wwarped

and you might consider how many accident investigation TVPB has conducted... check the BASE fatality list and you'll find people who thought just like Skymonkey. his skill and odds ARE in Skymonkey's favor, but that doesn't mean it is advisable. remember the main landing area is tight (at one Norwegian site). I could swoop it, or even land a tandem in it. BUT, it requires time and altitude to set up a nice pattern. expect to have neither, so also expect a hospital visit. few non-BASE jumpers would even recognize the "outs" as a valid landing areas. the proper equipment enhances safety by providing more possibilities. to ignore this simple fact is a significant link in an accident chain. DON'T PANIC The lies in learning how to throw yourself at the ground and miss. sloppy habits -> sloppy jumps -> injury or worse

I have no idea regarding this skydiver's intentions. merely speculation. edited to add: it probably was good that GP stopped him. the skydiver demonstrated amazingly poor judgement. how might the jump have gone? an example, "Hey Gary, hold this for me while I jump!" (stated as he hands Gary a virtually empty bottle of tequilla...) DON'T PANIC The lies in learning how to throw yourself at the ground and miss. sloppy habits -> sloppy jumps -> injury or worse

do you realize: if he had been packed, we might never have known about this. GP or the FAA Inspector might never have seen anything. the jumper could have exited at a reasonable height, a half mile or more away from takeoff. if that happened, the use of the illegal rig would be as visible as, well, the undetected seatbelt and sobriety violations... DON'T PANIC The lies in learning how to throw yourself at the ground and miss. sloppy habits -> sloppy jumps -> injury or worse

and the ground crew laughs... DON'T PANIC The lies in learning how to throw yourself at the ground and miss. sloppy habits -> sloppy jumps -> injury or worse

the safest pilots plan for all contigencies. they make plans for the "worst case." they will do the same regarding FAA Inspectors as well. until an Inspector earns a reputation for being fair and reasonable, a pilot must expect the worst and act accordingly. remember, police always express a concern for public safety. they will state that is their main goal. it never FEELS that way when you are pulled over... apologies if you are trying to establish a better image for the FAA. DON'T PANIC The lies in learning how to throw yourself at the ground and miss. sloppy habits -> sloppy jumps -> injury or worse

as I load my skydiving canopy around 1.8, I'd say I swoop. but that is off track. I'll put the dots a bit closer regarding risk management and the fear of the unknown. I was discussing the fear of the ramifications of violating THAT particular FAR. I did not mean the fear of participating in said activity. if that is the only FAR that you energetically defend, then you might be a hypocrite. if you defend ALL FARs that energetically, then you are one brave (and mostly likely, lonely) soul. oh, and factual point: remember, the incident was PREVENTED by being unprepared. the prevention occured before the intervention. DON'T PANIC The lies in learning how to throw yourself at the ground and miss. sloppy habits -> sloppy jumps -> injury or worse

true. but it's also about how many ACTUAL violations are ignored at the WFFC. why the tough talk on this issue? I'm sure if Mr. Peek HAD acted just as aggressively on seat belts, cloud clearance, sobriety, etc. issues, then the outcry would drown out the BASE discussion. DON'T PANIC The lies in learning how to throw yourself at the ground and miss. sloppy habits -> sloppy jumps -> injury or worse

true. the same applies to a non-sober PARACHUTIST. the same applies to a PARACHUTIST violating cloud restrictions. the same applies to a PARACHUTIST who does NOT check for aircraft before jumping. the same applies to a PARACHUTIST that pencil packs. I could go on. any such event could damage the sport just like the cited example. care to guess which one occurs the least? you seem to have an inordinate amount of energy to rail against this PARACHUTIST, or you must be one nasty kill-joy! I'm actually betting your are familiar with some risks, but fear those you do NOT understand. it is all about risk management. we educate students to eliminate fear, in both sports. DON'T PANIC The lies in learning how to throw yourself at the ground and miss. sloppy habits -> sloppy jumps -> injury or worse

what if it was a jumper? DON'T PANIC The lies in learning how to throw yourself at the ground and miss. sloppy habits -> sloppy jumps -> injury or worse

too bad you know what a BASE rig looks like... back to the topic of this thread, Gary asked what behavior would people report (or take action against). thoughts? who else would do the same? who would not? would anybody contact an FAA rep? DON'T PANIC The lies in learning how to throw yourself at the ground and miss. sloppy habits -> sloppy jumps -> injury or worse

um, remember that it also is a violation of the FARs to carry people who are drunk or otherwise intoxicated. [sarcasm] such people create safety hazard to themselves, their fellow jumpers, and people on the ground. I think I might warn the FAA of this activity to: 1. protect a sport 2. protect the WFFC 3. protect pilots at the WFFC [/sarcasm] which illegal activity is more visible? which illegal activity did you choose to act upon? DON'T PANIC The lies in learning how to throw yourself at the ground and miss. sloppy habits -> sloppy jumps -> injury or worse

I read your post, and I assume your historical information is accurate. if the FAA has shifted policy, past performance may not be indicative of future performance. DON'T PANIC The lies in learning how to throw yourself at the ground and miss. sloppy habits -> sloppy jumps -> injury or worse

wha? I thought Gary mentioned the jumper in question missed the load. there was no way he could mess it up for anyone or the WFFC. the potential jumper expressed poor judgement, but did NOT jump... it's like calling the cops because you knew someone thinking about buying pot... DON'T PANIC The lies in learning how to throw yourself at the ground and miss. sloppy habits -> sloppy jumps -> injury or worse

sure about that? I believe the April edition of Skydiving details how the FAA is going after a DZO for jumpers punching clouds. they chose NOT to go after the jumpers, and were having trouble identifying the pilot... DON'T PANIC The lies in learning how to throw yourself at the ground and miss. sloppy habits -> sloppy jumps -> injury or worse

when law enforcement is notified, whether on duty or not, it draws attention to an activity. they then choose to monitor the activity more closely. it just seems like a bad idea, unless you know in advance that the official won't mention it around the office. unfortunately, many want a promotion and want to impress their superiors. FAA, IRS, police, district attorneys, etc. always choose words correctly. DON'T PANIC The lies in learning how to throw yourself at the ground and miss. sloppy habits -> sloppy jumps -> injury or worse

nope. but that would be one way to "tag" an A! maggot? DON'T PANIC The lies in learning how to throw yourself at the ground and miss. sloppy habits -> sloppy jumps -> injury or worse

I've seen a lack of understanding: toward belly flyers toward free flyers toward tandem jumpers etc. (you should have seen the belly and free flyers argue about which group should exit first!) as for the differences between BASE and skydiving... you can have a long, successful career skydiving and know nothing about gear, just follow the herd. those traits will lead to a short BASE career. DON'T PANIC The lies in learning how to throw yourself at the ground and miss. sloppy habits -> sloppy jumps -> injury or worse

um. uh. as I can't get my pants past my legstraps, so where IS your vindaloo going? on second thought, I don't want to know... DON'T PANIC The lies in learning how to throw yourself at the ground and miss. sloppy habits -> sloppy jumps -> injury or worse

NEWS FLASH... you are NOT the first person to be questioned. I've been quizzed by rig vendors on every initial contact. Marty (at Asylum) conducted his extensive "interview" on HIS phone bill. they care. they don't wish to see people hurt. they must live with their conscience... DON'T PANIC The lies in learning how to throw yourself at the ground and miss. sloppy habits -> sloppy jumps -> injury or worse

understood. but as you pointed out, we will never know somethings unless we try (and use that squishy stuff between out ears.) the key appears to be limiting our impact on traffic. local jumpers can best identify WHAT impacts traffic... DON'T PANIC The lies in learning how to throw yourself at the ground and miss. sloppy habits -> sloppy jumps -> injury or worse

while I am NOT convinced this style of pc will make a significant difference, Tom is correct. there is no harm in trying. more importantly, kudo's to Marty. those pc's are works of art! keeping everything symmetrical and balanced must not be easy, or quick. DON'T PANIC The lies in learning how to throw yourself at the ground and miss. sloppy habits -> sloppy jumps -> injury or worse

it also said: doesn't sound like they wish to charge low profile jumpers... earlier they wrote: so Dan's event for a deserving cause appears to trigger this editorial. hopefully Holly is right, and the paper holds little sway. as I do NOT live in TF, the following is speculation... many times events like these are viewed as PR stunts. Hollywood is famous for it. they love to get a stars image out there. when a star is serious about the cause, they frequently refuse to talk about themselves, just the cause. thus, everyone involved in these charity record attempts ought to only talk about the charity. tell them you can talk about BASE any other day of the year. you are there to talk about the charity. talk to American Legions, VFWs, churches, etc. before the event, have a bake sale, etc. i.e. get the locals involved and excited about the cause. again, maybe Dan and others did this, I do not know. we must make it clear that when the locals see a "circus" they know IMMEDIATELY it is for a just cause. suggestion? on known, high volume weekends (Memorial Day, Labor Day) should we consider obtaining a screen of some sort? I've seen them used to obscure road work or accidents. if drivers can NOT see us climb the rail, wouldn't that be less disruptive? would it not show consideration and respect? thoughts? DON'T PANIC The lies in learning how to throw yourself at the ground and miss. sloppy habits -> sloppy jumps -> injury or worse

but will your response be accurate? the editorial sounds as if they wish to charge organizers of the larger events, not the quiet, daily jumpers. it would be easy to charge the person overseeing an event (or people packing at the visitor's center). it would be virtually impossible to charge each and every jumper. jumpers would STOP notifying the police, so the police could NOT ignore calls about suicides... I tend to agree with NickDG. as we organize events, we will get more of these issues. they will lead to further organization, and eventually, a national body. jumpers will care about following the rules. I prefer BASE jumpers being creative and independent. bandit jumps encourage those skills. high profile events do not. I like knowing it is my decision to jump an object. it is my call. I may stand down even when everyone else jumps. when I jump, I am responsible for the consequences. getting wet, damaged gear, injuries, arrest, all result from my decision. the editors are only responding to problems we have already created. you can argue they are wrong (and feel better), but will they listen? this just looks like an unintended consequence of high profile activity. why not vent on the people creating these events? or do you deny a connection? DON'T PANIC The lies in learning how to throw yourself at the ground and miss. sloppy habits -> sloppy jumps -> injury or worse

it sounds to me: 1) we must remember we are guests 2) we don't wish to be seen abusing their hospitality by a regular series of high profile events. Miles, Dan, Memorial Day, Labor Day, etc. it's as if they have their quiet community, and LIKE it that way. if we stay quiet, fine. it's simply a good neighbor thing. if we agitate them with road congestion, they will agitate us... 3) if we jumped it like virtually every other object, the issue would vanish their attitude doesn't seem very different from the various posts here following Memorial Day. many asked others to stay within their abilities and show the object more respect. the newspaper seems to be asking us as a whole to do the same thing... edited to add: weren't the residents around the Swiss valley aggravated earlier this year as well? take only pictures, leave only footprints... DON'T PANIC The lies in learning how to throw yourself at the ground and miss. sloppy habits -> sloppy jumps -> injury or worse

sounds like an assignment to me! (you seem to have a handle on it.) just go find out and report back... DON'T PANIC The lies in learning how to throw yourself at the ground and miss. sloppy habits -> sloppy jumps -> injury or worse