danielcroft

In the NTSB meeting it was stated that at least one person wasn't wearing a belt. I've been told that wasn't the case.

You can still be the first sport parachutist. You will still owe beer.

I did. I'm just passing on what I was told while being careful to make it clear that I don't know if the source is reliable or not.

I've been told this was not the case by someone who was involved in the recovery operation. I can't verify the veracity of their comment but I wanted to post that because the NTSB said they weren't wearing belts when in fact the belts failed. My concern regarding belts is that they don't get tightened properly and in fact, even if they were sinched down, most people I've seen grab belts that are behind them (i.e. to the front of the plane) thus negating somewhat the point of tightening the belts (if they were).

First, I actually said that "Have Fun" was something I couldn't do. I'm just getting it occasionally now. My angle is focus but that worked for me YMMV. As for the canopy as just a ride to the ground, Brian Germain says you should love flying your canopy because most people get good at things they enjoy. I *actually* love flying my canopy, I've found myself wondering why we don't have the canopy version of wind tunnels (Ground Launching isn't quite the same thing). As peregrinerose said, you have a much higher chance of getting hurt under canopy so best start liking it now!

Good to hear (read).

To: yourcomments@foxnews.com CC: uspa@uspa.org Innapropriate comments on video item To whom it may concern, The video "Off the Mark" is a video of a skydiver attempting a demonstration landing at a minor league baseball field. The video shows the skydiver coming into land & then deciding to make a landing outside the field. The parachute is shown clipping a palm tree and then disappearing from view. The commentators ridicule the skydiver and no reference is made as to whether the skydiver was injured or lived through the incident. If the video had actually contained footage of the skydiver healthy or at least ok after the incident I wouldn't have as much of a problem with the commentary. It seems in poor taste that the hosts of this program would poke fun at a potentially life threatening situation such as this without any idea as to the condition of the person involved. http://www.foxnews.com/video2/video08.html?maven_referralObject=3095817&maven_referralPlaylistId=&sRevUrl=http://www.foxnews.com/ Regards, Daniel Croft

"It's better to ask forgiveness than permission" Agreed but, given the financial situation, that'd be their right.

"Have fun" That's the other one, along with "relax" that really never worked for me. What worked for me was "distract yourself thinking of what you have to do until it's too late to build up a lot of fear". Visualizing the dive flow (I did IAF aka tandem progression) all the way to altitude and keeping my breathing in check is all I could do to stay in control of myself. I'm starting to experience this "fun" thing people mention but the feeling I get more often and have from the beginning is a feeling of accomplishment. I'm only a noob but the only suggestion I'd make (other than to trust your instructor & their advice) is to focus on what you need to do and do it. Forget about the rest of it. You've decided to skydive and this stuff needs to be done. Good luck, keep us informed.

The mature thing to do would be to talk to them directly about it and be honest about the risks/rewards. Given that they're supporting you financially, they have the option to "pull your funding". Look at ways you can afford it on your own. Show some initiative and get some cash together on your own if you can. I'd suggest doing your tandem *own your own money* and then talking to them about it. Having 3 younger sisters and putting you in their place (but no kids) I'd be more comfortable if you were approaching skydiving seriously and not like it was the latest fad (not saying you are). That means being realistic about it and working out a plan. Check to see if your school has a skydiving club, if so, that may lend some credibility to your desires. Make sure your plan includes continuation of study.

Thanks for that. Apparently the jump pilot (RIP) was very experienced. It makes sense that jump pilots should be trained in EPs just like we are, and re-trained. I find myself wondering how much extra expense DZs would be able to bear (sp?) regarding compliance with the suggested training and TBO requirements. Did I hear it right that the NTSB said that the incidents in skydiving related part 91 flights were about the same percentage as other GA accidents?

Not to cast aspersions on the deceased but, in the light of the findings of the NTSB and that the MO accident triggered the SIR, what was the experience level of the pilot? It seems that if we're talking about an inexperienced or under-trained pilot that the findings regarding recurrence training are on the mark. If however, this was an experienced and current pilot, how does regulating for more training account for a simple mistake (with tragic results)?

c. To clear a pilot chute hesitation (burble), twist at the waist and look over your shoulder to change the airflow. d. pilot chute hesitation: (1) Twist while looking over the right shoulder to modify the airflow. (2) Repeat over the left shoulder.

Well, you know, we didn't want to say anything but you could use some help with your accuracy... KIDDING OF COURSE! To OP: Obviously your instructors should be your first point of contact regarding advice. WARNING: Noob advice! For me, I make it a priority after opening to first, check for traffic and then check for the DZ. If your canopy is stable, take a second to check where you are before you play around. I also usually check where I am relative to the DZ when I'm tracking (on X-ways) or when waving off on solos. Once I'm open & have found the DZ (checking altitude as well) I'll do my canopy checks and deal with any other house keeping. I'm not saying this way is necessarily perfect or the right way but if you're having trouble with getting back to the DZ you should definitely discuss your under canopy priorities with your instructor.

I have a Vigil 2. My wife has a Cypress 2. WARNING: Noob opinion follows! Seems to me that all the AADs have had issues at some point or other, so I bought one that was meant to be user friendly, good quality and relatively inexpensive. I did some research and didn't find any major issues reported on the Vigil 2 (when I bought it) so I went ahead.

+1 You guys rule.

Thanks Howard!

I remember a while ago there someone posted a link to the actual study into restraint systems. Can someone please re-post that link?

Also suggested that people not wearing their restraints may have caused the death of other occupants. If they never actually got over 500ft why the hell weren't people wearing their belts?

Just a noob here but most of this sounded reasonable. Obviously a concern if these recommendations put DZs out of business but some of these things seem pretty shitty if DZs aren't performing basic safety checks and don't know how to fly the plane they're in...

Mine's is not proper english. its against the law to say that. Thanks for that Captain Grammar!

Is it true that there's an extra step in deployment with a FF handle? My wife says it freaked her out a little when she first got her new rig because she needed to do a kind of peel & pull style deployment of the FF handle.

I wasn't so much concerned about the actual turn at 50ft, I was concerned about other people in a pattern. Practicing the checklist involves getting free airspace which was my greatest concern.

Mine's from NYC.

Congratulations! BEER!!!