obelixtim

So, what was his story?. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

Firstly, nice job on the decision making and prompt action in carrying it out. You dealt with it and walked away unharmed and that is the important part. I bet the beer tasted a little sweeter too!!!. Its easy, and common to sit back later on and figure out what you might have done differently, but your story illustrates one point that you have now experienced.....that of target fixation...while dealing and focussing on one problem, (the hang up) you didn't think of reapplying input into the right toggle. The effect of adrenalin and a bit of stress tends to narrow our focus somewhat. But thats OK. The really important point is that your training kicked in when you reached your hard deck, and you reacted correctly. Mid air rigging is not a good idea, and next time you may react a little differently. But just keep in mind that two situations are not often exactly the same. Next time you may try to sort it out, but then again next time the instant chop might be the best solution. Anyway. well done. You've learned a good lesson about dealing with pressure. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

The earlier discussion covered it pretty well, I thought. You need to be scanning for the low man who is about to dump in your face. And he should be waving off, and you have no business being right above him when he does. None of what you can see if you are on your back scanning the stratosphere. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

What sort of handle on the cutaway? Pud?. Well you must know who was immediately beside you on climbout. Was anyone supposed to take a harness grip? The culprit shouldn't be too hard to track down, unless you wiped it off on the door frame. To grab and extract the cutaway handle without you feeling anything at all seems unusual. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

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

I'm curious as well. Its gonna come as a real shock to realise I've been doing it all wrong for nearly 40 years..... The new generation are just full of surprises to go with their mad skillz...... Techniques do evolve and ... SHOCK HORROR... even improve in some cases. It might pay to keep your mind open to new techniques and methods instead of dismissing them as "mad skillz" before understanding what they are. We are talking a SPECIFIC technique here...namely how to exit the aircraft in a stable position. Now please elaborate, in some detail how the technique of exiting in a stable position has evolved in the last few years, in a way that I have no knowledge of. My mind is open and receptive to new ideas. Its not like I haven't seen, experienced and adopted new techniques and ideas in the last 38 years I've been involved in skydiving. Now tell me how this new fangled exit technique works!. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

I'm curious as well. Its gonna come as a real shock to realise I've been doing it all wrong for nearly 40 years..... The new generation are just full of surprises to go with their mad skillz...... My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

Heineken is a Dutch word. I think it translates into English as Horse Piss....... My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

Back in the days of capewells, one freezing winters day I caught a new A licence guy getting in the plane with a pair of welding gauntlets. Only worse things he could have had on was a pair of boxing gloves. Having a few military mates I've always had a good supply of air force flying gloves. They are great. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

If its hollow you can drill a small hole in it and fill it with sand or water.. Plug the hole and Bobs your uncle..... My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

I read an interesting idea about traffic lights...it was basically asking the question why do we need a green traffic signal. All we need is a red one, to tell us when to stop....Removing all the green traffic lights on a world wide basis would save an awful lot of energy. If you think about it, it is probably a sound idea. I wonder if you could explain how that figure is calculated. Considering the weight of a gallon of gas in its liquid form,(about 6 pounds) I cannot see how burning it would produce a weight in gas that appears to be 13 pounds more than that. It doesn't make any sense to me. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

The Punter has dropped her(?) false teeth?... What do I win?. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

Killed one INSIDE my truck this morning. Just killed four in the shop when I went to get a beer. *** Why kill them?. I'm sure they clean up a few other pests. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

Funny, I've ground-crewed may balloons. Touchdown to drive-off never took more than 30 minutes - without hurrying - unless there was a long walk involved. Doesn't matter, though. If the pilot decides he needs to stay on the ground, that's the end of it. If McNasty doesn't like it, call the cops and let them explain things to him. Well, if you're willing to spend even a half-hour in the presence of an out of control land owner who gets more and more angry because you're not leaving as he demands, then have fun with it. Good luck. It's kind of funny how you berate others for their "bad attitude", and yet here you are advocating ignoring an angry land owner and just doing what you want anyway. I understood from the OP that the farmer departed the scene of his own accord anyway.....so he wasn't a continual presence. It seems the attitude of the OP wasn't helping the situation either. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

As I said, in that case he could have called the cops, told them it was dangerous to take off again, and have them supervise the process. Had injuries or fatalities occurred after the take off, the pilot would be totally responsible. First rule in any aviation emergency is get back on the ground ASAP. Leaving the ground with paying punters into a dangerous situation is solely the responsibility of the pilot, despite the fact farmer McNasty is doing a war dance.... My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

No one is actually "supporting" McNasty, we are just pointing out his rights, which the OP seems to have difficulty understanding. Its obvious in this case too, that the balloon pilot/company could probably have done a better job. It seems that a bit of PR would not have gone amiss, but it sounds like the situation was compounded by the OP arguing with the farmer. I would think there would be a rule somewhere in the system for balloons and their rights when landing, whereever that may be, and I'm sure if safety is a concern, the FAA would have some rule allowing landing on private property.... In this case if safety was an issue I cannot see why the pilot didn't just deflate his balloon and vacate the field as quickly as possible. If the Farmer was objecting strongly then a call to the police would have been the best course of action, although it seems the farmer left the scene on his own volition. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

***Any 'collateral damage' you could describe (ie crackhead goes crazy and murders innocent person) is outweighed by the preservation of autonomy in the individual. If you weight one aspect heavily enough any consequence is acceptable. Philosophical claptrap, that has no place in skydiving. Spend a bit of time at the DZ and pick up a few smashed bodies, and then come back and talk about acceptable consequences. Along with freedom comes responsibility, both for ourselves AND for others. My freedom to avoid picking up smashed skydivers and interacting with their friends and relatives, far outweighs their freedom to do whatever the hell they like. Especially when their mad skillz outweigh their ability, and they lie about their experience and knowledge. As a DZO I rely on everyone to keep an eye on each other, because I can't always be everywhere. And you've always got someone trying to beat the system.... My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

I wasn’t in the balloon; I had jumped (skydived) out of the balloon about 30mins prior (if you comment, at least read the thread). If some small children accidentally kick a ball into yours or (Chucky’s) yard, do you run out and keep their ball and run them away? I’m done here on this thread and “hotbed of insecurity”...carry on. Where did you land, BTW. On the same field?. And kids kicking a ball around can't really be equated to adults flying a balloon. I guess you are angry because the brotherhood of skydivers didn't immediatley see "sense" according to your understanding of the word. It sounds as if the farmer was maybe being unreasonable, but there may have been a reason for that you might not have been aware of. Some people are just unreasonable full stop. You just have to suck it up and deal with it. I think the balloon pilot could have done a better job too.... My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

Land owners have the rights on their own property. Ultimately, you are trespassing. The Balloon guy really should always carry a bottle of wine or case of beer to hand over to landowners, every time they land. The balloon is always gonna come down somewhere. Even a couple of free tickets for a balloon ride would go across better than just showing up unannounced and without apology. Its called PR 101..... Balloons and livestock are not good mixers, I've seen animals panic big time when a balloon goes over with the bunsen burner lit up. The farmer might have already had a bad experience with a balloon. The farmer might still be pissed off, but at least the balloon guy can make an effort to sweeten things. Not to do so is to invite a poor response. Edited to add....if the balloon guy took off in marginal conditions and thereby put his passengers at risk, then that is his fault, not the farmers. Could not the passengers have walked off the field and left the ballon guy to take off by himself?. Seems to me the balloon guy might be short of a few clues here. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

***in a supermarket checkout line. *** People (usually wimmim) who wait till everything is checked by the cashier, realise they have forgotten something, spend 5 minutes getting it, and THEN realise they have to pay, take an age finding their purse, rummaging thru it to find every last small coin they have to pay with, and then coming up short...... "I've got the 3 cents here somewhere"....... My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

USPA also requires "a functional automatic activation device that meets the manufacturer’s recommended service schedule*** A cheapskate DZO would prolly argue that a static line is an automatic activation device.... My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

Firstly, a two out on exit due to an AAD misfire is pretty unlikely....IF the AAD's are good ones and properly maintained. A two out is more likely to happen on exit if the student pulls the wrong handle while doing a DRP or grabs the stevens lanyard by mistake, or goes spiraling down below the activation level.. Having said that, is is pretty unlikely to happen, but can, so it has to be incorporated into FJ training. However, it does not need to be covered in great detail, because the complexities and variation in what can happen are many, so there is a risk of confusion here. It has already been outlined pretty well how to deal with two outs, so I won't go into that in detail. However it is important in all situations except a downplane, to stay cool, assess the situation, and fly the canopies with caution....because with two safely open the student isn't in immediate danger. Your radio man (you do have radios, right??) comes into his own here and can talk the student down in a calm, controlled manner. Without knowing the type of gear used, its hard to give an accurate description of what to do.....is the gear SOS, or two pull for EP's, round or square reserves, size of main v reserve(if square), types of AAD available etc, because different systems can mean different actions when dealing with problems Its also important for the instructors, whatever their views, stick to a standard method of training. Two outs are tricky, because often there is no "right" answer. What you do one day and get away with is quite capable of killing you the next. Fortunately the occurance is reasonably rare. If this guy is training 10 first jumpers a week, and has done so for 30 years, there is no excuse to penny pinch on student gear....he should put his price up if necessary and get decent stuff. And from a DZO's point of view, its a lot less stressful if you have top quality gear, and your training is simpler as well. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

love how people on dz.com can turn a training question into a witch hunt. Yes it is old school, yes the equipment should be replaced, but in 30 years of being a dzo the guy has never even seen a fatality, so he must be doing something right.Quote That would depend on how many first jumpers he trains per year, and if it is only 10 or 12, the odds are pretty good that he'll have a fairly good bounce record. Do you really think, in this day and age, first jumpers should be jumping without AADs, and with round canopies?. Good gear is proven to be safer especially for students. Its why we don't jump B4's with capewells, C9/T 10's, 24 ft twill reserves and Sentinel 2000/ KAP 3 AAD's any more. And is why the student fatality rate is so low compared to back in the day. I jumped gear like that back in the day, because there was no other option, and it did a good job. But it should now be in a museum. And, as pointed out, why the "sliding down the SL to cut someone free" is BS. If that is an example of his expertise, what other BS is he telling his punters?. There is good gear available, and there is no excuse for not using it, unless the guy is a cheapskate. I bet he doesn't charge 30 year old prices for his courses. He is doing his students a disservice, and in short, is ripping them off and not doing the best job he could be doing for them. That this kind of stuff, is going on, in 2012, makes me really angry. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

These guys have no business training students if what you say here is true. You said this DZ is USPA. Where exactly is it?. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

There is a website called "Scambaiter 419" which you should find with a google search. It gives examples of lots of different scams and how to get them back. Even if you don't want to do anything, there are some hilarious stories on there that a well worth a read. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....