diablopilot

The Ranch has some great staff, and an awsome comunity! Can't go wrong there. ---------------------------------------------- You're not as good as you think you are. Seriously.

There's video of guy dying after towing a Manta behind a pick up truck. THere is properly designed equipment for that sort of thing, why test fate? ---------------------------------------------- You're not as good as you think you are. Seriously.

If you try to "tow" a skydiving canopy, please get video. Ask JC Colclasure about it, he may share a story about how unsafe he found it. ---------------------------------------------- You're not as good as you think you are. Seriously.

The parasailing comunity doesn't use what are considered "squares" in the skydiving industry, and being tow launched requires specific training. ---------------------------------------------- You're not as good as you think you are. Seriously.

Before I used HandiCam, and when I'm not jumping one, I always use both the primary (left) and secondary (right) on a 50/50 basis, switching each jump to keep my proficiency in finding the handles. Oh, and I'm now making my guess an Eclipse. ---------------------------------------------- You're not as good as you think you are. Seriously.

It's not too high provided the dz/event/organizer is informed of what is going to occur and makes adjustments accordingly. So if in doubt, make sure manifest knows.

To make things clear, I am in favor of seperated landing areas. ---------------------------------------------- You're not as good as you think you are. Seriously.

That's what I was thinking. Running the harness to long on the rig can add to the possibility of this happening. While I agree that the Hand Cam it's self had nothing to do with a snag, the fact that the TI was attempting to get the camera that far around in front for a face shot may have. With the wide angle lenses we are using these days, coming around in front is not as necessary to get a decent shot. Plus putting your arm that far in front of the student is asking for trouble. I'm making a assumption here, but it looks like a vector, and if it uses the standard webbing "D" handle for the reserve, there is very little risk of a snag. ---------------------------------------------- You're not as good as you think you are. Seriously.

One problem with such ruled is it can give the guilty a defense! Joe jumper starts hucking 180's into trafic in a dangerous manner. Someone comes over to tell him he's unsafe, and he cries "I was ONLY doing a 180". Yet the rule will serve to punish a qualified, and safe jumper who waits and creates a safe window of opportunity to do a 270. Rules exist because instructors, DZO's, S&TA's, and jumpers in general are unwilling to call a spade a spade and adress jumpers who are showing poor judgement. ---------------------------------------------- You're not as good as you think you are. Seriously.

AFAIK the item is the same, it just was not destined to be a US sold product. US products cost the dealer more because they are not only paying for the item but to support the warrenty service center. The costs are then passed onto the customer. ---------------------------------------------- You're not as good as you think you are. Seriously.

Then who is enabling that? Who's not grounding them? ---------------------------------------------- You're not as good as you think you are. Seriously.

I don't.

As instructors we have a responsibility to do our best to send that element bowling. There is a trend lately to push the "skydiving is for everyone" ideal. Often this is a DZ's policy, and instructors feel pressure to train people they may not want to to keep their positions on the DZ. There of course are those that make it into the sport anyway and for those I say groundings, repeatedly until they change their habits or quit the sport. This serves two purposes, keeps those in the air safer, and weeds bad judgement out of the sport. ---------------------------------------------- You're not as good as you think you are. Seriously.

It has been done and it's incredibly foolish! ---------------------------------------------- You're not as good as you think you are. Seriously.

very very good point. but, many many jumpers do NOT have good judgement...therefore, they must be told how to act (land their canopy) to avoid killing others. And my point would be "WHY ARE THEY JUMPERS?!" ---------------------------------------------- You're not as good as you think you are. Seriously.

Caught your other thread, nice work!

Brilliant Tom, thank you.

Bad idea. There have been quite a few injuries, and even a fatality from this sort of activity. Squares are not designed to be towed. ---------------------------------------------- You're not as good as you think you are. Seriously.

If your focus is training for 4-way isn't landing close and making your back to back more important than swooping for personal enjoyment? Don't get me wrong, I love 270's, but if my job was to train for competition then that would be my primary focus. It sounds like they're trying to make their landing area safer for everyone and to me thats worth having to choose between landing close or walking back from a swoop. It appears that there has been no effort to allow greater than 180 degree turns ANYWHERE at DeLand. Untill we hear further we don't know. If the effort was to make the landing area safer then nothing better than a 90 would be ther rule. When are the kneejerkers going to realize the have done NOTHING to address the issue brought up but the fatalities earlier this/last year? The problem always has been one of judgement. ---------------------------------------------- You're not as good as you think you are. Seriously.

I do applauded the efforts you have made to become a better skydiver and canopy pilot, I wish more skydivers would put in the same effort. The statement in bold does make me worry and I'd like to point out for those that may read this that every skydiver should be paying the same level of attention and focus to their canopy flight. If instructors out there are not training students to understand that the parachute ride is not just something to do at the end of the skydive, but rather it's the most important portion of the skydive, then they need to reconsider being instructors. Pulling high at a major boogie is really a bad idea. Rules of operation and guidelines for safety are different at events like that, and if you're unable to comply, jumping at one might be a bad idea. You should remember that the only danger from pulling high does not come from the group behind you at a multi aircraft even. The aircraft dropping just after yours or perhaps the one that's dropping offset at the same time as yours complicates the situation and a high canopy can create a safety issue for them. ---------------------------------------------- You're not as good as you think you are. Seriously.

Nice attitude. ---------------------------------------------- You're not as good as you think you are. Seriously.

Maybe his DZ has had alot of business and success in the past few years because of some of those hook turning jumpers attracting customers. ---------------------------------------------- You're not as good as you think you are. Seriously.

There as of yet seems to be no plan what so ever to accomodate better than 180 degree turns at DeLand. Well have to wait and see what comes to light. ---------------------------------------------- You're not as good as you think you are. Seriously.

5700 jumps with helmets and recent tests have shown no reduction in my hearing. ---------------------------------------------- You're not as good as you think you are. Seriously.

You do realize they are 3 of 5 members of a high performance canopy team, and DeLand has traditionally been their training facility? For DeLand to jump on a knee jerk bandwagon, without offering any compromise or alternative plan is disappointing. And any plan that allows for 180's in a "standard" pattern is hypocritical at best. ---------------------------------------------- You're not as good as you think you are. Seriously.