napalmboy

I'd like to say that I knew I had time, but I can't be sure if I'm not just mis-remembering that because I want to remember it that way. I know I pulled at 3500, and the canopy itself opened just fine, which means for my parachute I'd be at 2500 or slightly higher for a control check. But at this point I could be just doing math after the fact. Can't really argue with that. Good idea. No kidding. Well, the door was open...

Nate's # of jumps didn't stop him from dying. Catching gear mid air isn't worth it. I know, and it's why I've made the decision to never catch gear in the air myself. My point about jump #'s was that this guy's pretty much made up his mind about things, and a low-timer like myself saying to him "Hey, you shouldn't do that, it's dangerous!" isn't really going to make a difference. I just hope it doesn't come back to bite him. Well, the door was open...

Whoops! You're right, wrong Bill. I took Scott Miller's intro course, but I don't remember dealing with anything like this. It was super helpful regardless, and I'd be first in line to take it again. Well, the door was open...

Thanks. Nobody's ever talked to me specifically about managing a situation like this, although I have done rear-riser practice on my own. I went through Bill Booth's "Downsize Checklist" on my previous canopy (Safire 189) before switching to the Sabre2, including dives where I restricted myself to only using risers. I haven't practiced using risers against a stuck toggle, but I'll be putting some time into that just as soon as I've got a main again.

Did this person actually catch the freebag whilst it was falling? Yeah, he did. He said it used to be a mini-sport in itself, "back in the day." I've personally made the decision to never catch equipment in the air, but the jumper in question has about 13,000 more jumps than I do, so it's not like I'm going to talk him out of anything. Well, the door was open...

Yeah, I agree. I didn't say it because I was upset at dropping the handle, but more because it wasn't what I was taught. During my FJC, I was basically taught to hold on to the handles until you see a reserve up over you. Once the reserve is open, you can toss the handles. My instructor's reasoning was that by hanging on to the handles for that moment or two, you prevent them from flying up into the deployment of your last parachute. I don't know if that's a concern or not, but I'm sure it's something that would have differing opinions. Well, the door was open...

Hey folks, wanted to let everybody know about my first cutaway, which happened about three hours ago. It was sunset load, and I was with the first group out, doing a 3-way RW jump. We got through about 14 points - way higher than my average, so I was feeling pretty great - before I turned and tracked at 4500. I pulled at 3500, and everything opened up fine. I released my brakes and saw right away that there was a lot of line moving with my right toggle; to me in the air it almost looked like the toggle was stuck in the finger trap. I didn't examine it too closely, though, other than to see there was a problem. I pulled it hard once to see if I could get it to come loose, but it was stuck. I checked my altitude (2 grand), said something eloquent like "shit," and went for my handles. The canopy started spinning, but I had my hands in the right place and the whole experience was over pretty quickly. I pulled red, pulled silver and had just enough time to notice the drop and going slightly head down before I was jerked up again under my reserve. Everything from there went uneventfully. On the ground, a much more experience jumper told me about how I might have tried to land it, but I'd previously made up my mind about situations like this. Once I saw there was a problem and it wasn't going to go away, I double-checked to make sure I was at a safe altitude to cutaway and then got rid of it. I've thought about other possibilities (could I have landed it? Sure, I think I could have. If I'd had a hook knife, could I have cut the brake line? Harder, but maybe possible), but having read lots of similar incidents here, I felt pretty confident in my standing decision to get rid of any parachute that isn't doing exactly what I want it to do. The main is mostly purple, and it got dark pretty quickly, so despite an impressively large search group (thanks, everyone!) we still haven't recovered the main. We have a super-helpful helicopter pilot at the airport, though, who loves stuff like this, and we have a general idea of where it was going, so I have high hopes of recovering it tomorrow. Another jumper caught my freebag, and I have my reserve handle as well. Don't know what I was thinking about, but I threw my cutaway handle somewhere along the line, so that's pretty much lost. I should remember to hang on to it at least until my reserve is open, though. Vitals: Wings container, Sabre 2 170 main (canopy has about 400 jumps, I've got 25ish on it), Tempo 210 reserve. I'm loading the main at about 1.1:1. I have an RSL, and upon inspecting the reserve pin cable, it beat me to the pin, but I guess that's to be expected. This was my 125th jump, 2nd of the day. I've got about 40 jumps or so in the last three months. Anyway, my lessons from this: I know my emergency procedures well enough that I didn't have to think about them. That's reassuring. Also, I was trusting enough in my reserve, which is something I really try to be. Also, I should hold on to my handles, if only so that they don't fly up into my newly inflating parachute. But otherwise, I feel like I did a pretty good job...but maybe that's just the adrenaline talking. Well, now I owe beer and some scotch. Stay safe out there! Well, the door was open...

Martin makes damn good guitars, indeed. They're so much fun to play, although I don't have one myself. I never really liked how Ovations sound...I always attributed it to the rounded back, but I suppose it's just personal opinion. Well, the door was open...

*low jump number alert* I was on a Sabre 2 210 off student status when I bought a rig with a Sabre 2 170 in it. I bought a Safire 189 to put in my gear instead, and jumped it for 80 or 90 jumps before I tried the 170. That included a bunch of hop and pops and a canopy course. In general, I think it's the case that lots of people get hurt from downsizing too quickly, and not very many get hurt by flying something a bit larger for another 100 jumps. Well, the door was open...

One of the smart things I've done is that I've gotten myself in the habit of double-checking every chest strap I can see (including my own). I haven't caught any yet, but I'll keep looking. Well, the door was open...

I don't think I've ever even heard of that one, but it sounds like fun. I like games that don't take themselves too seriously, because then players don't get too attached to their characters and the game is more likely to be quick, and thus able to be picked up anytime. Well, the door was open...

Yup, there is. Too many out there to list them all, of course, but you remember correctly. Well, the door was open...

I'm incredibly jealous! Jen It's not always that glamorous, but I love what I do.

Any game in which you play a particular role that isn't yourself qualifies, although (being slightly more particular) any game in which the result of your actions depends a little on chance while playing that role. Generally, this is achieved through dice rolls or random number generators, but people can decide, too; playing "pretend" was really just a role-playing game. Computer RPGs include things like Final Fantasy or Dragon Warrior (two of the most popular RPG series), where you control different characters and the results of their actions are dependent upon weapons, armor, and a couple of random numbers. More traditional or pencil-and-paper RPGs generally have published rule books and involve people sitting around a table, telling a story through their actions and rolling dice to see how well they did. Some examples of these are Dungeons & Dragons, published by Wizards of the Coast, or any of the White Wolf games (Mage, Werewolf, Vampire). Then, there are Massively Multiplayer Online Role Playing Games, or MMORPG's. These include Everquest or World of Warcraft, in which most characters in the game are controlled by real life people from anywhere around the world. These games too have their own rules, and generally play in the same manner as their pencil-and-paper cousins. RPG's span the spectrum, though, from serious and dark (Shadowrun) to funny and dark (Paranoia) or anything else you can imagine. Very loosely, they're games you get to make up, so what could be bad about something you're got control over? (yes, I make games for a living. Hopefully I didn't scare you off ) Well, the door was open...

I've been told that I should start bringing a change of clothes to the DZ after my 100th...but it's been a few weeks and I haven't been hit yet. They're probably just waiting for me to forget about it... Well, the door was open...

I jumped my dad's old Air Force flight suit for about 50 jumps until I got a custom RW suit. It was pretty awesome, but the wind exacerbated tears already in the suit, which means I had to sew it up once or twice. Otherwise, it worked just fine. PilotDave has a point, though - my RW attempts in that suit were ill-advised. Getting a suit made for what you're trying to do makes doing it that much easier, and for us newbies, we need whatever help we can get. Well, the door was open...

I usually buy my gaff tape online via theatre supply shops. However a lot of the suggestions above seem to be cheaper options...but I usually buy it with stage cord, so it's a better deal for me. Well, the door was open...

Are you kidding? I didn't even want to take Itermediate Mechanics...that tensor stuff is scary. Well, the door was open...

I'm fitting a Safinre 189 in my containter, cut for a 170. It even fits in the same D-Bag, although it took me weeks worth of taking at least two attempts to get it into the bag. By now, I've had enough practice that it's really no problem. Good luck! Well, the door was open...

Heh, I'm a turbine snob, too. I was at about 65 jumps before I was introduced to a 182. Nowadays most of my jumps are from a 182 or a 206. I've never done anything interesting in terms of exits (never even hung off the strut!), but I managed to turn a diving exit into a few flips once, if that counts for anything. Well, the door was open...

Mmm, yeah. To me, "Rush" is more self-focused, and "X&Y" is more about relationships with other people. I mean, it sounds like Coldplay each time, but a little different thematically. Besides, how could anybody here not like a band whose first album was named "Parachutes?" Well, the door was open...

Holy crap, I had no idea how prevalent gear tampering was! I'm really thankful that I read this. I'm walking around with my gear on all the time to make sure nobody tampers with it when I'm at the Ranch this weekend. I think everyone should do this, as well, just to be safe. You can't be too careful, you know. Well, the door was open...

That's correct; we were landing towards the pond, so my final approach ended up crossing over the path out to the loading area. Nobody was on the path and I was sure I wasn't going to hit anything (until people afterwards told me not to fly so close to obstacles). That said, thanks for the advice about that specific area, and boarding/high traffic areas in general. I'll do my best to be safe...it feels like I've got a lot to learn about everything one should be thinking about when landing. I guess knowing that is the first step. Well, the door was open...

Yeah, I thought about that. Had it not been a beautiful day free of shifting winds, this could have had a different ending. I'd like to think that I'd be smart enough to not jump in that, but I haven't had a chance to prove myself on this yet... I'd forgotten about the BSR. I guess I should start studying again, especially if I'm thinking about getting a B license this year. Thanks. I just wish these things felt stupid as they were happening instead of just afterwards. Oh, well. I've got two days worth of Scott Miller's course in two weeks...hopefully that will help me stop being dumb. Well, the door was open...

Had my 50th jump yesterday. Freefall was an excitingly poorly executed 5-way with people far more experienced than I and was an absolute blast for not being able to build the formation for 8,000 feet. On landing, though, my pattern ended up a little bit shorter than I wanted it to be, and I landed near the loading area. I was on the correct side of the loading area (which is to say, on the opposite side of the loading area than the runway), but still landed about 10 feet off to the side of the mock-up that's out there, earning me a round of (somewhat sarcastic) cheers from the people waiting for the plane, and one polite and helpful round of advice from a coach about being able to make small corrections to the flight path, even when low (stressing the "small" in "small corrections"). I appreciate that people are looking out for me, especially with the numbers I've got. But how close is too close to obstacles? From where I was flying, I was confident that I wasn't going to hit anything, so I can't tell if it just looked like I was going to hit the mock-up, or if being 5-10 feet away from something isn't nearly far enough. I suppose that one correct answer is "As long as you have the extra space, use it," but I'm still unsure if I was actually okay or if I'm just not experienced to know better yet. Of course it's impossible to judge this situation if you weren't there, but how comfortable are you landing near obstacles that wouldn't cause turbulence? Landing near a row of trees of the runway seems to be different than a four-foot high mock-up (or is it?). Are there other factors here that I'm not mentioning/considering? Thanks for your thoughts. Well, the door was open...