in2jumping

Until your PUD/Hackey gets caught in the webbing and you stand up .

Seven to eight AFF jumps with 10 minutes of tunnel training then we cut them loose in a crowded sky full of varying speed canopies and swoopers at one of the busiest dropzones in the world with pretty much no canopy training. Then we wonder why 75% of the fatalities last year were under canopy with many of them being canopy collisions? USPA really needs to get off their asses and get out of the 1980's training mentality and mandate another seven to eight dedicated canopy training jumps for graduation. Not every student is smart and concerned enough like AZStone to take the initiative to seek out their own training.

They grow up to become problems because they do not receive ANY real canopy training early on, training has not kept up with canopy evolution. Also there has been a number of CCs involving low time jumpers over the years. Re-read Brian Germains chart it does take into account some design factors and I think is a great basic chart to form a BSR around. Some sort of BSR needs to be implemented to regulate canopy progression to cut down on the number of canopy related injuries and deaths. Think if you segregate and split up the main landing area this could be doable. Would not be perfect but better than our current solution of doing nothing . Canopies over taking each other is a HUGE factor in CCs, keeping horizontal separation would dramatically reduce the chances of CCs. What? This makes no sense saying that requiring HP landings be done on separate passes is going to make HP pilots complacent. Who? HP landings Students and low time jumpers Rapid down sizers Small canopies over taking large canopies Other Why? Turns or big turns (swoops) in traffic Lack of training and experience Down sized to a canopy that they cannot stay ahead of Canopies over taking each other in traffic (wide varying canopy speeds) Erratic unpredictable canopy piloting What can be done? HP landings done on isolated separate pass Mandatory canopy training Regulate canopy progression Do everything possible to create environment of horizontal and vertical canopy separation Do everything possible to create predictable canopy behavior in traffic (predictable patterns with minimal turns). I personally don't think that anything is going to be done to address this issue by USPA and major DZs any time soon. Canopy collisions and canopy related deaths have been a major issue in this sport for a long time and nothing has or is being done to address the issue. It would mean putting in rules and regulations which would mean limiting fun under canopy and god forbid we throw a monkey wrench in anyone's fun in the name of safety. The current CCs deaths will be forgotten and swept under the rug here in a few months and it will be business as usual

Are we going to implement this with a ban on canopies loaded over 1.2 pounds per square foot? That's as about as high as you can go and be guaranteed not to over-take some one jumping classic accuracy wing loadings who refrains from braked approaches. Hence the idea of "4) Segregated canopy landing areas" for faster and slower canopies in an attempt to keep vertical and horizontal separation. Kind of like we do now when exiting the aircraft requiring separation to avoid collisions. The whole idea is to try and bring some control to the existing chaos in the sky. Though this would not be a perfect solution I think would help.

1) Require a fairly extensive canopy training course for the A license. This would fill current non-existing canopy training gap and would start new skydivers off with a solid canopy control foundation. 2) Implement Brian Germain's downsizing chart as a BSR. Would help slow down the existing out of control downsizing trend, would assist in reducing number of jumpers flying around with their heads up their ass because they can barely control their canopy and would reduce number of non CC canopy injuries and deaths. 3) Implement a NO passing rule, lower canopy has the “right of way” and you must not over take them. Greatly reduces chances of canopy collisions. 4) Segregate canopy landing areas by wing loading. Split landing areas into two, fast canopies land over here slower canopies land over here. Reduces the chance of canopies overtaking each other, enhances separation and helps with the current problem of wide varying canopy speeds. 5) Ban all HP landings (AKA swooping) on normal skydives and put into place rules that minimize any turns (must fly a standard pattern). Require a separate isolated pass for any type of HP landing. This would suck for swoopers but when 62% of the canopy collisions over the last 20 years involved HP landings and with swooping only making up a small portion of the sport, something needs to be done here.

Easy, just downsize to a 1.5 loaded Katana .

You can also add higher and higher wing loadings over the years, With the majority of these jumpers having downsized to the point they cannot devote enough attention/focus to fly safely in traffic and avoid canopy collisions. To me a good number of experienced jumpers out there with highly loaded HP canopies these days are just as dangerous as a student with 10 jumps when it comes to flying in traffic. Rapid downsizing is the norm for young immortal jumpers these days, with no rules and regulations in place to control their progression. Those same young immortal jumpers that survive grow up to become STAs, coaches or instructors. Then go on to teach new jumpers that it is perfectly fine to fly a canopy they can barely control as long as they can stand up their landings.

I have ate crap on a few landings jumping in 100+ degree no wind days here in AZ. You definitely notice the difference when the temperatures rise, you come in much faster and have quite a bit less lift. If you are going to jump in the summer, get your jumps in early in the morning before 10 or 11 am. To me it is not worth the risk jumping in the turbulence and all the dust devils that start forming in the afternoon.

How about redundant cutters? Stack them on top of each other and stagger the lower cutter to fire milliseconds later. Or one above pilot chute and one bottom of container and stagger the lower cutter to fire milliseconds later.

All through my static line progression I was encouraged to read all the incident reports in the stack of Parachutist sitting next to the couch at the DZ and to ask questions about them if I did not understand. This got the point home for me and taught me about all the crap that can go wrong, how to properly handle these situations, what not to do during a skydive and the consequences

And we wonder why 75% of the fatalities last year were under perfectly functioning open canopies and why we have so many canopy collisions these days.

For $2350

So there is no thought process or analysis at all in the actions of pulling your handles? 6 second is not exaggerated what so ever. Cutaway: 1 second to think cutaway 1 second to grab handle 1 second to peal and pull and clear cables (ya you might be able to do this in 2 seconds, but how often do you practice cutting away belly to earth at 2500'?) Reserve: 1 second to think pull reserve 1 second to grab handle 1 second to pull and clear cable (again might be able to do this in 2 seconds but then again how often to you practice this at 2000' belly to earth??) Have you every jumped a new rig with really strong velcro on the cutaway handle, which required a strong peel to free it? Also you realize that cutting away belly to earth, your cutaway handle is going to be tight up against your body and not out free like when your under canopy and your harness is under tension? Look at your math its 6 to 7 seconds for pulling the handles not 10. But you can say 10 seconds all together if you factor in the 3 to 4 seconds its going to take to realize you have a PCIT!! You are going to throw out you PC give it a couple seconds then wonder what the fsck is going on look over you shoulders and realize its a PCIT, this is going to take 3 to 4 seconds!! DUH! The analysis and thought process was factored in times and assumed in my original post. Malfunctions are going to happen at times you are not expecting them and not when you are sitting in you living room typing on you computer thinking about them. ETA: he was talking about a pcit. No they are not ridiculous, 10+ seconds to reconginze you have a PCIT and pull both handles is a very real number.

As I recall reading in the SIM and being told. Look over your left shoulder, then your right. So how fast is that? Then cut away, and run your fingers so as to loosen the 3 rings. so that's just grab your shoulders and give them a good shake and then go silver. So yeah 10+ seconds in all but the idea is to prevent the reserve and the main from becomming very close friends. • Pull at 3000’ have a PCIT. • A good 3 seconds to realize you have a PCIT by looking over your shoulders, now at 2500 with nothing out. • Go to emergency procedures and start cutaway, another good 3 to 4 seconds to cutaway and now below 2000’. • Grad and clear/loosen your 3 rings another good 3 to 4 seconds, now humming through 1500’ with nothing out. • Pull reserve another 3 seconds and humming through 1000’. This is if everything goes well. You will be fscked if say your velcro on your cut away handle is really tight and takes 2 or 3 more seconds to cutaway or maybe your finger gets caught in a one of the 3 rings as your wasting your time fscking with them.

What I was taught was when grabbing the center of the tail and then bringing each side of the tail to the front for rolling. Lift and use your knee to ensure that none of the tail or D lines come around to the front of the canopy. This ensures that they stay in the rear where they belong and not exposed to the front of the canopy.

There is at least on fatality that I can think of where the jumper went in under a spinner (extremely small canopy from 14k)... common belief was that he blacked out from the G's. Under a normal small canopy, dunno... JW http://www.dropzone.com/cgi-bin/forum/gforum.cgi?post=3672897;search_string=Double%20Fatality%20at%20Lodi;#3672897 This double fatality CREW warp last year under high loaded (2.1) canopies was more than likely caused from blacking out.

http://www.unitedparachutetechnologies.com/PDF/skyhook/09109PackIns.pdf If you look at the last image on page 5 you see the skyhook being packed horizontally position . What I am saying is why not have it packed/positioned at more of an angle and not horizontally. That way there is less likely a chance of the skyhook lineyard sliding off the open end on a cut away from a violent spinning malfunction. The skyhook lineyard is going to mostly get pulled in a upward (top of container) direction and/or also a left or right direction if you are spinning. By angling the skyhook you make the skyhook lineyard less likely to slide off the hook if it gets pulled in a left direction.

how would that happen? Unless there is something that Im not seeing, in the event of a main total (nothing out), the skyhook disengages the red loop and the reserve PC takes the deployment. If you were to bend the hook opening down or something similar, the skyhook could get hung up on the lanyard. I was referring to how it is packed and not bending or modifying the hook. Packing it with the open end downward would actually make it more unlikely to get a total.

http://www.unitedparachutetechnologies.com/PDF/skyhook/09109PackIns.pdf Looking at the way the skyhook sits it appears that open end is facing to the left. So just maybe a violent spinning malfunction to right might just yank the skyhook lineyard off the open end of the skyhook. Maybe instead of having the bridle and skyhook sitting in a horizontal positioning. Setting the bridle and skyhook (the open end of the skyhook) in a more downward angle would correct this issue? If this is truly an issue?

Donkey Dips will do a number on your upper body and your abs (core). You can forgo the dip part to just work the abs (core). http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HE9mo6sl8OY

This is called "zipper packing". Do a nice daisy chain of your lines, ball your canopy up into a nice small ball, stuff it into your gear bag then zip it up. Of course make sure there is nothing free floating around in you gear bag that can damage your canopy.

How about AAD MFGs start integrating GPS tracking into their AADs? Come in handy for lost jumpers or lost/stolen rigs?

I think wrist mounts are just a fad that took off in the late 90's. I look at it this way, two most critical times that you need a altimeter is when you are tracking away\getting ready to deploy and when you are about to initiate a cut away\dump your reserve. With a chest mount its right there in your face in both these situations.

Well, according to PD you are in the "Expert" category for wing loading and jumping their 2nd highest performing canopy. http://www.performancedesigns.com/docs/W-L_Interpretations.pdf And completely off the chart for Brian's recommended canopy and wing loading. http://www.bigairsportz.com/pdf/bas-sizingchart.pdf But what the hell do these people know

Neither one of you guys get it do you? You guys just can not read the writing on the wall? You under your Katana with so few jumps and doing less than 100 jumps a year and this guys wanting to jump a camera with 67 jumps. I sure the hell am glad I did not learn to jump at where ever you guys jump at. There is no way in hell that my DZO or STA would have ever let stupid shit like this ever happen at his DZ.