The111 1 #1 January 10, 2006 This is a second-hand report of an incident that was reported to me by a flocker at the Holiday boogie, while I was working in the BirdMan tent. Jay, if you'd like to post your first-hand account here, please go ahead. The jumper was a flying a Prodigy two-piece wingsuit. For those of you not familiar with the suit, there is a nylon loop on the rear of the jacket, at the bottom, with a little spring loaded push-button on it... the loop can be pulled tight to ensure a snug fit on the jacket (there's probably a better way to describe this system - it's the same as is used on the top of mummy sleeping bags). Anyway on some Prodigys (I think the newer suits have corrected this somewhat, James?) the location of the loop is such that it is possible for you to grab your hackey through the loop. I noticed this myself months ago and posted about it here. The loop is supposed to be tucked into the jacket, but as I found out while giving myself a pin check on jumprun, it does not always stay there. I was slightly shaken to feel a 3" loop right next to my hackey. Back to Eloy. You can probably already guess what happened. The jumper pulled his hackey to end his skydive, and was unable to throw it. He looked down and saw the hackey and loop, stretched out tight in his right hand. He thought quickly, and kept the hackey in his right hand while pulling his reserve with his left hand. He had an uneventful canopy ride and landing, but after landing he inspected his main pin and found it was almost entirely out of the closing loop. The result of this could have been a very nasty wingsuit-horseshoe. I hesitated about posting this in a public forum for fear of someone thinking I am badmouthing one product or one manufacturer. However, I have since talked to more than one Prodigy owner who was not aware of this potential safety issue. So in short, this is nothing more than an incident report and a safety notice. If you are jumping any wingsuit (or any attire for that matter) with a loop sticking out the back near your hackey sack (which includes quite a few Prodigys I've seen and jumped), know that this loop, at the very LEAST, needs to be tucked inside your suit securely. If it was a suit I was going to jump a lot, I would eliminate the loop... I don't trust that "tuck-in" method to stay secure. On a skydive, this incident was really just a bit short of a laughing matter. "Oh crap, time to use parachute #2". But the Prodigy, as far as I know, is used heavily in the BASE world, and it should be obvious what the outcome of this incident would have been, had the jumper been wearing a single canopy system. Everybody please keep your eyes open.www.WingsuitPhotos.com Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
unclecharlie95 3 #2 January 10, 2006 Hi Matt, It seems the jumper did not tuck the jacket in correctly leaving the small loop of elastic (used to tighten the base of the jacket) exposed. The position of the adjuster elastic was already changed early on in production. We will contact the customers with these early suits to make them aware of this issue. The easy solution is to simply cut the elastic and remove it. Long flights, JBASEstore.it Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
maretus 0 #3 January 10, 2006 Just to clarify this issue, I'll attach a photo of me trying out a demo prodigy last summer. Is that the loop you are talking about ? (Just trying the fit of the suit in ground and hence not wearing a rig.) http://www.cs.helsinki.fi/u/masaari/prodigy_loop.jpghttp://www.ufufreefly.com Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
basehoundsam 0 #4 January 12, 2006 Yup..... you pretty much said it........ on the earlier run of demo suits, the cinch-cord is located in the center of the back. PF has changed this in later runs of the suit. If say the person flying the suit is a bit short and round..... when they lean over, they can pull the cinch strap out easily. The cinch strap seams to be left over from the tracking suit platform. It seems to serve very little , and would be best cut off or modified if positioned in the center/back. Having said that..... if it is possible, it will happen eventually. I personally jump a lot of wing-suit/tracking suits in cold environments, and normally wear many layers beneath that have cinch straps located on both sides of my clothing. I have become very aware of these straps over the years, and daisy chain/cut them off when appropriate. I would remind everyone that any loop of stretchy nylon can , and probably will get eventually caught in your shit....... keep it neat and tight. Jay Epstein Ramirez www.adrenalineexploits.com Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
RkyMtnHigh 0 #5 January 24, 2006 Matt, if my Prodigy comes with this loop...feel free to cut... away You have my blessings! Ugh! Thanks for noticing a safety issue, my friend! CYa Soon! Furthermore, for BaseHoundSam (Jay) to reply to this it must be important...that's my CO man!!! Jay, when will the Cave of the Swallows be "open" again? You are THE MAN!!!! Love you and miss you so much!!!! In fact, I miss everything about Colorado..not sure why I moved to Florida other than to jump year round. _________________________________________ Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
