blazingcannon 0 #1 August 29, 2002 Get this- my first mal on my 161st jump. Spinning lineover mal, my 150 sabre looked like a bowtie. My gf watching the whole thing under canopy. Spins gradually increasing in strength.... Spin pattern kind of elliptical. I end up chopping on the top of one of the spins, and just like I practised in the plane 161 times, I pulled my reserve right away. I was on the top of the "arc of fling" when I chopped and was looking up at my canopy when I pulled my reserve. Reserve bridle comes off my back and up around the left side of my neck as my body is turning into the bridle so as to strangle me... and I'm watching my reserve pc inflate as I'm going " holy shit " and clearing my neck from the bridle...aieee... I just feel lucky I didn't have a camera on! anyway, so ....Poof! Reserve, and an uneventful ride. Lesson learned?- get your legs up your ass when you chop so you don't end up on your back. I've noticed that in the canadian skydiving manuals or PIMs for students, the very important part about getting your legs up your ass when you chop comes at the back of the second book. So now when I'm in the plane and practising using my handles, I tense up my legs as if I had them up me arse. Funny thing though- on my second cutaway- (line twists), I think I put my legs back, but then my canopy dove so I was belly to earth anyway- and after I chopped I was thinking- ahh..time to get stable...- when my reserve opened. - I had pulled it without thinking. Hope this saves someone else's neck, cause not doin the leg thing almost broke mine! Cheers,"Spread your legs and fly" Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Chief 0 #2 August 29, 2002 Hi Glen: Glad you are okay. Thanks for sharing. Some lessons are well worth repeating. Stay Safe . . . Bill Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
hobbes4star 0 #3 August 29, 2002 damn glad everything turned out alright. also this being your first cut-away um you know BBBBBEEEEERRRR!!! glad your ok and good job..if fun were easy it wouldn't be worth having, right? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
blazingcannon 0 #4 August 29, 2002 oh, I payed up with plenty beer, and got good and toasted on it too!. *hic* Man though, it's amazing how I was elated after my first cutaway, and then for a few days later I was freaked thinking about what could have happened. I did, however, borrow someone's rig right afterward and got right back in the plane. My gf was glad- she likes to jump with me : ) But my second cutaway was a lot easier cause I knew the feeling of "making the decision". Cheers!"Spread your legs and fly" Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Jimbo 0 #5 August 29, 2002 QuoteReserve bridle comes off my back and up around the left side of my neck as my body is turning into the bridle so as to strangle me... and I'm watching my reserve pc inflate as I'm going " holy shit " and clearing my neck from the bridle...aieee... I just feel lucky I didn't have a camera on! anyway, so ....Poof! Reserve, and an uneventful ride. Glad to hear you're OK - BTW: This is why the reserve has a freebag and not an attached D-bag. - Jim"Like" - The modern day comma Good bye, my friends. You are missed. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
packman 0 #6 September 2, 2002 do you have an RSL ? "Trust your Rigger with your Life , but not your Beer or your Wife !" Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
riddler 0 #7 September 3, 2002 This may be a good time to point out that training for up-jumpers might need to be different than for students. We constantly train ourselves - touch handles, visuals proceedures, et al. I was taught immediate cutaway and reserve pull too, and I think that's great for AFF students. But there are reasons why a lot of jumpers prefer not to have RSL - they want control between cutaway and reserve deployment. It seems from talking to lots of people with more experience than myself that the highest percentage of reserve mals have to do with not being stable before reserve deployment. Experienced jumpers usually have enough altitude awareness to know if they have time to get stable between cutaway and reserve pull (which may be moot in the face of the adrenaline rush :-). Maybe the training should be more like this: AFF, low time jumpers or anyone with RSL - immediate cutaway and reserve pull. Experienced jumpers with no RSL - cutaway, get stable if above 1,500 (or some such number), then reserve pull. Just an idea - I won't take your flames to heart :-)Trapped on the surface of a sphere. XKCD Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
blazingcannon 0 #8 September 3, 2002 nope, I took off my RSL at about 100 jumps- During this cutaway, it was really nice to see my lineovered main flying clear from me. I pulled at about 4000' on this jump. (lucky me. : ) ) Cheers!"Spread your legs and fly" Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
