obelixtim

The correct answer is NO. If barrel rolls were an effective way of clearing airspace on breakoff from formations we would have been doing them 40 years ago when RW was the thing and everybody was doing formations. Its never been an acceptable thing to do. No one ever advocated them as a way of checking for clear air after breakoff, and the reason is because its a stupid idea and a dangerous practice, as has been pointed out here. Whoever came up with the idea needs to be shot with a ball of their own shit. Breakoff protocols are clear and simple, and with everyone on the same page it is the safest method. Break off, turn 180, and track like hell, checking other jumpers as you go, followed by a clear wave off before dumping. If you are low or nowhere near the formation when approaching break off then turn off and get the hell out of there. The low man has right of way. Separation both vertically and horizontally is essential. Hundreds of thousands of formation jumps have been done over many years with complete safety, which proves the system works. The tool box already has enough tools in it. Just because one or two incidents occur because people do not follow the proper drills is not a reason to start reinventing the wheel. WTF is going on in peoples heads? My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

Yea, that is one of those: "Here is your rig back." About 25 yrs ago, I was at a boogie and early Saturday morning this out of the area jumper comes up to me & wants his out of date reserve packed. So, I agreed ( Mistake #1 ). Then he proceeds to tell me how to do it ( His Mistake #1 ). I came within the proverbial's gnat's a$$ of telling him: "Here is your rig back." It was that very packjob when I decided that I will no longer pack anybodies rig at a boogie. You overdue, you have the problem. Jerry Baumchen Classic telling granny how to suck eggs..... My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

Yes. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

In reality you would simply land the helicopter. Or maybe rappel out of it. At low altitudes, with a skydiving rig, the downdraft would not help the opening, combined with very sub terminal body speeds you'd prolly struggle to get a canopy open from that height. Unless you had very high forward speed from the chopper. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

Don't f*** up! My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

Thanks. It appears the CPS has to make a decision on that. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

Sounds like the jury were split down the middle with some strong arguments for and against. Does there have to be a retrial? Surely the CPS would have to consider whether it is worth pursuing, and I would have thought the prosecution had a very good chance to present a strong case and failed to do so. They'll prolly have trouble coming up with anything new. What happens if the next trial ends the same way? My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

Just to further the water landing hazard. You might be landing in still (a lake or pond) or moving water (Rivers with current or at the beach, in the surf. I In moving water, be prepared to get out of your gear quickly, If the current catches your canopy it can drag you under. At the beach, if you can't make the beach, it is better to fly out beyond the surf line, as well as getting caught by waves, a boat can't get in there to pick you up. Most people who are taught their water drills are basically anticipating landing in still water, but if you land in moving water you have to be really on to your drills, because once you splash down, it'll all be on. Moving water can get lethal pretty quick! And you should be carrying a flotation device if you are jumping near water...... My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

That's the one I was looking for, but couldn't find. Its a much better one, although the one I showed was a first jumper, so prolly could be excused a little. He gives a whole lot of excuses about wind and conditions, but he could have easily avoided hitting the trailer with a little bit of toggle input. No need for a hook turn or violent toggle input. You can see he actually turns into the trailer. Seems like it cost him an arm. I've seen exactly the same thing with a jumper who picked out the only tree in a half mile radius. Fortunately without injury. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

The answers have pretty much covered everything. One other thing to remember is not to focus on the hazard.... Its called target fixation, and you'd be surprised how often there will be one hazard in a huge clear area, and somehow, someone will find a way to miss the clear space, and fly right into the hazard. Here is a classic example. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=15oRVkeQNbY My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

Jury has failed to reach a verdict and has been discharged. It sounds like there were some shenanigans in the jury room. This is all very strange, but obviously the prosecution didn't do enough to convince the jury of his guilt, certainly not enough to get a majority decision. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

Especially if the jurors are hoping not to have to go back to work before the Christmas break . Seriously, I'm glad they're taking their time, and 5 days doesn't seem excessive (in spite of some people in the community apparently having made up their minds after 5 minutes.) The jury will have a lot more evidence and testimony to consider than is available via the news sites.[/quote] As is typical, the media were focussing on his "guilt" and it seemed the reporting was rather unbalanced. They didn't give much space to the defence case, so it was hard to know which way the case was going. They were going after the "villain" big time. That is one reason I thought the prosecution reporting seemed to be over egging the pudding, with a lot of speculation and few real facts. I'd be interested to know a bit more about what the defence presented, but if he walks there will still be a lot of unanswered questions. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

So, if "not proven" is not an option in this case, it seems to me with the jury being out for 5 days already, that they are having trouble deciding he is guilty, and may end up letting him go. I would have thought the verdict would have come quite quickly if they were going to find him guilty. "Reasonable doubt" might be in play. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

The one I had the most trouble finding, even though I knew were the spot was, and we had a sighting line from the DZ, was a bagged canopy which had just vanished. Turned out it had landed in a deep but narrow drainage ditch that had blackberry bushes growing over the top of it. The bag had punched through the foliage which had then closed over the top of it. Took me hours to find it even though the search area was quite small, and I was pretty sure it was in that area. The black bag didn't help either. With a tandem, sometimes the drogue is collapsed, which causes the initial problem. In that case it might not drift far. I guess you could get an idea of drift if you do a few experiments, attach an old drogue to a similarly weighted object, and biff it out at 5 grand at a known point and a known wind speed (say 15 knots) and track it. That should give you a rough idea of distance. (And yes, I know there are rules about dropping uncontrolled objects from planes, just call it a drifter!) My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

If the jury can't reach a verdict, would that leave the option of a retrial? My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

Jury retired on the 14th (last Tuesday) to consider their verdict, judge asked for a unanimous vote. Since then, there has been nothing on the BBC website (maybe I've missed it) about a verdict, so assuming they are still out, they must be having difficulty deciding, so it appears it is not the open and shut case as everyone thought it would be. Strange case...... My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

I'm assuming you've lost a canopy in its bag. It should not go very far if the canopy stayed in the bag, and unless its landed in dense bush, or moving/deep water should not be too hard to find. If you find the free bag, that should give an idea of the wind direction, and if you know the opening/exit point, give you a rough line to walk in your search. As long as some member of the public hasn't picked it up and souvenired it.(that does happen) I always made a point of training people, if they dropped something on opening, like a cutaway/ripcord handle, to immediately put their toes together, and, using them like a gun sight, to look straight down and identify the point on the ground that they are above, and also anything obvious they can use as a reference point to locate that position. That gives a good starting point for a ground search, which is very effective if you can get a few people together to help search, in a logical pattern. Even if you don't find something initially, it can at least tell you where something isn't. That can tell you where you might search next. An alternative I've found works well, if there are any local kids around, is offering a reward if they find and return lost gear. I've had a lot of lost handles, freebags and stuff returned to the DZ that way. Good luck, it sucks losing gear. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

Its a good idea to wear clothes..... My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

I don't hate static line jumps, I regard it as the best, safest, and most efficient method of learning to jump. My jumping predates AFF by quite a few years (1974). AFF by comparison is a very difficult way to teach and learn. I've never liked it as a method of instruction. I make the distinction between SL and FF simply because at no point is the jumper on SL physically separated from the plane, before his parachute is deployed. He's not really in free fall. A skydiver has to deploy his own parachute after separation from the plane. Anyone who jumps out of the plane on their own, whatever method they use, deserves huge respect, because they alone have to deal with any problems that might arise. Their fate is in their own hands. And that is why a tandem is not the same. A tandem rider is just a piece of meat strapped to the front of a skydiver. Any problems, they don't have to do anything to save themselves. Not saying any method requires more or less courage. All are a leap of faith. I always found my SL students got a bigger sense of achievement than any tandem rider, simply because they did it on their own, so it was much more personal to them. You could sometimes sense a feeling of jealousy from the tandem riders because of it, even though they had the buzz of freefall. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

IMO if you have made one intentional freefall jump, solo, out of a plane, you are a skydiver. One static line jump, means you are a parachutist. One emergency jump means you are a member of the caterpillar club, and a lucky mofo. That can't be taken away from you. A tandem is just a carnival ride. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

A couple of our jump pilots who also flew crop dusters, showed us video of them water skiing on canals when on contract in the Sudan many years ago. Those guys were expert pilots, and nearly all of them had survived crashes at various times in their careers. Mostly due to engine failures. One guy had had 13 crashes. Working at speed close to the ground leaves them no where to go. Especially over broken/hilly terrain. Quite a few hit unmarked cables and wires. I know quite a few who didn't survive, and a few who sustained serious injuries. None of them were hot doggers. Great to have as jump pilots though, you knew if there was a problem with the aircraft, those guys would always remain calm and deal with the problem. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

Water skiing 180/185. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6OAEGPVcvhU My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

How about travel/a holiday. Sometimes people get bogged down by their surroundings.....seeing the same people and locations can trigger reminders or memories of negative occurrences. Going somewhere new removes those immediate influences, and doing new things and meeting new people can give a different focus. Preferably with a trusted friend or relative to accompany them. Not saying any of this will work, but it might be worth a try. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

You can't deny it when they can see the whites of your eyes! My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

BBC website. They are following the trial and usually post an update every day... My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....