BrianSGermain

It is important to note that the beep is only a guide that tells you where you are (altitude), not what to do (when to turn). The reality is that most people do not look at their altimeter AT ALL below about 1000 feet. This means that the last turn to final is made without altitude awareness. The primary reason for injuries in our sport is low inappropriate turns. Having a last beep that lets you know when you are below 300 feet seriously reduces this risk. The use of audible cues for students will remain a debatable issue. We do not all need to agree about absolute right and wrong. We just need to do what makes sense to us. If audibles are used, there must undoubtedly be special training to prepare the canopy pilot for the new element. Think, decide, think, decide. We are never done. BSG Instructional Videos:www.AdventureWisdom.com Keynote Speaking:www.TranscendingFEAR.com Canopies and Courses:www.BIGAIRSPORTZ.com

If you have 6 minutes, I invite you to watch this little video: http://youtu.be/zTYY4Qd5iT8 Blue Skies, Brian Instructional Videos:www.AdventureWisdom.com Keynote Speaking:www.TranscendingFEAR.com Canopies and Courses:www.BIGAIRSPORTZ.com

We travel the world teaching canopy flight courses, and the best part of the job is visiting wonderful people like we found at Sky Camp. The dropzone is great, but the people are the best part of this well-run, inspired operation. The vibe trickles down from the top, and this place is on its way to fame and fortune.

Hello Fellow Meat-Bombs! I put a video together that I hope goes viral. The information presented in this Skydive Radio discussion has the potential to make low turn accidents a thing of the past. Please watch it. Please share it. Click Here to Watch Now: http://youtu.be/xqUmLnxKd-Y Forever defending against gravity, Brian Germain Safety First http://www.SkydiveRadio.com Instructional Videos:www.AdventureWisdom.com Keynote Speaking:www.TranscendingFEAR.com Canopies and Courses:www.BIGAIRSPORTZ.com

You free to your oppinion. In my experience, many people do not finish their flares. There are a number of reasons for this, but one of them is an aversion of the bottom of the toggle stroke. When someone explores the stall, they begin to get over the fear of finishing the flare. Just as you are entitled to your oppinion that I am wrong, I am entitled to my oppinion that I am right. Have a nice day. Brian Instructional Videos:www.AdventureWisdom.com Keynote Speaking:www.TranscendingFEAR.com Canopies and Courses:www.BIGAIRSPORTZ.com

There is some variability across designs that must be noted here. I would not worry about stalling most seven cell or docile canopies for long periods of time. Many high performance canopies can spin into linestwists from subtle asymmetry in the toggles or harness. I would therefore suggest just "tickling" the stall on those canopies. If we are talking about symmetrical rear riser stalls, there is not much cause for concern. Toggle stalls are more likely to go off heading. Either way however, symmetrical stalls and recoveries are reasonable events, but it is best not to go looking for trouble. Remind your girlfriend that parachutes get squished up into little bags and they tend to open. If you are afraid to stall your canopy, you are afraid to flare your canopy for landing. When we look for the monster under the bed, we usually discover that there was no monster at all. Happy Landings, Brian Instructional Videos:www.AdventureWisdom.com Keynote Speaking:www.TranscendingFEAR.com Canopies and Courses:www.BIGAIRSPORTZ.com

I guess I could have been clearer a out that. I usually suggest stall on the rears first. You are less likely to go off heading or spin into line twists. Both can be done safely with good technique and ample altitude (sufficient for a safe cutaway). -Brian Instructional Videos:www.AdventureWisdom.com Keynote Speaking:www.TranscendingFEAR.com Canopies and Courses:www.BIGAIRSPORTZ.com

I was kinda curious how people were going to receive that part... BG Instructional Videos:www.AdventureWisdom.com Keynote Speaking:www.TranscendingFEAR.com Canopies and Courses:www.BIGAIRSPORTZ.com

Hey everyone@! Here is the link to Safety First Show #150: "Boogie Safety and Large DZ Safety Issues" Watch Now: http://youtu.be/mEndvsrGzKA Enjoy!! Brian Instructional Videos:www.AdventureWisdom.com Keynote Speaking:www.TranscendingFEAR.com Canopies and Courses:www.BIGAIRSPORTZ.com

The 45 Degree Rule… IS DEAD. I got my ass handed to me this week, and I am big enough to admit it. I have been around for a few years, and so it turns out, some of my old assumptions are outdated. One of them came to light a few days ago when I posted a short article in one of the forums on exit order, as a response to a specific request by a jumper. I am always happy to share what I know, but in this case, I illuminated something that I didn’t know I didn’t know. For years and years, many of us old-timers have taught that keeping your eyes open on jump-run is the best way to ensure exit separation from previous groups. Obviously we must wait significantly longer when the ground speed of the airplane is slow due to high uppers, but many of us have continued to teach the value of watching the previous group drift behind the aircraft. The widely accepted rule became, wait until they are at least a 45 degree angle behind the aircraft, relative to the horizon. This, it was believed, would ensure that they would not be under you when you exited. Apparently, this is not even remotely the case. It is funny when we repeat the dominant paradigm enough without examining the validity, we can brainwash ourselves into believing it is the truth, and inadvertently be preaching untruth. When we consider the effects of aircraft ground speed on horizontal displacement, the angle relative the aircraft is not the issue. The core of the issue is about how far the airplane has actually moved across the ground. There are several people who have spent far more time on this issue than I have, and I am quite certain that they will chime in here and add further value to this discussion, and I look forward to reading all of it. The point I want to make with this post is that we all must remain open to new ideas, and continually look for more answers. There is a great deal to know about this sport, and the body of information is growing by the day. So, if you catch one of us old fogies talking about watching the previous group drift to at least 45 degrees, please direct them to this thread and others like it. I will not pretend to understand the whole story here, but I want to make it clear that the bottom line is: time is what matters. Your eyes can fool you into thinking that it is safe to exit because the previous group is no longer under the plane, when in fact you may still get to see them again. Counting is still the best tool, and if the folks behind you start yelling and freaking out on you, turn to them and smile and tell them that everything is going to be OK, and continue to count. Peer pressure is rarely the best means to safety. Yup, I got reamed on dropzone.com. It happens. Learning requires being wrong and then finding out what is right. I am thankful to all of the kind folks who helped clarify this issue for me, and hopefully in my wrongness, I will help others to see the truth on this issue. Together we learn, together we survive. Love y'all Bri Instructional Videos:www.AdventureWisdom.com Keynote Speaking:www.TranscendingFEAR.com Canopies and Courses:www.BIGAIRSPORTZ.com

Hi Everyone! It would appear that people do not agree with the idea of using your eyes in the door as a means to create exit separation, and by mentioning this idea, I have provoked a great deal of unrest. I am sorry. I assumed that people already knew to wait significantly longer when it is windy, and was merely trying to point out that looking at the previous group will give you a better idea of whether they are still underneath the airplane. Without adding a significant delay on a windy day, the 45 degree idea is pointless. I was merely adding an additional aspect of the process called "direct observation". I hear that we need to make it clear that using the ground speed is the ONLY viable means to ascertain the appropriate time between groups when compensating for slow aircraft ground speed . That is fine with me. I hereby retract my previous statement. I will forevermore teach that the 45 degree rule is not helpful in any way, and that using your eyes can only lead to an erroneous sense of separation on a windy day. You can all settle down now and get back to having fun. I love you all anyway... Sincerely, Brian Instructional Videos:www.AdventureWisdom.com Keynote Speaking:www.TranscendingFEAR.com Canopies and Courses:www.BIGAIRSPORTZ.com

When we combine harness and toggle input, there is a synergy that makes the turns flow. Even on a canopy that does not turn at all on harness input, there is a big difference between neutral harness toggle turns and those with harness input. Play with the distinction, watch your pilot chute, and go see what I mean. You will like what you learn! Bri Instructional Videos:www.AdventureWisdom.com Keynote Speaking:www.TranscendingFEAR.com Canopies and Courses:www.BIGAIRSPORTZ.com

I stand corrected. The 45 rule is only part of the formula for creating adequate separation, as the amount of time in relationship to the aircraft's ground speed is critical, no argument. I wrote that post quite late at night, and did not think it through. Sorry about that to all of you who read it. So, Popsjumper, who are you really? Do you have 100,000 jumps and have been jumping for 99 years? Wow those are some amazing credentials. Isn't it moral to lie about your stats? Who are you, really? I try very hard to help the skydiving community because I love skydivers, plain and simple. I cannot always be perfect, and I rely on the people to teach me the correct response when I am standing on the wrong side of the line. That is how we stay alive in this sport. We listen, and we keep our egos out of the process. I want to learn the truth, especially when I am wrong. So, for those of you who took the time to clarify my incomplete comment, I thank you. For those of you who did so with love, I thank you. For those of you who did so with sharp words bordering on slander, I hope the world leads you to learn that being nice to people is the way to go. Blue Skies All Of YOU, Brian Instructional Videos:www.AdventureWisdom.com Keynote Speaking:www.TranscendingFEAR.com Canopies and Courses:www.BIGAIRSPORTZ.com

???????????????????????????????????? Unbelievable. You want to get it right? Do the math. define 45 [/reply Relative to the horizon. Instructional Videos:www.AdventureWisdom.com Keynote Speaking:www.TranscendingFEAR.com Canopies and Courses:www.BIGAIRSPORTZ.com

Lots of very good questions. As far as when to disregard this or any other chart that describes a reasonable path to safety, my advice is, go slowly and with the approval of people who are further along the path. It can only be our impatient ego that desires for us to skip such steps, and when we follow its desires, we sometimes run into regrets. This is not always the case, and with advanced training and approval of your S&TA or canopy course director, it may turn out to be a good choice. Mostly however, accelerating the downsizing process is a mistake. What is the rush anyway? As for the nonlinear nature of scaling, there are several things to consider that are distinct from other types of aircraft. The following list of relevant variables is not in order of magnitude. 1) The fabric thickness does not scale with surface area, which means that the fabric is proportionately thicker on smaller canopies 2) The needle perforations represent a larger percentage of the surface area on small canopies. Further, the ribs are closer together, which makes the overall permeability of the fabric greater on smaller canopies. 3) The suspension lines are shorter on small canopies, but the diameter is not usually scaled in proportion to the size of the canopy. 4) The most significant effect has to do with the way in which parachutes are scaled. When we scale a canopy, we quantify the size by the surface area: (span x average chord). We figure out the scale factor, a number by which we multiply each dimension of the canopy to achieve the new size. Since we are using length x width, this is a square function. The result is a the same parachute but smaller, right? Wrong. Here's why... The area is only one aspect of a parachute's size, while VOLUME is a very significant contributing factor when it comes to performance. A canopy's drag comes from two locations, the canopy itself (D1), and the suspended load (D2). The greater the drag on top (D1), the higher the average angle of attack will be, thereby improving glide ratio and shortening recovery arc. The converse is also true. Based on this, when we consider the effects of scaling the rib height by the same scale factor as the length and width, it is easy to see that the volume is changing by a cube function. This means that as we scale up, the drag in increasing faster than the area, and vice versa. The consequence of this difference is, large canopies have more D1 and therefore have a better glide and shorter recovery arc than small canopies, EVEN AT THE SAME WINGLOADING. Yes, line length also works toward this same end, but the effect is low order in comparison to the volumetric discrepancies. To get an idea of the magnitude of this discrepancy, if we were to scale the rib height in a way that would cause the volume to scale at the same rate as the area, we would need to keep the rib height the same for all sizes. This is not practical of course, as putting the same airfoil on a 97 and a 190 would be silly. Some canopy designs do compensate slightly by dropping the airfoil height on larger sizes and increasing it on smaller canopies. This is the exception rather than the rule, by far. The best answer I can come up with for the future is to get all the manufacturers to agree to switch from using "Square Feet' as our unit of measurement, to "Cubic Feet". This would require a bit of math (area under the curve), but it is possible. This way, we would be comparing apples to apples, and help customers to get a better idea of the performance of a canopy than square feet ever will. Hope this helps clarify things for you. Thanks for the good questions! Happy Landings, Brian Instructional Videos:www.AdventureWisdom.com Keynote Speaking:www.TranscendingFEAR.com Canopies and Courses:www.BIGAIRSPORTZ.com

It sounds as if you made the right choice. Yes, harness turns offer no additional drag unlike toggle turns which increase the drag overall to a surprising degree. Further, toggles alter the yaw axis coordination, as mentioned in the article, and pitch the canopy first positively at the beginning of the turn, and then negatively at the relief of the toggle. This makes toggle turns inappropriate below 100 feet unless you are really gentle. Harness turns flow gracefully in and out of the maneuver, and the flare can easily be started during or immediately following the turn. One caveat. A harness turn is not exactly snappy on a student canopy. If your chest strap is loosened after a full canopy control check, harness input is more pronounced. Even a large canopy will respond to harness input when combined with good technique (ie, lifting the outside hip and lowering the hip on the inside of the turn, like a dog peeing on a fire hydrant). The bottom line is, when combined with smooth toggle input, a harness turn places you in position to increase your angle of attack swiftly as the rising planet requires. I invite you to explore harness turns more deeply. The more tools you have in your toolbelt, the more unconsidered possibilities you will be able to handle. Happy Landings, Brian Instructional Videos:www.AdventureWisdom.com Keynote Speaking:www.TranscendingFEAR.com Canopies and Courses:www.BIGAIRSPORTZ.com

Interesting, JC, but most likely a bit over simplified. At a glance, 30 mph uppers giving 15 seconds of separation may work for the average jumprun speed, although a slower plane will require more, and a faster one less. It is a reasonable rule of thumb however, and I think it might be a good way to give students a good idea of the time between groups. I prefer to use my eyes and wait until I see the previous group behind the airplane drift to at least a 45 degree angle. It probably works out to be a similar split that the half-ing rule, but visual confirmation couldn't hurt. Nice one, thank you! BG Instructional Videos:www.AdventureWisdom.com Keynote Speaking:www.TranscendingFEAR.com Canopies and Courses:www.BIGAIRSPORTZ.com

One more point of clarification regarding Bill's astute comments: When we speak of freefall drift, the amount of time spent in freefall is what most profoundly changes the distance that a skydiver or group drifts with the wind. Freeflyers spend less time in freefall, which means that they drift back toward the dz less. Add this to the greater prop blast penetration, and you have a very different story than the flat groups. -BG Instructional Videos:www.AdventureWisdom.com Keynote Speaking:www.TranscendingFEAR.com Canopies and Courses:www.BIGAIRSPORTZ.com

I appreciate you adding thoughts to the conversation, Bill. I agree with your points, although in my experience as a freeflyer, forward throw is not a minor concern at all. Back in the good old days of freaks out first, I remember opening up on the other side of the flat groups on more than one occasion, including light wind conditions. A head down flyer can continue to have horizontal movement for a very long time. Regarding the point about 10 seconds being not enough on a windy day, I agree completely. I suppose I should have used stronger wording than "10 seconds or more", stressing the "more" part. Again, I really appreciate the input Bil. Blue Skies! Brian Instructional Videos:www.AdventureWisdom.com Keynote Speaking:www.TranscendingFEAR.com Canopies and Courses:www.BIGAIRSPORTZ.com

Exit Order Safety by Brian Germain There are many different views on exit order, although only some of them are based in science. The following exit order plan is based on the principle of "prop blast penetration": the degree to which a jumper remains under the aircraft based on the drag produced by their body position. When a jumper assumed a log drag body position, head down for instance, they follow a longer arc through the sky on their way to vertical descent. The fastest falling skydivers are freefliers, which means that they remain under the aircraft longest. If freefliers exit the aircraft first, their trajectory will take them toward, and often beyond the trajectory of flat flyers exiting after them. This fact has been proven time and again in the numerous close calls that have led to the creation of this exit order model. Therefore, the best way to create maximum separation between jumpers at deployment time is to have the RW "flat" jumpers exit before the freefliers, regardless of deployment altitude. Beyond this, we must also consider formation size when planning exit order. Since the last groups out of the airplane are more likely to land off the dropzone, large groups tend to exit before small groups based on the "needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few" principle of human civilization. I concur that this is a good plan, but for another set of reasons. Large groups tend to open lower than small groups due to task fixation and the need for adequate tracking time to create safe separation. This means participants of large formations should open closer to the dropzone. Further, smaller groups have the option of breaking off early, tracking perpendicular to the jumprun and pulling high to compensate for long spots, while the complexity of building a large formation makes it difficult to take such steps toward safety due to the peer pressure associated with the situation. So this brings us to the preliminary plan of sending the flat flyers out first, in groups largest to smallest, then the freefliers. However, since inexperienced freefliers most often remain under the aircraft for a shorter period of time than vertically oriented freefliers performing perfect zero angle of attack exits, the order should be lowest experience to highest. This also allows the more experienced freefliers to observe the exits of the novices, giving them the opportunity to give helpful advice, and to provide extra time in the door if necessary. If the previous skydiver or group is still under the airplane, do not jump. When in doubt, wait longer. Following the flats and then the vertical skydivers, we have the students and tandems. The order can be varied here, although there are some reasons to support sending the tandems out last. First, landing a tandem off the dz is safer than landing a student into an unknown location. Second, students can sometimes get open lower than planned, which not only increases their risks of landing off, but puts the instructors at risk of landing off even more as they open lower than their students. Tandems on the other hand have the option of pulling whenever they see fit, which allows the camera flyer to get open high as well. The last groups to consider are those involved in horizontal skydives, such as tracking, "atmonauti" or steep tracking, and wingsuit pilots. The truth is, experienced horizontal skydivers can safety get out of the way of other jumpers quite easily, and can exit in any part of the order. However, in the case of two or more horizontal skydiving groups, plans must be created and followed with vigilance. For instance, one tracking group can exit first and track out and up the right side of the jumprun, while another group can exit last and offset toward the left side of the jumprun. Three horizontal groups on the same aircraft are best handled by adding a second pass, although there is a great deal of room for creative answers when wingsuit pilots are involved. The amount of time between groups must vary based on the groundspeed of the aircraft. On a windy day, with an into-the-wind jump-run, the aircraft may move quite slowly across the ground, reducing separation between jumpers. This requires significant time between exits, perhaps as much as 10 seconds or more on a windy day or a slow airplane. The separation between groups can be increased quite easily on windy days by crabbing the aircraft with respect to the upper level winds, a practice that has become increasingly common at large dropzones. The bottom line is, keep talking. Every load is a brand new set of circumstances, and requires a good deal of thought. Make sure everyone arrives at the loading area at the ten minute call to allow for good planning and preparation. Many close calls could have been easily avoided by skydivers talking to skydivers, and skydivers talking to pilots. Take your time in the door, keep your eyes open and look for each other. It is a big sky up there, and if we work together, we can use all of it to create safe, fun skydives. Instructional Videos:www.AdventureWisdom.com Keynote Speaking:www.TranscendingFEAR.com Canopies and Courses:www.BIGAIRSPORTZ.com

How's this, Jason? Exit Order Safety by Brian Germain There are many different views on exit order, although only some of them are based in science. The following exit order plan is based on the principle of "prop blast penetration": the degree to which a jumper remains under the aircraft based on the drag produced by their body position. When a jumper assumed a log drag body position, head down for instance, they follow a longer arc through the sky on their way to vertical descent. The fastest falling skydivers are freefliers, which means that they remain under the aircraft longest. If freefliers exit the aircraft first, their trajectory will take them toward, and often beyond the trajectory of flat flyers exiting after them. This fact has been proven time and again in the numerous close calls that have led to the creation of this exit order model. Therefore, the best way to create maximum separation between jumpers at deployment time is to have the RW "flat" jumpers exit before the freefliers, regardless of deployment altitude. Beyond this, we must also consider formation size when planning exit order. Since the last groups out of the airplane are more likely to land off the dropzone, large groups tend to exit before small groups based on the "needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few" principle of human civilization. I concur that this is a good plan, but for another set of reasons. Large groups tend to open lower than small groups due to task fixation and the need for adequate tracking time to create safe separation. This means participants of large formations should open closer to the dropzone. Further, smaller groups have the option of breaking off early, tracking perpendicular to the jumprun and pulling high to compensate for long spots, while the complexity of building a large formation makes it difficult to take such steps toward safety due to the peer pressure associated with the situation. So this brings us to the preliminary plan of sending the flat flyers out first, in groups largest to smallest, then the freefliers. However, since inexperienced freefliers most often remain under the aircraft for a shorter period of time than vertically oriented freefliers performing perfect zero angle of attack exits, the order should be lowest experience to highest. This also allows the more experienced freefliers to observe the exits of the novices, giving them the opportunity to give helpful advice, and to provide extra time in the door if necessary. If the previous skydiver or group is still under the airplane, do not jump. When in doubt, wait longer. Following the flats and then the vertical skydivers, we have the students and tandems. The order can be varied here, although there are some reasons to support sending the tandems out last. First, landing a tandem off the dz is safer than landing a student into an unknown location. Second, students can sometimes get open lower than planned, which not only increases their risks of landing off, but puts the instructors at risk of landing off even more as they open lower than their students. Tandems on the other hand have the option of pulling whenever they see fit, which allows the camera flyer to get open high as well. The last groups to consider are those involved in horizontal skydives, such as tracking, "atmonauti" or steep tracking, and wingsuit pilots. The truth is, experienced horizontal skydivers can safety get out of the way of other jumpers quite easily, and can exit in any part of the order. However, in the case of two or more horizontal skydiving groups, plans must be created and followed with vigilance. For instance, one tracking group can exit first and track out and up the right side of the jumprun, while another group can exit last and offset toward the left side of the jumprun. Three horizontal groups on the same aircraft are best handled by adding a second pass, although there is a great deal of room for creative answers when wingsuit pilots are involved. The amount of time between groups must vary based on the groundspeed of the aircraft. On a windy day, with an into-the-wind jump-run, the aircraft may move quite slowly across the ground, reducing separation between jumpers. This requires significant time between exits, perhaps as much as 10 seconds or more on a windy day or a slow airplane. The separation between groups can be increased quite easily on windy days by crabbing the aircraft with respect to the upper level winds, a practice that has become increasingly common at large dropzones. The bottom line is, keep talking. Every load is a brand new set of circumstances, and requires a good deal of thought. Make sure everyone arrives at the loading area at the ten minute call to allow for good planning and preparation. Many close calls could have been easily avoided by skydivers talking to skydivers, and skydivers talking to pilots. Take your time in the door, keep your eyes open and look for each other. It is a big sky up there, and if we work together, we can use all of it to create safe, fun skydives. Instructional Videos:www.AdventureWisdom.com Keynote Speaking:www.TranscendingFEAR.com Canopies and Courses:www.BIGAIRSPORTZ.com

This is a biggie. My love for my family and particularly for my son is what motivates me to seek out and share safety related information. My fear inspires me to be a better skydiver. Knowledge leads to skill and skill is safety. If you do not feel in your gut that you should be skydiving, sell your rig and buy some adventure gear that your whole family can use together. If you love skydiving so much that you feel you would be leaving a part of your core self behind, then giving it up would be a great disservice to your family. If you are not the real you, you have nothing to give anyone anyway. But if you go that road, as many of us have, do not take worry with you. Fear is insidious, and it robs you of both skill and safety. Let yourself enjoy skydiving, and appreciate it on a whole new level. Perhaps you won't push it as hard as you used to, but at least you are in the sky. :-) If you want to talk more about this in a PM, please feel free to contact me. Really... -Brian Instructional Videos:www.AdventureWisdom.com Keynote Speaking:www.TranscendingFEAR.com Canopies and Courses:www.BIGAIRSPORTZ.com

So, feel free to discuss! Instructional Videos:www.AdventureWisdom.com Keynote Speaking:www.TranscendingFEAR.com Canopies and Courses:www.BIGAIRSPORTZ.com

Please spread this around. Instructional Videos:www.AdventureWisdom.com Keynote Speaking:www.TranscendingFEAR.com Canopies and Courses:www.BIGAIRSPORTZ.com

Here is a link to a YouTube video with an excerpt from The World's First Skydiving Podcast, SkydiveRADIO: The topic of discussion is jump run safety: exit order, spotting and other related issues. Please pass on the link! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3QK8_T0MSrQ&feature=youtube_gdata_player Instructional Videos:www.AdventureWisdom.com Keynote Speaking:www.TranscendingFEAR.com Canopies and Courses:www.BIGAIRSPORTZ.com