obelixtim

I'm just going to look at the inside of my eyelids for a few hours. I'll see you when I'm looking at you.... My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

Very good post, and a good way to start the process. Now where can we make this happen, and who is gonna start?. The stat that is already obvious....no further data needed, is the number of injuries and fatals under open canopies. In the face of this known information, there is a huge resistance to acknowledge that there is, in fact an obvious solution, but the blind adherance to "individual rights" means that people are going to continue dying in this brainless desire to continue death inducing behaviour. Either the attitudes and behaviour has to change, or the equipment has to change...there are no other options. There are many aircraft pilots in the world, but very few of them fly fast jets. Why should our pilots regard themselves as top gun fast jet pilots. The reality is 95% of them aren't, and never will be. Your suggestions will put us on the right track to achieve the first, but how many dead men walking are we going to be lookng at on our DZ's before the change is effective. Time IS of the essence. But every suggestion is worthwhile, and yours are worthy of introduction. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

It seems unusual to me. Fear is normal, but you shouldn't be experiencing "refusing to exit" type fear.. It makes me think something else is behind it. Think back to your training prior to your first jump. Was there any aspect of it that you didn't "get", missed, or was unsure about. I'm talking about where the parachute was opened up and shown to you, how it was explained to you how it deployed, how it was built and how it is flown and controlled.. Also how your reserve and AAD worked. Then think back to your emergency training. Were you totally confident that you could handle an emergency with the parachute. Did the instructors put you under stress during the EP training. In the intense training you get, it is easy to miss something, and the training continues at pace because there is a lot to learn. Once you start jumping it is hard to go back and revisit aspects you might not have been confident in. IMO this manifests itself as anxiety which steadily gets worse, when the opposite should be true. A lot depends on the quality of your instruction, and quality of instruction varies a lot, I've seen it at lots of places. Your instructors should have already physically run you through your procedures after your refusal. If they didn't, they aren't doing their job properly. Getting into the plane you can have some level of apprehension, that is normal, but you should at the same time be totally confident you can handle anything on the jump. When you have time at the DZ, get in the hanging harness and practise your EPs, you can never do too much of that, no matter what your experience level. Long time gaps between jumps don't help either. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

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

It would have been simple to sort this guy out. The pilot does not take off if this guy is in the plane. Rubbish, this guy should have been called on his behaviour by the DZO. No one has to put up with that nonsense, hard man or not..... If he was threatening people, then it was time for the law to get involved. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

Can you explain why that would be true??. The "old timers" have prolly been involved in areas of progress that you take for granted, but they were the ones blazing the trail. And in a multitude of areas at the same time. They've experienced the pitfalls first hand. Its why they object strongly to the lemming like behaviour we see today. They've been there done that long before some of the whizzkids were a sparkle in their fathers eye.... Doesn't mean they should ever be ignored, especially when they are unnecessary....and open canopy fatalities are for the most part unnecessary. I guarantee a rule restricting the use of HP canopies would see an instant drop in open canopy fatalities... You might be a bold young skydiver, one day you might be an old skydiver, but its unlikely you'll be an old bold skydiver. Most likely you'll never do the time the oldies have..... My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

Thought not.... My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

And there you go. I've never said swoopers should be ostracised, unless you classify swoopers amongst the people I've said should be ostracised....the stupid, the idiots, the careless and foolish. What are you trying to say here?. The sub text should read..."it wasn't like this in my day, so we are DOING something wrong". Can you deny that?. If swooping can be done safely I'm all for it. Too many is a relative term.....in this case people killing themselves under open canopies that have already saved them from death, is absolutely too many. Especially when the same mistakes are made, over and over, and the use of the equipment allows no margin for error. I do think if people show a careless disregard for themselves and others they should pay a penalty for that. If it takes a ban, so be it. Zero deaths under open canopies should be a realistic goal (if not actually achievable. We've always been in danger from water, electricity, obstacles). "Parachute" literally means "safe fall", and the idea that a parachute would save you from death is the reason they were invented. If what we have now kills you, instead of saving you, then it is no longer a parachute. I've been advocating a step back to a parachute that won't kill you for a small error. I don't think that is unreasonable. I'm getting tired of hearing this....the comparison is NOT the same. Sometimes the extremist drum needs to be banged to get serious attention, because up till now no one has taken this seriously. Its provoking some useful thought and discussion. Or would you rather the status quo to continue for another 20 years?. If officialdom gets involved (which I hope it doesn't) then you'll really have something to squeal about. And you cannot deny it...logically, a return to larger slower canopies WOULD see deaths under open canopies fall. It might not suit you or the swooping fraternity, but deaths would fall for sure. Find a way that makes it happen and retains your fun....I'm all for it. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

I'm surprised you think hook turn fatalities don't count. Are you on the side of skydiving or not?. Blah blah blah..... Because that risk can affect every skydiver. If we ignore known risks, and people keep dying, then we are not doing our jobs. Have you ever taken responsibility for the lives and safety of others?. I'd like an honest answer to that question please... Absolute rubbish. The history of skydiving has many examples of high risk or dangerous behaviour being banned. The evolution of equipment, training and better practise has seen a consistent decrease in risk, and a huge improvement in safety. Except for open canopy fatalities. Nothing has been done about this, and I'm not sure why this bucks the trend. But it has to stop. I don't think you care at all if your posts are any indication. You just like to argue the point with no real substance to your argument. You still have a lot of learning to do if you really want to be a good skydiver..... My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

What part of deaths under open canopies do you not understand. Hook turns kill a lot more than collisions. They are all bad....and unnecessary. Edit...Sparky beat me to it. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

So why be afraid to answer them?. Well its true...something does have to be done...and I've seen some good ideas, and some bad ideas. Discussing them moves us in the right direction to start. And I'm sure a lot of people have learnt something....look at the number of hits on some of these posts, there are a lot of silent readers out there. Saving a life is a worthy objective don't you think.... Zero tolerance for stupid behaviour should be a given. And the boogie man can get you if you give him enough reason. DZ's have been shut down in the past for a variety of reasons. Newspaper headlines tend to get noticed, especially by officials and politicians with an axe to grind.... We who have been around the block have seen it before. Not so, many are calling for clarification and adherence to existing good ideas. Some DZO's will enforce their own ideas. Again you are dodging the issue of hook turn fatalities. Its not just collisions, although they have been the catalyst for the reaction we are seeing. The issue is death under open canopies.... Again you are trying to avoid the issue by bringing up these other categories of fatals. Most of them are seperate, one off accidents. With open canopy death and injury, we are seeing a repeat pattern of exactly the same behaviour. There is no reason or excuse for someone to die under a perfectly open canopy that is functioning properly. Yep, we'll have subgroups in the cemetary, in the hospital, and in the grounded skydivers club. If it means you get your rocks off, why would you care. Warm fuzzies about dividing us don't quite cut it. Admit it, you are afraid something might restrict you while benefitting the majority..... Blue on blue will still happen though, won't it. A lesser evil than pointless fatalities and permanent disability....... My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

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

Its your body reacting naturally to an instinctive fear, fire and falling being the two instinctive fears that we all have. Your brain is telling you that its OK, because you've assimilated some training ,and you've already experienced jumping a couple of times. It will soon go, but it lingers for a while if you only do one or two jumps per week, or have a long layoff..... Your body will soon learn that you are pretty safe, and the adrenalin rush will quickly negate the effects of your body giving you the danger signal. Then you'll get confident enough to be dangerous.... My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

I think Bolas would start an argument in an empty room...... He seems to be pretty good at evading a simple question as well. In 20 years he'll prolly be running his own DZ, or the USPA or something. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

Be interesting to see a world wide stat, because its happening everywhere. Such a stupid and pointless way to die..... My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

It could also be roll packed if it was hand deployed rather than having a pilot chute fitted. Hand deploys can be very messy if the canopy is folded into the container. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

Sorry....YES they were.... You'd be WRONG again..... Yes they are, if you call the last 20 years since the advent of HP canopies "new". It wasn't till HP canopies came along that landing pattern discipline really went out the window. To anyone who has been around for a while, that is clear. But you don't want to believe them.... True, and people haven't adapted to them.....except on a very limited basis....hence the ongoing problem..... My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

Well done. It takes balls to fess up to a mistake. Hopefully others will follow your example. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

And you think thats OK??.... I'm surprised you seem to think the low number of deaths we have is OK... Looking at all your posts on this matter it seems your major perspective is your self interest. Its not all about you..... My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

And the people they kill, the feelings of all the bereaved relatives and friends, the peace of mind of the people who scrape up the bodies, the continued easy access to airports and aircraft, the future of the sport itself.... Tell the whole story, and take your blinkers off. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

A lid keeping you conscious during an aircraft failure on takeoff can give you a chance to get away from the possible BBQ that follows...is another scenario to consider. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

Like the saying goes, the only way to make a small fortune out of skydiving, is to start with a large fortune... My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

Looking at his ripcord operated rig, it seems he has low jump numbers, and is behaving the way he is through sheer ignorance. Whoever trained him did a poor job, as is the vidiot who is shooting the pics, who should be giving him some serious advice... My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

1975 5 static lines, inc 3DRPs, then a horseshoe mal for my first FF. Scared the crap out of everyone except myself, being rather busy trying to clear it. Got the reserve out at 500 ft, was very glad the Sentinel 2000 didn't fire at 1000 as it was meant to. JM's made me do another DRP before they let me go FF again.... So 6 in total. My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....

Ist Jump on a Mk 1 PC. 1st canopy a B4 harness and container with a Delta 2 Parawing, with the big fat coloured lines and 6ft length of conveyer belt attached as an OSI. Had a reputation as a Malfunction machine, but I never had a mal on it in the 100 odd jumps I did on it. Lent it to a mate one time, and of course, he chopped it!!. Upgraded to a Strato Star in a Mk 1 Wonderhog, hand deploy with 3 rings. Thought myself the bees knees...... My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing....