Hard toss

[VectorBoy 0]

A friend and I were having a discussion on emergency procedures for a cut away. After a reserve ride he looked down in amazement at what he was still holding in his hands, his reserve D ring. You see his personal procedures were always to pull and toss away all of his handles. Gear is cheap compared to the one life you have and he wants his hands available to fly his reserve instead of stowing handles.
I may be mistaken but wasn't there a fatality where an main entangled with a partially pulled cut away handle resulting in the reserve getting tangled also.
I've always stowed all of my handles and even re-seated my reserve handle in its velcro holder after my reserve pull ( it wasn't pulled that far before I was in the saddle and I felt it was the safest place for it). Everyone on the ground thought that I had suffered a premature reserve deployment as a result.
Question is should the handles be pulled and tossed away as standard procedure? Handles are inexpensive, they possibly could interfere with reserve piloting. How much effort should we put into keeping and stowing them after our life saving moment?

[nightjumps 1]

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How much effort should we put into keeping and stowing them after our life saving moment?

As much or as little as your experience level deems necessary.

[nacmacfeegle 0]

"As much or as little as your experience level deems necessary."
That works, or as much or as little effort as your remaining altitude allows.
High cutaway, I'm holding onto those handles (stashing them down your jumpsuit is as good a place as any), low cutaway or transfer, I'll probably drop them, and get ready to land.
You gotta make your own mind up sometimes.....

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He who receives an idea from me, receives instruction himself without lessening mine; as he who lights his taper at mine, receives light without darkening me. Thomas Jefferson

[JohnMitchell 14]

Why not just hold on to them and fly your reserve? You can easily hold onto the handles and grab the toggles on your reserve to fly. Sometimes you only have a minute before you need to land, and you don't want to be screwing around with stowing those puppies. Yo also might be "out" and need to be planning your off-DZ landing. I've had about ten reserve rides, all with stable cutaways and deployments, and have never seen the need to chuck those exspensive little handles. Damn, it'll take forever to get back in the air if you lose those!

[catfishhunter 1]

I kept mine on my one and only reserve ride. I had been trained to look,grab,pull,drop but when teh time came I just grabbed pulled grabbed pulled. I pratice my procedures when i put my rig on,walking to the plane,in the plane 3 or 4 times. I KNOW where my handles are and didn't waste the extra 1/2 of a second to drop em'.

On the other hand if I had a mal earlier in jumps I am sure I would have done just what I was taught,look,grab,pull,drop...I have learned(the hard way!) to listen to those who have accepted the responsibillity to teach people like me not to kill ourselves.

So if in doubt talk to your Instructors,ST&A,DZO etc they have those titles for a reason

MAKE EVERY DAY COUNT
Life is Short and we never know how long we are going to have. We must live life to the fullest EVERY DAY. Everything we do should have a greater purpose.

[diver123 0]

I think the only priority in an emergency situation should be the absolute completion of each step and in order. The rest is secondary and should not take up your mindspace during things like this...

"pull high! It's lower than you think..."

[flynhigh 0]

I couldn't agree more! The first thing on my mind is properly executing my cutaway/reserve procedures - and landing safely under an open parachute. The last thing on my mind is whether I've kept any of my handles!

Dare to dream and then make it happen!

[crzjp20 0]

im still an newbie so i wont give advice but what i have expericened. When i had my first chot 2 weeks ago, i held onto both handles. i almost dumped them when my reserve opened cause it had a line twst to kick out of, but since i got them out fast i just held onto them. i was right ontop of the dz so i just left my breaks stowed, and tucked the handles into my jump suit. landed just fine under a conciderably smaller canopy then what i am used to jumping. but landed it just fine. from that experience i would say this and this is not advice just my observations... if you can hang onto them great, if not then dump them.

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Fear is not a confession of weakness, it is an oportunity for courage.

[sundevil777 93]

I'm not going to intentionally throw a handle with long wires into the airstream of my deploying reserve. That gives me a bad feeling just thinking about it.

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

[diver123 0]

I don't think anyone is saying "throw" the handles anywhere. I'm simply saying that if retaining your handles through an emergency requires any thought at all, then you're wasting attention on something that is secondary by worrying about holding on to them, in my opinion.

"pull high! It's lower than you think..."

[sundevil777 93]

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I don't think anyone is saying "throw" the handles anywhere.

Some instructors teach students to pull the cutaway with both hands and toss it away, then do the same for the reserve.

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