tandem video question

[ryan_d_sucks 0]

I was looking on youtube for skydiving videos relating to shoulder injuries, so I searched 'skydiving shoulder.' I got a few that I was looking for, but then I saw one description of a tandem that caught my eye. It was written by the passenger and it said '...harness slipped off my left shoulder right before exit...', so I figured I would check it out and see if that actually happened.

It didn't quite slip off, but it definately looked loose. I know _nothing_ about tandem gear, but I was wondering if this looks normal? It certainly looked too loose to me, but again I don't know anything about tandem harnesses. Does fitting the harness like this pose any risk of failure/passenger ejection?

You can pretty much fast forward to around 2:55
http://youtube.com/watch?v=eRx3FoOw6Bg

Also check out the end! It looks like the video guy has a near miss with a rather large cow on landing.

[diablopilot 2]

Didn't see anything wrong with the harness fit.

Don't like the dock with he cameraflyer though, where's the deploying canopy gonna go when they have a premature?

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You're not as good as you think you are. Seriously.

[steveorino 7]

Harnesses that are properly adjusted can slip like that when the TM's shoulder's are a lot wider than the tandem student's. If you were to tighten that chest strap so tight that it made it impossible for the shoulder harness to move, it would most likely make it difficult for the student to arch. Since I have very wide shoulders I tell my students to grab the harness as we exit. That keeps it from moving and calms their little fears about it slipping off (which it ain't gonna do, but tell that to a student who is already scared to death)

steveOrino

[livendive 8]

Looked like a pretty well done tandem to me. I'm sure the cow thing was intentional. Although someone at PETA would have probably have a problem with it, cow-swooping is too much fun to pass up.

Blues,
Dave

"I AM A PROFESSIONAL EXTREME ATHLETE!"
(drink Mountain Dew)

[riggerrob 643]

Remember that most harnesses are loose (around the shoulders) when you sit down, but tighten when you arch. This is because arching increases the distance from the leg straps to the shoulder straps.

[Para5-0 0]

It is important to remember at deployment the weight of the passenger pulls down on the harness. So they are hanging from the two shoulder attachments. The force does not pull it off the shoulder. This TI seemed to do a nice job. I personally like very tight shoulder straps. No reason to be critical here.