obelixtim

There is no such thing/person as a skygod. Get that out of your head. Anyone arrogant enough to consider themselves as a skygod, is nothing of the sort. Wanker would be a much more appropriate description... My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

Same here. Very easy for a minor fuck-up to kill you. And don't have the theme from Jaws running thru your skull... My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

Sorry man, but I have a big issue with your home brew opinions and training ideas. So will any family, First Responder, or any individual responsible for another's treatment that isn't in the book. You want to "train" others to follow your point of view? AGAIN, your all alone on this one. You have neither the experience or training to create your own treatment protocols, nor do you have any authority to do so. But yet you persist in framing your opinion as some kind of sanctioned activity in a vain attempt at creating some kind of plausible conduct that does nothing to help the injured person. Again, your eloquent attempt to shift the care of the injured to protect gear is insane. You have your priorities messed up. Spend the same amount of time elsewhere, because believe me, I have seen the result of this kind of insanity many times,.... you will end up in court, alone. Attempting to explain why the damage you caused to a defenseless individual was so important. And when you start to explain you felt that saving the Gear was more important,.....Good luck with that. Again, prioritizing gear instead of caring for a casualty sends an insane message. Your priorities are screwed up man! Why do so many of you persist in saving gear, the can be easily repaired, is just a heap of nylon, Why do you continue to place such a high value on equipment, that isn't even yours, as compared to the pain and suffering, potential irreparable damage to someone else's health, and a delay of care? All to protect gear??? The logic is inane. ESPECIALLY when this same amount of effort could be spent on actually doing something good? And your comments about First Responders, and Medics don't know anything about skydiving is just irresponsible and irrelevant. Knowing how to care for an injured person has nothing to do with the activities of skydiving other than the MOI. Like I said, my scissors cut nylon like going thru butter. And if in my opinion a harness is in the way of actually caring for a fellow skydiver that harness is history and you will end up arrested if you interfere. You have NO RIGHT to interfere with another's care to save a nylon strap. I don't think he's seriously suggesting that a severely injured jumper can be cared for properly by DZ personnel. Nor do I think anyone is going to jump all over an EMT doing his job. They wouldn't have the equipment anyway. That is the job of the professionals, and I think people with the basics in first aid would not get involved with anything but treating for shock and giving reassurance to someone with a suspected spinal or head injury. But standing around with your finger up your arse while someone is lying injured and you are waiting for the EMTs isn't a hell of a good option either. But a broken leg might be met with a bit of arguing if you pull out your butter cutting knife. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

I miss static line. Good times! If you are really good at instability, you should be able to tie a reef knot and bowline before deployment.... My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

Not sure what aircraft you are using, but once out the door, that becomes pretty irrelevant. Forget about the license thing, that will come anyway if you stick with it. Its irrelevant at this point. And don't compare yourself to others, everyone is different, there will always be people who progress faster or slower. Forget them. Think about where the air flow is coming from. Initially it will be coming from the front of the plane towards the back, from both the prop blast, and the forward momentum of the aircraft itself. As you drop below the aircraft, as your forward momentum washes off, the airflow changes to come from below. You've been taught to present your belly to the relative wind in FF. The same rule applies throughout the jump. On exit, present your belly to the relative wind. It doesn't matter if you are head up, head down or sideways. If you dive straight out, you need to do a half roll to present your belly. Hold the position and you will transit naturally to a stable face to earth FF. If you are unstable, flip over, or start to turn or spin, that comes from rigidity, somewhere in your arms or legs (most likely) As every student gets hammered into them, the key is to relax. Think about long hair blowing in the wind. That's what your arms and legs need to be doing. The wind will do the work, you don't have to fight it. Head and shoulders back, and arms and legs blowing in the wind. Even if your arms and legs are asymmetric, if they are really relaxed this won't cause a problem. Tension comes from nervousness, which itself comes from several directions. I'd suggest your current nervousness comes from the fear of screwing up the jump, which just makes things worse. Plus you are prolly trying to rush things. The thing to remember is you have plenty of time in your FF to sort things out, so it doesn't matter if it takes a few extra seconds to get things right. If you are really struggling for stability, the delta is your best friend. Even straight out the door, if you adopt a delta it will put you head down and stable reasonably quickly. Then you can transition back to belly to earth. It all comes down to self confidence. Focus on the positive things you can already do well, and don't stew on the negatives. With confidence comes the ability to really relax. Then it will all suddenly all come together, and you'll be wondering where all the problems came from. It'll happen. Rome wasn't built in a day. ETA: And just remember, every skydiver you'll ever meet, was once a student. Any that claim they never ever had a problem, is a stone cold liar. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

All you need to do, if it goes tits up, is to engulf the water before it engulfs you. Practise your drinking.... My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

You don't really do analogies well, do you. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

This is the story of pretty much every student. It's no big deal. You just need more jumps. A diving exit can be difficult. I know people with 300 jumps who screw it up 50% of the time. It takes practice. As long as you're being safe, the rest is fairly inconsequential at this point. It will get easier with time. Rubbish. That sounds to me that there are a bunch of crap instructors out there. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

I've been to about a dozen DZs on the west coast. Only one had a GSO, and only on the weekends. It certainly does not happen at most DZs from what I've seen. A DZ is a business intended to make money. I dont think many DZOs will see the value in posting someone out at the landing area to watch a bunch of licensed jumpers who by definition are authorized to jump without any supervision at all. I am not saying I agree with it. I think there is value in having a GSO, but I dont think many (any) DZOs are willing to pay for one and fun jumpers are not going to agree to a price increase to cover one. The DZSO/GSO doesn't need to spend his time standing around watching people. He can jump all he wants. Most days he will have little to do. The DZ regulars are his eyes and ears, and, on a good well run DZ, are part of the safety system, and can take an active part in it. Everyone is responsible for what happens on a DZ, because everyone is affected by events on it. Everyone is a "safety officer" if you like. I would be pissed off if one of my senior jumpers noticed and ignored a potential issue. The DZSO is just the "go to" person for anything to do with questions/answers anyone has on DZ etiquette, or to take charge and give direction if there is an incident or issue that crops up. Its not that difficult. Most senior jumpers are capable of taking on some responsibility. It doesn't/should never be, about money. And no DZ makes money by being shut down/sued off the planet, or having a bad reputation. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

My first mobile phone back in 1988 cost more than $1000, and people wouldn't call it because it cost 10c per minute or some such. Now you can by a cheap throwaway phone for 10 bucks.... My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

I was gonna say contact numbers and addresses of your local mortician. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

Great post. As you say, every DZ is a local operation, and should have good relationships with all the outside local authorities also. Every DZ needs to have a dedicated drop zone safety officer in charge, whenever operations are proceeding. Either the Chief Instructor or one of his deputies. This happens at most DZs. Back in the day, we initiated a specific DZSO rating. Needed a C licence minimum. There was an exam, which if passed, meant you had the rating. To hold the rating though, you needed to hold a current first aid certificate, issued by Red Cross or similar. Holders of the rating were able to run the DZ in the absence of the Chief Safety Officer, and had all his authority, but for disciplinary sanctions, which were limited to 24 hours until the CSO could be informed. The training involved all aspects of running a DZ, including investigating accidents and incidents, checking gear and paperwork for visitors, overseeing students, briefings, liaision with other airfield users and local authorities. Sounds like a lot, but normally most of these systems were in place and didn't involve a lot of time on the day. No DZSO or CSO present at the DZ? No jumping. Nurses, EMTs, paramedics and rescue personnel weren't thick on the ground, especially at smaller DZs. The DZSO rating was a stepping stone to higher ratings like instructor. And a Tandem Instructor (as they are known these days) was actually a Tandem Master, and not an Instructor at all. Instructor was a much higher rating. A Tandem master didn't need to know anything about first aid, running a DZ etc etc. With accidents most times, the professionals didn't like us messing too much with injured people apart from treating for shock, unless it was a life or death situation. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

I'm not a great believer in bans, long ones just make the jumper uncurrent and more likely to screw up again. But your next 5 jumps would be hop and pops from minimum altitude. No higher than 4 grand anyway. That'll learn ya. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

. Ok, this was in Incidents, and a couple of off topic posts followed which were axed. I guessed this was aimed at me, and so responded. Without going thru it all again, basically I pointed out that having jumped in quite a few different countries, I am quite well aware how USPA and other organisations operate (or not). The US stands out on its own. In NZ at least, CAA is not regarded as a scary monster, because as long as you don't draw their attention by repeated acts of stupidity, they will leave us alone. Its not really an adverserel relationship, they are more likely to help find solutions rather than wield the big stick. And they will back off a dispute if you present your points logically. They prefer skydiving to run its own affairs, and one of the advantages of being a small country is that skydive operators all know each other pretty well, and its pretty easy to get consensus, especially when it comes to operations. Any screw ups reflect on all,so there is strong motivation to keep standards high. Adventure activities in NZ are pretty important to the economy, so regulations give a fair bit of freedom to operators to do their thing. The attitude is more like "how can we make it happen" rather than "you can't..." It really helps that there is no culture of suing at the drop of a hat, which as I see it is a huge negative for the US. And that seems to drive the reluctance to disseminate information which could reduce incidents. Most other countries seem to do OK. To an outsider, the US system seems broken. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

I guess that beats pleasing none of the people all of the time... My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

Tim, your comments and opinions are much appreciated here. I look forward to reading them. Damn...there goes my reputation as a shit stirrer! Shot to hell... My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

I'm not a member of USPA, the BPA or the NZPF any longer. Does that disqualify me from sharing an opinion about any of them, good or bad? No way. If it has anything to do with skydiving, wherever it occurs.... I'll call things as I see them. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

Joe. No I can't give you examples, but if it did happen, we might never know. I was responding to Normiss in the incidents thread about the recent Lodi fatality who posted this: I can see a know nothing cop (or skydiver) discarding something he regards as rubbish, or picking up a rig by a handle popping a reserve or main, without realising it might be significant. So I can see how it could easily happen. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

In terms of growing skydiving, I would say the advent of AFF has actually led to a reduction in numbers doing their first jump solo. Offset a little I guess, by the numbers experiencing skydiving via tandem. The advent of wind tunnels may have a positive effect on student numbers as well. When bungy jumping first started in NZ, there was concern that it would take away the numbers from skydiving, but in fact the opposite proved true. We saw an increase in student numbers after that developed. I'd say if AFF was the only way to experience skydiving, the sport would be on its last legs by now. Simply down to cost and complexity. As an example, my largest ever class of first jump students (SL) was a group of 70. Splitting that into smaller groups, it took 4 evenings during the week to train them, with one jumpmaster helping me, and with a perfect weekend of weather, we got all out the door, a few even doing a second jump. It would take a long time for two people to do that via AFF. And I trained many groups of 20, 30, 40 over the years, and in total I trained and jumped over 10,000 first jump students. Now sure, many of them didn't go beyond their first jump, but quite a few did, who became Instructors, TIs, and riggers. I know of at least five who became DZOs. Those kind of numbers would be impossible if AFF was the only option. At one point 25% of A licences issued in NZ were from my operation. Sure there are bigger and better aircraft these days, but in many cases this has not been a benefit to sport jumping. I know a few Tandem operations where you need a C licence at least, to do solo jumps. Sport jumping is actively discouraged. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

That's not exactly what I was saying. I was responding specifically to a comment how local law enforcement have on occasions prevented proper analysis and investigations taking place. That is not right. FAA, like CAA, know jack about parachuting. What I was suggesting, was that USPA ask FAA to give authority to suitably qualified parachutists/skydivers to conduct proper investigations of fatal accidents. Effectively giving them the same authority as FAA aircraft accident inspectors. These would be people who hold senior ratings and who have extensive experience in Instructing, Rigging, Tandems etc etc. Their job would be to conduct investigations and produce in depth reports relating to skydiving fatalities. Its exactly what happens in several other countries, so the system has already been tested and proven. This would put the local law enforcement in their rightful place, as supervisors of investigations, but off to one side, except, of course, in the case of foul play, a la the recent Cilliers case in the UK. (Imagine if, in that case, the police had prevented a proper investigation. Cilliers would have got away with his crime. Do we know for sure that hasn't happened already in the US?) FAA need not be involved at all, apart from perhaps receiving a copy of the final report. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

This is true, but it's not practically preventable by you as an average jumper. One of the risks I accept (along with several of the preventable ones I mentioned, honestly) when I go for a jump is that I have no idea how to maintain a plane. I think we're having a great time arguing semantics and we probably don't really disagree... my original problem is with people (deliberately or otherwise) blurring the line between luck and care in skydiving. You can ask the pilot when the next 100 hour inspection is due. If the aircraft is being maintained properly, he should be able to give you an answer within a few seconds. You can ask to see the maintenance logs. If the DZ refuses, it's because they have something to hide. Anyone on the aircraft has a right to see that log. Those two things would go a long ways toward implying the DZ does or does not do their due diligence. My aircraft logs are kept in safe, secure storage. They are important documents. I might produce them if it were convenient, but most likely I wouldn't repeatedly go and drag them out if every Tom, Dick and Tarzan demanded to see them. And not because there is something to hide. I have better things to be doing with my time. There is nothing much to see anyway, apart from technical details of maintenance, stamps and signatures from my LAME. And if the aircraft was not compliant, I would not be risking my backside getting into it, let alone anybody elses. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

Another flux capacitator burnt out? My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

I see Victoria did a tandem recently to raise money for the ambulance service. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

I think you mean ball up (tucking in to make yourself small) rather than bowl up. As a means of regaining stability, it is a waste of time and effort. Not effective. Especially after a cutaway. As you said, pull silver. Altitude is precious, not only to get your reserve out safely, but to give you time to find a safe landing area. Again its pointless having a good reserve, only to land in the crocodile pool. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

A delta is better, but I wouldn't think adopting a fast fall position after a cutaway is such a good idea, especially if your altitude awareness has gone out the window. Altitude is precious. After a cutaway you need to stop the freefall. Its no good being stable on impact. ETA: And if your reserve is small enough to give you problems after opening, whatever the situation, it might be worth reconsidering your choice of gear. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....