that lived in there. I witnessed a jumper from my group who ran out of altitude before I did using the "across the rows flare for the ground" technique. He crashed through about 10 horizontal feet of corn before he got stopped dead still from full flight with his head and shoulders above the corn and the rest of him below. The look on his face was not good when he suddenly disappeared into the corn without the assistance of his canopy. From discussing the landing with him later, it turns out that once your package reaches corn husk height, you perform a rapid series of glans-base-nut 1-nut 2 plf's that are no fun. Brent edited for spelling ---------------------------------- www.jumpelvis.com Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ripcord4 0 #16 July 25, 2005 If you guys think corn is bad to land in, try sugar cane. Cane will cut you up bad enough to require stitches. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
craichead 0 #17 July 25, 2005 I agree with you! As a student, I was always given the "flare when your feet touch the corn" advice, and this weekend, it did NOT work for me. This technique only seems to work reasonably well with the big, fat, "detuned" student canopies. For me on my Sabre2 190 loaded at 1.1--I plowed through about 3 rows of corn and face-planted myself into the landing area. I've got a nasty bruise over my left eyebrow from my helmet digging into my head, and a sore neck from my head smacking the ground. A chain of mistakes: I didn't turn on to my final soon enough, so I saw that I was coming up short. I went to rear risers for a bit, then realized that I was going to be right on the edge of the corn and the landing area. Went back to full flight, and then I got fixated on the corn. When my feet hit the corn, I attempted to stab out the flare. Going through the corn, I pitched forward, and whatever level I pulled my toggeles to was not enough to level out the canopy because the angle of attack was still pretty steep according to the DZO who was watching me. I was lucky to walk away with just a bruise and a sore neck! If I find myself landing in tall corn again, I'll be sure to follow billvon's advice instead. _Pm__ "Scared of love, love and aeroplanes...falling out, I said takes no brains." -- Andy Partridge (XTC) Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
sillie1111 0 #18 July 27, 2005 If your a guy put your feet together so it doesnt hurt as much! I landed in the cornfield at CPI my first jump on non student gear. They told me to flare at the top of the corn, and to land in the rows crosswind, if this where to happen. So thats what I did. I had a great landing, almost stood it up (Corn was only 8 or 9 ft high) but took one step and tripped over myself . The top of the corn was about my flaring height anyways so i did not have to change much, except my landing direction! I thought the advise I got was pretty good, it worked for me anyhow.~Shelly Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
mdrejhon 8 #19 July 27, 2005 Ouch. There's a cornfield only 100 meters from the peas. I have landed in it a few times as a student and once during a boogie, but only when the stalks were only 2-3 feet high at the most. I'll have to plan for the time when I land in the cornfield, when it's fully grown Although, I'm now starting to aim at different landing areas that reduces the likelihood I'd be blown backwards onto the cornfield in a high-wind day (especially when I start seeing the main landing area becoming too congested and can't crab sideways on a windy day, forcing me to aim for the cornfield when I'm blown towards it). My canopy can now fight wind better (1.1 WL) so I'm less likely to be blown backwards. In the past during a boogie as a student, I've tried to land a big 100 meters away from people, but I'm letting myself land closer, as long as my approach line is clear... And my approaches are getting better planned with more backup landing spots. So I'll be less likely to aim for the cornfield from now on... Still... I'll have to be prepared... Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jtlmd 0 #20 July 28, 2005 Perhaps we should be wearing fiberglass "cups" during corn season? One more item to check in the plane--there's the pin check and then the cup check. I am currently reviewing with my urologist the anatomic details of the PLF sequence you described in the second incident. Sounds logical but nasty. That concept as well as the various previous posts regarding unspeakable vegetable injuries of the perineum and anus are revolting and lend a certain muskiness to this sport. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
pincheck 0 #21 July 29, 2005 QuoteWhat if you get a corn cob up your a$$? remember to use a liberal amout off butter then Billy-Sonic Haggis Flickr-Fun Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
BillyVance 34 #23 August 2, 2005 I've only landed in a corn field one time, at the old Skydive Chicago DZ right next to the interstate. The corn wasn't fully grown or dense, so I didn't have a problem. I don't remember the height of the stalks though as it's been 8 years. Probably 5 to 6 feet. I landed parallel to the rows and landed in between rows. Stood it up. Winds were pretty brisk so I did not have a whole lot of forward movement. That helped."Mediocre people don't like high achievers, and high achievers don't like mediocre people." - SIX TIME National Champion coach Nick Saban Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
