Confusing windsock direction and landing downwind

[sjc 0]

It happened that when I was landing I looked at the windsock and I clearly saw the direction the wind was blowing, but in my head I confused which way I should land. I knew that I should land upwind, I saw the windsock... and still something switched in my head and I made a wrong decision.
After some time I was jumping with my friend and he made the same mistake. It made me curious. Is it just me and my friend, or is it a common mistake most student skydivers go through? Do you remember doing that?

Regards, Alexander. http://staticlineinteractive.com

[AggieDave 6]

Windsock: "Eat the carrot"
Tetrahedyron (sp?): "Follow the arrow"

Got both of them? "Follow the arrow to eat the carrot."

Sounds goofy, sounds stupid, but every student I've told it to has told me that at some point they say that in their head on a jump and it helps them.

--"When I die, may I be surrounded by scattered chrome and burning gasoline."

[nbblood 0]

I worry more about the established landing pattern than I do the wind indicators. I watch the other canopies land and follow the pattern. If I'm the first down, then I pay more attention to wind indicators, but if there has been an established pattern all day, it is likely it will still be the same.

You should know, or at least have a good idea, which direction you're going to land before you board the aircraft. Then it's a matter of confirmation by watching the pattern and indicators, but you pretty much know what you're going to do ahead of time. Have a plan.

Blues,
Nathan

If you wait 'til the last minute, it'll only take a minute.

[adventurechick 0]

Fly Into the Wiggle!!

PMS #449 TPM #80 Muff Brother #3860
SCR #14705 Dirty Sanchez #233

[darkwing 4]

I haven't done it, but I've seen it a few times over the years.

-- Jeff
My Skydiving History

[popsjumper 2]

Not a windsock but I did misunderstand about my first arrow and got a really good slide-in on a downwinder one time.

Good that you are getting some downwind practice now before you get stuck off in the boonies and wind up having to take a forced downwinder. You wouldn't want that one to be your first.

My reality and yours are quite different.
I think we're all Bozos on this bus.
Falcon5232, SCS8170, SCSA353, POPS9398, DS239

[JohnRich 4]

Quote

Windsock: "Eat the carrot"

That works great, as long as their custom is to eat carrots starting at the pointy end.

Maybe we need a poll to see how many people eat carrots starting at which end of the carrot...

[popsjumper 2]

I don't do carrots...I once saw a pic of a man doing funny things with a carrot.

I don't eat cucombers for the same reason.
*puke emoticon*

My reality and yours are quite different.
I think we're all Bozos on this bus.
Falcon5232, SCS8170, SCSA353, POPS9398, DS239

[steveorino 7]

I never misread a sock, but I have failed to read one, once. Early on (less than 50 jumps) I made two jumps in a day and the wind direction switched 180 in between (Okiehoma). I landed so fast I had two points of contact ... feet ... head. I walked away from that one with a limp.

steveOrino

[DrewEckhardt 0]

I did it twice.

Before I got glasses, I couldn't tell which end of the windsock was the pointy one at altitude so I just landed in the same direction as the people who got down before me. This failed when I landed first. So I got glasses.

The first time I saw a tetrahedron I ate the carrot just like on a windsock. Flew out of the grass area surrounding it, onto the taxi way, and crashed because I was watching the taxi light I just passed instead of wear I was going. Wore through the outer layer of my reserve container.

[shropshire 0]

I've never seen a tetrahedron.... so I google imaged (attached for anyone else who hasn't).

(.)Y(.)
Chivalry is not dead; it only sleeps for want of work to do. - Jerome K Jerome

[nbblood 0]

Funny thing about that pic is that the canopy isn't landing in the direction the wind sock and tetrahedron indicate. But that is definitely a tetrahedron.

Blues,
Nathan

If you wait 'til the last minute, it'll only take a minute.

[DJL 232]

Quote

Not a windsock but I did misunderstand about my first arrow

I hate arrows and tetrahedrons. I grew up sailing where an arrow indicates the vector of the wind. Every time I see one from a landing pattern I have to mentally overcome the 2-dimensional image that's hardwired into my brain.

"I encourage all awesome dangerous behavior." - Jeffro Fincher

[piisfish 135]

Quote

Windsock: "enter by the tight hole"

corrected for you

scissors beat paper, paper beat rock, rock beat wingsuit - KarlM

[docjohn 0]

Imagine having a windsock on top of your helmet, it will always point behind you. The windsock on the ground needs to point the same way.

That method has kept me landing upwind for many moons.


.

Doc
http://www.manifestmaster.com/video

[VerticalRush 0]

Quote

, but if there has been an established pattern all day, it is likely it will still be the same.

Wow.... where you been jumpin'... cause where I jump the wind can change 180 dg from take off to exit, and then back again at 15 kts.

[Ragnarok 0]

I did this on an AFF jump, a student solo jump, and once after I had not jumped for about a month.

Now I have my eyes fixed (PRK) I can see the sock and the triangle thingy quite clearly - and will use the eat the carrot mantra to help out.

The triangle thingy was difficult because it somehow stuck into my mind that it POINTED in the direction of the wind..........

Now, I know better.........

_________________________________________
Twin Otter N203-Echo,29 July 2006
Cessna P206 N2537X, 19 April 2008
Blue Skies Forever

[bill6870 3]

Was told in a FJC years ago to visualize the windsock as a part of my body. When you land you want the windsock to be a tail, if it is a dick you are screwed. One gal in the course was obviously offended, the instructor noticed and said I'm sorry that I offended you but on the up side I'll bet you never land downwind.

Blue Skies

[sjc 0]

I see there a lot of sexual references during skydiving education :) But they stick in the head for a long time...

Regards, Alexander. http://staticlineinteractive.com

[Eule 0]

Quote

Is it just me and my friend, or is it a common mistake most student skydivers go through?

I've been at a DZ that had students fill out a jump planner on paper. One side had an aerial photo of the DZ on which to plot your pattern, and up in the corner there was a big empty circle. The directions said to "draw the windsock in the circle". A lot of students would just draw a stick arrow in the circle pointing in the wind direction, and the instructor would always make them draw a correctly-oriented windsock instead - I'm pretty sure this was to help people understand how to read the windsock. I always got the windsock direction right, on paper and in the air, but I managed to draw the wrong-handed pattern on the paper several times.

Eule

PLF does not stand for Please Land on Face.

[nbblood 0]

Quote

Quote

, but if there has been an established pattern all day, it is likely it will still be the same.

Wow.... where you been jumpin'... cause where I jump the wind can change 180 dg from take off to exit, and then back again at 15 kts.

That's why I said IF there has been an established pattern all day. Winds don't change 180 every day, c'mon. Yes, I've seen drastic wind changes that affect the landing direction. But for every time that's happened, there've been 10 times we landed the same direction all day. DZs are different, seasons are different, but it is NOT normal for 15 kt winds to change 180 on every load.

Blues,
Nathan

If you wait 'til the last minute, it'll only take a minute.

[billvon 2,400]

> Winds don't change 180 every day, c'mon.

At places like Perris and Elsinore in the summer, that's generally the rule, not the exception.

[nbblood 0]

Are we talking light winds or 15 kt winds? Light winds can change all over the place, which leads me back to my original point that landing pattern is more important than wind direction at that point.

Blues,
Nathan

If you wait 'til the last minute, it'll only take a minute.

[Royd 0]

I saw an incident at my dz last weekend in about a three mph wind. The arrow got stuck in the downwind position. It is rather primitively made , in my opinion.
I watched one girl hurt an ankle, and about six others do some serious tumbling. I only have fifty jumps and would have done the same thing, had I been on that load.
I learned to first check the wind direction before I enter my approach. Then, check the wind sock.

[JohnRich 4]

Quote

I saw an incident at my dz last weekend in about a three mph wind. The arrow got stuck in the downwind position.

I think it's a good idea to have some light streamers, in addition to a windsock or tetrahedron, for just this reason. That way if the wind is too light to move the windsock, everyone has the streamers to go by, which blow in the slightest breeze.

I buy a roll of yellow "under construction" tape at the hardware store, used to rope off dangerous areas on construction sites. Just like the "Police line, do not cross" tape that cops have. It's plastic, durable, and light. I duct-tape a couple of lengths to the top of a pole at the edge of the landing area. When winds are light, it gets people landing in the proper direction, so they aren't zooming in from every which way. Well, at least that's my theory.