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Kramer

Question: What's The Lowest You've Ever Pulled?

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Once at a Rumbleseat Meet we broke off a 10 way at 2500 ft. I sat in just above 1200 and had to do a really quick riser turn to avoid a collision. Gawd were we stupid!
Sat in at 1700 ft after El Capitan (had a permit), but that was a guess - we'd set our altimeters to 3000 ft at the top before we jumped, it was still reading 200 when I landed.
Then I packed a canopy soaking wet (dumb and dumber). It opened just fine, but a steering line was so swollen it wouldn't release, dicked around with it down to 1200 ft (and dumber...) before finally cutting away, did a quick "one-two" punch with the handles and the round reserve opened pretty quick.

Your humble servant.....Professor Gravity !

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A bit boring, but the nice, (safer) way to experience a bit of groundrush is to do a bungy. Personally I can recommend any of the 3 Hackett operations in Queenstown, NZ. A bit lame I know, but something to raise the heartbeat a bit whilst grounded!

For your stats, lowest pulled, about 2500... 3rd solo...hop n pop... couldn't get stable... shit myself !


I may be gullible but at least I have a magic fish

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Lesson learned though, when one person decides to break-off, it is problably time!



i was just recently told two stories of low pullers.

one had a premature opening during a big way (20+) which caused everyone to pause, look and break off a bit high...

another.. (apparently notorious for pulling very low consistently) whos pilot chute slipped out during a fairly large dive was 'infamous' enough that the rest of the formation assumed they must be dead and pulled right away with at least two going directly to reserves...:o
____________________________________
Those who fail to learn from the past are simply Doomed.

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We have much in common. Ever hear of "The Magic One?" I've had a couple around 700 ft, and over 1000 in the 1200 to 1600 range. These days I'm closer to 4000. Lowest I've had a reserve open has been 1200, and I've had a few of those.

t
It's the year of the Pig.

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Planned, using a BASE Rig out of a plane from 1300, pulled around 500 feet. Much lower off a fixed object. But that's not skydiving.

Unplanned, on a skydiving rig, I found my self in the saddle at about 350 feet. Since this was over the hills, the AGL was actually lower.

The ground rush was indescribable since the horizon was no longer in view. During the pilot chute toss, I had a conscious thought of wishing I'd pulled the reserve instead. While the canopy was opening, My instints were to pick my feet up higher and higher... It was very strange.

To top it off, the person I was video taping, was video taping me as well. (another story). We pulled facing each other in a stand up. Surprisingly, we didn't run into each other let alone hit the ground.
My grammar sometimes resembles that of magnetic refrigerator poetry... Ghetto

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1200 ft

I fucked up and lost alti awareness didn't realise that the number on the end of the runway were big.

CCI and DZ owner were queuing up to ground me. I got grounded for 2 weeks for being such a dick head.

I then bought an audible alti .

done a hop'n'pop from 2k , and done a cut away and reserve pull from 2k.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
If you think my attitude stinks you should smell my fingers

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Were these really the good old days?***

Ron, they were. When one of the best skydivers in the world asks why can't we break-oof a hundred-way at 4500' and everyone doesn't have a problem with it. We actually broke-off about four due to the massive industrial haze we entered at 7500'. Hell, once down in the hills, the Southern Cross lost a motor at 1000', the pilot said he was making one pass over the DZ, does anyone want out. Well, he was able to lighten the load by half (everyone on their mains). These days, maybe four or five would have gotten out. Those were the days when we weren't scared of our equipement and had cofidence in our fellow skydivers.
blue skies,

art

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Gotta go with Ron on this - I liken ground rush to throwing a pebble into the water - there is one spot right under you that stays put, and concentric circles rushing out from it in waves...

Actually saw my girlfriend's face in that one unmoving spot. Time expanded - realized I was going to die, and was a bit sad, thought about what the other people on the ground were thinking about me (did they just figure I was a dumbass or would they actually miss me) but there was nothing left to pull...

Broke off formation at 700', missed handle, in the saddle somewhere south of 300'. I think the video timed it at somewhere around 11-17 seconds (two of us).

Took me an hour or so for my hands to stop shaking, not from fear, but adrenaline...

Would I do it again? Not bloody likely.... And besides, it sets a poor example.
If some old guy can do it then obviously it can't be very extreme. Otherwise he'd already be dead.
Bruce McConkey 'I thought we were gonna die, and I couldn't think of anyone

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Back in the day...I was an idiot. For my 700th jump I opened at 700 feet. For my 800th jump I opened at 800 feet. For my 900th jump I opened at 900 feet. For my 1,000th jump I made a BASE jump from a 279 foot cliff. After that I continued the established trend with until I passed 2,000 jumps.

Now, I'm an S&TA and I have to "talk" to people who try foolish things like opening low. Keep in mind that back in the day we were all a bit crazier, and the fatality rate was much higher. The sport is better off now with more conservative flyers who open at reasonable altitudes.

Tom Buchanan
Author JUMP! Skydiving Made Fun and Easy
Tom Buchanan
Instructor Emeritus
Comm Pilot MSEL,G
Author: JUMP! Skydiving Made Fun and Easy

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Back in the day...I was an idiot. For my 700th jump I opened at 700 feet. For my 800th jump I opened at
800 feet. For my 900th jump I opened at 900 feet. For my 1,000th jump I made a BASE jump from a 279
foot cliff. After that I continued the established trend with until I passed 2,000 jumps.



At least you were getting safer!
"No free man shall ever be debarred the use of arms." -- Thomas Jefferson, Thomas Jefferson Papers, 334

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The Cypres is responsible for this death of that
attitude. We now fear what will happen if we take it low.



I personally don't think its just the CYPRES. But its the people who do jump now that never would without things like the CYPRES.

Being low is not something to be afraid of....Being afraid of going low IS something to be afraid of.

But thats a different story.
"No free man shall ever be debarred the use of arms." -- Thomas Jefferson, Thomas Jefferson Papers, 334

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I liken ground rush to throwing a pebble into the water - there is one spot right
under you that stays put, and concentric circles rushing out from it in waves...



A damn fine example...Im stealing it. This is true ground rush...

Another type of ground rush can be when you come out of a cloud or just look down and the ground is A LOT bigger than you though it should be.

This is like when you are driving, and look down at the radio just to look up and see the really fast comming bumper of the car in front of you that hit his brakes while you put in a CD.
"No free man shall ever be debarred the use of arms." -- Thomas Jefferson, Thomas Jefferson Papers, 334

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Post the vid for us all to learn from / laugh at then!



I'll look for it...I think I know where it is...But I am not tech savy enough to post it...
"No free man shall ever be debarred the use of arms." -- Thomas Jefferson, Thomas Jefferson Papers, 334

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Being low is not something to be afraid of....Being afraid of going low IS something to be afraid of.

If you end up low, below 1000 ft, and you are not scared, you do not have a good grasp of the situation.
Sparky
My idea of a fair fight is clubbing baby seals

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If you end up low, below 1000 ft, and you are not scared, you do not have a good grasp of the situation.
Sparky



I had complete grasp of the situation....If I freaked out..I would have been a small dent in the planet.

If you are so worried about going low...chances are that if you get there and don't have a DRILLED plan on how to deal with it, you will flip out, and become your own piece of the planet.
"No free man shall ever be debarred the use of arms." -- Thomas Jefferson, Thomas Jefferson Papers, 334

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I had a 600ft opening after a 2000ft cloud base jump. I was the last out and first on the ground after my helmet came unlose. Stupidly I tried to tend to my helmet and didn't get my hands in the toggles until around 300ft! I had an uncomfortable interview with the CCI afterwards and now and don't pull below 3000ft now. There's no macho crap with this story as I was very embarrassed about the whole thing.

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I liken ground rush to throwing a pebble into the water - there is one spot right
under you that stays put, and concentric circles rushing out from it in waves...



A damn fine example...Im stealing it. This is true ground rush...

Another type of ground rush can be when you come out of a cloud or just look down and the ground is A LOT bigger than you though it should be.

This is like when you are driving, and look down at the radio just to look up and see the really fast comming bumper of the car in front of you that hit his brakes while you put in a CD.



very nice example..

quite honestly i LOVE that feeling and the adrenalin kick it gives..

anyone interested in some serious ground rush (perhaps greater than that in BASE which i havent acquired all the gear to experience yet :() should come out and try some inverted trust falls from 300 ft or so...

rappel out the edge, lock off, roll over onto your head and let your belay take control...the ground comes up awwwwful fast...and you cant grab the rope at that point or it will burn right thru your hand...how much do you trust your buddies???
____________________________________
Those who fail to learn from the past are simply Doomed.

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