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AHoyThere

Tandem harness and the y-strap

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I know there's been plenty of discussion on the merits of the y-strap modification for tandem harnesses.

On Saturday I took some pictures of a tandem.

Take a look at the attached picture. This girl was so flexible. I think the picture shows the why the y-strap is a good addition to the tandem harness.

Regards.

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why does strong put b 12's on their harness?



........................................................................

Strong will build tandem student harnesses with B-12 snaps or thread throughs ... whatever you order.

Some old school instructors prefer B-12 snaps.

Hint: all the B-12 equipped student harnesses in Pitt Meadows are gathering dust on the back shelf - in the back corner of the loft - because young tandem instructors believe they are craters in search of coordinates.

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That is one flexible girl...

I am always concern about people like her, so I wrap my ankles around theirs after drouge deployment. That way I can reduce the how mauch the legs are swung.

But I agree with you, the Y-Mod increases the safety factor.

Juan

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Yesterday I saw a tandem student preparing to board the aircraft wearing a Strong student harness. I noted that the fabric of the Y-Mod was MUCH more worn than the remainder of the harness. It appeared to be one of the retro-fitted Y-Mods (as opposed to a whole harness made at the same time). I wonder if the Y-Mod and the rest of the harness are made from different kinds of webbing. The wear was quite noticeable.
The choices we make have consequences, for us & for others!

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But I agree with you, the Y-Mod increases the safety factor.



the original y mod was actually inhibiting people from lifting their legs, the newer ones have more distance between the leg straps so the issue has been dealt with, but.....

There are still hundred of original y strap harnesses out there that are waiting to break someone's legs. A newbie TM in conjunction with the old design y strap and marginal conditions are more than likely responsible for more than a couple of severe injuries to date.

falling out of a passenger harness is not very likely if the harness is secured anywhere near correctly.
"When the power of love overcomes the love of power, then the world will see peace." - 'Jimi' Hendrix

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Hi,

I am not an instructor or tandem-jumper.

I was up at Skydive Kapowsin a few months ago and saw some paperwork posted on the wall where they had secured local FAA-approval to convert their Sigma Tandems with a Y-mod.

Anyone interested in this might contact them for more information.

JerryBaumchen

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From what Bll Nooth told me he would not put a Y-strap on sigma harnesses until the faa forced him too, and his design would not load until a student had left the harness.

If I Have someone who I am afriad might get theur legs high on opening (ie fat chicks or flexible girls) O rotate head high after drouge release and or hook their legs. I have never had anyone even close to coming out of a harness because I do my harnesses by the book.

Johnny
--"This ain't no book club, we're all gonna die!"
Mike Rome

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If I Have someone who I am afriad might get theur legs high on opening (ie fat chicks or flexible girls) O rotate head high after drouge release and or hook their legs. I have never had anyone even close to coming out of a harness because I do my harnesses by the book.



Well, there's the little problem. You fly the Sigma harness, think it is a good system, believe you do the harness up properly, and say that you've never had anyone close to coming out of the harness.

Yet at the same time you take these extra little steps at opening with 'at risk' people, to try to help make sure they don't fall out.

There's something of a contradiction there.

I'm not blaming you. I also fly a Sigma system. Despite thinking the system overall is great, one wonders a little in the back of one's mind if there might be a problem for a very limp or flexible passenger. Whether there is or isn't a problem is another matter.

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First pattern Y-straps do not prevent students from lifting their feet for landing.

Second pattern Y-straps do not prevent students from lifting their feet for landing.

The problem is Tandem Instructors who are too ignorant/lazy/arrogant to learn modern methods of adjusting harnesses.

Hint: if students still complain about difficulty lifting their legs, tell them to let go of the steering toggles and grab their knees.

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Obviously the possibility is there that someone can fall out of a harness. And yes I am paranoid when I do this, but I would rather be paranoid and on top of my game.

I want to control when the leg straps come down my students leg a bit for the canopy ride, not the opening making the straps slide.

And I dont think its a contradiction if I have never had anyone close to falling out because I harness properly and prevent their legs from coming up on opening. i think it is being one step ahead. Because I o those things, I lessen the chances of it ever hapening.

Johnny
--"This ain't no book club, we're all gonna die!"
Mike Rome

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If the harness is fitted correctly this isnt a problem .... the Y harness stops the student / passenger from lifting there legs ...



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From what I can see in the pictures, I reckon its fitted correctly



The original post simply noted that certain types of passengers (in this case a small flexible girl) can demonstrate a situation (during opening shock) where they could find themselves in a position making them susceptible to falling out of the harness.

Then you said two things.
1) If the harness is fitted properly, this would not be a problem.
2) The Y-Strap would stop the student from lifting their legs.

The harness in this example is fitted properly and yet she still looks to be in a precarious position.
Also, this girl did not have any problem lifting her legs even with the Y-strap.

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....And what I said is ...if the harness is fitted correctly then the position shown in the picture is not a problem and I agree with you ... a harness not fitted correctly and with a student in that position there is a chance that the TI is landing alone

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....And what I said is ...if the harness is fitted correctly then the position shown in the picture is not a problem and I agree with you ... a harness not fitted correctly and with a student in that position there is a chance that the TI is landing alone



Ah, I get what you are saying now. I thought you meant that if the harness was fitted correctly, then the student could not get their legs that high up.

I think that for the few people in the world who can get their legs that high during deployment, it would be good to have the y-strap.

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irst pattern Y-straps do not prevent students from lifting their feet for landing.


i beg to differ, the distance between the leg straps is finite with the y strap, the first edition y straps had short sections of webbing where the y attaches to the legstraps themselves. if a person had an 'ample bottom' it becomes increasingly difficult to adjust the harness correctly as the size of the said persons bottom becomes larger.

Strong enterprises acknowledged this and amended the design and posted modification details on their website.
"When the power of love overcomes the love of power, then the world will see peace." - 'Jimi' Hendrix

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if tandem masters did their job properly to begin with by putting the harness on properly, we wouldn't even be having this conversation because there would be no such thing as the Y mod. If the harness is done up correctly the student can't fall out. That also includes having them connected properly to the tandem master

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I had a big gal the other day, 6', 220 pounds, with a large . . . derriere. I made sure to put her in the "Y" harness. You can work your way out of even a properly adjusted harness if enough things go wrong. I'm on the other side of the argument from you. I think the "Y" is a good idea for certain body styles.

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