Reginald

Very much agreed! "We've been looking for the enemy for some time now. We've finally found him. We're surrounded. That simplifies things." CP

Sorry Bill, I haven't seen those opinions and I’m pretty read up on this comedy of errors. Are you saying the jumpers intentionally induced a downplane prior to chopping? It is beyond my humble knowledge as to how pulling a cutaway handle would cause a simple side by side to go into a downplane; honestly, I have never heard such a thing. Someone trying to force a side by side into a downplane before chopping sounds like a particularly bad idea! It is not known to be necessary and is probably a really bad idea particularly after a Cypres induced two out due to the low altitude. That said some people think prompting a downplane before cutting away is it is the thing to do. Personally, I think it is a bad tradeoff of risks. The whole question is a matter of risk assessment. What is the risk of an entanglement with a side by side cutaway, under normal circumstances (no obvious line entanglement prior to chapping) vs. the risk of inducing a downplane and chopping vs. the risk of landing a side by side (particularly it turning into a downplane low to the ground but also the risk of obstacles in any potential landing area). "We've been looking for the enemy for some time now. We've finally found him. We're surrounded. That simplifies things." CP

Wow, what a good idea. Attack an orginization who's goal is to defend the Constitution. "We've been looking for the enemy for some time now. We've finally found him. We're surrounded. That simplifies things." CP

Did your coworkers tell you, "well that's what you get for skydiving!" "We've been looking for the enemy for some time now. We've finally found him. We're surrounded. That simplifies things." CP

I personally would cut away a side by side if there were no entanglement. But in all fairness two of the "side by sides" at Couchfreaks were actually downplanes, which should be a no brainer to chop. "We've been looking for the enemy for some time now. We've finally found him. We're surrounded. That simplifies things." CP

Flat line set at my hard deck 1,800ft. "We've been looking for the enemy for some time now. We've finally found him. We're surrounded. That simplifies things." CP

If you are not comfortable jumping the pack job then redo it. Your FIRST night jump will be a very different experience than your prior jumps, you already have plenty of new things to worry about on this jump why add a questionable pack job on top of it? "We've been looking for the enemy for some time now. We've finally found him. We're surrounded. That simplifies things." CP

I was honored to have Jay as my IE. He is one of the best human beings I've ever met and the only person I have no doubts can do 600 jumps in 24 hours. He's like a machine. Go Jay!

No logbook, no license card, no USPA card, novice jumper. I guarantee they won’t just throw you on an airplane and let you jump. Elsinore is a large reputable dropzone as is Spaceland. It should not be a problem to get something worked out but you need to take the initiative. Call Spaceland and see what they will require. Call Elsinore and see what they can fax to Spaceland, copy of jump records, etc. Some of the staff at Spaceland may even know the staff at Elsinore and can help vouch for you if paperwork is hard to come by. Do this long before you ever show up to the DZ. It might take a little time to get this handled so start making your calls now if you want to jump this weekend. You should not have a problem but start working the phones now to avoid problems later. And you will love Spaceland it’s a great DZ and a fun bunch of people. Just watch out for the mosquitoes after dark! "We've been looking for the enemy for some time now. We've finally found him. We're surrounded. That simplifies things." CP

I don't get it. Why would you give someone shit for making a safety call and not jumping in potentially dangerous conditions? . I don't think his Smiley quite came through. It was a joke...an F5 tornado will take out a skyscraper and he's from Oklahoma where they have to dodge F5's all spring. The good news is in OK there is nothing of value to damage... "We've been looking for the enemy for some time now. We've finally found him. We're surrounded. That simplifies things." CP

It gives you something to do on a rainy day...all of the day. Yep, they can be a bear. "We've been looking for the enemy for some time now. We've finally found him. We're surrounded. That simplifies things." CP

Alright Chris, I think we’ve all collectively beat this to death. As I’ve mentioned in the forums and in PM’s I apologize for being cranky, my post was in fact unnecessarily terse. There is no grand plot to get you and it’s not a game of piling on. Unfortunately, as we’ve discussed your argumentative style and constant one-upmanship generates a negative reaction from many people. One of the best pieces of wisdom I’ve ever heard is, “The world is a mirror.” Blue skies to you and hopefully at this point your knowledge of pilot chute hesitation on sub-terminal deployments is greater than before you posted. "We've been looking for the enemy for some time now. We've finally found him. We're surrounded. That simplifies things." CP

Damn it Mykel. I wonder if my spine surgery has me getting cranky too! I don't know why it would be bothering me....see attached pic. "We've been looking for the enemy for some time now. We've finally found him. We're surrounded. That simplifies things." CP

You arn't even geting my good student posts! Try this one... http://www.dropzone.com/cgi-bin/forum/gforum.cgi?post=798179;search_string=reginald;#798179 "We've been looking for the enemy for some time now. We've finally found him. We're surrounded. That simplifies things." CP

All right fair enough, I'm in a bit of a cranky mood. I probably should have put a smillie face after the post to get the deep internal sense of humor across. "We've been looking for the enemy for some time now. We've finally found him. We're surrounded. That simplifies things." CP

You haven’t had 2 PCIT’s you are just learning that it takes a little bit of air speed to pull the darn pin. It is nothing to be concerned about, stop being a drama queen. "We've been looking for the enemy for some time now. We've finally found him. We're surrounded. That simplifies things." CP

It's more conmon for people with a brake fire to open into a nasty spin - even with a 200+ rectangular canopy it is shocking the first time. Many people cutaway assuming the canopy is bad. With sufficient time/altitude, it likely is recoverable with opposite rear riser or just pulling down both brakes. Not if he had line twists too. Otherwise I very much agree with you. . "We've been looking for the enemy for some time now. We've finally found him. We're surrounded. That simplifies things." CP

Unstowing the toggels unevenly is the core of that problem. "We've been looking for the enemy for some time now. We've finally found him. We're surrounded. That simplifies things." CP

Why induce a downplane? Best practice is to confirm the risers are not tangled and then if a person chooses they can cut away. Inducing a downplane (which is going to most likely be at or below 750 feet) serves little purpose, although some people advocate it. If the risers or lines are entangled trying to induce a downplane is not wise and if they aren't then cutting away should not be a problem. The key thing to look for on a side by side is if the risers or lines are entangled. If not a person has options, if so they don't. "We've been looking for the enemy for some time now. We've finally found him. We're surrounded. That simplifies things." CP

End cell closure is usually a sign of a soft opening. So what's the problem? A simple flight control check should clear it right up. You do perform a flight control check right? And honestly, simply unstowing the brakes and holding it for a second should clear it up. I just don't see what the "problem" is... "We've been looking for the enemy for some time now. We've finally found him. We're surrounded. That simplifies things." CP

There are no accuracy requirements for a D license. In fact the only additional requirements for a D license are 500 jumps and 2 night jumps. This of course assumes one has a C license already. The reality is the C license is the hard one to get nowadays, particularly the accuracy requirements. A C license is very much a generalist license and over specializing (say swooping or birdman) before 200 jumps not particularly wise. As for night jumps good vision is not the point. Although a lot of people would agree with you. You do have a point that possible additional certifications in various disciplines might be a good idea. But they should be a hell of a lot tougher than any of the current license requirements as they now stand, which are pretty damn easy. Say an RW might include a successful 3 point 36 way, 6 rounds of 4-way at an average of 10 points, in time, demonstrated from all 4 slots. 6 rounds of 8-way at an average of 6 points, in time, demonstrated from all 8 slots. "We've been looking for the enemy for some time now. We've finally found him. We're surrounded. That simplifies things." CP

If you are dead why do you care about being sued? People die skydiving; it is a high-risk sport. A person with a PC out a door may die and may kill everyone on the plane with him. He is already screwed and will be given better odds of survival if pushed out of the plane. And everyone on the plane will have better odds of survival if he is pushed out too. Legal consequences are irrelevant if everyone is dead. I really suggest you sit down and have a long talk with your instructors over a beer about the life and death issues and consequences of skydiving and the decisions you may have to make and that others may make for you. "We've been looking for the enemy for some time now. We've finally found him. We're surrounded. That simplifies things." CP

I kept asking my instructors when i was a student about rigs and kept being told, "well all the major brands are good". Finally one day over beers i got "Well I own 4 rigs and they are all Vectors, What do you think I'd recommend!" Um, good answer. Canopy advice is important and you won't jump anything like your instructors, but ask them WHY the jump the container and make of reserve they jump and learn about gear that way... "We've been looking for the enemy for some time now. We've finally found him. We're surrounded. That simplifies things." CP

deserves repeating Listen to the wise one. When all else goes to shit get all the material you can above and hope for the best. "We've been looking for the enemy for some time now. We've finally found him. We're surrounded. That simplifies things." CP